(p. 126) says that Cornbury prohibited Mackemie from preaching. "However, William Jackson invited him into his house at the lower end of Pearl street, where he preached to a small audience and baptized a child." (Miller's Life of Rodgers, pp. 87-91.) When Cornbury heard of this he was furious and had the two clergymen arrested. When they were brought before him, he told them that the law would not permit him to countenance strolling preachers who, for aught he know to the contrary, might be Papists in disguise. He said they must qualify themselves by satisfying the Government that they were fit persons to occupy a pulpit. Mr. Mackemie replied defiantly that he would preach in any part of the Queen's dominions where he pleased that in New York was part of the Queen's dominions as well as Virginia and that the license which he had obtained there was as good as. he could get in New York.

As might have been expected, this reply did not satisfy Cornbury, who clapped the two clergymen into the city jail where they languished nearly seven weeks before their trial. But with Mr. Mackemie to paraphrase Richard Lovelace's lines Stone walls did not a prison make, nor iron bars a cage," and while thus confined he managed to smuggle out the manuscript of the sermon which had brought him into this predicament and it was published in Boston with the following title page :

"A good conversation a sermon preached at the City of New York Jan. 19, 1706-7* By Francis Mackemie, Minister of the Gospel of Christ Matthew 5th, 11th: Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my name's sake.' Acts 5th, 29th: Then Peter and the other Apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God, rather than Men.' Preces et lachrymae sunt arma. Boston in N. E. Printed by B. Green, for Benj. Eliot. Sold at his Shop. 1707."

It was

"dedicated to the small congregation who heard the following sermon," and had the following preface:

"My Brethern: I appeal to you as witnesses that this is the sermon for which I am now a Prisoner. As I first delivered this

There appears to be an error in this date as quoted in Wilson's Memorial History of New York. From Lord Cornbury's letter, quoted hereafter, it is apparent that the year was 1705-6.

practical and plain sermon to few, so I am now committing it to publick view of all; that both you and they may try it at the bar of Scripture, law and reason, and impartially determine whether it contains anything savoring of Pernicious Doctrine and Principles; anything to the disturbance of the Church of England or of the Government. If I had been thoroughly acquainted with New York, and the irregularities thereof, which afterwards I was an eye and ear witness of, I could not have fixed on a more suitable doctrine."

The trial of the clergyman took place in the midst of great local excitement, Mr. Mackemie being defended by William Nicoll, son of the first Secretary of the province, as counsel. (Does. Rel. Col. Hist. N. Y. III, 709.) The popular sympathy was entirely with the clergymen, as it was 29 years later in that famous trial of John Peter Zenger which established the freedom of the press, and they were acquitted. A formal report of the trial of the clergymen was published in 1707 under the title of "A Narrative of a New and Unusual Imprisonment of Two Presbyterian Ministers and Prosecution of Mr. Francis McKemie, one of them, for preaching one sermon in New York." It is republished at length in Col. Force's "Historical Tracts," IV, IV.. (Does. Rel. Col. Hist. N. Y., IV, 1187.)

Cornbury was not a little chagrined and disturbed at the outcome of his persecution, and tried to explain his course to the Lords of Trade in the following letter written October 14, 1706: To the Right Honble the Lords Commissrs for Trade & Plantations.

My Lords.

I trouble Your Lordps with these lines to acquaint you that on the 17th of January 1705-6 a man of this town one Jackson came to acquaint me that two Ministers were come to town; one from Virginia, and one from Maryland, and that they desired. to know when they might speak with me; I being willing to shew what Civility I cou'd to men of that character, ordered my man to tell Jackson that they should be well come to come to dine with me: They came, and then I found by the Answers they gave to the questions I asked them, that one, whose name is Francis Mackensie, is a Presbyterian Preacher settled in Virginia; the other, whose name is John Hampton, is a young Presbyterian Minister lately come to settle in Maryland; They Dined with me, and

talked of indifferent things: They pretended they were going towards Boston; they did not say one syllable to me of preaching here, nor did not ask leave to do it; They applied themselves to the Dutch Minister, for leave to preach in the Dutch Church in this Town, who told them he was very willing, provided they cou'd get my consent; They never came to me for it; They went likewise to the Elders of the French Church, to desire leave to preach in the French Church, they gave them the same Answer the Dutch had; all this while they never applied themselves to me for leave, nor did they offer to qualify themselves as the Law directs; but on the Monday following I was informed that Mackensie had preached on the day before at the House of one Jackson, a Shoemaker in this town, and that Hampton had preached on Long Island, and that Mackensie after having preached here on Sunday was gone over to Long Island with intent to preach in all the towns in that Island, having spread a Report thereto, that they had a Commission from the Queen, to preach all along this Continent; I was informed on the same day from New Jersey, that the same men had preached in several places in that Province, and had ordained after their manner some Young men, who had preached without it among the Dissenters; And that when they were asked, if they had leave from the Governmt they said they had no need of leave from any Governor, they had the Queen's Authority for what they Did; These Reports and the Information I had from Long Island, of their behaviour there, induced me to send an order to the Sherif of Queen's County on Long Island, to bring them to this place, which he did on the 23d day of January in the Evening: The Attorney General was with me; I asked Mackensie how he came to preach in this Government, without acquainting me with it, and without qualifying himself as the Law Requires; he told me had qualified himself according to law in Virginia, and that having so done, he wou'd preach in any part of the Queen's Dominions where he pleased, that this Province is part of the Queen's Dominions as well as Virginia, and that the License he had obtained there was as good as any he con'd obtain here; I told him that Virginia was part of the Queen's Dominions as well as this Province, but that they are two different Governments; That no Order or Law of that Province can take place in this, no more than any order or Law of this Province can take place in that, which no reasonable Man wou'd imagine cou'd be allowed; he told me he understood the Law, as well as any man, and that he was satisfied he had not offended against the law, That the Penal Laws of England, did not extend to and were not

in force in America; to which the Attorney General replyed, that if the Penal Laws did not take place in America, neither did the Act of Toleration, nor is it proper, said he, that it shou'd, since the latter is no more than a Suspension of the former; Mackensie said that the Queen granted liberty of Conscience to all Her Subjects without Reserve, I told him he was so far in the Right, that the Queen was graciously pleased to grant liberty of Conscience to all her subjects except Papists, that he might be a Papist for all that I knew, under the pretence of being of another perswasion, that therefore it was necessary he shou'd have satisfyed the Governmt what he was, before he ventured to Preach; Upon that he told me, that he wou'd qualify himself in any manner, and wou'd settle in this Province; I told him when ever any of the people of either of the Provinces under my Governmt had Desired leave to call a minister of their own Perswasion, they had never been Denved it, but that I shou'd be very cautious how I allow'd a man so prone to bid Defiance to Governmt as I found he was; He said he had done nothing that he cou'd not answer, so I ordered the High Sherif of this City to take them into his Custody, And I directed the Attorney General to proceed against them, according as the law directs; which he has done by preferring an Indictment against Mackensie for preaching in this City without Qualifying himself, as the Act of Toleration directs; The Grand Jury found the Bill, but the Petty Jury acquitted him, so he is gone towards New England uttering many severe threats against me; As I hope that I have done nothing in this matter but what I was in duty obliged to do, especially since I think it is very plain by the Act of Toleration, it was not intended to tollerate or allow strowling Preachers; But only that those persons who dissent from the Church of England should be at liberty to serve God after their own way, in the several places of their abode, without being lyable to the Penalties of certain laws; so I Intreat your Lordp's protection against this malicious man, who is well known in Virginia and Maryland to be a Disturber of the Peace and quiet of all the places he comes into; he is Jack of all Trades, he is a Preacher, a Doctor of Physick, a Merchant, an Attorney, or Counsellor at Law, and. which is worse of all, a Disturber of Governments; I shou'd have sent your Lordps this account sooner, but that I was willing to see the Issue of the Tryal. I am, My Lords,

Your Lordps most faithful humb: Servt

CORNBURY.

(Docs. Rel. Col. Hist. N. Y. IV, 1186, 1187.)

II

THE FOUNDING OF THE FIRST CHURCH

Denominational Jealousies

The appointment of Colonel or Brigadier Robert Hunter as Governor of New York and New Jersey in the fall of 1709 in the eighth year of the reign of Queen Anne marked the beginning of a period during which the Presbyterians increased in numbers and founded the First Presbyterian Church in New York. Governor Hunter was of Scotch parentage, brought up in the communion of the Church of England. In education, mind and manners he was far superior to most of his predecessors in office and much more liberal than they towards other denominations. His bringing of the 3,000 Palatines and finding them homes on the Hudson was an indication of his humanity. Although he did what seemed fair and reasonable for the promotion of the Established Church, he did not hesitate to criticize its clergymen if he thought the latter deserved it. "The ancient Chappell in the Fort (hine illae lachrymae) for many years past a Bear Garden I have at great expence put in repair so that it is now one of the most descent & most constantly frequented Houses of Prayer in all America," he wrote in 1712. And "I have by a liberal contribution & all the countenance and influence I could give it finished Mr. Veseys Steeple on Trinity Church; but notwithstanding these manifestations of his friendliness to the church to which he belonged, he criticized Mr. Vesey as being “in the first rank of those "whom I must pronounce vicious, if Faction, Pride, Malice and blind Zeal be vices." (Docs. Rel. Col. Hist. N. Y. V, 311.)

On the other hand, the Church of England people thought Governor Hunter too liberal to the Presbyterians and other dissenters. By 1712, the Presbyterians had increased in influence in New York and New Jersey to such an extent that on June 2 of that year, Jacob Henderson, missionary at "Dover Hundred in Pensilvania," wrote a letter giving a true state" of the Church of England in New York and New Jersey in which he charged that Governor Hunter turned Church of England men out of local

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