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64 HISTORY OF ENGLAND.

suffered to sleep at his deanery. All his bookcases and drawerswere examined; and sentinels were posted at the door of hisbedchamber, but with strict orders to behave civilly and not todisturb the family.

On the following day he was brought before the Council.The examination ivas conducted by Nottingham with greathumanity and courtesy. The Bishop, conscious of entireinnocence, behaved with temper and firmness. He made nocomplaints. “I submit,” he said, “to the necessities of Statein such a time of jealousy and danger as this.” lie was askedwhether he had drawn up a Declaration for King James, whetherhe had held any correspondence with France, whether he hadsigned any treasonable association, and whether he knew ofany such associaticfn. To all these questions he, with perfecttruth, answered in the negative, on the word of a Christian anda Bishop. He was taken back to his deanery. He remainedthere in easy confinement during ten days, and then, as nothingtending to criminate him had been discovered, was suffered toreturn to Bromley.

Meanwhile the false accusers had been devising a newscheme. Blackhead paid another visit to Bromley, and con-trived to take the forged Association out of the place in whichhe had hid it, and to bring it back to Young. One of Young’stwo wives then carried it to the Secretary’s Office, and toldalie, invented by her husband, to explain how a paper of suchimportance had come into her hands. But it was not now soeasy to frighten the ministers as it had been a few days before.The battle of La Hogue had put an end to all apprehensionsof invasion. Nottingham, therefore, instead of sending downa warrant to Bromley, merely wrote to beg that Sprat would callon him at Whitehall. The summons was promptly obeyed, andthe accused prelate was brought face to face with Blackheadbefore the Council. Then the truth came out fast. The Bishop