William Bedloe's Family ties, and Panegyrists. 593 Tragedy; as it was acted by his Majesty's Servants. (Publishers added a catch penny sub-title,) Being the Popish Plot in a Play. By Captain William Bedloe. London, printed for Thomas Parkhurst, D[orman] Newman, Tho. Cockerill, and Tho. Simmons, 1679. The hero is named Teimurazez, Prince of Georgia, excommunicated by the Pope. Bedloe's admirers contrived to panegyrize and exalt him as a "True Blue Protestant," notwithstanding the known infamy of his career. His mother had early said that she knew he would come to a bad end; expecting him to develope into a Hewlette. She was not far wrong in her predictions, for he actually became a favourite of the Parliament; who voted him a reward of £500. In the Luttrell Collection (I. 9) is preserved An Elegy upon the Unfortunate Death of Captain William Bedloe, who departed this Life on fryday the twentieth of August, 1680. It is eulogistic. Scarce can one say he lives and doth enjoy Had he liv'd longer, he had more made known. 50 But enough of this fulsome and lying panegyric, not improbably written by the brother James Bedloe. We have digressed to notice it, and now return to the excessively "dear Doctor Oates," who survived to get an instalment of retributive whipping. The "Eutopian Game" of next page resembled the ancient Saturnalia. VOL. V. 2 Q The Plotting Cards Revived. THE SECOND PART. TO THE SAME TUNE OF, I'll tell thee, Dick, etc. [See p. 417.] His is like some Eutopian Game,1 And Kings are Subjects made: A Dunce, who never took Degrees, A Doctor is most sound! And who, to furnish his own want, Who Horse to Battel never led, But has with many horses fled Out of his neighbour's field, A'Captain' was! and with his word A Villain, who can cheat his Lord, For he, who says he murder'd, has Who for foul crimes and forgeries Has won the yoak of Pillories, And has been whipt about, If he but add new Perjury, He wipes off past Iniquity, their Dame; And speaks Truth without doubt. [Sir Geo. Wakeman, etc. [=Titus Oates. [Sir Wm. Waller, [Capt. Wm. Bedloe. [i.e. Lord Bellasis. [Stephen Dugdale. [orig. "For Him.” [Miles Prance, [Thom. Dangerfield. 1 We need not give both parts of the long Loyal Song entitled "The Plotting Cards Revived; or, The New Game of Forty-One," which begins, “Come, cut again; the Game's not done!" but only the second portion, bringing before us the gang of perjurers, Bedloe, Oates, Dugdale, Dangerfield, and their Whig encouragers, Sir William Waller, etc. Opening verses are on next page. 2 An allusion to William Bedloe and Titus Oates having indicted Sir William Scroggs and threatened Sir George Jeffereys, when these informers were no longer supported by the Bench, on the abortive trial of Sir George Wakeman. (See "Innocence Unveiled," "Good Deeds Ill Requited," in Vol. IV. p. 171, etc.) "A Pack of Knaves together get." He that had rather choose to die Than to redeem his life with lie, Is th' only "perjur'd Rogue! And they who damn themselves to live, 595 [Visc. Wm. Stafford. For they're the Saints in vogue! [Turberville, Smith, etc. Then play away, good Country-man! What Hand's the best is now most plain; And boldly thou may'st stake: A Pack of Knaves together get, For they the Voll will make.' Finis. 42 Now spelt vole, from the French: "A Deal of Cards which draws all the tricks." It is appropriate ending to a ballad of which the first part is full of equivoques drawn from card-playing phraseology. This is the commencement:— Ome, cut again! the Game's not done, Come Though strangely yet the Cards have run, 66 Most likely [th] are to lose, and say Look well, my Masters, to your hits, On Clubs and Spades some wholly bett, While Hearts in vain contest; The Paying off Did Scores. "Let Tories guard the King! Let Whigs in halters swing! SOON [Lord Grey. -The King's Health, set to Farinel's Ground, 1684. OON after the accession of James it became apparent that many persons were doomed to be called to account for past offences against the Duke of York. Addresses of condolence and of congratulation came in shoals from towns and cities, to declare their loyalty and win favour. The universities and chartered companies, with the clergy, were not behindhand in the race. Knighthood and other boons rewarded many, while cold looks or absolute denial of audience punished such persons as Lord Montague and Lord Lovelace, who came forward to kiss the King's hand. It was impolitic to show remembrance of old injuries, but yet natural. Before the end of February the Marquis de Grana had warned Monmouth to depart from the Spanish Netherlands. A proclamation of indemnity for Scotland was issued early in March, and seventy-six prisoners in Newgate were freely pardoned. But while some got out, others went in; thus Thomas Dangerfield was apprehended soon after, and committed to that prison, where his old associate Titus Oates already lay. For having printed Dangerfield's Narrative, which defamed Lord Peterborough, Samuel Heyrick at Northampton lost £5000 damages. On the 30th of April, "his majestie was pleas'd in his bed-chamber to confer the honour of knighthood on Roger Lestrange, Esq., with a particular satisfaction he had in his loyalty. That evening Sir Roger had a child christened; the Bishop of Ely [Francis Turner, translated from bishopric of Rochester], and Sir Thomas Doleman were godfathers." We have not found Sir Roger's name as licenser of ballads after the middle of August, 1685, when Richard Pocock officiated instead. Early in May, about the 6th, "Alderman Ireton [of Finsbury, Henry, we believe, son of regicide Ireton] and one Walter Thimbleton [Merchant, of Bednal Green, Irish Walk], were committed for high treason, in holding correspondence with traytors beyond sea." There must have been seditious letters intercepted or betrayals made (not improbably by Robert Ferguson), for at the same time a Proclamation was issued, putting Scotland "in a posture of defence against the enemies of the King and government." The Scottish Parliament had already met, loyally granting excise dues, and enactments against traitors. A Loyal Scotch Song. TO THE TUNE OF, Bonny Kate of Edinborough. [See p. 612.] [Viz. D'Urfey's song, "Just when the young and blooming Spring."] Ust as the mist of Errour fled, JUst That men through Town and Fields may see The Jayl-Birds whistling through the grates, And Birds of Prey cleave to the Tree. Poor Titus sate, bewailing his fate, and dismal state, For Treason, Treason, Treason, and Sham-Plotting too; "Alas! cry'd he, "I hang'd shall be, For Ignoramus cannot do!" Titus went lately o're to Spain, many wonders there he saw, Black-Bills and Pilgrims float o'er th' Main, and tall fair Don John of Austria. [Tyburn. 8 Titus with his wiles the Jesuits beguiles, Jack Presbyter smiles; And something, something, something else he meant to do; But all his hope will end in a Rope, For Treason and Sham Plotting too. The Sanhedrim was Titus's friend, and aided him 'gainst Kirk and Crown. to pull King, Duke, and Bishops down. For Ignoramus cannot do! 16 [i.e. Parliament. [White-letter. Date, apparently near the end of 1684.] 24 76 This seems to belong to the close of 1684, during the time when Titus Oates lay in prison, the fine unpaid that was inflicted for having defamed the Duke of York; and before his more severe punishment was ordered on May 16th, 1685, as mentioned in the introduction to "Perjury Punished" (p. 598). The references above to his palpable and detected lies about the Spanish Pilgrims who were to come over and assassinate Protestants; the concealed heaps of weapons, Black-Bills, etc., so well hidden that nobody has ever yet discovered them; and the self-convicting blunder of his stating Don John to be 'tall and fair,' although he was short, fat, and dark, are among the commonplaces of Titusian allusions. The Sanhedrim is Dryden's nickname for the Whig-ridden Parliament. |