We have lately met with a pleafanr piece of vengeance taken of Milton by a poor fellow who had fuffered under his lash for conveying into the world, Morus's, or rather Du Moulin's, "Clamor "Regii Sanguinis."

Just before the Restoration, Robert Creyghton, chaplain to Charles II. and his attendant in his exile, a man of learning, procured a handfome and valuable edition of Sylvefter Sguropulus's History of the council of Florence, in Greek. The printer of it was Adrian Vlacq, of the Hague, who yet fmarted from the ftripes inflicted upon him by Milton fome years before. Adrian now thought he had a fine opportunity of taking his amends. For this purpose he prevailed

with Creyghton to characterize Milton in the preface to his book, but without naming him, left both the editor and the printer fhould fuffer for their temerity, the Restoration being yet in embryo. Some of his rhetoric we fhall tran fcribe:

"Nec fuis unquam parafitis indiguit fanaticum illud genus hominum, qui - exitiali facundia armati femper in pro"cinctu ftant, et qua jubentur, linguas << venales flectunt, eorum turpiffima ❝crimina ut virtutes collaudant, aliorum omnium dotes dente fatyrico perfo

diunt, et in Deum ipfum, fi fenatus

"perduellis mandaverit, profanæ eloquentiæ arietes admovere non erubef

<cunt."

And

And again,

Regicidium commendant pofteris, "ut Heroici facinoris exemplum fingu<lare. Everfionem ecclefiæ, extirpa❝tionem regni, regiique fanguinis, inter "facta fortiffima numerant."

Again, fpeaking of the ftyle of the writers on the fide of the parliament, he fays:

66

Qui fructum cum femente conferre "vellet fatius multo judicaret ad rudem "illam, fed honeftam Latinæ orationis "balbutiem (monkish Latin) revertere 66 quam fic in Marci Tullii ac Titi Livii "viridariis expatiari, pollucibiliter men"tiri, &c."

And

And lastly,

"Tum de Regibus, fi quis forte fortuna encomiaftice fcripferit, fuccenfent, frendunt, debacchantur, et in t omne latus obftreperam volvunt facundiam, ne quis Rex pro pio habeatur, quando ipfi in omnium Regum "facrofancta capita tam impii [1. impie] detonuerunt."

The allufion here to Milton and his works could not have been plainer, without naming him. The prefacer well knew Milton's zeal for his cause, and his abilities in defending it. He knew not but he might yet be disposed to do himfelf and his party juftice at his [Creyghton's] expence, and he chofe therefore, both for the poor printer's fake and his

own,

own, to make the abuse general, that he might have room to fay, that Milton was not the man he meant, though the two last citations would not apply to any other man that then was, or ever had been, upon the face of the earth.

Such

was the terror that Milton's name ftruck into the hearts of his opponents, even when his party was rapidly approaching their final diffolution.

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