has been issued for the disquieting of your subjects on account of their religion; that you would restore them to their native homes and the possession of their properties; that you would confirm to them their ancient rights and liberties, cause reparation to be made to them for the injuries they have sustained, and adopt such means as may put an effectual stop to these vexatious proceedings. In doing this, your royal highness will perform what is acceptable to God, comfort and revive these miserable and distressed people, and give satisfaction to all your neighbours professing the reformed religion, and especially to ourself, who shall regard your favour and clemency towards them as the effect and fruit of our mediation, which we shall consider ourself bound to requite by a return of every good office, while it will also be the means of not only laying a foundation for our good correspondence and friendship, but also of encreasing it between this commonwealth and your dominions. And this we promise ourself from your justice and clemency; whereunto we desire God to incline your heart and mind, and so we sincerely pray that he would confer on you and on your people peace and truth, and that he would prosper you in all your affairs.

Given at our palace at Westminster, May 25, 1655.

OLIVER P.

As soon as the duke and his mother had made themselves acquainted with the contents of this letter, Madame Royal addressed herself to the English minister, and told him that "as, on the one hand, she could not but extremely applaud the singular charity and goodness of his highness, the Lord Protector, towards their subjects, whose situation had been represented to him so exceedingly lamentable, as she perceived by his dis

course had been done, so, on the other, she could not but extremely wonder that the malice of men should ever proceed so far as to clothe such paternal and tender chastisements of their most rebellious and insolent subjects, in characters so black and deformed, thereby to render them odious to all the neighbouring princes and states, with whom they were so anxious to keep up a good understanding and friendship-especially with so great and powerful a prince as the Lord Protector." She at the same time gave him to understand, that "she was persuaded, when he came to be more particularly informed of the truth of all that had passed, he would be so perfectly satisfied with the duke's proceedings, that he would not give the least countenance to his disobedient subjects. However for his highness's sake, they would not only freely pardon their rebellious subjects for the very heinous crimes which they had committed, but would also grant them such privileges and favours as could not fail to give the Protector full proof of the great respect which they entertained for his person and mediation.”

These plausible professions, while they no doubt display the usual finesse of politicians, yet certainly evince no ordinary measure of respect for the head of the English government, and are much more complaisant than was the style in which the same lady had previously addressed Major Weis, the deputy from the Swiss cantons. For when this latter gentleman delivered to the duke a letter from the six Protestant cantons of Switzerland upon the same melancholy occasion, Madame Royal promptly replied, that they were not obliged to give an account of their actions to any prince in the world; nevertheless, out of the respect which they bore to his masters of the cantons, they had given orders to the Marquis of Pionessa to acquaint him with the truth of all these affairs.

The Marquis, iu consequence, waited upon Major Weis, and endeavoured to justify all his proceedings, by casting the whole blame upon the Waldenses, repeatedly protesting that he never had the least design to force their consciences, and that all the reports which had been circulated respecting the massacre and other cruelties were mere forgeries. To all which the major replied, that "with regard to the massacre, it was a thing so demonstrably evident, that it was impossible either to conceal or deny it. And as to the people's right of habitation in the places from whence they were ordered to depart, it was founded upon justice and equity, inasmuch as it had not only been conceded to them by Charles Emanuel, duke of Savoy, but also purchased of his royal kighness for six thousand ducatoons, which were actually paid by them on that very account." The Marquis told him, that he did not at all deny the authenticity of the charters which the Waldenses held, but they were all conditional, and that the Catholic religion ought to have been freely exercised in all those places, which they would never allow. In short, that their continual residence in all those places for the last ninety years, could be called no better than a ninety years rebellion and disobedience. Such were the miserable pleas of this intole rant and blood-thirsty man.

It is obvious from all that can be collected of the temper and influence of the Marquis of Pionessa, the bigotted attachment of the Duke and his mother to the court of Rome, and the firm hold which the Catholic clergy had then got of their minds, that there was not the smallest disposition in the court of Savoy, to mitigate their sufferings, or abate the rigorous proceedings which had hitherto been going on against the Waldenses; and that had it not been for the seasonable interference of the English envoy, the Swiss deputy would have made

no impression whatever upon them. But let us now revert to the further proceedings in England. Besides the letter to the King of France and that to the Duke of Savoy, which I have already given, the following were transmitted on the same occasion.

THE LORD PROTECTOR TO THE KING OF SWEDEN.

MOST SERENE KING,

The report has, no doubt, ere this, reached your dominions, of that most cruel edict which has been issued by the Duke of Savoy, by means of which he has utterly ruined his subjects of the Alps, professing the reformed religion; having given orders that they should be driven out of the places of their inheritance, unless, within twenty days, they relinquished their own and embraced the Roman religion. The consequence has been that, many have been slain, the remnant, plundered and exposed to certain destruction, are at this moment wandering up and down with their wives and little ones, through desolate mountains of never-wasting snow, ready to perish through hunger and cold-nor can we doubt that your majesty is greatly troubled at these things. For, though in lesser matters they differ among themselves, yet the hatred of our adversaries which is common to us all, sufficiently demonstrates that the Protestant name and cause is one. Nor can any be ignorant, that your royal progenitors, the kings of Sweden, have always made common cause with those of the reformed religion, bringing their armies into Germany to defend it, without regard to minute distinctions.

We have, therefore, thought it necessary to state to your majesty, what has come to our knowledge of the wretched and miserable condition of these poor distressed

people, and to give you to understand the grief and sorrow with which we are afflicted on their behalf, as we have also done to our other friends and allies of the same profession; and that we have also conveyed our sentiments in the strongest manner we could to the Duke of Savoy, on the behalf of these poor innocent people. We are also persuaded that your majesty, detesting such inhuman and barbarous massacres, and in conformity to your well-known zeal and love of religion, has already, or immediately will, interpose your mediation, and intorcede with the Duke of Savoy to revoke that cruel edict, and recall to their habitations and estates the little remnant of those poor men that are yet left unbutchered.

And, certainly, if there be any bond of union, if any love or fellowship in religion is to be either believed or cultivated, such a multitude of our guiltless brethren, members of the same body of Christ, cannot suffer without the whole body suffering, and having a mutual sympathy with them. And indeed, it is unnecessary to remind your majesty that the principles from whence these cruelties and massacres have proceeded, equally threaten us all. As your wisdom and zeal, therefore, will direct you to such counsels as shall be most conducive to the relief and comfort of these miserable and disconsolate men, we have not written this to admonish your majesty, but merely to convey to you the sense we entertain of their sufferings, and our readiness to communicate with you in whatever may tend to their succour, and for the support of the Protestant interest in the world. In the mean time we heartily recommend your majesty unto God Almighty.

Your majesty's good friend,

OLIVER P.

Given at our palace at Westminster, May 25, 1655.