344 JOURNAL OF THE PLYMOUTH INSTITUTION. 
help giving sketches of the scenes among which his heroes were 
born, and he had himself lived for four years; take for instance 
his description of Clovelly and Lundy Island, in his sketch of 
George Cary, p.p., Dean of Exeter. 
It was in 1664 that Prince came to Bideford. Mr. Arthur 
Giffard, the then vicar, was presented to the vicarage of Bideford 
about 1646 by his kinsman, afterwards the Earl of Bath, but was 
dispossessed again about 1648; and both Prince and Dr. Walker 
give a very deplorable account of the way in which he was treated, 
and throw all the blame on his successor in the vicarage, William 
Bartlett. On the other hand Calamy goes into the charges very 
fully and, I think, fairly; entirely refutes some, and shows that 
as to others Mr. Bartlett was not in any way answerable for what 
was done. However that may be, it seems that both were very 
good and worthy men. In 1662 Mr. Bartlett, refusing to conform, 
was ejected, and Mr. Giffard came back again; but we are glad to 
know that he and Mr. Bartlett lived on very good terms, and that 
when dying Mr. Giffard desired to see and speak with Mr. Bartlett. 
Prince being Giffard’s curate, we must expect to find him very 
warm on the subject of his vicar’s wrongs, especially as he was a 
strong Royalist himself; and he speaks of the sequestration as 
being ‘‘for no other crime than his loyalty and conformity to the 
Church of England (such was the iniquity of these times).” He 
describes Mr. Giffard as ‘‘an able scholar, a constant and painful 
preacher, an orthodox divine, and a pious, good man;”’ ‘ this,” 
he added, ‘‘ I can testify, having served under him for several years 
before his death as a son of the Gospel.” 
I cannot but think that Prince’s four years’ training as curate to 
Giffard had a good influence on his future life and work. Mr. 
Giffard died March 18th, 1668, when Prince had been with him 
four years, and his curate was, among many others, as he says, 
‘more able,” chosen to preach the funeral sermon. So impressed 
does he appear to have been with his master’s sufferings, and the 
freeness with which Giffard had forgiven his enemies, that he chose 
as the subject of his discourse the martyrdom of Stephen and his 
prayer for his murderers. 
On Mr. Giffard’s death Prince moved to Exeter, and, it is said, 
was chosen minister of St. Martin’s Church. This can only, I 
think, have been as curate or assistant, as Dr. Walker, in his account 
of Robert Parsons, who was priest, vicar, and rector of St. Martin’s, 
