Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n
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A34135
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The Common interest of king & kingdom in this confus'd conjuncture, truly stated, and to consist in the speedy calling of a free Parliament
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1688
(1688)
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Wing C5569; ESTC R20729
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6,362
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10
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The Common Interest OF KING Kingdom In this Confus'd Conjuncture Truly Stated And to consist in the Speedy Calling of A Free Parliament IT is a frequent Observation upon Polemical Debates whether they be in the Philosophical Speculations of the Schools or what 's almost the same in the Scholastick Disputes among the School-Divines That when the Disputants come to understand one another they are soon agreed This tho' but a Theorem among the Scholars may pass for a good Maxim among Politicians too and in this juncture very applicable to our present Perplexities and the Differences and Disagreements that the State lies under it has been Agreed on all hands that a Parliament can only Compose the Distractions of the People and yet some People seem as much Distracted at the Apprehension of this Parliament and perhaps for that reason have influenc'd the King so long from Calling Any This certainly was No kindness to the Crown to reduce it to those Extremities which with more Honour to it self and Safety to them it could have granted before For as Necessity in Matters of Right is said to have no Law so in respect of Favours it will have no Thanks too And this I urge only as an Error that has been observable in our late Councils which I am perswaded the Inclinations of the King would have otherwise recâ—ity'd and for which the Unhappy Advisers will hardly have reason to thank themselves On the other hand the Declaration of the Prince of Orange has no other Pretence but the Calling of this Parliament which upon the Faith of a King that ought to be esteem'd Inviolate has been 〈◊〉 to the People shall be Call'd and the difference all the â—â—â—le consisting only in this That His Majesty would willingly Call â—â—e assoon as the Prince with his Forces was retir'd out of England â—ut this Prince was unlikely to leave this England with his Forces till this â—arliament was Call'd I do with all the regard and tenderness to the Crown presume to offer That a Speedy Parliament in spight of these Pretensions of the Prince which I hope are not to attempt it is the only Expedient to Preserve it's just Rights and to pacifie the Peoples Rage I. It is a Parliament that will certainly consist of the same Loyal Persons that against so much Opposition A Resistance even to Blood plac'd this Crown upon the Head of the Prince that wears it and who I am perswaded will never suffer an Hair of That Head to fall to the Ground II. It is a Parliament that will do His Majesty more Service in this Conjuncture than those Military Men that have Deserted him by what I see ever design'd to do and instead of his Standing Army I hope he 'l have Reason to make This his Standing Parliament The First Proposition I shall thus plainly prove Those Persons that Adher'd to the Crown and its unalterable Succession are men of the best Fortunes and Estates that their Counties can afford us and who 't is known by that Interest they had in them Establisht the Throne by this their Interest they will as certainly be elected again and for ought I see the P. of O. proposes it as his Interest to have them chosen too so that here is a Common Interest agen in which we all agree if People would without passion give themselves up to understand it To these men this dreadful Declaration of the P. must be intirely submitted and he himself determin'd by it Their Order'd and Resolv'd will certainly be the Decretum Finale and as it is the higâ—â—â—â— Court from whence there is no Appeal so has the Prince obligâ— himself by Appealing to it To this can only be Objected these two things 1. That the Prince's Army may hinder the Election of these Men. 2. That he may influence their Debates when Elected That it cannot and will not do either of these will appear not only probable but plain he has no Power to regulate Corporations and must ruin the very Foundation of his Design if he pretends to it 't is a contradiction to what he declares and a Design upon the Crown which he renounces and which is his visible Interest not to Attempâ— He knows too well the Temper of those Men whom only the common Cause of Religion has made his Adherents to be no Dâ—poâ—er of Crowns and Scepters which like the King's Heart are said to bâ— only in God's Hand and who have asserted too much of a Divinâ— Right to set up now for the Doctrin of Deposing He must need know too that the offering to exclude such Men from being duly Elected would raise the just Indignation not only of these Men upon whom some will say he has most depended but of the whole Kingdom of which they make the greatest part and in all probability make a greater Defection in his Army than his Cause has done in the King 's In the next place If Elected he cannot influence their Debates He has no Ministers of State to make their Courts to the House of Commons and I am perswaded is too thrifty to allow any Pensions to purchase their Votes The Members that will be chosen will be too Wealthy for a Bribe and will no more Sell their King than they would their Country and in what concerns Succession and a Right Heir have given such proofs of their Sincerity that as it is the most ungrateful Distrust where the Descent is owing so to Contradict it is to deny a Postulate or a Piece of Demonstration And since of these Men the Parliament must consâ—â— it 's eaâ—â—e to prove that His Majesty Their Anointed cannot be touch'd and â—omâ— wiâ—h I could add they would do his Prophets no harm The 〈◊〉 tive has been Advanced by them as some think even to a 〈◊〉 as themselves find to their own damage and Danger â—o that 〈◊〉 such Members his Sacred Person as well as his just Rights must meet with the greatest Security The Second Proposition is That such a Parliament in this very Juncture will do the King more Service than any Army or his own has done The Foreign Forces that were brought into the Kingdom were not so few but what without such a Defection might have shaken the Throne I dare not say overturn'd it I shall not insist upon any Excuse or Justification of what some will call a Revolt from Allegiance others only an Asserting of Religion but take the matter as it stands we 'll suppose it once for Fact That what for foreign Troops and the Defection of his own the King's Affairs in his Army are very declining and Himself unlikely to keep the Field What is there possible left to oppose the unlimited Demands of the Prince should he extend them to Extravagancy but such a Parliament to which even a sort of Conquerors seem to submit The Nation has such an expectancy from it that it unanimously agrees to be guided by it and should it disagree with
this so Powerful Prince as certainly it will if he designs the least Altâ—â—ation of Government or any Injury to the Crown much more to the Person of the King its Resolutions would soon make him find a Force within those Walls to transcend even that he has in the Field and even those he has there as soon to forsake him This is no piecâ—â—â—â—eculation in Politicks but what the event will as certainly prove to be Matter of Fact if Futurity can have any relation to what is past if we 'll only believe with our Ears what our Eyes have seenâ— if the Relating Presidents be any probable Proof of a things possibility I can give some instances where Parliaments have helpt to oppose even the Violence of Arms which tho' they use to silence Laws such Laws at any time may here turn to flight an Army of the Aliens It was a Parliaments pure Interest with the People that had Power enough upon the Restoration of the late King to Disband all the Forces then tho' much more formidable than what are now afoot and under such an Engagement that their Oaths as well as their Interest had oblig'd all the Officers of that Army never to forsake one another or suffer themselves to be Disbanded and that when Religion was as much the cause and they had Sworn to fight the Battels of the Lord whereas the Princes Promises here supersede the pains of such a proof declare he 'll never bring it to that Extremitv but send away of his own accord all his Forreign Troops assoon as this Parliament shall be call'd and I am sure 't is his Interest to be as good as his Word For another Instance That Votes of Parliament are sometimes as good as Canon proof and it is that more modern Experience we had of their efficacy in Influencing the People upon Monmouth's Rebellion I am sure His Majesty found no little benefit then from their Sitting their Attaindure and setting so much upon his Head did not a little help to bring it in and kept numbers out that otherwise would have made his Army much more formidable and tho' the King's Forces had then the Good Luck to Defeat them yet I crave leave to observe that the Army Conquer'd by chance but the Parliament by Deliberation To this Parliament and what should endear it the more to all Men to the very same Persons that compos'd it who for the most part will certainly be return'd are all Matters on all sides agreed to be refer'd the Prince Declares for it the Lords Petition for it and the King as passionately desires for it and what then for God sake should hinder the calling for it if it be answer'd that the Evil Counsellors whom the Prince so Criminates only oppose its Sitting I will satisfie them it is not their Interest so to do they being already made so Obnoxious if they have not made themselves so will by opposing this the general desire only incense the People more make them to be believ'd Guilty of all those Crimes for which they stand accus'd some of which perhaps they are Innocent of and will have a fair opportunity when it is assembled to clear themselves from I have observ'd upon several of our Revolutions that nothing has made our Ministers of State more odious than their being thought guilty of putting off Parliaments that occasion'd the Act in Ed. 3. for their Sitting once a year at least that the Triennial in Car. 1. that at last the unhappy and Perpetual one in the same Reign that was made Matter of Impeachment in Rich. 2d's Reign that was one of the Articles that cost Strafford his Head in Car. 1 that was the Clamour of all the Discontented Party in Car. 2. And since its Sitting now is so generally desir'd and the King's Safety and the Peoples Peace seem to depend upon it the Nations resentment will certainly fall more heavy upon their Heads that are thought to have oppos'd it and aggravate those Crimes of which they only may be mistrusted insomuch that I seriously profess were I a Publick Minister that was certainly design'd for a Publick Sacrifice for the King's sake for the Peoples satisfaction and for the only Expedient to divert somewhat of that Odium I lay under I would zealously be concern'd for its Sitting tho' I were sure to suffer when it Sate Neither can I see what His Majesty can reasonably fear at present from such a Loyal Assembly's being legally conven'd they will certainly and of which I am in my Conscience perswaded resolve to retain to themselves all the Liberty of Debate since they 'll be now more than ever disingaged from any Merit they may expect from Compliance and Obedience they 'll be so far from being Influenc'd by the Prince of O. or his Army from being free that the first thing they 'll consider will be the Establishing of the King's Throne which no confidence can deny but that the Persons who will compose it have always been ready to support they 'll confirm that Establish'd Religion which the King has so often promis'd to maintain And to come to the only two tender Points that some People will think can touch the King or the Court or what has occasion'd much perhaps this Attempt of the Prince of O. and his States They 'll be the best Arbitrators in the Birth of our Prince of Wales And the greatest Opposers of the Growth of the King of France In both these Points with all submission I did ever conceive and shall now as humbly shew It is His Majesty's Interest to admit them to be Judges First he cannot have better Judges of a Royal Discent and a right Line than those that so Loyally maintain'd his own against so much Opposition and who must be as much engag'd to maintain it in his Lawful Issue as ever they did in his own Person and Blood the perpetuating of this Line and the Derivation of this Blood depends in all probability upon an Heir Male and a Prince of Walâ—s of whose Birth when once they are satisfy'd they 'll certainly be the best of Asserters To this very Parliament the Prince of O. has fairly even in this very Point Appeal'd and so by his own Act concluded himself So that if this Legitimacy which he Questions should by them be affirm'd he must and will acquiesce and His Majesty can desire nothing more than such an affirmation now there are probable reasons to induce us to believe that this Parliament may affirm this Son to be his which the King with a great many Witnesses has aver'd to be His own No Man can Condemn the Prince of O. for doubting it since it concerns himself and especially his Consort so near but it may be observ'd That when his Declaration was penn'd as himself there says tho' many People doubted of the Queen's Bigness and the Birth of the Child there was not any one thing done to satisfie them or to put an end