attended it was at last forgotten If this suffice not I shâ—…ll borrow our Authors help for a further answer who telleth us of Archbishop Abbot fol. 127. That his extraordinary remissnesse in not exacting strict Conformity to the prescribed Orders of the Church in the point of Coremony seemed to resolve those legall determinations to their first Principle of Indifferency and led in such an habit of Inconformity as the future reduction of those tender-conscienced men to long discontinued obedience was interpreted an Innovation then which nothing in the world could be said more truly I have said nothing of the Antient and Generall usage of those severall Ceremonies because the Question is not now of the Antient usage but whether and how farre they were to be used or not used in the Church of England according to such Rubricks Lawes and Ganons which remain in force Nor shall I adde more at the present than that I think our Authour hath not rightly timed the businesses in dispute between us the placing of the Communion Table Aâ—…tarwise bowing or cringing toward it and standing at the Gloria Patri not being so generally in use at the time of this Parliament as to give any scruple or offence to the greatest Zealots or if they were they could not honestly be fathered on Archbishop Laud as countenanced or brought in by him in the time of his government of which more hereafter our Authour now draws toward an end and telleth uâ—… finally But thâ—…se were but part-boyled Popery or Popery obliquâ—… So then the Ceremonies above-mentioned how Primitive soever they were must be damned for Popery though it be onely part boyled and oblique Popery as our Authour calls it and with that brand or by the name of English Popish Ceremonies as the Scotish Presbyterians term them the rest as well as these may be also blemished but let them call them what they will we see now by a most wofull and lamentable experience that the taking away of these part boyled Poperies these English Popish Ceremonies or whatsoever eâ—…se the malignity of any men shall please to call them the substance of Religion hath been much impaired and by this breaking down of the Pale of the Vineyard not onely the little Foxes have torn off her elusters but the wilde Bores have struck at her very root I have no more to addâ—… now but a witty and smart Epigram made on this or the like occasion and is this that followeth A learned Pâ—…late of this Land Thinking to make Religion stand With equall poize on either side A mixture of them thus he try'd An Ounce of Protestant he singleth And then a Dram of Papist mingleth With a Scruple of the Puritane And boyled them all in his brain-pan But when he thought it would digest The scruple troubled all the rest The greatest danger was from Popery direct And from this the danger appeared very great c. And here I thought I should have heard that some points of direct and down right Popery had been obtruded by the Bâ—…shop and Prelaticall Clergy but on the contrary I finde all silent in that case and good reason for it Whence then appeared so great a danger not from the introducing of Popish Doctrinâ—…s but increase of Papists and that not onely in some Counties of England but in the Kingdomes of Scotland and Ireland also with those of Scotland and Ireland I forbear to meddle though the Committee for Religion having an Apostolical care of all the Churches did take them also into their consideration marvailing onely by the way how our Brethren of the Kirke who stood so high upon the termes of their Independencie could brook that their affaires should be so much looked into by an English Parliament But where our Author telleth us that in some Counties of England the Papists were multiplied to some thousands of Families more than there were in Queen Elizabeths time there may be very good reason given for that for since the death of Quâ—…en Elizabeth the Holy-dayes had been made dayes of common labour and yet all sports prohibited on the Sunday also the Common-prayer-Book either quite neglected or so slubbered over that there was no face of Regular Devotion to be found amongst us the Churches in most places kept so slovenly and the behaviour of the people so irreverent in them that it is no mervail that men desirous to worship God in the beauty of holinesse should be induced to joynâ—… themselves to such societies of men as seemed to have more in them of a Christian Church The King having thus dissolved the Parliament c. That is to say after so many indignities and provocations as were given unto him by the disorder tumultuous carriage of some of the Members which our Author very handsomely and ingenuously hath described at large it was the opinion of most men as our Author telleth us Fol. 132. that the dissolution of this Parâ—…lament was the end of all And certainly there was very good reason why it might be thought so the King never having good successe in any of his Parliaments since his first coming to the Crown and withall having an examplâ—… before his eyes of the like discontinuance of assembling the three Estates in the Realme of France by the King then Reigning and that upon farre lesse provocations then were given King Charles For whereas in an Assembly of three Estates Anno 1614. the third Estate which represents our House of Commons entrenched too busily upon the liberties of the Clergy and some preheminencies and exemptions which the Nobility enjoyed by the favour of some former Kings it gave the King so great offence that he resolved first to dissolve them and never after to be troubled with the like Impertinencies Nor was there since that time any such Assembly nor like to be hereafter in the times ensuing those Kings growing weary of that yoake which that great Representation did indeavour to impose upon them But because he would not cut off all communication betwixr himselfe and his people he ordained another kind of meeting in the place thereof which he called La Assembli des natables that is to say the Assembly of some principall persons composed of some selected persons out of every Order or Estate of his own nomination whereunto should be added some Counsellor out of every Court of Parliament of which there are eight in all in France throughout that Kingdome which being fewer in number would not breed such a confusion as the generall Assembly of the States had done before and be withall more pliant and conformable to the Kings desires and yet their Acts to be no lesse obliging to all sorts of people then the others were Such an Assembly as this but that the Clergy had no vote in it was that which was called here by my Lord Protector immediately after the dissolving of the late long Parliament who possibly had his hint from this Institution And this
but all disguised like the Soldiers of the Duke of Britain in an English habit his book contained so vast a medly as if it had been framed at Babell before the scattered company were united into Tongues and Languages The History of a King of England intended for the use and b◅nefit of the English Nation ought to be given us in such words as either are originally of an English stock or by continuall usage and long tract of time are become naturall and familiar to an English ◅are and not in such new minted termes and those too of a forreign and outlandish Race as are not to be understood without help of Dictionaries It is true indeed that when there is necessity of using either termes of Law or Logicall notions or any other words of Art whatsoever they be an Author is to keep himselfe to such termes and words as are transmitted to us by the Learned in their severall Faculties But to affect new Notions and indeed new Nothings when there is no necessity to incite us to it hath something in it which deserveth ◅ more strict enquirie It is observed of th◅ Romanists by Docter Fulke and other◅ of our Divines that when they could n◅ longer keep their followers from having the Scriptures laid before them in the English tongue they so indeavoured to dim the light thereof by a dark Translation that seeing they might see but not understand and to that end did thrust into it many obscure words both Greek and Latin which neither by long use were known nor by continuall custome made familiar to an English Reader Of which sort you may take these few as a taste of th◅ rest That is to say Acquisi◅ion Advent Adulterate Agnition Archisynagogue A◅imos Comm◅ssations Condign Contristate Depositum Didrachme Dominicall day Donaries Evacnated from Christ Euro Aquilo Epinanited Holocaust Hosts Neophite Paraclete Parasceve Pasch Praefinition Presence Prevaricator Proposition Loaves Repropitiate Resuscitate Sabbatis◅ Super-edified Sancta-Sanctorū Victims words utterly unknown to any English Reader unlesse well grounded and instructed in the Learned Languages and consequently their whole Translation uselesse to most sorts of men I cannot say that the Author of the History which we have in hand was under any such neces◅ity of writing as the R◅mists were or that it did affect obscurity on any such design as the Rhemists did but I may very warrantably and justly say that in the Coining of new words not to be understood by a common Reader he hath not onely out-vied the Rhemists but infi◅tely exceeded all that have gone before him A vein of writing which two the great Masters of the Greek and Roman Eloquence had no knowledge of who used such words in their addresses to the people as were illius temporis auribus accommodata as it is in Tacitus accommodate and fitted to the times they lived in and easily intelligible unto all that heard them Loquendum est cum vulgo was the antient rule And certainly to speak so as to be understood by the meanest hearer to write so as to be comprehended by the vulgar Reader is such a principle of Prudence as well becometh the practice of the greatest Clerks But it is with this our Author as with many others who think they can never speak elegantly nor write significantly except they do◅ it in a language of their owne devising as if they were ashamed o◅ their Mother-tongue or thought it no◅ sufficiently curious to expresse their fancies By meanes whereof more Frenc◅ and Latin words have gained ground up on us since the middle of the Reign o◅ Queen Elizabeth then were admitted by our Ancestors whether we look upon them as the British or Saxon race not onely since the Norman but the Roman Conquest a folly handsomely derided in an old blunt Epigram where the spruce Gallant thus bespeakes his Page or Laquay Diminutive and my defective slave Reach my Corps coverture immediatly 'T is my complacency that rest to have 'T insconse my person from Frigiditie The boy beliv'd all Welch his Master speke Till railed English Rogue go fetch my Cloak I had not given my selfe the trouble of this Observation but to meet the humour of some men who if pretenders to French or Latin tongues pretend to an authority also of creating words and giving us new formes of speaking which neither King nor Keiser hath the power to doe Moneyes and Coines are forthwith currant and universally admitted as soon as they receive the stamp of Supream Authority But it is not in the power of Kings or Parliaments to ordaine new words without the liking and consent of the common people Forrein Commodities not Customed are not safely sold and Forreine words till licensed and approved by custome are not fitly used And therefore it was well said by an able Grammarian to a great Emperor of Rome Homines donare civitate potes verba item non potes that is to say that he might naturalize whole Nations by giving them the priviledges of a Roman Citizen but that it was not in his power to doe so with words and make them Free as one might say of the Latin tongue In this case Custome and Consent and the generall usage are the greatest Princes and he that doth proceed without their authority hath no authority at all to proceed upon It being no othsrwise with new Words then with new Fashions in Apparell which are at first ridiculous or at least unsightly till by continuall wearing they become more ordinary And so it is resolved by Horace in his Book De Arte Poetica Multa renascenter quae nnnc cecidere cadentque Quae nunc sunt in honore vocabula si volet usus Quem penes arbitrium est vis norma loquendi In English thus Many old words shall be resum'd and some Now in great honour shall as vile become If use so please to which alone belongs The power to regulat◅ and di◅ect our tongues But lest our Author should affirm with Cremulius Cordus in the story Adeo factorum innocens sum ut verba m◅a arguantur that we are faine to cav◅l with him for his words for want of greater matter to except against I shall forbear the prosecution of this Argument till the close of all and passe to such materiall points as shall come before me To whom the Prince returned answer that he would impower the Earl of Bristol to give his Master all satisfaction in that particular that is to say for so you must be understood in the words foregoing that he would make a Pr◅xie to the Earl of Bristol to celebrate in his name the Marriage with the Lady Infanta But there was no such Proxie made to the Earle of Bristol that being a power and trust thought worthy of the Catholick King and Don Charles his Brother as appeareth plainly by the publick Instrument made to that effect bearing date August the 8 Anno 1623. which being sealed by the Prince in due
Authour may declare them for the Doctrine of the Church of England and traduce all men for Arminians which subscribe not to them Thirdly in the last place we are to see what moved King James to recommend these Articles to the Church of Ireland and afterwards to the Assembly at Dort And herein we must understand that Dr. James Montague at that Kings first entrance on this Crown was made Dean of the Chappell which place he held not onely when he was Bishop of Wells but of Winchester also who being a great stickler in the quarrels at Cambridge and a great master in the art of Insinuation had cunningly fashioned King James unto these opinions to which the Kings education in the Kirk of Scotland had before inclined him So that it was no very hard matter for him having an Archbishop also of his own perswasions to make use of the Kings authority for recommending those nine Articles to the Church of Ireland which he found would not be admitted in the Church of England Besides the Irish Nation at that time were most tenâ—…ciously addicted to the Eâ—…rours and corâ—…uptions of the Church of Rome and therefore must be bended to the other extreme before they could be strait and Orthoâ—…ox in these points of Doctrine which reason might work much upon the spirit of that King who used in all his Government as a piece of King-crafâ—… to ballance one extreme by the other countenancing the Papist against the Puritanâ—… and the Puritane sometimes against the Papist that betwixt both the true Religion and the Professours of it might be kâ—…pt in saâ—…ety On what accompt these nine Articles were commended to the Assembly at Dort we have shewed before and upon what accompt they were abolished in the Church of Ireland we shalâ—… see hereafter In the mean time our Author telleth us that By the prevalency of the Bishops of London and Westminster the Orthodox party were depressed the truth they served was scarce able to protect them to impunity A man would think our Author were Chairman at the least in a Committee for Religion for he not onely takes upon him to declare who are Orthodox in point of Faith and what is truth and not truth in matter of controversie but censureth two great Bishops both of them Counsellors of State for depressing both This savoureth more of the party than of the Historian whom it might better have become to have told us onely that a Controversie being raised in matters of a Scholasticall nature those Bishops favoured the one party more than they did the other and not have layd it down so majesterially that they disfavoured the Orthodox party and deprest the truth or that the truth they served was scarce able to protect them to impunity A very heavy Charge which hath no truth in it For I am very confident that neither of these Bishops did ever draw any man within the danger of punishment in relation only to their Tenets in the present Controversies if they managed them with that prudence and moderation which became men studiously affected to the Gospel of Peace or were not otherwise guilty of creating disturbances in the Church or ruptures in the body of the Common-wealth On which occasions if they came within the danger of 〈◊〉 censures or fell into the power of the High Commission it was no reason that their Tenets in the other points were they as true as truth it selfe should give them any impunity or free them from the punishment which they had deserved But it hath been the constant artifice of the Churches Enemies not to ascribâ—… the punishment of Factions and scismaticall persons to the proper cause but to their orthodoxie in Religion and zeal against Popish superstitions that so they might increase the number of Saints and Confessours against the next coming out of the Book of Martyrs But Arminianisme being as some say but a bridge to Popery we will pâ—…sse with our Authour over that Bridge to the hazard which was feared from Rome and that he telleth us came two waies First By the uncontrouled preaching of severall points tending and warping that way by Montague Goodman Cozens and others And here againe I thinke out Authour is mistaken For neither Montague nor Cozens were questioned for preaching any thing which warped toward Popery but the one of them for writing the Book called Appello Caesarem the other for publishing a Body of Devotions according to the Hours of Prayer in neither of which an equall and judicious Reader will finde any Popery unlesse it be such part-boyled Popery as our Authour speaks of whereof more anon And as for Goodman our Authour might have called him Bishop Goodman though now he be but Goodman Bishop as he calls himselfe though he preached something once which might warp toward Popery yet he did not preach it uncontrouled being not onely questioned for it but sentenced to a Recantation before the King He telleth us of some others but he names them not and till he names them he saies nothing which requires an Answer So that the first fear which flowed from Rome being ebbed again we next proceed unto the second which came saith he from The audacious obtruding of divers superstitious ceremonies by the Prelates as erecting of fixed Altars the dapping and cringing towards them and the standing up at Gloria Patri Our Authour is more out in this than in that before for I am confident that no Bishop in the times he speaks of did either command the erecting of fixed Altars or the bowing or cringing towards them nor have I heard by any credible report that any such fixed Altars were erected as he chargeth on them So that I might here end this observation without farther trouble But because the placing of the Communion Table Altar-wise did carry some resemblance to the Altars used in the Church of Rome and that some such thing was done in some Churches much about this time I shall here shew upon what reasons it was done and how farre they that did it might be justified in it The Reader therefore is to know that by the late neglect of decency and good order in most Parish Churches of this Land the Communion Table had been very much profaned by sitting on it scribling and casting hats upon it in Sermon-time at other times by passing the Parish accompts and disputing businesses of like nature to the great scandall and dishonour of our Religion For remedy and redresse whereof it seemed good unto some Bishops and other Ordinaries out of a pious zeal to the Churches honour and for the more reverent administration of the holy Sacrament to gâ—…ve way that the Commun on Table might be removed from the body of the Chancel where of late it stood and placed at the East end thereof all along the wall in the same place and posture as the Altars had been scituated in the former times For which permission I doubt not but
mâ—…st needs paâ—…se for currant I cannot see by the best light of my poor understanding but that Brabournes Book may be embraced with our best affections and that obscure and ignorant School-Master as our Author calls him must be cryed up for the most Orthodox Divine which this Age hath bred And was after styled Duke of Yorke Our Author here accommodates his style to the present times when the Weekly Pamphlets give that Prince no other Title than the Titulary Duke of Yorke the pretended Duke of Yorke the Duke of Yorke so styled as our Author here It is true indeed the second Son of England is not born to the Dukedome of Yorkâ—… as the first is unto the Titles and Revenues of the Dukedome of Cornewall but receives that Title by Creation and though the King did cause this second Son to be styled onely Duke of Yorke when he was in his cradle yet afterwards He created and made him such by Letters Patents under the Great Seal of England in due form of Lâ—… The four Innes of Court presenting both their Majesties at Whitehall with a gallant Masque as a symbole of their joynt affections The Innes of Court used formerly to divide themselves in the like solemnities Lincolns Inne joyning with one of the Temples and Graies Inne with the other bâ—…t now they all united upon this occasion One William Prynne an Utter Barrester of Lincolns Inne had writ a Book somewhat above a year before called Histrio Mastix intended purposely against Stage Playes but intermixed with many bâ—…tter and sharp Invectives against the solemn Musick used in the Cathedrals and Royal Chappels against the magnificence of the Court in Masques and Dancings against the Hospitality of the English Gâ—…ntry in the Weeks of Christmas and indeed what not In which were also many passages scandalous and dishonourable to the King and Queen and such as seemed dangerous also to their sacred Persons For which an Information being brought against him in the Starre-Chamber by Master Noye then Atturney-Generall and the Cause ready to be sentenced it seemed good unto the Gentlemen of the four Innes of Court to present their Majesties with a Masque thereby to let their 〈◊〉 and the People see how little Prynne his infection had took hold upon them A pompous and magnificent shew it seemed as it passed the Streets but made more glorious by a long traine of Christian Captives who having been many yeares inslâ—…ved in the chains of bondage were sent for a present to the King by the Hâ—…riffe or Emperour of Morocko in testimony of the assistance received from him in the taking of Salla and destroying that known nest of Pyrates effected specially by the benefit and advantage of his Majesties Ships An action of so great honour to the English Nation of such security to trade and of such consequence for setlâ—…ng of a free commerce in those parts of Christendom that I wonder why our Author takes no notice of it The Kings Dominion in the Narrow Seas was actually usurped by the Holland Fishers and the right it selfe in good earnest disputed by a late tract of Learned Grotius called Mare Liberum Our Author might have added here that this discourse of Grotius was encountred not long after by a learned Tract of Mr. Seldens which hâ—… entituled Mare Clausum In which he did not onely assert the Soveraignty or Dominion of the British Seas to the Crown of England but cleerly proved by constant and continuall practise that the Kings of England used to levie money from the Subjects without help of Parliament for the providing of ships and other necessaries to maintain that Soveraignty which did of right belong unto them This he brings down unto the time of K. Hen. 2d and might have brought it neerer to his own times had he been so pleased and thereby paved a plain way to the payment of Ship-money but then he must have thwarted the proceedings of the House of Commons in the last Parliament wherein he was so great a stickler voting down under a kinde of Anathema the Kings pretensions of right to all help from the subject either in Tonage or Poundage or any other wayes whatsoever the Parliament not co-operating and contributing toward it For that he might have done thus we shall easily see by that which followeth in our Author viz. Away goes the subtile Engineer and at length frem old Records progs and bolts out an antient Precedent of raising a Tax upon the whole Kingdom for setting forth a Navy in case of danger Our Author speaks this of Mr. Noye the Atturney Generall whom he calls aftâ—…rwards a most indefatigable Plodder and Searcher of old Records and therefore was not now to be put to progging a very poor expression for so brave a man to finde out any thing which mâ—…ght serve to advance this businesse For the truth is that a year or more before the coming out of the Writs for ship-money he shewed the Author of these Observations at his house neer Brentford a great wooden Box wherein were nothing else but Prâ—…ts out of all Records for levying a Navall aide upon the Subjects by the sole authority of the Kiâ—…g whensoever the preservation and safety of the Kingdome did require it of them And I remember well that he shewed me in many of those Papers that in the same years in which the Kings had received subsidies in the way of Parliament they levyed this Naval aide by their own sole power and he gave me this Reason for them both For saith he when the King wanted any money either to support his own expences or for the enlarging of his Dominions in Forreign Conquests or otherwise to advance his honour in the eye of the world good reason he should be beholding for it to the love of his people but when the Kingdome was in danger and that the safety of the Subject was concerned in the businesse he might and then did raise such summes of Money as he thought expedient for the preventing of the danger and providing for the publick safety of himselfe and his And I remember too that â—…se Precedents were written in little bits â—…nd shreads of paper few of them bigger then ones hand many not so big which when he had transcribed in the course of his studies he put into the coffin of a Pye as he pleased to tell me which had been sent him from his Mother and kept them there untill the mouldinesse and corruptiblenesse of that wheaten Coffer had perished many of his papers No need of progging or bolting to a man so furnished But more of this Attorney we shall heare anon In the meane time our Author telleth us that The King presently issued out Writs to all the Counties within the Realm c. enjoyning every County for defence of the Kingdome to provide Ships of so many Tunne c. Our Author is deceived in this as in many things else For in the
opinion of most knowing men that this Cardinal had a very great hand in animating the Scots to such a height of disobedience as we finde them in And this may evidently appeare first by a passage in our Author Fol. 176. in which we finde from the intelligence of Andreas ab Habernefield that the Cardinall sent his Chaplaine and Almoner Mâ—… Thomas Chamberlain a Scot by Nation to assist the confederates in advancing the businesse and to attempt all waies for exasperating the first heat with order not to depart from them till things succeeding as he wished he might returne with good newes Secondly from the Letter writ by the Lord Loudon and the rest of the â—…ovenanters to the French King first published in his Majesties lesser Declaration against the Scots and since exemplified in our Author Fol. 168. of which Letter they could hope for no good effect but as the Cardinall should make way and provide meanes for it Thirdly by the report of a Gentleman from whose mouth I have it who being took Prisoner and brought unto the Scotish Camp immediatly after the fight neer Nuborne found there the Cardinalls Sâ—…cretary in close consultation with the heads of the Covenanters which after his restoring to liberty by the Treaty at Rippon he declared to the King and offered to make it good upon his Oath Fourthly by the impossibility which the Cardinall found in his designes of driving the Spaniard out of Flanders and the rest of the Netherlands unlesse the King was so disturbed and embroyled at home that he could not help them it being heretofore the great master-piece of the Kings of England to keep the Scale even between France and Spaine that neither of them being too strong for the other the affaires of Christendome might be poized in the evener ballance Fiftly by the free accesse and secret conferences which Hamiltons Chaplain had with Con the Popes agent here during such time as Chamberlain the Cardinalls Chaplain laboured to promote the businessâ—… Sixthly Adde hereunto the great displeasure which the Cardinall had conceived against the King for invading the Isle of Rhe and attempting the relief of Rochell and we shall finde what little reason the King had to be perswaded to any beliefe in Cardinall Richelieu though the Embassador might use all his eloquence to perswade him to it And had this presumptuous attempt of the Hollanders met with a King or in times of another temper it would not it 's like have been so silently connived at Most truly spoken this action of the Hollanders being one of the greatest and unsufferablest affronts which ever was puâ—… by any Nation on a King of England I have been told that complaint being made of King James of the barbarous Butchery at Amboyna he fell into a terrible rage throwing his Hat into the fire and then stamping on it and using all the signes of outragious Passion but when Time Sleep had taken off the edge of his Fury he told the Merchants who attended his answer That it was then no time to quarrell with the Hollanders of whom he hoped to make some use for restoring the Palsgrave to his lawfull Patrimony King Charles might make the same answer on this new occasion he had his head and his hands too so full of the Scots that he had no time to quarrell with the Hollanders though certainly if he had then presently turned his Fleet upon the Hollanders wherein no question but the Spaniard would have sided with him he had not onely rectified his honour in the eye of the world but might thereby have taught the Scots a better lessen of Obedience then he had brought them to by the great preparations which he made against them But this I look on in the Hollanders as one of the Consequents or effâ—…cts of the Scottish darings for if the Scots who were his Subjects durst be so bold as to baffle with him why might not they presume a little on his patience who were his confederates and Allies in husbanding an advantage of so great a concernment and having vailed his Crown to the Scots and English why might he not vaile it to them his good friends and neighbours At this close and secret Councell December 5. it was agreed that his Majesty should call a Parliament to assemble April the 13th This secret Councell did consist of no more then three that is the Lord Archbishop of Canterbury the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland and who must needs be at the end of every businesse the Marquesse of Hamilton By these it was agreed that the King should be moved to call a Parliament the intimation of it to be presently made but the Parliament it selfe not to be assembled till the middle of April In giving which long intervall it was chiefly aimed at that by the reputation of a Parliament so neer approaching the King might be in credit to take up Money wherewith to put himselfe into a posture of Warre in case the Parliament should faile him but then the inconvenience was as great on the other side that intervall of four Moneths time giving the discontented party opportunity to unite themselves to practice on the Shires and Burroughs to elect such members as they should recommend unto them and finally not onely to consult but to conclude on such particulars which they intended to insist on when they were assembled And though it be extreame ridiculous for me to shoot my Fooles-bable in so great a businesse in which such wise men did concurre yet give me leave to speak those thoughts which I had of that advice from the first beginning reckoning it alwaies both unsafe and unseasonable as the times then were I looked upon it as unsafe in regard that the last Parliament being dissolved in so strange a rupture the Closets of some Members searched many of them Imprisoned and some Fâ—…ned it was not to be hoped but that they would come thither with revengefull thoughts and should a breach happen between them and the King and the Parliament be dissolved upon it as it after was the breach would be irreparable as indeed it proved I looked upon it as unseasonable also in regard that Parliaments had been so long discontinued and the people lived so happily without them that very few took thought who should see the next and 〈◊〉 that the neighbouring Kings and States beheld the King with greater veneration then they had done â—…ormerly as one that could stand on his own leggs and had scrued up himselfe to so great power both by Sea and Land without such discontents and brabbles as his Parliaments gave him But whatsoever it was in it selfe either safe or seasonable I am sure it proved neither to the men who advâ—…sed the calling of it unlesse it were to Hamilton onely of which more hereafter Yet the King was willing to allow them all the faire dealing he in honour could hoping to gaine upon them by the sweetnesse of his carriage but
given one Subsidie confirmed by Parliament and finding that they had not done sufficiently for the Queens occasions did after adde a Benevolence or Aide of two shillings in the pound to be levied upon all the Clergie and to be levied by such Synodicall Acts and Constitutions as they digested for that purpose without having any recourse to the Parliament for it which Synodical Acts and Constitutions the Clergie of this present Convocation followed word for word not doubting but they had as good authority to doe it now as the Convocation in Q. Elizabeths time hâ—…d to doe it then and so undoubtedly they had whatsoever either our Author here or any other Enemy of the Churches power can alledge against it Our Author hath now done with the Convocation and leads us on uâ—…to the Warre levied by the Scots who had no sooner made an entrance but the King was first assaulted by a Petition from some Lords of England bearing this inscription To the Kings most excellent Majestie The humble Petition of your Majesties most loyall and most obedient Subjects whose names are under-written in behalf of themselfs divers others Concerning this we are to know that a little before the Scots fell into England they published a Pamphlet called the Intentions of the Army in which it was declared That they resolved not to lay down Armes till the Reformed Religion were setled in both Kingdomes upon surer grounds the Causers and Abettors of their present Troubles brought to publick Justice and that Justice to be done in Parliament and for the Causers of their Troubles they reckoned them in generall to be the Papists Prelates and their Adherents but more particularly the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Lieutenant of Ireland In Correspondence hereunto comes this Petition subscribed by six Earles one Viscount and four Barons being no other than a superstructure upon that foundation a Descant only on that Plain Song And presently on the back of that another is posted to the same effect from the City of London So that the clouds which gathered behinde Him in the South were more amazement to the King than this Northern Tempest The Petition of the Londoners that we may see how well the businesse was contrived was this that followeth To the Kings most excellent Majestie The humble Petition of your Majesties loyall Subjects the Citizens of London Most gracious Soveraign BEing moved by the duty and obedience which by Religion and Lawes your Petitioners owe unto your sacred Majestie they humbly present unto your Princely and pious consideration the severall and pressing grievances following viz I. The great and unusuall impositions upon Merchandize imported and exported II. The urging and levying of Ship-money notwithstanding which both Merchants their goods and ships have been taken and destroyed by Turks and Pyrates III. The multitude of Monopolies Patents and Warrants whereby trade in the City and other parts of this Kingdome is much decayed IV. The sundry Innovations in matters of Religion the Oath and Canons newly imposed by the late Convocation whereby your Petitioners are in danger to be deprived of their Ministerie V. The concourse of Papists and their habitation in London and the Suburbs whereby they have more means and opportunities of plotting and executing their designes against the Religion established VI. The sudden calling and sudden dissolution of Parliaments without addressing of your Subjects grievances VII The imprisonment of divers Citizens for not payment of Ship-money and other impositions and the prosecution of others in the Starre Chamber for non conformity to commands in Patents and Monopolies whereby trade is restrained VIII The great danger your sacred Person is exposed unto in the present Warre and the various fears that have seized upon your Petitioners and their Families by reason thereof Which grievances and feares have occasioned so great a stop and destruction in trade that your Petitioners can neither sell receive nor pay as formerly and tends unto the utter ruine of the Inhabitants of this City the decay of Navigation and Cloathing and other Manufactures of this Kingdome Your Petitioners humbly conceiving the said grievances to be contrary to the Laws of this Kingdome and finding by experience that they are not redressed by the ordinary Courts of Justice doe therefore most humbly beseech your Royall Majestie to cause a Parliament to be summoned with all convenient speed whereby they may be relieved in the Premisses And your Majesties c. The like Petitions there came also from other parts according as the people could be wrought upon to promote the business which makes it the lesse maâ—…vell that Petitions shouâ—…d come thronging in from all parts of the Kingdome as soon as the Parliament was begun craving redresse of the late generall exorbitancies both in Church and State as Fol. 129. we are told by our Author And to deny the Scoâ—…s any thing considering their armed posture was interprered the way to give them all In the Intentions of the Army before mentioned the Scots declared that they would take up nothing of the Countrey people without ready money and when that fâ—…iled they would give Bills of Debt for the pâ—…yment of it But finding such good correspondence and such weak resistance after their enâ—…ry into England they did not onely spoil and plunder wheresoever they came but would not hearken to a Cessation of Armes during the time of the Treaty then in agitation unlesse their Army were maintained at the charge of the English And this was readily yeilded to for fear it seems lâ—…t by denying the Scots any thing we should give them all I know indâ—…ed that it is neither safe nor prudent to deny any reasonable request to an armed power arma tâ—…nti omnia dat qui justa negat as the Poet hath it and thus the story of David and Nabal will inform us truly But then it must be such a power which is able to extort by force thaâ—… those which they cannot otherwise procure by favour which whether the Scots were Masters of I do more thâ—…n question Exceedingly cryed up they were both in Court and City as men of most unmatchable valour and so undoubtedly they were till they found resistance their Officers and Commanders magnified both for wiâ—… and courage the Common Soldiers looked on as the Sons of Enoch â—…he English being thought as Grasse-hoppers in comparison of them which notwithstanding the Earl of Strafford then General of the English Army would have given them battaile if the King had been willing to engage and signified by Letters to the Archbishop of Canterbâ—…y that he durst undertake upon the pâ—…rill of his head to send them back faster thâ—…n they came but that he did not hold it concellable as the case then stood It is an old saying a true that the Lion is not so fierce as he is painted nor were the Scots such terrible fellowes as they were reported For when they met with any who knew how to 〈◊〉 with
made Baron of that place by His Majesties favour On the other side the Lord Lieutenant deriving his descent from the Nevils Earles of Westmor land whose Honorary Seate that was procured himself to be created Baron of Rabie in those Letters Patents by which he was invested with the Earldome of Strafford This gave the beginning to that fire which consumed the Earle but not till it had been much increased on another occasion There was a thrifty designe in Court to save the King the charges of a publick table and to that end it was advised that Sir Henry Vane then Treasurer of the Houshold should be made one of the principall Secretaryes in the place of Sir John Cooke then weak with age but so that he should still hold the Treasurership in the way of Commendam Scarce was Vane warm in his new Office when the Earle of Strafford interposed alleaging to the King that he had no other Correspondent in the Court for the businesses of Ireland but Mr. Secretary Cooke and that if he should be displaced His Majesties affairs in that Kingdome might extremely suffer On this a sudden stop was made and Cooke restored continuing in his former Office till the Queen openly appeared in behalf of Vane who so prevailed that Vane was setled in the place and Cooke dismissed into the Countrey as no longer serviceable which fewell being added to the former fire made it flame so high that nothing but death or blood could quench it Insomuch as it was thought by many understanding men that Sir Henry Vane did purposely misreport the Kings Message to the former Parliament for abrogating the Ship-money in hatred to the Earle of Strafford who had undertook to manage that Parliament to the Kings advantage and that seeing him to continue still both in power and favour he fell upon that speeding project which our Author hath related in that which followeth in the story that by such a cunning piece of malice he might rather seem to offer him up as a sacrifice to the publick justice than to his own particular hatred Ah ult io magis publicè vindictae quam privato odio dato videatur as in the like case the Historian hath it For the Câ—…ons were resalved that day should set a totall period to the Earles defence and next to speed their Bill 〈◊〉 Aâ—…tainder The Commons had now spent a Moneth in prosecuting their Acousation against the Earle of Strafford and seeing how little they had gained in order to the point they aimed at resolved to steer their course by another winde For finding that their proofs amounted not to a Legall evidence and that nothing but legall evidence could prevail in a way of Judicature they called the Legislative power to their assistance according unto which both Lords and Commons might proceed by the light of their own consciences without any further proof or testimony And so it is affirmed expresly by Mr. St. John then Sollicitor Generall in his Speech made at a Conference in a Committee of both Houses of Parliament April the 29. 1641. where it is said That although single testimony might be sufficient to satisfie private consciences yet how farre it would have been satisfactory in a judiciall way where Forms of Law are more to be stood upon was not so clear whereas in this way of Bill private satisfaction to each mans conscience is sufficient although no evidence had been given in at all Thus they resolved it in this Case but knowing of what dangerous consequence it might be hereafter to the lives and fortunes of the Subjects a Clause was added to the Bill that iâ—… should not be drawn into example for the time to come which because it may seem somewhat strange to them that know it not I will here adde so much of the said Bill as concerns this point In which said Bill the heads of the Accusation being reckoned up it followeth thus viz Be it therefore enacted by the Kings most excellent Majestie and by the Lords and Commons in this present Parliament assembled and by the authority of the same that the said Earle of Strafford for the heynous crimes and offences aforesaid stand and be adjudged and attainted of high Treason and shall suffer such pain of death and incurre such forfeitures of his Goods and Chattells Lands Tenements and Hereditaments of any Estate of Free-hold or Inheritance in the said Kingdomes of England and Ireland which the said Earle or any other to his use or in trust for him have or had the day of the first sitting of this present Parliament or at any time since Provided that no Judge or Judges Justice or Justices whatsoever shall adjudge or interpret any act or thing to be Treason nor hear or determine any Treason nor in any other manner then he or they should or ought to have done before the making of this Act and as if this Act had never been made Thus have we Treason and no Treason in the selfe-same action that being judged Treason in this one man which never was to be judged Treason in any other But whatsoever it was it was conceived that many of the Lords began to shew themselves more forwards to comply with the Commons then they had done formerly Whereof the King having notice he thought it high time for him to interpose c. and calling both Houses together May the first said c. This coming of his Majesty and the Speech then made as it relished so ill with the two Houses that few of them attended on the solemnitâ—…es of the next day on which the Kings eldest Daughter was married to the Prince of Orange so gave it no contentment to the Eâ—…rle himselfe whose death it rather 〈◊〉 and made sure worke of then it could any waâ—…es conduce to his preservation That passage in the Kings Speech in which he signified that the misdemeanours of the Earle were so great and many that he was not fit to serve in the place of a Constable wrought more impression on the Spirits of that Noble Gentleman then any kinde of death whatsoever it were which his Enemies could inflict upon him though with great modesty he did no otherwise expresse it in a letter sent unto the King then that he could have wished his Majesty had spared his Declaration on Saturday last But the Earles friends were as much unsatisfied in the Kings coming at that time as in that passage of his Speech giving it out that the King was put upon it by some of his bosome-Enemies which were in neerest trust about him on purpose to set him at greater odds with the House of Commons and consequently with the people whom they represented by drawing on himselfe the envy of that businesse howsoever it happened That if the Earle should be attainted notwithstanding by the Votes of the Lords it woâ—…ld be looked upon as a thing done against his will and no thanks to him but if he were acquitted by