IN Three-Faulken-Court, over against St. Margarets-hill, in Southwark, lately lived one Sarah Elestone, the late Wife of Thomas Elestone, a Felt-maker: a man very laborious in his calling, aged about forty years, and his Wife forty-six years old: they lived many years very con­tentedly, she assisting him in his calling in what she was able: till such time as falling into the acquaintance of some lewd women, she was drawn to commit that filthy sin of drun­kenness▪ which after a little practising of it, she became har­den'd in it, and learn'd to swear by her Maker and to pro­phain the Lords Day, and hate good men; such an alteration there was perceived in her, that several of her Husbands ac­quaintance desired him to do all that he could to reclaim her, telling him also that it was his duty, to which he answered, That he hoped God would turn her from these evil courses, but he for his part could do no good with her, for she was so obstinate, that the more he said to her the worse she was: so that seeing he could not prevail by fair means, he sought some other way, as keeping her bare of money, but then she run him in debt, and took up money at the Tally-shops, he having notice of it, told them if they trusted her any more he would not pay them: upon which she resolved of another [Page 3] way, which was to sell her goods, which she did by degrees, till they had scarce a Chair to sit on, or a bed to lye on. This so perplexed her Husband, that he resolved to beat her out of this wicked course, and to that end did sometimes chastize her with blows, which she was not wanting to repay: so much was their fury sometimes, that their neighbours hath been forced to part them at all hours in the night. In this like manner they lived for some years, which so troubled and disturbed the patience of the man; that oft he hath been heard to wish himself dead, or that he had been buried alive that day he was married to her, and she wicked and graceless soul would many times in cold blood threaten him, that at one time or other she would kill him; which proved to be too true, for she having been out with her Gossips, and hav­ing got a cup too much as it was thought, comes and finds her husband at work; she demands some money of him, and withall tells him, That if he will not give her some present­ly she would be the Death of him; he seeing her in that con­dition, took her and thrusts her down stairs, and shuts the door, and to work again; within a little time after when he thought her heat was over, he goes down in his shift as he was at work, intending to drink; she meets him at the stairs foot, and with one side of a pair of sheers gave him a mor­tal wound on the breast, of which he immediately dyed, up­on which she presently fled: Her Husband being quickly found, Hue and Cry was made after her, and that night a­bout twelve a clock she was taken by the Old-street Watch, to whom she confessed the fact, she had her Tryal at the Marshalses at the Assizes, beginning on the 22 day of March, last past, where she was condemned by Law to be burn'd to ashes for this horrid and bloody crime: After sentence [Page 2] [...] [Page 3] [...] [Page 2] [...] [Page 3] [...] [Page 4] was past, she begged some time to sit and prepare her self, which was granted, as also to two other Malefactors. Dure­ing her imprisonment she hath had several Ministers to visit her who laid open the haniousness of her sins, especially that of Murther: She for the most part seemed but little concerned, many times talking of other things when they prayed for her, but a day or two before her Execution it pleased God to awaken her and to discover her sins unto her, and the need she stood in of an interest in the Lord Jesus: often Remembring that saying in Gen. 9. Chapter. 6. Verse▪ Whoso sheddeth Mans Blood, by Man shall his Blood be shed: for in the Image of God made he Man: And Numbers the 35. Chapter, and 33 Verse. Ye shall not pollute the Land wherein you are, for blood it defileth the Land: and the Land cannot be cleans­ed of the blood that is shed therein, but by the blood of them that shed it.

Which made her the willinger to dye, find­ing that it was according both to the Law of God and Man: and hoping that the Lord Je­sus would have mercy on her poor sinful Soul: Now she loved good men, good discourse, and often cryed out what should she do to be saved: when she came to the place of Execution and beheld the Fagots, she cryed, O Lord for Jesus sake let this be my last burning: O that God would give me an assurance of the pardon of my sins, and blot out the black lines of my sins with the Red lines of Christs blood. Her last words were to exhort all good people to fear God, [Page 5] to keep the Sabbath-day, to refrain idle company, to have a care how they take the Name of the Lord in vain.

Thus with a few Ejaculatory Prayers, she concluded with that saying in Galatians the 5. Chapter, and the 26 Verse. Let us not be desi­rous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.

Having thus said, the Executioner doing his Office, stopped the Atropos of her Speech, and her body was consumed to ashes in the Flames.