Selected quad for the lemma: law_n
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A39786
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Some thoughts concerning the affairs of this session of Parliament. 1700
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Fletcher, Andrew, 1655-1716.
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1700
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Wing F1297A; ESTC R222664
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8,455
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32
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SOME THOUGHTS CONCERNING The Affairs of this Session OF PARLIAMENT 1700. Quis eum ruat ardnus Aether Complos tenuisse Manus Printed in the Year M. DCC Some Thoughts concerning the Affairs of this Session of Parliament 1700. OF all Governments Monarchy is the best and least subject to Inconveniences but because the Monarch is a man subject to Errors in Judgment and capable of being byassed in his Affections it was therefore necessary that the Common-Wealth as it gave him great Power over them so it should assigne him also the best Helps for directing both his Will and Judgement The first Help was Law which is the Rule both to King and People The second were certain Councills and Counsellors with whom to consult in matters of most Importance as we see in the Dyets of Germany the Courts of Spain and the Parliament of England without which no matters of moment can be concluded The Romans had their Senat and the Graecians their Ephori As We are happy in a Limited Monarchical Government so it has succeeded well with our Kings when they have had VVise Counsellours and have been advised by their Parliaments in things relating to the Publick Good The Nature of our Parliament is explained in the 8. Par. K. Ja. 6. Act 2. where it 's said That by the court of Parliament under GOD the Kingdom hath been upholden Rebellion and Traiterous Subjects punished the Good and Faithfull Preserved and maintained and the Laws and Acts of Parliament by which all good men are Governed are made and established c. This Act was made whilst our King was yet amongst Our selves but no sooner did We loose Him than We dwindled all of a sudden into old Age and altho' the whole Island has been Christened by the Name of Great Britain the English only have reaped the Honour and Advantage of this Union Henry VII of England said to one of his Counsellours that the Marriage between his Daughter and Our King would make Scotland an Accession to the Crown of England some VVay or other nor could it be otherways when our Kings ever since the Union have lived in England and that the English being made secret to our nearest Concerns have had the Art to Influence Our Counsells for their own Interest Kingdoms are United either when they become the same People in Subjection such is our Union with England or when they are United in Laws and Interest so that they become the same Common-Wealth one Head Rules them and all inferiour Members conspire for the Prosperity of the whole Body The last of these Unions is Good for both Whereas the first is neither lasting nor can all Parties be justly dealt with by the same Master We Knovv Portugall soon Revolted from Spain If We are Stated That as the Poorer Part of this Island VVe are to Enjoy nothing that the English may think of ill Consequence to them The Question is Whether We should prefer their Interest or our own And surely a just King who is Father of both countries must be put to it by Deliberate Reflections upon the Oaths He has taken to both Kingdoms Our Secretaries who have been obliged to attend at Court were the Persons by whom the Advice of the Privy Council concerning the Affairs of this Nation has been communicated to our Kings and by whom their Majesties have signified their Will to the Subject But it may be doubted whether the Advice followed by those Kings has been that of England that of the Secretaries or that of the Council here By the great Trust Our Secretaries have they ought to be Guardians to their Country that by their Vigilant Care and Probity Subjects may find experimentally that they are as much for their Advantage as they have Power and Dignitie No privat Advantage no Self-Ends should move them to Betray their Charge No English Dependence should Dare them but by their Virtue they should raise their Character above the Envy of wicked men They should mind what Tacitus says that tho' the Deliberations of all other men do commonly consist in the Considerations of Utility and Profit yet the state of a Prince is such that He ought principalie to respect Fame and Reputation It should be a great Awe upon them to be Honest that Favorites of Princes have been so often Sacrificed to an oppressed People Plutarch sayeth that the Counsellors of Dionysius Phalaris and Apollodorus were justlie Tormented by the People because he who Seduceth a Prince deserveth no less to be abhor'd of all men than one that should Poyson a publick Fountain whereof all men should Drink Henry VIII in the Beginning of his Reign to satisfie his English Subjects who Importuned Him for Justice against Emson and Dudly for the evill Council they had given to Henry VII in matters of Exactions and Impositions delivered them to be Punished according to Law VVe might be liable to suffer if we had no other to informe His Majesty about our Ease and Riches than Secretaries and Courtiers from whom must depend the Character of every one in Publick Trust here It 's our Parliaments therefore that have taken Notice of our Concerns and it is to this Parliament we have Recourse for our present Affairs seeing His Majestie is for the present so occupied in Managing the Interests of England and Holland that He leaves tacitely to our Honourable Members of Parliament not only to call missinformers to an Account but to inform himself in every thing concerns our Good We would have been very happy to have had the Presence of His Majesty in this Session of Parliament according to His Royal Promise which has been allways necessary for us That He might be informed at one View what is fit to be done in every Juncture of Affairs that He might know what part of His Kingdom Flourishes and what part of it Languishes That He who is above all in Honour and Authority would be likeways Interessed for the Benefit of the Publick and that He might have Occasion to influence His People to their Duty by His Piery Justice Valour Clemency and other Princely Qualities Noble was that Speech of Henry IV. of France and worthy of so good a King when he Assembled the States of his Kingdom at Rouen 1596. which he ends thus I have not called you to this Place as my predecessors have done to oblige you blindly to approve of my Will I have Summoned you to Receive to Believe and to Follow Your Councils In a Word to make You my Guardians How acceptable would such a discourse be to this present Parliament from His Majesty and what might we hope but to be watched over our Good our Ease and Wellfare to be the End of His Undertakings and the Happiness Strength Wealth and Honour of our Country to be His Joy and Satisfaction But it 's You most Honourable Members He makes at present Judges of every thing is for the Benefit of this Nation and in whose hands He Depositates
His Royal Care of the People And surely His Majesty who has been our Deliverer will Abominat that Base and Dishonourable Method Publick Ministers had of Corrupting our Members of Parliament by Places Money or Promises to Betray the Interest of this Nation Every one knows the Plot was first Hatched at Court of making or abrogating such and such Laws some Favourit read the List of our Members of Parliament and as they found a Name for their purpose they Marked it with a Capital Letter If the Names marked did not exceed the Remainder of the List so much Money was order'd to increase the Number and this was recommended to the Management of the Commissioner and Secretaries who so soon as they Arriv'd in Scotland set all Hands to Work for the Imploying it to good purpose May all our present Members of Parliament Detest those Ancient Vices and Remember rhat our King knows the Reward belongs to Merit knows the Dutie of a good Patriot and the Treacherie of one betrays His Country Let them all then lay to Heart the good of this Kingdom A Nobleman as a Nobleman is obliged to Imploy his Powerful Assistance to the Publick to Maintain it with his Wealth his Riches and his Blood He ought to be the Supporter and Pillar of his Country a Defence to the Poor and oppressed and a Check to the Violence of wicked Men. These were the Qualities have made the Predecessors of some of our Nobility so Famous in Historie and their Memorie so dear to Posteritie A Gentleman who 's a Member of Parliament is to be Faithfull to his Trust both out of Principles of Honour and Interest for if We take away Honestie from him He will differ nothing from the Refuse of Society or by what other distinguishing Character can we know him from the Mob If He betray the Liberties of his Countrie how can He hope to transmit his Estate to his Heirs or Secure his Friends from Slaverie and Oppression And all Members of Parliament are to remember that as they are the Representativâ—… of this Nation so they are the Protectors of its Priviledges who ought to Examine the Interest of the People contribute to their Wealth and Security be Mediators between them and His Majesty endeavour to Remove ill Counsellours from Him And they ought to act in every part as Men of Probity Being bound to Discharge their Trust both by Duty and Oath Nor let them degenerate from that Boldness becomes every Man stands up for His Country but be Couragious like Helvidius Priscus when he receaved a Message from the Emperour Vespasian not to appear in the Senat or if He came not to interpose his Opinion in a Debate which was to be moved there Sent back Word that his Character of a Senator required his Attendance nor would he baulk any Thing that became him according to Conscience and Duty Vespasian provoked with what He thought insolence in this Reply Threatned to put Him to Death To which second Message He returned thus Did I ever tell the Emperour that I was immortal His Majesty I suppose will do His Pleasure and I will do my Duty it is in his Power to put Me to Death unjustly but it is in my Power to Die Virtuously The preferring the Good of the Common-Wealth to any self-Interest is the greatest Ornament of the Soul and when all our Actions are measured in Respect of their Objects most Noble are these which Aim most at the Publick Good By which Virtue the Heathen Heroes became the Peoples Gods whereas Private Interest has been allways the Business of Slaves Who is it deserves Universal Praise but those who designe Universal Advantages those are deservedly called Fathers of their Country and it should be enacted a Paricide to wound the Reputation of such whose Fame shall be like Medals grow stil the more Illustrious the older they grow Epaminondas is admired who was allways more busied in raising the Glory of his Country than in heaping Pelf for himself Decius who threw himself amongst his Enemies to gain a Victory to his Country shall live to Eternity And for the love of their Country it was that Aristides of Athens being sent Ambassador with Themistocles who was his Enemie willed him at their Departure out of Town that they might leave all their Emulations Altho' the Law of this Kingdom hath attained to a great Perfection by its few and clear Statutes nevertheless as the Affairs of the World and our own Circumstances Change we must have Parliaments to Provide us with new Laws I doubt not but our Parliament will take into their Consideration our Trade our Publick Society's our standing Armie and our Publick Treasurie Upon which separatly I shall make these following Reflections First Trade is necessary to any Nation that either will have Riches or their Poor Imployed and this is a Truth so well known and all Nations perswaded of it that the Thoughts of most men are turned that way It will be happy for us that it be Carefully looked after especially the Affairs of our Company Trading to America and the Colony they have planted in Darian in Spite both of forreign and domestick Enemies our just Title to which of late has been proved by unanswerable Arguments So that it 's the Nations Honour for Our Parliament both to assist our Directors with Money and Authority to retrive their Losses and to Frown upon all their Enemies as being no Friends to this Country I 'm perswaded no Tax will be more agreeable to the Subject nor more readilie payed than for carrying on this Project that has made the name of our Nation Reign in all Forraigne Courts after it has been in Oblivion for almost this Century and which has made us Formidable to the Spaniards whose Grand-Fathers thought that Scotland was a Province of England The Profit that may arise to Us from our Colony if it prosper is evident to everie one knows the Riches of the Spanish Plantations And let us but Suppose that we are only able to Keep in our Possession the Port of SAINT ANDREW in CALEDONIA it may serve to be a Magazin for all our Commodities in the West Indies and to Manage a private Trade with the Spaniard to the great Advantage of this Nation But let Us have a more Noble End than Gain alone The Propagation of the CHRISTIAN RELIGION and if this were the only Motive We ought to part with our Money freely for the Glory of GOD. To Oppose our Designs we have but one declared Enemy the King of Spain who if He endeavour to drive us from our Possession Honour obliges Us to Defend our selves If the English or Dutch oppress Us contrary to the Laws of Nations I don't see what should hinder Us to take Protection wherever it may be found It may be some People will object that our Darian Business will occasion a War with Spain or that our Directors have mis-managed But in such Objections there 's