Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	justice_n	king_n	parliament_n	2,583	5	6.8838	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A48238	A letter to the three absolvers, Mr. Cook, Mr. Collier and Mr. Snett being reflections on the papers delivered by Sir John Friend, and Sir William Parkyns, to the sheriffs of London and Middlesex, at Tyburn, the place of execution, April 3, 1696, which said papers are printed at length, and answered paragraph by paragraph.	Friend, John, Sir, d. 1696.; Parkyns, William, Sir, 1649?-1696.	1696 (1696)	Wing L1751; ESTC R4716	20,332	16

I must declare That the Tenour of the King's Commission which I saw was general and directed to all his Loving Subjects to Raise and Levy War against the Prince of Orange and his Adherents and to Seize all Forts Castles c. which I suppose may be a customary Form of giving Authority to make War but I must confess I am not much acquainted with Matters of that nature But as for any Commission particularly levelled against the Person of the Prince of Orange I neither saw nor heard of any such ANSWER There 's no Reason to doubt that this Paper was Sir Williams own Composure his Education and the defence he made at his Trial do neither of them give it the lie nor is there any thing in it which Savours of the Canting Bigotry of the other So that I shall only consider what 's material for our purpose in it He pretends to a full disposition to Charity and yet complains of Hardships and Rigours put upon him at his Trial which is not very consistent with Charity I was present at his Trial and cannot imagine what ground he had for this Complaint if it was not that the Court declin'd to put off the Trial any Longer and that he was not allowed the benefit of the New Act for Regulating Trials in cases of high Treason As to the former if the Government did not think fit to allow it Sir William had no just Reason of Complaint he had sufficient time allowed him to prepare himself and was treated with that Moderation and Calmness which former Reigns were strangers to The Crime he was indicted for was one of the blackest that is to be met with in any Record and God knows that he and the rest of the Assassins did not intend to allow our Gracious Soveraign any time to prepare for Death I Remember indeed that Sir William alledged he wanted some Material Witnesses but his Confession of the Crimes with which he was charged make it evident that his design in that was to elude Justice And as to his being denied the benefit of the New Act the Bench gave him a very good Reason for it viz. That it had not then taken place and that they were to govern themselves by Law and not to make Law and if the equity of the thing be considered there seems no great Reason that they who are guilty of this horrid design before the making of the said Act should have the benefit of it tho the mildness of the present Government hath ordered it otherwise and therefore Sir Williams Complaint of Rigour and Hardship was but ill founded and may justly be imputed to some bitterness of Spirit As to his declaring that the Tenour of the Kings Commission which he saw was General and directed to all his loving Subjects to levy War c. against the Prince of Orange and his Adherents and that he neither Saw nor heard of any Commission particularly Levell'd against the person of the Prince of Orange It does not at all affect Capt. Porters Evidence nor deny that he inform'd the Captain so which proves that Sir William was a very ill Man to have put such a Gloss on the late Kings Commission both to the Capt. and Charnock in order to perswade them to the Assassination if he did not believe that to be the Real meaning of it however it may have been worded And it argues the Absolvers to be Traitors both to God and their King pronouncing the absolution over Sir William before he had publickly begg'd pardon of that Prince whom he had injur'd and testify'd his Repentance for drawing Charnock and others to the Gibbet by that false Interpretation It hath been observed by another hand that this Commission which Sir William gives an account of Looks liker a Proclamation than a Commission but if it was only such a General Commission as he talks of what need was there of so much Secrecy why was it not seen by Capt. Porter and others who desired to see it and why was it all writ with King James's own hand It is plain from the depositions of the Witnesses at the Trial of Charnock c. that a Commission to attack the Prince of Orange in person and to carry him over to France at least was sent for which to all Men of Common sense must appear to be impracticable to have been done with such a small Number of Men. Besides when the Commission whatever it was arrived we find that all of them prepar'd to Assassinate the King and the design was chiefly managed by Sir Geo. Barclay who brought over the Commission and must necessarily be supposed to have understood the meaning of it best We find likewise that he brought over a Sub-brigadeer and 16 of King James's Guards with him and that they were subsisted privately in Town and ordered to be in a readiness for the horrid design so that let the Commission be couch'd in what Terms they please the meaning of it is plain enough and all their Art cannot vindicate the late King from being the unhappy Tool to promote that execrable Murder We all know what bloody designs against Protestants in General and some of his own nearest Relations in particular he has been formerly accus'd of Nor are we to suppose that one who makes his way to the Throne by the Death of a Brother would have any more tenderness for a Nephew or that he who gives way to the imposing of a Supposititious Son to exclude his own Daughters from their Right to the Crown will entertain any Scruple at the Murder of a Son-in-Law whom God and the Nation have set up in his stead and if I should venture to say that Sir William hath not been Ingenuous in his Confession there 's no reason to call it a breach of Charity considering that he hath not left the least Evidence of his Repentance for the Assassination behind him tho he own'd to the Committee of Parliament that it was a Crime PAPER It 's true I was privy to the Design upon the Prince but was not to act in it and am fully satisfied that very few or none knew of it but those who undertook to do it I freely acknowledge and think it for my Honour to say that I was entirely in the Interest of the King being always firmly perswaded of the Justice of his Cause and looked upon it as my Duty both as a Subject and an Englishmen to Assist him in the Recovery of his Throne which I believed him to be Depri●ed of contrary to all Right and Justice taking the Laws and Constitution of my Country for my Guide As for my Religion I dye in the Communion of the Church of England in which I was Educated And as I freely Forgive all the World so whoever I may any ways have Injured I heartily ask them Pardon ANSWER Here 's another Remarkable piece of disingenuity as if it were not all one for him to Act in it himself as to prompt others to do it and to furnish Men Horses and Arms for the Execution which was fully prov'd against him at his Trial tho he takes no notice of it here and does not at all deny it And we have very great reason to think that the Late King was one of the few that knew it besides these that undertook it and do verily believe that they design'd to let as few more know of it before-hand as possible and that in all probability was the reason why the Commission was kept up even from most of these who were to have been Actors in it In the next Paragraph he seems to justify himself by the supposed Justice of the late Kings Cause and values himself upon the Honour of having been always in his Interest and yet to preserve his place he took the Oaths to his present Majesty so that it seems the late King allows that practice in his Adherents and reckons them nothing the less intire to his Interest because they may thereby be the more Capable of doing him service and by this unhappy Gentlemans confession it would seem to be the Principles of the party to assist the late King in the Recovery of his Throne by all sorts of means how unlawful soever Nay even by abjuring him one day and Murdering his present Majesty the tother As for his pretence to justify himself by the Laws and Constitution of his Country enough has been said on that head already in Answer to Sir John Friend's Paper And whereas Sir John and he both pretends to die in the Communion of the Church of England it would seem necessary if the Governing part of the Church find it meet that an Authentick Explanation of the Churches Doctrine as to passive Obedience and Nonresistance should be publisht to the World that poor people may not be misled to their own ruine and the Nations involv'd in blood by those who pretend to justify their adherence to the late King by the Doctrine of the Church of England FINIS

of the thing and to be plain with you Gentlemen there's-no body so much concerned to say Amen to Sir Johns Prayer that God would forgive those who had been Instrumental or Accessary to the taking away of his Life as your selves and those of your kidney who inspir'd him with such Principles as brought him to this hard fate PAPER I profess my self and I thank God I am so a Member of the Church of England tho God knows a most unworthy and profitable part of it of that Church which suffers so much at present for a strict adherence to Loyalty the Laws and Christian Principles For this I suffer and for this I die ANSWER Gentlemen I do verily believe that there 's no Christian Church of what Denomination soever that would be fond of such a Member as you have made Sir John appear to be and in the mean time you have done that which you call your Church the greatest Injury in the World for some people were apt to be Charitable to the Nonjurant party as thinking that they might have really scrupled the taking the Oaths from a principle of Conscience but if it be true as you make Sir John say that it is your Church he suffered and died for then its plain that your Church is engaged in a Rebellious design to Dethrone his Majesty and to invade his Dominions with a French Popish Army so that by Consequence all true Protestants must look upon you as a Synagogue of Satan and no Christian Church because you are actually in a Confederacy with the Turk and French King the Sworn Enemies of the Christian and Protestant Religion and endeavour to assist the latter at least as much as in you lies to overthrow the Protestant Interest in Europe for so much and no less is the Language of your practice whatever you may pretend otherwise in your ordinary Cant. As to that Arrogant part of your Martyrs Paper that your Church suffers so much at present for a strict adherence to Loyalty the Laws and Christian Principles It is truely Extraordinary that such an handful of Men as your party is should take upon them to determine Loyalty Laws and Christian Principles contrary to the sense of the Legislative power of the Nation the National Church and indeed the greatest part of Christians in the World methinks that the very consideration of this should have obliged you to suspend your Judgment at least till you had fairly examin'd what the far greater part of your Protestant Brethren have to say in defence of their Loyalty and Christianity certainly if their practise be compair'd with the practise of your selves and your adherents you will find that they have as fair a Title to Piety Loyalty and every thing else that is good as you can possibly have and would be as loath to offend God and their own Consciences as you would be and therefore you cannot be the only party with whom Loyalty and Christianity is to be found Do but cast an Eye on the practise of your followers and you will find that they are generally the worst and most Immoral people of both Sexes and then if you consider your fellows and associates you will find them to be Turks and either English or French Catholicks who are the very worst of Papists and that their design is the subversion of our Laws and Religion And seeing you pretend to be Men of Conscience examine the matter seriously betwixt God and your own Souls whether or not the Voice of his word and providence does not call on you to come out of Babylon and not to joyn Issue and Interest with her If you have any sense of the Religion which you profess or any Remembrance of things past do but reflect upon the Danger which all the Protestants in Europe and particularly those of Britain and Ireland did apprehend their Religion to be in when Lewis XIV was swallowing up his Neighbouring Princes and States without Controll and when James the Second sat upon the English Throne supported by a Numerous Army under the Conduct of Popish Officers Look back upon the Language of the Church of England then when her Bishops were Imprisoned her Universities in danger of being filled with Papists and the Laws which Defended her overturned by an Illegal Dispensing Power and Answer from your Consciences whether you think a Design to Reinthrone K. James who will certainly pursue the same Measures can be the Cause of God and Religion Or in short take it into your serious Consideration whether a Question of State and meer Politicks such as this is Whether the Parliament or People of England can set another Prince upon the Throne instead of one who did actually leave it because he could not be suffered peaceably to overturn our Laws and Religion can properly be called the Cause of God and Religion and whether you or the Convention and Parliament are the best Judges of our Civil Constitution or because you are high Pretenders to Religion Answer Bona Fide How you can Reconcile your Principles and Practice with the Injunction of the Apostle who Commands Subjection to the Powers that be Rom. 13. 1. and Submission to every Ordinance of Man for the Lords Sake whether it be unto the King as Supream or unto Governors as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evil doers and for the praise of them that do well 1 Pet. 2. 13 Call your Consciences to an account before God and Examine Whether the Sufferings of that which you call your Church be not as busie Bodies in other Mens matters and whether it be yours or the Parliaments Business to determine whether the late K. James did Abdicate or not and whether His present Majesty has a good Title to the Crown by our Laws or not and don 't entitle your particular Notions about Civil Government which is none of your Province the Cause of God and Religion to ensnare silly weak People and bring them to the Gallows and to Embroil Nations in Foreign and Intestine Wars as you would not be answerable for all the Blood that has been or may be shed on that account Magistracy is God's Appointment but the Species as well as Persons intrusted are Ordinances of Men else it were unlawful for any Christian to be subject to a Republick or a King chosen by the People as in Poland c. and the Apostles Rule to submit our selves unto the King as Supream or unto Governors should be false which no Man in his right Wits will assert And considering the Instability of the Roman Government at the time when this Injunction was given viz. when Emperors were set up and cast down as the Army and the Senate or sometimes as the one and sometimes as the other thought fit we shall find that it s none of our part as private Christians to meddle with the Decision of those Affairs but to submit unto that which the Nation thinks fit to