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lord_n king_n parliament_n power_n 14,254 5 5.4231 4 false
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ID Title Author Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) STC Words Pages
A90012 A new poll-bill for raising the sum of seven hundred thousand pound. Humbly offered to consideration. / By a person of quality. 1689-1694 (1694) Wing N715B; ESTC R180953 8,209 4

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the Parliament should be of Opinion that this manner of proceeding would also look too much like a Bill of Attainder we may reduce these several particulars into two Heads I. Upon those who shall refuse a passive TEST as aforesaid II. Upon all persons who shall receive any Benefit by a General Act of Oblivion viz. That a Clause be brought in and added to the Bill That all persons except Members of Parliament whose Character exempts them from all Exceptions who intend to have any Benefit by the Act of Indempnity shall within such a certain time to be prefix'd actually pay into the Exchequer or to Commissioners to be appointed in every respective County some certain 〈…〉 degrees of persons or in default thereof to stand Excepted out of the said Act. There is no doubt but all these and many other persons that it may not be our Interest to disoblige at this time by a Bill of Attainder or putting Marks or Distinctions upon them to render them Infamous in their Country and which must of Necessity stir up a Spirit of Opposition upon all Occasions would yet voluntarily and freely lay down a small Sum of Money to secure themselves and their posterity from any future Troubles after so great a Revolution to purchase peace and quietness and a firm confirmation of their Lives and Estates by Act of Parliament The Parliament is not bound to distribute their Favours Gratìs without some small Acknowledgment and Return towards the carrying on the War against France the Common Enemy of Christendom And the people would very joyfully accept of the same upon these Terms to the raising of a very considerable Tax as much beyond the Proposal above set forth as the Number of persons under the long Catalogue of Offences in the two last R●igns is above the Number of the persons mentioned in this paper Reasons for Raising Money by way of a Tax and not by way of a Bill of Attainder NOlumus Leges Angliae mutari the Law and Custom of Parliament is Lex Terrae and the Supreme Law of the Land it regulates and corrects the Abuses of all other Courts and the Equity of their Proceedings is for Example to all Inferior Jurisdictions Ergo Nolumus Leges Consuetudines Parliamenti mutari 'T is true the Jurisdiction of the High Court of Parliament is absolute and unlimited the King Lords and Commons are in themselves uncontroulable by any power upon Earth But in imitation of the great Creator and Governor of the whole World they have been pleas'd to set such Rules and Bounds to their own proceedings as they in their great Wisdom have thought just and convenient and most consistent with the common safety of the people Hence it is that we find the Parliament in all Ages very cautious of introducing new Presidents in the ways and methods of Raising of Money Hence it is that we may observe how very careful our wise Predecessors have been in passing any Bill of Attainder and whenever we meet with such an extraordinary Bill we shall generally find that the same was passed in a Case of Necessity and upon some eminent and particular person who had been instrumental in some high station towards the Subversion of the Government and whose interest and power was above the Authority of the ordinary Courts of Justice as against my Lord Strafford and the Duke of Monmouth and such like persons and yet in the former the Parliament was so very cautious as to Enact That the same should never be made use of for a president for the future But in all Ages and Histories we can never read an Instance of an Act of Parliament to attaint a number of Men of Inferior station and subject to the ordinary Methods and Rules of Law the Reason of which is very plain for that such Presidents are of dangerous Consequence and not consistent with the common Safety of the people of England Salus populi Suprema Lex The end of all Government consists in a general Security of the Lives Liberties and properties of the Subject And in every Government where the Laws and Methods of the Supreme Courts are most strict and regular for the common Safety those Laws and Methods are esteem'd as the best and that Nation as the most happy in the World. God be praised this Kingdom doth enjoy the happiness of the best Constitution in the World which we ought to value the more because so lately retriev'd by the wonderful hand of providence from imminent Destruction But amongst other Laws and Methods observ'd in this Nation the people of England have always valued this That in all the various Revolutions of the Government the general pardon of one prince tho' but King de Facto and not de Jure hath ever been observ'd in the next Revolution for otherwise no Man living could be safe but that one time or other he might be executed for a Traytor or his Estate forfeited and his Blood corrupted by a Bill of Attainder 'T is true we have seen a pardon disputed in parliament against an Impeachment of the House of Commons and in the Case of a prime Minister of State but the Law of England is grounded upon Reason which in such a Case is singular and in a manner Lex Necessitatis for such persons are supposed to command the Br●ad Seal and to be able to obtain a pardon when they please And whereas it is a Maxim of Law That the King can do no Wrong the same do's imply That his Ministers may do wrong and may be punish'd for it but that might not be in case a pardon should be valid in such a Case against the impeachment of the Commons of England The King might do wrong if his Ministers might do it by his assurance of such a pardon so that the common safety of the people which is the Supreme Law that governs all the rest do's require that such a pardon in such particular Instances should not be of any Force in Law And this will be the Case of the late Lord Chancellor some of the Judges and other evil Ministers of State. But Cessante ratione Legis Cessat Lex where providence has thrown a pardon upon a Number of Men subject to the ordinary Courts of Justice and the same is allowed every Term in the Courts of Westminster Hall and all other Courts within this Kingdom when Felons and other Notorious Offe●ders have been discharged upon it then it is very extraordinary to see the same at length defeated and a Bill of Attainder executed upon several thousand Families How can such a president as this consist with the common safety of the people For if one Legal pardon may be set aside why not another The general pardon of a prince is as Legal as any other pardon by Act of parliament so far as it can by Law extend And if it should once become practicable to pass Bills of Attainder notwithstanding any Legal pardon to