History of Protestantism in the Netherlands - James Aitken Wylie

depth of his own closet, the projects that he was
revolving, and which, opened and read while Philip
slept, by the spies which William had placed
around him, were communicated to this watchful
friend of his country's liberties; and all these
several lines of observation had led him to one and
the same conclusion, that it was Philip's settled
purpose, to be pursued through a thousand
windings, chicaneries, falsehoods, and solemn
hypocrisies, to drag the leading nobles to the
scaffold, to hang, burn, or bury alive every
Protestant in the Low Countries, to put to death
every one who should hesitate to yield absolute
compliance with his will, and above the grave of a
murdered nation to plant the twin fabrics of
Spanish and Romish despotism. That these were
the purposes which the tyrant harboured, and the
events which the future would bring forth, unless
means were found to prevent them, William was as
sure as that the revolution of the hours brings at
length the night.
Accordingly he invited Horn, Egmont,
Hoogstraaten, and Count Louis to all interview at
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