The Earliest Life of Milton. 15 



guage of this"" time) Xon-resistanee & Passive Obedience to 

 bee the Doctrine of all the Reformed Chnrches. This gen- 

 eral Thesis, which incourag'd all manner of Tyranny,^" he 

 opposed by good Arguments, and the Authorities of several 

 eminently learned Protestants in a Book titled The Tenure 

 of Kings, but without any particular application to the dis- 

 pute then on foot in this Nation. 



Upon the change of Government which succeeded the 

 King's death hee was, without any seeking of his, by the 

 means of a private Acquaintance, who was a member of the 

 new Council of State, chosen Latin Secretary. In this public 

 Station his abilities & the acuteness of his parts, which had 

 h-en hid in his privacy, were soon taken notice of, and hee 

 was pitch'd upon to elude the Artifice'^ of 'E'.KOjy A'a^f/.r^r^.'- 

 This hee had no sooner performed answerably to the expec- 

 tation from his Witt & Pen, in ^ E'.K(rMtK).d'ri<i, but another Ad- 

 venture expected him.'^ 



Salmasius a Professor in Holland, who had in a large 

 Treatise, not long before, maintain 'd the parity of Church 

 Governor>s against Episcopacy, put out Dcfensio Caroli Regis, 

 and in it, amongst other absurdities, justify 'd (as indeed 

 it was unavoidable in the defense of that Cause, which was 



"Wood changes the word 'this' to 'that,' perhaps because the 

 doctrine became antiquated with tlie Revolution of 1G88. The manu- 

 script is certainly accurate for the time it is written, as the doctrine 

 was most prominent during the latter part of the reign of Charles II 

 and during the reign of James II. 



'" \Yood*s version is, ' which as he conceivVl did encourage all man- 

 ner of Tj-ranny.' 



"Wood's version, 'the artifice (so it was then by the Faction 

 called).' 



"The Greek words are thus pointed in the manuscrijjt. 



" Wood's version, ' \Vhereup(m he soon after published . . . Icono- 

 clastcs . . . which being published to the horror of all sober men, nay 

 even to the Presbyterians, yet by the then dominant party it was es- 

 teemed an excellent piece, & perform'd answerably to the expectation 

 of his Wit and Pen.' Wood goes on to state the effect the book had 

 on Milton's position in the eyes of the crown at the Restoration, and 

 the fact that, in company with a volume by John Goodwin, it was 

 called in by proclamation in IGGO. 



