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EXECUTION OF THE EARL OF ARGYLE.

Fox's History of James II.

the| Earl of castle, 1971 and thence,

On the thirtieth of | June, one thousand six | hundred | and | eighty | five, | Argyle was | brought from the first, to the | Laigh | council house, to the place of exe- | cution. |11|19| Be- |

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the |

ber, was half | opened, | and | then he be- | held,| enjoying a sweet and | tranquil | slumber, man, who by the | doom of | him and his | fellows, was to die with- | in the | short | T space of two | hours. Struck with |

the sight, quitted the

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castle with the

utmost pre- | cipi- | tation, and | hid himself in the lodgings of an acquaintance who lived near, 17 where he threw himself upon the first | bed that pre- | sented itself || and had every ap- pearance of a man suffering the most ex- | crutiating | torture. His friend prised of the state he was

con- cluded he was | ill, wine.

who was ap-| and who | naturally

in,

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He re-fused, saying, "no, no,

| that will not help me.

| |

I have been at Ar- |

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it

and the truth of

may therefore be fairly considered

| liable to that de- | gree of | doubt,

as

with | which

men of judgment re-ceive | every | species of traditional history. 171 Woodrow, how- | ever,

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whose ve- | racity | is above suspicion, says, he had it | | | from the most un- questionable au- | thority. It is not in it- | self un-likely; 17

and who is there, that would not wish it | true? | What a satis- | factory | spectacle to a philosophical | mind, to see the op- | pressor | in the zenith of his power || envying his | victim! What an ac- | knowledgement of the | supe

What an af- | fecting |

ri- | ority of virtue !

and forcible testimony

of the ¦ value of that |

peace of mind, which | Innocence

alone 7 | |

can con- fer!1111111 We know not who
1
this man was, but when we re-
I
which | agonized him,

that the guilt

bly incurred for some | vain | title, least for some | increase of | wealth

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which he |

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very fool

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calls | wise in

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something like com- passion, for that ish class of men whom the world | their generation. 11 Soon after this short re- | pose, Argyle | was brought according to order, to the | | Laigh | council-house, from | which | place |is| dated the letter to his wife, and from thence place of exe- | cution. 11111111 On the he had some dis- | course, as well with | Mr. | Annand, | a | minister |ap|pointed to attend him, || as with |

to the

| scaffold |

by | Government

Mr. Chateris. He de- | sired | both of | | 177

them to pray for him | and | prayed him- | self|

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al-ready related.
of firmness and mildness

every part of it.

| ||

said he,

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from the passages

The same | mixture

is con- | spicuousin |

"We | ought not," |

to des- | pise | our af- | flictions, | nor to

| | | faint under them.

We should not | suf

|

fer ourselves to be ex- | asperated against the instruments

of our | troubles, | nor by | fraudulent

or | pusil- lanimous com- | pliance, || bring guilt |

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upon ourselves; || faint | hearts | are | usually false hearts, choosing | sin, rather than | suffering."1171He offers his prayers three kingdoms of England, | Scotland, land, || and that an | end | may be

their present trials.

for the and | Ireput to

| Having | then

for his | own | faults, | both of | God and |

would have con- | cluded,

that he had said | nothing

asked | pardon

man, he

but | being

re-minded

of the |

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there | never might be | wanting | one of the | royal |

family to sup- | port the | Protestant re- | ligion; |

and if any of them

had | swerved | from

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the | true | faith, he prayed | God

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his people from their machi- | nations. | 7|77| When he had ended, he turned to the south |

side of the scaffold | and | said, |

"Gentlemen,

I pray you, I do not | miscon- | struct | my be- | havior this day. |11|I| freely for- | give | all men | their wrongs and | injuries | done a- | gainst | me, |as | I de- | sire | to be for- | given of | God. 11777. He | then em- | braced his friends, |

gave some tokens of his re-membrance | to his son-in-law, | Lord | Maitland, for his | daughter and grand-children, stript himself | | of part of his ap- | parel, | of | which he | like

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Having | uttered a short | prayer, he gave the |

signal to the exe- | cutioner, | which was | instantand his head | severed from his |

ly o- | beyed, 791

body.

Such were the last hours and such the final great | man's | life. |11|11| May

close of this

the like happy se- renity, in such | dreadful

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And here we | come and | sit,|| time after | time, And call it social | worship; | | Is it | thus? 1971

Oh Thou! whose searching | all per- | vading eye 1

Scans every secret | movement of the heart,|

And sees us as we | are | why | mourns my soul

On these occasions? | Why so | dead and cold ◄| My best af- fections? | I have

In my more secret | seasons,

And in my chamber:

even

found thee | oft I

in the field, |

in the stir

Of outward | occu- | pations has my mind |

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