Clifford â—â—ll and yet to prevent his ruine this Session had the sooner end As for the Lord Clifford me thinks he might before now have been left at rest in his Grave but there is it seems another Lord in the World is resolved he shall not because while his Lordship tugg'd hard and lay gaping for the Office of Lord Treasurer my Lord Clifford got between and carried it away for which he will never forgive his memory nor any of his Friends Nothing could please after this no not the Great Seal it self though one would have thought that enough to fill the Swallow of any Gnat. But Oh! the Dear Bag was gone the Buâ—t-end of all his hopes and so neither Seal nor Pursâ— could satisfie Nothing now but Revenge for then his Lordship saw plain the Mortality of his own Court-Interest drawing on which had been long before forfeited by many a Juggle Then his Piety began to work when his Covetousness had nothing to work upon and nothing after this could be thought of but Fire and Flames of Zeal to scatter about the Court and Kingdom A loud and sudden Cry must be raised in fear of Popery by pretence of which the old trick the Nation was to be forthwith intoxicated and the Lord Clifford confounded and all Papists also were to be put out of Office because the Maker of this Out-cry was in fear to be so I write not this to plead for their being in Office but only to observe how pat the little Adversary timed all things for his own purpose of commencing the new Game of Popularity He foresaw his own Faâ—e and labour'd hard to get in elsewhere before they had quite thrown him out at White-Hall that so when he went off he might in a new World turn up Trump as the Faith 's great Defender against Popery This was the reason why he spurr'd on that Act so eagerly to run Papists out of Office and why he afterwards appeared so vigorous in putting the Act in execution for in all the time since the King 's Happy Resâ—auration we never heard till this sudden sit of his Lordships having been in any fright before about the Papists or any other sort of Religion whatsoever So that from the time of this first fright we are to reckon the Rise of all the Jealousies and Contests that have ensued lately or which may ensue about the Affairs of the Government and of all the late ill Impressions which have been craftily and most industriously made upon the minds of the people to prepare them if possible for a Mutiny LETTER BUt the Letter goes on thus In this posture matters were found in the Session of Parliament that began Octob. 27. 1673. which being suddenly broken up did nothing ANIMADVERSION 'T is a condition of Affairs much to be lamented that so many Sessions of Parliament have of late been broken Re infecta and we might very much wonder at it considering His Majesties great delight which he hath had in the good Advices and Affections of His Parliament did we not know that some Envious Ones made it their Business to sow Tares and cast Blocks 〈◊〉 the way to impede all happy Proceeding that either House might be Imbroiled in its self and both with one another and so be utterly incapacitated for any dispatch of Publick Business The Instances are too sad to be mentioned and I wish they were for ever in oblivion which necessitated His Majesty for the very Honour of Parliament it self and of His Government to put an end to many strange Debates and Controversies which could by no other means be done but by ending the several Sessions For even in that House whose true Interest is inseparably and more especially annexed to that of the Crown Imperial of this Realm and cannot stand without it there was found a new Lord this last Session whose Speech if we may believe a Paper called a Speech carefully Printed under the Name of the Earl of Shaftsbury vented many strange Passages upon the Debate of appointing a day for the hearing of Dr. Shirley's Cause by the Peers which shew plainly enough who it was which backt and befooled the Doctor to a perpetual attendance on that Business not for any good will to him who poor Man was made a meer Stalking-horse but to catch other ends and create Mischief to King and Kingdom by strangling the great Affairs and Hopes of His Majesty in the mid'st of His many pressing Publick Occasions for Supplies to the want of which Supplies in good time we are to ascribe the late loss of Repute with the other Publick Inconveniences and Damages in our Naval Interests c. which have been complained of Such Men there are as study first how to tye up the Hands of the King and His Ministers with Necessity and then make the People cry out at them for not doing what they were disabled to do And therefore that the Nation may know to what Male-content the King and People do owe those Damages and the fruitlesness of the last Session of Parliament and from thence gâ—â—ess who it was that drave the design of frustrating also the several Sessions that went before it It will not be amiss to give the World some account here of divers Passages of that Speech Printed with the Title of the Earl of Shaftsbury which no Man that reads but would swear it his This Speech confesses the Lord Chancellor and the Lord Bishop of Salisbury had at the same time made Speeches to shew that to set a day to enter upon a Hearing in the Lords House of the Cause of Dr. Shirley before the Great Concerns of the King and Kingdom in Supplies of Money and other Bills should be dispatched would be to induce several Grand Inconveniences As first That seeing both Houses had been highly engaged in Contests with each other about their respective Priviledges occasioned by that Cause the appointing of a short day for their Lordships to hear it would immediately bring on the like Contests again and so cause a Breach betwixt the Houses and Secondly That after such a Breach made for the sake of a private Cause no ordinary way being left for dispatch of the many Publick Bills depending in the Houses or for raising of Moneys the whole Business of Naval Preparations and of other Great Affairs and of the Reputation and Interests of the King and Kingdom at home and abroad would unavoidably fall to ruine And their Lordships were told They could not but be convinced in their Coâ—sâ—iences that if that matter of Shirley were then prosecuted it must cause a Breach This was the Sence also of most other Noble Lords But alass that Printed Speech makes the Earl of Shaftsbury ring another Tune as if his Lordship had other Publick Business or as if it had no longer been Shirley's private Business but his Own so that if we may believe that Print the People need no other Evidence to shew who was the Designer of
dismiss this part of the LETTER it cannot be amiss to shew you a better Picture of him as it was drawn also by the lucky hand of the good Earl of Shaftsbury but it was in a time when his Lordship had a Being in Whitehall and was willing to Court him that was his Rival in the Treasuâ—â—â— rather than not hold on his new Office of Chancellor The precise time was when his Lordship gave the Lord Clifford the Oath of Lord Treasurer in the Exchequer-Chamber 5 Decemâ— 1672 where in his Speech he began with my Lord Clifford's Integrity Ability and Experience in Affairs and that therefore the King â—ad chosen him to be His Lord Treasurer A Place that requires such a man as our Greâ— Master's Wisdom found fit for it from whose Natural Temper we may expect Courage Quicknesâ— and Resolution from whose Education Wisdom and Experience and from whose Exâ—ractâ—â— that Noble and Illustrious House of the Cliffords an Heroick Mind a Large Soul and an unshaken Fidelity to the Crown And when he comes to conclude he adds to him these words I wish or rather prophâ—sie your exceâ—ding all your Predâ—â—â—ssors in this Plaâ— The Abilities and Fidelity of the Renowned Lord Burleigh The Sagacity Quickness and great Dispatch of his Son the Lord Salisbury and the Uprightnâ—ss Integrity and Wisdom of that great Man that went last before you the Earl of Southampton Now Gentlemen you that are Friends of Lord Shaftsbury if you have any care of his Reputation advise him to desire the Printer to blot out all the Characters of my Lord Clifford in the Second Edition of this LETTER and put in these or at least for his Lordâ—hips sake have not so hard an opinion of Clifford or else be pleased to do my Lord Clifford and your selves this Right as to suspend your opinion of this Lord till you are sure iâ— can be a good one But if then you find no cause to believe all the Outcries which were at the time of Clifford's Fall hold on still if you can the humour of believing all the other Devices of his little Lordship till he at length serve you as he hath served all the rest of his Believers LETTER THe next Contents of the Letter are these Viz. That the Penner thereof wishes The Declaration for Indulgence Vight have had a longer continuance and a better reception But saith he the Bishops took offence at it ANIMADVERSION ANy thing to lay load of Envy upon the Bishops That is a main design of the LETTER At that Corner of the Monarchy its old Enemies are to make the new On-set and then what follows The Annals of the late Reign of Presbytery will tell you nothing but Violent Persecution Not a word in those days of Indulgence â—â—ynot so much as to the Brother-Independents whose true Interest it is as much as the Epis oparians to preserve the present Government by Episcopacy For let the Presbyter up with his Throne again and both the other will be alike exposed to his mercy Suppose the worst you can of one Bishop in a County yet past experience hath told us we had better have him there than a mean upstart Insulter over both to play the Devil for Gods sake in every Parish The rest of the Dissenters are therefore to conâ—â—der That as the Episcoparian's greatest Jealousie is at the Presbyter because the Aims of them both being at a National Form they cannot both stand together but the one must of necessity deprive the other so forasmuch as all other Nonconformers lay no claim to a Church-National but in Spiritual Matters seek only Toleration and Indulgence They cannot if they please to lay aside old animosities give any Ombrage or Jealousie to the Episcâ—parian because in their way of Churching they design only a private Rule over one another Their only Concern then is by a total quitting of all Intrigues or correspondence in Counsels with that false Brother the Presbyter the natural common Enemy of their way of Churching as well as of the National which being cordially done in suture and all cause of Jealousie on their parts being thereby removed from the Governours there can be no doubt but they may be induced to allow them a fair and lasting Indulgence Moreover it ought to be consider'd though the Bishops be charged by our Letter-Man as the Undoers of the Indulgent Dâ—â—laration it was not They but the Parliament that undid it it being by both Houses judged inconvenient to be continued by reason it was thought prejudicial to some Laws made for an Uniformity in Matters of Publick Worship and consequently an Intrenchment upon Law so that the Parliament was therein led by Reâ—son of State when they besought His Majesty for the cancelling of it the Lords Spiritual were concerned in it no otherwise than the Lords Temporal and it was upon the Joint-Application of both Lords and Commons recalled The Inference then which I would offer at from these Discourses is That if those aforesaid Dissenters would by Overt-Acts of Behaviour in future make it evident to the Parliament that they are in heart alienated and departed from the Presbyter the great common Enemy of the Crown as well as of the Church 't is not impossible yea perhaps not improbable but that the same Parliament may then come to see it Reason of State also to find out some Expedient to make a difference in execution of Law betwixt Them and the Irreconcileable Presbyter notwithstanding the severity of Laws at present especially if the Houses once see cause given them to apprehend That such Dissenters are resolved to become as loyal and serviceable to his Majesty and the Government here as Dissenters were heretofore in France unto King Henry the Fourth And truly seeing there is this difference betwixt the ordinary Dissenters and the Presbyters that the latter is e directo inconsistent with all Monarchy because Presbytery claims to be underivative from any Secular Monarch and in ordâ—â—ad Spiritualiae doth as it were usurp his Power and seeing the former while they seek only an Indulgence may well enough consist with our English Monarchy there is no question but they may in due time if they behave themselves wisely obtain their desired Liberty For in the very following Lines of the LETTER our Author signifies That at the next meeting of the Parliament the Bishops promoted the Protestant Interest so high that an Act came up from the Commons to the House of Lords in favour of the dissenting Protestants and had passed the Lords but for want of time What hath been may be so that if the ordinary Dissenters shall be so wise as to mind their true Interest which really lies in a hearty complaisance with the Interest of the Government the like may soon be done in favour of them again Next he tells us There was another Act then passed the Royal Assent for the excluding all Papists from Office in the opposition of which the Lord Treasurer
was that they were made Slaveâ— and by whom Was is not presently after the Bishops and Church been alter'd And by what manner of persons were these things done Even by those very Lords and Commons who in their great 〈◊〉 of the State of the Kingdom Anno 1641. declared That they conceived tâ—â—ir Proâ—eedings to be 〈◊〉 by such Mâ—n as did 〈◊〉 into tâ—e People â—hat thâ—y meant to aboliâ—h the Church-Government or to absâ—lve any Mâ—n of that Obedienâ—e which he owes undâ—r God to His MAJESTY whâ—m they confâ—ss to be intrusted with the Ecclesiastical Laws as well as with the Temporal And in their Declaration of the Ninth of April 1642. they declare That they intended only a due and neâ—essary Reformation of the Government and Liturgie of the Church And to take away nothing in the one or the other but what shall be evil and justly offensive And yet 't is not long after that we find them Voting and throwing down the whole Church-Government and at length that of the State too notwithstanding all the Protestations by them made to the contrary before God and the World Therefore neither Cavaliers nor Churchmen can after so late and sad an experience of Alterability and Alteration be such fools as not to understand what they have seen and felt by such Alterative humors as are now asloat again and what the Issue of them would be if they might have way especially seeing the same Presbyterian Faction are brewing afresh and so visibly that we need not seek pretences to raise jealousie about their doings forasmuch as they are bare-faced and busie and our Projecting Dandeprat whose Actions are accountable at least within the Statute against firing of Houses openly acting the Kindle-cole in Parliament to create a Party there for their purpose and because he cannot yet find a House of Commons for the turn you have him and his Agents every where about the City Preaching up a necessity of Calling a New One and from London his Doctrine is spread into the Countreys with good Counsel to dispose the People to the Old Way of Petitioning that by a full Crie the King may be in a manner constrained to give them opportunity once more to try their Fortunes by a New Election This is more than Jealousie as Mr. Jenks if he please can tell you so that our Author might have spared this Frump which he slings at those few Forces which His Majesty hath been and is necessitated to keep up to secure the Government of which Forces he and his Partisans are by their Seditious if not Treasonous Speeches Letters and Practises the most likely men to cause an augmentation so that if ever a necessity arise that they must be augmented to prevent those mens purposes the Nation may from hence understand whom they are to thank for it and how to excuse the hard condition of a Gracious King who would rather rule by love and sets more value upon a Regiment in the universal good Wills and Hearts of his Subjects than in all the Regiments of force and violence in the World And how small soever this Letter insinuates His Majesties Party to be yet if ever God for our manifold sins should suffer Incendiaries to blow up a new Rebellion by their tracing the same methods that they used who promoted the former it will soon appear by the many thousands that abhor it and its Contrivers that all the rest of the Nation will become ready Volunteers either in Purse or Person to defeat their Enterprises and prevent the like miseries and confusions as those were that the same Faction brought upon us heretofore In the mean time 't is but reason they should declaim against standing Forces because these few do stand in their way though they are no great number and are as a Bridle in their mouthes so that 't will be a hard matter for them to get out the Old Tools to go to Work with I mean Tumults out of the City which were easily form'd in those days when they had none to deal with but a naked King and a Guard of Beef-eaters But Why is it that he cries out We are like to be made Slaves To perswade men to the belief of it he is pleased to insist upon four following instances viz. Four Acts of this Parliament which are indeed as high and necesâ—ary Acts of prudence as could be passed by Parliament to preserve the Monarchy and fence it against the Designs of any new Rebellion that may in future be grounded upon the old humors LETTER 7. IN order to this the first step was made in the Act for Regulating Corporations wisely beginning that in those lesser Governments which they meant afterwards to introduce upon the Government of the Nation they might make them swear to a Declaration and belief of such Propositions as themselves afterward upon debate were enforced to alter and could not justifie in those words so that many of the Wealâ—â—iâ—st Worthiest and Soberest men are still kept out of the Magistracy of those places ANIMADVERSION Upon perusal of this Act you will find it was high reason that moved the Parliament to pass it as appears by this preamble viz. That the succession in governing such Corporations may be most probably pâ—rpetuated in the hands of persons well 〈◊〉 to His Majesty and the established Government it being too will known that notwithstanding all His Majesties endeavours and unparallel'd indulgence in pardoning all that is past nevertheless maâ—y evil spirits are still working Wherefore for prevention of the like mischief for the time to câ—me and for preservation of the publick peace both in Church and State Commissioners are appointed to see that all Mayors Recorders Aldermen and other persons bearing Office of Magistracy Trust or Employment relating to the Government of Cities Corporations and Boroughs do take the Oaths of Allegiance and Supremacy and another Oath That they 〈◊〉 declare and b … that it is not lawful upon any preteâ—ce whatsoever to takâ— Aâ—â—s against the King and that they do abhor that Traiterous Position of taking Arms by his Authority against His Person or against those that are Commissionated by Him And at the same time also the said Commissioners are to see that such persons do subscribe a Declaration declaring That they do hold that there lies no Obligation upon themselves or any other Person from the Oath commonly called The Solemn League and Covenant and that the same was in it self an unlawful Oath and imposed upon the Subjects of this Realm against the known Laws and Liberties of the Kingdom This was an Act of the whole Parliament and there 's no reason therefore why our Letter-Man should charge it on the Bishops alone but that the main Aim is at them first and for what cause I have already told you 'T is conceived the ready way to go to work it having been the beaten way to attaque the Government on that side for this the Party is a forming
the Bishops Why have divers Transactions been solely imputed to them and they alone been represented blame-worthy if there had been any cause of blame in things which many times had been first moved by the Temporal Lords if the design were not to exasperate mens minds principally against Bishops Why are they so â—â—â—en slandered as if they drave an Interest as Bishops prejudicial to the Rights and Interest of the people What mean all these suggestions if they meant not to prepare them for ruine by another Parliament seeing they can never do it while this is in being And why so great a zeal against them among the prime drivers of the Faction who can own nothing of Religion or Reformation save what they take up for craâ—ty ends but because they well know there is no way to invade the Throne but by first removing Bishops which seeing this Parliament their defenders will never suffer that is the reason why some have been so vehement in debates to imbroil the Houses to make it impossible for them to do any thing more for the Publick and so by taking away their reputation they may not be able to defend themselves against the plotted out-cries of the People to make the Church and this Parliament fall and sink under the fury of the Faction both together Thus having taken a â—urvey of all the other holds of Reason wherein they fortifie themselves and infest the Government by frequent â—allies forth in print and having reduced them and planted better Reasons in their stead 't is time to return to the mâ—in Fort which I left I mean the LETTER which will now be the more easily and quickly deâ—eated LETTER THe next Session of Parliament which was January 7. following many excellenâ— Voâ—es were in hand in order to a Bill Among the rest one was That the Princes of the Bloud Royal should all marry Protestants ANIMADVERSION T Is rather to be supposed the Lords are here slandered It can hardly be that they should take up a business which was damn'd by King James long ago when the Factions Party in the then House of Commons clamoured against the Prince's Match with Spain and made Addresses to the King about it who in much wrath told them They should meddle with their own business this being above them c. This point also the Faction was so bold to insist on among the rest of their high Demands made to his Son in the Nineteen Propositions 1642. to which his Majesty answered That to debar him of the free Marriage of his Children would be to place him in a condition lower than the meanest of his Subjects This debarring of Princes from marrying where they please would be to hinder them from making those great Advantages which many times they might get thereby for the general Good of the Kingdom Therefore when it was pressed on at the second Reading of the Bill the Vote went in the Negative LETTER IT notes the Duke of Lauderdale 's being a Patron of the Church and that his Coach was filled with Bishops and the Lord Chancellor and Lord Treasurer 's are of a just Size to the same Affair ANIMADVERSION TWo Faults it seems these two Lords have besides their being of a just Size to the true Interest of the Government that is to say Two Good Places crime enough in this Age for Ministers of State for which while one man lives they are sure never to he forgiven I will not swear my Lord of Shaftsbury had a hand in this LETTER but as weak a man as I am may be apt to imagine so because he takes such care those two Noble Lords should not be forgotten nor the Duke of Lauderdale because he keeps all quiet in Scotland so that there is no possibility of beginning again the Ruine of our English Bishops by the way of Scotland nor of getting Friends into a Scotch Parliament to second the fine Speeches made here in England LETTER NOw comes the memorable Session of April 13. 1675. than which never any came with more expectation of the Court or dread and apprehension of the People ANIMADVERSION THey were much beholden then to his Lordship to remove their Fears by taking a course to convert the Houses into Cock-pits to make sport for the Nation The Court indeed were so foolish as to expect better things but this must be imputed to the want of his Lordships Wisdom among them But what was the occasion that his Lordship laid hold on thus to transform them His Pocket-Business of Shirley did not do all the mischief but there was another called The Bill of Test LETTER THis Bill of Test was brought into the House of Lords by the Earl of Lindsey Lord High Chamberlain a Person of great Quality but in this imposed upon ANIMADVERSION BUt others are of opinion his Lordship did it as an Act of high Loyalty answerable to that most Noble Character which his Family justly bears in the opinion of his Majesty and the whole World who can never forget either them or the memory of that great Man the Father of them 〈…〉 Earl of Lindsey who in the first famous Battel of Edge-Hill being Lord General of his Majesties Army most valiantly spilt his Blood in that Service in hope immediately to have restored the Royal Family and to have stopt that Issue of Blood which â—an so many years after about the Kingdom Therefore it was no wonder that this Noble Lord being his Grandson was the Man that brought in a â—ill of Tâ—st He and all his being a Family that can endure a Test in this and all other Concerns of the King the Church and â— the Nation LETTER IT was then Read the first time without much opposition But at the second Reading the Lord Keeper now Lord Chancellor and some other Lords made Elaborate Speeches the Keeper calling it A moderate Security to the Church and Crown and that no Honest Man could refuse it and whoever should would give great suspicion of dangerous and Anti-Monarchical Principles And they shew'd what dangerous Times we are in all Men not having laid aside the Principles of Rebellion ANIMADVERSION CErtainly it was well observed by those Lords and therefore I suppose it was high time to take Pen in hand to manifest the Truth that the late Discourses and practises of some men during several past Sessions of Parliament are no other but the same very courses that were practised with the like heat and violence and with the same method against the King the Church and the whole State both in and out of Parliament as appears through the whole Current of these Animadversions in which I had not been so large but that it was most necessary to present to view the new Transactors of the Faction now drest and acting in the habit principles and posture of the old Masters of the late Rebellion which might lie for ever buried in the Act of Obliâ—ion if these men did not rake all up again