The whole trial of Mr. Christopher Love, before a pretended high court of justice…The whole triall of Mr. Christopher Love, before a pretended high court of justice…

At. Gen. My Lord, we do say in the behalf of the Common-wealth, he is guilty of the crimes and treasons laid to his charge. And, my Lord, you now perceive, that when you have been long troubled, you see he comes very hardly to it; an innocent man would not have made so much ado; and knowing his innocency, would not have had so much capitulation and trifling with a court of Justice. My Lord, for these crimes, you are pleased to observe they are of several natures, and of long continuance. And now, my Lord, for the state of the evidence, it is commended to the charge of another Gentleman, that is master Solicitor General of the Common-wealth, to open to you the state of the fact, by which he stands here impeached and accused, the nature of it, and how it should have been carried on, the series of time, the persons with whom he complied, how plotted and contrived to undermine this Common-wealth, even to the foundations of it. My Lord, when that is opened, I will then produce the evidence to make it good against him.

Att. Gen. My Lord, we do say in the behalf of the Common-wealth, he is guilty of the crimes and treasons laid to his charge. And, my Lord, you now perceive, that when you have been long troubled, you see he comes very hardly to it; an innocent man would not have made so much ado; and knowing his innocency, would not have had so much capitulation and trifling with a court of Justice. My Lord, for these crimes, you are pleased to observe they are of several natures, and of long continuance. And now, my Lord, for the state of the evidence, it is commended to the charge of another Gentleman, that is master Solicitor General of the Common-wealth, to open to you the state of the fact, by which he stands here impeached and accused, the nature of it, and how it should have been carried on, the series of time, the persons with whom he complied, how plotted and contrived to undermine this Common-wealth, even to the foundations of it. My Lord, when that is opened, I will then produce the evidence to make it good against him.

Mr. Solicitor Gen. My Lord, Mr. Love urgeth much for himself, but he doth not tell you what. For my part, I never saw his face till now; but his own carriage, if that do not do him wrong, none will. He says, he is singled out from all the rest of his brethren. I suppose he means those that are his fellow conspirators; the reason of that is, because he was the first, he had a hand in the first action and last action; so that from the beginning to the end he was the principal man, both by counsel, friends, purse, and encouragement; and that is the reason he might justly be singled out to be first in the punishment, because he was first in the fact. He says, God in Achans case wrought the discovery. My Lord, I think the court will think, that God was the great Discoverer of this great treason; for through the whole series of it, it was pressed and carried on with as much caution and secrecy as the wit of man could contrive, and nothing but the goodness of the God of lights, the Father of lights, could have brought this to light, who discovers the secrets of all hearts, and hidden things of darkness; He hath discovered this. My Lord, the nature of the treason, it is not one or ten treasons, but it is a mystery of treasons, woven together during the space of two years, under the notion of Religion. Many of them that were the conspirators, giving out, that they were a party distinct and separate, and so they did behave themselves like a party separate from the rest of the Common-wealth. First, this party did assume to themselves sovereign power, and did exercise it divers ways; they did take upon them to send Agents abroad to treat with foreign Princes and States, enemies to this Common-wealth, and to give commission to that