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138 By these gentle means he was "allured" (the grim pleasantry is Zwingli's) into making a more explicit recantation than before, which is still preserved in the archives of Zürich, and is believed by competent judges to be in his own handwriting. It bears no date, but is believed to belong to about the middle of March, and reads as follows:

"I Balthasar Huobmaier, of Fridberg, confess openly with this my handwriting, that I have not otherwise known or understood all Scriptures, which speak of water-baptism, than that one should first preach, after that believe, and thirdly be baptised, on which I have finally established myself. But now has been made known to me through Master Huldrich Zwingli the covenant of God made with Abraham and his seed, also circumcision as a covenant sign, which I could not disprove. Also it was put before me by others, as Master Leo [Juda], Doctor Bastian [Sebastian Hofmeister] and Miconien [Myconius], how love should be a judge and judger in all writings, which has gone very much to my heart; and also I have thought much of love, and have been finally moved to fall from my purpose, namely, that one should not baptise children, and that in the matter of rebaptism I have erred.

"2. For the rest, it comes to me that I am under accusation, as if I rejected government and say that a Christian cannot sit in government [or] hold office—in which violence and injustice is done to me. I have always and everywhere said that a Christian may well sit in government, and that the more Christian he is, the