298 HISTORY OF KING HENRY VII. 



if the king had been out of fear of his own estate, it 

 was not unlike he would have spared his life. But 

 the cloud of so great a rebellion hanging over his 

 head, made him work sure. Wherefore after some 

 six weeks distance of time, which the king did ho 

 nourably interpose, both to give space to his bro 

 ther s intercession, and to shew to the world that he 

 had a conflict with himself what he should do ; he 

 was arraigned of high treason, and condemned, and 

 presently after beheaded. 



Yet is it to this day left but in dark memory, 

 both what the case of this noble person was, for which 

 he suffered ; and what likewise w r as the ground and 

 cause of his defection, and the alienation of his heart 

 from the king. His case was soid to be this : That 

 in discourse between Sir Robert Clifford and him he 

 had said, &quot; That if he were sure that that young man 

 &quot; were King Edward s son, he would never bear 

 &quot; arms against him.&quot; This case seems somewhat an 

 hard case, both in respect of the conditional, and in 

 respect of the other words. But for the conditional, 

 it seemeth the judges of that time, who were learned 

 men, and the three chief of them of the privy coun 

 cil, thought it was a dangerous thing to admit ifs 

 and ands, to qualify words of treason; whereby 

 every man might express his malice, and blanch his 

 danger. And it was like to the case, in the follow 

 ing times, of Elizabeth Barton, the holy maid of 

 Kent ; who had said, &quot; That if King Henry the 

 &quot; Eighth did not take Catherine his wife again, he 

 &quot; should be deprived of his crown, and die the death 



