266] A TOPOGRAPHICAL 



his Prince, whose coffers he replenished, with the aid of his coad- 

 jutor Empson, at the expeuce of the opulent, contrary to equity and 

 justice. This fact is fully elucidated by Lord Bacon in the follow- 

 ing passage : " As kings do more easily find instruments for their 

 will and humour, than for their service and honour, he had gotten 

 for his purpose two instruments, Empson and Dudley, hold men, 

 and careless of fame, and that took toll for their master's grist. 

 Dudley was of a good family, eloquent, and one that could put 

 hateful business into good language, but Lmpson, that was a son of 

 a sieve-maker, triumphed always in the deed done, putting off all 

 other respect whatever. These two persons being lawyers in science, 

 and privy councillors in authority, turned law and justice into 

 wormwood and rapine. For first their manner was to cause divers 

 subjects to be indicted for sundry crimes, and so far forth to pro- 

 ceed in form of law, but when the bills were found, then presently 

 to commit them : and, nevertheless, not to produce them in any 

 reasonable time to them ; but to suffer them to languish long in 

 prison, and by sundry artificial devices and terms to extort from 

 them great fines and ransoms which they termed compositions and 

 mitigations." 



The activity of Dudley in these nefarious transactions soon made 

 him very odious to the people, but he retained his consequence at 

 Court, and in the Senate too ; for in 1504 he was Speaker of the 

 House of Commons, and two years afterwards he obtained from the 

 King a grant of the Stewardship of the Rape of Hastings, in Sussex. 

 This was the last favour which he received from his royal master, 

 who is said to have felt great compunction for his arbitrary proceed- 

 ings against the liberties and unjust exaction of the property of 

 his people. 



Soon after the demise of Henry the Seventh in 1509, the popular 

 clamour against Dudley was so loud that it reached the ears of 

 Henry the Eighth, who imprisoned him and Empsen in the Tower, 

 and commanded that their subordinate instruments should be 

 brought to trial and punished. 



In July 1509, after about three months imprisonment, Dudley was 

 arraigned before commissioners assembled at Guildhall, and found 

 guilty of high treason, but no sentence was passed upon him. When 

 the Parliament met in January 1510, Dudley and Empson were 

 both attainted of high treason, but Queen Catherine having inter- 

 posed in favour of Dudley, the execution of both the state crimi- 

 nals was deferred. This circumstance excited much indignation 





