1566.] THE MURDER OF DARNLEY. 475 doctrine enforced by temporal penalties as soon as it has been sanctioned by Parliament. ' The Catholics are in great alarm and entreat the Queen to withhold her sanction. I spent some time with her yesterday, and to bring on the subject I said that the Subsidy Bill having been passed it would be well if she let the Parliament end. The longer it lasted the more annoyance it would cause to her ; and she might assure herself that these popular assemblies could not fail to produce disquiet, more particularly where the Commons had liberty of speech and were so much in- clined to novelties. ' She agreed with me in this. She said the Commons had now entered upon a subject which was wholly alien to their duties ; they were acting in contradiction to their late professions, and she would endeavour to send them about their business before Christmas. ' I pointed out to her the mischievous intention of the men who had brought these religious questions forward. They had no care for her or for the commonwealth, and they simply meant sedition. She was at peace so far and had lived and reigned in safety all these years on the principles on which Cecil had carried on the govern- ment. If there was now to be a change, the insolence of the upholders of novelties would disturb everything. Hitherto the Pope and the Catholic powers had ab- stained from declaring against her, in the belief that her subjects were equitably and wisely governed, and that she would allow no one to be injured or offended. Should they now see her preparing to change her course
