dition, through the persecution of the jesuits and inquisitors of the house of Austria, by whom they have been driven out of their habitations, and spoiled of their goods, upon the sole account of their religion; who now, for the safety of their lives, and for the liberties of their consciences, are retired into the marquisate of Culembach, where they find a present shelter in this their very sad and calamitous condition, which hath been witnessed both by their deputies sent unto his highness, authorised by an instrument under the hands of the chief of those families, as also by a public certificate from thence. And it being the earnest desire of the said afflicted churches and families, as well by their several petitions, as by their deputies, that his highness, out of compassion to their sufferings, would be pleased to recommend their lamentable condition to their brethren in these nations, in whom they hope to find bowels of mercy, yearning towards those who, professing the same faith with them, are now under so great extremities and misery for the cause of the gospel, and testimony of the Lord Jesus.

His highness being greatly afflicted with the miserable and calamitous condition of the said churches and families, and not doubting but the people of these nations, whom the Lord hath graciously and wonderfully preserved from that antichristian bondage and tyranny, will have a fellowfeeling of the afflictions of their brethren, hath, with the advice of his privy-council, thought fit to recommend their case to the charity of those whose hearts the Lord shall stir up in these nations, to afford them some seasonable relief, whose liberality in this kind hath been testified in their large contributions to the relief of the poor Protestants in the vallies of Piedmont, to the refreshing of their bowels (touching the faithful distribution whereof, an account is ordered by his highness to be printed for general satisfaction.) And to the end the said collections may be

carefully made, and the money thereupon collected be disposed of, to the relief of the said poor churches, and their members, and the families aforesaid, and to no other uses, his highness doth hereby require and command the ministers and churchwardens of the respective parishes within England and Wales, and town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, the next Lord's day after this declaration shall come unto their hands, to publish the same, and on the Lord's day following to make a collection of the charitable contribution of the people in their parishes, and that within three days after, they pay over the sum or sums so collected unto the high sheriff of the respective counties, to be by him paid into the hands of Sir Thomas Viner and Sir Christopher Pack, knights, Aldermen of the city of London, who are appointed treasurers for this service, and who shall transmit the monies so to be by them received for the relief of the said poor distressed churches and their members, and the aforesaid twenty families, in such manner and proportions as the committee formerly appointed for the disposing of the monies for the relief of the said poor Protestants in Piedmont, shall, with respect to their several numbers and sufferings, think fit and direct, and to the end that none of the monies collected for so pious and charitable an end may miscarry, the ministers and churchwardens aforesaid are enjoined, upon payment of the said money to the respective sheriffs as aforesaid, to send up unto the said Sir Thomas Viner a note in writing under their hands, of the sum so collected, the parish and county where such collection was made, and the person to whom the same was paid, to the end care may be taken, and the same may be duly returned and employed to the use intended.

By the Committee for the Affairs of the poor Protestants in the Vallies of Piedmont.

The all-wise and holy God, whose ways of providence are always righteous, though often secret and unsearchable, hath made it the constant lot and portion of his people in this world, to follow the Lord in bearing the cross and suffering persecutions, thereby holding forth and verifying that irreconcilable enmity between the seed of the woman, and the seed of the serpent, which was visible betimes in the bloodshed of righteous Abel, whom Cain (though his brother) slew, being of the wicked one, yea, and for this cause, for that his own works were evil, and his brother's good. Thus they that are born after the flesh, persecute them that are born after the spirit to this day, and so will do while the world lasteth. In which cause and quarrel the Lord hath very many glorious ends. But scarcely have any sort of the church's enemies more clearly followed the pernicious ways of Cain herein, than hath the antichristian faction of Rome done, that Mother of Harlots and Abominations, whose garments are dyed red with the blood of saints, which they have always cruelly shed, and made themselves drunk with, even with the blood of those holy followers of the Lamb, chiefly who would not receive Antichrist's mark, nor worship his image, nor drink of the golden cup of his fornications, but rather come out from them, and witness against them, though they did it in sackcloth, and were slain for it.

Among those chosen and faithful witnesses, the Lord seemeth very signally to have raised up those Christians, who, though dispersed in divers countries, have been commonly known by the name of Waldenses, who, for some centuries of years, have lived among their enemies as lambs among wolves, to bear their testimony for the truth

of Christ, against the apostacies and blasphemies of Rome, for which they have been killed all the day long, and appointed as sheep for the slaughter. Nevertheless, the Lord, the great Shepherd of the sheep, hath made their blood thus shed, to become a constant seed of faithful and valiant witnesses for him; which is, indeed, the more marvellous in our eyes, that this bush hath so long burned, and is not yet consumed.

This little flock and remnant which the Lord hath left and reserved are scattered partly in the vallies of Piedmont, of whose tragical sufferings we have not long since heard, and have drawn forth our bowels to them, whereof a very faithful account is given to the world, both for the satisfaction of brethren and friends, and for stopping the mouths of all calumnies.

The other part of this poor, yet precious remnant, have been dispersed in the kingdoms of Bohemia and Poland, whose sufferings, together with the Lord's signal providences about them, have been very eminent and remarkable, as hath been made appear unto us by three godly persons, delegated by those persecuted churches, which are now the sad monuments of their enemies' rage, and of the Lord's sparing mercies.

These have made their addresses to his highness the Lord Protector, by petition, declaring the deplorable estate wherein this persecuted remnant now lieth, and with loud cries importuning the Christian bowels and bounty of this nation, which cannot but be moved to mourn over them, and to shew mercy to them. And, indeed, upon a due sense and consideration of this lamentable subject, even common humanity, but much more Christian charity, should provoke us to a fellow-feeling of their present distressed condition.

These sometime flourishing churches, were, by degrees,

worn out by the constant underminings and open outrages of the antichristian party, being first driven out of Bohemia into Poland, then after their taking root and spreading in Poland unto a numerous company, were forced out of the chief cities there, and now, at last, by the jesuited and enraged Polish army, persecuted in their few hiding places, with fire and sword.

Their ministers were tortured to death by most exquisite and unheard of barbarism, by cutting out of the tongues of some, pulling out the eyes and cruelly mangling the bodies of others; nor did their rage and brutish cruelty reach only to ministers, but to others, yea even to women and young children, whose heads they cut off, and laid them at their dead mothers' breasts.

Nay, their rage brake out not only upon the living (not one of whom they spared that fell into their hands) but also upon the dead, plucking the bodies of honourable persons and others out of the graves, tearing them to pieces, and exposing them to public scorn.

But the chief eye-sore and object of their fury was the city of Lesna, which, after plundering and murdering all whom they found therein, they burned to ashes, and laid in rubbish; only the Lord in his mercy having alarmed the city of their enemies' approaching march, the greatest part of the inhabitants (being three famous churches) saved themselves by flight, and are now wandering up and down in Silesia, the marquisate of Brandenburg, Lusatia, and Hungary, poor, destitute, afflicted, and naked,

His highness and the council having referred unto this committee the testimonials and petitions sent by the said churches, we finding upon examination thereof, their case to be thus deplorable, which is more at large stated and declared in their own narrative, have caused the said narrative to be translated, and herewith published, thereby to