Page:History of the life and sufferings, of the Reverend John Welch.pdf/10

 about infected, thought fit to guard the ports with centinels and watchmen; and one day two travelling merchants, each with a pack of cloth upon a hore, came to the town deiring enterance that they might ell their goods producing a pas from the magitrates of the town whence they came, which was at that time found and free; yet notwithtanding all this the centinels topt them till the magitrates were called: and when they came, they would do nothing without their miniter's advice: o Mr. Welch was called, and his opinion aked; he demurred and putting off his hat with his eyes towards heaven for a pretty pace, though he uttered no audible words, yet continued in a praying geture: and after a little pace told the magitrates they would do well to dicharge thee travellers their town, affirming with great aeveration, the plague was in thee places, o the magitrates commanded them to be gone, and they went to Cumnock, a town ome twenty miles ditant, and there old their goods which kindled uch an infection in that place, that the living were hardly able to bury their dead. This made the people to think that Mr. Welch was an oracle. Yet as he walked with God, and kept cloe with him, he forgot not man, for he ued frequently to dine abroad with uch of his friends, as he thought were perons with whom he might maintain the comminion of aints; and once in the year he ued always to invite all his familiares in the town to a treat in his houe, where there was a banquet of holines and obriety.

He continued the coure of his minitry in Ayr, till king James's purpoe of detroying the church of Scotland by etablihing bihops was ripe, and then it fell to be his duty to edify the church by his ufferings, as formerly he had done by his doctrine.

The reaon why king James was o violent for bihops was neither their devine intitution, which he denied they had, nor yet the profit the church hould reap by them for he knew well both the men and their commnuicationscommunications [sic]. but merely becaue he believed they were ueful intruments to turn a limited monarchy into abolute dominion, ubjects into laves, the thing he minded mot.