Selected quad for the lemma: authority_n
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A45081
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A serious epistle to Mr. William Prynne wherein is interwoven an answer to a late book of his, the title whereof is inserted in the next leafe. By J. Hall, of Grays-Inne.
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Hall, John, 1627-1656.
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1649
(1649)
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Wing H359A; ESTC R216816
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22,967
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36
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liberty Notwithstanding they often brought Laws to make a Dictator who had an unlimited power Nor have you Reason to storme with this Parliament for voting the exclusion of part of their Members whereof your selfe were one that had concurred in dangerous and destructive pernicious Votes And now you may see how unsound your Proposition was and how utterly the State of the whole Syllogiâ—me is altered for if you will but take along with you what hath been said you will find their was an huge deal of Equivocation and Fallacy in the words of Parliament and whole Realme and therefore the whole ought thus to be conceived That by the Fundamentall Laws of the Nation what Tax is Imposed by the Câ—mmons of the Realme in a free and fâ—ll Parliament by Act of Parliament and none other is lawfull But this Tax of 90000. l. per mensem was thus Imposed Ergo it ought c. The Proposition is manifest out of what hath beeâ— said to the Assumption for the present I shall say thus much That since King and Lords are no essentiall parts of it and that they make up the customary number we have no Reason to disavow them on that Tophick some other Reason then must we search and see whither they were either lawfully called or else since their calling some act either done by themselves or others have in Law dissolved them But for the Legallity of their Assembling your self are so far from denying that you found some Arguments upon it I further justifie that they immediatly were entrusted by the people and that the Kings did put them into a course not give them Authority for if it had then must all power Immedidately flow from the King which we have deny'd and therefore though the Right of the people were at that time câ—og'd with that load there is no Reason but they might when they could shake it off and restore themselves to those Priviledges nature endowed them with And therefore they must necessarily remain anauthoritative Body after the decollation of the King as not sitting by him But it is a question according to the word of the Law whither they ever can be dissolved or no the King not being alive to dissolve them Howsoever you can distinguish a King in the abstract and concret and know that it is not his Personall presence adds any thing to them for otherwise your own books must rise up against you and all their actions since the Kings deâ—ertion will prove un-Parliamentary We must see if there be any thing that in Law dissolved them since they are in origine a lawfull Assembly and that must either be by the King themselves or some externall power By the King it must be either by some act of his and that I think you are not ready to say or by his remotion and that we have just now answered if by themselves why â—it they or shew me an Act or Ordinance of theirs why they should not if from externall â—â—rce externall force I say may violate it but cannot dissolve it since the Speaker declar'd his opinion two years agoe that nothing could dissolve this Parliament But an Act of Parliament which you cannot produce either in your own sence or mine And now we see what miracles you have perform'd how according to your manner you have esâ—oygn'd from the question for it is not the Recitall of a many Impertinâ—nt Presidents with any slavish head that has but the pâ—tience to collect may muster up to wearinesse But a right stating and deduction of things and a Generall view of the question in its whole latitude that must convince and enforce in these cases For producing authorities though it may be of excellent use in proving matter of fact or that things were so yet it is not of much concernment when matter of right or reason falls under dispute For whosoever do's rightly converse with the writings Records of former times cannot buâ— know that since a many things are spoken out of the sence and interest of the times A many things through decourse of affaires are altered from their Primitive reason a many things imperfectly related and circumstances of great light often omitted they are not at all authoritative to after times save where a cleer and undeniable analogy of reason do's apply and enforce them But least you may thinke I fraudulently elude the strength of your arguments by these generall avisos I care not much if I put them I meane the strength and heart of them for you are very fatall in setting down things at length into a Catalogue briefly overthrowing those that are not Immediatly Implicitly or perempâ—orily answered in the former pages and putting the others to no other trouble but a bare rehersall as things that carry their confutations in their bowells Your First Reason is The Parliament is dissolved by death of the King 2. Or supposing it in being yet the Lords aâ—â—ented not 3. Suppose the Commons alone coâ—ld Impose a Tax yet now the House is neither full nâ—r free if you will give every man leave to be Judge of his own liberty they can the best tell what they think of theirs anâ— they have declar'd themselves free from any feare or Restraint and certainly it is one shrewd signe of it in that they have performed that under that which you call aw which none of their Predecessors in all their pretended lâ—â—erty and fullnesse could ever atchieve and if you say they are not full and free because all their Members doe not actually sit For my part I hold them freer as being eas'd of so oppressive an humour that so long Rendred their Counsells abortive or unprosperous yet in poiâ—t of reason I see not why he should be entrusted with the liberty of a Country that is an enemy to it Or admitted into a Counsell whose ruine he is both by his iâ—terest and opinion obliged to endeavour Though the tendernesse of the Parliament is such that they Reâ—dmit all such as they can either with surety or safety and the obstinacy of the absent Gentlemen is such that they refuse to comply with the ways of providence and come into action rather suspending themselves then being suspended 4. Though it should oblige those places whose Knights Citiâ—ens Burgesses sit yet it cannot those whose c. sit not Now ouâ— of all your Presidents find me one that shall warrant this distinction for that of the writ of wast will not doe for upon the same reason the County oâ—Durâ—am or such Burroughs as have no Members to sit for them are not tyed by any act of Parliament as not consenting to it and for any thing I see the same reason should hold in those Counties or places whose Representatives should be for some unquestionable crime thrust out of the House Nay why may not this extend to absent Members But I pray Sir consider that the House of Commons must be considered as a collected body and
present so surrounded with enemys as who knows we are girt with both extremes which now begin to close and unite into one why should we dissolve any Armie of choice and brave Veterans for a sort of Raw countrie fellows that neither have the courage nor the art of fighting not to mention the just causes of distrust of them which though you indeavour to remove yet you doe nothing for you say 1. These men may enforce an Army till Doomesday as though their politick capacity took away their naturall of Dying or that things would be ever in their present insecurity 2. If they dare not trust the People why should the people trust them this I thinke is your sence for you are long and cloudy and want an expositor The strong Retort they will not follow the humour of the Râ—bble and therefore the Rabble ought to get up on the Saddle and act the bold Beauchamps upon the Common-wealth 3. The Gentlemen of England have little reason to trust this Army that have violated their Laws and say all is theirs by conquest Reader understand this in the contrary sence and Master Prinne is in the Right But he should have told where ever the Army aver'd all was theirs by conquest or if ever any private man said so and if some had said it why the integrity and actions of all shal be blasted through the vapor or Surquedry of a private Souldier Now to the second part of the same tune the second End of this Tax is for Ireland which was but at first 20000. l. now 30000 l. To this you say 1. That by Statutes c. No Freemen ought to be compelld to goe in person c. Or to pay Taxes c. without their consents in a free Parliament such an one you deny this present to be and I contrariwise affirme it and have demonstrated it and so farwell this Argument 2. Most of those Ancient forces are revolted and declared Rebells and therefore this Parliament shall not avail themselves of others in their Roomes 3. Many now pretending for Ireland hath been obstructers of its reliefe This is a strong Argument against the Legalitie of the Tax 4. The reliefe of Ireland is not now upon the first just and pious grounds 'T is false they are now just the same But to joyne with Owen Roe the Parliament have disclaim'd the actions of two brave men in that affaire Notwithstanding the prudence advantage and necessitie of it which certainly cannot but declare that they are not over affected with him and his Interest Your Fourth Reason is the coercive power and manner of Levying this Tax as though upon cases of necessitie and Imminent danger a State must want necessary reliefe because such and such a skittish person is not satisfied and if we see that many actions of private men otherwise illegall are justified by their subordination to the publike How much more must we thinke of Common-wealths themselves in whom the chiefe care and trust of preservation is reposed which how they could be endowed with know not I unlesse they had also a power to enforce those reliefs which necessity and reason of Staâ—e so usually require and therefore your First reason that they ought not to distraine is nothing since it determines not in what cases it is unlawfull to distraine and you withall take it as granted that this is an unlawfull Tax 2. For Imprisonment It hangs upon the same false supposition as the former and all you can instance who hath been imprison'd upon this Act invalid since a many Laws come accompanyed with a terror which they also intend shall seldome or never be put in execution 3. Levying of Taxes by Souldiers was judged high Treason in Strafords case as though there were not difference between a Supreame authority and a Subject a time of peace and War 4. If any person bring his Action at Law we shall be stopt by the Committee of Indemnity as though the Parliament who are so much above all ordinary proceedings of Law ought not in Justice to protect those who execute their just Commands Your Fifth Reason is The tune sticks much with you for if we have such a Tax in the first yeare of Englands declared freedome what shall we have in the second c. To this I answer Evax vah there wants a Comma to expresse Irrision and Indignation Your Sixth Is the order or newnesse of Tax is is the first you find Jmpos'd by the Commons House after the Parliament dissolved Lingua thou strikst too much upon one string Thy tedious plain-song grates my tender ears I thought this Argument had been thred bare enough to be used againe But no matter 't is your custome but certainly A man of your Imployment and speed is to be forgiven if he forget what he wrote three pages before and yet this you confirme with a not able reason as you think out of Ovids Remedio Amoris Principiis obsta c. a bu kin that may fit any fool and clog any objection whatever Your Seventh is the excessivenesse of the Tax A main objection indeed when you were to treat about its Legality but I must tell you occasions are also excessive as I told you when I answered your third Reason in which this your seventh Reason according to the usuall Caball of your writing was also involved I shall onely adde now that I wonder by what Arithmetick you Calculate 90000 pounds per mens to be half the Revenue of the Nation and by what Analogy of Reason you instance the Imposition of the Popes Legate on the English Clergy to affront an Act of Parliament concerning the whole Nation Your Eighth for I would gladly once be rid of you is the Principall Judgement of this Tax is to free us from Free quarter and you say 1. Free-quarter is illegall and you make an ample citation for it and so ought to be taken off without any compensation 'T is true but when there is a Necessity of keeping up a Souldiery whether of the two evills is to be chosen and secondly you say That they have often promis'd to take off Free quarter but still as soon as Contributions were paid there was as much free quartering as formerly and therefore because some under-Officers are negligent and some Common-souldiers rude An Act of Parliament must become invalid although it may be affirmed that the discipline of this Army is as regular and strict as can be possible and therefore it is not strange if they be not subject to such disorders as might commonly make such Companies of men both detestable or hated and yet certainly there are some among them very rare Myrmidons if that strange Tragae-Comedy of May 22. a day it seems fatall to your strong-beer and provisions be true for certainly according to your Lamentations it is as dreadfull and hideous as the breaking up of an Inchanted Castle or some new Commotion in the dolorous Cavâ— or St. Patricks Purgatory