Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	good_a	read_v	see_v	2,579	5	3.2518	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A88267	The upright mans vindication: or, An epistle writ by John Lilburn Gent. prisoner in Newgate, August 1. 1653. Unto his friends and late neighbors, and acquaintance at Theobalds in Hartford-shire, and thereabouts in the several towns adjoyning; occasioned by Major William Packers calumniating, and groundlesly reproaching the said Mr John Lilburn.	Lilburne, John, 1614?-1657.	1653 (1653)	Wing L2197; Thomason E708_22; ESTC R202736	33,340	35

was but a private businesse and the Councel were so full of the publick affairs of the Nation that they had scarce time to eat or sleep and therefore I must be patient quiet and wait with contentednesse till a new Parliament At the reading of which I was even confounded and amazed in my understanding and looked upon my wife and her stories of the Officers intended honesty and publick good to the Nation as the perfectest artificial cheats that ever was put upon me in the world to deceive and cozen me and that you that now sit as a Councel of State with your Masters and Creators viz. the General and his Officers never hated nor dissolved the Parliament for any real hatred or disgust at them for any mischief injustice or Tyranny that they exercised upon the people of England free never since they were about 4 years ago declared a free people in nothing else but bare name but onely because they grew something stubborn and surly and would not be ruled meerly as school-boyes to act as the General and his great Officers and you now his and their substitutes would have them in which regard great and glorious things was meerly pretended but never in tended for the peoples good to break the Parliament in pieces and totally dissolve them that so you alone might get the power into your own hands to do withall the lives liberties and estates of the people of England what you pleased giving the people onely good words untill you had rivited your selves fast in your power by securing your selves so with force that Julius Caesar like the General might stile and declare himself by a new name but with a power in reality far above a King as perpetual Dictator or Lord Conservator of the peace of England Scotland and Ireland and I confesse that the Generals words to my wife and some of yours together with the Officers were so far from pleasing me as they did her that I clearly see by them I had ground to believe that it is resolved privately by the General I shall never so long as he lives or at least so long as his power lasteth come into England again because it was resolved by him who I clearly then judged so rules and over aws you that you nor the Officers durst not conclude to give me a Pass without fully and plainly knowing his will and pleasure to drive on another intrest then in the least the peoples welfare peace safety liberty or freedome all which to my utmost power and the often apparent hazard of my life for many years together I have been a constant and resolute patron too and asserter of and never could be threatned there-from nor in the least by Gold Silver or promotion which hath times often enough sufficiently been proffered me courted to forsake them this being the onely and alone crime or true cause I have been hated and almost often to death persecuted by all great powerfull intresis that have been great and up in the government uf England for many years together and therefore now and for this onely reason and none else did I judge I must now be kept out from coming into England the Generals good words to my wife and yet denying my Pass for so I absolutely judged the delay of it made me immediately think of the 18 chapter of Nicholas Machiveli's Prince who is a man though through the grand corruptions of the age and place in which he lived and the safety of his own life was forced as may rationally in charity be judged to write in some kind of unhandsome disguises I must call for the excellency and usefulnes in corrupt times places for his works sake one of the most wisest judicious true lovers of his country of Italies liberties and freedomes and generally of the good of all mankind that ever I read of in my daies of a meer man who though he be commonly condemned with his Maximes and Tenents by all great state polititians as pernicious to all Christian States and hurtfull to all humane societies yet by me his books are esteemed for real usefullnesse in my streits to help me clearly to see through all the disguised deceits of my potent politick and powerfull adversaries above any one of all the human Authors in the world that ever I read which yet are very many the reading and studying of which in the day of my great streights in contesting with the great Arbitrary powers in England hath every way been as usefull advantagious necessary and requisite to me as a Compasse or Prospective glasse can be to a master of a rich laden ship fallen into dangerous and unknown seas where he is every hour in fear to be cast away and destroyed by dangerous sands Rocks or Pyrats or as a pair of spectacles can be to a weak or decayed pair of eyes in writing or reading that is compelled thereunto and must do it and can get none to help him or do it for him his book called his Prince especially if it were scarce to be got being reputed by me of more worth than its weight in beaten Gold for by my serious observing of his sayings and the practise of most of those great men that in England I have been necessitated for the safety of my life to struggle with I clearly find him and the worst of his Maximes and Tenents most practised by those great men in England that most condemns him and seems outwardly most to abhor and abhominate him and yet would willingly as the translator of his Prince in his Epistle to the Preader saith walk as Thieves do with close Lanthorns in the night that so they being undescried and yet seeing all might surprize the unwary in the dark and having him by me in my present travels I immediately turned to his 18 chapter which is contained in page 135 136 137 c. where he speaks in these very words of Pope Alexander the sixth in whose time himself lived and who was the man or Pope that quarrelled with Henry the eight K. of England Alexander the sixth saith he never did any thing else then deceive men and never meant otherwise and alwaies found whom to work upon yet never was there man would protest more effectually nor aver any thing with more solemn Oaths and observe them lesse then be neverthelesse his cozenages all thrived well with him for he knew how to play his part cunningly Therefore saith he is there no necessity for a Prince or great man to be indued withall those above written qualities of pitty faith integrity humanity and religion but it behoves well that he seems to be so or rather I will boldly say this that having these qualities and alwaies regulating himself by them they are hurtfull but seeming to have them they are advantagious as to seem pitifull faithfull mild religious and of integrity and to be so indeed provided withall thou beest of such a composition that if need require

tenour of the Petition of Right and all our fundamental laws most arbitarily as if the people of England were the most absolute conquered invassalized slaves upon the sace of the whole earth lay a tax of sixscore thousand pound a moneth upon the people to fill his pockets and his fat associates and doth he not do more then all the foregoing Kings and Tyrants of England durst do in chusing by himself and such of his meer mercenary Officers joyned with him as he pleaseth a Parliament or Legislators of whom he pleaseth to make laws for the people without asking their consents in the least Sure I am the Chronicles and Records of England declare that it was one of the Articles for which King Richard the second was discrowned and lost his crown That by himself and his own authority he had displaced but some Burgesses of the Parliament and ●ad placed such o●her in their ●oomes as would best fit and serve his own turn See William Martins Chronicle of the last Edition folio 128. Article 21. And in Article 22. He is accused for causing certain laws in Parliament to be made for his own gaine and to serve his own turn And in Article the 20. He is accused for over-awing the Members of Parliament that they durst not speak their minds freely And as for our lives it was Master Peters averment to me long since in the Tower we had no law lest in England and it was his averment yesterday being Sunday the last of July in the presence of the General before some of my acquaintance two of which aver to me that he averred to them we have now no law left or in being in England so that it seems the Generals will must be our rule to walk by and his pleasure the taker away of our lives without any crime or charge in law laid unto our charges or any defence or speaking for our selves permitted to us or required of us which is absolutely and perfectly my case as appears by the Votes of Parliament of the 15. Jan. 1651. printed in my Trial Therefore Judge seriously of your own and consider impartially whether now in your present condition under your great high and mighty pretended Christian master and lawless Lords You are not in a worse condition then ever any of our forefathers were under their Heathen Pagan Papal Episcopal or Presbyterian governours having now to deal with a company of mighty pretended Christians and Saints who yet make it their trade to get their bread and livelihood by shedding the blood and butchering of their neighbours and country-men they know not wherefore whose tables are dayly richly spread and deckt with the price of the blood of the people of England and their back and houses richly clothed and adorned with the same whose laws and liberties they have destroyed and confounded although they receive their daily wages and subsistence from them and that for no other publikely owned and declared cause but for the preserving of them And being it is against the law of God the light of nature reason and the law of England as the Officers of the Army in many of their Declarations have declared for a man to be Judge in his own case as they are with me in constantly picking and nulling my Judges of what persons they please yet in a way of equity and justice I challenge all my adversaries amongst them even from the General to the meanest Officer to chuse 2 3 4 5 or 6 honest friends and I will do the like and in the face of the Sun even to the utmost hazard of life I will refer my self to a bide by their judgement upon a fair and open publike hearing for all manner of things from my Cradle to this hour that they are able to lay to my charge and if they refuse this do they not declare thereby their own guilt which I am confident there is none of them all dare imbrace it but only continue in their belying me behind my back when I am not present to maintaine my own innocency which to preserve amongst you and other honest people in England I shall desire you seriously to read the honest papers already printed and published by my self and friends or well-wishers for my vindication and justification the names of which thus followeth 1 My three addresses to the Councel of State 2 A Jury mans Judgement 3 A defensive Declaration of Lieut. Col. John Lilburn the second Edition published July 1. 1653. 4 A Plea in Law for John Lilburne the second Edition of July 2. 1653. 5 The prisoners mournful cry or an epistle to the Lord Maior of London July 1. 1653. 6 The second Letter to the Lord Major of the 10. July 1653. 7 The fundamental laws and liberties of England claimed 12 My petition to the Parliament of the 12 July 1653. 13 Malice detected 14 A conference with the souldiers or a parley with a party of horse which with drawn swords entered the Sessions al Mr. John Lilburns trial 15 Oyes O yes O yes at the Quest of inquiry holden in the Court of common Reason 16 A cavet to those that shall resolve whether right or wrong to destroy J. L. 17 My friends petition of London of the 9 of July 1653. to the Parliament which hath relation to their large petition formerly delivered with another petition with my letter to the Lord chief Baron on the back of it dated July 14 1653. with a paper to every particular Member of the honorable Parliament to back the former 18 The honest women of Londons petition with their paper to back it unto every Individual Member of Parliament 19. The young men and Apprentices of Londons petition 20 The honest people of Kents petition 21 Tne exceptions of John Lilburne Gentleman to the Bill of Indictment printed by Rich. Moone at the seven Stars neer the great North-door of Pauls 22 The trial of John Lilburn prisoner in Newgate at the Sessions in Old-Baily the 13 14 15 and 16 of July 1653. 23 The honest men of Hartford shires petition for John Lilburn which is the onely thing of all the forementioned that is not printed But in regard I am naming of books for my vindication I beseech you to take notice that there is one of the excellentest pieces that lately I have read in England for clearing up the ancient fundamental laws rights and liberties setled by our forefathers lately published by that sober and rational man Captaine Robert Norwood and printed for the foresaid Rich. Moone Intituled An additional discourse c. which hath much relation to a most laborious piece commonly reputed to be made by Master Sadler the Town-Clark of London and which is Intituled Rights of our Kingdome or customs of our ancestors Printed at London by Richard Bishop 1649. a●● in a special manner mentioned in the 27. pag. of the foresaid Captaine Norwoods book in the diligent reading of which you may exactly see what your