Mr. Weston held a paper before his mouth;
bade me answer nobody but Mr. Prinn; I obeyed his command, and saved
myself much trouble thereby; and when Mr. Prinn put any difficult or
doubtful query unto me, Mr. Weston prompted me with a fit answer. At
last, after almost one hour's tugging, I desired to be fully heard what
I could say as to the person who cut Charles the First's head off.
Liberty being given me to speak, I related what follows, viz.
That the next Sunday but one after Charles the First was beheaded,
Robert Spavin, Secretary unto Lieutenant-General Cromwell at that time,
invited himself to dine with me, and brought Anthony Peirson, and
several others, along with him to dinner: that their principal discourse
all dinner-time was only, who it was that beheaded the King; one said it
was the common hangman; another, Hugh Peters; others also were
nominated, but none concluded. Robert Spavin, so soon as dinner was
done, took me by the hand, and carried me to the south window: saith he,
'These are all mistaken, they have not named the man that did the fact:
it was Lieutenant-Colonel JOICE; I was in the room when he fitted
himself for the work, stood behind him when he did it; when done, went
in again with him: there is no man knows this but my master, viz.
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