by various writers. The agent in this
case was probably George Penne, a person in that business.

Penn's course is not so clear in the matter of the presidency of
Magdalen College. One of the steps in James's plan to change the
religion of England was to get a foothold for teachers of his faith at
the universities. He intended to capture Oxford and Cambridge. He had so
far succeeded at Oxford as to get possession of Christ Church and
University College, and, the presidency of Magdalen falling vacant, he
ordered the fellows to elect a man of his own choice. The fellows
refused to obey the order,--thereupon Penn, who had at first taken their
part with the king, advised them to surrender. "Mr. Penn," said Dr.
Hough, representing the fellows, "in this I will be plain with you. We
have our statutes and oaths to justify us in all that we have done
hitherto; but, setting this aside, we have a religion to defend, and I
suppose yourself would think us knaves if we would tamely give it up.
The Papists have already gotten Christ Church and University; the
present struggle is for Magdalen; and in a short time they threaten they
will have the rest."

To this Penn replied with vehemence: "That they shall never have, assure
yourselves; if once they proceed so far they will quickly find
themselves destitute of their present assistance. For my part, I have
always declared my opinion that the preferments of the Church should not
be put into any other hands but such as they are at present in; but I
hope you would not have the two universities such invincible bulwarks
for the Church of England, that none but they must be capable of giving
their children a learned education. I suppose two or three colleges will
content the Papists." Finally, the king's men broke down the doors,
turned out the professors and students, and gave the king his way. Penn
was thus the agent of tyranny; but he was an innocent agent. He made a
bad blunder; but he made it honestly and ignorantly. It was in accord
with his democratic ideas that the universities should be places of
instruction for all the people; he would have liked to see not only the
Roman Catholics, but all the great divisions of religion in England
represented there. And that fine idea misled him. To hold him guilty,
here or elsewhere, of malice or hypocrisy, is to misread his character.
He was simply mistaken,--mistaken in the king, mistaken in the
application of his own principles.

Meanwhile