friends, who, I fear, will be found secret and heart enemies to God. This I leave to you as my last advice.

"And now I bless God for all that he hath done for my soul, and for this way that he hath taken with me, in carrying me to the land of praise, where I shall sing that sweet song throughout the ages of eternity, which shall never have an end. O! long to be with him; for if ye knew what I have got of his love and presence, ye would whiles be giving a look to time, and bidding it be gone. Now, even let it be gone, that I may enjoy my best beloved. Now, I take my farewell of all friends and relations, and all earthly comforts, and all created glory; and welcome sweet Lord Jesus, into thy hands I commit my spirit.

"Sic Sub.-ARCHIBALD STEWART,”*

Upon the scaffold he sung the second Psalm, and read the third of Malachi; but they would not suffer him to pray publicly, for when he began to speak, saying, "O Lord, what wilt thou do with this generation? what wilt thou do with bloody Charles Stuart ?" incontinent the drums were beaten, and his mouth stopped, that he got no more said.-Cloud of Witnesses.

VI. JOHN POTTER.

[John Potter, the person alluded to in the previous notice, was a farmer in the parish of Uphall, in West Lothian. He had not. for any thing that appeared, ever been in arms, and his persecutors had nothing to lay to his charge but his hearing Mr. Cargill, and owning the Sanquhar Declaration. Along with Stewart, however, he was accused of approving of the Bothwell and Airsmoss insurrections, the Torwood excommunication, &c., and being in like manner found guilty, was condemned on the 24th November, and suffered on the 1st of December, 1680. The following is his Testimony.]

"ALL you spectators and auditors, I desire your attention to a few words, and I shall be brief. And before I begin, I must tell you, you must not expect such a testimony from me, as ye have had from some of them that went before me, I not being a learned man, as some of them have been; however, I desire to look to God, who not only can give me what to speak, but can also bless what I speak;-so as it may be for his glory, and the good of them that love him, and wait for his coming; which is the desire of my soul. Now, being to step out of time into eternity, I hope you will not think that I shall say any thing now, but what my conscience binds me to say.

"In the first place, I must tell you for what I am come here this

Cloud of Witnesses.

day to lay down my life: it is for owning and adhering to my sworn principles. I am a presbyterian; and herein I do rejoice, that I am to suffer for this cause only ;-for adhering to the word of God, and our Confession of Faith, Larger and Shorter Catechisms, our Covenants, National and Solemn League, together with our Solemn, Acknowledgment of Sins, and Engagement to Duties, wherein all Scotland were once engaged, and thought it their duty and honour to be so and this is the reason for which I am sentenced to death by men; but God, to whom vengeance doth belong, will avenge himself for all the wrongs done to his glory, cause, interest, and people. I was born under the pure light of the gospel, and was taught to own Christ as King in Zion only, and head of his own church: and this I own to be my duty; but I am here charged with rebellion, which I deny, because I was never of that opinion, that it was rebellion to hear the gospel, for the word of God binds us to it as our duty; otherwise why should God have told us, that we should go from sea to sea, to seek the word of the Lord, and should not find it?' And the practice of our Lord and his apostles in preaching of the gospel to the people that heard them, is a sufficient ground to prove it to be duty to hear the gospel whether in fields or houses, when it cannot be had elsewhere: and if it be duty to hear the gospel, as it is, then certainly it is duty to defend the gospel, when preached in purity; according to the word of God, and according to the sixth article of the Solemn League and Covenant, wherein we are bound to assist and defend all that enter into covenant with us, and to the utmost of our power, with our lives in our hands,-much more to defend the gospel, which teaches us the fundamental principles of our holy religion.

"And to take away that vile and malicious aspersion, which they cast upon us, charging us with an intention to have murdered the duke of York, and others with him; I declare, I had never such a principle as to murder any man; neither did I ever hear of it, till the council told me; which I knew to be a vile and hell-hatched aspersion, cast upon the way and people of God: but they judge others by themselves, for that is their principle to murder the gospel of God, as they also do. Next, I was charged, whether or not I adhered to the Sanquhar declaration? I answered, I not only adhere to it, but also will lay down my life cheerfully and willingly, as I do this day, for adhering thereto; yea, if every hair of my head were a life, and every drop of my blood were a man, I would willingly lay them all down for him and his cause. I come here to tell you, 1st, That I adhere to all the written will and word of God, and I adhere to the Confession of Faith, and our Catechisms, Larger and Shorter, and to our Covenants, National and Solemn League, and to the Solemn Acknowledgment of Sins and Engagement to Duties, and to all the covenants made betwixt God and us, wherein I stand engaged. 2dly, I adhere to all the testimonies that have gone before me. 3dly, I adhere to all that has been done for maintaining and defending the gospel, against a tyrannizing and bloody enemy, when the actors thereof had the glory of God before their eyes, as the chief motive

that drove them thereto, whether at Pentland, Drumelóg, Glasgow, Bothwell, Airsmoss, or any other place in Scotland, where there has been any rencounter of that kind. 4thly, I adhere to that action of excommunication at the Torwood,-it being according to the word of God, and done by a faithful minister of the gospel, and in as legal a way as the present dispensation and circumstance of time could permit and also, the persons excommunicate being guilty of such crimes, as justly to deserve that act to be passed against them. 5thly, I adhere to the testimonies of all that have borne testimony against silent and unfaithful ministers, by their withdrawing from them, which is a declaring that they do not own them as faithful ambassadors of Jesus Christ, because of their unfaithfulness: and I hope, none will condemn me for saying, that I have not had clearness to join with them, while they remain so unconcerned with the cause of Christ, and the oppression of his people. 6thly, I adhere to the way of salvation agreed upon between the Father and the Son, before the creation of the world, that through the Son we should be made perfect, which I hope to obtain, before this body of mine be cold, and in his perfection I shall be made perfect, and through his suffering I shall be conformed to him, who suffered without the gate, bearing his reproach.' And I am well pleased with my lot this day. O my soul and all that is within me, bless his holy name,' for all that he hath done for my soul, and for his way of bringing me here this day, to lay down my life for him. I am not afraid of grim death; I know that God has taken away the sting of death through the suffering of his Son.

"In the next place, being here as a dying witness for Christ and his cause, I do therefore leave my testimony against all abominations done in the land against a holy God, and in contempt of his image; particularly, 1. I testify against all that woful and hell-hatched act of supremacy, wherein they acknowledged the king to be head of the church, and thereby have invested a mortal creature with Christ's erown, sword, and sceptre. 2. I bear witness, and testify against the breaking of the National and Solemn League and Covenant, and making them to be burnt by the hand of the hangman at the marketcross of Edinburgh, and elsewhere through Scotland,-so contrary to their solemn engagements. 3. I witness and bear my testimony against the reception of prelacy,-so contrary to the word of God, and our covenants; for then it was that the covenanters in Scotland should have withstood both king and council, and all that joined with them in that head, and should have testified against them with their swords in their hand, until they had resisted unto blood, according to the 6th article of the Solemn League and Covenant. O that all that are alive this day, that were men when the covenant was burnt,—were taking with their sin, and were lying in the dust ;-every one for his share in that sin, and every one for the land's guiltiness. 4. I leave my testimony against all the horrid bloodshed that has been in the land, whether of noblemen, gentlemen, ministers, or any others, that have suffered in Edinburgh, or any other place, whether on scaffolds, on gibbets, in the open fields, or on the sea; particularly that horrid act of murdering so many men after they had taken them

9.

prisoners, and promised them their lives, which was done by Thomas Dalziel, called general, who took them prisoners, and after promising to set them at liberty, delivered them up to the bloody council, who most cruelly murdered them, against, and without all law and reason, never speaking of conscience,-for, they had lost all of that-that they ever had, when they burnt the covenant, and murdered the Marquis of Argyle, and my lord Warriston, and that eminent minister, Mr. James Guthrie, who were murdered against the very act of their own laws. 5. I bear witness and testimony against the cutting off heads and hands, and setting them up upon the ports of Edinburgh, and elsewhere through the kingdom of Scotland, as if they had been thieves or malefactors. 6. I testify and bear witness against all the imprisonments, finings, and confinings of the people of God, for adhering to his word and our covenants. 7. I testify and bear witness against the pressing of the declaration against our covenants upon the consciences of the Lord's people. 8. I testify and bear witness against the imposing and paying of cess and militia-money, both for oppressing the consciences, and grinding the faces of the poor. I testify and bear witness against that cruel and hell-hatched act of sending the highland host, and the rest of that cabal, to oppress and plunder the people of God. 10thly and lastly, I bear witness against all the oppression, spoiling, robbing, and hunting of the people of God, and that against all manner of law and reason. I shall be a standing witness against them, aye and until they repent. O! that the Lord would pour out his Spirit upon all that have so grievously turned aside, and make them to lie in the dust, and to take with their sins; but I fear a holy God has given them up to themselves, and sealed their hearts with obduration, and so they are become proof against all dispensations; but sure, such as will not bow to God, shall be broken by the mighty rod of iron that is in his hand to bruise the nations. I have here left my testimony against the perjury, bloodshed, and oppression of the people of God, which has been done by him who is called the king of Britain and Ireland; and the perjury and bloodshed acted by noblemen and gentlemen, that have been assisting and strengthening his hand in bloody and cruel courses; and therefore I leave my testimony against them, and my blood upon their heads, and especially against such as were present in the council when I was examined, and these perjured lords of the criminal court, where I was sentenced to die here in this place of execution; and also, I leave my blood upon the head of assizers, and all others who said Amen to my sentence: whatever they have been, and yet are, except they repent, my blood shall be charged upon them! Likewise, I leave my testimony against all who carried arms to guard me to this scaffold, they shall be guilty of my blood, if mercy and grace prevent it not.

"Likewise, I bear witness, and leave my testimony against the reception of the duke of York, first and last, that professed papist, who has been laying out himself to carry us back to Rome, and that not only by the bloody council, and other perjured noblemen and gentlemen, but also by the city of Edinburgh, that went out of the port to receive him, as though he had been a king, with shooting of

guns, sounding of trumpets, beating of drums, and kindling of bonfires; (which is contrary to the word of God and our covenant,) after he had been cast off justly by the other kingdom of England: I shall be a witness against that action in the great day And particularly, I leave my blood upon that wretch and bloody tyrant, the duke of York; for it is to satisfy him, and to quench his implacable thirst after blood, that I am brought hither this day. The last time he came to Scotland, he got a sacrifice of the blood of these five that suffered at Magus-muir, who were indeed highly honoured, and nothing short of these that went before them; and now, he must have this our blood to quench his thirst upon; but that heart of his that is so rejoicing at the hearing and seeing of our death, ere long shall tremble, when my heart shall sing Hallelujah to the Lamb of God, and join in my note, and pass my sentence with the great Judge against him, and all the enemies of God, if great repentance and free grace prevent it not.

"And with respect to that for which I am sentenced to death, because of many mistakes, even among the godly, through wrong information-I here as a dying man declare, that I had before me no design but only the glory of God, and the coming of Christ's kingdom, and his reigning as King in Zion. And for this I am sentenced, and for this I lay down my life this day, and I do it willingly and cheerfully, and not by constraint; for if I had been left of a holy God, so far as to quit one hoof of his truth, I might have redeemed my life as some have done, who were as deeply engaged to stand by the truth, even to the resisting unto blood, as I was, and seemed to be as deeply concerned as I was. How they have come out of prison I know not, but God knows, and to him they will, and must give account thereof, and to him I leave it: but I think there are few that come out of prison now, that can say, they have neither touched, tasted, nor handled the abominations of these times wherein they live: therefore I leave my testimony and witness against all that have come out of prison, by taking of the bond, (if it were but to compear before these bloody enemies of God,) in as far as they were convinced that it was sin, as some of them were; otherwise their tongue and pen have lied; which I leave to God and their own conscience to determine, whether or not they have sinned in so doing. Next, I here, as a dying man, do declare, that if the blotting of paper to them would save my life, I would not do it at that rate; for I see they are setting themselves to ensnare poor things; and I see neither ministers nor professors to give their advice in this matter, if it be not to make them take the bond, as they did to these poor things in the churchyard. Also, I leave my testimony, and bear witness against all the unfaithfulness of ministers and professors. 1st, I bear witness against the unfaithfulness of these ministers, that were with the public resolutions, to bring in, or keep in, any of these men that were open and avowed malignants and enemies to God,-so contrary to our covenant. 2dly, I bear testimony against that Act at Glasgow, whereby six hundred ministers and upwards did quit their charge and turn their back upon their flock; and since, many of them are turned