he cathedral of Salisbury, which was
in a manner forced upon him; for it was with difficulty that he could be
persuaded to accept it.

On his resettlement in England, he employed himself in revising and
enlarging his admirable Martyrology. With prodigious pains and constant
study he completed that celebrated work in eleven years. For the sake of
greater correctness, he wrote every line of this vast book with his own
hand, and transcribed all the records and papers himself. But, in
consequence of such excessive toil, leaving no part of his time free
from study, nor affording himself either the repose or recreation which
nature required, his health was so reduced, and his person became so
emaciated and altered, that such of his friends and relations as only
conversed with him occasionally, could scarcely recognise his person.
Yet, though he grew daily more exhausted, he proceeded in his studies as
briskly as ever, nor would he be persuaded to diminish his accustomed
labours. The papists, forseeing how detrimental his history of their
errors and cruelties would prove to their cause, had recourse to every
artifice to lessen the reputation of his work; but their malice was of
signal service, both to Mr. Fox himself, and to the church of God at
large, as it eventually made his book more intrinsically valuable, by
inducing him to weigh, with the most scrupulous attention, the certainty
of the facts which he recorded, and the validity of the authorities from
which he drew his information.

But while he was thus indefatigably employed in promoting the cause of
truth, he did not neglect the other duties of his station; he was
charitable, humane, and attentive to the wants, both spiritual and
temporal, of his neighbours. With the view of being more extensively
useful, although he had no desire to cultivate the acquaintance of the
rich and great on his own account, he did not decline the friendship of
those in a higher rank who proffered it, and never failed to employ his
influence with them in behalf of the poor and needy. In consequence of
his well known probity and charity, he was frequently presented with
sums of money by persons possessed of wealth, which he accepted and
distributed among those who were distressed. He would also occasionally
attend the table of his friends, not so much for the sake of pleasure,
as from civility, and to convince them that his absence was not
occasioned by a fear of being exposed to the temptat