CHAPTER 2.
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Diabolus for thy king, and art become a nurse and minister of Diabolonians against
thy sovereign Lord. Thy gates thou hast opened to him, but hast shut them fast
against me; thou hast given him an hearing, but hast stopped thine ears at my
cry. He brought to thee thy destruction, and thou didst receive both him and it: I am
come to thee bringing salvation, but thou regardest me not. Besides, thou hast, as
with sacrilegious hands, taken thyself, with all that was mine in thee, and hast given
all to my foe, and to the greatest enemy my Father has. You have bowed and
subjected yourselves to him, you have vowed and sworn yourselves to be his. Poor
Mansoul! what shall I do unto thee? Shall I save thee?—shall I destroy thee? What
shall I do unto thee? Shall I fall upon thee, and grind thee to powder, or make thee a
monument of the richest grace? What shall I do unto thee? Hearken, therefore, thou
town of Mansoul, hearken to my word, and thou shalt live. I am merciful, Mansoul,
and thou shalt find me so: shut me not out of thy gates.
‘O Mansoul, neither is my commission nor inclination at all to do thee hurt. Why
fliest thou so fast from thy friend, and stickest so close to thine enemy? Indeed, I
would have thee, because it becomes thee to be sorry for thy sin, but do not despair of
life; this great force is not to hurt thee, but to deliver thee from thy bondage, and to
reduce thee to thy obedience.
‘My commission, indeed, is to make a war upon Diabolus thy king, and upon all
Diabolonians with him; for he is the strong man armed that keeps the house, and I
will have him out: his spoils I must divide, his armour I must take from him, his hold
I must cast him out of, and must make it a habitation for myself. And this, O
Mansoul, shall Diabolus know when he shall be made to follow me in chains, and
when Mansoul shall rejoice to see it so.
‘I could, would I now put forth my might, cause that forthwith he should leave you
and depart; but I have it in my heart so to deal with him, as that the justice of the war
that I shall make upon him may be seen and acknowledged by all. He hath taken
Mansoul by fraud, and keeps it by violence and deceit, and I will make him bare and
naked in the eyes of all observers.
‘All my words are true. I am mighty to save, and will deliver my Mansoul out of his
hand.’
This speech was intended chiefly for Mansoul, but Mansoul would not have the
hearing of it. They shut up Ear-gate, they barricaded it up, they kept it locked and
bolted, they set a guard thereat, and commanded that no Mansoulonian should go
out to him, nor that any from the camp should be admitted into the town. All this
they did, so horribly had Diabolus enchanted them to do, and seek to do for him,
against their rightful Lord and Prince; wherefore no man, nor voice, nor sound of
man that belonged to the glorious host, was to come into the town.
So when Emmanuel saw that Mansoul was thus involved in sin, he calls his army
together, (since now also his words were despised,) and gave out a commandment
throughout all his host to be ready against the time appointed. Now, forasmuch as
there was no way lawfully to take the town of Mansoul but to get in by the gates, and
at Ear-gate as the chief, therefore he commanded his captains and commanders to
bring their rams, their slings and their men, and place them at Eye-gate and Ear-
gate, in order to his taking the town.
When Emmanuel had put all things in a readiness to give Diabolus battle, he sent
again to know of the town of Mansoul, if in peaceable manner they would yield
themselves, or whether they were yet resolved to put him to try the utmost---
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extremity? They then, together with Diabolus their king, called a council of war, and
resolved upon certain propositions that should be offered to Emmanuel, if he will
accept thereof, so they agreed; and then the next was, who should be sent on this
errand. Now, there was in the town of Mansoul an old man, a Diabolonian, and his
name was Mr. Loth-to-stoop, a stiff man in his way, and a great doer for Diabolus;
him, therefore, they sent, and put into his mouth what he should say. So he went and
came to the camp to Emmanuel, and when he was come, a time was appointed to
give him audience. So at the time he came, and after a Diabolonian ceremony or two,
he thus began and said, ‘Great sir, that it may be known unto all men how good-
natured a prince my master is, he has sent me to tell your lordship that he is very
willing, rather than go to war, to deliver up into your hands one half of the town of
Mansoul. I am therefore to know if your Mightiness will accept of this proposition.’
Then said Emmanuel, ‘The whole is mine by gift and purchase, wherefore I will never
lose one half.’
Then said Mr. Loth-to-stoop, ‘Sir, my master hath said that he will be content that
you shall be the nominal and titular Lord of all, if he may possess but a part.’
Then Emmanuel answered, ‘The whole is mine really, not in name and word only;
wherefore I will be the sole lord and possessor of all, or of none at all, of Mansoul.’
Then Mr. Loth-to-stoop said again, ‘Sir, behold the condescension of my master! He
says, that he will be content, if he may but have assigned to him some place in
Mansoul as a place to live privately in, and you shall be Lord of all the rest.’
Then said the golden Prince, ‘All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and of
all that he giveth me I will lose nothing—no, not a hoof nor a hair. I will not,
therefore, grant him, no, not the least corner of Mansoul to dwell in; I will have all to
myself.’
Then Loth-to-stoop said again, ‘But, sir, suppose that my Lord should resign the
whole town to you, only with this proviso, that he sometimes, when he comes into
this country, may, for old acquaintance’ sake, be entertained as a wayfaring man for
two days, or ten days or a month, or so. May not this small matter be granted?’
Then said Emmanuel, ‘No. He came as a wayfaring man to David, nor did he stay
long with him, and yet it had like to have cost David his soul. I will not consent that
he ever should have any harbour more there.’
Then said Mr. Loth-to-stoop, ‘Sir, you seem to be very hard. Suppose my master
should yield to all that your lordship hath said, provided that his friends and kindred
in Mansoul may have liberty to trade in the town, and to enjoy their present
dwellings. May not that be granted, sir?’
Then said Emmanuel, ‘No; that is contrary to my Father’s will; for all, and all manner
of Diabolonians that now are, or that at any time shall be found in Mansoul, shall not
only lose their lands and liberties, but also their lives.’
Then said Mr. Loth-to-stoop again, ‘But, sir, may not my master and great lord, by
letters, by passengers, by accidental opportunities, and the like, maintain, if he shall
deliver up all unto thee, some kind of old friendship with Mansoul?’
Emmanuel answered, ‘No, by no means; forasmuch as any such fellowship,
friendship, intimacy, or acquaintance, in what way, sort, or mode soever maintained,
will tend to the corrupting of Mansoul, the alienating of their affections from me, and
the endangering of their peace with my Father.’
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Mr. Loth-to-stoop yet added further, saying, ‘But, great sir, since my master hath
many friends, and those that are dear to him, in Mansoul, may he not, if he shall
depart from them, even of his bounty and good-nature, bestow upon them, as he sees
fit, some tokens of his love and kindness that he had for them, to the end that
Mansoul, when he is gone, may look upon such tokens of kindness once received
from their old friend, and remember him who was once their king, and the merry
times that they sometimes enjoyed one with another, while he and they lived in peace
together?’
Then said Emmanuel, ‘No; for if Mansoul come to be mine, I shall not admit of nor
consent that there should be the least scrap, shred, or dust of Diabolus left behind, as
tokens of gifts bestowed upon any in Mansoul, thereby to call to remembrance the
horrible communion that was betwixt them and him.’
‘Well, sir,’ said Mr. Loth-to-stoop, ‘I have one thing more to propound, and then I am
got to the end of my commission. Suppose that, when my master is gone from
Mansoul, any that shall yet live in the town should have such business of high
concerns to do, that if they be neglected the party shall be undone; and suppose, sir,
that nobody can help in that case so well as my master and lord, may not now my
master be sent for upon so urgent an occasion as this? Or if he may not be admitted
into the town, may not he and the person concerned meet in some of the villages near
Mansoul, and there lay their heads together, and there consult of matters?’
This was the last of those ensnaring propositions that Mr. Loth-to-stoop had to
propound to Emmanuel on behalf of his master Diabolus; but Emmanuel would not
grant it; for he said, ‘There can be no case, or thing, or matter fall out in Mansoul,
when thy master shall be gone, that may not be solved by my Father; besides, it will
be a great disparagement to my Father’s wisdom and skill to admit any from
Mansoul to go out to Diabolus for advice, when they are bid before, in everything, by
prayer and supplication to let their requests be made known to my Father. Further,
this, should it be granted, would be to grant that a door should be set open for
Diabolus, and the Diabolonians in Mansoul, to hatch, and plot, and bring to pass
treasonable designs, to the grief of my Father and me, and to the utter destruction of
Mansoul.’
When Mr. Loth-to-stoop had heard this answer, he took his leave of Emmanuel, and
departed, saying that he would carry word to his master concerning this whole
affair. So he departed, and came to Diabolus to Mansoul, and told him the whole of
the matter, and how Emmanuel would not admit, no, not by any means, that he,
when he was once gone out, should for ever have anything more to do either in, or
with any that are of the town of Mansoul. When Mansoul and Diabolus had heard
this relation of things, they with one consent concluded to use their best endeavour
to keep Emmanuel out of Mansoul, and sent old Ill-Pause, of whom you have heard
before, to tell the Prince and his captains so. So the old gentleman came up to the
top of Ear-gate, and called to the camp for a hearing, who when they gave audience,
he said, ‘I have in commandment from my high lord to bid you tell it to your Prince
Emmanuel, that Mansoul and their king are resolved to stand and fall together; and
that it is in vain for your Prince to think of ever having Mansoul in his hand, unless
he can take it by force.’ So some went and told to Emmanuel what old Ill-Pause, a
Diabolonian in Mansoul, had said. Then said the Prince, ‘I must try the power of my
sword, for I will not (for all the rebellions and repulses that Mansoul has made
against me) raise my siege and depart, but will assuredly take my Mansoul, and
deliver it from the hand of her enemy.’ And with that he gave out a commandment---
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that Captain Boanerges, Captain Conviction, Captain Judgment, and Captain
Execution should forthwith march up to Ear-gate with trumpets sounding, colours
flying, and with shouting for the battle. Also he would that Captain Credence should
join himself with them. Emmanuel, moreover, gave order that Captain Good-Hope
and Captain Charity should draw themselves up before Eye-gate. He bid also that
the rest of his captains and their men should place themselves for the best of their
advantage against the enemy round about the town; and all was done as he had
commanded.
Then he bid that the word should be given forth, and the word was at that time,
‘Emmanuel.’ Then was an alarm sounded, and the battering-rams were played, and
the slings did whirl stones into the town amain, and thus the battle began. Now
Diabolus himself did manage the townsmen in the war, and that at every gate;
wherefore their resistance was the more forcible, hellish, and offensive to
Emmanuel. Thus was the good Prince engaged and entertained by Diabolus and
Mansoul for several days together; and a sight worth seeing it was to behold how the
captains of Shaddai behaved themselves in this war.
And first for Captain Boanerges, (not to under-value the rest,) he made three most
fierce assaults, one after another, upon Ear-gate, to the shaking of the posts
thereof. Captain Conviction, he also made up as fast with Boanerges as possibly he
could, and both discerning that the gate began to yield, they commanded that the
rams should still be played against it. Now, Captain Conviction, going up very near
to the gate, was with great force driven back, and received three wounds in the
mouth. And those that rode reformades, they went about to encourage the captains.
For the valour of the two captains, made mention of before, the Prince sent for them
to his pavilion, and commanded that a while they should rest themselves, and that
with somewhat they should be refreshed. Care also was taken for Captain
Conviction, that he should be healed of his wounds. The Prince also gave to each of
them a chain of gold, and bid them yet be of good courage.
Nor did Captain Good-Hope nor Captain Charity come behind in this most desperate
fight, for they so well did behave themselves at Eye-gate, that they had almost broken
it quite open. These also had a reward from their Prince, as also had the rest of the
captains, because they did valiantly round about the town.
In this engagement several of the officers of Diabolus were slain, and some of the
townsmen wounded. For the officers, there was one Captain Boasting slain. This
Boasting thought that nobody could have shaken the posts of Ear-gate, nor have
shaken the heart of Diabolus. Next to him there was one Captain Secure slain: this
Secure used to say that the blind and lame in Mansoul were able to keep the gates of
the town against Emmanuel’s army. This Captain Secure did Captain Conviction
cleave down the head with a two-handed sword, when he received himself three
wounds in his mouth.
Besides these there was one Captain Bragman, a very desperate fellow, and he was
captain over a band of those that threw firebrands, arrows, and death: he also
received, by the hand of Captain Good-Hope at Eye-gate, a mortal wound in the
breast.
There was, moreover, one Mr. Feeling; but he was no captain, but a great stickler to
encourage Mansoul to rebellion. He received a wound in the eye by the hand of one
of Boanerges’ soldiers, and had by the captain himself been slain, but that he made a
sudden retreat.
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But I never saw Willbewill so daunted in all my life; he was not able to do as he was
wont, and some say that he also received a wound in the leg, and that some of the
men in the Prince’s army have certainly seen him limp as he afterwards walked on
the wall.
I shall not give you a particular account of the names of the soldiers that were slain in
the town, for many were maimed, and wounded, and slain; for when they saw that
the posts of Ear-gate did shake, and Eye-gate was well-nigh broken quite open, and
also that their captains were slain, this took away the hearts of many of the
Diabolonians; they fell also by the force of the shot that were sent by the golden
slings into the midst of the town of Mansoul.
Of the townsmen, there was one Love-no-Good; he was a townsman, but a
Diabolonian; he also received his mortal wound in Mansoul, but he died not very
soon.
Mr. Ill-Pause also, who was the man that came along with Diabolus when at first he
attempted the taking of Mansoul, he also received a grievous wound in the head;
some say that his brain-pan was cracked. This I have taken notice of, that he was
never after this able to do that mischief to Mansoul as he had done in times
past. Also old Prejudice and Mr. Anything fled.
Now, when the battle was over, the Prince commanded that yet once more the white
flag should be set upon Mount Gracious in sight of the town of Mansoul, to show that
yet Emmanuel had grace for the wretched town of Mansoul.
When Diabolus saw the white flag hung out again, and knowing that it was not for
him, but Mansoul, he cast in his mind to play another prank, to wit, to see if
Emmanuel would raise his siege and begone, upon promise of reformation. So he
comes down to the gate one evening, a good while after the sun was gone down, and
calls to speak with Emmanuel, who presently came down to the gate, and Diabolus
saith unto him:
‘Forasmuch as thou makest it appear by thy white flag that thou art wholly given to
peace and quiet, I thought meet to acquaint thee that we are ready to accept thereof
upon terms which thou mayest admit.
‘I know that thou art given to devotion, and that holiness pleaseth thee; yea, that thy
great end in making a war upon Mansoul is, that it may be a holy habitation. Well,
draw off thy forces from the town, and I will bend Mansoul to thy bow.
‘First, I will lay down all acts of hostility against thee, and will be willing to become
thy deputy, and will, as I have formerly been against thee, now serve thee in the town
of Mansoul. And more particularly,
‘1. I will persuade Mansoul to receive thee for their Lord; and I know that they will do
it the sooner when they shall understand that I am thy deputy.
‘2. I will show them wherein they have erred, and that transgression stands in the
way to life.
‘3. I will show them the holy law unto which they must conform, even that which they
have broken.
‘4. I will press upon them the necessity of a reformation according to thy law.
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‘5. And, moreover, that none of these things may fail, I myself, at my own proper cost
and charge, will set up and maintain a sufficient ministry, besides lectures, in
Mansoul.
‘6. Thou shalt receive, as a token of our subjection to thee, year by year, what thou
shalt think fit to lay and levy upon us in token of our subjection to thee.’
Then said Emmanuel to him, ‘O full of deceit, how movable are thy ways! How often
hast thou changed and rechanged, if so be thou mightest still keep possession of my
Mansoul, though, as has been plainly declared before, I am the right heir
thereof! Often hast thou made thy proposals already, nor is this last a whit better
than they. And failing to deceive when thou showedst thyself in thy black, thou hast
now transformed thyself into an angel of light, and wouldst, to deceive, be now as a
minister of righteousness.
‘But know thou, O Diabolus, that nothing must be regarded that thou canst
propound, for nothing is done by thee but to deceive. Thou neither hast conscience
to God, nor love to the town of Mansoul; whence, then, should these thy sayings arise
but from sinful craft and deceit? He that can of list and will propound what he
pleases, and that wherewith he may destroy them that believe him, is to be
abandoned, with all that he shall say. But if righteousness be such a beauty-spot in
thine eyes now, how is it that wickedness was so closely stuck to by thee before? But
this is by-the-bye.
‘Thou talkest now of a reformation in Mansoul, and that thou thyself, if I will please,
wilt be at the head of that reformation; all the while knowing that the greatest
proficiency that man can make in the law, and the righteousness thereof, will amount
to no more, for the taking away of the curse from Mansoul, than just nothing at all;
for a law being broken by Mansoul, that had before, upon a supposition of the breach
thereof, a curse pronounced against him for it of God, can never, by his obeying of
the law, deliver himself therefrom (to say nothing of what a reformation is like to be
set up in Mansoul when the devil is become corrector of vice). Thou knowest that all
that thou hast now said in this matter is nothing but guile and deceit; and is, as it was
the first, so is it the last card that thou hast to play. Many there be that do soon
discern thee when thou showest them thy cloven foot; but in thy white, thy light, and
in thy transformation, thou art seen but of a few. But thou shalt not do thus with my
Mansoul, O Diabolus; for I do still love my Mansoul.
‘Besides, I am not come to put Mansoul upon works to live thereby; should I do so, I
should be like unto thee: but I am come that by me, and by what I have and shall do
for Mansoul, they may to my Father be reconciled, though by their sin they have
provoked him to anger, and though by the law they cannot obtain mercy.
‘Thou talkest of subjecting of this town to good, when none desireth it at thy hands. I
am sent by my Father to possess it myself, and to guide it by the skilfulness of my
hands into such a conformity to him as shall be pleasing in his sight. I will therefore
possess it myself; I will dispossess and cast thee out; I will set up mine own standard
in the midst of them; I will also govern them by new laws, new officers, new motives,
and new ways; yea, I will pull down this town, and build it again; and it shall be as
though it had not been, and it shall then be the glory of the whole universe.’
When Diabolus heard this, and perceived that he was discovered in all his deceits, he
was confounded, and utterly put to a nonplus; but having in himself the fountain of
iniquity, rage, and malice against both Shaddai and his Son, and the beloved town of
Mansoul, what doth he but strengthen himself what he could to give fresh battle to---
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the noble Prince Emmanuel? So, then, now we must have another fight before the
town of Mansoul is taken. Come up, then, to the mountains, you that love to see
military actions, and behold by both sides how the fatal blow is given, while one
seeks to hold, and the other seeks to make himself master of the famous town of
Mansoul.
Diabolus, therefore, having withdrawn himself from the wall to his force that was in
the heart of the town of Mansoul, Emmanuel also returned to the camp; and both of
them, after their divers ways, put themselves into a posture fit to give battle one to
another.
Diabolus, as filled with despair of retaining in his hands the famous town of
Mansoul, resolved to do what mischief he could (if, indeed, he could do any) to the
army of the Prince and to the famous town of Mansoul; for, alas! it was not the
happiness of the silly town of Mansoul that was designed by Diabolus, but the utter
ruin and overthrow thereof, as now is enough in view. Wherefore, he commands his
officers that they should then, when they see that they could hold the town no longer,
do it what harm and mischief they could, rendering and tearing men, women, and
children. ‘For,’ said he, ‘we had better quite demolish the place, and leave it like a
ruinous heap, than so leave it that it may be an habitation for Emmanuel.’
Emmanuel again, knowing that the next battle would issue in his being made master
of the place, gave out a royal commandment to all his officers, high captains, and
men of war, to be sure to show themselves men of war against Diabolus and all
Diabolonians; but favourable, merciful, and meek to the old inhabitants of
Mansoul. ‘Bend, therefore,’ said the noble Prince, ‘the hottest front of the battle
against Diabolus and his men.’
So the day being come, the command was given, and the Prince’s men did bravely
stand to their arms, and did, as before, bend their main force against Ear-gate and
Eye-gate. The word was then, ‘Mansoul is won!’ so they made their assault upon the
town. Diabolus also, as fast as he could, with the main of his power, made resistance
from within; and his high lords and chief captains for a time fought very cruelly
against the Prince’s army.
But after three or four notable charges by the Prince and his noble captains, Ear-gate
was broken open, and the bars and bolts wherewith it was used to be fast shut up
against the Prince, were broken into a thousand pieces. Then did the Prince’s
trumpets sound, the captains shout, the town shake, and Diabolus retreat to his
hold. Well, when the Prince’s forces had broken open the gate, himself came up and
did set his throne in it; also he set his standard thereby, upon a mount that before by
his men was cast up to place the mighty slings thereon. The mount was called Mount
Hear-well. There, therefore, the Prince abode, to wit, hard by the going in at the
gate. He commanded also that the golden slings should yet be played upon the town,
especially against the castle, because for shelter thither was Diabolus retreated. Now,
from Ear-gate the street was straight even to the house of Mr. Recorder that so was
before Diabolus took the town; and hard by his house stood the castle, which
Diabolus for a long time had made his irksome den. The captains, therefore, did
quickly clear that street by the use of their slings, so that way was made up to the
heart of the town. Then did the Prince command that Captain Boanerges, Captain
Conviction, and Captain Judgment, should forthwith march up the town to the old
gentleman’s gate. Then did the captains in the most warlike manner enter into the
town of Mansoul, and marching in with flying colours, they came up to the---
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Recorder’s house, and that was almost as strong as was the castle. Battering-rams
they took also with them, to plant against the castle gates. When they were come to
the house of Mr. Conscience, they knocked, and demanded entrance. Now, the old
gentleman, not knowing as yet fully their design, kept his gates shut all the time of
this fight. Wherefore Boanerges demanded entrance at his gates; and no man
making answer, he gave it one stroke with the head of a ram, and this made the old
gentleman shake, and his house to tremble and totter. Then came Mr. Recorder
down to the gates, and, as he could, with quivering lips he asked who was
there? Boanerges answered, ‘We are the captains and commanders of the great
Shaddai and of the blessed Emmanuel, his Son, and we demand possession of your
house for the use of our noble Prince.’ And with that the battering-ram gave the gate
another shake. This made the old gentleman tremble the more, yet durst he not but
open the gate: then the King’s forces marched in, namely, the three brave captains
mentioned before. Now, the Recorder’s house was a place of much convenience for
Emmanuel, not only because it was near to the castle and strong, but also because it
was large, and fronted the castle, the den where now Diabolus was, for he was now
afraid to come out of his hold. As for Mr. Recorder, the captains carried it very
reservedly to him; as yet he knew nothing of the great designs of Emmanuel, so that
he did not know what judgment to make, nor what would be the end of such
thundering beginnings. It was also presently noised in the town how the Recorder’s
house was possessed, his rooms taken up, and his palace made the seat of the war;
and no sooner was it noised abroad, but they took the alarm as warmly, and gave it
out to others of his friends, and you know, as a snowball loses nothing by rolling, so
in little time the whole town was possessed that they must expect nothing from the
Prince but destruction; and the ground of the business was this, the Recorder was
afraid, the Recorder trembled, and the captains carried it strangely to the
Recorder. So many came to see, but when they with their own eyes did behold the
captains in the palace, and their battering-rams ever playing at the castle gates to
beat them down, they were riveted in their fears, and it made them all in
amaze. And, as I said, the man of the house would increase all this; for whoever
came to him, or discoursed with him, nothing would he talk of, tell them, or hear, but
that death and destruction now attended Mansoul.
‘For,’ quoth the old gentleman, ‘you are all of you sensible that we all have been
traitors to that once despised, but now famously victorious and glorious Prince
Emmanuel; for he now, as you see, doth not only lie in close siege about us, but hath
forced his entrance in at our gates. Moreover, Diabolus flees before him; and he
hath, as you behold, made of my house a garrison against the castle where he is. I,
for my part, have transgressed greatly, and he that is clean, it is well for him. But I
say I have transgressed greatly in keeping silence when I should have spoken, and in
perverting justice when I should have executed the same. True, I have suffered
something at the hand of Diabolus for taking part with the laws of King Shaddai; but
that, alas! what will that do? Will that make compensation for the rebellions and
treasons that I have done, and have suffered without gainsaying to be committed in
the town of Mansoul? Oh! I tremble to think what will be the end of this so dreadful
and so ireful a beginning!’
Now, while these brave captains were thus busy in the house of the old Recorder,
Captain Execution was as busy in other parts of the town, in securing the back streets
and the walls. He also hunted the Lord Willbewill sorely; he suffered him not to rest
in any corner; he pursued him so hard that he drove his men from him, and made
him glad to thrust his head into a hole. Also this mighty warrior did cut three of the---
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Lord Willbewill’s officers down to the ground: one was old Mr. Prejudice, he that had
his crown cracked in the mutiny. This man was made by Lord Willbewill keeper of
the Ear-gate, and fell by the hand of Captain Execution. There was also one Mr.
Backward-to-all-but-naught, and he also was one of Lord Willbewill’s officers, and
was the captain of the two guns that once were mounted on the top of Ear-gate; he
also was cut down to the ground by the hands of Captain Execution. Besides these
two there was another, a third, and his name was Captain Treacherous; a vile man
this was, but one that Willbewill did put a great deal of confidence in; but him also
did this Captain Execution cut down to the ground with the rest.
He also made a very great slaughter among my Lord Willbewill’s soldiers, killing
many that were stout and sturdy, and wounding many that for Diabolus were nimble
and active. But all these were Diabolonians; there was not a man, a native of
Mansoul, hurt.
Other feats of war were also likewise performed by other of the captains, as at Eye-
gate, where Captain Good-Hope and Captain Charity had a charge, was great
execution done; for the Captain Good-Hope, with his own hands, slew one Captain
Blindfold, the keeper of that gate. This Blindfold was captain of a thousand men, and
they were they that fought with mauls; he also pursued his men, slew many, and
wounded more, and made the rest hide their heads in corners.
There was also at that gate Mr. Ill-Pause, of whom you have heard before. He was an
old man, and had a beard that reached down to his girdle: the same was he that was
orator to Diabolus: he did much mischief in the town of Mansoul, and fell by the
hand of Captain Good-Hope.
What shall I say? The Diabolonians in these days lay dead in every corner, though
too many yet were alive in Mansoul.
Now, the old Recorder and my Lord Understanding, with some others of the chief of
the town, to wit, such as knew they must stand and fall with the famous town of
Mansoul, came together upon a day, and after consultation had, did jointly agree to
draw up a petition, and to send it to Emmanuel, now while he sat in the gate of
Mansoul. So they drew up their petition to Emmanuel, the contents whereof were
these: That they, the old inhabitants of the now deplorable town of Mansoul,
confessed their sin, and were sorry that they had offended his princely Majesty, and
prayed that he would spare their lives.
Unto this petition he gave no answer at all, and that did trouble them yet so much the
more. Now, all this while the captains that were in the Recorder’s house were playing
with the battering-rams at the gates of the castle, to beat them down. So after some
time, labour, and travail, the gate of the castle that was called Impregnable was
beaten open, and broken into several splinters, and so a way made to go up to the
hold in which Diabolus had hid himself. Then were tidings sent down to Ear-gate,
for Emmanuel still abode there, to let him know that a way was made in at the gates
of the castle of Mansoul. But, oh! how the trumpets at the tidings sounded
throughout the Prince’s camp, for that now the war was so near an end, and Mansoul
itself of being set free.
Then the Prince arose from the place where he was, and took with him such of his
men of war as were fittest for that expedition, and marched up the street of Mansoul
to the old Recorder’s house.
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Now, the Prince himself was clad all in armour of gold, and so he marched up the
town with his standard borne before him; but he kept his countenance much
reserved all the way as he went, so that the people could not tell how to gather to
themselves love or hatred by his looks. Now, as he marched up the street, the
townsfolk came out at every door to see, and could not but be taken with his person
and the glory thereof, but wondered at the reservedness of his countenance; for as yet
he spake more to them by his actions and works than he did by words or smiles. But
also poor Mansoul, (as in such cases all are apt to do,) they interpreted the carriage
of Emmanuel to them as did Joseph’s brethren his to them, even all the quite
contrary way. ‘For,’ thought they, ‘if Emmanuel loved us, he would show it to us by
word of carriage; but none of these he doth, therefore Emmanuel hates us. Now, if
Emmanuel hates us, then Mansoul shall be slain, then Mansoul shall become a
dunghill.’ They knew that they had transgressed his Father’s law, and that against
him they had been in with Diabolus, his enemy. They also knew that the Prince
Emmanuel knew all this; for they were convinced that he was an angel of God, to
know all things that are done in the earth; and this made them think that their
condition was miserable, and that the good Prince would make them desolate.
‘And,’ thought they, ‘what time so fit to do this in as now, when he has the bridle of
Mansoul in his hand?’ And this I took special notice of, that the inhabitants,
notwithstanding all this, could not—no, they could not, when they see him march
through the town, but cringe, bow, bend, and were ready to lick the dust of his
feet. They also wished a thousand times over that he would become their Prince and
Captain, and would become their protection. They would also one to another talk of
the comeliness of his person, and how much for glory and valour he outstripped the
great ones of the world. But, poor hearts, as to themselves, their thoughts would
chance, and go upon all manner of extremes. Yea, through the working of them
backward and forward, Mansoul became as a ball tossed, and as a rolling thing
before the whirlwind.
Now, when he was come to the castle gates, he commanded Diabolus to appear, and
to surrender himself into his hands. But, oh! how loath was the beast to appear! how
he stuck at it! how he shrank! how he cringed! yet out he came to the Prince. Then
Emmanuel commanded, and they took Diabolus and bound him fast in chains, the
better to reserve him to the judgment that he had appointed for him. But Diabolus
stood up to entreat for himself that Emmanuel would not send him into the deep, but
suffer him to depart out of Mansoul in peace.
When Emmanuel had taken him and bound him in chains, he led him into the
marketplace, and there, before Mansoul, stripped him of his armour in which he
boasted so much before. This now was one of the acts of triumph of Emmanuel over
his enemy; and all the while that the giant was stripping, the trumpets of the golden
Prince did sound amain; the captains also shouted, and the soldiers did sing for joy.
Then was Mansoul called upon to behold the beginning of Emmanuel’s triumph over
him in whom they so much had trusted, and of whom they so much had boasted in
the days when he flattered them.
Thus having made Diabolus naked in the eyes of Mansoul, and before the
commanders of the Prince, in the next place, he commands that Diabolus should be
bound with chains to his chariot wheels. Then leaving some of his forces, to wit,
Captain Boanerges and Captain Conviction, as a guard for the castle-gates, that
resistance might be made on his behalf, (if any that heretofore followed Diabolus---
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should make an attempt to possess it,) he did ride in triumph over him quite through
the town of Mansoul, and so out at and before the gate called Eye-gate, to the plain
where his camp did lie.
But you cannot think, unless you had been there, as I was, what a shout there was in
Emmanuel’s camp when they saw the tyrant bound by the hand of their noble Prince,
and tied to his chariot wheels!
And they said, ‘He hath led captivity captive, he hath spoiled principalities and
powers. Diabolus is subjected to the power of his sword, and made the object of all
derision.’
Those also that rode reformades, and that came down to see the battle, they shouted
with that greatness of voice, and sung with such melodious notes, that they caused
them that dwell in the highest orbs to open their windows, put out their heads, and
look to see the cause of that glory.
The townsmen also, so many of them as saw this sight, were, as it were, while they
looked, betwixt the earth and the heavens. True, they could not tell what would be
the issue of things as to them; but all things were done in such excellent methods,
and I cannot tell how, but things in the management of them seemed to cast a smile
towards the town, so that their eyes, their heads, their hearts, and their minds, and
all that they had, were taken and held while they observed Emmanuel’s order.
So, when the brave Prince had finished this part of his triumph over Diabolus his foe,
he turned him up in the midst of his contempt and shame, having given him a charge
no more to be a possessor of Mansoul. Then went he from Emmanuel, and out of the
midst of his camp, to inherit the parched places in a salt land, seeking rest, but
finding none.
Now, Captain Boanerges and Captain Conviction were, both of them, men of very
great majesty; their faces were like the faces of lions, and their words like the roaring
of the sea; and they still quartered in Mr. Conscience’s house, of whom mention was
made before. When, therefore, the high and mighty Prince had thus far finished his
triumph over Diabolus, the townsmen had more leisure to view and to behold the
actions of these noble captains. But the captains carried it with that terror and dread
in all that they did, (and you may be sure that they had private instructions so to do,)
that they kept the town under continual heart-aching, and caused (in their
apprehension) the well-being of Mansoul for the future to hang in doubt before them,
so that for some considerable time they neither knew what rest, or ease, or peace, or
hope meant.
Nor did the Prince himself as yet abide in the town of Mansoul, but in his royal
pavilion in the camp, and in the midst of his Father’s forces. So, at a time
convenient, he sent special orders to Captain Boanerges to summons Mansoul, the
whole of the townsmen, into the castle-yard, and then and there, before their faces,
to take my Lord Understanding, Mr. Conscience, and that notable one, the Lord
Willbewill, and put them all three in ward, and that they should set a strong guard
upon them there, until his pleasure concerning them was further known: the which
orders, when the captains had put them in execution, made no small addition to the
fears of the town of Mansoul; for now, to their thinking, were their former fears of
the ruin of Mansoul confirmed. Now, what death they should die, and how long they
should be in dying, was that which most perplexed their heads and hearts; yea, they
were afraid that Emmanuel would command them all into the deep, the place that
the prince Diabolus was afraid of, for they knew that they had deserved it. Also to die---
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by the sword in the face of the town, and in the open way of disgrace, from the hand
of so good and so holy a prince, that, too, troubled them sore. The town was also
greatly troubled for the men that were committed to ward, for that they were their
stay and their guide, and for that they believed that, if those men were cut off, their
execution would be but the beginning of the ruin of the town of Mansoul. Wherefore,
what do they, but, together with the men in prison, draw up a petition to the Prince,
and sent it to Emmanuel by the hand of Mr. Would-live. So he went, and came to the
Prince’s quarters, and presented the petition, the sum of which was this:
‘Great and wonderful Potentate, victor over Diabolus, and conqueror of the town of
Mansoul, We, the miserable inhabitants of that most woful corporation, do humbly
beg that we may find favour in thy sight, and remember not against us former
transgressions, nor yet the sins of the chief of our town: but spare us according to the
greatness of thy mercy, and let us not die, but live in thy sight. So shall we be willing
to be thy servants, and, if thou shalt think fit, to gather our meat under thy
table. Amen.’
So the petitioner went, as was said, with his petition to the Prince; and the Prince
took it at his hand, but sent him away with silence. This still afflicted the town of
Mansoul; but yet, considering that now they must either petition or die, for now they
could not do anything else, therefore they consulted again, and sent another petition;
and this petition was much after the form and method of the former.
But when the petition was drawn up, By whom should they send it? was the next
question; for they would not send this by him by whom they sent the first, for they
thought that the Prince had taken some offence at the manner of his deportment
before him: so they attempted to make Captain Conviction their messenger with it;
but he said that he neither durst nor would petition Emmanuel for traitors, nor be to
the Prince an advocate for rebels. ‘Yet withal,’ said he, ‘our Prince is good, and you
may adventure to send it by the hand of one of your town, provided he went with a
rope about his head, and pleaded nothing but mercy.’
Well, they made, through fear, their delays as long as they could, and longer than
delays were good; but fearing at last the dangerousness of them, they thought, but
with many a fainting in their minds, to send their petition by Mr. Desires-awake; so
they sent for Mr. Desires-awake. Now he dwelt in a very mean cottage in Mansoul,
and he came at his neighbour’s request. So they told him what they had done, and
what they would do, concerning petitioning, and that they did desire of him that he
would go therewith to the Prince.
Then said Mr. Desires-awake, ‘Why should not I do the best I can to save so famous a
town as Mansoul from deserved destruction?’ They therefore delivered the petition
to him, and told him how he must address himself to the Prince, and wished him ten
thousand good speeds. So he comes to the Prince’s pavilion, as the first, and asked to
speak with his Majesty. So word was carried to Emmanuel, and the Prince came out
to the man. When Mr. Desires-awake saw the Prince, he fell flat with his face to the
ground, and cried out, ‘Oh that Mansoul might live before thee!’ and with that he
presented the petition; the which when the Prince had read, he turned away for a
while and wept; but refraining himself, he turned again to the man, who all this while
lay crying at his feet, as at the first, and said to him, ‘Go thy way to thy place, and I
will consider of thy requests.’
Now, you may think that they of Mansoul that had sent him, what with guilt, and
what with fear lest their petition should be rejected, could not but look with many a---
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long look, and that, too, with strange workings of heart, to see what would become of
their petition. At last they saw their messenger coming back. So, when he was come,
they asked him how he fared, what Emmanuel said, and what was become of the
petition. But he told them that he would be silent till he came to the prison to my
Lord Mayor, my Lord Willbewill, and Mr. Recorder. So he went forwards towards
the prison-house, where the men of Mansoul lay bound. But, oh! what a multitude
flocked after, to hear what the messenger said. So, when he was come, and had
shown himself at the gate of the prison, my Lord Mayor himself looked as white as a
clout; the Recorder also did quake. But they asked and said, ‘Come, good sir, what
did the great Prince say to you?’ Then said Mr. Desires-awake, ‘When I came to my
Lord’s pavilion, I called, and he came forth. So I fell prostrate at his feet, and
delivered to him my petition; for the greatness of his person, and the glory of his
countenance, would not suffer me to stand upon my legs. Now, as he received the
petition, I cried, “Oh that Mansoul might live before thee!” So, when for a while he
had looked thereon, he turned him about, and said to his servant, “Go thy way to thy
place again, and I will consider of thy requests.”’ The messenger added, moreover,
and said, ‘The Prince to whom you sent me is such a one for beauty and glory, that
whoso sees him must both love and fear him. I, for my part, can do no less; but I
know not what will be the end of these things.’
At this answer they were all at a stand, both they in prison, and they that followed the
messenger thither to hear the news; nor knew they what, or what manner of
interpretation to put upon what the Prince had said. Now, when the prison was
cleared of the throng, the prisoners among themselves began to comment upon
Emmanuel’s words. My Lord Mayor said, that the answer did not look with a rugged
face; but Willbewill said that it betokened evil; and the Recorder, that it was a
messenger of death. Now, they that were left, and that stood behind, and so could
not so well hear what the prisoners said, some of them catched hold of one piece of a
sentence, and some on a bit of another; some took hold of what the messenger said,
and some of the prisoners’ judgment thereon; so none had the right understanding of
things. But you cannot imagine what work these people made, and what a confusion
there was in Mansoul now.
For presently they that had heard what was said flew about the town, one crying one
thing, and another the quite contrary; and both were sure enough they told true; for
they did hear, they said, with their ears what was said, and therefore could not be
deceived. One would say, ‘We must all be killed;’ another would say, ‘We must all be
saved;’ and a third would say that the Prince would not be concerned with Mansoul;
and a fourth, that the prisoners must be suddenly put to death. And, as I said, every
one stood to it that he told his tale the rightest, and that all others but he were
out. Wherefore Mansoul had now molestation upon molestation, nor could any man
know on what to rest the sole of his foot; for one would go by now, and as he went, if
he heard his neighbour tell his tale, to be sure he would tell the quite contrary, and
both would stand in it that he told the truth. Nay, some of them had got this story by
the end, that the Prince did intend to put Mansoul to the sword. And now it began to
be dark, wherefore poor Mansoul was in sad perplexity all that night until the
morning.
But, so far as I could gather by the best information that I could get, all this hubbub
came through the words that the Recorder said when he told them that, in his
judgment, the Prince’s answer was a messenger of death. It was this that fired the
town, and that began the fright in Mansoul; for Mansoul in former times did use to---
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count that Mr. Recorder was a seer, and that his sentence was equal to the best of
orators; and thus was Mansoul a terror to itself.
And now did they begin to feel what were the effects of stubborn rebellion, and
unlawful resistance against their Prince. I say, they now began to feel the effects
thereof by guilt and fear, that now had swallowed them up; and who more involved
in the one but they that were most in the other, to wit, the chief of the town of
Mansoul?
To be brief: when the fame of the fright was out of the town, and the prisoners had a
little recovered themselves, they take to themselves some heart, and think to petition
the Prince for life again. So they did draw up a third petition, the contents whereof
were these:—
‘Prince Emmanuel the Great, Lord of all worlds, and Master of mercy, we, thy poor,
wretched, miserable, dying town of Mansoul, do confess unto thy great and glorious
Majesty that we have sinned against thy Father and thee, and are no more worthy to
be called thy Mansoul, but rather to be cast into the pit. If thou wilt slay us, we have
deserved it. If thou wilt condemn us to the deep, we cannot but say thou art
righteous. We cannot complain whatever thou dost, or however thou carriest it
towards us. But, oh! let mercy reign, and let it be extended to us! Oh! let mercy take
hold upon us, and free us from our transgressions, and we will sing of thy mercy and
of thy judgment. Amen.’
This petition, when drawn up, was designed to be sent to the Prince as the first. But
who should carry it?—that was the question. Some said, ‘Let him do it that went with
the first,’ but others thought not good to do that, and that because he sped no
better. Now, there was an old man in the town, and his name was Mr. Good-Deed; a
man that bare only the name, but had nothing of the nature of the thing. Now, some
were for sending him; but the Recorder was by no means for that. ‘For,’ said he, ‘we
now stand in need of, and are pleading for mercy: wherefore, to send our petition by
a man of this name, will seem to cross the petition itself. Should we make Mr. Good-
Deed our messenger, when our petition cries for mercy?
‘Besides,’ quoth the old gentleman, ‘should the Prince now, as he receives the
petition, ask him, and say, “What is thy name?” as nobody knows but he will, and he
should say, “Old Good-Deed,” what, think you, would Emmanuel say but this? “Ay!
is old Good-Deed yet alive in Mansoul? then let old Good-Deed save you from your
distresses.” And if he says so, I am sure we are lost; nor can a thousand of old Good-
Deeds save Mansoul.’
After the Recorder had given in his reasons why old Good-Deed should not go with
this petition to Emmanuel, the rest of the prisoners and chief of Mansoul opposed it
also, and so old Good-Deed was laid aside, and they agreed to send Mr. Desires-
awake again. So they sent for him, and desired him that he would a second time go
with their petition to the Prince, and he readily told them he would. But they bid him
that in anywise he should take heed that in no word or carriage he gave offence to the
Prince; ‘For by doing so, for ought we can tell, you may bring Mansoul into utter
destruction,’ said they.
Now Mr. Desires-awake, when he saw that he must go on this errand, besought that
they would grant that Mr. Wet-Eyes might go with him. Now this Mr. Wet-Eyes was
a near neighbour of Mr. Desires, a poor man, a man of a broken spirit, yet one that
could speak well to a petition; so they granted that he should go with
him. Wherefore, they address themselves to their business: Mr. Desires put a rope---
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upon his head, and Mr. Wet-Eyes went with his hands wringing together. Thus they
went to the Prince’s pavilion.
Now, when they went to petition this third time, they were not without thoughts that,
by often coming, they might be a burden to the Prince. Wherefore, when they were
come to the door of his pavilion, they first made their apology for themselves, and for
their coming to trouble Emmanuel so often; and they said, that they came not hither
to-day for that they delighted in being troublesome, or for that they delighted to hear
themselves talk, but for that necessity caused them to come to his Majesty. They
could, they said, have no rest day nor night because of their transgressions against
Shaddai and against Emmanuel, his Son. They also thought that some misbehaviour
of Mr. Desires-awake the last time might give distaste to his Highness, and so cause
that he returned from so merciful a Prince empty, and without countenance. So,
when they had made this apology, Mr. Desires-awake cast himself prostrate upon the
ground, as at the first, at the feet of the mighty Prince, saying, ‘Oh! that Mansoul
might live before thee!’ and so he delivered his petition. The Prince then, having
read the petition, turned aside awhile as before, and coming again to the place where
the petitioner lay on the ground, he demanded what his name was, and of what
esteem in the account of Mansoul, for that he, above all the multitude in Mansoul,
should be sent to him upon such an errand. Then said the man to the Prince, ‘Oh let
not my Lord be angry; and why inquirest thou after the name of such a dead do—as I
am? Pass by, I pray thee, and take not notice of who I am, because there is, as thou
very well knowest, so great a disproportion between me and thee. Why the
townsmen chose to send me on this errand to my Lord is best known to themselves,
but it could not be for that they thought that I had favour with my Lord. For my part,
I am out of charity with myself; who, then, should be in love with me? Yet live I
would, and so would I that my townsmen should; and because both they and myself
are guilty of great transgressions, therefore they have sent me, and I am come in
their names to beg of my Lord for mercy. Let it please thee, therefore, to incline to
mercy; but ask not what thy servants are.’
Then said the Prince, ‘And what is he that is become thy companion in this so
weighty a matter?’ So Mr. Desires told Emmanuel that he was a poor neighbour of
his, and one of his most intimate associates. ‘And his name,’ said he, ‘may it please
your most excellent Majesty, is Wet-Eyes, of the town of Mansoul, I know that there
are many of that name that are naught; but I hope it will be no offence to my Lord
that I have brought my poor neighbour with me.’
Then Mr. Wet-Eyes fell on his face to the ground, and made this apology for his
coming with his neighbour to his Lord:—
‘O, my Lord,’ quoth he, ‘what I am I know not myself, nor whether my name be
feigned or true, especially when I begin to think what some have said, namely, That
this name was given me because Mr. Repentance was my father. Good men have bad
children, and the sincere do oftentimes beget hypocrites. My mother also called me
by this name from the cradle; but whether because of the moistness of my brain, or
because of the softness of my heart, I cannot tell. I see dirt in mine own tears, and
filthiness in the bottom of my prayers. But I pray thee (and all this while the
gentleman wept) that thou wouldest not remember against us our transgressions,
nor take offence at the unqualifiedness of thy servants, but mercifully pass by the sin
of Mansoul, and refrain from the glorifying of thy grace no longer.’
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So at his bidding they arose, and both stood trembling before him, and he spake to
them to this purpose:—
‘The town of Mansoul hath grievously rebelled against my Father, in that they have
rejected him from being their King, and did choose to themselves for their captain a
liar, a murderer, and a runagate slave. For this Diabolus, your pretended prince,
though once so highly accounted of by you, made rebellion against my Father and
me, even in our palace and highest court there, thinking to become a prince and
king. But being there timely discovered and apprehended, and for his wickedness
bound in chains, and separated to the pit with those that were his companions, he
offered himself to you, and you have received him.
‘Now this is, and for a long time hath been, a high affront to my Father; wherefore
my Father sent to you a powerful army to reduce you to your obedience. But you
know how these men, their captains and their counsels, were esteemed of you, and
what they received at your hand. You rebelled against them, you shut your gates
upon them, you bid them battle, you fought them, and fought for Diabolus against
them. So they sent to my Father for more power, and I, with my men, are come to
subdue you. But as you treated the servants, so you treated their Lord. You stood up
in hostile manner against me, you shut up your gates against me, you turned the deaf
ear to me, and resisted as long as you could; but now I have made a conquest of
you. Did you cry me mercy so long as you had hopes that you might prevail against
me? But now I have taken the town, you cry; but why did you not cry before, when
the white flag of my mercy, the red flag of justice, and the black flag that threatened
execution, were set up to cite you to it? Now I have conquered your Diabolus, you
come to me for favour; but why did you not help me against the mighty? Yet I will
consider your petition, and will answer it so as will be for my glory.
Go, bid Captain Boanerges and Captain Conviction bring the prisoners out to me
into the camp to-morrow, and say you to Captain Judgment and Captain Execution,
“Stay you in the castle, and take good heed to yourselves that you keep all quiet in
Mansoul until you shall hear further from me.”’ And with that he turned himself
from them, and went into his royal pavilion again.
So the petitioners, having received this answer from the Prince, returned, as at the
first, to go to their companions again. But they had not gone far, but thoughts began
to work in their minds that no mercy as yet was intended by the Prince to
Mansoul. So they went to the place where the prisoners lay bound; but these
workings of mind about what would become of Mansoul had such strong power over
them, that by that they were come unto them that sent them, they were scarce able to
deliver their message.
But they came at length to the gates of the town, (now the townsmen with
earnestness were waiting for their return,) where many met them, to know what
answer was made to the petition. Then they cried out to those that were sent, ‘What
news from the Prince? and what hath Emmanuel said?’ But they said that they must,
as afore, go up to the prison, and there deliver their message. So away they went to
the prison, with a multitude at their heels. Now, when they were come to the gates of
the prison, they told the first part of Emmanuel’s speech to the prisoners, to wit, how
he reflected upon their disloyalty to his Father and himself, and how they had chosen
and closed with Diabolus, had fought for him, hearkened to him, and been ruled by
him; but had despised him and his men. This made the prisoners look pale; but the
messengers proceeded and said, ‘He, the Prince, said, moreover, that yet he would---
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consider your petition, and give such answer thereto as would stand with his
glory.’ And as these words were spoken, Mr. Wet-Eyes gave a great sigh. At this they
were all of them struck into their dumps, and could not tell what to say: fear also
possessed them in a marvellous manner, and death seemed to sit upon some of their
eyebrows. Now, there was in the company a notable, sharp-witted fellow, a mean
man of estate, and his name was old Inquisitive. This man asked the petitioners if
they had told out every whit of what Emmanuel said, and they answered, ‘Verily,
no.’ Then said Inquisitive, ‘I thought so, indeed. Pray, what was it more that he said
unto you?’ Then they paused awhile; but at last they brought out all, saying, ‘The
Prince bade us bid Captain Boanerges and Captain Conviction bring the prisoners
down to him to-morrow; and that Captain Judgment and Captain Execution should
take charge of the castle and town till they should hear further from him. They said
also that when the Prince had commanded them thus to do, he immediately turned
his back upon them, and went into his royal pavilion.
But, oh! how this return, and specially this last clause of it, that the prisoners must go
out to the Prince into the camp, brake all their loins in pieces! Wherefore, with one
voice they set up a cry that reached up to the heavens. This done, each of the three
prepared himself to die; (and the Recorder said unto them, ‘This was the thing that I
feared;’) for they concluded that to-morrow, by that the sun went down, they should
be tumbled out of the world. The whole town also counted of no other, but that, in
their time and order, they must all drink of the same cup. Wherefore the town of
Mansoul spent that night in mourning, and sackcloth and ashes. The prisoners also,
when the time was come for them to go down before the Prince, dressed themselves
in mourning attire, with ropes upon their heads. The whole town of Mansoul also
showed themselves upon the wall, all clad in mourning weeds, if, perhaps, the Prince
with the sight thereof might be moved with compassion. But, oh! how the busy-
bodies that were in the town of Mansoul did now concern themselves! They did run
here and there through the streets of the town by companies, crying out as they ran
in tumultuous wise, one after one manner, and another the quite contrary, to the
almost utter distraction of Mansoul.
Well, the time is come that the prisoners must go down to the camp, and appear
before the Prince. And thus was the manner of their going down: Captain Boanerges
went with a guard before them, and Captain Conviction came behind, and the
prisoners went down, bound in chains, in the midst. So I say, the prisoners went in
the midst, and the guard went with flying colours behind and before, but the
prisoners went with drooping spirits.
Or, more particularly, thus: The prisoners went down all in mourning: they put ropes
upon themselves; they went on, smiting themselves on the breasts, but durst not lift
up their eyes to heaven. Thus they went out at the gate of Mansoul, till they came
into the midst of the Prince’s army, the sight and glory of which did greatly heighten
their affliction. Nor could they now longer forbear, but cry out aloud, ‘O unhappy
men! O wretched men of Mansoul!’ Their chains, still mixing their dolorous notes
with the cries of the prisoners, made the noise more lamentable.
So, when they were come to the door of the Prince’s pavilion, they cast themselves
prostrate upon the place; then one went in and told his Lord that the prisoners were
come down. The Prince then ascended a throne of state, and sent for the prisoners
in; who, when they came, did tremble before him, also they covered their faces with
shame. Now, as they drew near to the place where he sat, they threw themselves
down before him. Then said the Prince to the Captain Boanerges, ‘Bid the prisoners---
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stand upon their feet.’ Then they stood trembling before him, and he said, ‘Are you
the men that heretofore were the servants of Shaddai?’ And they said, ‘Yes, Lord,
yes.’ Then said the Prince again, ‘Are you the men that did suffer yourselves to be
corrupted and defiled by that abominable one, Diabolus?’ And they said, ‘We did
more than suffer it, Lord; for we chose it of our own mind.’ The Prince asked further,
saying, ‘Could you have been content that your slavery should have continued under
his tyranny as long as you had lived?’ Then said the prisoners, ‘Yes, Lord, yes; for his
ways were pleasing to our flesh, and we were grown aliens to a better state.’—‘And
did you,’ said he, ‘when I came up against this town of Mansoul, heartily wish that I
might not have the victory over you?’—‘Yes, Lord, yes,’ said they. Then said the
Prince, ‘And what punishment is it, think you, that you deserve at my hand, for these
and other your high and mighty sins?’—And they said, ‘Both death and the deep,
Lord; for we have deserved no less.’ He asked again if they had aught to say for
themselves why the sentence, that they confessed that they had deserved, should not
be passed upon them? And they said, ‘We can say nothing, Lord: thou art just, for we
have sinned.’ Then said the Prince, ‘And for what are those ropes on your
heads?’ The prisoners answered, ‘These ropes are to bind us withal to the place of
execution, if mercy be not pleasing in thy sight.’ So he further asked if all the men in
the town of Mansoul were in this confession, as they? And they answered, ‘All the
natives, Lord; but for the Diabolonians that came into our town when the tyrant got
possession of us, we can say nothing for them.’
Then the Prince commanded that a herald should be called, and that he should, in
the midst and throughout the camp of Emmanuel, proclaim, and that with sound of
trumpet, that the Prince, the Son of Shaddai, had, in his Father’s name, and for his
Father’s glory, gotten a perfect conquest and victory over Mansoul; and that the
prisoners should follow him, and say Amen. So, this was done as he had
commanded. And presently the music that was in the upper region sounded
melodiously, the captains that were in the camp shouted, and the soldiers did sing
songs of triumph to the Prince; the colours waved in the wind, and great joy was
everywhere, only it was wanting as yet in the hearts of the men of Mansoul.
Then the Prince called for the prisoners to come and to stand again before him, and
they came and stood trembling. And he said unto them, ‘The sins, trespasses,
iniquities, that you, with the whole town of Mansoul, have from time to time
committed against my Father and me, I have power and commandment from my
Father to forgive to the town of Mansoul, and do forgive you accordingly.’ And
having so said, he gave them, written in parchment, and sealed with seven seals, a
large and general pardon, commanding my Lord Mayor, my Lord Willbewill, and Mr.
Recorder, to proclaim and cause it to be proclaimed to-morrow, by that the sun is up,
throughout the whole town of Mansoul.
Moreover, the Prince stripped the prisoners of their mourning weeds, and gave them
beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, and the garment of praise for the spirit
of heaviness.
Then he gave to each of the three jewels of gold and precious stones, and took away
their ropes, and put chains of gold about their necks, and ear-rings in their
ears. Now, the prisoners, when they did hear the gracious words of Prince
Emmanuel, and had beheld all that was done unto them, fainted almost quite away;
for the grace, the benefit, the pardon, was sudden, glorious, and so big, that they
were not able, without staggering, to stand up under it. Yea, my Lord Willbewill
swooned outright; but the Prince stepped to him, put his everlasting arms under him,---
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embraced him, kissed him, and bid him be of good cheer, for all should be performed
according to his word. He also did kiss, and embrace, and smile upon the other two
that were Willbewill’s companions, saying, ‘Take these as further tokens of my love,
favour, and compassions to you; and I charge you that you, Mr. Recorder, tell in the
town of Mansoul what you have heard and seen.’
Then were their fetters broken to pieces before their faces, and cast into the air, and
their steps were enlarged under them. Then they fell down at the feet of the Prince,
and kissed his feet, and wetted them with tears: also they cried out with a mighty
strong voice, saying, ‘Blessed be the glory of the Lord from this place.’ So they were
bid rise up, and go to the town, and tell to Mansoul what the Prince had done. He
commanded also that one with a pipe and tabor should go and play before them all
the way into the town of Mansoul. Then was fulfilled what they never looked for, and
they were made to possess that which they never dreamed of.
The Prince also called for the noble Captain Credence, and commanded that he and
some of his officers should march before the noble men of Mansoul with flying
colours into the town. He gave also unto Captain Credence a charge, that about that
time that the Recorder did read the general pardon in the town of Mansoul, that at
that very time he should with flying colours march in at Eye-gate with his ten
thousands at his feet and that he should so go until he came by the high street of the
town, up to the castle gates, and that himself should take possession thereof against
his Lord came thither. He commanded, moreover, that he should bid Captain
Judgment and Captain Execution to leave the stronghold to him, and to withdraw
from Mansoul, and to return into the camp with speed unto the Prince.
And now was the town of Mansoul also delivered from the terror of the first four
captains and their men.
Well, I told you before how the prisoners were entertained by the noble Prince
Emmanuel, and how they behaved themselves before him, and how he sent them
away to their home with pipe and tabor going before them. And now you must think
that those of the town that had all this while waited to hear of their death, could not
but be exercised with sadness of mind, and with thoughts that pricked like
thorns. Nor could their thoughts be kept to any one point; the wind blew with them
all this while at great uncertainties; yea, their hearts were like a balance that had
been disquieted with a shaking hand. But at last, as they with many a long look
looked over the wall of Mansoul, they thought that they saw some returning to the
town; and thought again, Who should they be, too? Who should they be? At last
they discerned that they were the prisoners: but can you imagine how their hearts
were surprised with wonder, specially when they perceived also in what equipage and
with what honour they were sent home. They went down to the camp in black, but
they came back to the town in white; they went down to the camp in ropes, they came
back in chains of gold; they went down to the camp with their feet in fetters, but
came back with their steps enlarged under them; they went also to the camp looking
for death, but they came back from thence with assurance of life; they went down to
the camp with heavy hearts, but came back again with pipe and tabor playing before
them. So as soon as they were come to Eye-gate, the poor and tottering town of
Mansoul adventured to give a shout; and they gave such a shout as made the captains
in the Prince’s army leap at the sound thereof. Alas! for them, poor hearts! who
could blame them? since their dead friends were come to life again; for it was to them
as life from the dead to see the ancients of the town of Mansoul shine in such
splendour. They looked for nothing but the axe and the block; but, behold, joy and
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gladness, comfort and consolation, and such melodious notes attending them that
was sufficient to make a sick man well.
So, when they came up, they saluted each other with, ‘Welcome, welcome! and
blessed be he that has spared you!’ They added also, ‘We see it is well with you; but
how must it go with the town of Mansoul? And will it go well with the town of
Mansoul?’ said they. Then answered them the Recorder and my Lord Mayor, ‘Oh!
tidings! glad tidings! good tidings of good, and of great joy to poor Mansoul!’ Then
they gave another shout, that made the earth to ring again. After this, they inquired
yet more particularly how things went in the camp, and what message they had from
Emmanuel to the town. So they told them all passages that had happened to them at
the camp, and everything that the Prince did to them. This made Mansoul wonder at
the wisdom and grace of the Prince Emmanuel. Then they told them what they had
received at his hands for the whole town of Mansoul, and the Recorder delivered it in
these words: ‘Pardon, Pardon, Pardon for Mansoul! and this shall Mansoul know to-
morrow!’ Then he commanded, and they went and summoned Mansoul to meet
together in the market-place to-morrow, then to hear their general pardon read.
But who can think what a turn, what a change, what an alteration this hint of things
did make in the countenance of the town of Mansoul! No man of Mansoul could
sleep that night for joy; in every house there was joy and music, singing and making
merry: telling and hearing of Mansoul’s happiness was then all that Mansoul had to
do; and this was the burden of all their song: ‘Oh! more of this at the rising of the
sun! more of this to-morrow!’ ‘Who thought yesterday,’ would one say, ‘that this day
would have been such a day to us? And who thought, that saw our prisoners go down
in irons, that they would have returned in chains of gold? Yea, they that judged
themselves as they went to be judged of their judge, were by his mouth acquitted, not
for that they were innocent, but of the Prince’s mercy, and sent home with pipe and
tabor. But is this the common custom of princes? Do they use to show such kind of
favours to traitors? No; this is only peculiar to Shaddai, and unto Emmanuel, his
Son!’
Now morning drew on apace; wherefore the Lord Mayor, the Lord Willbewill, and
Mr. Recorder came down to the market-place at the time that the Prince had
appointed, where the townsfolk were waiting for them: and when they came, they
came in that attire, and in that glory that the Prince had put them into the day before,
and the street was lightened with their glory. So the Mayor, Recorder, and my Lord
Willbewill drew down to Mouth-gate, which was at the lower end of the market-
place, because that of old time was the place where they used to read public
matters. Thither, therefore, they came in their robes, and their tabrets went before
them. Now, the eagerness of the people to know the full of the matter was great.
Then the Recorder stood up upon his feet, and, first beckoning with his hand for
silence, he read out with a loud voice the pardon. But when he came to these words:
‘The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, pardoning iniquity, transgressions,
and sins, and to them all manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven,’ etc., they
could not forbear leaping for joy. For this you must know, that there was conjoined
herewith every man’s name in Mansoul; also the seals of the pardon made a brave
show.
When the Recorder had made an end of reading the pardon, the townsmen ran up
upon the walls of the town, and leaped and skipped thereon for joy, and bowed
themselves seven times with their faces toward Emmanuel’s pavilion, and shouted---
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out aloud for joy, and said, ‘Let Emmanuel live for ever!’ Then order was given to the
young men in Mansoul that they should ring the bells for joy. So the bells did ring,
and the people sing, and the music go in every house in Mansoul.
When the Prince had sent home the three prisoners of Mansoul with joy, and pipe
and tabor, he commanded his captains, with all the field officers and soldiers
throughout his army, to be ready in that morning, that the Recorder should read the
pardon in Mansoul, to do his further pleasure. So the morning, as I have showed,
being come, just as the Recorder had made an end of reading the pardon, Emmanuel
commanded that all the trumpets in the camp should sound, that the colours should
be displayed, half of them upon Mount Gracious, and half of them upon Mount
Justice. He commanded also that all the captains should show themselves in all their
harness, and that the soldiers should shout for joy. Nor was Captain Credence,
though in the castle, silent in such a day; but he, from the top of the hold, showed
himself with sound of trumpet to Mansoul and to the Prince’s camp.
Thus have I showed you the manner and way that Emmanuel took to recover the
town of Mansoul from under the hand and power of the tyrant Diabolus.
Now, when the Prince had completed these, the outward ceremonies of his joy, he
again commanded that his captains and soldiers should show unto Mansoul some
feats of war: so they presently addressed themselves to this work. But oh! with what
agility, nimbleness, dexterity, and bravery did these military men discover their skill
in feats of war to the now gazing town of Mansoul!
They marched, they counter-marched; they opened to the right and left; they divided
and subdivided; they closed, they wheeled, made good their front and rear with their
right and left wings, and twenty things more, with that aptness, and then were all as
the were again, that they took—yea, ravished, the hearts that were in Mansoul to
behold it. But add to this, the handling of their arms, the managing of their weapons
of war, were marvellously taking to Mansoul and me.
When this action was over, the whole town of Mansoul came out as one man to the
Prince in the camp to thank him, and praise him for his abundant favour, and to beg
that it would please his grace to come unto Mansoul with his men, and there to take
up their quarters for ever: and this they did in most humble manner, bowing
themselves seven times to the ground before him. Then said he, ‘All peace be to you.’
So the town came nigh, and touched with the hand the top of his golden sceptre; and
they said, ‘Oh! that the Prince Emmanuel, with his captains and men of war, would
dwell in Mansoul for ever; and that his battering-rams and slings might be lodged in
her for the use and service of the Prince, and for the help and strength of
Mansoul. For,’ said they, ‘we have room for thee, we have room for thy men, we have
also room for thy weapons of war, and a place to make a magazine for thy
carriages. Do it, Emmanuel, and thou shalt be King and Captain in Mansoul for
ever. Yea, govern thou also according to all the desire of thy soul, and make thou
governors and princes under thee of thy captains and men of war, and we will
become thy servants, and thy laws shall be our direction.’
They added, moreover, and prayed his Majesty to consider thereof; ‘for,’ said they, ‘if
now, after all this grace bestowed upon us, thy miserable town of Mansoul, thou
shouldest withdraw, thou and thy captains, from us, the town of Mansoul will
die. Yea,’ said they, ‘our blessed Emmanuel, if thou shouldest depart from us now,
now thou hast done so much good for us, and showed so much mercy unto us, what
will follow but that our joy will be as if it had not been, and our enemies will a second--
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time come upon us with more rage than at the first? Wherefore, we beseech thee, O
thou, the desire of our eyes, and the strength and life of our poor town, accept of this
motion that now we have made unto our Lord, and come and dwell in the midst of
us, and let us be thy people. Besides, Lord, we do not know but that to this day many
Diabolonians may be yet lurking in the town of Mansoul, and they will betray us,
when thou shalt leave us, into the hand of Diabolus again; and who knows what
designs, plots, or contrivances have passed betwixt them about these things
already? Loath we are to fall again into his horrible hands. Wherefore, let it please
thee to accept of our palace for thy place of residence, and of the houses of the best
men in our town for the reception of thy soldiers and their furniture.’
Then said the Prince, ‘If I come to your town, will you suffer me further to prosecute
that which is in mine heart against mine enemies and yours?—yea, will you help me
in such undertakings?’
They answered, ‘We know not what we shall do; we did not think once that we should
have been such traitors to Shaddai as we have proved to be. What, then, shall we say
to our Lord? Let him put no trust in his saints; let the Prince dwell in our castle, and
make of our town a garrison; let him set his noble captains and his warlike soldiers
over us; yea, let him conquer us with his love, and overcome us with his grace, and
then surely shall he be but with us, and help us, as he was and did that morning that
our pardon was read unto us. We shall comply with this our Lord, and with his ways,
and fall in with his word against the mighty.
‘One word more, and thy servants have done, and in this will trouble our Lord no
more. We know not the depth of the wisdom of thee, our Prince. Who could have
thought, that had been ruled by his reason, that so much sweet as we do now enjoy
should have come out of those bitter trials wherewith we were tried at the first! But,
Lord, let light go before, and let love come after: yea, take us by the hand, and lead us
by thy counsels, and let this always abide upon us, that all things shall be the best for
thy servants, and come to our Mansoul, and do as it pleaseth thee. Or, Lord, come to
our Mansoul, do what thou wilt, so thou keepest us from sinning, and makest us
serviceable to thy Majesty.’
Then said the Prince to the town of Mansoul again, ‘Go, return to your houses in
peace. I will willingly in this comply with your desires; I will remove my royal
pavilion, I will draw up my forces before Eye-gate to-morrow, and so will march
forwards into the town of Mansoul. I will possess myself of your castle of Mansoul,
and will set my soldiers over you: yea, I will yet do things in Mansoul that cannot be
paralleled in any nation, country, or kingdom under heaven.’ Then did the men of
Mansoul give a shout, and returned unto their houses in peace; they also told to their
kindred and friends the good that Emmanuel had promised to Mansoul. ‘And to-
morrow,’ said they, ‘he will march into our town, and take up his dwelling, he and his
men, in Mansoul.’
Then went out the inhabitants of the town of Mansoul with haste to the green trees
and to the meadows, to gather boughs and flowers, therewith to strew the streets
against their Prince, the Son of Shaddai, should come; they also made garlands and
other fine works to betoken how joyful they were, and should be to receive their
Emmanuel into Mansoul; yea, they strewed the street quite from Eye-gate to the
castle-gate, the place where the Prince should be. They also prepared for his coming
what music the town of Mansoul would afford, that they might play before him to the
palace, his habitation.
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So, at the time appointed he makes his approach to Mansoul, and the gates were set
open for him; there also the ancients and elders of Mansoul met him to salute him
with a thousand welcomes. Then he arose and entered Mansoul, he and all his
servants. The elders of Mansoul did also go dancing before him till he came to the
castle gates. And this was the manner of his going up thither:—He was clad in his
golden armour, he rode in his royal chariot, the trumpets sounded about him, the
colours were displayed, his ten thousands went up at his feet, and the elders of
Mansoul danced before him. And now were the walls of the famous town of Mansoul
filled with the tramplings of the inhabitants thereof, who went up thither to view the
approach of the blessed Prince and his royal army. Also the casements, windows,
balconies, and tops of the houses, were all now filled with persons of all sorts, to
behold how their town was to be filled with good.
Now, when he was come so far into the town as to the Recorder’s house, he
commanded that one should go to Captain Credence, to know whether the castle of
Mansoul was prepared to entertain his royal presence (for the preparation of that
was left to that captain), and word was brought that it was. Then was Captain
Credence commanded also to come forth with his power to meet the Prince, the
which was, as he had commanded, done; and he conducted him into the castle. This
done, the Prince that night did lodge in the castle with his mighty captains and men
of war, to the joy of the town of Mansoul.
Now, the next care of the townsfolk was, how the captains and soldiers of the Prince’s
army should be quartered among them; and the care was not how they should shut
their hands of them, but how they should fill their houses with them; for every man
in Mansoul now had that esteem of Emmanuel and his men that nothing grieved
them more than because they were not enlarged enough, every one of them to receive
the whole army of the Prince; yea, they counted it their glory to be waiting upon
them, and would, in those days, run at their bidding like lackeys.
At last they came to this result:—
1. That Captain Innocency should quarter at Mr. Reason’s.
2. That Captain Patience should quarter at Mr. Mind’s. This Mr. Mind was formerly
the Lord Willbewill’s clerk in time of the late rebellion.
3. It was ordered that Captain Charity should quarter at Mr. Affection’s house.
4. That Captain Good-Hope should quarter at my Lord Mayor’s. Now, for the house
of the Recorder, himself desired, because his house was next to the castle, and
because from him it was ordered by the Prince that, if need be, the alarm should be
given to Mansoul,—it was, I say, desired by him that Captain Boanerges and Captain
Conviction should take up their quarters with him, even they and all their men.
5. As for Captain Judgment and Captain Execution, my Lord Willbewill took them
and their men to him, because he was to rule under the Prince for the good of the
town of Mansoul now, as he had before under the tyrant Diabolus for the hurt and
damage thereof.
6. And throughout the rest of the town were quartered Emmanuel’s forces; but
Captain Credence, with his men, abode still in the castle. So the Prince, his captains,
and his soldiers, were lodged in the town of Mansoul.
Now, the ancients and elders of the town of Mansoul thought that they never should
have enough of the Prince Emmanuel; his person, his actions, his words, and---
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behaviour, were so pleasing, so taking, so desirable to them. Wherefore they prayed
him, that though the castle of Mansoul was his place of residence, (and they desired
that he might dwell there for ever,) yet that he would often visit the streets, houses,
and people of Mansoul. ‘For,’ said they, ‘dread Sovereign, thy presence, thy looks,
thy smiles, thy words, are the life, and strength, and sinews of the town of Mansoul.’
Besides this, they craved that they might have, without difficulty or interruption,
continual access unto him, (so for that very purpose he commanded that the gates
should stand open,) that they might there see the manner of his doings, the
fortifications of the place, and the royal mansion-house of the Prince.
When he spake, they all stopped their mouths and gave audience; and when he
walked, it was their delight to imitate him in his goings.
Now, upon a time, Emmanuel made a feast for the town of Mansoul; and upon the
feasting-day the townsfolk were come to the castle to partake of his banquet; and he
feasted them with all manner of outlandish food;—food that grew not in the fields of
Mansoul; nor in all the whole Kingdom of Universe; it was food that came from his
Father’s court. And so there was dish after dish set before them, and they were
commanded freely to eat. But still, when a fresh dish was set before them, they
would whisperingly say to each other, ‘What is it?’ for they wist not what to call
it. They drank also of the water that was made wine, and were very merry with
him. There was music also all the while at the table; and man did eat angels’ food,
and had honey given him out of the rock. So Mansoul did eat the food that was
peculiar to the court; yea, they had now thereof to the full.
I must not forget to tell you, that as at this table there were musicians, so they were
not those of the country, nor yet of the town of Mansoul; but they were the masters of
the songs that were sung at the court of Shaddai.
Now, after the feast was over, Emmanuel was for entertaining the town of Mansoul
with some curious riddles of secrets drawn up by his Father’s secretary, by the skill
and wisdom of Shaddai; the like to these there is not in any kingdom. These riddles
were made upon the King Shaddai himself, and upon Emmanuel his Son, and upon
his wars and doings with Mansoul.
Emmanuel also expounded unto them some of those riddles himself; but, oh! how
they were lightened! They saw what they never saw; they could not have thought
that such rarities could have been couched in so few and such ordinary words. I told
you before, whom these riddles did concern; and as they were opened, the people did
evidently see it was so. Yea, they did gather that the things themselves were a kind of
a portraiture, and that of Emmanuel himself; for when they read in the scheme
where the riddles were writ, and looked in the face of the Prince, things looked so like
the one to the other, that Mansoul could not forbear but say, ‘This is the lamb! this is
the sacrifice! this is the rock! this is the red cow! this is the door! and this is the way!’
with a great many other things more.
And thus he dismissed the town of Mansoul. But can you imagine how the people of
the corporation were taken with this entertainment! Oh! they were transported with
joy, they were drowned with wonderment, while they saw and understood, and
considered what their Emmanuel entertained them withal, and what mysteries he
opened to them. And when they were at home in their houses, and in their most
retired places, they could not but sing of him and of his actions. Yea, so taken were
the townsmen now with their Prince, that they would sing of him in their sleep.
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Now, it was in the heart of the Prince Emmanuel to new-model the town of Mansoul,
and to put it into such a condition as might be most pleasing to him, and that might
best stand with the profit and security of the now flourishing town of Mansoul. He
provided also against insurrections at home, and invasions from abroad, such love
had he for the famous town of Mansoul.
Wherefore he first of all commanded that the great slings that were brought from his
Father’s court, when he came to the war of Mansoul, should be mounted, some upon
the battlements of the castle, some upon the towers; for there were towers in the
town of Mansoul, towers, new-built by Emmanuel since he came hither. There was
also an instrument, invented by Emmanuel, that was to throw stones from the castle
of Mansoul, out at Mouth-gate; an instrument that could not be resisted, nor that
would miss of execution. Wherefore, for the wonderful exploits that it did when
used, it went without a name; and it was committed to the care of, and to be
managed by the brave captain, the Captain Credence, in case of war.
This done, Emmanuel called the Lord Willbewill to him, and gave him in
commandment to take care of the gates, the wall, and towers in Mansoul; also the
Prince gave him the militia into his hand, and a special charge to withstand all
insurrections and tumults that might be made in Mansoul against the peace of our
Lord the King, and the peace and tranquillity of the town of Mansoul. He also gave
him in commission, that if he found any of the Diabolonians lurking in any corner of
the famous town of Mansoul, he should forthwith apprehend them, and stay them, or
commit them to safe custody, that they may be proceeded against according to law.
Then he called unto him the Lord Understanding, who was the old Lord Mayor, he
that was put out of place when Diabolus took the town, and put him into his former
office again, and it became his place for his lifetime. He bid him also that he should
build him a palace near Eye-gate; and that he should build it in fashion like a tower
for defence. He bid him also that he should read in the Revelation of Mysteries all
the days of his life, that he might know how to perform his office aright.
He also made Mr. Knowledge the Recorder, not of contempt to old Mr. Conscience,
who had been Recorder before, but for that it was in his princely mind to confer upon
Mr. Conscience another employ, of which he told the old gentleman he should know
more hereafter.
Then he commanded that the image of Diabolus should be taken down from the
place where it was set up, and that they should destroy it utterly, beating it into
powder, and casting it into the wind without the town wall; and that the image of
Shaddai, his Father, should be set up again, with his own, upon the castle gates; and
that it should be more fairly drawn than ever, forasmuch as both his Father and
himself were come to Mansoul in more grace and mercy than heretofore. He would
also that his name should be fairly engraven upon the front of the town, and that it
should be done in the best of gold, for the honour of the town of Mansoul.
After this was done, Emmanuel gave out a commandment that those three great
Diabolonians should be apprehended, namely, the two late Lord Mayors, to wit, Mr.
Incredulity, Mr. Lustings, and Mr. Forget-Good, the Recorder. Besides these, there
were some of them that Diabolus made burgesses and aldermen in Mansoul, that
were committed to ward by the hand of the now valiant and now right noble, the
brave Lord Willbewill.
And these were their names: Alderman Atheism, Alderman Hard-Heart, and
Alderman False-Peace. The burgesses were, Mr. No-Truth, Mr. Pitiless, Mr.---
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Haughty, with the like. These were committed to close custody, and the gaoler’s
name was Mr. True-Man. This True-Man was one of those that Emmanuel brought
with him from his Father’s court when at the first he made a war upon Diabolus in
the town or Mansoul.
After this, the Prince gave a charge that the three strongholds that, at the command
of Diabolus, the Diabolonians built in Mansoul, should be demolished and utterly
pulled down; of which holds and their names, with their captains and governors, you
read a little before. But this was long in doing, because of the largeness of the places,
and because the stones, the timber, the iron, and all rubbish, was to be carried
without the town.
When this was done, the Prince gave order that the Lord Mayor and aldermen of
Mansoul should call a court of judicature for the trial and execution of the
Diabolonians in the corporation now under the charge of Mr. True-Man, the gaoler.
Now, when the time was come, and the court set, commandment was sent to Mr.
True-Man, the gaoler, to bring the prisoners down to the bar. Then were the
prisoners brought down, pinioned and chained together, as the custom of the town of
Mansoul was. So, when they were presented before the Lord Mayor, the Recorder,
and the rest of the honourable bench, first, the jury was empannelled, and then the
witnesses sworn. The names of the jury were these: Mr. Belief, Mr. True-Heart, Mr.
Upright, Mr. Hate-Bad, Mr. Love-God, Mr. See-Truth, Mr. Heavenly-Mind, Mr.
Moderate, Mr. Thankful, Mr. Good-Work, Mr. Zeal-for-God, and Mr. Humble.
The names of the witnesses were—Mr. Know-All, Mr. Tell-True, Mr. Hate-Lies, with
my Lord Willbewill and his man, if need were.
So the prisoners were set to the bar. Then said Mr. Do-Right, (for he was the Town-
Clerk,) ‘Set Atheism to the bar, gaoler.’ So he was set to the bar. Then said the Clerk,
‘Atheism, hold up thy hand. Thou art here indicted by the name of Atheism, (an
intruder upon the town of Mansoul,) for that thou hast perniciously and doltishly
taught and maintained that there is no God, and so no heed to be taken to
religion. This thou hast done against the being, honour, and glory of the King, and
against the peace and safety of the town of Mansoul. What sayest thou? Art thou
guilty of this indictment, or not?
Atheism. Not guilty.
Crier. Call Mr. Know-All, Mr. Tell-True, and Mr. Hate-Lies into the court.
So they were called, and they appeared.
Then said the Clerk, ‘You, the witnesses for the King, look upon the prisoner at the
bar; do you know him?’
Then said Mr. Know-All, ‘Yes, my lord, we know him; his name is Atheism; he has
been a very pestilent fellow for many years in the miserable town of Mansoul.’
Clerk. You are sure you know him?
Know. Know him! Yes my lord; I have heretofore too often been in his company to
be at this time ignorant of him. He is a Diabolonian, the son of a Diabolonian: I
knew his grandfather and his father.
Clerk. Well said. He standeth here indicted by the name of Atheism, etc., and is
charged that he hath maintained and taught that there is no God, and so no heed---
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need be taken to any religion. What say you, the King’s witnesses, to this? Is he
guilty or not?
Know. My lord, I and he were once in Villain’s Lane together, and he at that time did
briskly talk of divers opinions; and then and there I heard him say, that, for his part,
he did believe that there was no God. ‘But,’ said he, ‘I can profess one, and be as
religious too, if the company I am in, and the circumstances of other things,’ said he,
‘shall put me upon it.’
Clerk. You are sure you heard him say thus?
Know. Upon mine oath, I heard him say thus.
Then said the Clerk, ‘Mr. Tell-True, what say you to the King’s judges touching the
prisoner at the bar?’
Tell. My lord, I formerly was a great companion of his, for the which I now repent
me, and I have often heard him say, and that with very great stomachfulness, that he
believed there was neither God, angel, nor spirit.
Clerk. Where did you hear him say so?
Tell. In Blackmouth Lane and in Blasphemer’s Row, and in many other places
besides.
Clerk. Have you much knowledge of him?
Tell. I know him to be a Diabolonian, the son of a Diabolonian, and a horrible man
to deny a Deity. His father’s name was Never-be-good, and he had more children
than this Atheism. I have no more to say.
Clerk. Mr. Hate-Lies, look upon the prisoner at the bar; do you know him?
Hate. My lord, this Atheism is one of the vilest wretches that ever I came near, or
had to do with in my life. I have heard him say that there is no God; I have heard
him say that there is no world to come, no sin, nor punishment hereafter, and,
moreover, I have heard him say that it was as good to go to a whore-house as to go to
hear a sermon.
Clerk. Where did you hear him say these things?
Hate. In Drunkard’s Row, just at Rascal-Lane’s End, at a house in which Mr. Impiety
lived.
Clerk. Set him by, gaoler, and set Mr. Lustings to the bar. Mr. Lustings, thou art
here indicted by the name of Lustings, (an intruder upon the town of Mansoul,) for
that thou hast devilishly and traitorously taught, by practice and filthy words, that it
is lawful and profitable to man to give way to his carnal desires; and that thou, for thy
part, hast not, nor never wilt, deny thyself of any sinful delight as long as thy name is
Lustings. How sayest thou? Art thou guilty of this indictment, or not?
Then said Mr. Lustings, ‘My lord, I am a man of high birth, and have been used to
pleasures and pastimes of greatness. I have not been wont to be snubbed for my
doings, but have been left to follow my will as if it were law. And it seems strange to
me that I should this day be called into question for that, that not only I, but almost
all men, do either secretly or openly countenance, love, and approve of.’
Clerk. Sir, we concern not ourselves with your greatness; (though the higher, the
better you should have been;) but we are concerned, and so are you now, about an
indictment preferred against you. How say you? Are you guilty of it, or not?
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Lust. Not guilty.
Clerk. Crier, call upon the witnesses to stand forth and give their evidence.
Crier. Gentlemen, you, the witnesses for the King, come in and give in your evidence
for our Lord the King against the prisoner at the bar.
Clerk. Come, Mr. Know-All, look upon the prisoner at the bar; do you know him?
Know. Yes, my lord, I know him.
Clerk. What is his name?
Know. His name is Lustings; he was the son of one Beastly, and his mother bare him
in Flesh Street: she was one Evil-Concupiscence’s daughter. I knew all the
generation of them.
Clerk. Well said. You have heard his indictment; what say you to it? Is he guilty of
the things charged against him, or not?
Know. My lord, he has, as he saith, been a great man indeed, and greater in
wickedness than by pedigree more than a thousandfold.
Clerk. But what do you know of his particular actions, and especially with reference
to his indictment?
Know. I know him to be a swearer, a liar, a Sabbath-breaker; I know him to be a
fornicator and an unclean person; I know him to be guilty of abundance of evils. He
has been, to my knowledge, a very filthy man.
Clerk. But where did he use to commit his wickedness? in some private corners, or
more open and shamelessly?
Know. All the town over, my lord.
Clerk. Come, Mr. Tell-True, what have you to say for our Lord the King against the
prisoner at the bar?
Tell. My lord, all that the first witness has said I know to be true, and a great deal
more besides.
Clerk. Mr. Lustings, do you hear what these gentlemen say?
Lust. I was ever of opinion that the happiest life that a man could live on earth was
to keep himself back from nothing that he desired in the world; nor have I been false
at any time to this opinion of mine, but have lived in the love of my notions all my
days. Nor was I ever so churlish, having found such sweetness in them myself, as to
keep the commendations of them from others.
Then said the Court, ‘There hath proceeded enough from his own mouth to lay him
open to condemnation; wherefore, set him by, gaoler, and set Mr. Incredulity to the
bar.’
Incredulity set to the bar.
Clerk. Mr. Incredulity, thou art here indicted by the name of Incredulity, (an
intruder upon the town of Mansoul,) for that thou hast feloniously and wickedly, and
that when thou wert an officer in the town of Mansoul, made head against the
captains of the great King Shaddai when they came and demanded possession of
Mansoul; yea, thou didst bid defiance to the name, forces, and cause of the King, and
didst also, as did Diabolus thy captain, stir up and encourage the town of Mansoul to---
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make head against and resist the said force of the King. What sayest thou to this
indictment? Art thou guilty of it, or not?
Then said Incredulity, ‘I know not Shaddai; I love my old prince; I thought it my duty
to be true to my trust, and to do what I could to possess the minds of the men of
Mansoul to do their utmost to resist strangers and foreigners, and with might to fight
against them. Nor have I, nor shall I, change mine opinion for fear of trouble, though
you at present are possessed of place and power.’
Then said the Court, ‘The man, as you see, is incorrigible; he is for maintaining his
villainies by stoutness of words, and his rebellion with impudent confidence; and
therefore set him by, gaoler, and set Mr. Forget-Good to the bar.
Forget-Good set to the bar.
Clerk. Mr. Forget-Good, thou art here indicted by the name of Forget-Good, (an
intruder upon the town of Mansoul,) for that thou, when the whole affairs of the
town of Mansoul were in thy hand, didst utterly forget to serve them in what was
good, and didst fall in with the tyrant Diabolus against Shaddai the King, against his
captains, and all his host, to the dishonour of Shaddai, the breach of his law, and the
endangering of the destruction of the famous town of Mansoul. What sayest thou to
this indictment? Art thou guilty or not guilty?
Then said Forget-Good: ‘Gentlemen, and at this time my judges, as to the indictment
by which I stand of several crimes accused before you, pray attribute my
forgetfulness to mine age, and not to my wilfulness; to the craziness of my brain, and
not to the carelessness of my mind; and then I hope I may be by your charity excused
from great punishment, though I be guilty.’
Then said the Court, ‘Forget-Good, Forget-Good, thy forgetfulness of good was not
simply of frailty, but of purpose, and for that thou didst loathe to keep virtuous
things in thy mind. What was bad thou couldst retain, but what was good thou
couldst not abide to think of; thy age, therefore, and thy pretended craziness, thou
makest use of to blind the court withal, and as a cloak to cover thy knavery. But let
us hear what the witnesses have to say for the King against the prisoner at the bar. Is
he guilty of this indictment, or not?’
Hate. My lord, I have heard this Forget-Good say, that he could never abide to think
of goodness, no, not for a quarter of an hour.
Clerk. Where did you hear him say so?
Hate. In All-base Lane, at a house next door to the sign of the Conscience seared
with a hot iron.
Clerk. Mr. Know-All, what can you say for our Lord the King against the prisoner at
the bar?
Know. My lord, I know this man well. He is a Diabolonian, the son of a Diabolonian:
his father’s name was Love-Naught; and for him, I have often heard him say, that he
counted the very thoughts of goodness the most burdensome thing in the world.
Clerk. Where have you heard him say these words?
Know. In Flesh Lane, right opposite to the church.
Then said the Clerk, ‘Come, Mr. Tell-True, give in your evidence concerning the
prisoner at the bar, about that for which he stands here, as you see, indicted by this
honourable Court.’
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Tell. My lord, I have heard him often say he had rather think of the vilest thing than
of what is contained in the Holy Scriptures.
Clerk. Where did you hear him say such grievous words?
Tell. Where?—in a great many places, particularly in Nauseous Street, in the house
of one Shameless, and in Filth Lane, at the sign of the Reprobate, next door to the
Descent into the Pit.
Court. Gentlemen, you have heard the indictment, his plea, and the testimony of the
witnesses. Gaoler, set Mr. Hard-Heart to the bar.
He is set to the bar.
Clerk. Mr. Hard-Heart, thou art here indicted by the name of Hard-Heart, (an
intruder upon the town of Mansoul,) for that thou didst most desperately and
wickedly possess the town of Mansoul with impenitency and obdurateness; and didst
keep them from remorse and sorrow for their evils, all the time of their apostacy
from and rebellion against the blessed King Shaddai. What sayest thou to this
indictment? Art thou guilty, or not guilty?
Hard. My lord, I never knew what remorse or sorrow meant in all my life. I am
impenetrable. I care for no man; nor can I be pierced with men’s griefs; their groans
will not enter into my heart. Whomsoever I mischief, whomsoever I wrong, to me it
is music, when to others mourning.
Court. You see the man is a right Diabolonian, and has convicted himself. Set him
by, gaoler, and set Mr. False-Peace to the bar.
False-Peace set to the bar.
‘Mr. False-Peace, thou art here indicted by the name of False-Peace, (an intruder
upon the town of Mansoul,) for that thou didst most wickedly and satanically bring,
hold, and keep the town of Mansoul, both in her apostacy and in her hellish
rebellion, in a false, groundless, and dangerous peace, and damnable security, to the
dishonour of the King, the transgression of his law, and the great damage of the town
of Mansoul. What sayest thou? Art thou guilty of this indictment, or not?
Then said Mr. False-Peace: ‘Gentlemen, and you now appointed to be my judges, I
acknowledge that my name is Mr. Peace; but that my name is False-Peace I utterly
deny. If your honours shall please to send for any that do intimately know me, or for
the midwife that laid my mother of me, or for the gossips that were at my
christening, they will, any or all of them, prove that my name is not False-Peace, but
Peace. Wherefore I cannot plead to this indictment, forasmuch as my name is not
inserted therein; and as is my true name, so are also my conditions. I was always a
man that loved to live at quiet, and what I loved myself, that I thought others might
love also. Wherefore, when I saw any of my neighbours to labour under a disquieted
mind, I endeavoured to help them what I could; and instances of this good temper of
mine many I could give; as,
‘1. When, at the beginning, our town of Mansoul did decline the ways of Shaddai,
they, some of them, afterwards began to have disquieting reflections upon
themselves for what they had done; but I, as one troubled to see them disquieted,
presently sought out means to get them quiet again
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‘2. When the ways of the old world, and of Sodom, were in fashion, if anything
happened to molest those that were for the customs of the present times, I laboured
to make them quiet again, and to cause them to act without molestation.
‘3. To come nearer home: when the wars fell out between Shaddai and Diabolus, if at
any time I saw any of the town of Mansoul afraid of destruction, I often used, by
some way, device, invention, or other, to labour to bring them to peace
again. Wherefore, since I have been always a man of so virtuous a temper as some
say a peace-maker is, and if a peace-maker be so deserving a man as some have been
bold to attest he is, then let me, gentlemen, be accounted by you, who have a great
name for justice and equity in Mansoul, for a man that deserveth not this inhuman
way of treatment, but liberty, and also a license to seek damage of those that have
been my accusers.’
Then said the clerk, ‘Crier, make a proclamation.’
Crier. Oyes! Forasmuch as the prisoner at the bar hath denied his name to be that
which is mentioned in the indictment, the Court requireth that if there be any in this
place that can give information to the Court of the original and right name of the
prisoner, they would come forth and give in their evidence; for the prisoner stands
upon his own innocency.
Then came two into the court, and desired that they might have leave to speak what
they knew concerning the prisoner at the bar: the name of the one was Search-Truth,
and the name of the other Vouch-Truth. So the Court demanded of these men if they
knew the prisoner, and what they could say concerning him, ‘for he stands,’ said they,
‘upon his own vindication.’
Then said Mr. Search-Truth, ‘My Lord, I—’
Court. Hold! give him his oath.
Then they sware him. So he proceeded.
Search. My lord, I know and have known this man from a child, and can attest that
his name is False-Peace. I know his father; his name was Mr. Flatter: and his
mother, before she was married, was called by the name of Mrs. Sooth-Up: and these
two, when they came together, lived not long without this son; and when he was
born, they called his name False-Peace. I was his play-fellow, only I was somewhat
older than he; and when his mother did use to call him home from his play, she used
to say, ‘False-Peace, False-Peace, come home quick, or I’ll fetch you.’ Yea, I knew
him when he sucked; and though I was then but little, yet I can remember that when
his mother did use to sit at the door with him, or did play with him in her arms, she
would call him, twenty times together, ‘My little False-Peace! my pretty False-Peace!’
and, ‘Oh! my sweet rogue, False-Peace!’ and again, ‘Oh! my little bird, False-Peace!’
and ‘How do I love my child!’ The gossips also know it is thus, though he has had the
face to deny it in open court.
Then Mr. Vouch-Truth was called upon to speak what he knew of him. So they sware
him.
Then said Mr. Vouch-Truth, ‘My lord, all that the former witness hath said is
true. His name is False-Peace, the son of Mr. Flatter, and of Mrs. Sooth-Up, his
mother: and I have in former times seen him angry with those that have called him
anything else but False-Peace, for he would say that all such did mock and nickname---
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him; but this was in the time when Mr. False-Peace was a great man, and when the
Diabolonians were the brave men in Mansoul.
Court. Gentlemen, you have heard what these two men have sworn against the
prisoner at the bar. And now, Mr. False-Peace, to you: you have denied your name to
be False-Peace, yet you see that these honest men have sworn that that is your
name. As to your plea, in that you are quite besides the matter of your indictment,
you are not by it charged for evil-doing because you are a man of peace, or a peace-
maker among your neighbours; but for that you did wickedly and satanically bring,
keep, and hold the town of Mansoul, both under its apostasy from, and in its
rebellion against its King, in a false, lying, and damnable peace, contrary to the law of
Shaddai, and to the hazard of the destruction of the then miserable town of
Mansoul. All that you have pleaded for yourself is, that you have denied your name,
etc.; but here, you see, we have witnesses to prove that you are the man. For the
peace that you so much boast of making among your neighbours, know that peace
that is not a companion of truth and holiness, but that which is without this
foundation, is grounded upon a lie, and is both deceitful and damnable, as also the
great Shaddai hath said. Thy plea, therefore, has not delivered thee from what by the
indictment thou art charged with, but rather it doth fasten all upon thee. But thou
shalt have very fair play. Let us call the witnesses that are to testify as to matter of
fact, and see what they have to say for our Lord the King against the prisoner at the
bar.
Clerk. Mr. Know-All, what say you for our Lord the King against the prisoner at the
bar?
know. My lord, this man hath of a long time made it, to my knowledge, his business
to keep the town of Mansoul in a sinful quietness in the midst of all her lewdness,
filthiness, and turmoils, and hath said, and that in my hearing, Come, come, let us fly
from all trouble, on what ground soever it comes, and let us be for a quiet and
peaceable life, though it wanteth a good foundation.
Clerk. Come, Mr. Hate-Lies, what have you to say?
Hate. My lord, I have heard him say, that peace, though in a way of unrighteousness,
is better than trouble with truth.
Clerk. Where did you hear him say this?
Hate. I heard him say it in Folly-yard, at the house of one Mr. Simple, next door to
the sign of the Self-deceiver. Yea, he hath said this to my knowledge twenty times in
that place.
Clerk. We may spare further witness; this evidence is plain and full. Set him by,
gaoler, and set Mr. No-Truth to the bar. Mr. No-Truth, thou art here indicted by the
name of No-Truth, (an intruder upon the town of Mansoul,) for that thou hast
always, to the dishonour of Shaddai, and the endangering of the utter ruin of the
famous town of Mansoul, set thyself to deface, and utterly to spoil, all the remainders
of the law and image of Shaddai that have been found in Mansoul after her deep
apostasy from her king to Diabolus, the envious tyrant. What sayest thou, art thou
guilty of this indictment, or not?
No. Not guilty, my lord.
Then the witnesses were called, and Mr. Know-All did first give in his evidence
against him.
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Know. My lord, this man was at the pulling down of the image of Shaddai; yea, this
is he that did it with his own hands. I myself stood by and saw him do it, and he did
it at the commandment of Diabolus. Yea, this Mr. No-Truth did more than this, he
did also set up the horned image of the beast Diabolus in the same place. This also is
he that, at the bidding of Diabolus, did rend and tear, and cause to be consumed, all
that he could of the remainders of the law of the King, even whatever he could lay his
hands on in Mansoul.
Clerk. Who saw him do this besides yourself?
Hate. I did, my lord, and so did many more besides; for this was not done by stealth,
or in a corner, but in the open view of all; yea, he chose himself to do it publicly, for
he delighted in the doing of it.
Clerk. Mr. No-Truth, how could you have the face to plead not guilty, when you were
so manifestly the doer of all this wickedness?
No. Sir, I thought I must say something, and as my name is, so I speak. I have been
advantaged thereby before now, and did not know but by speaking no truth, I might
have reaped the same benefit now.
Clerk. Set him by, gaoler, and set Mr. Pitiless to the bar. Mr. Pitiless, thou art here
indicted by the name of Pitiless, (an intruder upon the town of Mansoul,) for that
thou didst most traitorously and wickedly shut up all bowels of compassion, and
wouldest not suffer poor Mansoul to condole her own misery when she had
apostatised from her rightful King, but didst evade, and at all times turn her mind
awry from those thoughts that had in them a tendency to lead her to
repentance. What sayest thou to this indictment? Guilty or not guilty?
‘Not guilty of pitilessness: all I did was to cheer up, according to my name, for my
name is not Pitiless, but Cheer-up; and I could not abide to see Mansoul inclined to
melancholy.’
Clerk. How! do you deny your name, and say it is not Pitiless, but Cheer-up? Call for
the witnesses. What say you, the witnesses, to this plea?
Know. My lord, his name is Pitiless; so he hath written himself in all papers of
concern wherein he has had to do. But these Diabolonians love to counterfeit their
names: Mr. Covetousness covers himself with the name of Good-Husbandry, or the
like; Mr. Pride can, when need is, call himself Mr. Neat, Mr. Handsome, or the like;
and so of all the rest of them.
Clerk. Mr. Tell-True, what say you?
Tell. His name is Pitiless, my lord. I have known him from a child, and he hath done
all that wickedness whereof he stands charged in the indictment; but there is a
company of them that are not acquainted with the danger of damning, therefore they
call all those melancholy that have serious thoughts how that state should be
shunned by them.
Clerk. Set Mr. Haughty to the bar, gaoler. Mr. Haughty, thou art here indicted by
the name of Haughty, (an intruder upon the town of Mansoul,) for that thou didst
most traitorously and devilishly teach the town of Mansoul to carry it loftily and
stoutly against the summons that was given them by the captains of the King
Shaddai. Thou didst also teach the town of Mansoul to speak contemptuously and
vilifyingly of their great King Shaddai; and didst moreover encourage, both by words---
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and examples, Mansoul, to take up arms both against the King and his son
Emmanuel. How sayest thou, art thou guilty of this indictment, or not?
Haughty. Gentlemen, I have always been a man of courage and valour, and have not
used, when under the greatest clouds, to sneak or hang down the head like a bulrush;
nor did it at all at any time please me to see men veil their bonnets to those that have
opposed them; yea, though their adversaries seemed to have ten times the advantage
of them. I did not use to consider who was my foe, nor what the cause was in which I
was engaged. It was enough to me if I carried it bravely, fought like a man, and came
off a victor.
Court. Mr. Haughty, you are not here indicted for that you have been a valiant man,
nor for your courage and stoutness in times of distress, but for that you have made
use of this your pretended valour to draw the town of Mansoul into acts of rebellion
both against the great King, and Emmanuel his Son. This is the crime and the thing
wherewith thou art charged in and by the indictment.
But he made no answer to that.
Now when the Court had thus far proceeded against the prisoners at the bar, then
they put them over to the verdict of their jury, to whom they did apply themselves
after this manner:
‘Gentlemen of the jury, you have been here, and have seen these men; you have heard
their indictments, their pleas, and what the witnesses have testified against them:
now what remains, is, that you do forthwith withdraw yourselves to some place,
where without confusion you may consider of what verdict, in a way of truth and
righteousness, you ought to bring in for the King against them, and so bring it in
accordingly.’
Then the jury, to wit, Mr. Belief, Mr. True-Heart, Mr. Upright, Mr. Hate-bad, Mr.
Love-God, Mr. See-Truth, Mr. Heavenly-Mind, Mr. Moderate, Mr. Thankful, Mr.
Humble, Mr. Good-Work, and Mr. Zeal-for-God, withdrew themselves in order to
their work. Now when they were shut up by themselves, they fell to discourse among
themselves in order to the drawing up of their verdict.
And thus Mr. Belief (for he was the foreman) began: ‘Gentlemen,’ quoth he, ‘for the
men, the prisoners at the bar, for my part I believe that they all deserve death.’ ‘Very
right,’ said Mr. True-Heart; ‘I am wholly of your opinion.’ ‘Oh what a mercy is it,’
said Mr. Hate-Bad, ‘that such villains as these are apprehended!’ ‘Ay! ay!’ said Mr.
Love-God, ‘this is one of the joyfullest days that ever I saw in my life.’ Then said Mr.
See-Truth, ‘I know that if we judge them to death, our verdict shall stand before
Shaddai himself’ ‘Nor do I at all question it,’ said Mr. Heavenly-Mind; he said,
moreover, ‘When all such beasts as these are cast out of Mansoul, what a goodly town
will it be then!’ ‘Then,’ said Mr. Moderate, ‘it is not my manner to pass my judgment
with rashness; but for these their crimes are so notorious, and the witness so
palpable, that that man must be wilfully blind who saith the prisoners ought not to
die.’ ‘Blessed be God,’ said Mr. Thankful, ‘that the traitors are in safe custody.’ ‘And
I join with you in this upon my bare knees,’ said Mr. Humble. ‘I am glad also,’ said
Mr. Good-Work. Then said the warm man, and true-hearted Mr. Zeal-for-God, ‘Cut
them off; they have been the plague, and have sought the destruction of Mansoul.’
Thus, therefore, being all agreed in their verdict, they come instantly into the Court.
Clerk. Gentlemen of the jury, answer all to your names: Mr. Belief, one; Mr. True-
Heart, two; Mr. Upright, three; Mr. Hate-Bad, four; Mr. Love-God, five; Mr. See-
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Truth, six; Mr. Heavenly-mind, seven; Mr. Moderate, eight; Mr. Thankful, nine; Mr.
Humble, ten; Mr. Good-Work, eleven; and Mr. Zeal-for-God, twelve. Good men and
true, stand together in your verdict: are you all agreed?
Jury. Yes, my lord.
Clerk. Who shall speak for you?
Jury. Our foreman.
Clerk. You, the gentlemen of the jury, being empannelled for our Lord the King, to
serve here in a matter of life and death, have heard the trials of each of these men,
the prisoners at the bar: what say you? are they guilty of that, and those crimes for
which they stand here indicted, or are they not guilty?
Foreman. Guilty, my lord.
Clerk. Look to your prisoners, gaoler.
This was done in the morning, and in the afternoon they received the sentence of
death according to the law.
The gaoler, therefore, having received such a charge, put them all in the inward
prison, to preserve them there till the day of execution, which was to be the next day
in the morning.
But now to see how it happened, one of the prisoners, Incredulity by name, in the
interim betwixt the sentence and the time of execution, brake prison and made his
escape, and gets him away quite out of the town of Mansoul, and lay lurking in such
places and holes as he might, until he should again have opportunity to do the town
of Mansoul a mischief for their thus handling of him as they did.
Now when Mr. Trueman, the gaoler, perceived that he had lost his prisoner, he was
in a heavy taking, because that prisoner was, to speak on, the very worst of all the
gang: wherefore first he goes and acquaints my Lord Mayor, Mr. Recorder, and my
Lord Willbewill, with the matter, and to get of them an order to make search for him
throughout the town of Mansoul. So an order he got, and search was made, but no
such man could now be found in all the town of Mansoul.
All that could be gathered was, that he had lurked a while about the outside of the
town, and that here and there one or other had a glimpse of him as he did make his
escape out of Mansoul; one or two also did affirm that they saw him without the
town, going apace quite over the plain. Now when he was quite gone, it was affirmed
by one Mr. Did-see, that he ranged all over dry places, till he met with Diabolus, his
friend, and where should they meet one another but just upon Hell-gate hill.
But oh! what a lamentable story did the old gentleman tell to Diabolus concerning
what sad alteration Emmanuel had made in Mansoul!
As, first, how Mansoul had, after some delays, received a general pardon at the hands
of Emmanuel, and that they had invited him into the town, and that they had given
him the castle for his possession. He said, moreover, that they had called his soldiers
into the town, coveted who should quarter the most of them; they also entertained
him with the timbrel, song, and dance. ‘But that,’ said Incredulity, ‘which is the
sorest vexation to me is, that he hath pulled down, O father, thy image, and set up his
own; pulled down thy officers and set up his own. Yea, and Willbewill, that rebel,
who, one would have thought, should never have turned from us, he is now in as
great favour with Emmanuel as ever he was with thee. But, besides all this, this
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Willbewill has received a special commission from his master to search for, to
apprehend, and to put to death all, and all manner of Diabolonians that he shall find
in Mansoul: yea, and this Willbewill has taken and committed to prison already eight
of my Lord’s most trusty friends in Mansoul. Nay, further, my Lord, with grief I
speak it, they have been all arraigned, condemned, and, I doubt, before this executed
in Mansoul. I told my Lord of eight, and myself was the ninth, who should assuredly
have drunk of the same cup, but that through craft, I, as thou seest, have made mine
escape from them.’
When Diabolus had heard this lamentable story, he yelled and snuffed up the wind
like a dragon, and made the sky to look dark with his roaring; he also sware that he
would try to be revenged on Mansoul for this. So they, both he and his old friend
Incredulity, concluded to enter into great consultation, how they might get the town
of Mansoul again.
Now, before this time, the day was come in which the prisoners in Mansoul were to
be executed. So they were brought to the cross, and that by Mansoul, in most solemn
manner; for the Prince said that this should be done by the hand of the town of
Mansoul, ‘that I may see,’ said he, ‘the forwardness of my now redeemed Mansoul to
keep my word, and to do my commandments; and that I may bless Mansoul in doing
this deed. Proof of sincerity pleases me well; let Mansoul therefore first lay their
hands upon these Diabolonians to destroy them.’
So the town of Mansoul slew them, according to the word of their Prince; but when
the prisoners were brought to the cross to die, you can hardly believe what
troublesome work Mansoul had of it to put the Diabolonians to death; for the men,
knowing that they must die, and every of them having implacable enmity in their
hearts to Mansoul, what did they but took courage at the cross, and there resisted the
men of the town of Mansoul? Wherefore the men of Mansoul were forced to cry out
for help to the captains and men of war. Now the great Shaddai had a secretary in
the town, and he was a great lover of the men of Mansoul, and he was at the place of
execution also; so he, hearing the men of Mansoul cry out against the strugglings and
unruliness of the prisoners, rose up from his place, and came and put his hands upon
the hands of the men of Mansoul. So they crucified the Diabolonians that had been a
plague, a grief, and an offence to the town of Mansoul.
Now, when this good work was done, the Prince came down to see, to visit, and to
speak comfortably to the men of Mansoul, and to strengthen their hands in such
work. And he said to them that, by this act of theirs he had proved them, and found
them to be lovers of his person, observers of his laws, and such as had also respect to
his honour. He said, moreover, (to show them that they by this should not be losers,
nor their town weakened by the loss of them,) that he would make them another
captain, and that of one of themselves. And that this captain should be the ruler of a
thousand, for the good and benefit of the now flourishing town of Mansoul.
So he called one to him whose name was Waiting, and bid him, ‘Go quickly up to the
castle gate, and inquire there for one Mr. Experience, that waiteth upon that noble
captain, the Captain Credence, and bid him come hither to me.’ So the messenger
that waited upon the good Prince Emmanuel went and said as he was
commanded. Now the young gentleman was waiting to see the captain train and
muster his men in the castle yard. Then said Mr. Waiting to him, ‘Sir, the Prince
would that you should come down to his highness forthwith.’ So he brought him
down to Emmanuel, and he came and made obeisance before him. Now the men of
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the town knew Mr. Experience well, for he was born and bred in Mansoul; they also
knew him to be a man of conduct, of valour, and a person prudent in matters; he was
also a comely person, well-spoken, and very successful in his undertakings.
Wherefore the hearts of the townsmen were transported with joy when they saw that
the Prince himself was so taken with Mr. Experience, that he would needs make him
a captain over a band of men.
So with one consent they bowed the knee before Emmanuel, and with a shout said,
‘Let Emmanuel live for ever!’ Then said the Prince to the young gentleman, whose
name was Mr. Experience, ‘I have thought good to confer upon thee a place of trust
and honour in this my town of Mansoul.’ Then the young man bowed his head and
worshipped. ‘It is,’ said Emmanuel, ‘that thou shouldest be a captain, a captain over
a thousand men in my beloved town of Mansoul.’ Then said the captain, ‘Let the
King live!’ So the Prince gave out orders forthwith to the King’s secretary, that he
should draw up for Mr. Experience a commission to make him a captain over a
thousand men. ‘And let it be brought to me,’ said he, ‘that I may set to my seal.’ So it
was done as it was commanded. The commission was drawn up, brought to
Emmanuel, and he set his seal thereto. Then, by the hand of Mr. Waiting, he sent it
away to the captain.
Now as soon as the captain had received his commission, he sounded his trumpet for
volunteers, and young men came to him apace; yea, the greatest and chief men in the
town sent their sons, to be listed under his command. Thus Captain Experience
came under command to Emmanuel, for the good of the town of Mansoul. He had
for his lieutenant one Mr. Skilful, and for his cornet one Mr. Memory. His under
officers I need not name. His colours were the white colours for the town of
Mansoul; and his scutcheon was the dead lion and dead bear. So the Prince returned
to his royal palace again.
Now when he was returned thither, the elders of the town of Mansoul, to wit, the
Lord Mayor, the Recorder, and the Lord Willbewill, went to congratulate him, and in
special way to thank him for his love, care, and the tender compassion which he
showed to his ever-obliged town of Mansoul. So after a while, and some sweet
communion between them, the townsmen having solemnly ended their ceremony,
returned to their place again.
Emmanuel also at this time appointed them a day wherein he would renew their
charter, yea, wherein he would renew and enlarge it, mending several faults therein,
that Mansoul’s yoke might be yet more easy. And this he did without any desire of
theirs, even of his own frankness and noble mind. So when he had sent for and seen
their old one, he laid it by, and said, ‘Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is
ready to vanish away.’ He said, moreover, ‘The town of Mansoul shall have another,
a better, a new one, more steady and firm by far.’ An epitome hereof take as
follows:—
‘Emmanuel, Prince of Peace, and a great lover of the town of Mansoul, I do in the
name of my Father, and of mine own clemency, give, grant, and bequeath to my
beloved town of Mansoul.
‘First. Free, full, and everlasting forgiveness of all wrongs, injuries, and offences
done by them against my Father, me, their neighbour, or themselves.
‘Second. I do give them the holy law and my testament, with all that therein is
contained, for their everlasting comfort and consolation.
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‘Third. I do also give them a portion of the self-same grace and goodness that dwells
in my Father’s heart and mine.
‘Fourth. I do give, grant, and bestow upon them freely, the world and what is
therein, for their good; and they shall have that power over them, as shall stand with
the honour of my Father, my glory, and their comfort: yea, I grant them the benefits
of life and death, and of things present, and things to come. This privilege no other
city, town, or corporation, shall have, but my Mansoul only.
‘Fifth. I do give and grant them leave, and free access to me in my palace at all
seasons—to my palace above or below—there to make known their wants to me, and I
give them, moreover, a promise that I will hear and redress all their grievances.
‘Sixth. I do give, grant to, and invest the town of Mansoul with full power and
authority to seek out, take, enslave, and destroy all, and all manner of Diabolonians
that at any time, from whencesoever, shall be found straggling in or about the town
of Mansoul.
‘Seventh. I do further grant to my beloved town of Mansoul, that they shall have
authority not to suffer any foreigner, or stranger, or their seed, to be free in, and of
the blessed town of Mansoul, nor to share in the excellent privileges thereof. But that
all the grants, privileges, and immunities that I bestow upon the famous town of
Mansoul, shall be for those the old natives, and true inhabitants thereof; to them, I
say, and to their right seed after them.
‘But all Diabolonians, of what sort, birth, country, or kingdom soever, shall be
debarred a share therein.’
So when the town of Mansoul had received at the hand of Emmanuel their gracious
charter, (which in itself is infinitely more large than by this lean epitome is set before
you,) they carried it to audience, that is, to the market place, and there Mr. Recorder
read it in the presence of all the people. This being done, it was had back to the castle
gates, and there fairly engraven upon the doors thereof, and laid in letters of gold, to
the end that the town of Mansoul, with all the people thereof, might have it always in
their view, or might go where they might see what a blessed freedom their Prince had
bestowed upon them, that their joy might be increased in themselves, and their love
renewed to their great and good Emmanuel.
But what joy, what comfort, what consolation, think you, did now possess the hearts
of the men of Mansoul! The bells rung, the minstrels played, the people danced, the
captains shouted, the colours waved in the wind, and the silver trumpets sounded;
and the Diabolonians now were glad to hide their heads, for they looked like them
that had been long dead.
When this was over, the Prince sent again for the elders of the town of Mansoul, and
communed with them about a ministry that he intended to establish among them;
such a ministry that might open unto them, and that might instruct them in the
things that did concern their present and future state.
‘For,’ said he, ‘you, of yourselves, unless you have teachers and guides, will not be
able to know, and, if not to know, to be sure not to do the will of my Father.’
At this news, when the elders of Mansoul brought it to the people, the whole town
came running together, (for it pleased them well, as whatever the Prince now did
pleased the people,) and all with one consent implored his Majesty that he would
forthwith establish such a ministry among them as might teach them both law and
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judgment, statute and commandment; that they might be documented in all good
and wholesome things. So he told them that he would grant them their requests, and
would establish two among them; one that was of his Father’s court, and one that
was a native of Mansoul.
‘He that is from the court,’ said he, ‘is a person of no less quality and dignity than my
Father and I; and he is the Lord Chief Secretary of my Father’s house: for he is, and
always has been, the chief dictator of all my Father’s laws, a person altogether well
skilled in all mysteries, and knowledge of mysteries, as is my Father, or as myself
is. Indeed he is one with us in nature, and also as to loving of, and being faithful to,
and in the eternal concerns of the town of Mansoul.
‘And this is he,’ said the Prince, ‘that must be your chief teacher; for it is he, and he
only, that can teach you clearly in all high and supernatural things. He, and he only,
it is that knows the ways and methods of my Father at court, nor can any like him
show how the heart of my Father is at all times, in all things, upon all occasions,
towards Mansoul; for as no man knows the things of a man but that spirit of a man
which is in him, so the things of my Father knows no man but this his high and
mighty Secretary. Nor can any, as he, tell Mansoul how and what they shall do to
keep themselves in the love of my Father. He also it is that can bring lost things to
your remembrance, and that can tell you things to come. This teacher, therefore,
must of necessity have the pre-eminence, both in your affections and judgment,
before your other teacher; his personal dignity, the excellency of his teaching, also
the great dexterity that he hath to help you to make and draw up petitions to my
Father for your help, and to his pleasing, must lay obligations upon you to love him,
fear him, and to take heed that you grieve him not.
‘This person can put life and vigour into all he says; yea, and can also put it into your
heart. This person can make seers of you, and can make you tell what shall be
hereafter. By this person you must frame all your petitions to my Father and me; and
without his advice and counsel first obtained, let nothing enter into the town or
castle of Mansoul, for that may disgust and grieve this noble person.
Take heed, I say, that you do not grieve this minister; for if you do, he may fight
against you; and should he once be moved by you to set himself against you in battle
array, that will distress you more than if twelve legions should from my Father’s
court be sent to make war upon you.
‘But, as I said, if you shall hearken unto him, and shall love him; if you shall devote
yourselves to his teaching, and shall seek to have converse, and to maintain
communion with him, you shall find him ten times better than is the whole world to
any; yea, he will shed abroad the love of my Father in your hearts, and Mansoul will
be the wisest, and most blessed of all people.
Then did the Prince call unto him the old gentleman, who before had been the
Recorder of Mansoul, Mr. Conscience by name, and told him, That, forasmuch as he
was well skilled in the law and government of the town of Mansoul, and was also
well-spoken, and could pertinently deliver to them his Master’s will in all terrene and
domestic matters, therefore he would also make him a minister for, in, and to the
goodly town of Mansoul, in all the laws, statutes, and judgments of the famous town
of Mansoul. ‘And thou must,’ said the Prince, ‘confine thyself to the teaching of
moral virtues, to civil and natural duties; but thou must not attempt to presume to be
a revealer of those high and supernatural mysteries that are kept close in the bosom
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of Shaddai, my Father: for those things knows no man, nor can any reveal them but
my Father’s Secretary only.
‘Thou art a native of the town of Mansoul, but the Lord Secretary is a native with my
Father; wherefore, as thou hast knowledge of the laws and customs of the
corporation, so he of the things and will of my Father.
‘Wherefore, O Mr. Conscience, although I have made thee a minister and a preacher
to the town of Mansoul, yet as to the things which the Lord Secretary knoweth, and
shall teach to this people, there thou must be his scholar and a learner, even as the
rest of Mansoul are.
Thou must therefore, in all high and supernatural things, go to him for information
and knowledge; for though there be a spirit in man, this person’s inspiration must
give him understanding. Wherefore, O thou Mr. Recorder, keep low and be humble,
and remember that the Diabolonians that kept not their first charge, but left their
own standing, are now made prisoners in the pit. Be therefore content with thy
station.
‘I have made thee my Father’s vicegerent on earth, in such things of which I have
made mention before: and thou, take thou power to teach them to Mansoul, yea, and
to impose them with whips and chastisements, if they shall not willingly hearken to
do thy commandments.
‘And, Mr. Recorder, because thou art old, and through many abuses made feeble;
therefore I give thee leave and license to go when thou wilt to my fountain, my
conduit, and there to drink freely of the blood of my grape, for my conduit doth
always run wine. Thus doing, thou shalt drive from thine heart and stomach all foul,
gross, and hurtful humours. It will also lighten thine eyes, and will strengthen thy
memory for the reception and keeping of all that the King’s most noble Secretary
teacheth.’
When the Prince had thus put Mr. Recorder (that once so was) into the place and
office of a minister to Mansoul, and the man had thankfully accepted thereof, then
did Emmanuel address himself in a particular speech to the townsmen themselves.
‘Behold,’ said the Prince to Mansoul, ‘my love and care towards you; I have added to
all that is past, this mercy, to appoint you preachers; the most noble Secretary to
teach you in all high and sublime mysteries; and this gentleman,’ pointing to Mr.
Conscience, ‘is to teach you in all things human and domestic, for therein lieth his
work. He is not, by what I have said, debarred of telling to Mansoul anything that he
hath heard and received at the mouth of the lord high Secretary; only he shall not
attempt to presume to pretend to be a revealer of those high mysteries himself; for
the breaking of them up, and the discovery of them to Mansoul lieth only in the
power, authority, and skill of the lord high Secretary himself. Talk of them he may,
and so may the rest of the town of Mansoul; yea, and may, as occasion gives them
opportunity, press them upon each other for the benefit of the whole. These things,
therefore, I would have you observe and do, for it is for your life, and the lengthening
of your days.
‘And one thing more to my beloved Mr. Recorder, and to all the town of Mansoul:
You must not dwell in, nor stay upon, anything of that which he hath in commission
to teach you, as to your trust and expectation of the next world; (of the next world, I
say, for I purpose to give another to Mansoul, when this with them is worn out;) but
for that you must wholly and solely have recourse to, and make stay upon his
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doctrine that is your Teacher after the first order. Yea, Mr. Recorder himself must
not look for life from that which he himself revealeth; his dependence for that must
be founded in the doctrine of the other preacher. Let Mr. Recorder also take heed
that he receive not any doctrine, or point of doctrine, that is not communicated to
him by his Superior Teacher, nor yet within the precincts of his own formal
knowledge.’
Now, after the Prince had thus settled things in the famous town of Mansoul, he
proceeded to give to the elders of the corporation a necessary caution, to wit, how
they should carry it to the high and noble captains that he had, from his Father’s
court, sent or brought with him, to the famous town of Mansoul.
‘These captains,’ said he, ‘do love the town of Mansoul, and they are picked men,
picked out of abundance, as men that best suit, and that will most faithfully serve in
the wars of Shaddai against the Diabolonians, for the preservation of the town of
Mansoul. ‘I charge you therefore,’ said he, ‘O ye inhabitants of the now flourishing
town of Mansoul, that you carry it not ruggedly or untowardly to my captains, or
their men; since, as I said, they are picked and choice men—men chosen out of many
for the good of the town of Mansoul. I say, I charge you, that you carry it not
untowardly to them: for though they have the hearts and faces of lions, when at any
time they shall be called forth to engage and fight with the King’s foes, and the
enemies of the town of Mansoul; yet a little discountenance cast upon them from the
town of Mansoul will deject and cast down their faces, will weaken and take away
their courage. Do not, therefore, O my beloved, carry it unkindly to my valiant
captains and courageous men of war, but love them, nourish them, succour them,
and lay them in your bosoms; and they will not only fight for you, but cause to fly
from you all those the Diabolonians that seek, and will, if possible, be, your utter
destruction.
‘If, therefore, any of them should at any time be sick or weak, and so not able to
perform that office of love, which, with all their hearts, they are willing to do (and
will do also when well and in health), slight them not, nor despise them, but rather
strengthen them and encourage them, though weak and ready to die, for they are
your fence, and your guard, your wall, your gates, your locks, and your bars. And
although, when they are weak, they can do but little, but rather need to be helped by
you, than that you should then expect great things from them, yet, when well, you
know what exploits, what feats and warlike achievements they are able to do, and will
perform for you.
‘Besides, if they be weak, the town of Mansoul cannot be strong; if they be strong,
then Mansoul cannot be weak; your safety, therefore, doth lie in their health, and in
your countenancing them. Remember, also, that if they be sick, they catch that
disease of the town of Mansoul itself.
These things I have said unto you because I love your welfare and your honour:
observe, therefore, O my Mansoul, to be punctual in all things that I have given in
charge unto you, and that not only as a town corporate, and so to your officers and
guard, and guides in chief, but to you as you are a people whose well-being, as single
persons, depends on the observation of the orders and commandments of their Lord.
‘Next, O my Mansoul, I do warn you of that, of which, notwithstanding that
reformation that at present is wrought among you, you have need to be warned
about: wherefore hearken diligently unto me. I am now sure, and you will know
hereafter, that there are yet of the Diabolonians remaining in the town of Mansoul,---
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Diabolonians that are sturdy and implacable, and that do already while I am with
you, and that will yet more when I am from you, study, plot, contrive, invent, and
jointly attempt to bring you to desolation, and so to a state far worse than that of the
Egyptian bondage; they are the avowed friends of Diabolus, therefore look about
you. They used heretofore to lodge with their Prince in the Castle, when Incredulity
was the Lord Mayor of this town; but since my coming hither, they lie more in the
outsides and walls, and have made themselves dens, and caves, and holes, and
strongholds therein. Wherefore, O Mansoul! thy work, as to this, will be so much the
more difficult and hard; that is, to take, mortify, and put them to death according to
the will of my Father. Nor can you utterly rid yourselves of them, unless you should
pull down the walls of your town, the which I am by no means willing you should. Do
you ask me, What shall we do then? Why, be you diligent, and quit you like men;
observe their holes; find out their haunts; assault them, and make no peace with
them. Wherever they haunt, lurk, or abide, and what terms of peace soever they offer
you, abhor, and all shall be well betwixt you and me. And that you may the better
know them from those that are the natives of Mansoul, I will give you this brief
schedule of the names of the chief of them; and they are these that follow:—The Lord
Fornication, the Lord Adultery, the Lord Murder, the Lord Anger, the Lord
Lasciviousness, the Lord Deceit, the Lord Evil-Eye, Mr. Drunkenness, Mr. Revelling,
Mr. Idolatry, Mr. Witch-craft, Mr. Variance, Mr. Emulation, Mr. Wrath, Mr. Strife,
Mr. Sedition, and Mr. Heresy. These are some of the chief, O Mansoul! of those that
will seek to overthrow thee for ever. These, I say, are the skulkers in Mansoul; but
look thou well into the law of thy King, and there thou shalt find their physiognomy,
and such other characteristical notes of them, by which they certainly may be known.
‘These, O my Mansoul, (and I would gladly that you should certainly know it,) if they
be suffered to run and range about the town as they would, will quickly, like vipers,
eat out your bowels; yea, poison your captains, cut the sinews of your soldiers, break
the bars and bolts of your gates, and turn your now most flourishing Mansoul into a
barren and desolate wilderness, and ruinous heap. Wherefore, that you may take
courage to yourselves to apprehend these villains wherever you find them, I give to
you, my Lord Mayor, my Lord Willbewill, and Mr. Recorder, with all the inhabitants
of the town of Mansoul, full power and commission to seek out, to take, and to cause
to be put to death by the cross, all, and all manner of Diabolonians, when and
wherever you shall find them to lurk within, or to range without the walls of the town
of Mansoul.
‘I told you before that I had placed a standing ministry among you; not that you have
but these with you, for my first four captains who came against the master and lord
of the Diabolonians that was in Mansoul, they can, and if need be, and if they be
required, will not only privately inform, but publicly preach to the corporation both
good and wholesome doctrine, and such as shall lead you in the way. Yea, they will
set up a weekly, yea, if need be, a daily lecture in thee, O Mansoul! and will instruct
thee in such profitable lessons, that, if heeded, will do thee good at the end. And take
good heed that you spare not the men that you have a commission to take and
crucify.
‘Now, as I have set before your eyes the vagrants and runagates by name, so I will tell
you, that among yourselves, some of them shall creep in to beguile you, even such as
would seem, and that in appearance are, very rife and hot for religion. And they, if
you watch not, will do you a mischief, such an one as at present you cannot think of.
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‘These, as I said, will show themselves to you in another hue than those under
description before. Wherefore, Mansoul, watch and be sober, and suffer not thyself
to be betrayed.’
When the Prince had thus far new modelled the town of Mansoul, and had instructed
them in such matters as were profitable for them to know, then he appointed another
day in which he intended, when the townsfolk came together, to bestow a further
badge of honour upon the town of Mansoul,—a badge that should distinguish them
from all the people, kindreds, and tongues that dwell in the kingdom of
Universe. Now it was not long before the day appointed was come, and the Prince
and his people met in the King’s palace, where first Emmanuel made a short speech
unto them, and then did for them as he had said, and unto them as he had promised.
‘My Mansoul,’ said he, ‘that which I now am about to do, is to make you known to the
world to be mine, and to distinguish you also in your own eyes, from all false traitors
that may creep in among you.’
Then he commanded that those that waited upon him should go and bring forth out
of his treasury those white and glistening robes ‘that I,’ said he, ‘have provided and
laid up in store for my Mansoul.’ So the white garments were fetched out of his
treasury, and laid forth to the eyes of the people. Moreover, it was granted to them
that they should take them and put them on, ‘according,’ said he, ‘to your size and
stature.’ So the people were put into white, into fine linen, white and clean.
Then said the Prince unto them, ‘This, O Mansoul, is my livery, and the badge by
which mine are known from the servants of others. Yea, it is that which I grant to all
that are mine, and without which no man is permitted to see my face. Wear them,
therefore, for my sake, who gave them unto you; and also if you would be known by
the world to be mine.’
But now! can you think how Mansoul shone? It was fair as the sun, clear as the
moon, and terrible as an army with banners.
The Prince added further, and said, ‘No prince, potentate, or mighty one of Universe,
giveth this livery but myself: behold, therefore, as I said before, you shall be known
by it to be mine.
‘And now,’ said he, ‘I have given you my livery, let me give you also in commandment
concerning them; and be sure that you take good heed to my words.
‘First. Wear them daily, day by day, lest you should at sometimes appear to others as
if you were none of mine.
‘Second. Keep them always white; for if they be soiled, it is dishonour to me.
‘Third. Wherefore gird them up from the ground, and let them not lag with dust and
dirt.
‘Fourth. Take heed that you lose them not, lest you walk naked, and they see your
shame.
‘Fifth. But if you should sully them, if you should defile them, the which I am greatly
unwilling you should, and the prince Diabolus will be glad if you would, then speed
you to do that which is written in my law, that yet you may stand, and befall before
me, and before my throne. Also, this is the way to cause that I may not leave you, nor
forsake you while here, but may dwell in this town of Mansoul for ever.’
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And now was Mansoul, and the inhabitants of it, as the signet upon Emmanuel’s
right hand. Where was there now a town, a city, a corporation, that could compare
with Mansoul! a town redeemed from the hand, and from the power of Diabolus! a
town that the King Shaddai loved, and that he sent Emmanuel to regain from the
Prince of the infernal cave; yea, a town that Emmanuel loved to dwell in, and that he
chose for his royal habitation; a town that he fortified for himself, and made strong
by the force of his army. What shall I say, Mansoul has now a most excellent Prince,
golden captains and men of war, weapons proved, and garments as white as
snow. Nor are these benefits to be counted little, but great; can the town of Mansoul
esteem them so, and improve them to that end and purpose for which they are
bestowed upon them?
When the Prince had thus completed the modelling of the town, to show that he had
great delight in the work of his hands and took pleasure in the good that he had
wrought for the famous and flourishing Mansoul, he commanded, and they set his
standard upon the battlements of the castle. And then,
First. He gave them frequent visits; not a day now but the elders of Mansoul must
come to him, or he to them, into his palace. Now they must walk and talk together of
all the great things that he had done, and yet further promised to do, for the town of
Mansoul. Thus would he often do with the Lord Mayor, my Lord Willbewill, and the
honest subordinate preacher Mr. Conscience, and Mr. Recorder. But oh, how
graciously, how lovingly, how courteously, and tenderly did this blessed Prince now
carry it towards the town of Mansoul! In all the streets, gardens, orchards, and other
places where he came, to be sure the poor should have his blessing and benediction;
yea, he would kiss them, and if they were ill he would lay hands on them, and make
them well. The captains, also, he would daily, yea, sometimes hourly, encourage with
his presence and goodly words. For you must know that a smile from him upon them
would put more vigour, more life, and stoutness into them, than would anything else
under heaven.
The Prince would now also feast them, and be with them continually: hardly a week
would pass but a banquet must be had betwixt him and them. You may remember
that, some pages before, we make mention of one feast that they had together; but
now to feast them was a thing more common: every day with Mansoul was a feast-
day now. Nor did he, when they returned to their places, send them empty away,
either they must have a ring, a gold chain, a bracelet, a white stone, or something; so
dear was Mansoul to him now; so lovely was Mansoul in his eyes.
Second. When the elders and townsmen did not come to him, he would send in
much plenty of provision unto them; meat that came from court, wine and bread that
were prepared for his Father’s table; yea, such delicates would he send unto them,
and therewith would so cover their table, that whoever saw it confessed that the like
could not be seen in any kingdom.
Third. If Mansoul did not frequently visit him as he desired they should, he would
walk out to them, knock at their doors, and desire entrance, that amity might be
maintained betwixt them and him; if they did hear and open to him, as commonly
they would, if they were at home, then would he renew his former love, and confirm
it too with some new tokens, and signs of continued favour.
And was it not now amazing to behold, that in that very place where sometimes
Diabolus had his abode, and entertained his Diabolonians to the almost utter
destruction of Mansoul, the Prince of princes should sit eating and drinking with
88.
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them, while all his mighty captains, men of war, trumpeters, with the singing-men
and singing-women of his Father, stood round about to wait upon them! Now did
Mansoul’s cup run over, now did her conduits run sweet wine, now did she eat the
finest of the wheat, and drink milk and honey out of the rock! Now, she said, How
great is his goodness! for since I found favour in his eyes, how honourable have I
been!
The blessed Prince did also ordain a new officer in the town, and a goodly person he
was; his name was Mr. God’s-Peace: this man was set over my Lord Willbewill, my
Lord Mayor, Mr. Recorder, the subordinate preacher, Mr. Mind, and over all the
natives of the town of Mansoul. Himself was not a native of it, but came with the
Prince Emmanuel from the court. He was a great acquaintance of Captain Credence
and Captain Good-Hope; some say they were kin, and I am of that opinion too. This
man, as I said, was made governor of the town in general, especially over the castle,
and Captain Credence was to help him there. And I made great observation of it, that
so long as all things went in Mansoul as this sweet-natured gentleman would, the
town was in most happy condition. Now there were no jars, no chiding, no
interferings, no unfaithful doings in all the town of Mansoul; every man in Mansoul
kept close to his own employment. The gentry, the officers, the soldiers, and all in
place observed their order. And as for the women and children of the town, they
followed their business joyfully; they would work and sing, work and sing, from
morning till night: so that quite through the town of Mansoul now nothing was to be
found but harmony, quietness, joy, and health. And this lasted all that summer.
But there was a man in the town of Mansoul, and his name was Mr. Carnal-Security;
this man did, after all this mercy bestowed on this corporation, bring the town of
Mansoul into great and grievous slavery and bondage. A brief account of him and of
his doings take as followeth:—
When Diabolus at first took possession of the town of Mansoul, he brought thither,
with himself, a great number of Diabolonians, men of his own conditions. Now
among these there was one whose name was Mr. Self-Conceit, and a notable brisk
man he was, as any that in those days did possess the town of Mansoul. Diabolus,
then, perceiving this man to be active and bold, sent him upon many desperate
designs, the which he managed better, and more to the pleasing of his lord, than
most that came with him from the dens could do. Wherefore, finding him so fit for
his purpose, he preferred him, and made him next to the great Lord Willbewill, of
whom we have written so much before. Now the Lord Willbewill being in those days
very well pleased with him, and with his achievements, gave him his daughter, the
Lady Fear-Nothing, to wife. Now, of my Lady Fear-nothing, did this Mr. Self-Conceit
beget this gentleman, Mr. Carnal-Security. Wherefore, there being then in Mansoul
those strange kinds of mixtures, it was hard for them, in some cases, to find out who
were natives, who not, for Mr. Carnal-Security sprang from my Lord Willbewill by
mother’s side, though he had for his father a Diabolonian by nature.
Well, this Carnal-Security took much after his father and mother; he was self-
conceited, he feared nothing, he was also a very busy man: nothing of news, nothing
of doctrine, nothing of alteration, or talk of alteration, could at any time be on foot in
Mansoul, but be sure Mr. Carnal-Security would be at the head or tail of it: but, to be
sure, he would decline those that he deemed the weakest, and stood always with
them in his way of standing, that he supposed was the strongest side.
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Now, when Shaddai the mighty, and Emmanuel his Son, made war upon Mansoul, to
take it, this Mr. Carnal-Security was then in town, and was a great doer among the
people, encouraging them in their rebellion, putting them upon hardening
themselves in their resisting the King’s forces: but when he saw that the town of
Mansoul was taken, and converted to the use of the glorious Prince Emmanuel; and
when he also saw what was become of Diabolus, and how he was unroosted, and
made to quit the castle in the greatest contempt and scorn; and that the town of
Mansoul was well lined with captains, engines of war, and men, and also provision;
what doth he but slyly wheel about also; and as he had served Diabolus against the
good Prince, so he feigned that he would serve the Prince against his foes.
And having got some little smattering of Emmanuel’s things by the end, being bold,
he ventures himself into the company of the townsmen, any attempts also to chat
among them. Now he knew that the power and strength of the town of Mansoul was
great, and that it could not but be pleasing to the people, if he cried up their might
and their glory. Wherefore he beginneth his tale with the power and strength of
Mansoul, and affirmed that it was impregnable; now magnifying their captains and
their slings, and their rams; then crying up their fortifications and strongholds; and,
lastly, the assurances that they had from their Prince, that Mansoul should be happy
for ever. But when he saw that some of the men of the town were tickled and taken
with his discourse, he makes it his business, and walking from street to street, house
to house, and man to man, he at last brought Mansoul to dance after his pipe, and to
grow almost as carnally secure as himself; so from talking they went to feasting, and
from feasting to sporting; and so to some other matters. Now Emmanuel was yet in
the town of Mansoul, and he wisely observed their doings. My Lord Mayor, my Lord
Willbewill, and Mr. Recorder were also all taken with the words of this tattling
Diabolonian gentleman, forgetting that their Prince had given them warning before
to take heed that they were not beguiled with any Diabolonian sleight; he had further
told them that the security of the now flourishing town of Mansoul did not so much
lie in her present fortifications and force, as in her so using of what she had, as might
oblige her Emmanuel to abide within her castle. For the right doctrine of Emmanuel
was, that the town of Mansoul should take heed that they forgot not his Father’s love
and his; also, that they should so demean themselves as to continue to keep
themselves therein. Now this was not the way to do it, namely, to fall in love with
one of the Diabolonians, and with such an one too as Mr. Carnal-Security was, and to
be led up and down by the nose by him; they should have heard their Prince, feared
their Prince, loved their Prince, and have stoned this naughty pack to death, and took
care to have walked in the ways of their Prince’s prescribing: for then should their
peace have been as a river, when their righteousness had been like the waves of the
sea.
Now when Emmanuel perceived that through the policy of Mr. Carnal-Security the
hearts of the men of Mansoul were chilled and abated in their practical love to him,
First. He bemoans them, and, condoles their state with the Secretary, saying, ‘Oh
that my people had hearkened unto me, and that Mansoul had walked in my ways! I
would have fed them with the finest of the wheat; and with honey out of the rock
would I have sustained them.’ This done, he said in his heart, ‘I will return to the
court, and go to my place, till Mansoul shall consider and acknowledge their
offence.’ And he did so, and the cause and manner of his going away from them was,
that Mansoul declined him, as is manifest in these particulars.
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‘1. They left off their former way of visiting him, they came not to his royal palace as
afore.
‘2. They did not regard, nor yet take notice, that he came or came not to visit them.
‘3. The love-feasts that had wont to be between their Prince and them, though he
made them still, and called them to them, yet they neglected to come to them, or to
be delighted with them.
‘4. They waited not for his counsels, but began to be headstrong and confident in
themselves, concluding that now they were strong and invincible, and that Mansoul
was secure, and beyond all reach of the foe, and that her state must needs be
unalterable for ever.’
Now, as was said, Emmanuel perceiving that by the craft of Mr. Carnal-Security, the
town of Mansoul was taken off from their dependence upon him, and upon his
Father by him, and set upon what by them was bestowed upon it; he first, as I said,
bemoaned their state, then he used means to make them understand that the way
that they went on in was dangerous: for he sent my Lord High Secretary to them, to
forbid them such ways; but twice when he came to them, he found them at dinner in
Mr. Carnal-Security’s parlour; and perceiving also that they were not willing to
reason about matters concerning their good, he took grief and went his way; the
which when he had told to the Prince Emmanuel, he took offence, and was grieved
also, and so made provision to return to his Father’s court.
Now, the methods of his withdrawing, as I was saying before, were thus:—
‘1. Even while he was yet with them in Mansoul, he kept himself close, and more
retired than formerly.
2. His speech was not now, if he came in their company, so pleasant and familiar as
formerly.
‘3. Nor did he, as in times past, send to Mansoul, from his table, those dainty bits
which he was wont to do.
‘4. Nor when they came to visit him, as now and then they would, would he be so
easily spoken with as they found him to be in times past. They might now knock
once, yea, twice, but he would seem not at all to regard them; whereas formerly at the
sound of their feet he would up and run, and meet them halfway, and take them too,
and lay them in his bosom.’
But thus Emmanuel carried it now, and by this his carriage he sought to make them
bethink themselves, and return to him. But, alas! they did not consider, they did not
know his ways, they regarded not, they were not touched with these, nor with the
true remembrance of former favours. Wherefore what does he but in private manner
withdraw himself, first from his palace, then to the gate of the town, and so away
from Mansoul he goes, till they should acknowledge their offence, and more earnestly
seek his face. Mr. God’s-Peace also laid down his commission, and would for the
present act no longer in the town of Mansoul.
Thus they walked contrary to him, and he again, by way of retaliation, walked
contrary to them. But, alas! by this time they were so hardened in their way, and had
so drunk in the doctrine of Mr. Carnal-Security, that the departing of their Prince
touched them not, nor was he remembered by them when gone; and so, of
consequence, his absence not condoled by them.
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Now, there was a day wherein this old gentleman, Mr. Carnal-Security, did again
make a feast for the town of Mansoul; and there was at that time in the town one Mr.
Godly-Fear, one now but little set by, though formerly one of great request. This
man, old Carnal-Security, had a mind, if possible, to gull, and debauch, and abuse, as
he did the rest, and therefore he now bids him to the feast with his neighbours. So
the day being come, they prepare, and he goes and appears with the rest of the
guests; and being all set at the table, they did eat and drink, and were merry, even all
but this one man: for Mr. Godly-Fear sat like a stranger, and did neither eat nor was
merry. The which, when Mr. Carnal-Security perceived, he presently addressed
himself in a speech thus to him:—
‘Mr. Godly-Fear, are you not well? You seem to be ill of body or mind, or both. I
have a cordial of Mr. Forget-Good’s making, the which, sir, if you will take a dram of,
I hope it may make you bonny and blithe, and so make you more fit for us, feasting
companions.’
Unto whom the good old gentleman discreetly replied, ‘Sir, I thank you for all things
courteous and civil; but for your cordial I have no list thereto. But a word to the
natives of Mansoul: You, the elders and chief of Mansoul, to me it is strange to see
you so jocund and merry, when the town of Mansoul is in such woeful case.’
Then said Mr. Carnal-Security, ‘You want sleep, good air, I doubt. If you please, lie
down, and take a nap, and we meanwhile will be merry.’
Then said the good man as follows: ‘Sir, if you were not destitute of an honest heart,
you could not do as you have done and do.’
Then said Mr. Carnal-Security, ‘Why?’
Godly. Nay, pray interrupt me not. It is true the town of Mansoul was strong, and,
with a proviso, impregnable; but you, the townsmen, have weakened it, and it now
lies obnoxious to its foes. Nor is it a time to flatter, or be silent; it is you, Mr. Carnal-
Security, that have wilily stripped Mansoul, and driven her glory from her; you have
pulled down her towers, you have broken down her gates, you have spoiled her locks
and bars.
And now, to explain myself: from that time that my lords of Mansoul, and you, sir,
grew so great, from that time the Strength of Mansoul has been offended, and now he
is arisen and is gone. If any shall question the truth of my words, I will answer him
by this, and suchlike questions. ‘Where is the Prince Emmanuel? When did a man
or woman in Mansoul see him? When did you hear from him, or taste any of his
dainty bits?’ You are now a feasting with this Diabolonian monster, but he is not
your Prince. I say, therefore, though enemies from without, had you taken heed,
could not have made a prey of you, yet since you have sinned against your Prince,
your enemies within have been too hard for you.
Then said Mr. Carnal-Security, ‘Fie! fie! Mr. Godly-Fear, fie!—will you never shake
off your timorousness? Are you afraid of being sparrow-blasted? Who hath hurt
you? Behold, I am on your side; only you are for doubting, and I am for being
confident. Besides, is this a time to be sad in? A feast is made for mirth; why, then,
do you now, to your shame, and our trouble, break out into such passionate
melancholy language, when you should eat and drink, and be merry?’
Then said Mr. Godly-Fear again, ‘I may well be sad, for Emmanuel is gone from
Mansoul. I say again, he is gone, and you, sir, are the man that has driven him away;
yea, he is gone without so much as acquainting the nobles of Mansoul with his going;
Now, there was a day wherein this old gentleman, Mr. Carnal-Security, did again
make a feast for the town of Mansoul; and there was at that time in the town one Mr.
Godly-Fear, one now but little set by, though formerly one of great request. This
man, old Carnal-Security, had a mind, if possible, to gull, and debauch, and abuse, as
he did the rest, and therefore he now bids him to the feast with his neighbours. So
the day being come, they prepare, and he goes and appears with the rest of the
guests; and being all set at the table, they did eat and drink, and were merry, even all
but this one man: for Mr. Godly-Fear sat like a stranger, and did neither eat nor was
merry. The which, when Mr. Carnal-Security perceived, he presently addressed
himself in a speech thus to him:—
‘Mr. Godly-Fear, are you not well? You seem to be ill of body or mind, or both. I
have a cordial of Mr. Forget-Good’s making, the which, sir, if you will take a dram of,
I hope it may make you bonny and blithe, and so make you more fit for us, feasting
companions.’
Unto whom the good old gentleman discreetly replied, ‘Sir, I thank you for all things
courteous and civil; but for your cordial I have no list thereto. But a word to the
natives of Mansoul: You, the elders and chief of Mansoul, to me it is strange to see
you so jocund and merry, when the town of Mansoul is in such woeful case.’
Then said Mr. Carnal-Security, ‘You want sleep, good air, I doubt. If you please, lie
down, and take a nap, and we meanwhile will be merry.’
Then said the good man as follows: ‘Sir, if you were not destitute of an honest heart,
you could not do as you have done and do.’
Then said Mr. Carnal-Security, ‘Why?’
Godly. Nay, pray interrupt me not. It is true the town of Mansoul was strong, and,
with a proviso, impregnable; but you, the townsmen, have weakened it, and it now
lies obnoxious to its foes. Nor is it a time to flatter, or be silent; it is you, Mr. Carnal-
Security, that have wilily stripped Mansoul, and driven her glory from her; you have
pulled down her towers, you have broken down her gates, you have spoiled her locks
and bars.
And now, to explain myself: from that time that my lords of Mansoul, and you, sir,
grew so great, from that time the Strength of Mansoul has been offended, and now he
is arisen and is gone. If any shall question the truth of my words, I will answer him
by this, and suchlike questions. ‘Where is the Prince Emmanuel? When did a man
or woman in Mansoul see him? When did you hear from him, or taste any of his
dainty bits?’ You are now a feasting with this Diabolonian monster, but he is not
your Prince. I say, therefore, though enemies from without, had you taken heed,
could not have made a prey of you, yet since you have sinned against your Prince,
your enemies within have been too hard for you.
Then said Mr. Carnal-Security, ‘Fie! fie! Mr. Godly-Fear, fie!—will you never shake
off your timorousness? Are you afraid of being sparrow-blasted? Who hath hurt
you? Behold, I am on your side; only you are for doubting, and I am for being
confident. Besides, is this a time to be sad in? A feast is made for mirth; why, then,
do you now, to your shame, and our trouble, break out into such passionate
melancholy language, when you should eat and drink, and be merry?’
Then said Mr. Godly-Fear again, ‘I may well be sad, for Emmanuel is gone from
Mansoul. I say again, he is gone, and you, sir, are the man that has driven him away;
yea, he is gone without so much as acquainting the nobles of Mansoul with his going;
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and if that is not a sign of his anger, I am not acquainted with the methods of
godliness.
‘And now, my lords and gentlemen, for my speech is still to you, your gradual
declining from him did provoke him gradually to depart from you, the which he did
for some time, if perhaps you would have been made sensible thereby, and have been
renewed by humbling yourselves; but when he saw that none would regard, nor lay
these fearful beginnings of his anger and judgment to heart, he went away from this
place; and this I saw with mine eye. Wherefore now, while you boast, your strength
is gone; you are like the man that had lost his locks that before did wave about his
shoulders. You may, with this lord of your feast, shake yourselves, and conclude to
do as at other times; but since without him you can do nothing, and he is departed
from you, turn your feast into a sigh, and your mirth into lamentation.’
Then the subordinate preacher, old Mr. Conscience by name, he that of old was
Recorder of Mansoul, being startled at what was said, began to second it thus:—
‘Indeed, my brethren,’ quoth he, ‘I fear that Mr. Godly-Fear tells us true: I, for my
part, have not seen my Prince a long season. I cannot remember the day, for my
part; nor can I answer Mr. Godly-Fear’s question. I doubt, I am afraid that all is
nought with Mansoul.’
Godly. Nay, I know that you shall not find him in Mansoul, for he is departed and
gone; yea, and gone for the faults of the elders, and for that they rewarded his grace
with unsufferable unkindness.
Then did the subordinate preacher look as if he would fall down dead at the table;
also all there present, except the man of the house, began to look pale and wan. But
having a little recovered themselves, and jointly agreeing to believe Mr. Godly-Fear
and his sayings, they began to consult what was best to be done, (now Mr. Carnal-
Security was gone into his withdrawing-room, for he liked not such dumpish doings,)
both to the man of the house for drawing them into evil, and also to recover
Emmanuel’s love.
And, with that, that saying of their Prince came very hot into their minds, which he
had bidden them do to such as were false prophets that should arise to delude the
town of Mansoul. So they took Mr. Carnal-Security (concluding that he must be he)
and burned his house upon him with fire; for he also was a Diabolonian by nature.
So when this was passed and over, they bespeed themselves to look for Emmanuel
their Prince; and they sought him, but they found him not. Then were they more
confirmed in the truth of Mr. Godly-Fear’s sayings, and began also severely to reflect
upon themselves for their so vile and ungodly doings; for they concluded now that it
was through them that their Prince had left them.
Then they agreed and went to my Lord Secretary, (him whom before they refused to
hear—him whom they had grieved with their doings,) to know of him, for he was a
seer, and could tell where Emmanuel was, and how they might direct a petition to
him. But the Lord Secretary would not admit them to a conference about this matter,
nor would admit them to his royal place of abode, nor come out to them to show
them his face or intelligence.
And now was it a day gloomy and dark, a day of clouds and of thick darkness with
Mansoul. Now they saw that they had been foolish, and began to perceive what the
company and prattle of Mr. Carnal-Security had done, and what desperate damage
his swaggering words had brought poor Mansoul into. But what further it was likely
and if that is not a sign of his anger, I am not acquainted with the methods of
godliness.
‘And now, my lords and gentlemen, for my speech is still to you, your gradual
declining from him did provoke him gradually to depart from you, the which he did
for some time, if perhaps you would have been made sensible thereby, and have been
renewed by humbling yourselves; but when he saw that none would regard, nor lay
these fearful beginnings of his anger and judgment to heart, he went away from this
place; and this I saw with mine eye. Wherefore now, while you boast, your strength
is gone; you are like the man that had lost his locks that before did wave about his
shoulders. You may, with this lord of your feast, shake yourselves, and conclude to
do as at other times; but since without him you can do nothing, and he is departed
from you, turn your feast into a sigh, and your mirth into lamentation.’
Then the subordinate preacher, old Mr. Conscience by name, he that of old was
Recorder of Mansoul, being startled at what was said, began to second it thus:—
‘Indeed, my brethren,’ quoth he, ‘I fear that Mr. Godly-Fear tells us true: I, for my
part, have not seen my Prince a long season. I cannot remember the day, for my
part; nor can I answer Mr. Godly-Fear’s question. I doubt, I am afraid that all is
nought with Mansoul.’
Godly. Nay, I know that you shall not find him in Mansoul, for he is departed and
gone; yea, and gone for the faults of the elders, and for that they rewarded his grace
with unsufferable unkindness.
Then did the subordinate preacher look as if he would fall down dead at the table;
also all there present, except the man of the house, began to look pale and wan. But
having a little recovered themselves, and jointly agreeing to believe Mr. Godly-Fear
and his sayings, they began to consult what was best to be done, (now Mr. Carnal-
Security was gone into his withdrawing-room, for he liked not such dumpish doings,)
both to the man of the house for drawing them into evil, and also to recover
Emmanuel’s love.
And, with that, that saying of their Prince came very hot into their minds, which he
had bidden them do to such as were false prophets that should arise to delude the
town of Mansoul. So they took Mr. Carnal-Security (concluding that he must be he)
and burned his house upon him with fire; for he also was a Diabolonian by nature.
So when this was passed and over, they bespeed themselves to look for Emmanuel
their Prince; and they sought him, but they found him not. Then were they more
confirmed in the truth of Mr. Godly-Fear’s sayings, and began also severely to reflect
upon themselves for their so vile and ungodly doings; for they concluded now that it
was through them that their Prince had left them.
Then they agreed and went to my Lord Secretary, (him whom before they refused to
hear—him whom they had grieved with their doings,) to know of him, for he was a
seer, and could tell where Emmanuel was, and how they might direct a petition to
him. But the Lord Secretary would not admit them to a conference about this matter,
nor would admit them to his royal place of abode, nor come out to them to show
them his face or intelligence.
And now was it a day gloomy and dark, a day of clouds and of thick darkness with
Mansoul. Now they saw that they had been foolish, and began to perceive what the
company and prattle of Mr. Carnal-Security had done, and what desperate damage
his swaggering words had brought poor Mansoul into. But what further it was likely
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to cost them they were ignorant of. Now Mr. Godly-Fear began again to be in repute
with the men of the town; yea, they were ready to look upon him as a prophet.
Well, when the Sabbath day was come, they went to hear their subordinate preacher;
but oh, how he did thunder and lighten this day! His text was that in the prophet
Jonah: ‘They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy.’ But there was then
such power and authority in that sermon, and such a dejection seen in the
countenances of the people that day, that the like hath seldom been heard or
seen. The people, when sermon was done, were scarce able to go to their homes, or
to betake themselves to their employs the week after; they were so sermon-smitten,
and also so sermon-sick by being smitten, that they knew not what to do.
He did not only show to Mansoul their sin, but did tremble before them, under the
sense of his own, still crying out of himself, as he preached to them, ‘Unhappy man
that I am! that I should do so wicked a thing! That I, a preacher! whom the Prince
did set up to teach to Mansoul his law, should myself live senseless and sottishly
here, and be one of the first found in transgression! This transgression also fell
within my precincts; I should have cried out against the wickedness; but I let
Mansoul lie wallowing in it, until it had driven Emmanuel from its borders!’ With
these things he also charged all the lords and gentry of Mansoul, to the almost
distracting of them.
About this time, also, there was a great sickness in the town of Mansoul, and most of
the inhabitants were greatly afflicted. Yea, the captains also, and men of war, were
brought thereby to a languishing condition, and that for a long time together; so that
in case of an invasion, nothing could to purpose now have been done, either by the
townsmen or field officers. Oh, how many pale faces, weak hands, feeble knees, and
staggering men were now seen to walk the streets of Mansoul! Here were groans,
there pants, and yonder lay those that were ready to faint.
The garments, too, which Emmanuel had given them were but in a sorry case; some
were rent, some were torn, and all in a nasty condition; some also did hang so loosely
upon them, that the next bush they came at was ready to pluck them off.
After some time spent in this sad and desolate condition, the subordinate preacher
called for a day of fasting, and to humble themselves for being so wicked against the
great Shaddai and his Son. And he desired that Captain Boanerges would preach. So
he consented to do it; and the day being come, and his text was this, ‘Cut it down,
why cumbereth it the ground?’ And a very smart sermon he made upon the
place. First, he showed what was the occasion of the words, namely, because the fig-
tree was barren; then he showed what was contained in the sentence, namely,
repentance, or utter desolation. He then showed, also, by whose authority this
sentence was pronounced, and that was by Shaddai himself. And, lastly, he showed
the reasons of the point, and then concluded his sermon. But he was very pertinent
in the application, insomuch that he made poor Mansoul tremble. For this sermon,
as well as the former, wrought much upon the hearts of the men of Mansoul; yea, it
greatly helped to keep awake those that were roused by the preaching that went
before. So that now throughout the whole town, there was little or nothing to be
heard or seen but sorrow, and mourning, and woe.
Now, after sermon, they got together and consulted what was best to be done. ‘But,’
said the subordinate preacher, ‘I will do nothing of mine own head, without advising
with my neighbour Mr. Godly-Fear. For if he had aforehand understood more of the
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mind of our Prince than we, I do not know but he also may have it now, even now we
are turning again to virtue.’
So they called and sent for Mr. Godly-Fear, and he forthwith appeared. Then they
desired that he would further show his opinion about what they had best to do. Then
said the old gentleman as followeth: ‘It is my opinion that this town of Mansoul
should, in this day of her distress, draw up and send an humble petition to their
offended Prince Emmanuel, that he, in his favour and grace, will turn again unto you,
and not keep anger for ever.’
When the townsmen had heard this speech, they did, with one consent, agree to his
advice; so they did presently draw up their request, and the next was, But who shall
carry it? At last they did all agree to send it by my Lord Mayor. So he accepted of the
service, and addressed himself to his journey; and went and came to the court of
Shaddai, whither Emmanuel the Prince of Mansoul was gone. But the gate was shut,
and a strict watch kept thereat; so that the petitioner was forced to stand without for
a great while together. Then he desired that some would go into the Prince and tell
him who stood at the gate, and what his business was. So one went and told to
Shaddai, and to Emmanuel his Son, that the Lord Mayor of the town of Mansoul
stood without at the gate of the King’s court, desiring to be admitted into the
presence of the Prince, the King’s Son. He also told what was the Lord Mayor’s
errand, both to the King and his Son Emmanuel. But the Prince would not come
down, nor admit that the gate should be opened to him, but sent him an answer to
this effect: ‘They have turned their back unto me, and not their face; but now in the
time of their trouble they say to me, Arise, and save us. But can they not now go to
Mr. Carnal-Security, to whom they went when they turned from me, and make him
their leader, their lord, and their protection now in their trouble; why now in their
trouble do they visit me, since in their prosperity they went astray?’
The answer made my Lord Mayor look black in the face; it troubled, it perplexed, it
rent him sore. And now he began again to see what it was to be familiar with
Diabolonians, such as Mr. Carnal-Security was. When he saw that at court, as yet,
there was little help to be expected, either for himself or friends in Mansoul, he
smote upon his breast, and returned weeping, and all the way bewailing the
lamentable state of Mansoul.
Well, when he was come within sight of the town, the elders and chief of the people
of Mansoul went out at the gate to meet him, and to salute him, and to know how he
sped at court. But he told them his tale in so doleful a manner, that they all cried out,
and mourned, and wept. Wherefore they threw ashes and dust upon their heads, and
put sackcloth upon their loins, and went crying out through the town of Mansoul; the
which, when the rest of the townsfolk saw, they all mourned and wept. This,
therefore, was a day of rebuke and trouble, and of anguish to the town of Mansoul,
and also of great distress.
After some time, when they had somewhat refrained themselves, they came together
to consult again what by them was yet to be done; and they asked advice, as they did
before, of that reverend Mr. Godly-Fear, who told them that there was no way better
than to do as they had done, nor would he that they should be discouraged at all with
that they had met with at court; yea, though several of their petitions should be
answered with nought but silence or rebuke: ‘For,’ said he, ‘it is the way of the wise
Shaddai to make men wait and to exercise patience, and it should be the way of them
in want, to be willing to stay his leisure.
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mind of our Prince than we, I do not know but he also may have it now, even now we
are turning again to virtue.’
So they called and sent for Mr. Godly-Fear, and he forthwith appeared. Then they
desired that he would further show his opinion about what they had best to do. Then
said the old gentleman as followeth: ‘It is my opinion that this town of Mansoul
should, in this day of her distress, draw up and send an humble petition to their
offended Prince Emmanuel, that he, in his favour and grace, will turn again unto you,
and not keep anger for ever.’
When the townsmen had heard this speech, they did, with one consent, agree to his
advice; so they did presently draw up their request, and the next was, But who shall
carry it? At last they did all agree to send it by my Lord Mayor. So he accepted of the
service, and addressed himself to his journey; and went and came to the court of
Shaddai, whither Emmanuel the Prince of Mansoul was gone. But the gate was shut,
and a strict watch kept thereat; so that the petitioner was forced to stand without for
a great while together. Then he desired that some would go into the Prince and tell
him who stood at the gate, and what his business was. So one went and told to
Shaddai, and to Emmanuel his Son, that the Lord Mayor of the town of Mansoul
stood without at the gate of the King’s court, desiring to be admitted into the
presence of the Prince, the King’s Son. He also told what was the Lord Mayor’s
errand, both to the King and his Son Emmanuel. But the Prince would not come
down, nor admit that the gate should be opened to him, but sent him an answer to
this effect: ‘They have turned their back unto me, and not their face; but now in the
time of their trouble they say to me, Arise, and save us. But can they not now go to
Mr. Carnal-Security, to whom they went when they turned from me, and make him
their leader, their lord, and their protection now in their trouble; why now in their
trouble do they visit me, since in their prosperity they went astray?’
The answer made my Lord Mayor look black in the face; it troubled, it perplexed, it
rent him sore. And now he began again to see what it was to be familiar with
Diabolonians, such as Mr. Carnal-Security was. When he saw that at court, as yet,
there was little help to be expected, either for himself or friends in Mansoul, he
smote upon his breast, and returned weeping, and all the way bewailing the
lamentable state of Mansoul.
Well, when he was come within sight of the town, the elders and chief of the people
of Mansoul went out at the gate to meet him, and to salute him, and to know how he
sped at court. But he told them his tale in so doleful a manner, that they all cried out,
and mourned, and wept. Wherefore they threw ashes and dust upon their heads, and
put sackcloth upon their loins, and went crying out through the town of Mansoul; the
which, when the rest of the townsfolk saw, they all mourned and wept. This,
therefore, was a day of rebuke and trouble, and of anguish to the town of Mansoul,
and also of great distress.
After some time, when they had somewhat refrained themselves, they came together
to consult again what by them was yet to be done; and they asked advice, as they did
before, of that reverend Mr. Godly-Fear, who told them that there was no way better
than to do as they had done, nor would he that they should be discouraged at all with
that they had met with at court; yea, though several of their petitions should be
answered with nought but silence or rebuke: ‘For,’ said he, ‘it is the way of the wise
Shaddai to make men wait and to exercise patience, and it should be the way of them
in want, to be willing to stay his leisure.
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Then they took courage, and sent again and again, and again, and again; for there
was not now one day, nor an hour that went over Mansoul’s head, wherein a man
might not have met upon the road one or other riding post, sounding the horn from
Mansoul to the court of the King Shaddai; and all with letters petitionary in behalf of,
and for the Prince’s return to Mansoul. The road, I say, was now full of messengers,
going and returning, and meeting one another; some from the court, and some from
Mansoul; and this was the work of the miserable town of Mansoul, all that long, that
sharp, that cold and tedious winter.
Now if you have not forgot, you may yet remember that I told you before, that after
Emmanuel had taken Mansoul, yea, and after that he had new modelled the town,
there remained in several lurking places of the corporation many of the old
Diabolonians, that either came with the tyrant when he invaded and took the town,
or that had there, by reason of unlawful mixtures, their birth and breeding, and
bringing up. And their holes, dens, and lurking places were in, under, or about the
wall of the town. Some of their names are the Lord Fornication, the Lord Adultery,
the Lord Murder, the Lord Anger, the Lord Lasciviousness, the Lord Deceit, the Lord
Evil-eye, the Lord Blasphemy, and that horrible villain, the old and dangerous Lord
Covetousness. These, as I told you, with many more, had yet their abode in the town
of Mansoul, and that after that Emmanuel had driven their prince Diabolus out of the
castle.
Against these the good Prince did grant a commission to the Lord Willbewill and
others, yea, to the whole town of Mansoul, to seek, take, secure, and destroy any or
all that they could lay hands of, for that they were Diabolonians by nature, enemies
to the Prince, and those that sought to ruin the blessed town of Mansoul. But the
town of Mansoul did not pursue this warrant, but neglected to look after, to
apprehend, to secure, and to destroy these Diabolonians. Wherefore what do these
villains but by degrees take courage to put forth their heads, and to show themselves
to the inhabitants of the town. Yea, and as I was told, some of the men of Mansoul
grew too familiar with some of them, to the sorrow of the corporation, as you yet will
hear more of in time and place.
Well, when the Diabolonian lords that were left perceived that Mansoul had, through
sinning, offended Emmanuel their Prince, and that he had withdrawn himself and
was gone, what do they but plot the ruin of the town of Mansoul. So upon a time they
met together at the hold of one Mr. Mischief, who was also a Diabolonian, and there
consulted how they might deliver up Mansoul into the hands of Diabolus again. Now
some advised one way, and some another, every man according to his own liking. At
last my Lord Lasciviousness propounded, whether it might not be best, in the first
place, for some of those that were Diabolonians in Mansoul, to adventure to offer
themselves for servants to some of the natives of the town; ‘for,’ said he, ‘if they so
do, and Mansoul shall accept of them, they may for us, and for Diabolus our Lord,
make the taking of the town of Mansoul more easy than otherwise it will be.’ But
then stood up the Lord Murder, and said, ‘This may not be done at this time; for
Mansoul is now in a kind of a rage, because by our friend, Mr. Carnal-Security, she
hath been once ensnared already, and made to offend against her Prince; and how
shall she reconcile herself unto her lord again, but by the heads of these
men? Besides, we know that they have in commission to take and slay us wherever
they shall find us; let us, therefore, be wise as foxes: when we are dead, we can do
them no hurt; but while we live, we may.’ Thus, when they had tossed the matter to
and fro, they jointly agreed that a letter should forthwith be sent away to Diabolus in
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Then they took courage, and sent again and again, and again, and again; for there
was not now one day, nor an hour that went over Mansoul’s head, wherein a man
might not have met upon the road one or other riding post, sounding the horn from
Mansoul to the court of the King Shaddai; and all with letters petitionary in behalf of,
and for the Prince’s return to Mansoul. The road, I say, was now full of messengers,
going and returning, and meeting one another; some from the court, and some from
Mansoul; and this was the work of the miserable town of Mansoul, all that long, that
sharp, that cold and tedious winter.
Now if you have not forgot, you may yet remember that I told you before, that after
Emmanuel had taken Mansoul, yea, and after that he had new modelled the town,
there remained in several lurking places of the corporation many of the old
Diabolonians, that either came with the tyrant when he invaded and took the town,
or that had there, by reason of unlawful mixtures, their birth and breeding, and
bringing up. And their holes, dens, and lurking places were in, under, or about the
wall of the town. Some of their names are the Lord Fornication, the Lord Adultery,
the Lord Murder, the Lord Anger, the Lord Lasciviousness, the Lord Deceit, the Lord
Evil-eye, the Lord Blasphemy, and that horrible villain, the old and dangerous Lord
Covetousness. These, as I told you, with many more, had yet their abode in the town
of Mansoul, and that after that Emmanuel had driven their prince Diabolus out of the
castle.
Against these the good Prince did grant a commission to the Lord Willbewill and
others, yea, to the whole town of Mansoul, to seek, take, secure, and destroy any or
all that they could lay hands of, for that they were Diabolonians by nature, enemies
to the Prince, and those that sought to ruin the blessed town of Mansoul. But the
town of Mansoul did not pursue this warrant, but neglected to look after, to
apprehend, to secure, and to destroy these Diabolonians. Wherefore what do these
villains but by degrees take courage to put forth their heads, and to show themselves
to the inhabitants of the town. Yea, and as I was told, some of the men of Mansoul
grew too familiar with some of them, to the sorrow of the corporation, as you yet will
hear more of in time and place.
Well, when the Diabolonian lords that were left perceived that Mansoul had, through
sinning, offended Emmanuel their Prince, and that he had withdrawn himself and
was gone, what do they but plot the ruin of the town of Mansoul. So upon a time they
met together at the hold of one Mr. Mischief, who was also a Diabolonian, and there
consulted how they might deliver up Mansoul into the hands of Diabolus again. Now
some advised one way, and some another, every man according to his own liking. At
last my Lord Lasciviousness propounded, whether it might not be best, in the first
place, for some of those that were Diabolonians in Mansoul, to adventure to offer
themselves for servants to some of the natives of the town; ‘for,’ said he, ‘if they so
do, and Mansoul shall accept of them, they may for us, and for Diabolus our Lord,
make the taking of the town of Mansoul more easy than otherwise it will be.’ But
then stood up the Lord Murder, and said, ‘This may not be done at this time; for
Mansoul is now in a kind of a rage, because by our friend, Mr. Carnal-Security, she
hath been once ensnared already, and made to offend against her Prince; and how
shall she reconcile herself unto her lord again, but by the heads of these
men? Besides, we know that they have in commission to take and slay us wherever
they shall find us; let us, therefore, be wise as foxes: when we are dead, we can do
them no hurt; but while we live, we may.’ Thus, when they had tossed the matter to
and fro, they jointly agreed that a letter should forthwith be sent away to Diabolus in
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their name, by which the state of the town of Mansoul should be showed him, and
how much it is under the frowns of their Prince. ‘We may also,’ said some, ‘let him
know our intentions, and ask of him his advice in the case.’
So a letter was presently framed, the contents of which were these:—
‘To our great lord, the Prince Diabolus, dwelling below in the infernal cave:
‘O great father, and mighty Prince Diabolus, we, the true Diabolonians yet remaining
in the rebellious town of Mansoul, having received our beings from thee, and our
nourishment at thy hands, cannot with content and quiet endure to behold, as we do
this day, how thou art dispraised, disgraced, and reproached among the inhabitants
of this town; nor is thy long absence at all delightful to us, because greatly to our
detriment.
‘The reason of this our writing unto our lord, is for that we are not altogether without hope that this town may become thy habitation again; for it is greatly declined from its Prince Emmanuel; and he is uprisen, and is departed from them: yea, and though they send, and send, and send, and send after him to return to them, yet can they not prevail, nor get good words from him.
‘There has been also of late, and is yet remaining, a very great sickness and fainting
among them; and that not only upon the poorer sort of the town, but upon the lords,
captains, and chief gentry of the place, (we only who are of the Diabolonians by
nature remain well, lively, and strong,) so that through their great transgression on
the one hand, and their dangerous sickness on the other, we judge they lie open to
thy hand and power. If, therefore, it shall stand with thy horrible cunning, and with
the cunning of the rest of the princes with thee, to come and make an attempt to take
Mansoul again, send us word, and we shall to our utmost power be ready to deliver it
into thy hand. Or if what we have said shall not by thy fatherhood be thought best
and most meet to be done, send us thy mind in a few words, and we are all ready to
follow thy counsel to the hazarding of our lives, and what else we have.
‘Given under our hands the day and date above-written, after a close consultation at
the house of Mr. Mischief, who yet is alive and hath his place in our desirable town of
Mansoul.’
When Mr. Profane (for he was the carrier) was come with his letter to Hell-Gate Hill,
he knocked at the brazen gates for entrance. Then did Cerberus, the porter, for he is
the keeper of that gate, open to Mr. Profane, to whom he delivered his letter, which
he had brought from the Diabolonians in Mansoul. So he carried it in, and presented
it to Diabolus his lord, and said, ‘Tidings, my lord, from Mansoul, from our trusty
friends in Mansoul.’
Then came together from all places of the den Beelzebub, Lucifer, Apollyon, with the
rest of the rabblement there, to hear what news from Mansoul. So the letter was
broken up and read, and Cerberus he stood by. When the letter was openly read, and
the contents thereof spread into all the corners of the den, command was given that,
without let or stop, dead-man’s bell should be rung for joy. So the bell was rung, and
the princes rejoiced that Mansoul was likely to come to ruin. Now, the clapper of the
bell went, ‘The town of Mansoul is coming to dwell with us: make room for the town
of Mansoul.’ This bell therefore they did ring, because they did hope that they should
have Mansoul again.
Now, when they had performed this their horrible ceremony, they got together again
to consult what answer to send to their friends in Mansoul; and some advised one
their name, by which the state of the town of Mansoul should be showed him, and
how much it is under the frowns of their Prince. ‘We may also,’ said some, ‘let him
know our intentions, and ask of him his advice in the case.’
So a letter was presently framed, the contents of which were these:—
To our great lord, the Prince Diabolus, dwelling below in the infernal cave:
‘O great father, and mighty Prince Diabolus, we, the true Diabolonians yet remaining
in the rebellious town of Mansoul, having received our beings from thee, and our
nourishment at thy hands, cannot with content and quiet endure to behold, as we do
this day, how thou art dispraised, disgraced, and reproached among the inhabitants
of this town; nor is thy long absence at all delightful to us, because greatly to our
detriment.
‘The reason of this our writing unto our lord, is for that we are not altogether without
hope that this town may become thy habitation again; for it is greatly declined from
its Prince Emmanuel; and he is uprisen, and is departed from them: yea, and though
they send, and send, and send, and send after him to return to them, yet can they not
prevail, nor get good words from him.
‘There has been also of late, and is yet remaining, a very great sickness and fainting
among them; and that not only upon the poorer sort of the town, but upon the lords,
captains, and chief gentry of the place, (we only who are of the Diabolonians by
nature remain well, lively, and strong,) so that through their great transgression on
the one hand, and their dangerous sickness on the other, we judge they lie open to
thy hand and power. If, therefore, it shall stand with thy horrible cunning, and with
the cunning of the rest of the princes with thee, to come and make an attempt to take
Mansoul again, send us word, and we shall to our utmost power be ready to deliver it
into thy hand. Or if what we have said shall not by thy fatherhood be thought best
and most meet to be done, send us thy mind in a few words, and we are all ready to
follow thy counsel to the hazarding of our lives, and what else we have.
‘Given under our hands the day and date above-written, after a close consultation at
the house of Mr. Mischief, who yet is alive and hath his place in our desirable town of
Mansoul.’
When Mr. Profane (for he was the carrier) was come with his letter to Hell-Gate Hill,
he knocked at the brazen gates for entrance. Then did Cerberus, the porter, for he is
the keeper of that gate, open to Mr. Profane, to whom he delivered his letter, which
he had brought from the Diabolonians in Mansoul. So he carried it in, and presented
it to Diabolus his lord, and said, ‘Tidings, my lord, from Mansoul, from our trusty
friends in Mansoul.’
Then came together from all places of the den Beelzebub, Lucifer, Apollyon, with the
rest of the rabblement there, to hear what news from Mansoul. So the letter was
broken up and read, and Cerberus he stood by. When the letter was openly read, and
the contents thereof spread into all the corners of the den, command was given that,
without let or stop, dead-man’s bell should be rung for joy. So the bell was rung, and
the princes rejoiced that Mansoul was likely to come to ruin. Now, the clapper of the
bell went, ‘The town of Mansoul is coming to dwell with us: make room for the town
of Mansoul.’ This bell therefore they did ring, because they did hope that they should
have Mansoul again.
Now, when they had performed this their horrible ceremony, they got together again
to consult what answer to send to their friends in Mansoul; and some advised one
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