Selected quad for the lemma: act_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A25327
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The Anatomy of a Jacobite-Tory in a dialogue between Whig and Tory : occasioned by the Act for recognizing King William and Queen Mary.
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1690
(1690)
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Wing A3053; ESTC R22595
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20,621
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38
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no Imperial Law beyond what is allowed by the Political Constitutions and could produce good Authority to prove that a King who Renounces that Power which the Law gives him ceases to be King in a legal Acceptation as much as if he should in the most formal manner resign his Crown Yet I shall make shorter work of it T. It may be you think to bring an Act of Parliament recognizing and acknowledging that their present Majesties were are and of right ought to be by the Laws of this Realm our Sovereign Leige Lord and Lady c. W. You Name but one Act when in truth there are two for the Bill of Rights in the last Parliament agrees almost in words T. Can such Recognitions alter the Right W. At least Acts of Parliament may be allowed to settle and declare the Right You know the Rule urg'd by your Advocate Third Part of the Magistracy c. Vindicated P. 2. It is a good and sure way to believe the last Judgment If this be a Rule among your Party even in Relation to the most Arbitrary Judgments of Westminster-Hall methinks it should persuade you to submit to the Judgment of the highest Authority of the Nation T. What Argument is that to one who questions the Authority of this Parliament and the Being of the last which you call a Parliament W. Whatever you think of the last I am sure this has been call'd by Writ from a King in Possession and the Laws made in such Parliaments have in all times been adjudg'd good and effectual And this Parliament has enacted That all and singular the Acts made and enacted in that which you call only a Convention were and are Laws and Statutes of the Kingdom and as such ought to be reputed taken and obey'd T. I very well understand your concern to have the Acts of the late Parliament as you call it pass for Laws for you well know unless they do you have no Parliament which can Act now But I need not urge that here since this Act of your present Parliament is unintelligible and signifies nothing for to Enact that they were Laws is neither good English nor good Sense W. You might have spar'd one of your Reflections at least for if it be not good English it will be difficult to make Sense of it without putting a meaning upon it which the English words will not bear T. However you must grant that to enact that they were Laws is not good English for to enact is to make a new Law W. As if it were improper by a new Parliamentary Consent to declare a former Law to be in force What is enacting that they were other than declaring as a Parliament that they were Or could they declare this as a Parliament without enacting T. If it were good Sense to enact for the time past it must be the declaring of the Laws to be good which past in a Parliament not call'd by Writ or due form of Law which is destructive of the Legal Constitution of this Monarchy and may be of evil and pernicious consequence to our present Government under King William and Queen Mary W. I am glad you own the Constitution of this Monarchy to be Legal and I am sure no Man who has look'd into its Ancient Constitution can think there is any weight in the Objection Such may observe that the Constitution provided for the Meetings of the Great Councils at stated times as appears by what I before observed of the Folemotes and if Writs of Summons were then in use it was only upon Emergencies happening within the time fixt by the Constitution which has likewise warranted the Assemblies and Acts of the People in many Vacancies of the Throne But it is very pleasant that you should urge the Consequences here as dangerous to the Government under Their present Majesties when you strike at the very Foundation of it and besides would have it fail for want of necessary Supplies from the People for according to you neither the last Parliament nor This nor any which can be called by Their present Majesties can be of any Authority T. Yes they may when King James and the Prince of Wales are dead but till then there can be no Parliament with power of acting for if this Parliament has none you must allow me that no other can but this Parliament could not be qualified to act till it had taken the Oaths of Allegiance and Supremacy which were altered by the last Parliament or Convention chuse you whether So that unless this and following Parliaments will take the Oaths as they were before the Alteration made since King James went away I see not how they can act W. Very fine they should under King William swear to bear Faith and true Allegiance to King James and to assist and defend all Jurisdictions Priviledges Preeminences and Authorities granted or belonging to him and to avoid all question whether any belong to him they should profess testify and declare that King James is lawful and rightful King of this Realm T. There is no help for it this must be done if they will act regularly Besides the want of Writs of Summons is our least Objection against the last reputed Parliament which gives the only Authority which this or any other under King William and Queen Mary can pretend to for the last which you will have to have been a Parliament made the supposed qualifications of future Parliaments before the Members had taken the Oaths which should qualify themselves for they altered the Oaths in the very same Act wherein they declared themselves a Parliament W. I foresaw that though you were loath to say so much you were not only for disabling Their Majesties and their Parliaments from levying Taxes or making any Laws but for denying that King William is so much as King in fact in a legal consideration T. Whatever I think I have not yet said so much W. To use the words of your old Friend Dr. W. Considerations for taking the Oaths p. 53 A due Title may be either such as according to the strict Rules of Justice bears that name as being obtain'd by due means and conferr'd without injustice or injury done to any person T. Admirably well said I am sure King James had wrong done him W. You are so transported with this that you cannot hear out what makes for you The Doctor says farther Or that may be styled a due Title which is legal or allowed of by the Law and which is conferr'd with those formalities of Law and with those usual Ceremonies and Rites which customarily are observed in the most regular Collations of Titles T. Bating what he says about conferring Titles which savours of the Republican this may not be much amiss and puts me in mind of the Objection made by our Friends that you Commonwealths-men who would have the choice of the People at least to design or mark out the Person of your King