they had sent one of their own Officers to govern it on their stead As for the Prince of Orange taken in his own single Capacity he was far from being a Separate Nation or Independent Government which this Gentlemen's Discourse proceeds upon or indeed Supreme Governour of any Nation at all not of the Principality of Orange for this was by Dr. Sherlock's Event of Providence and by Conquest taken from him long ago Nor was the Prince of Orange a Sovereign Independent Prince in Holland for he was there under the Government of the States Nor was it ever heard there was a Prince of Breda So that this Gentleman's Discourse faulters in that which should have been the very subject of it He should have said that any great Man who had received Wâ—ong might in true Reason right himself by the best means that he or his Friends could make against any Man who was not his Sovereign or fellow Subject and this by the Law of Reason or Nature not by the Law of Nations For what had the Law of Nations to do in the business when there was no Nation Injured or that demanded Satisfaction For surely he will not say that King Iames had done Wrong to the Principality of Orange or that the Person of King William alone or of his Queen either is a Nation Yet one of the two he must say â—o make his Discourse hang together Thirdly 'T is deny'd there were great and violent 〈◊〉 of an injury to the Right of Succession This if made good might do his Cause some service let us see then what strong Proofs he brings to evince it Two sorts of Arguments he alledges to prove it The fiâ—st is the Prince of Orange's Declaration certainly this Man is infatuated Our English Proverb Ask my Master if I be a Thief contains as good a Plea as this yet the poor Man triumphs mightily and thinks his Work is done when he has barely repeated it But what says the Declaration Why it says That all the good Subjects of these Kingdoms do vehemently suspect that the pretended Prince of Wales was not born of the â—ueen and that many doubted of the Queen's Bigness and of the Birth of the Child and yet there was not any one Thing done to satisfie their Doubts So says the Declaration indeed and if a Man may be believ'd in his own Cause against our own knowledge when he might hope to get Three Kingdoms by saying so all is as true as Gospel and as clear as Demonstration otherwise our Reason will I hope give us leave to suspect at least Misinformation in the Case if not Self-partiality And I do not like either the Sincerity or the Care of him that penned it in saying first that All good Subjects vehemently suspected c. and then dwindling afterwards into Many doubted c. A sober Man would not have quoted the Declaration unless to defend it but this Gentleman builds on it as on his Principle But how will he justifie the Declaration when it says that not any one thing was done to satisfie Doubters or himself for hinting so impudently p. 14. That the principal Persons concerned had not the least Satisfaction given them Was not the Testimony of near Fifty sworn Witnesses of Credit enough to satisfie reasonable Men in a matter of Fact No says he p. 13. No private Depositions of such as are dependents or otherwise liable to suspicion can in reason be taken for satisfactory Evidence Does this Man consider how many Protestants how many Persons of unblemish'd Honour he taints with suspicion of Perjury and Treason against the Nation by hinting they are so sworn in attesting the Bigness of the Qâ—een and the Birth of the Prince of Wales Unhappy Mr. Ashron who had such Judges and such Jury-men as though fit to condemn him without any one Witness or any one Proof but merely upon Suspicion or Presumption yet such multitudes of legal Witnesses are held insufficient to satisfie those of the â—ame Party of the Truth of a matter of Fact far more evident Certainly this pretended Scrupulosity of theirs which is so loose at some time and so strait-lac'd at another is more lodged in their Wâ—d than in their Reason But on how he bussles and runs about the World to pretend a flaw in this most sample Atteâ—tation The Old Roman Laws are haâ—ed in by Head and Shoulders p. 13. though he knows well they are generally no where observed especially those he mentions they being indeed such extravagant Nâ—ceties that it would look like perfect Madness now a days to offer to bring them into play Then comes in our Old Common Law p. 14. Allowing a Writ of Inspection and the Old Law Books giving directions to prevent and discover Subernation Now if there were any Thing done contrary to our Laws that makes for his purpose Why does he not produce it and urge it Especially why did not the Contention when they were so vehemently press'd to it by the Loyal Party go about to Discover this pretended Subordination Why did not they or any other since this Government came in make us of his Writs of Inspection and his Chapter in the Old Law Books Did none of them know Old Laws Wâ—its and Chapters but this learned Setler of the Royal Succession This I can assure him that durst the Convention have attempted it they should have sound even at that time very many other Witnesses of Credit able both to satisfie the nicest Scrupulosity conâ—ute the Calumny and confouâ—d the Authors and Abetâ—ers of it But they were affâ—aid such an important Truth should be made too evident to the whole World because it would at once have spoiled the Prince of Orange's Declaration and have shamed their own Rebellions Resolution of deposing King Iames and setting up another in hâ—s Head A Pretence which was so necessary to be started and upheld must not be Discovered by the Framers and Abetters of it to be a manifest Impestuce as they knew well it would have been had they gone about to examine it I omit to give a fuller Answer to his Citations out of the Old Roman Laws and our Old Common Laws because they have been considered very particularly in a Discourse puâ—posely made upon those 〈◊〉 subjects Entituled De Ventre Iâ—spiciendo or Remarks on Mr Ashron's Answerer which shews clearly from those Laws themselves in the places he cites and from those Oracles of the Law Bâ—acton and my Lord Coke that neither the one nor the other are at all to his purpose His other Pâ—oofs of this injury justifying the War are a company of Its as pag. 13 Iâ— there was no reasonable Care taken to prevous and remove these Suspicions and pag. 14. If no such Care was taken c. If the principal Persons concerned had not the least Satisfaction given them If the whole Thing was managed with Secrecy and suspicious Circumstances c. But he no where affirms that all the particular Ifs
THE Loyal Martyr VINDICATED AFTER Mr. Ashton's Paper had been shewn by the Sheriff to those that sit at the Helm and that it was known there were more Copies of it given abroad so that it was impossible to sham or disguise it it raised in them as I am informed very sollicitous Apprehensions what Effects it was likely to work in the Minds of all the true Sons of the Church of England to see a genuine Member of that Communion with his last Breath admonish his prevaricating Brethren of the enormous Crimes of Perjury and Rebellion in which they they had of late so deeply plunged themselves denounce Prophetically to them the Judgments attending their Apostacy if not timely repented of profess so stoutly his Allegiance to his much injured and unjustly Dispossessed Prince seal our Church's Doctrine of Non-resistance with his dearest Blood and dye so resignedly chearfully nay joyfully in Testimony of that Christian Principle could not but be apprehended to our Statis's to be the most powerful Motives imaginable to reclaim those who had been misled by false Information or seduced by Interest into a Repentance of their Errors and to establish the rest in the Loyal Principles to which they had hitherto adhered Besides the honest unaffected Reason which appears in the Account he gives of his Tenets and Conscientious Proceedings and the Christian Moderation and sincere Piety which he observed throughout his whole Paper Praying heartily for his very Enemies though unjustly thirsting after his Blood the proper Temper of a dying Martyr could not but recommend the Contents of it to the esteem of every indifferent Reader and even be able to shock all such as were not resolutely byass'd Nor can I blame them for being so highly concerned that such a Legacy was left to the Loyal Party Those politick Men were well aware of the successful Methods by which Christianity was Propagated at first and that The Blood of the Martyrs was the Seed of the Church and therefore they judged it very Expedient that some speedy and effectual Means should be taken to stop the prejudicial Effects which it would otherwise produce It was then thought the best way to seem to slight and undervalue the Paper by Printing it themselves and at the same time to endeavour to baffle and confute it by an Answer going along with it penned with as much plausibleness as the Cause could bear But Truth is not easily trampled down His Christian Constancy has made too great an Impression in the Hearts of his Admirers to permit his Meritorious Sufferings to lie under the Scandal of a Treasonable Guilt and has given Courage to some of the meanest of them to vindicate his Cause and Credit against the wicked Slanders and weak Reasons of this mercenary Writer though he foresees that if they be discovered they can expect no other Reward but the same fatal End The Holland Lyon has begun to taste English Blood and finds it so sweet that it draws on an Appetite of shedding still more To fall then to our Reply His First Sham for the whole Piece is a continu'd fardle of such Stuff is That the Paper is none of Mr. Ashton's This if made good would they hoped take off the Authority and Influence of it as noâ— being the proper Act of the Martyr but of some other of that Party â— it required therefore his best skill to make this Credible Let us then examine his Arguments His First Proof is Because 〈…〉 with too much Art and Care to be the Work of one who professes he thought it better to employ his last minutes in Devotion p. 8. What a ridiculous Cavil is this His last minutes were at the place of Execution which the Martyr professeth he thought it better to employ in Devotion and holy Communion with his God than in making Speeches which if they were Loyal and delivered his Thoughts fully were likely to be interrupted and so not attended with the designed Success and therefore he chose rather to deliver what he had to say in Writing Now comes this Gentleman and pretends if his Words have any Tenour or Sense in them that he must have compos'd this Paper of his aâ— his last minutes that is at the Gallows which he says he could not do with so much Art and Care those minutes being taken up otherwise viz. In Devotion and therefore forsooth the Paper is none of his As if he had not time enough between his Sentence and the Execution of it to compose a Paper both larger and more full of Art and Care had he minded such Advantages than this was Or as if good Men whose Piety enclines them to spend their last minutes in holy Thoughts could not in the time anteceding use both their best Art and Care to pen a true Account of their Principles and the Cause for which they Suffered but indeed there is little Art or Care in the Master or Sense of the Paper but a plain and candid Discovery of his Thoughts and Affections both towards God and the World and as for the manner of Writing it if it were indeed such as this Man exhibits it there was neither any the least Art or Care shewn in it but perfect Negligence or rather great Ignorance and Folly throughout the whole as will be seen shortly His Second Reason to prove the Paper was not the Martyr's is Because Mr. Ashton says he was illiterate and unskilled in the Law and yet uses such Bug-words as Impending Prevaricating Premisses and Consequence and gives such a peremptory Iudgment about the Laws of the Realm in a Case acknowledged by all ingenious Men of his own Party to have a great deal of difficulty in it this Man will say any thing though never so openly false Not one Mâ—n of his Party ever thought there was the least difficulty in this That it was Treason by our Laws to resist a legal Prince or acknowledge any other for King while he lives No not this Writer himself as appears by his not thinking it his best play to alledge the Laws of the Realm buâ— flying off and recurring to the Law of Nations And as for the Law as it relates to his own Case he was far from Peremptory as is manifest from his saying I am told I am the First Man that ever was condemned for High-Treason upon bare Presumption or Suspicion Do not these Words I am told sound as modestly as is possible and bar all shew of his passing such a peremptory Iudgment about the Laws of the Realm as he puts upon him p. 8 What will not this Caviller say But 't is pleasant to observe what Prancks he uses all along 'T is plain Mr. Ashton meant no more but that he was illiterate that is unlearned and unskilful in the Law as appears by his desiring the Iudges to observe for him what might be for his Advantage And sure a Man who has not made the Law his Study for the Word reaches no farther
this Had the Prince of Orange pursued only the Ends express'd in his Declaration and obliged King Iames as he might easily have done to redress Abuses here and make a lasting League with the Confederates abroad it had in all likelihood by this time reduced the French King to a low Condition For then King Iames had been able to unite all the Force of England Scotland and Ireland and bend them unanimously against the Common Enemy Whereas now our Men and Money too are employ'd in Fighting against one another in Scotland and Ireland nor only so but England it self whose free Consent he so much brags of is so Distracted that we know not how soon we may fall into the same Misfortunes some out of Conscience not daring to hazard their Souls in Swearing Allegiance to one whose Title the most zealous Adherers to him cannot agree on nor themselves are satisfied with and far more of them being disgusted to see our Countrey beggared to maintain the Quarrel of Foreigners and enrich our greatest Enemies the Dutch so that this Pretence of pulling down the Heighth of France though I doubt not but it was the Intention of the Confederates was far from being the main Design of the Prince of Orange He could then have no other Motive of Invading England Driving out his Father and Usurping his Throne but mere Ambition seconded by Dutch Policy making use of our Rebelliousness silly Credulity and our addictedness to Lying that they might cheat us of our Money make us defend their Quarrel and impoverish us to that degree that we should not dare to resent it when they get our Trade and câ—zen us of our Plantations as they have done often and then to crown the Dutch Jest laugh at us for a Company of dull-headed block headedly Fools when they have done But I must not forget the Instances he brings to prove this Invasion to be agreeable to the Church of England's Doctrine and vouch'd by the Law of Nations and those are these Three First he Instances in Queen Elizabeth giving Assistance to the Dutch against the King of Spain p. 16. Now this hath been so well answered already in the Defence of the Bishop of Chichester's Dying Declaration that I do not see any Reason to concern my self with it and methinks this Answerer should have first answered what had been alledged there before he ventured on this Instance but some Men have a peculiar Confidence to bring in Things over and over though they have been answered sufficiently and yet never take notice of the Answers However it is sufficient here to observe that this is nothing at all to his purpose he tells us but four lines before That what he is to make out is that the then P. of O by his Relation to the Crown had a just Right to concern himself in the Vindication of our Religion and Liberties and that this is not repugnant to the Doctrines of the Church of England p. 15. And I pray good Sir Had Queen Elizabeth any Relation to the Government of the Low Countries And if not how does this Instance prove that which he is to make out that the Prince of Orange by virtue of his Relation to the Crown had a just Right to concern himself and his Instance proves that any Prince whether they have any such Relation or not have a just Right to concern themselves And what I pray is all this to a Title by Conquest Let it be admitted but not granted and which I suppose will not be easily proved that no Foreign Prince hath a just Right to make War upon another Prince for Invading the Liberty and Religion of his own Subjects hath he therefore a just Right to make a Conquest of these People whose Liberties he pretends to defend and to set himself King over them Or had Queen Elizabeth upon pretence of securing the Dutch Liberties a just Right to make her self Queen over them In my Opinion it is a preâ—ty odd way of rescuing People's Liberties to make a Conquest of them and if this be the Case Princes and their Flatterers may talk of Piety and a Care of the People but all the World will see that the Design is not Religion nor Liberty to the People but a Crown to themselves and it cannot chuse but be very Pious and Religious to gain a Crown His next Instance is in King Iames's time When the Prince Elector was chosen King of Bohemia And how does this prove his Point Why he sent to King James for Advice and he had no mind he should engage in it And therefore the Prince of Orange hath a just Right to concern himself and to make himself King according to the Principles of the Church of England I perceive it is not for every body to make Consequences for who but our Authour could ever have found out how such wonderful Things followed from King Iames's denying his Son to engage in it Well But the Arch bishop wrote a Letter to the Secretary and said that he was satisfied in his Conscience that the Bâ—bemians had a just Cause and that the King's Daughter professed she would not leave her self one Iewel rather than not maintain so Religious and Righteous â— Cause And that may be too but without Reflection on that Princess that is no Evidence of the Righteousness of a Cause for some Kings Daughters will not leave themselves a Jewel rather than not to take away and keep a Kingdom from their Own Father and which is neither a Religious nor a Righteous Cause His Third Instance is in the time of King Charles the First When the King of Denmark had taken Arms to settle the Peace and Liberty of the Germans and was Defeated and King Charles thought himself concerned to assist him and Arch-bishop Laud drew up a Declaration setting forth the Danger and requiring the People's Prayers and Assistance to prevent the growth of Spain c. Now it does not appear whether thâ— King of Denmark's pretence of taking Arms was just or unjust for our Authour has a peculiar faculty of talking of Things at random and never stating them and bringing them down to the matter in Dispute But let that be as it will it makes no difference in the present Dispute for let the Cause of his taking Arms be originally what it will I hope King Charles might assist him to prevent his being over-run thereby securing the Peace and Safety of his own Kingdom And this was plainly the Case The King of Denmark had made War upon the Empire and was defeated and it â— had â—een â—eâ—t without Assiâ—â—ence the Emperour might have wholly subdued him which would not â—â—ely have ruined Denmark but have endangered all the Northern Princes and especially England as the Declaration it self speaks there will be an open way for Spain left to do what they pleased And what is this to our Authour's purpose Is there no difference between Assisting one Prince actually at War
of Braganza though the King of Spain had enjoyed the Crown for Three Generations The Case was this There were Three Pretenders to that Crown and most of the Universities in Europe were emploied to determine which of them had Right when Philip the Second while the Thing was yet under debate seeing them encline most to the Duke of Braganza sends the Duke d' Alva with an Army and very unfairly Surprizes and Oppresses the Headless Nation and decided the Controversie by the Sword This was no Conquest but a manifest Vsurpation for no Battle was fought nor Resistance made Was this parallel to the Case of us in England Was our Nation Headless at the time of the Prince of Orange's Invasion Was it under dispute whether King Iames or he had Right to the Crown Or had King Iames usurp'd it as King Philip had done Was he not in quiet Possession of England which King Philip never was The Portugueze still grumbling and resenting that they were enslav'd to a Foreigner when a King of their own Nation had a Title to it Again their swearing Allegiance to King Philip was too in many regards more justifiable than ours they were kept under by a Foreign Force whereas we do it voluntarily Besides the Spanish King had been one of the Pretenders and the Question was not decided Had the Prince of Orange or his Princess any kind of pretence to England while their Father liv'd Lastly They rose against a Foreign King to introduce one of their own Nation whereas we rose against our own to introduce a Foreigner How shallow then is it to huddle together many Instances and not bring one of them home to his purpose How ridiculous to argue all along from Matters of Fact to Matter of Right Which is just as wise as to pretend that whatever has been done must be well done and is the same as if he would set himself to prove that we were not the first nor the only Rebels Traytors or Perjured Persons that have been in the World but that there have been others both of our own and other Nations before us which we never denied He has not done with his Plot to prove the Paper none of Mr. Ashton's but take which you will tells you p. 28. That either 't is not his or else that he contradicted himself In what I beseech him Why. Mr. Ashton at his Tryal said He could not but own he had a fair Tryall for his Life and yet in his Paper he complains of the severe Charge of the Iudges and hard Measure And where lies the Contradiction Every Man knows that the Tryall is over before the Charge is given or the Verdict brought in by the Jury So that nothing hinders but the Tryall may be fair and seemingly kind though the Charge which came after did aggravate and made the worse Misconstruction as indeed it did of every thing and so was very hard and severe But does Mr. Ashton mention no hard Measures besides Does he not object his close Imprisonment the hasty and violent Proceedings against him and the Industry used in the Return of fiâ—ting Persons to pass upon him the denying of him a Copy of the Panel with an c. at the end of them Were not these hard Measures and some of them villanously unjust and indeed plainly shewed that since they saw him so heartily honest that he would not be warpt the Resolution was taken beforehand by the Party to have his Life per Fas aut Nefas Does he deny these were hard Measures or that Mr. Ashton said true when he told us he had receiv'd such hard Measures He confesses both by his Silence in such main Businesses Is it not a rare piece of Justice to cull out a select Company of Court Pick-thanks who they were sure would hang him and yet deny a Copy of the Panel that he might except against some chief Boute-feus and particularly that malicious Jury Man he so complains of who would never leave pressing and solliciting the rest till they brought them let the Cause be never so ugly into the same Guilt of Murther with themselves Yet a Man who loses his Life by such Tricks is according to this Caviller confident uncharitable or whatever other Character his time-serving Spite thinks fit to put upon him if he do but barely speak of what they did to take away his Life Now after all this Outcry and heavy Charges to lay Load upon the Martyr's Credit what was it he said Though I have I think just reason to complain of the severe Charge given by the Iudges and the hard measure c. Yet as I hope for Pardon at the Hands of my God I do most heartily pray for and forgive them c. Could any thing be said more sweetly or more modestly He onely spoke it in Transcursu and as a Transition to the declaring his Charitable Forgiving of his Enemies He onely said he thought he had received ill Usage and why might not he think so when his Lawyers told him the Law did not reach him there being onely Presumption which was incompetent in that Case Yet this uncharitable Caâ—iller charges him with Confidence and want of Common Charity and employs all his little Tricks of Rhetorick to have it thought he dyed an ill Man and which is the worse Sin of the two to murther as far as he could his Soul and his Credit as a good Christian after the Judges and Jury had murthered his Body But how does he clear the Jury He cites my Lord Coke p. 29. that the Intent is to be discovered by Circumstances c. But does he or any Man say that those Circumstances must not be evidently connected with the Intention that is such as could not have light or could not have been put had there not been such an Intention Otherwise the Evidence rises not above Presumption which that Lawyer declares to be insufficient and therefore he requires Good and Manifest Proof and the Proof of a Man's Intention cannot be said to be manifest unless the Over-act was manifestly connected with it Was it so here Ashton clear'd the occasion of his going over to France to have been upon a quite different Account But the Papers says he were found about him What then Might not another who was in the Company and who onely was conscious of their Contents give them to him to keep Nay would not that Person who was concerned judge it best in Reason rather to give them to a Person which was not at all concerned in them than to another of his own Gang Certainly he would Nothing more frequent in Oliver's Days than for loyal Gentlemen going in Coach to give such Papers which were Treasonable in those days to the Coachman or some Gentlewomen in Company and must such Persons who carried them be concluded guilty of Treason This Circumstance then of having the Papers found upon him which were evidently another Man's Concern as being writ in his