nd husbandry,
and impoverishing great numbers of quiet and industrious people; and
this, for no other cause, but for the exercise of a tender conscience in
the worship of Almighty God, who is sovereign Lord and King of men's
consciences.

On the accession of James II. they addressed that monarch honestly and
plainly, telling him, "We are come to testify our sorrow for the death
of our good friend Charles, and our joy for thy being made our governor.
We are told thou art not of the persuasion of the church of England, no
more than we; therefore we hope thou wilt grant us the same liberty
which thou allowest thyself, which doing, we wish thee all manner of
happiness."

When James, by his dispensing power, granted liberty to the dissenters,
they began to enjoy some rest from their troubles; and indeed it was
high time, for they were swelled to an enormous amount. They, the year
before this, to them one of glad release, in a petition to James for a
cessation of their sufferings, set forth, "that of late above one
thousand five hundred of their friends, both men and women, and that now
there remain one thousand three hundred and eighty-three; of which two
hundred are women, many under sentence of praemunire; and more than three
hundred near it, for refusing the oath of allegiance, because they could
not swear. Three hundred and fifty have died in prison since the year
1680; in London, the jail of Newgate has been crowded, within these two
years sometimes with near 20 in a room, whereby several have been
suffocated, and others, who have been taken out sick, have died of
malignant fevers within a few days. Great violences, outrageous
distresses, and woful havock and spoil, have been made upon people's
goods and estates, by a company of idle, extravagant, and merciless
informers, by persecutions on the conventicle-act, and others, also on
_qui tam_ writs, and on other processes, for twenty pounds a month, and
two-thirds of their estates seized for the king. Some had not a bed to
rest on, others had no cattle to till the ground, nor corn for feed or
bread, nor tools to work with, the said informers and bailiffs in some
places breaking into houses, and making great waste and spoil, under
pretence of serving the king and the church. Our religious assemblies
have been charged at common law with being rioters and disturbers of the
public peace, whereby great numbers have been confined in prison without
regard to age, and many conf