This scheme, said to have been projected by the famous Dr.Chamberlain, was patronised by the earl of Sunderland, and managed by Foley and Harley; so that it seemed to bo a tory plan which Sunderland supported, in order to reconcile himself to that party.

[067] _[See note O, at the end of this Vol.]_ The bank of England petitioned against this bill, and were heard by their counsel; but their representations produced no effect, and the bill having passed through both houses, received the royal assent.

On the twenty-seventh day of April the king closed the session with a short but gracious speech; and the parliament was prorogued to the sixteenth day of June.
Before this period some of the conspirators had been brought to trial.
The first who suffered was Robert Charnock, one of the two fellows of Magdalen-college, who, in the reign of James, had renounced the protestant religion; the next were lieutenant King and Thomas Keys, which last had been formerly a trumpeter, but of late servant to captain Porter.

They were found guilty of high treason, and executed at Tyburn.
They delivered papers to the sheriff, in which they solemnly declared, that they had never seen or heard of any commission from king James for assassinating the prince of Orange; Charnock in particular observed, that he had received frequent assurances of the king's having rejected such proposals when they had been offered; and that there was no other commission but that for levying war in the usual form.

Sir John Friend and sir William Perkins were tried in April.