from the murder of the king, Bothwell was publicly married to queen Mary at Edinburgh!

Such profligate proceedings excited general disgust and alarm. Bothwell endeavoured to get possession of the young prince; but the nobles formed an association to prevent this, and to punish Bothwell. Forces were levied on both sides. The nobles were the strongest; Mary was compelled to dismiss her new husband, and to surrender herself a prisoner. She was conveyed to Loch-leven castle, where she was required to resign the crown to her son, and to consent to the appointment of Murray as regent. The young prince was proclaimed by the title of James VI., and crowned at Stirling soon afterwards. Although no proofs of direct concern in her husband's murder were brought forward against Mary, her connexion with Bothwell increased the general belief of the accusation, while embittered feelings arising from party feuds and the persecutions by the Romanists, caused her subjects to unite against her. Elizabeth interposed in her favour; but though she directed her ambassadors to remonstrate, and threaten the confederates, she could not desire that Mary should be able to proceed with her schemes against the Scottish Protestants, and to gain the throne of England. The confederates therefore retained her in captivity, and compelled her to resign the crown.

Bothwell took refuge in the Orkneys, where he fitted out some vessels, and committed acts of piracy. In an engagement with a Norwegian vessel, he was taken prisoner; his life was spared, but he was confined in a dungeon, where he lingered ten years, latterly bereft of his senses. A servant, whom he sent to Edinburgh to bring away his papers before his flight, was taken; upon him was found a silver casket, containing letters written by Mary to her paramour, the genuineness of which is allowed by every impartial writer: they prove that she at least connived at the proceedings against Darnley.

In May, 1568, Mary escaped from Loch-leven by the contrivance of the brother of the keeper, who was led from his duty by her arts and flatteries. She was immediately joined by some of the nobility, especially those attached to popery; when she retracted her resignation, and efforts were made to place her again on the throne. After some negotiations with the regent, the earl of Murray, recourse was had to arms. The popish archbishop of St. Andrew's was one of the leaders of the queen's forces. The hostile bands came into collision at Langside; Mary's supporters were soon vanquished, and fled. She rode sixty miles without stopping, to Dundrennan Abbey; being then in terror lest she should be overtaken, she determined to proceed to England, against the advice of her attendants, who well knew the unjustifiable manner in which she had countenanced those who supported her claims to the English throne. Lord Herries persuaded her to send first to the governor of Carlisle to inquire whether he would protect her; but too fearful and too impatient to wait for a reply, Mary embarked in a fishing boat, and landed at Workington, in Cumberland, from whence she was escorted to Carlisle. On landing she wrote to Elizabeth, requiring protection and support. Her unexpected arrival placed Elizabeth in a difficult situation, increased by the English queen being then so seriously ill, that her life was despaired of. Prayers were publicly made for her recovery; they refer to sufferings of mind as well as body. The higher the rank, and the more ample the possessions, usually the more painful are the impressions which harass the mind when danger appears at hand. The public alarm was much increased by a papist charged with the blackest crimes being the presumptive heir.

It was necessary to pursue to its close the narrative of Mary's unhappy reign in Scotland: we now look back to other events of the early years of the reign of Elizabeth. One of her principal cares was to improve the coinage, also to proportion the national expenditure

to the revenue. The regular sources of income were from the customs, then usually called tonnage and poundage: also from fines, the crown lands, and part of the rents of wards or minors, with the first-fruits and tenths from ecclesiastical benefices. The whole of these amounts produced, on the average, 300,000Z. per annum, while the regular expenditure was about 40,000l. for the royal household, 2,000l. for the queen's private expenditure, and 30,000l. for the navy. ́ Thus she was enabled to discharge the debts of the crown, to assist the Protestants of Scotland and France with money, and to raise armaments when there was occasion for them. Extraordinary circumstances at times caused unusual expenditure, when it became necessary to apply to parliament; but these applications were so rare till towards the close of the reign, that there was seldom any difficulty in obtaining grants. In the latter part of her reign, the contest with Philip, with other foreign princes, and especially the war in Ireland, occasioned a larger expenditure. Among the objectionable sources of income resorted to by Elizabeth, was raising money by lottery. The first which is noticed by historians was in 1567, though it is probable that similar undertakings had previously been made on a smaller scale. It consisted of 400,000 tickets, at ten shillings each; the produce was to be applied to the repair and increase of the ports and havens of the realm. The prizes consisted chiefly of plate. Active exertions were made to promote this gambling scheme. The government wrote to the justices in various parts, commanding them to help the agents for the disposal of tickets, and to urge the purchase on patriotic motives. Large placards, five feet long, were printed, and other means used to give publicity. In the Losely manuscripts is an interesting account of many of the adventurers' disappointments, and the evil results.

The reform in the coinage was a work of considerable difficulty. All the money in circulation was reckoned above its real value, while a great portion was utterly

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worthless. After fixing a regular value for each denomination of coin, the queen received at that rate all but the most worthless, much of which was counterfeit, and gave in exchange good coin, both gold and silver. The slow process of exchange caused a temporary stagnation of trade; but when it was effected, very beneficial results followed. Strype says of Elizabeth: She, at her great cost, restored to her people fine coin from a base; and she took but few taxes from her parliament to do this, when many and great were the taxes levied before, without any advantage to the subject. How was this our realm then pestered with strangers, strange rulers, strange gods, strange languages, strange religion, strange coin; and now how peaceably rid of them all!" While mentioning the coins of this realm, it is important to notice the meaning of the Latin inscriptions placed upon them by queen Elizabeth. Upon the gold, "This is the Lord's work, and it is wonderful in our eyes;" and on the silver, "I have chosen God for my help." She uttered the first sentence with fervent devotion, when the intelligence of her accession to the throne was first communicated. The selection of these mottoes for her coin was not a mere matter of form; her mind was deeply impressed by the remembrance of past mercies, while the dangers which beset her on every side continually taught her the need of help beyond human support.

The enforcement of uniformity as to religious rites and ceremonies was so strictly required as to break the unity of the Protestant church, about the period at which we have arrived. In this, as in every case where such disputes arise, each party was eventually carried further than they at first intended; so true it is that the beginning of strife is as the letting out of water, and so important is it to avoid all matters which unnecessarily excite divisions. The adoption of six articles proposed to the lower house of convocation, in 1562, might have prevented some painful results. These articles chiefly proposed to abolish all festivals derived only from the

Romish church, and that the use of the cross in baptism, and the posture at receiving the sacrament, and the habits of the clergy, should be left more at liberty. Fortythree of the clergy present voted in favour of these articles, with proxies, making a total of fifty-eight votes. Only thirty-five opposed them, but their proxies being more numerous, made fifty-nine votes. Thus the strict enforcement of uniformity in those matters, which made the original grounds for division in the Protestant church of England, was carried into effect by a minority; the deciding vote was from one who had not been present at the discussion. Among those who would have granted the liberty required, were Nowell, Lever, Becon, Sampson, and others, known as some of the most valuable divines of that period. Two years later, the London ministers were required to subscribe the canons, and conform to the habits and ceremonies. Many refused, and eventually were cast out from their livings. Fuller, the church historian, relates, that when Foxe, the martyrologist, was required by archbishop Parker to subscribe, he took out a New Testament, and said, "To this I will subscribe," but refused his assent to the canons. The respect for this venerable man was such, that he was not deprived of the scanty preferment he held. It was disgraceful that he was not better provided for.

The differences thus begun continued until 1566, when several ministers, who had been dismissed from their cures by the high commission court, began public worship separate from that of the church as by law established, and from which they were excluded for non-compliance with the Act of Uniformity. They declared, that had the use of habits, and a few ceremonies, been left discretionary, both ministers and people would have been easy. The results were painful. From the slow progress of the Reformation, and the exclusion and deprivation of the Puritans, there were many churches destitute of ministers. On Palm Sunday, 1566, six hundred persons came to one of the