had men worthy of memory in our little corner
of the island here as well as others, and our history has been strong
at least in being connected with the world itself--for if you examine
well you will find that John Knox was the author, as it were, of
Oliver Cromwell; that the Puritan revolution would never have taken
place in England at all if it had not been for that Scotchman.
(Applause.) This is an arithmetical fact, and is not prompted by
national vanity on my part at all. (Laughter and applause.) And it
is very possible, if you look at the struggle that was going on in
England, as I have had to do in my time, you will see that people were
overawed with the immense impediments lying in the way.

A small minority of God-fearing men in the country were flying away
with any ship they could get to New England, rather than take the lion
by the beard. They durstn't confront the powers with their most just
complaint to be delivered from idolatry. They wanted to make the
nation altogether conformable to the Hebrew Bible, which they
understood to be according to the will of God; and there could be no
aim more legitimate. However, they could not have got their desire
fulfilled at all if Knox had not succeeded by the firmness and
nobleness of his mind. For he is also of the select of the earth to
me--John Knox. (Applause.) What he has suffered from the ungrateful
generations that have followed him should really make us humble
ourselves to the dust, to think that the most excellent man our
country has produced, to whom we owe everything that distinguishes
us among modern nations, should have been sneered at and abused by
people. Knox was heard by Scotland--the people heard him with the
marrow of their bones--they took up his doctrine, and they defied
principalities and powers to move them from it. "We must have it,"
they said.

It was at that time the Puritan struggle arose in England, and you
know well that the Scottish Earls and nobility, with their tenantry,
marched away to Dunse-hill, and sat down there; and just in the course
of that struggle, when it was either to be suppressed or brought
into greater vitality, they encamped on the top of Dunse-hill thirty
thousand armed men, drilled for that occasion, each regiment around
its landlord, its earl, or whatever he might be called, and eager
for Christ's Crown and Covenant. That was the signal for all England
rising up into unappeasable determination to have the Gospel ther