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A48453 As you were, or, The Lord General Cromwel and the grand officers of the armie their remembrancer wherein as in a glass they may see the faces of their soules spotted with apostacy, ambitious breach of promise, and hocus-pocus-juggleing with the honest soldiers and the rest of the free-people of England : to the end that haveing seene their deformed and fearfull visage, they may be returning to doe their first pretended workes, wipe of their spots, mend their deformities & regaine their lost credit : in a word, save themselves and the gaspeing libertyes of the surprized and enslaved English nation : least enlargement and deliverance arise to the English from another place, but they and their fathers house shall be destroyed : Ester 4. and 14. : all which is contained in a letter directed to the Lord Generall Cromwel, to be communicated to the grandees of his army / written by L. Colonel John Libvrne May 1652 ... Lilburne, John, 1614?-1657. 1652 (1652) Wing L2084; ESTC R1524 49,801 36

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God should suffer the Prince to follow the advice conteined in the three foresaid pages that in one three or 4 moneths after he would not give SIXE PENCE for all the Parliaments Interest in England And least I should faile of my purpose in maintaineing the peace of mine owne Conscience and my Interest among my foresaid honest Freinds in England I have for many yeares together and still doe give unto my selfe this mot to „ that honesty is the best Policy „ as being the truest most lasting and successfull ïn the world all things being truly and duly weighed and confidered from first to last In the maintaining of which I have for many yeares walked and doe resolve by the assistance of God allmighty so to doe to my dieing day all though all the sorrowes of the world should be my portion therfore And therfore it is that I have fixed my resolution „ to be irrevocably „ one of those that doe and shall hold forth such a thing to the people of England as is truly able to take of all their jealousies and feares from them that if I should get up with my Interest I intend by my selfe or by my Interest to doe that with them which the forementioned persons did when they had obteined their ends to get uppermost which was to ride the people and abuse them rather worse then those that were before them whom they had pulld downe and walke in larger way ies of wickednes then their predecessors as may be clearly seen in ABSALOM and JEHU for which God cut them short as is verified by 2 Sam 15 10 11 12 14 23. and Chap. 16 20 21. and Chap. 17. 1 2 18 23 26. and 2 Kings 10 29 30 31 32. and „ who ever shall read but the Parliaments first Remonstrance „ dated December 1641 „ printed in the first part of the booke of their declarations „ page 3 4 5 c. „ and their declaration of the 19 of May 1642 page 207 214. and their declaration of the 26 of May 1642 page 263 264 267 270. and their declaration of August 1642 page 491 492 494 496 and their Reply to the Kings answer of theirs of the 26 of May 1642 page 693. and read also their said booke page 36 342 656 660 690 and their declarations of the 6 of May 1643 and of the 17 of April 1646 in the 2 de part of the booke of their declarations „ fol 95 879 and you shall clearly find they held forth most glorious expressions to the People of regaining their „ lost Lawes liberties and freedomes „ as that which was not only their principal aime but also as that which was their obliged duty and say they „ woe be to us „ if we discharge not our duty in order to which they adjure and call out upon all those that have any sense of piety honour or compassion to come in and helpe a distressed state But they walkeing in too nigh an affinity „ to Absaloms and Iehues „ latter steps the Army layes seige unto them and tells them soundly and particularly of it and holds forth in effect the same things which they had done before them but with a great deale of more lustre and glorie then they had done As appeares by the Booke of the Armies declarations page 23 25 26 35 37 39 42 43 44. Which pages being red with seriousnes will make it clearly appeare that their words were smoother then oile nay dropped like the hony combe into the mouths of the hungry oppressed People How were their words seemingly bedewed with teares of pitty and compassion to the distressed people how did they represent their hearts divided and rent in sunder with heareing the doleful cryes and beholding the bloodie teares of the oppressed what professed gallant resolutions did the seeming deepe impressions that the peoples miseries had made upon their hearts beget in them how did they appearingly slight their estates and the injoyment of their nearest relations yea and of their dearest blood in comparison of the Peoples liberties what gallant principles of freedome and righteousnes did they then profess how lowd were their cries against all arbitrary powers whatsoever and all seekers of private and particular Interests how positive and absolute were they in their resolutions to have all the Liberties of the Nation cleared and secured how did they seeme impatient of any delaies or protraction of time What Valiant Champions did these men appeare to bee for Englands Freedome how did old English valour and undaunted courage to oppose the stoutest enemies of the Public Interest and advantage sparkle forth in them upon June 4 5 1647. When they boldly engaged in opposition to the Parliament and their special orders not to disband nor to divide nor suffer themselves to be disbanded or divided untill they had security that the free borne people of England should not be subject to the like injury oppression and abuse as had bin lately attempted to be exercised upon them Did ever the most faithfull patriots to the most noble Nation of England pass a larger engagement to their Countrie then this who could have forborne to conclude that these would have bin our worthy Ehuds of whose valour and bravery for his Country you may read in Judges the 3.12 13 14 c. that would have peirced the bowells of every oppressour and destroyer of England who could upon the sight of this engagement but imagin that these would never have given themselves rest untill they had seen the top-stone laid in the beautyous Fabric of Englands native Freedome did they not oblige themselves in this ingagement to bid defiance to every oppressor and abuser of the People in Parliament Committees amongst Iudges or Lawyers and all others whatsoever were they not hereby bound to stand like the Jewes with good Nehemiah with their swords in their hands not only untill Englands breaches were repaired but also untill the strongest possible iron gates were composed and set up to defend the Conscientious Persons Liberties and Estates of all English men from oppressors indeed could any engage to procure more perfect Freedome for the People then they did in this engagement can more be said then this that they would have security that the People should not be subjest to the like injuries or abuses as had bin attempted All men know there had bin attempts to offer all kinds and degrees of wrong and abuse to the people and therfore they promised and engaged to secure them for the future from them all Secondly how were the purest and most exact principles of Freedome and of righteousnes professed by these to be the only grounds upon which they thus engaged even against the Parliament The undefiled Law of Nature was declared to be the rule of their proceedings In their Declaration of June 14 1647. the establishment of common and equall right and Freedome to the whole Nation was promised should be their Study all purposes and designes to advance
knave to be a spy at Middelborow who now is forced to fly to Westminster for Shelter and render him uncapable to receive any more bills of exchange from Mr. Thomas Scot for the paying him his sallery to inable him to drinke drunke night and day to feast whore it swear rant it and domineer rather like a bedlam then a man or to send one of his sluts over to give Mr. Scot if he want it a tast of hir which kind of flesh is notoriously at Westminster knowne he loves as well as Oxford doth as well as to convey his intelligence over and to solicet him if he ly not in sicke of the French Pox to procure him a passe to come over and to meet him at Graves-end or Dover c. and to discourse with him for setling all his affairs And yet my Lord this is not all but that which is the highest of aggrevations is that all this that is done unto me and principally by your selfe is inflicted upon me without I doe avow it and upon my life dare ingage to make it good all shaddow of ground cause provocation or cullour of law or Justice For alas my Lord I was at most upon your owne principles but an accessarie and not principal And to inflict a higher and greater punishment upon me then upon Mr. Primat the principall and now to set him at liberty from his imprisonment and to keepe me still in my banishment and under the lash of my foresaid extraordinary great fine where is in England either the Law equity or justice to avow and warrant it And my LORD admit Mr. Primates Petition about which I am banished had bin all false and not proved which yet I avow to the contrary and admit it conteines in it so high things against Sr. ARTHVR HASELRIGE as if proved would have occasioned as great a sentence to him as you have given to me and therefore per legem talionis you have done by me as you have done Truly MY LORD I will joyne yssue with you there if that be your ground as by some of your members while I was in England I understood it was one of your principallest Yet remember you say in your Declarations that the Law of England is the Inheritance and birth-right of the MEANEST MAN therof as well as of the GREATEST and that you are bound in duty and conscience both to God and Man to dispense it EQUALLY to all WITHOUT FAVOUR OR AFFECTION and therfore be but just to me my Lord and I have done with you For your Attorney Generall PRIDEAUX that unbrac't Drum that makes a great sound noyse without any tune or harmony accused INDICTED me of high-treason and had 〈◊〉 tryed before about 40 judges at Guildhall London in October 1649 for my life therefore and if he had proved it against me I must have died therfore as a traytor and have forfeited all my estate And therfore by your owne rule and your owne Law of proceedings with me in my present case because he accused me could not prove it „ he ought to be hanged therefore and to forfeit 4 parts of 7 of his estate to me „ which when I was at London by common repute he was judged by his Land Postmaster-Generall-ship attorney Generall-ship and the most vast fees that he being a Parliament man OF AN UNACCOUNTABLE PARLIAMENT and thereby so great takes to plead all manner of base Causes to the threatening OUT FACEING overaweing both JUDGES Iurors and Lawyers to have incomeing thereby annually about twenty thousand pounds Although a few yeares agoe since this eternall Parliaments first sitting I could never heare he was judged to be worth two hundred Pounds per annum Now I say my Lord performe this to me I will pay you my seven-thousand-pound fine without any more to doe But besides remember also were not you My Lord at Darby-house in Cheynel-row with the Councel of State upon the 28 of March 1649 the cheife man to mannage an accusation of high-treason against me and got me committed therefore The Narrative of which in breife is conteined in the 8 9 10 11 12 pages of the second edition of the Picture of the Councel of State printed at London 1649. and yet when it came to the yssue there could never one word of it be proved all though I lay prisoner in the Tower almost a yeare there upon and therfore by your owne rule and law of proceedings with me ought not you your selfe my Lord to be HANGED therefore and to forfeit 4 parts of seven of your great estate to me therefore For shame my LORD once in your life learne to be just and remember what you said against Mr. Herbert the Kings attorney Generall in the Case of the LORD KIMBOLTON and the 5 MEMBERS 1 part of the booke of the Parliaments Declarations page 52 53 101 123 201 203 208 210 278 459 660 and give me not too much cause to picture-draw you so that all the artificial or pensil-limners in the world SHALL NOT BE ABLE TO COMPARE WITH IT You know I have a quick sharpe pen My Lord and therefore give me not cause to challenge you or any of your Champions to draw into a short Epitomy or into a larger charge all that evill that in your owne thoughts you can colourably imagine the Buyshops Starr-chamber Counsell-table High-commission or any persons therein were guilty of nay or any persons since their downe-fall by you executed for the highest of treasons tyrannyes oppressions were guilty of yet comparatis comparandis for me to aver that you outstrip them all and in particulars to undertake upon my life to make it good and that those sayings of God by the Prophet Ezekiel chap 16 48 51 52 mentioned on the Title-page may as truly and as justly be verified of you as they were of Iudah or Ierusalem that you have outstrip't comparatis comparandis all those whome you your selfe count the most wicked men that you have pulled downe „ and thereby have done in actions as much as in you lies to justifie all their wickednes „ that in words you have condemned And besides my Lord what faith what truth what honesty can be imagined to be in that man or that generation of men that by a constant series of his or their actions visiby and apparently declare he or they hold it lawfull to commit any manner of wickednes basenes whatsoever that can be named under the sunn for the accomplishment of his or their proposed end whether in it selfe it be wicked or righteous yea to cheat breake faith with and murther the nighest relations a man can converse with when they cross his ends Yea for that end onely to raise warrs upon warrs to the devastation of Kingdomes Nations The gulled cheated abused peoples lives really truly being of no more value with him or them then so many dead doggs serving him or them for no
other end but to be his foote-steps to climbe up to the top of absolute and arbitrary Power pretended Authority or unlimited unbounded Kingship And that you my Lord particularly are the man that is guiltie of all this in my judgement and apprehension your owne quondam darling „ and heart-indeared heart secret-knowing Freind the Major of your owne Regiment of Horse Robert Huntington „ in his printed impeachment of you delivered to both house of Parliament against you the 2 of August 1648 hath punctually declared it which impeachment is reprinted in the 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 pages of that Booke for makeing of which I was arraigned for a Traitor at Guildhall October 1649 being intituled An Impeachment of high-Treason against Oliver Cromwell c. and for which Impeachment of his I could never heare that you endeavoured so much as publicly to question him therfore or to put forth a vindication against it Which may well get beleife in un-biased men that you acknowledge all that he hath there said against you to be true And as much as I have said of him and his Impeachment may be said of the Authors of those thre notable bookes and of the bookes themselves called PUTNEY-PROIECTS The LEVELLERS vindicated being the stated case of the late TREACHEROUSLY defeated BVRFORD troopes and the HVE-AND-CRIE of the young men apprentises of London after the lost fundamentall laws liberties of England Vnto which three bookes a great many mens names are set as the avowers justifiers of them and to my knowledge the most of their names are true for I particularly know the most of the men my selfe yet I could never heare that any one of them was so much as questioned for decyfering you there as they have done Although to my knowledge you know some of the men as well as I doe and might severall times since those bookes were writ published as easily have laid your hands upon them to have called them to an account therefore as I can take up the pen inke that I write here with I say laying the forementioned Bookes or discourses together with what followes in this discourse page 13 14 15 to 24 compareing them with your practise I thinke they sufficiently prove you to be the man above mentioned that walks by the Principles of ATHEISME MACHIAVELLSME and holds it lawful to doe any thing in the world that comes in your way that will most serve your turne for the accomplishment of your owne ends be they never so bloodie wicked or tyrannicall But MY LORD you have forced me when I was quiet to come upon the stage againe much against my will and studious indeavours And yet when I did I fairely sought peace with you and sent you in writeing my propositions for peace grounded only upon your owne promises neglecting to insist upon any thing of concernement to my selfe and gave you or your true Freind Mr. William Kiffen to whom I sent it twentie one dayes to returne me an answer at least of his receit thereof all which appeares in the following discourse page 29 30 31. But heareing nothing at all from him and feareing that it is intecepted I am forced to print it The Copie whereof with some small additions thus followeth For my loveing Freind Mr. WILLIAM KIFFIN merchant at his House in Dukes-place London these with hast post hast to be communicated to his Excellency the Lord Generall Cromwell c. Mr. KIFFIN YOu and I have bin long acquainted ād have had much converse together although you were in my late troubles before my triall at GVILD-HALL my adversary in print yet not lookeing upon you by your opposition as a man that out of malice designedly laboured to take away my life but rather at a man surprised in your understanding and thereby induced to beleive the plausible arguments of my pretended Religious adversaries as though by my contest with them an undeniable gap was opened to let in them that are commonly called the public adversaries to devoure all and so were against the then season as unfit and dangerous in your apprehension but not against the things themselves held forth by me and my Camerades which you judged just and righteous and sit to be established in due time when that feare was over In which regard that opposition of yours to me I judged most fit to be buryed in the grave and not with any disgust of mind to be remembred And therfore it is that of late some part of that former familiarity that was betwixt us hath bin renewed and since my banishment I find by several Letters from my wife that you have bin very civil and respectfull to her for which I returne you many AND MY HE ARTIEST thankes ONE OF HER LETTERS dated the 2. of Feb last I have answered in print and caused that answer to be published here as well in DVTCH as ENGLISH which I hope before the date herof is reprinted at London againe since which I have received two Letters more from her the maine substance of both of which are to presume with all the mournfull arguments that possibly thee can use to be quiet and to abstaine from printing and Withall she tells me it is the advice of all my Freindes in generall who come continually to her to gather to write to me about it But haveing in my aforesaid printed Epistle given her undeniable reasons WHY I AM COMPELLED TO PRINT which I hope with my former Letters to her will so qualifie and season her Spirit that I may presume now that both my feares are over which were first that I was afraid through sorrow about me and her owne distressed condition as she calls it the should either miscarry of her childe or else secondly that she should be overwhelmed with greife and so her burthen should become too heavie for her to beare But hopeing that both of these dangers are over I must now confess unto you that that little trouble which used formerly to accompany me thorough the hopes hereof is as good as at an end And therfore to you shall I judge it convenient for me and 1 hope no way mischevous to your selfe to answer freindly and resolutely some other clauses in her latter Letters and some clauses in other Letters of some of my Freindes which I have lately received and then positively to tell you without deceit or flattery my future resolutions by the assistance of God on purpose because I know you are great with the GENERALL and I thinke with the NOW LORD-DEPVTY OF YRELAND LAMBERT but I am sure of it with LENTENANT-GENERALL FLEETWOOD and MAIOR-GENERALL HARRISON that you may shew this Letter unto them all being the great sword men of England that so they may lay their heads together obout it if they please and then let God worke his pleasure In a large Letter to my wise of the 13 of February last I told her and
maintaine the English peoples Lawes and liberties as being not able nor judgeing his conquest so good just and secure a plea to hold his new-gat crowne by „ as an after mutuall compact or Agreement with the People or their representatives „ over whom he was to rule And therfore as the Lord Cooke in the foresaid Chapter page the 12 declares „ a Parliament or a kind of one was held even in the Conquerors time „ See also to this purpoose the Lawbooke of the 21 of Edward the 3 solio the 60 and „ the first part of the Lord Cookes Institutes „ lib 2. Chap. 10. Section 164. fol 110. a. and came to be more Frequently used in his Successors time „ yea even to be once in two yeares in Edward the 1 or 2 his time „ at which notwithstanding the people then grumbled as being an absolute abridgement of their ancient and undoubted libertie ‚ to meet more frequently in their nationall and public assemblies „ to treat and conclude of things for their weale better being The want of which in ancient time ‚ lost the Island of Brittanie to the Romans „ as the said Lord Cooke declares in the said 4 part of his Institutes folio 9 out of Tacitus in the life of Agricola page 306. whereupon it was enacted in full Parliament in Edward the third his time that the King who was the Peoples Officer of trust „ should assemble call the People together in Parliament once every yeare or oftner if need required „ as appeares by the statute of the 4 of Edward the 3 Chapter the 14. But because this was not constantly used by that King but that sometimes he made intervalls of three or sower yeares betwixt Parliament Parliament which was still a diminution of the very Soule and Life of all the Peoples liberties vide ●icet Frequent Often new Parliaments therfore in the 36 yeare of his raigne annuall Parliaments are provided In these very words Item for maintenance of the said articles statutes and redress of divers mischeifs greivances whieh daily happen a Parliament shall be holden every yeare as another time was ordained by a statute of the fourth of Edward the third Chapter the 14. and though in after ages it hath many times bin otherwise practised yet the statutes being still in force the parliaments answer to the King in the booke of Declarations pag 709 holds good that the practise is noe argument against the right But the late King Charles exceedingly faileing to put these Lawes in execution in the Frequent calling of Parliaments also when he had called them dissolved them at his pleasure so made them useles to the Nation Both which the Parliament most notably declared was against his trust in their Declaration of November the 2 1642. first part of the booke of their Declarations page 70 702 709 c. of which the Parliament most bitterly complained in their first Remonstrance Booke of Declarations Part 1 page 5 6 11 in page 10 11 ibidem they positively declare that his destroying of those two grand Freedomes of the People videlicet frequent new successive Parliaments free debates therein had corrupted and distempered the whole frame government of the Nation brought in nothing but destruction waies of tyranny For the preventing of which for the future the Parliament got an Act to pass in the 16 yeare of the late King which was the first yeare of this long-lived Parliament to confirme every tittle of the two fore mentioned acts for annuall Parliaments further in that act they say thus that whereas it is by experience found that the not holding of Parliaments according to the two forementioned acts hath produced sundry great mischeifes inconveniencyes to the Kings Majesty the Church comment weale for the prevention of the like mischeifs inconveniencyes for the time to come be it enacted by the Kings most excellent Majesty with the consent of the Lords Spirituall and temporall and the Commons in this present Parliament assembled that the said last Forementioned Lawes statutes be from henceforth duly keps and observed And most excellent worthy to be written in Letters of gold were and are those arguments that the Lord George Digby though since a Cavalier used in his public speech in the house of Commons January 19 1640 at and for the passing of the last forementioned Law which speech of his is recorded in a printed booke called speeches passages of Parliament page 12 13 to page 21. And hath not the PRESENT GENERALL in his verball expressions confirmed all these things as most righteous and just for was it not hee or his sonn in law IRETON lately deceased that drew that excellent declaration of the Army dated Iune the 14 1647 printed and published in the booke of their Declarations page 41 42 43 where they positively declare that they were so farr from designeing or complying to have an arbitary power fixed or setled for continuance in any persons whatsoever as that say they if we might be sure to obteine it we cannot wish to have it so in the persons of any whom we could most confide in or who should appeare most of our owne opinions and principles or whom we might have most personal assurance of or Interest in but we doe shall much rather wish that the authority of this Nation in Parliaments rightly constituted that is „ freely equally successively chosen „ according to their originall intention may ever stand have its course therfore we shall applie our selves cheifly to such things as by haveing Parliaments settled in such a right constitution may give most hopes of justice righteousnes to flow downe equally to all in that its ancient channel without any overtures tending either to overthrow that foundation of order government in this Kingdome or to engross that power for perpetuity into the hands of any particular persons or partie whatsoever And for that purpose though as we have found it doubted by many men minding sincerely the public good but not weighing so sully all consequences of things it may and is not unlike to prove that upon the ending of this Parliamēt the election of a new the Constitution of succeeding Parliaments as to the persons elected may prove for the worse many waies yet since neither in the present purgeing of this Parliament nor in the Election of new we cannot promise to our selves or the Kingdome an assurance of justice or other positive good from the hands of men but those who for the present appeare most righteous most for common good „ haveing an unlimited power fixed in them for life or pleasure „ in time may become corrupt or settle into parties or factions „ or on the other side in case of new Elections those that should so succeed may prove as bad or worse then the former „ We therfore humbly conceive that „