Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	law_n	liberty_n	parliament_n	4,902	5	6.1958	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A87750	A discovery of the arbitrary, tyrannicall, and illegall actions of some of the committee of the county of Lincoln, occasioned by a charge given to the grand jury at the Quarter Sessions of the peace held at Folkingham in the county aforesaid, upon the 5 of Octob. 1646. / By Edvvard King, of Marton in the county aforesaid Esquire, Justice of the Peace for that part of the county: wherein is set forth the exorbitancy of the said committee men, who transgressed the laws, changed the ordinances, and broak the solemn vow, League and covenant; with severall warrants under their hands for the cleer and evident proof of the same.	King, Edward, of Marton, Lincolnshire.	1647 (1647)	Wing K492; Thomason E373_3; ESTC R201324	20,581	34

aforesaid propounded and nominated Colonell King for their Officer Thomas Lister replied that if any cryed a King againe he would clap them by the heels notwithstanding all which Colonell King was freely propounded and nominated and so acknowledged under the hands of some of the Deputy-Lievtenants but in regard the said Deputy-Lievtenants refused to approve and allow the choice the Countrey was not put into a posture of defence but wasted destroyed and plundered by the Enemy contrary to the just and honorable intentions of the Parliament 6. Lands in Boothby were taxed the party named in the Assessement was neither Tenant nor Occupier of the Lands who thereupon repaired to Lincolne to M. Archer and some of the Committee to acquaint them with the truth of his case after he had made it knowne to M. Archer he presently trebled the sum upon him for not payment and the Marshall being present he said take him Marshall whereupon he was constrained to pay the treble and complaining of this abuse to M. Disney one of the Committee he went and searched the booke and told him that the single Assessement was onely entred 7. Divers Assessors complaining to M. Archer and some of the Committee that M. Wincop the Sub-Commissioner for Excize refused to pay the Parliaments Assessements and had not goods whereby to be distrained were committed to prison by M. Archer untill they paid them 8. One of Heckington being much oppressed by free quarter and having forty quarters of corne taken from him complained to the Committee at Lincolne where M. Archer reviled him called him knave and in angry manner bad him give two sh●●●●● to his man to draw up a petition to the board if he had 〈◊〉 ●●●●ng to complain of And this Defendant further saith that so great were the miscarriages of the said Committee in Lincolnshire that Colonell Cromwell now Lievtenant-Generall informed the House of Commons of the same whereupon Die Luna 22. Janu. 1643. a Committee was nominated to take into consideration the miscarriages informed c. Die Lunae 29. Janu. 1643. It was resolved upon the question by the Commons House of Parliament that the Committee for Lincolnshire Informations shall have power to examine Sir Anthony Irby M. Ellis and Sir Edward Ayscough Members of this House but the troubles of the Kingdome increasing and Colonell Cromwell being commanded to his charge no proceedings were made in the same whereupon divers of the Committee-men as M. Archer M. Lister c. returned into the Countrey and being sharpened and in raged by the complaint against them imprisoned spoiled and destroyed the poore Inhabitants of the County under a faire and specious shew of executing the Ordinances of Parliament and procured by false and untrue informations notorious Delinquents to be nominated of the Committee and act with them such as Sir Richard Earle and William Godfrey who had voluntarily contributed money horse aid and assistance towards the maintenance of the Forces raised against the Parliament and are puliquely knowne to be notorious Delinquents and caused this Defendant and divers others who had served the Parliament faithfully to be disgracefully put out of all commands or employments for the publique by which means our estates became subject to and were unduly taxed by Delinquents who by the said Committees were nominated Assessors the which burthens being intollerable a humble Remonstrance subscribed with above 3000. hands of the Commons of the said County was presented to the House of Commons and Die Mercurii 6. Novem. 1644. it was Ordered that the Remonstrance be referred to the Members of the House that are of the Earle of Manche●●ers Association where the Petitioners attended many weeks and after the expence of much money and time some of the aforesaid Warrants and Informations being proved against M. Archer upon a suggestion to the House of Commons M. Archer was orderd to have thanks given him and to return into the Countrey the which was very unexpected and put the Petitioners and the whole County of Lincolne into an amazement since which time the said M. Archer Lister and some other of the Committee have continued in Lincolneshire and being Committee-men to the dishonour and scandall of the Parliament have not restrained men of unsound doctrine to preach though not ordained Ministers nor allowed for the triall of their guifts as by both Houses of Parliament was ordained have oppressed and tyrannized over the people wasted the treasure of the County and consumed the estates of Delinquents by their mis-government letting them to the Owners and Malignants abusing the Honor and Justice of Parliament the which being apparent to this Defendant by view of the Warrants and by complaint of the people who groaned and cryed out under their oppressions and were ready to dispaire in the Justice of the Parliament this Defendant according to the duty of his place did openly deliver for the Honor of the Parliament and for the quiet and satisfaction of the people a Charge to the Jury at Folkingham-Sessions in Lincolnshire to this effect MY Masters of this Jury The Charge being called to this publike service I am resolved this day to set before your eyes the wisdome piety prudence and justice of the Parliament and to let you know in all their Protestations Covenants Oaths and Declarations how tenderly they have expressed themselves for the preservation of our Religion Laws and Liberties and that done your selves and the world be Judges how sutable the actions of those have beene who contrary to their pious just intentions have suffered heresies to be openly taught amongst us and laid unsufferable burthens upon us by misusing altering and subverting the Ordinances of Parliament When we first tooke up armes in our owne just defence against the will of our Soveraigne seduced by wicked councellers it was as the Parliament solemnly protested and vowed and by Covenant ingaged us to believe for the defence of our Religion Lawes and Liberties such was their zeale to the Covenant as who is there here before me this day that was not by command ordained to take it nay who is there in the Nation if justice be executed that escapes punishment if they obstinately refuse it The Parliament in the time of greatest danger declared themselves tender of our Lawes and Liberties they laid no tax or assessement upon us untill we refused to help our selves by voluntary contributions and when they did it they assured us and did protest in the presence of the all-seeing Diety that their onely end was to provide for the publike peace and prosperitie of His Majestie and all his Realmes to preserve the Religion and Liberties of the Kingdome for being seized and devoured by a wicked party and they doubted not but to deliver us at the last if the people suffered not themselves to be deluded by false and specious shewes When they were in danger to be baffled and injured by a malignant party who had no respect to the Lawes of the Land

they excited the well-affected persons to contribute their best assistance according to the solemne Vow and Covenant and did declare that whosoever should bring in money plate horse c. should do according to their duty and that the same should not be employed upon any other occasions then the maintaining the Protestant Religion the Kings Authority and his Person our Lawes and Liberties all which the Parliament in severall Declarations prest upon us as being answerable before God for the neglect of them they wrastled earnestly for our Lawes and Liberties being assured that mens minds being made poor and base and their Liberties lost and gone they would be ready to let go their Religion also Why then should any man entertain a dishonorable thought of the Parliament who have so solemnly lifted up their hands to the high God as to feare they 'l not maintaine the Lawes of the Land but suffer an Arbitrary Government a thing every honest morall man abhors to be introduced upon us and in truth such an act as no rationall man can believe the Houses of Parliament will be guilty of who can imagine as themselves have declared that six hundred men of equall power should agree in acts of will and tyranny or that the Nobility and chief Gentry should conspire to take away the Law by which they injoy their estates are protected from acts of violence and power and differenced from the meaner sort of people For my part though my owne and others sufferings bee great in regard that hitherto the current of justice hath been obstructed by the malice of enemies and the late distractions yet I am confident the Parliament will approve themselves faithfull to the Covenant and that you and I might now obtaine justice if wee would contend for it What though some of our Egyptian task-masters compell us to make bricke without straw and beat and imprison us without fault what though they governe us by an Arbitrary and Tyrannicall Power and tread the Covenant Ordinances and Declarations of Parliament under foot insomuch that they are become like juglers knots fast and loose at the will of some men shall we therefore deale falsely and treacherously with our God and the Parliament and our selves in the Covenant and Esau-like sell our birth rights for a Messe of pottage God forbid I am assured if at this time I should aske you whether you would part with your God and Liberties or not you would answer me no but you have in a great measure parted with your God and others with a high hand have invaded your Liberties by means of your own divisions for durst any blaspheme God or prophane the Sabboth or suffer damnable Doctrines to be taught or durst the proudest subject in this Realme beat imprison and exercise a tyrannicall power over you if you would according to the Covenant adhere together that such who thus dishonour and injure the Parliament and oppresse you might be brought to condigne punishment if you will take example of a dying man I 'le tell you the story The Father lying sick upon his death-bed caused his quiver of arrowes to be brought unto him and that done sent for his Sonnes who standing about his bed he delivered the quiver of arrowes into the hands of his eldest sonne and commanded him to break them he took them and replyed Father I cannot he then delivered them to each son severally with a like command and they answered as the eldest had done he then took the quiver into his own hand and drew out an arrow and commanded his eldest son to break it who obeyed and did so he then delivered another to his second son and so to each who did as the elder Brother had done and so all the arrowes became broken I le leave the application to your selves be you wise as Serpents and innocent as Doves which if you were durst some Committee-men contrary to Law and the Ordinances by which they act put you out of your possessions by force lay arbitrary taxes upon you by their own power without any Ordinance and so destroy the property you have in your goods by taking your beefes muttons bacon corn hay c. from you and ordering souldiers to have free quarter amongst you though they collect from the Countie monies sufficient to satisfie their pay if you would enquire after justice Nota. and not cease to prosecute your complaints and grievances in a just and legall way untill they were heard and redressed * * Tho Lister left his Coulours Arms c. at Spalding upon a rumour that the Earle of Newcastle was coming into those parts The which the Defendent marched under c. durst some have betrayed your lives and estates into the enemies hand by unworthily deserting you in the time of your greatest danger and that after they had levyed vast sums upon you for your defence if you were active and stout in pursuing the Covenant and in prosecuting them for their cowardice and treachery Would any have dared to put obsolete Ordinances in execution upon you and imprisoned you for monies which should have been taxed when the Earle of Newcastles Army frightned them ruined you and possest the Country contrary to the mind of the Parliament intent of the Ordinances durst the Committee-men for the fift and twentieth part view and review you and review you again the Excise-men poll you contrary to their Ordinance and the Oath therein prescribed taking excise for the sucking children that hangs upon the Breast and for the Bullock that casually dieth under the yoake durst some of the Committee-men and Deputy-Lievtenants have denyed to put you into a posture of defence according to the Ordinance of Parliament thereby to have preserved you from ruine and plunder of the Enemies or durst at this present some of the Committee leavy a ten moneths tax upon you by colour of the Ordinances for Sir Thomas Fairfax his Army which imposeth only twenty moneths tax upon you when they have already leavyed two and twenty moneths being two moneths more then that Ordinance imposed on you besides other undue taxes of monie corn and free-quarter to boot during the selfe same moneth durst any keep the Ordinance for sequestration as a rod over their backs who are well-affected to the Parliament to compell them to beare the iron yoake of their arbitrary and exorbitant proceedings if you had not like unworthy English-men sold your selves to their bondage and slavery have you read the story how Hanun used Davids servants the text tells you he shaved off the one halfe of their beards and cut their garments in the middle even to their buttocks and sent them away the which when they told it to David he took revenge of Hanun for intreating them so vilanously All I say to you is this look about you and see whose beard is not shaven or whose garment is not cut off in the middle even by their Buttocks by these Hanuns and that

done say if you have told our Davids the Worthies of Parliament who are ignorant of it or if you have sought a legall remedy against them This day you have taken an Oath to present all things given you in charge and that without respect of Persons the Law certainely wil conquer the greater as well as the lesser offenders Justice is painted blind that she may not distinguish of persons the sword is put into the Rulers hand to execute wrath upon him that does evill and our God is a righteous Judge I may say with David the Lord never failes nor forsakes those that put their trust in him why then should that curse which God denounced against Meroz fall upon our heads I know you neither will nor desire to sell your selves your wives your sonns and your daughters into the hands of oppressors it is for those onely who love such Masters and will not go out free to go to the door-post and to let their Masters boare their ears thorough with an aul and to serve them for ever for my part being now called to this place of Justice and unexpectedly put upon this service to give the Charge I 'le never pay tithe of mint and annise and cumin and when I have done contrary to my oath and duty omit the weightier matters of the Law Judgement mercy and faith if I perish I perish I will not hold my peace whilst the Hamans of the times are working our distruction what if few or none that opposeth their arbitrary and illegall practises and complieth not with them in their crooked waies escapeth unsequestred or ruined shall I therefore feare and fly I 'le not dissemble and deal falsly with God the Parliament and you to save my life my estate c. neither will I be terrified by menaces or the injustice of malefactors I know what became of Haman who had a wicked plot to destroy the Jewes and offered ten thousand talents of silver and pretended that the people kept not the Kings Lawes our case is almost the same was not this Countrey reported by some to the Parliament to be generally Malignants and are not many who are well-affected dealt with as Malignants Nay have not some Malignants more favour then many of us It was you the Commons of this Countrey under God that upheld this Parliaments Authority here and it is for your good that they sit in Councell feare not then to maintaine your Laws and Liberties we have a just God and an honorable Parliament in whose eyes there will be no respect of Persons According to my duty I shall this day put you in minde of two things your duty towards God and your duty towards your Neighbour If you have regard to the first present all Papists Anabaptists Brownists Separatist Antinomians and Hereticks who take upon them boldness to creep into houses and lead captive silly women laden with sinnes Prophaners of the Sabboth Swearers Drunkards Fornicators Idolators Adulterers abusers of themselves with mankinde or with beast If you regard the second and desire that common right be done to all as well poor as rich without respect of Persons present such as speake irreverently of the Person of the King our undoubted Soveraigne and if any man goe about to compasse or imagine his death it 's Treason to counterfeit the great Seale the Privie Seale or money current in this Realme is Treason to kill or murther the Chancellour Treasurer Justices of the one Bench or other Justices in Eyre of Assize Oyer and Terminer in their places doing their offices is treason to levy warre against the King is treason which is to be understood against his authority in the maintenance of Lawes and Religion not his illegall will and that Malignant party who now adhere unto him to adhere unto the Kings Enemies within the Realme or without and declaring the same by some open act is treason which you ought to present All manner of Felonies you ought to present such is Sodomy Sorcery Rape Burglary Robbery Murder Manslaughter and stealth offences with force you are to present as Maimes Batteries false imprisonment assaults and menaces False imprisonment is when one is committed against Law without lawfull power Mittimus commandment Order or Warrant Offences without force you ought to present such are nusances deceipts c. Offences against the Statutes you are to present as Ale-houses unlicensed or disorderly ale-houses not observing their licence Ryots Routs and unlawfull assemblies you ought to present such as have a plague sore and wilfully and contemptuously go abroad and converse in company contrary to commandment you ought to present Bribery and Extortion you ought to present Bribery is when any person for doing his office or by colour of his office takes any fee gift reward or brocage being workers of iniquity without knowledge eating up the people as they eat bread Extortion is unlawfull exacting of any fee or reward an offence the officers of some Committees are highly guilty of if the common voice be not a lyer my Lord Cook tells us that the Collectors of fifteens were committed to prison for that they took of every Town one shilling six pence for in acquittance your selves best know what you have payd and in what manner it hath been exacted from you I have heard strange stories both of Excise-men Committee-men their Clarks and Sequestrators in this nature if they be true I should be glad to see them presented you are likewise to present perjury which is a willfull and corrupt forswearing of a mans selfe And it is twosold assert ut de praeterito sicut testes c. seu permissorium de futuro sicut Judices Justiciarii Officiarii c. if an Officer commit Extortion he is perjured because it is against his generall oath but if a Sheriffe receive a Writ unsealed as some have done this is perjury being against his expresse oath if any person indite such offences and the Jury wilfully refuse to find them the sinne is theirs and the party that indited or informed shall receive no dammage whatever some ignoramusses have out of malice divulged to the contrary You now know what are offences and I presume some of you that are of this Jury remember the offendors Imprisonments and unkind blowes are not easily forgotten Let it not then be said that you incourage wicked men let not those whose houses are full of deceit who are become great and waxen rich thorough bribery and oppression refusing to judge the cause of the fatherlesse and the right of the needy escape your presentments If false teachers be among you who privily bring in damnable heresies and your governours have exacted corn hay and money from you shall it be said in a time of Reformation that my people delight to have it so No remember your Covenant and the Oath you have now taken provoke not the Lord to anger by sparing or concealing any malefactor but be bold and of a good