One chanced, mockingly, beholding the carriage of the men, to say unto them, What will ye FOURTH CAUSE OF buy? But they, looking gravely upon

THE HUBBUB.

THEY ARE MOCKED.

him, said, We buy the truth.* At that, there was an occasion taken to despise the men the more, some mocking, some taunting, some speaking reproachfully, and some calling upon others to smite them. At last, things came to an hubbub and great stir in the fair, insomuch that all order was confounded. Now was word presently brought to the great one of the fair, who quickly came down, and deputed some of his most trusty friends to take those men into examination, about whom the fair was almost overturned. So the men were brought to examination; and THEY ARE EXAMINED. they that sate upon them asked them whence they came, whither they went, and what they did there in such an unusual garb P The men told them, that they were pilgrims and strangers in the world, and that they were going to their own country,

THEY TELL WHO THEY ARE, AND WHENCE THEY CAME.

which was the heavenly Jerusalem; and that they had given no occasion to the men of the town, nor yet to the

This is my beloved

An odd reply. What do they mean? That they are neither afraid nor ashamed to own what was the one object of their souls' pursuit, THE TRUTH. Understand hereby, that the whole world, which lieth in wickedness, is deceived by a LIE, and is under the delusion of the father of lies. In opposition to this, all believers in Christ are said to be oF THE TRUTH, 1 John iii. 19. They know and believe that capital truth which God spake from heaven, Son, in whom I am well pleased," Matt. iii. 17. This truth-that Jesus is the Son of God, and our only Saviour, lies at the foundation of all their hope; and to get more and more acquainted with him, is the grand object of their pursuit. For this, the world hates thein; and Satan, who is an enemy to this truth, stirs up the world against them. "For (says our Lord) they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world," John xvii. 16.

THEY ARE NOT BELIEVED.

THEY ARE PUT IN THE CAGE.

merchandisers, thus to abuse them, and to lett them in their journey, except it was for that, when one asked them what they would buy, they said they would buy the truth. But they that were appointed to examine them did not believe them to be any other than bedlams and mad, or else such as came to put all things into a confusion in the fair.* Therefore they took them, and beat them, and besmeared them with dirt, and then put them into the cage, that they might be made a spectacle to all the men of the fair. There therefore they lay for some time, and were made the objects of any man's sport, or malice, or revenge; the great one of the fair laughing still at all that befell them. But, the men being patient, and not rendering railing for railing, but contrariwise blessing, and giving good words for bad, and kindness for injuries done, some men in the fair, that were more observing and less prejudiced than the rest, began to check and blame the baser sort for their continual abuses done by them to the men; they therefore, in angry manner, let fly at them again, counting them as bad as the men in the cage, and telling them that they seemed confederates, and should be made partakers of their misfortunes. The others replied, that, for aught they could see, the men were quiet and sober, and intended nobody any harm; and that there were many that traded in their fair that were more worthy to

THEIR BEHAVIOUR IN THE CAGE.

* If we have nothing about us, to distinguish us from the rest of the world which lieth in wickedness, and for which they will hate and despise us, we have no reason to conclude that we are new creatures in Christ Jesus. If we are Christ's, we must become fools for Christ, and be counted as mad, by those who know not Christ; for, if alive to Christ, we shall be crucified to the world." Wo be unto you, if all men speak well of you," saith Christ, Luke vi. 26,

pillory too, than were the Thus, after divers words

be put into the cage, yea, and men that they had abused. had passed on both sides, (the men behaving themselves all the while very wisely and soberly before them,) they fell to some blows among themselves, and did harm one to another. Then were these two poor men brought before their examiners again, and were charged as being guilty of the late hubbub

THEY ARE MADE THE AUTHORS OF THIS DISTURBANCE.

that had been in the fair. So they beat them pitifully,

and hanged irons upon them, and led them in chains up and down the fair, for an example and terror to others, lest any

THEY ARE LED UP AND DOWN THE FAIR IN CHAINS, FOR A TERROR TO OTHERS.

SOME MEN OF THE FAIR WON OVER TO THEM.

should speak in their behalf, or join themselves unto them. But Christian and Faithful behaved themselves yet more wisely, and received the ignominy and shame that was cast upon them with so much meekness and patience, that it won to their side† (though but few in comparison of the rest) several of the men in the fair. This put the other party yet into a greater rage, insomuch that they concluded the death of these two men. Wherefore they threatened, that neither cage nor irons should serve their turn, but that they should die for the abuse they had done, and for deluding the men of the fair.

THEIR ADVERSARIES RESOLVE ΤΟ KILL THEM.

It is common for the world to be divided in their opinions about pilgrims. A christian conduct and behaviour will put to silence the gainsaying of some wicked men; and sometimes win others to become followers of Christ. O pilgrims, look well to your spirit, temper, and conduct, towards the men of this world, who keep Vanity Fair all the year.

+ It is acting in the spirit and temper of Christ that will gain adversaries over to him; whereas a contrary spirit is a dishonour to Christ, a reproach to his cause, never did good to others, nor left the soul in the solid possession of the peace of Christ.

Then were they remanded to the cage again, until further order should be taken with them.

THEY ARE AGAIN PUT INTO THE CAGE, AND AFTERWARDS BROUGHT TO TRIAL.

So they put them in, and made their feet fast in the stocks.

Here, also, they called again to mind what they had heard from their faithful friend Evangelist, and were the more confirmed in their way and sufferings by what he told them would happen to them. They also now comforted each other, that whose lot it was to suffer, even he should have the best on't; therefore each man secretly wished that he might have that preferment : but committing themselves to the all-wise disposal of Him that ruleth all things, with much content they abode in the condition in which they were, until they should be otherwise disposed of.

Then a convenient time being appointed, they brought them forth to their trial, in order to their condemnation. When the time was come, they were brought before their enemies and arraigned. The judge's name was Lord Hate-good: their indictment was one and the same in substance, though somewhat varying in form; the contents whereof were these:

THEIR INDICTMENT.

"That they were enemies to, and disturbers of, the trade that they had made commotions and divisions in the town, and had won a party to their own most dangerous opinions, in contempt of the law of their prince."

FAITHFUL ANSWERS

FOR HIMSELF.

Then Faithful began to answer, that he

had only set himself against that which

* You see your calling, brethren. Has no such indictment been ever brought against you? Then it is to be feared, what Pharaoh said to the Israelites may be said to you, "Ye are idle, ye are idle," in the ways of the Lord; ye want love to his name, fervency for his truth, and zeal for his glory and the good of precious souls.

had set itself against Him that is higher than the highest. And, said he, as for disturbance, I make none, being myself a man of peace: the parties that were won to us, were won by beholding our truth and innocence, and they are only turned from the worse to the better. And as to the king you talk of, since he is Beelzebub, the enemy of our Lord, I defy him and all his angels.

Then proclamation was made, that they that had aught to say for their lord the king, against the prisoner at the bar, should forthwith appear, and give in their evidence. So there came in three witnesses, to wit, Envy, Superstition, and Pickthank. They were then asked, if they knew the prisoner at the bar, and what they had to say for their lord the king against him?

Then stood forth Envy, and said to this effect: My lord, I have known this man a long time, and ENVY BEGINS. will attest upon my oath before this honourable bench, that he is

JUDGE. Hold, give him his oath.

So they sware him. Then he said, My lord, this man, notwithstanding his plausible name, is one of the vilest men in our country; he neither regardeth prince nor people, law nor custom, but doth all that he can to possess all men with certain of his disloyal notions, which he in the general calls " principles of faith and holiness." And, in particular, I heard him once myself affirm, that Christianity and the customs of our town of Vanity were diametrically opposite, and could not be reconciled. By which saying, my lord, he doth at once not only condemn all our laudable doings, but us in the doing of them.

JUDGE. Then did the judge say to him, Hast thou any more to say?

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