ost, had to escape for a time from St Andrews, and,
disguised as a shepherd, to tend a flock of sheep for three months on
the hills of Fife, on the high grounds of Kennoway, immediately to the
east of where the railway now reaches its summit level.[18] It was at
this juncture that copies of the New Testament of Tyndale's translation
were brought over from the Low Countries by the Scottish traders to the
seaports of Aberdeen, Montrose, St Andrews, and Leith. Most of them are
said to have been taken to St Andrews and put in circulation there in
the absence of the archbishop. One was present there at that time who
had long treasured the precious saying of Erasmus, "Let us eagerly read
the Gospel, but let us not only read, but live the Gospel"; and who
seized the golden opportunity to impress the saying on others, and
invite longing souls to quench their thirst at those wells of living
water which had so marvellously been opened to them for a season. During
the months when the primate was in concealment, and in those which
followed his return, Patrick Hamilton came out more earnestly than he
had done before as an evangelist and an advocate of the great truths,
for which ultimately he was to be called to lay down his life. His
conduct could not long escape the notice of the returned archbishop. I
do not suppose that he was naturally cruel, nor after his recent
misfortunes likely, without consideration, to embroil himself with the
Hamiltons, with whom in the tortuous politics of the times he had often
acted. But he had those about him who were less timid and more cruel,
especially his nephew, the future cardinal. He was himself ambitious and
crafty, and about this very time was exerting all his influence to
obtain special favours from the pope without the sanction of the
king.[19] He knew that the holy father had written the sovereign
requiring him to keep his realm free from heresy, and no doubt he and
his scheming nephew thought that by their zeal in this matter they would
discredit the opposition of the king and his advisers to their ambitious
schemes at the papal court. Still, he was anxious to perform the
ungrateful task in the way least offensive to the Hamiltons. So while
issuing his summons against the reformer to appear and answer the
charges which had been brought against him, he did not attempt at once
to restrain his personal liberty; he would rather, if he could, rid the
kingdom of his presence without imbruing his