that he had received the Sacrament from Hart at Huddington, but refused resolutely to reveal what had passed between him and this priest in confession. On January 21 (1606), Henry Morgan admitted that he also had confessed to Hart at Huddington,[1] and that Hart encouraged him to act under Catesby's orders.
Hart was born at Kennington, 1577, and was educated (as a Protestant) at Westminster School. When one and twenty years of age, he was received into the Roman Church by a Franciscan friar imprisoned in the Marshalsea. He entered the English College at Rome, 1599, and the Society of Jesus five years later. In 1611 he was arrested, at Harrowden, but released, and banished, after a year's imprisonment in the Gatehouse, Westminster. He had, however, the temerity to return, and in 1646 was again imprisoned for a short period. On his release he was employed by his Society in South Wales, where he died in 1650. The fact of his not having been imprisoned more than a year under James I. tends to show that he must have succeeded in proving that he had not been an
- ↑ 'On the following morning (Nov. 7), the whole company, now reduced to thirty-six persons, were present at Mass. After its conclusion, they all confessed to the priest, who was a Father Hammond. He was aware of their late proceedings, but does not seem to have considered that there was anything in them which needed absolution. At least, Bates naively stated that when he confessed on this occasion it was only for his sins, and not for any other particular cause' (Dr. S. R. Gardiner).
