History of Protestantism in the Netherlands - James Aitken Wylie

The carrying out of this order necessitated the
creation of a new class of agents. Spies were
placed at the corners of all the streets, whose duty
it was to watch the countenances of the passers-by,
and pounce on those whose looks were ill-favored,
and hale them to prison. These spies were nicknamed
the "Seven penny Men," because the wages
of their odious work was paid them in pieces of
that value. Thus the gallows and the stake
continued to be fed.
The crowd of martyrs utterly defies
enumeration. Many of them were of low estate, as
the world accounts it, but they were rich in faith,
noble in spirit, and heirs of a greater kingdom than
Philip's, though they had to pass through the fire to
receive possession of it. The deaths of all were the
same, yet the circumstances in which it was
endured were so varied:, and in many cases so
peculiar and tragic, that each differs from the other.
Let us give a very few examples. On the 8th of
July, 1569, William Tavart was led to the place of
execution in Antwerp, in order to undergo death by
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