laboured for a union, and had laboured fruitlessly. It was not till a new power had been introduced, and a bond of concord had arisen between the two nations in a common Protestantism, that the inveterate antagonism consented at length to give way. Here too, by a mischievous fatality, the spirit of disagreement contrived to enter; but the uniting influence was stronger than the separative, and the work of fusion was accomplished at last, though painfully and arduously. The political condition of Scotland has been traced downwards to a point where it runs parallel to the general current of the story. I must go back a few years, to follow to its fountain the already visible stream of the spiritual Reformation.
sent Rothsay the herald to me declaring that, whatsoever publications were made, the King's pleasure was I should eat what I would, and that victuals should be appointed for me of what I would eat. I thanked humbly his Grace, and said I was belied and untruly said of. 'For,' quoth I, 'I eat no flesh nor none of my folks, nor,' quoth I, 'is it permitted in England in the Lent. Marry,' quoth I, 'I confess I eat eggs and white meats, because I am an evil fishman, and I think it none offence; for if it were,' quoth I, 'I would be as loth to eat of it as the holiest of your priests that thus have belied me.' 'Oh!' quoth he, 'know ye not our priests? a mischief on them all. I trust,' quoth he, 'the world will amend here once.' Thus I had liberty to eat what I would. Another bruit they made that all my men were monks; that I had them out of the abbeys of England, and now they were serving men. I gave a Greek word on my men's coat sleves, which is μόνιῳ ἄνακτι δουλεύω, the Latin whereof is Soli regi servio. Now the bishops here have interpreted my word to be, as they called, monachulus, which, as they say, is in English 'a little monk,' as a diminutive of monachus, and thus they affirmed for a verity. Whereupon they bruited that all my men were monks; but it appeareth they are no good Grecians. And now the effect of words is known, and they be well laughed for their learned interpretation.'—Sadler to : Sadler Papers, vol. i. pp. 47, 48.
