A Reply as True as Steele

to a rusty, rayling, ridiculous, lying libell; which was lately written by an impudent unfoder’d ironmonger and called by the name of  An answer to a foolish pamphlet entituled, A swarme of sectaries and schismatiques By Iohn Taylour. London 1642. This was the  picture I really wanted to show today, but I needed to post the previous image for context. This pamphlet was written in reply to another tract published by Henry Walker who had rubbished John Taylor’s satire on mechanic preachers. It shows graphically how deep the feelings went in the early 1640s. Yet again I recommend Mercurius Politicus for the background of this conflict between the two booksellers.

Not too many costume details here, but Mr Walker is dressed in a simple doublet and a wide falling band. It’s tricky to describe delicately exactly what is going on here, but let’s leave it to John Taylor:

The Divill is hard bound and did hardly straine,

To shit a Libeller a knave in graine.

It couldn’t have been that easy considering the buttons on Henry’s doublet sticking out. Maybe that’s why the Devils eyes are so wide and round!

A Swarme of Sectaries

…and schismatiques: wherein is discovered the strange preaching (or prating) of such as are by their trades coblers, tinkers, pedlers, weavers, sowgelders, and chymney-sweepers. By John Taylor. The cobler preaches, and his audience are as wise as Mosse was, when he caught his mare. Printed in London in 1642, this is an attack on the mechanic or  independent preachers without livings who had sprung up in the religious turmoil of pre-war London. Nick Poyntz’s blog on this (and other things) is recommended. Click on this link for a more detailed description of the background of this publication

There’s not a lot of detail here, but this is a representative group of independently minded folk gathered at the Nag’s Head in Coleman Street to listen to a preacher in a tub deliver the word. Was he a cobbler or a sowgelder? We will never know though we can see his clothes above the waist. He is wearing a doublet with a day cap on his head and possibly a glimpse of a blue apron around his waist that would mark him as a tradesman rather than a cleric. The rest of the congregation are suitably dressed, women in petticoat, waistcoat and kerchief, one in a coif and another in a hat. The men are in short-tabbed doublets and breeches with hats. Most are wearing cloaks too. It can’t have been all that warm at the Nag’s Head!