their place of worship muffled up, and sang in suppressed tones one of Marot’s psalms; and the other in the history of the persecuted Christians of Madagascar, who when they secretly assembled for Divine service, were wont to sing in whispers. [Sidenote: PERSECUTION.] In November, informers broke into the house of Dr. Annesley, and distrained his goods for “several latent convictions;”[92] and, a month afterwards the same people entered his meeting-house and broke the seats in pieces; after which disturbance, worship was for a time suspended.[93] Others were treated in a similar manner.[94] The Bishop of London received orders from Court to require a return of all parishioners who did not attend church and receive the sacrament, several of whom were cited to appear in the spiritual court, but “the Bishop, and divers of his most conspicuous clergy, in the matter of persecution, carried themselves with great discretion and candour.”[95] A warrant, however, came out for the apprehension of Dr. Bates; and a little later, constables were posted at the doors of the “most known meeting-places in the City, so that there were few sermons in them, at least at the usual hours.”[96] [Sidenote: 1682.] In December fifty warrants for distresses in Hackney were signed; one for the sum of £500, the others of different amounts, making up altogether £1,400. Soon afterwards, 200 documents of the same kind were served upon certain inhabitants of the town of Uxbridge and its neighbourhood on account of their attending the proscribed Conventicles.[97] At the same time, it is recorded that “on the Lord’s Day the Dissenters were in some places in the City kept out, but in most they met, though they varied hours; few were actually disturbed, but the difficulties upon them were great.”[98] Whilst the London informers utterly failed to supply a shadow of proof that the Nonconformists were engaged in any treasonable designs, other informers in distant parts of the country strove, with a like want of evidence, to attach to their Dissenting neighbours the most infamous suspicions. A clergyman at Kirk Newton had been assaulted by burglars, who broke open his stable and stole two mares. Immediately a letter was despatched to the Duke of Newcastle, signed by three persons--who said, “We must conclude these men to be some fanatics or sent by them;” the Vicar being “a zealous man for the Church of England and a loyal person,” the circumstance calls for “some speedy course to suppress such insolences.”[99] [Sidenote: PERSECUTION.]