Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	authority_n	king_n	parliament_n	1,836	5	6.6012	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A89919	A project for an equitable and lasting peace. Designed in the year 1643. when the affairs stood in ballance before the second coming of the Scots into this kingdom, from a desire to have kept them out then. With a disquisition how the said project may now be reduced to fit the present conjuncture of affairs, in a letter sent to divers prudent persons of all sorts. For preventing the Scots bringing an army into England a third time, or making themselves umpires of our affaires. By a cordiall agreement of the King, Parliament, City, Army, and of all the people in this kingdome among our selves.	Nethersole, Francis, Sir, 1587-1659.; England and Wales, Army.	1648 (1648)	Wing N498; Thomason E459_16; ESTC R203019; ESTC R205087	17,014	32

A PROJECT For an Equitable and lasting PEACE Designed in the year 1643. when the affairs stood in ballance before the second coming of the Scots into this Kingdom from a desire to have kept them out then WITH A Disquisition how the said Project may now be reduced to fit the present conjuncture of affairs In a Letter sent to divers prudent persons of all sorts For preventing the Scots bringing an Army into Enland a third time or making themselves Umpires of our affaires By a cordiall Agreement of the King Parliament City Army and of all the people of this kingdome among our selves Pro me praesente Senatus hominumque praeteria viginti millia vestem mutaverunt Quum omnes boni non recusarent quin vel pro me vel mecum perirent armis decertare pro mea salute nolui quod vincere vinci luctuosum reip fore putavi Cicero in Orat. ad Quirit post Redit Saluberimum est Reip. si magna Imperia diuturna non sint ut temporis modus imponatur quibus Juris non potest Tit. Liv. Printed in the yeare 1648. A LETTER sent to divers prudent Persons of all sorts SIR I Humbly pray you to take the paines to peruse first the Declaration of the Lords and Commons assembled in Parliament of the fourth and his Majesties of the twelfth of August 1642. After them the considerations dedicated to the Lord Major and Aldermen of the City in the yeare 1642. Comparing the second sheet therof with a part of the Declaration of the Army of the 14. of June 1647. from those words But because neither the granting of this alone c. to these we desire that the right and freedome of the people to represent c. And in the last place the Project I send you with this built upon the same foundation which was first layed in the Considerations and which the army once thought firme enough to support their hops of Common and equall right and freedome to themselves and to all the freeborn people of this Land at as much leisure as you may obtaine from your many other great occasions and with as much attention as you may think fit to bestow upon a piece of no more worth bearing these thoughts in your minde while you are reading it 1. Whether it had not been honorable for the King and his Party safe for the Parliament and theirs and equitable for both to have made a Peace upon the termes therin designed at the time of the writing thereof which was upon the first newes of the Scots resolution to come into Enland the second time and from a desire to have kept them out then by agreeing among our selves 2. Whether under favour and with all humblenesse be it written it had not been more conducible to the Reformation and establishment of Religion in the Kingdomes of England and Ireland in Doctrine Worship Discipline and Government according to the Word of God which ought to be the onely rule thereof and to the extirpation of Popery Superstition Haeresie Schisme Prophanenesse and whatsoever may be found contrary to found Doctrine and the power of godlinesse And to the preservation and defence of the Kings Majesties person and authority of the rights and liberties of the Parliament of England and the liberties and publique weale of this Kingdome for the King and all the subjects thereof at that time to have come to a Peace among themselves upon the said designed termes than to have continued the Warre by calling in strangers to their respective assistance upon the terms practised by one side and in probability designed by the other 3. Whether it may not be thought more expedient for the two Houses of the Parliament of England and the whole people thereof to come to an Agreement with his Majesty upon the same terms at this time notwithstanding the great alteration of affaires in their favour since the Project was designed than either to ingage in a new War against the Scots with such a division among Englishmen as will be an indubitable consequent if not an antecedent therof or to admit them to be Vmpires in the affairs of England as they will become if the differences between his Majesty and his English Subjects should by Gods mercy come to an Accommodation upon their third as those between his Majesty and the Scots did upon their first bringing an Army into this Kingdome 4. Whether any and what exception can be taken to the justice or equitablenesse of any particular Article of the Project even at this time without having respect to the practicablenesse thereof whereof perhaps there may be lesse doubt ere long though I yet see no other sufficient ground for it but this that methinks the tide is turning Such are the revolutions of humane affairs And lastly in case any of the said Articles shall be judged though neither unjust nor unequall yet impracticable as things now stand whether the said Project may not be reduced to fit the present conjuncture of affaires with some additions abatements or alterations and what alterations abatements or additions may be found just and reasonable for the two Houses of Parliament to insist upon and for his Majesty to yeeld unto in respect of the change and present state of affairs Secondly to passe your censure and let me know your sense upon all the foresaid particulars with the freedome of a freeman of this Kingdome for whom I conceive it to be lawfull with due submission to those in Authority to conferre together in a private way about the best meanes to recover and maintaine a lasting Peace in the Realm especially at a time when there is cause of feare that it may be yet longer discontinued by the coming in of strangers in Armes which is once more our condition at the present And in particular How you conceive the Militia may be setled so as may bee honourable for the King and yet safe for his Parliament and Kingdome of England according as is designed in the Project Vpon the receipt of which favour from you I do hereby engage my selfe to make you a returne of my thoughts upon the fifth and last Article and by way of Advance do now let you know that to the three first I should make a short Answer in the Affirmative to the fourth in the Negative In the last place I do here promise you to keep your Answer to my selfe only if you shall so require me or if I shal publish it with your leave yet never to discover your name if you shall command me to conceale it In exchange of which promise I must crave one from you to suffer no Copie to be taken in writing nor any new Impression to be made either of the Project or of this Letter untill I may finde the season opportune for the Publication of them which I do not as yet And for that reason though I send you them in Print to ease the trouble of transcribing I have made

to be chosen the main thing to be intended in this case and beyond which humane providence cannot reach to any assurance of possitive good seems to be this viz to provide that however unjust or corrupt the persons of Parliament men in present or future may prove or what ever ill they may do to particular parties or to the whole in particular things during their respective termes or periods yet they shall not have the temptation or advantage of an unlimited power fixt in them during their own pleasures wherby to perpetuate injustice or oppression upon any without end or remedy or to advance or uphold any one particular party faction or interest whatsoever to the oppression or prejudice of the Community and the inslaving of the kingdom unto al posterity but that the people may have an equall hope or possibility if they have made an ill choice at one time to mend it in another and the Members of the House themselves may be in a capacity to taste of subjection as well as rule and may be inclined to consider of other mens cases as what may come to be their own This we speak of in relation to the House of Commons as being intrusted on the peoples behalfe for their interest in that great and supreme power of the Common-wealth viz. the Legislative power with the power of finall judgement which being in its own nature so arbitrary and in a manner unlimited unlesse in point of time is most unfit and dangerous as the peoples interest to be fixt in the persons of the same men during life or their own pleasures Neither by the originall constitution of this state was it or ought it to continue so nor does it where-ever it is and continues so render that State any better then a Tyranny or the people subjected to it any better then Vassals But in all States where there is any face of common freedome and particularly in this State of England as is most evident both by many positive laws and ancient constant custome the people have a right to new and successive elections unto that great and supreme trust at certain periods of time which is so essentiall and fundamentall to their freedom as it cannot or ought not to be denied them or withholden from them without which the House of Commons is of very little concernment to the interest of the Commons of England Yet in this we would not be misunderstood in the least to blame those Worthies of both Houses whose zeale to vindicate the Liberties of this Nation did procure that Act for Continuance of this Parliament whereby it was secured from being dissolved at the Kings pleasure as former Parliaments had been as reduced to such a certainty as might inable them the better to assert and vindicate the liberties of this Nation immediately before so highly invaded and then also so much indangered And this we take to be the principall ends and grounds for which in that exigency of time and affairs it was procured to which we acknowledge it hath happily been made use of but we cannot think it was by those Worthies intended or ought to be made use of to the perpetuating of that supreme trust and power in the persons of any during their own pleasures or to the debarring of the people from their right of elections totally now when those dangers or exigencies were past and the affairs and safety of the Common-wealth would admit of such a change Having thus cleared our grounds and intentions as we hope from all scruples and mis-understandings in what follows we shall proceed further to propose what we humbly desire for the setling and securing of our own and the kingdoms rights and liberties through the blessing of God to posterity And therefore upon all the grounds premised we further humbly desire as followeth 3. That some determinate period of time may be set for the continuance of this and future Parliaments beyond which none shall continue and upon which new Writs may of course issue out and new elections successively take place according to the intent of the Bill for Trienniall Parliaments And herein we would not be mis-understood to desire a present or sudden dissolution of this Parliament but only as is exprest before that some certain period may be set for the determining of it so as it may not remain as now continuable for ever or during the pleasure of the present Members and we should desire that the period to be now set for ending this Parliament may be such as may give sufficient time for provision of what is wanting and necessary to be passed in point of just reformation and for further securing the rights and liberties and settling the peace of the kingdom In order to which we further humbly offer 4. That secure provision may be made for the continuance of future Parliaments so that they may not be adjournable or dissolvable at the Kings pleasure or any other wayes then by their own consent during their respective periods but at those periods each Parliament to determine of course as before This we desire may be now provided for if it may be so as to put it out of al dispute for future though we think of right it ought not to have been otherwise before ☞ And thus a firme foundation being laid in the authority and constitution of Parliaments for the hopes at least of common and equal-right and freedom to our selves and all the free-born people of this land we shall hereby for our parts freely and cheerfully commit our stock or share of interest in this kingdome into this common bottome of Parliaments And though it m●y for our particulars go ill with us in one voyage yet we shall thus hope if right be with us to fare better in another These things we desire may be provided for by Bill or Ordinance of Parliament to which the Royall assent may be desired and when his Majesty in these things and what else shall be proposed by the Parliament necessary for securing the rights and liberties of the people and for settling the Militia and peace of the Kingdome shall have given his concurrence to put them past dispute we shall then desire that the rights of his Majesty and his posterity maybe considered of and setled in all things so far as may consist with the right and freedom of the subject and with the security of the same for future Thus the Army the last yeer The lip of sincerity as of Truth is stable for ever Let them now declare their being still of the same mind in the last and capitall Article the Peace is made They under God shall have the honour to have made it And the whole Kingdom will blesse them For though by the Oath of Supremacy I have often taken I think my selfe obliged to adde That his Majesty shall have great cause well to advise upon it before he part with his Privilege of dissolving all future Parliaments without the consent of the Houses upon the experience he hath had of doing it but in one yet by his Majesties having heretofore declared his inclination to treat upon the Proposals of the Army I presume this expedient to agree that Article the hardest of all other to be agreed would not stick with his Majesty FINIS