Part 4

The Lord Cobham's Examination.

'He confesseth, he had a Passport to go into Spain, intending to go to the Archduke, to confer with him about these Practices; and because he knew the Archduke had not Money to pay his own army, from thence he meant to go to Spain to deal with the king for the 600,000 crowns, and to return by Jersey; and that nothing should be done, until he had spoken with sir Walter Raleigh for distribution of the Money to them which were discontented in England. At the first beginning, he breathed out oaths and exclamations against Raleigh, calling him Villain and Traitor; saying he had never entered into these courses but by his instigation, and that he would never let him alone.' (Here Mr. Attorney willed the Clerk of the Crown Office to read over these last words again, 'He would never let him alone.') 'Besides he spake of plots and invasions; of the particulars whereof he could give no account, though Raleigh and he had conferred of them. Further he said, he was afraid of Raleigh, that when he should return by Jersey, that he would have delivered him and the Money to the king.' 'Being examined of sir A. Gorge he freed him, saying, They never durst trust him: but sir Arthur Savage they intended to use, because they thought him a fit man.'

RALEIGH--Let me see the Accusation: this is absolutely all the Evidence that can be brought against me; poor shifts! You Gentlemen of the Jury, I pray you understand this. This is that which must either condemn, or give me life; which must free me, or send my wife and children to beg their bread about the streets. This is that which must prove me a notorious Traitor, or a true subject to the king. Let me see my Accusation, that I may make my Answer.

CLERK OF THE COUNCIL--I did read it, and shew you all the examinations.

RALEIGH--At my first examination at Windsor, my lords asked me what I knew of Cobham's practice with Aremberg; I answered negatively: and as concerning Arabella I protest before God I never heard one word of it. If that be proved, let me be guilty of 10,000 Treasons. It is a strange thing you will impute that to me, when I never so much as heard the name of Arabella Stuart, but only the name of Arabella. After being examined, I told my lords, that I thought my lord Cobham had conference with Aremberg; I suspected his visiting of him; for after he departed from me at Durham-house I saw him pass by his own stairs, and passed over to St. Mary Saviours, where I knew Lawrency, a merchant, and a follower of Aremberg, lay, and therefore likely to go unto him. My lord Cecil asked my opinion concerning Lawrency; I said that if you do not apprehend Lawrency, it is dangerous, he will fly; if you do apprehend him, you shall give my lord Cobham notice thereof. I was asked who was the greatest man with my lord Cobham; I answered, I knew no man so great with him as young Wyat of Kent. As soon as Cobham saw my Letter to have discovered his dealing with Aremberg in his fury he accused me; but before he came to the stair-foot, he repented, and said he had done me wrong. When he came to the end of his Accusation he added, that if he had brought this money to Jersey, he feared that I would have delivered him and the Money to the King. Mr. Attorney, you said this never came out of Cobham's quiver; he is a simple man. Is he so simple? no: he hath a disposition of his own, he will not easily be guided by others; but when he has once taken head in a matter, he is not easily drawn from it: he is no babe.

He then goes on to point out the inherent improbabilities of Cobham's story; he himself had no means for persuading the King of Spain to disburse money, having lost his wardenship of the Stannaries; he knew England to be stronger and Spain to be weaker than they had been; the Spanish fleet had been ruined, and the trade with the Indies had fallen off. Cobham had no money of his own. When Raleigh was examined, he had £40,000 worth of Cobham's jewels which he had bought of him. 'If he had had a fancy to run away he would not have left so much as to have purchased a lease in fee-farm. I saw him buy £300 worth of books to send to his library at Canterbury, and a cabinet of £30 to give to Mr. Attorney for drawing the conveyances; and God in Heaven knoweth, not I, whether he intended to travel or not. But for that practice with Arabella, or letters to Aremberg framed, or any discourse with him, or in what language he spake unto him; if I knew any of these things, I would absolutely confess the indictment, and acknowledge myself worthy of ten thousand deaths.'

Cobham's second Examination read.

The lord Cobham being required to subscribe to an Examination, there was shewed a Note under sir Walter Raleigh's hand; the which when he had perused, he paused, and after brake forth into those Speeches: Oh Villain! oh Traitor! I will now tell you all the truth; and then he said, His purpose was to go into Flanders, and into Spain, for the obtaining the aforesaid Money; and that Raleigh had appointed to meet him in Jersey as he returned home, to be advised of him about the distribution of the Money.

LORD CHIEF-JUSTICE POPHAM--When Cobham answered to the Interrogatories, he made scruple to subscribe, and being urged to it, he said, if he might hear me affirm, that if a person of his degree ought to set his hand he would: I lying then at Richmond for fear of the plague was sent for, and I told he ought to subscribe; otherwise it were a Contempt of a high nature: then he subscribed. The lords questioned with him further, and he shewed them a letter, as I thought written to me, but it was indeed written to my lord Cecil; he desired to see the Letter again, and then said, 'Oh wretch! oh traitor!' whereby I perceived you had not performed that trust he had reposed in you.

RALEIGH--He is as passionate a man as lives; for he hath not spared the best friends he hath in England in his passion. My lords, I take it, he that has been examined, has ever been asked at the time of his Examination, if it be according to his meaning, and then to subscribe. Methinks, my lords, when he accuses a man, he should give some account and reason of it: it is not sufficient to say we talked of it. If I had been the plotter, would not I have given Cobham some arguments, whereby to persuade the king of Spain, and answer his objections? I knew Westmoreland and Bothwell, men of other understandings than Cobham, were ready to beg their bread.

SIR THOS. FOWLER (one of the Jury)--Did sir Walter Raleigh write a letter to my lord before he was examined concerning him or not?

ATTORNEY--Yes.

LORD CECIL--I am in great dispute with myself to speak in the case of this gentleman; a former dearness between me and him tyed so firm a knot of my conceit of his virtues, now broken by a discovery of his imperfections. I protest, did I serve a king that I knew would be displeased with me for speaking, in this case I would speak, whatever came of it; but seeing he is compacted of piety and justice, and one that will not mislike of any man for speaking the truth, I will answer your question. Sir Walter Raleigh was staid by me at Windsor, upon the first news of Copley, that the king's person should be surprized by my lord Grey, and Mr. Geo. Brook; when I found Brook was in, I suspected Cobham, then I doubted Raleigh to be a partaker. I speak not this, that it should be thought I had greater judgment than the rest of my lords in making this haste to have them examined. Raleigh following to Windsor, I met with him upon the Terrace and willed him, as from the king, to stay; saying the lords had something to say to him; then he was examined, but not concerning my lord Cobham but of the surprizing treason. My lord Grey was apprehended, likewise Brook; by Brook, we found that he had given notice to Cobham of the surprizing treason, as he delivered it to us; but with as much sparingness of a brother as he might. We sent for my lord Cobham to Richmond, where he stood upon his justification and his quality; sometimes being froward; he said he was not bound to subscribe, wherewith we made the king acquainted. Cobham said, if my Lord Chief-Justice would say it was a Contempt, he would subscribe; whereof being resolved, he subscribed. There was a light given to Aremberg, that Lawrency was examined; but that Raleigh knew that Cobham was examined is more than I know.

RALEIGH--If my lord Cobham had trusted me in the Main, was not I as fit a man to be trusted in the Bye?

LORD CECIL--Raleigh did by his Letters acquaint us that my lord Cobham had sent Lawrency to Aremberg, when he knew not he had any dealings with him.

LORD H. HOWARD--It made for you if Lawrency had been only acquainted with Cobham, and not with you. But you knew his whole estate, and were acquainted with Cobham's practice with Lawrency: and it was known to you before that Lawrency depended upon Aremberg.

ATTORNEY--1. Raleigh protested against the surprizing treason. 2. That he knew not of the matter touching Arabella. I would not charge you, sir Walter, with the matter of falsehood: you say you suspected the Intelligence that Cobham had with Aremberg by Lawrency.

RALEIGH--I thought it had been no other intelligence, but such as might be warranted.

ATTORNEY--Then it was but lawful suspicion. But to that whereas you said, that Cobham had accused you in passion, I answer three ways. 1. I observed, when Cobham said let me see the letter again, he paused; and when he did see that count Aremberg was touched, he cried out, oh traitor! oh villain! now will I confess the whole truth. 2. The accusation of a man on hearsay is nothing: would he accuse himself on passion and ruinate his case and posterity out of malice to accuse you? 3. Could this be out of passion? Mark the manner of it; Cobham had told this at least two months before to his brother Brook, 'You are fools, you are on the Bye, Raleigh and I are on the Main, we mean to take away the king and his cubs.' This he delivered two months before. So mark the manner and the matter; he would not turn the weapon against his own bosom, and accuse himself to accuse you.

RALEIGH--Hath Cobham confessed that?

LORD CHIEF-JUSTICE--This is spoken by Mr. Attorney to prove that Cobham's speech came not out of passion.

RALEIGH--Let it be proved that Cobham said so.

ATTORNEY--Cobham saith that he was a long time doubtful of Raleigh that he would send him and the money to the king. Did Cobham fear lest you would betray him in Jersey? Then of necessity there must be trust between you. No man can betray a man but he that is trusted, in my understanding. That is the greatest argument to prove that he was acquainted with Cobham's proceedings. Raleigh has a deeper reach, than to make himself as he said, 'Robin Hood, a Kett, or Cade'; yet I never heard that Robin Hood was a traitor; they say he was an outlaw. And whereas he saith that our king is not only more wealthy and potent than his predecessors, but also more politic and wise, so that he could have no hope to prevail; I answer, There is no king so potent, wise, and active, but he may be overtaken through treason. Whereas you say Spain is so poor, discoursing so largely thereof; it had been better for you to have kept in Guiana, than to have been so well acquainted with the state of Spain. Besides, if you could have brought Spain and Scotland to have joined, you might have hoped to prevail a great deal the better. For his six Overthrows, I answer, he hath the more malice, because repulses breed desire of revenge. Then you say you never talked with Cobham, but about leases, and letting lands, and ordering his house; I never knew you Clerk of the Kitchen, etc. If you had fallen on your knees at first and confessed the Treason, it had been better for you. You say, He meant to have given me a Cabinet of £30; perhaps he thought by those means to have anticipated me therewith. But you say all these are Circumstances: I answer, all this Accusation in Circumstance is true. Here now I might appeal to my lords, that you take hold of this, that he subscribed not to the Accusation.

LORD HENRY HOWARD--Cobham was not then pressed to subscribe.

ATTORNEY--His Accusation being testified by the lords, is of as great force as if he had subscribed. Raleigh saith again, If the Accuser be alive he must be brought face to face to speak; and alledges 25 Edw. 3rd, that there must be two sufficient Witnesses, that must be brought face to face before the accused; and alledgeth 12 and 13 Elizabeth.

RALEIGH--You try me by the Spanish Inquisition, if you proceed only by the Circumstances, without two Witnesses.

ATTORNEY--This is a treasonable speech.

RALEIGH--Evertere Hominem justum in causa sua injustum est. Good my lords, let it be proved, either by the laws of the land, or the laws of God, that there ought not to be two Witnesses appointed; yet I will not stand to defend this point in law, if the king will have it so: it is no rare thing for a man to be falsely accused. A Judge condemned a woman in Sarum for killing her husband, on the testimony of one Witness; afterwards his man confessed the Murder, when she was executed; who after being touched in conscience for the Judgment was used to say: Quod nunquam de hoc facto animam in vita sua purgaret. It is also commanded by the Scripture; Allocutus est Jehova Mosen, in Ore duorum aut trium Testium, etc. If Christ requireth it, as it appeareth Matt. xviii.; if by the Canon, Civil Law, and God's Word, it be required, that there must be two Witnesses at the least, bear with me if I desire one. I would not desire to live, if I were privy to Cobham's proceedings. I have been a slave, a villain, a fool, if I had endeavoured to set up Arabella, and refused so gracious a lord and sovereign. But urge your proofs.