Oddsfish!

lesson that I might have learned long before from one that was himself a Prince, and knew what he was ta

whether the King had spoken of me again, and was told he had not; so I went about my

enough. Men did not speak a great deal of the Catholics; and I always fenced off questions by beginning, in every company that I found myself in, by speaking of some Church of Engl

nted the Mitre tavern, without Aldgate, where I went one day, dressed in one of my sober country suits,

just done dinner, all but one. This one was a ruddy man, with red hair going grey, dressed very plain, but well, with a hard kind of look about him; and he had had as much to drink as a man should have, and was in the merry stage of his drink. Here, thought I, is the very man for me. He is of both country and town; here is a chamber of whi

dinner; and my manner had its effect, for the fellow warmed to me presently and told me that he was Mr. Rumbald, and I said on my part that my name was Mallock; and

t I lodged there sometimes; and then began to speak

here myself. I am of Hoddesdon, or near to it. Where ha

then (though it was not in reality), a piece of

," I said. "I did some g

, the

eh?" cried

Devil," said I, "if he

hough God knows why: I suppose it was the ale i

und you wou

ished to hear. It was not treasonable talk, for the ale had not driven all the sense out of him; but it was as near treasonable as might be; and it was above all against the Catholics that he raged. I would not defile this page by writing down all that he said; but neither Her Majesty nor the Du

l, so am I now, at least I call myself so, though I

ame from; and it was very consonant with what the King had set me to do, which was to hear what the common people had to say. My gorge rose at the man again and again;

us. You will remember my name-Mr. Rumbald the maltster-I am to be heard of here at

and indeed after a while all Engl

*

gings about supper-time, I found that a man had been from Mr. Chiffinch to bid me come to Whitehall as soon as I returned

had company in his inner closet; but that he would speak with him. So he left me standing there; and went through, and I heard a door shut within. Presently he came out again in something of a hurry, and bade me come in; and, to my astonishment we went through the first room that was empty, and out again beyond and down a dar

e other dark-(and I presently proved to be right)-and beside him Mr. Chiffinch, very eager-looking, and lean, talking at a great speed, with his hands clasped upon the table. Finally, my Lord Danby sat next to the Duke, opposite to Mr. Chiffinch, with a sullen look upon his face. There was a great heap of papers, again, upon the table, between the five men. All these pers

y broke th

id-no more than that; but I felt the re

tory; and he told it very well, balancing the two s

e King, and the Duke too unless he would consent to the affair. My Lord Danby posted immediately to Windsor that he might intercept these letters and examine them for himself; but found that not only had Mr. Bedingfeld received them, but had taken them to the Duke, saying that he did not understand one word that was written in them. Those letters purported to have been written from a number of Jesuits, and others-amongst whom were a Mr. Coleman, an agent of the Duke's,

cing at His Majesty once or twice, and at the Duke, as if he wished to know w

t it is best to destroy the letters, to tell Doctor Tonge that he is a damned fool, if not worse, so to be cozened, and to say n

t is these good Jesuit Fathers, and my own confessor, too"-(he bowed slightly to the fair man, who returne

eak so violently. We all know how good the Fathers are, an

think, Sir, that these folks who are behind it all will let the matter rest? It wi

then Dr. Tonge had been sent for and soundly rated, and made to produce his informant, and the matter sifted, I believe we should have heard no more of

to its four legs, and putting his head in his hands over the table. I

who is Doctor To

p at me as if he saw

Chiffinch

once, and is turned informer, he says. He still feigns sec

r here is sub sigillo,

i

nd said no more. I had

say, Mr. Mallock?" ask

Sir," I said, "but they do not

s and let them fall again. He

*

to be held. The counsels, in short, were divided; and that is the worst state of all. The Duke said nothing to me, either at the table or before he went out with Mr. Bedingfeld-or Mr. Mumford as he was usually called: h

On that day I was passing through the Court of Whitehall to see if there were anything for me at Mr. Chiffinch's-for the King was at Windsor again-when I saw Father Whitbread and Father Ireland, coming swiftly out fr

an!" said M

me that perhaps they had heard of the matter which I had found so hard to keep from them. We said nothing at all on the way; and when we got within, Mr. Whitbread told Mr.

now all that you know; and why you have been wit

hem a little. But I knew that I

ole affair before the Council. I think that His Majesty's way with it would have been the better; but it is too late for that now. Now the matter must all come out; and Sir Edmund hath said sufficient to shew us that it will largely turn upon a consult that our Fathers held here in London, last April, at the White Horse Tavern; for Oates hath mingled truth and falsehood in a very ingenious fashion. He was at St. Omer's, you know, as a student; and was expelled for an unspeakable crime, as he was expelled from our other col

forgotten the man's face, against whom

"He is of middle stature; with a litt

aid Mr. Whitbread. "

ght that I found Mrs. Ireland and

f the passage opposite," I said

think," said Mr. Whitbread, "here, and in

d do that for, if he

s," said Mr. Whitbread. "He will say who he has seen

tly, without any sign

e. They seemed a li

o you," I cried. "His M

. Whitbread in such a manner that my heart t

d give evidence that you have found us harmless folk"-(he smiled as he said this)-"but I do not know that you will be able to add much to what other of our witnesses will be able to say. I

t fly the coun

iled

Society would be thought guilty, and the Church too. No, Mr. Mallock, we must see the matte

s some call for it; and I took my leave, marvelling at the constancy of

*

the Council to give his testimony; and it was to the same effect as was that which I had heard Mr. Chiffinch relate befor

t was not a very great room, and only those were admitted who had permission. His Majesty himself was there upon the second day; and sat in the midst of the table, at the upper end, with the Duke beside him, and the great officers round about; amongst whom I

rch-in gown and bands and wore a great periwig; and not his face only-which no man could forget who had o

d laid a wager that if Carolus Rex would not become R.C.-which is Roman Catholic-he should not much longer remain C.R. He said too that he had been reconciled to the Church on Ash Wedne

the Jesuits, and was so much trusted by them-he said that he had none; but could get them easily enough if warrants and officers were given him. I suppose the truth was that he had not wit enough to

hink, proved the shrewde

Don Juan, the Spaniard,

t is he like in

s a tall black thin faylow, with swatthy

sked th

iling, to His Royal Highness; for the Spanish bastard is far more

told these gentlemen yesterday that you saw-with your own eyes-the bribe of ten thou

se in Paris, your Ma

here i

is-is near the King's own hous

in indignation; and be

Jesuits have no house

uv

is Majesty was gone to Newmarket, to the races, and had left the Council to do as best it could; and that the Jesuits had been taken that same night-Michaelmas eve-after Oates had been had before the

*

st and worst of all the links that were being forged

of them declare that they believed there was nothing in it, and even the rest of them were far from positive on the matter; and I had stayed late over my pipe w

th them. I went along for a little, trying to hear what they were saying upon the affair, and to learn what the matter was; for by now the street was one pack of folk all moving together. Littl

time, since he was the magistrate before whom Oates had laid his information; but six days were gone by, and I had not thought very much of it, for his running away could not now in any way affect t

burst of oaths, that I thought it best to draw no more attention to myself, and presently slipped away. Then I thought myself of a little rising ground, a good bit in advance, whence, perhaps I might be able to see something of what w

is lips worked, and he was very pale, yet it seemed to me

odfrey who has been foully murdered by the Papists. He hath been found o

er he had killed himself, as I think-for he was of a melancholiac disposition, as was his father and his grandfather before him-or whether, as indeed I think possible, he was murdered by the very man who swore so many Catholic lives away, by way of giving colour t

n town was gone mad: for I do not believe there were above twenty men in that great mob, who were not persuaded that here was the corroboration of all that had been said upon the matter of the plot; and that the guilt of the Papists was made plain. Some roared, as they came, threats and curses upon the Pop

th me, I saw into its interior, and how there lay there, supported by two