Selected quad for the lemma: soul_n
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A63182
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The triall of Mr. John Gibbons, in Westminster-Hall, before the High-Court of Justice, beginning July 18. 1651
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Gibbons, John, d. 1651.
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1652
(1652)
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Wing T2200A; ESTC R203889
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21,228
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22
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Stage the first time that ever my name was heard of or I known to be an Offender against the State And whatsoever shall now be found in me amisse I desire there may be a favourable construction made of it and not to be strained beyond what my intention was who have alwayes abhorred from my very soul all designes that have tended to bloud I have alwayes stood firme to the Cause of Liberty and Religion and all the interests thereof these are the Principles I first took up these are the Principles I have alwayes held from which Principles I never yet departed I have alwayes had a bleeding heart when the Church hath been in a suffering condition I have never been of a bitter spirit but have alwayes carried a most tender and Christian respect towards those that were of an unblameable life and conversation And where I thought there was truth of Grace however contrary to me in judgement yet I have loved them and imbraced them as Christians I have alwayes lived peaceably never no disturber of the Church or State either by writing or printing Books or any thing else May it please your Lordship it is my desire you should do as God did when the cry of Sodom came up before him I will goe down saith he and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry which is come up to me if not I will know the Lord that knows all things knew before what Sodom had done but after the manner of men he came down to teach all Courts of what they should do before they proceed to Judgement My Lord here hath been a great Charge against me a great crie come up unto your ears I desire you to to doe God did that is to know whether it be according to the cry that you would seriously weigh all that the Witnesses have said gather all the Circumstances together and see the utmost that it doth amount unto and then I am sure you will see the Evidences to come so infinite short of what the Charge and cry hath been against me that you will find arguments to incline to mercy and if I might not be quitted yet at least you will let me have those helps and advantages that the Lawes afford me and God hath commanded you to give me that you will not keep any thing from me that I according to Justice have demanded and for the want of wch see me destroyed before your faces therefore I do once more with all earnestnesse desire you will not deny me a Copy of my Charge also the depositions of the Witnesses and assigne me Councell to come to my Chamber and plead for me at the Bar without which you take from me all these helps that should enable me to make my defence without wch it is impossible for me to go any further and must declare that I want all the materiall things that should help me to save my life when I see before my eyes all possible advantages to undo me MyLord I am able to say no more if thus my just request shall be denyed I have gone as far as I can without them both to clear my innocency and vindicate my self from that which is laid to my Charge and am most confident if you would let me have what you cannot justly deny me a Copy of my Charge and the depositions of the Witnesses I should stand as clear in the eyes of the Law in the eyes of your Lordship and all thiâ— Court as I am clear in the eyes of God and my own Conscience from what is unjustly Charged upon me And thus much I have done and am able to do no more therefore if you do deny me I shall be abundantly satisfied howsoever it shall please God to suffer you to deal with me Concerning the Witnesses I have little further to say but desire that the Lord would forgive them as I do freely would not change conditions with them though I were sure to die in fire flaming or in the mouth of Lyons even in the worst condition that could be imagined I both pity and desire to mourn for them who have so desperately wounded their own Souls and Consciences to destroy my life And the Lord grant that not one drop of my bloud which they have endeavoured to shed may not stand betwixt them and Mercy when they are upon their dying beds a crying for it And this is the worst hurt I wish them for all the wrong they have done to me Now the Lord of Heaven direct your Lordship and this honourable Court that you may not suffer the Witnesses Testimonies to be strained for me to lose my life upon circumstances or what is supposed to be or in Conscience thought but according to clear proof and evidence do that which may give you comfort upon a dying bed and no more then you dare look God in the face withall and answer to me his poor servant who am innocent at the Bar of the Lord Jesus Christ where I shall have free liberty to speak and you must and shall hear me the Lord of Heaven direct you that you do no more then what the Law will allow and that what you doe may be according to the mind of God and most for his Glory and the good of me a helplesse prisoner at the Bar and so let it go which way it will I shall submit with abundance of content and satisfaction and with a quiet spirit say the will of the Lord be done Thus having ended his speech the Court adjourned untill Friday next and so M. Gibbons was carried back by his keeper and ordered to be brought before them again on Friday after Friday about twelve a clock M. Gibbons was brought to the Bar. Keeble COme M. Gibbons what have you to say Gibbons My Lord I have not much to say being totally dis-inablâ—d and cut off from those means that might help me to save my life which the last time I was here I fully declared and as earnestly desired both a Copy of my Charge and the depositions of the Witnesses and Councell assigned me this I pleaded for untill your Lordship told me the Court would be encreased if I didnot proceed to my defence which made me dare to go no further but rather chuse to submit to the mercy of the Court and make an appeal to their justice where I desired that you would seriously weigh and consider how wonderfull short the whole evidences come there was not any two agreeing Adams the materiall Witnesse most what he said was disproved by the other severall Witnesses that came after I hope the Court is very sensible how little is laid to my Charge by Major Adams after so great an inquisition as he daily set upon me inviting of me to his house in the City to his house in the Country going from one shop to another where he thought I did come to Aldermanbury Church and all other places where he did hope to
and positively sworne against by severall other of the Witnesses none but he doth say that I was present at the reading of any Letters of the Fight at Dunbar nor none but Adams sayth I was present at M. Loves house when any monies was debated nor none but Adams sayth I was a constant man at Meetings thatever I invited any to a Meeting I hope your Lordship and the Court will consider that though there are ten Witnesses produced against me besides severall questions asked Capt. Potter at the Bar concerning me yet many of them neither said nor swore any thing that touched me at all and of those that doe reach me in their Tâ—stimony not any two did agree in proving the same Fact As concerning the particular Tâ—stimony of M. Harvey unto which no one Witness but himself either say or swore the least tittle of it to be true being struck with wonder and amazed to hear these things given in against me which mâ— heart never thouvht noâ— my tongue never spake I doe both befâ—re your Lordship and this High Court and the presence of all the people lay it before the righteous God to plead my Cause and judge between me a Prisoner at Bar and M. Harvey that falsly accused me I did further desire that this Appeal might be set upon Record and meet me before the Tribunall seat of Christ and that both your Lordship and them that sit in this Honourable Court might follow this my Appeal to the Judgement Seat and there witnesse it before the presence of the Lord against me when I am pâ—eading for mercy if ever I spake or heard these things which he hath accused me of My Lord I shall go further and did offer unto the Court that if in all England they could find a man that would say any of these things M. Harvey accused me of then I said more particularly if any whom I had most frequently convers'd withall or any of those that kept my company would say they ever heard me say any of these words the next time I came before this honourable Court I would come and plead Guilty And I doe now say if it please your Lordship and the Court to give me time I shall be able to produce Witnesses I shall make it appear M. Harvey is as unfit to be a Witnesse in any Court of Record as he was unfit to be a Justice of Peace in Essex where he was Indicted for many and notorious offences If I might have time I should produce witnesses that M. Harvey was the Originall reporter of some of those things he accused me of And concerning Major Corbets Testimony I know little in it but that I shall call God to witnesse I knew not Mason I did then in the face of the Court declare how much he had wronged me for that I had acquainted the Committee who examined me that I both knew Mason and told them the place and how I came to know him besides there is a Copy of my Examination abroad that doth confirm the same that Corbet came to me more like a Murtherer then like a Christian and because I did call God to witnesse against these untruths he charged me withall he did in effect judge my Soul to the Devill and my Body to the Gallowes and so he left For which unchristian carriage of his I both complained to M. Price Clarke to the Warden in the Fleet my Keeper and some others My Lord I am charged with being a Solicitor and represented as a man that had nothing else to do but follow such businesses as here I am accused of which is a life so unlike an English man and so ill-becoming a Christian that I have all the dayes of my life walked a contrary course if it were necessary multitudes of Witnesses will testifie the same for me I was entertained by my Master to waite upon him in his Chamber after he was gone to the House I had constant occasions to go into the City either to lay out pay or receive Money so much experience had I gained as I entred upon a Merchants Trade dealt with many and severall merchantable CoÌ„modities having a wife children then living that was the Trade I resolved to follow My Wife dying I went over to France some little time after with my Master and carried many Merchantable Commodities with me where I found library to encrease my experience my Master returning to England where he stayed not a year but we 〈◊〉 back again into France I was left behind to wait upon my Lady my imployment in my Ladies service is sufficiently known to be such as daily lead me to go into the City the 19th of July 1650. my Lady went from the City there was a necessity one man she must leave behind in London which fell to my portion and my businesses called me daily into the City sometimes to go to Councell sometimes to shew Bills of Exchange sometimes to pay Monies sometimes to lay out Money and buy severall things which both my Master and Lady did daily send for to me there was some Letters that came constantly every week from my Lady some out of France to one M. Charboners whose house was in Tower-street I missing these Letters often on the Monday went on the Tuesday for them which was the day that we met at the Club which was the main reason of my being so constantly there where I met for no other end then to see the faces of my Friends and to discourse of the Newes of the Town most of what ever I heard there discoursed on I found in the printed Books nothing doe I know was ever said or done there prejudiciall to the State but since it is looked upon as a Crime I would I had never come there Concerning my Master were it necessary I would here make a Declaration that he never left me to do any businesse but to wait upon his Lady and to provide buy and send those things into France that were necessary for him For Letters I never received any from him but such as might have lookt all the world in the face neither think I I need say much to clear this for that the State have seen most of those Letters that my Master sent before they ever came to my hands My Lord this is all I can say being unwilling to trouble the Court any longer but must declare how much I am amazed to be Indicted by so high a Charge of Treason as I dare say never lookt any such man as I am in my condition in the face till now and doe fully perswade my self that your Lordship will rather pity my ignorance and sad condition then look upon me as a man either fit for Plots or any such matter I am Charged with I doe protest that if I would make a Declaration of every Act I have done of every Word I have said of every line I have Written I never knew it came up to the