The Works of John Dryden | Page 9

street and crowd-work; and the engine lying perdue in a coat pocket, might readily sally out to execution, and by clearing a great hall, a piazza, or so, carry an election by a choice way of polling, called knocking down. The handle resembled a farrier's blood-stick, and the fall was joined to the end by a strong nervous ligature, that in its swing fell just short of the hand, and was made of _lignum vit?_, or rather, as the poet termed it, mortis." _Examen._ p. 572. The following is the first stanza of "The Protestant Flail; an excellent new song, to the tune of, Lacy's Maggot, or the Hobby Horse." It is thus labelled by Luttrell: "A bonny thing, 14 June, 1632."
Listen a while, and I'll tell you a tale Of a new device of a protestant flail; With a thump, thump, thump a thump. Thump a thump, thump. This flail it was made of the finest wood, All lined with lead, and notable good For splitting of bones, and shedding the blood Of all that withstood, With a thump, &c.
3. Shaftesbury, College, and others, were liberated by grand juries, who refused to find bills against them, bringing in what are technically called verdicts of ignoramus. It was here that the whig sheriffs were of most consequence to their party; for by their means the juries were picked from the very centre of the faction; and although they included many men of eminence, both for rank and talents, yet they were generally such as had made up their minds to cast the bill long before they came into court. This gave great offence to the royalists. North says, "There lay the barrier of the faction; and that stately word (_ignoramus_) became the appellative of the whole corrupt practice, and the infamous title of all the persons concerned in it." In Luttrell's Collection I find, "Ignoramus, an excellent new song, to the tune of Lay by your Pleading, Law lies a Bleeding." 15 Dec. 1681.
At the Old Bailey, Where rogues flock daily, A greater rogue far than Coleman, White, or Stayley, Was late indicted. Witnesses cited, But then he was set free, so the king was righted. 'Gainst princes offences Proved in all senses, But 'gainst a whig there is no truth in evidences; They sham us, and flam us, And ram us, and damn us. And then, in spite of law, come off with ignoramus, &c.
This song, according to the invariable practice of the scribblers on both sides, was answered by a new Ignoramus.

DRAMATIS PERSON?.
_The King of France._ Duke of GUISE. Duke of MAYENNE. GRILLON, _Colonel of the Guard._ ALPHONSO CORSO, _a Colonel._ BELLEURE, _a Courtier._ ABBOT DEL BENE, } _Royalists._ M. MONFERT, } The Cardinal of GUISE. } Archbishop of LYONS. } POLIN, } AUMALE, } _Of Guise's_ BUSSY, } _Faction._ The Curate of St EUSTACE, } MALICORN, _a Necromancer,_ } MELANAX, _a Spirit,_ } _Two Sheriffs,_ _Citizens and Rabble, &c._
_Queen Mother._ MARMOUTIERE, Niece to GRILLON.
SCENE,--_Paris._

THE DUKE OF GUISE.
ACT I.
SCENE I.--_The Council of Sixteen seated; an empty Chair prepared for the Duke of Guise._
BUSSY and POLIN, _two of the Sixteen._
_Buss._ Lights there! more lights! What, burn the tapers dim, When glorious Guise, the Moses, Gideon, David, The saviour of the nation, makes approach?
_Pol._ And therefore are we met; the whole sixteen, That sway the crowd of Paris, guide their votes, Manage their purses, persons, fortunes, lives, To mount the Guise, where merit calls him, high, And give him a whole heaven for room to shine.
Enter Curate of St EUSTACE.
_Buss._ The curate of St Eustace comes at last: But, father, why so late?
_Cur._ I have been taking godly pains to satisfy some scruples raised amongst weak brothers of our party, that were staggering in the cause.
_Pol._ What could they find to object?
_Cur._ They thought, to arm against the king was treason.
_Buss._ I hope you set them right?
_Cur._ Yes; and for answer, I produced this book. A Calvinist minister of Orleans Writ this, to justify the admiral For taking arms against the king deceased; Wherein he proves, that irreligious kings May justly be deposed, and put to death.
_Buss._ To borrow arguments from heretic books, Methinks, was not so prudent.
_Cur._ Yes; from the devil, if it would help our cause. The author was indeed a heretic; The matter of the book is good and pious.
_Pol._ But one prime article of our Holy League Is to preserve the king, his power, and person.
_Cur._ That must be said, you know, for decency; A pretty blind to make the shoot secure.
_Buss._ But did the primitive Christians e'er rebel, When under heathen lords? I hope they did.
_Cur._ No sure, they did not; for they had not power; The conscience of a people is their power.
_Pol._ Well; the next article in our solemn covenant Has cleared the