The.ii. chapyter

IN the.ii. chapyter begynnynge in the fyfth lefe, he bryngeth forth ye fyrste consyderacyō, whiche is that I in the 89. lefe of myne apology confesse that murmur and discensyon agaynst the clergye was thā all redy farre gone onwarde in hys vnhappy iourney / & that afterwarde in the.106. lefe of the same boke, I bryng in a very darke sentēce, wherby it appereth that I mene that the dyspleasure & grudge bytwene them is in dede neyther so greate as he maketh it / and yet growen to so greate as it is, but euyn now of late. But who so loke there in that place, shall I suppose fynde it nothynge darke / but yf it be suche a man as lyste not to vnderstande it.

And where I saye there, that this dyuysion such as it is, whyche is no thynge such as this man maketh it, is not growen to so greate as it is, but synnys that Tyndalys bookes and Frythys, and frere Barons, bygan to go abrode: therin he wold seme to saye the contrary, & byddeth me loke better vppon the mater, and I shall fynde it otherwyse. And in dede with better lokyng theron, I fynd it somwhat otherwyse. For I fynde ye tyme of such encreace as I speke of, mych shorter than I there assygne, & that by a greate deale. For it was growē the greater by thoccasyon of the selfe same boke of the diuysyon, though y• maker as hym selfe sayth and as I truste to, intended it not of purpose. And therfore where he saith that sith I confesse that there was diuysyon at the tyme of the makynge of myne apologye, it appereth that I haue no mynde to haue it ceaced, bycause that I seke not out the causes and deuise the remedyes: veryly good readers I neuer toke & accōpted my self for a man mete & able to make a reformacyon, of such two great partes as the spyrytualtye and the temporaltye of this whole realme be. And veryly yf I knewe some suche great causes as thys man setteth forth for trewe, whych I knowe for false / and that I than knewe the wayes to reforme them to: I wolde vse other wayes towarde it, than sedycyouse slaunderouse bookes. For as I haue expressely declared in myne apologye, neyther neuer dyd I, nor neuer entende to do, put out abrode in prente vnder colour of reformacyon, fawtes that were hatefull and odyouse to here, eyther of the tone parte or of the tother / and specyally so many at onys, as yf they were all trewe, were not all lykely to be remedyed at ones / but the more parte for the whyle remaynynge lytell remedyed, shold[…] but make eyther parte to the other more odyouse, and bothe partes more infamouse, amonge suche other (yf any suche any where be) as wold be gladde and reioyce to here mych euyl spoken of them bothe.

And thys I saye all though that all were trewe. And now wolde I mych lesse vse that maner in makyng rehersall of those thynges, wherof many be false and vntrew, and many other also very tryfeles / & the very chyefe thynges that thys pacyfyer desyreth to haue reformed, be lawes all redy well made, whyche he wold haue made wurse. For where they haue ben by wyse men well deuysed for the repressyng of heresyes, some by perleament in thys realme, some by the generall counsayle of chrystendome: those deuyseth he so to be chaunged now, as the chaunge whyche he desyreth, though by goddes grace he desyreth not that it so shold, yet out of dowte in dede sholde turne to thencoragynge of heretykes and encreace of heresyes, wyth the mynysshement and decaye of the catholyke chrysten fayth. wherupon wold not fayle whych almyghty god kepe from vs, his greuouse indygnacyon vpon vs. And therfore god kepe vs from suche reformacyons.

Now to laye to me therfore as a greate fawte, that I blame his boke in those vntrew some sayes, that vnder colour of ceacynge dyuysyon, excyte and set forth dyuysyon, but yf my selfe coulde ceace it. Whan suche bookes make it: is myche lyke as yf he wold say that there ought no man to blame hym that wolde burne vp a nother mannes howse, but he that wolde buylde it agayne.

And therfore with thys good reason of his, be putteth me in remembraunce of an answere, that a man of myne made ones myche after the same fashyon. I had sometyme one with me called Clyffe, a man as wel knowen as mayster Henry Patenson. This Clyffe hadde bene many yeres mad / but age had taken from hym the rage, so that he was metely well waxen harmlesse among folke. In to Clyffes hed came there some tyme in his madnesse such imagynacyons agaynst images, as these heretykes haue in theyr sadnesse. For lyke as some of them whych after fledde and ranne awaye, and some fell to thefte and were caught, pulled down of late vpō Londō brydge thinmage of the blessed martyr saint Thomas: so Clyffe vpon the same brydge vppon a tyme fyll in talkynge vnto an image of our blessed lady / and after suche blasphemyes as ye deuyll putte than in hys mouth, and now a dayes bloweth out by ye mouthes of many heretykes, whyche seme they neuer so sad, be yet more madde than he: he sette hande vppon the chylde in her arme and there brake of ye necke. And afterwarde whan honest men, dwellers vppon the brydge, came home to myne howse and there blamed Clyffe before me, and asked hym wherfore he brake of the chyldys necke in our ladys arme: whan Clyffe hadde herde them, he began to loke well and erenestly vpon thē / and lyke a man of sadnesse and grauyte, he asked theym, tell me […]hys amonge you there, haue you not yet sett on hys hed agayne? No ꝙ they we can not. No ꝙ Clyffe by ye masse it is the more shame for you. Why speke you to me of it than?

And euyn thus answereth me now thys good man / whyche where hys sedycyouse some sayes set forth diuysyō, and breke the chyldys necke rekeneth it a shame for me to fynde any fawte wyth hym for ye brekynge but yf my selfe coulde glew it together agayne.

And therfore where he sayth that I sholde haue proued, that all the causes that he layeth as causes of dyuysyon, be no causes of dyuysyon, or ellys I sholde haue deuysed the remedyes: albe it I haue answered hym therin all redy, yet thys I saye therin ferther, that I haue proued wel & clerely, yt the very chyef cause yt he sayeth, is layd very vntrewly / that is to wytte the mysse handelyng the people to theyr destruccyon vppon suspycyon of heresye. Whyche cause yf it were as trewe as yt ys false, were so weyghty, that it were well wurthy to be layde for a mater of dyuysyon. And whyle it is not trewe: yet by suche kookes beynge blowen aboute in euery parte of the realme for trewe, maye well mysse happe to make a dyuysyon / whyle the dwellers in euery quarter aboute by credence geuen to the booke, may at the fyrste face wene, that though it be not so there as they dwell them selfe, yet wene I saye that it were so in al other places. Wherof though they shall by leysoure perceyue the contrary wyth serche: yet they that aske no ferther questyon, shall byleue it styll. And so a rumour onys begonne and spredde abrode, ys not after soone remoued

Nowe as for hys other causes of thys dyuysyon: dyuerse[…] I haue towched and shewed suffycyentely that they be not suffycyent. But as for me to peruse hys whole booke of dyuysyon thorow, was no parte of my purpose. For yf those thynges that I dyd towche hadde semed to me tollerable: I wolde in good faythe haue bene lothe to haue towched theym eyther.

In whyche whyle with hys consideracyons and declaracyons he goeth about now to shew that he than ment none harme: I wyll not therin mych hynder hym, but be gladde rather to forther hym in thexcuse of hys menynge and so dyd I as I haue sayd euyn in myne apologye to. But though I be glad to excuse his own mynde in the menyng: yet can I not excuse his vnwyse folowynge of false wyly counsayle in the doynge.