ools, whereby the carved work of the sanctuary (as
far as human craft and cruelty could invent), was broken down, in
restoring Charles II, without any conditions required, or express
limitations set. And Sharp being sent from the church of Scotland, to
stand up for her rights and privileges, fraudulently sold her into the
hands of her enemies; upon which, many of the professed disciples of
CHRIST, who followed him in the sunshine of prosperity and reformation,
forsook him, and fled into the enemies' camp. Thus our decline began;
but, oh! to what a dreadful height Erastianism, tyranny, and bloodshed
arrived, before the Lord, in his providence, put a stop to it.

Although the Presbytery cannot be supposed, in a consistency with their
present design, to reckon up all, yet they would endeavor to take notice
of some of the most remarkable instances of backsliding, treachery and
oppression, bloodshed, &c, acted in those nations during the late
persecuting period, together with the faithful contendings, and patient
sufferings unto death of the saints and servants of CHRIST, in this hot
furnace of affliction into which they were cast. As, 1, The unhappy
restoration of Charles II, in manner before mentioned commencing. The
faithful declarations and testimonies given in favor of the covenanted
reformation and uniformity, were all on a sudden given up with; the
viper received into our bosom, and again advanced unto the regal
dignity, who soon discovered himself to be of the serpentine seed, and
by his wicked agency imped the dragon his master, by casting out of his
mouth a flood of persecution after the church, that he might cause her
to be destroyed therewith. To this effect the anti-christian yoke of
abjured Prelacy, with all its tyrannical laws, and canonical train of
observances, service book, ceremonies, &c., was speedily wreathed about
England's neck, and Scotland soon felt part of its weight. For, in the
month of _August_, 1660, when some of her most zealous and faithful
ministers met upon this emergency, in order to send an address to the
king, reminding him of his duty, and solemn obligations to perform the
same; the committee appointed by the parliament, _anno_ 1651, for
exercise of government, until another parliament should meet, who then
showed themselves zealous for the reformation, yet now acted a
counter-part, by incarcerating the foresaid ministers, and emitting a
proclamation, prohibiting all such meetings without