MY duty in most humble wise remembered, may it please your Grace to understand, that whereas there hath been a late controversy raised in the Temple, and pursued by Mr. Travers, upon conceit taken at some words by me uttered with a most simple and harmless meaning; in the heat of which pursuit, after three public invectives1, silence being enjoined him by authority, he hath hereupon for defence of his proceedings, both presented the right honourable Lords and other2 of her Majesty’s privy council with a writing, and also caused or suffered the same to be copied out and spread through the hands of so many, that well nigh all sorts of men have it now3 in their bosoms4; the matters wherewith I am therein charged being of such quality as they are, and myself being better known to your Grace than to any other of their Honours besides, I have chosen to offer to your Grace’s hands a plain declaration of my innocency, in all those things wherewith I am so hardly and heavily5 charged, lest if I still remain silent, that which I do for quietness’ sake, be taken as an argument that I lack what to speak truly and justly in mine own defence.
2. First, because Mr. Travers thinketh it expedient6 to breed an opinion in men’s minds, that the root of all inconvenient events which are now sprung out, is the surly and unpeaceable disposition of the man with whom he hath to do; therefore the first in the rank of accusations laid against me, is my inconformity, which have so little inclined to so many and so earnest exhortations and conferences, as myself, he saith, can witness to have been spent upon me, for my better fashioning unto good correspondence and agreement.
3. Indeed when at the first, by means of special well-willers, without any suit of mine, as they very well know, (although I do not think it had been a mortal sin, in a reasonable sort to have shewed a moderate desire that way7,) yet when by their endeavour without instigation of mine, some reverend and honourable, favourably affecting me, had procured her Majesty’s grant of the place; at the very point of my entering thereinto, the evening before I was first to preach, he came, and two other gentlemen joined with him in the charge of this8 church, (for so he gave me to understand,) though not in the same kind of charge with him9: the effect of his conference then was, that he thought it his duty to advise me not to enter with a strong hand, but to change my purpose of preaching there the next day, and to stay till he had given notice of me to the congregation, that so their allowance might seal my calling. The effect of mine10 answer was, that as in place where such order is, I would not break it; so here where it never was, I might not of mine own head take upon me to begin it: but liking very well the motion, for the opinion which I had of his good meaning who made it, requested him not to mislike my answer, though it were not correspondent to his mind.
4. When this had so displeased some, that whatsoever was afterwards done or spoken by me, it offended their taste, angry informations were daily sent out, intelligence given far and wide, what a dangerous enemy was crept in; the worst that jealousy could imagine was spoken and written to so many, that at the length some knowing me well, and perceiving how injurious the reports were, which grew daily more and more unto my discredit, wrought means to bring Mr. Travers and me to a second conference. Wherein when a common friend unto us both had quietly requested him to utter those things wherewith he found himself any way aggrieved11, he first renewed the memory of my entering into this charge by virtue only of a human creature (for so the want of that formality12 of popular allowance was then censured); and unto this was annexed a catalogue, partly of causeless surmises, as that I had conspired against him, and that I sought superiority over him; and partly of faults, which to note, I should have thought it a greater offence than to commit, if I did account them faults, and had heard them so curiously observed in any other than myself, they are such silly things; as praying in the entrance of my sermons only, and not in the end13, naming bishops in my prayer, kneeling when I pray, and kneeling when I receive the Communion, with such like, which I would be as loth to recite, as I was sorry to hear them objected, if the rehearsal thereof were not by him thus wrested from me. These are the conferences wherewith I have been wooed to entertain peace and good agreement.