from the Parliament he might alwaies give his Royall assent by Commission under the great Sâ—ale and by that it seemes hee had liberty to bee absent if hee would When Rich. 2. refused to come to his Parliament the Lords that threatned to depose his only averted that by an old Ordinance of Parliament if the Kng absented himselfe forty daies then they might every man returne quietly to his own house and that they would do so if he came not but they pretend no law to raise armes to compell the King to come And surely had there beene any colour to justifie it they would not have omitted it and if there had been any law or precedent though by popish Parliaments since Rich. 2. time to raise armes or make lawes without the Kings assent Mr. Pryn's Zeale to the Cause and hatred to the King would have found it before now Since therefore that the two houses cannot without the Kings assent make a new nor abrogate an old law cannot without the Kings assent raise armes to execute a person condemned by Parliament with the Kings assent as in Hu-De le Spencers case but they must have a pardon for it In what case are we that haue without the Kings assent nay contrary to his expresse Command contrary to Mag. Char. contrary to our Petition of Right 3â— Car. by armes taken the 20th part of every mans estate imprisoned their persons imposed new leanes and new impositions hanged Citizens and Gownmen contrary to the Priviledges of Parliament executed even Members of the Parliament by Martiall Law and at the Parliament doore while the Houses of Parliament were sitting the Kings bench as wee pretend open at West minster the Goale delivery for London and Middlesex in the Old Bâ—lâ— Nay contrary to our Petition of Right and our Statute made this Parliament have wee not in the Kings name because we could not in our owne pressed our fellow Subjects and by armes compelled them to fight Contrary to their sworne alleagiance and vowed Protestation which is to maintaine the reformed Protestant Religion expressed in the Doctrine of the Church of England Yet wee fight to turne out the Liturgy and prayers ordained by the whole Church of England and which wee have long knowne to make roome for the extemporary and unknowne prayer of a single man and him often unlearned sometimes debauched and this according to the Kirke of Scotland not of England to defend the Kings Royall Person His Honour His Estate yet wee justifie them that fight against him that permit nay licence libellous pamphlets against him and his honour that robbe his Exchequer by receiving and keeping from him his Râ—venew to maintaine the Previledges of Parliament yet hâ—â—e the Members to prison nay to execution by Martiall Law to Maintaine the Lawfull Rights and Liberties of the Subject yet fight to have our Estates Liberties and Lives taken away by Votes Ordinances and Martiall Law and against the Kings command We have protested to preserve the peace of England Scotland and Ireland yet fight here among our selves to annihilate and breake the Cessation of Armes and the peace there and send for Scots the hither to robbe murder and if God be not better to us then we to our selves utterly subdue and inslave us to set up and enrich themselves By what law can the Scots prescribe us a Church government by what law have they our Homagers a voice in the setling of our Militia and the lawes of our Nation To conclude we fight to save a few close-Committee men our Sate-actors that have perswaded and voted us and inforced the poore common souldiers to commit rapine bloud-shed Sacriledge and Rebellion to protect them who with Shimei reviled and flung stones and dust at David by their Declarations and Pamphlets who by their Remonstrances and Votes endeavoured to discover with Châ—m the nakednesse of their father who following the Counsell of Achitophel have in the sight of all Israel lyen with Davids Concubines by usurping his Authority and Royall power We fight to secure them whom an act of oblivion cannot and therefore must have the Militia at their sole dispose that the swords and lives of the poore souldiers may protect whom the law cannot justifie We fight to make London an Independent City to make the Maior Aldermen and Common-Councell a third House of Parliament and give them the Tower of London with the Militia of the City and Suburbs least the King being but Gods Vicar on earth their onely supreme Governour and Soveraigne Lord as severall Acts of Parliaments have declared least he should rebell against them his native his locall and his sworne Subjects We fight to abolish the ten Commandements the Creed the Epistles and Gospels because not consistent with the Scots Presbyteriall Discipline What one act of Charity or Mercy have these reformers of Religion done Where have they offered to the King to part with any thing of any pretended right liberty or priviledge to settle a peace in this Church and Common-wealth Nay which of these is not greater in estate and wealth in power and authority then he was before the Civil War began or shall be after the War ended Have not the Earles of Warwicke Manchesler and others that you know much inriched themselves and friends by the harvest of this War Have not their Chaplains Burges Sedgewicke Case Peters and others treble revenues and in-comes to preach Doctrines answerable to the occasion of raising money men or Armes or crying no Treaty no Peace Doctrines sutable to their Church and practice that have in cold blood murdered many poore Protestant English-Irish for being on the Kings side While on the other part the King not delighting in bloud hath pardoned divers whom the Law condemned nay he hath proclaimed pardon to all that would take it and to purchase peace he hath offered to part with his right to divide his Militia putting it into the power of twentie men whereof he to name ten and the two Houses ten Commissioners He desires and offers that Popery may be supprest according to Law and not Papists murdered because Irish Hee is willing that both Church and Common-wealth should be rectified according to law and according to law he offers to have all persons to be tryed by law He commiserating his oppressed Subiects the distracted Church and ruined Common-wealth hath offered and desired a Cessation from Armes but cannot obtaine it and then shall we not beleeve him the true father that would save the child God would not have his Temple built by a man of blood though even David nor would Christ have his Church reformed with the blood of Christians The King of peace cannot delight in warre Upon these Considerations Cosen I am resolved to leave their party that have misse-led me and my poore Country-men to our ruine and I will now lay hold of the Kings mercie and pardon offered by his Proclamation and by a hearty repentance I hope to expiate the bloud the treason and sacriledge I have countenanced by my former opinions and supported by my purse and perswasions And I do heartily wish that my poore Country-men and Neighbors that by an illegall presse are forced from their Wives and Children from their parents and Friends to fight against the English Protestant Religion and Liturgy to set up a Scotch Directory against their King to pay a tribute to their fellow Subjects against their Protestation to protect such as have seduced and deceived them and their nations that have raised this unnaturall warre upon pretences feares and jealousies and by the murther of many thousand English Christians keep themselves from a legall tryall that they may still sit quietly voting at Westminster and eate the fat of the Land Cosen I doe heartily wish that both you and the rest of my poore Countrey men would consider and weigh these things and that God would give you relenting hearts truly penitent for these horrid sinnes and then I would not doubt but you and they would end this warre for 't is in your powers by returning to the English Protestant Religion and Liturgy to your sworne alleageance to your Anointed King and then to your owne vines and figge-trees And no doubt but both you and they shall receive from God and the King the blessings due to the blessed peace-makers which is heartily prayed for by him that will lead you the way May 15. 1645. A. C. FINIS
A LETTER TO A FRIEND Shewing The Illegall proceedings of the Two Houses of PARLIAMENT And observing GOD ' s aversenesse to their Actions Which caused the Authours returne to the KING and His Alleagiance OXFORD Printed in the yeare M. DC XLV A Letter to a Friend shewing the illegall proceedings of the Two Houses of PARLIAMENT Cosen YOu know how earnestly and with what charge I opposed the illegal demands of Ship-money and Loanes how I hated Court Monopolies and arbitrary Justice in the Star chamber Councell Table and Marshalls Court how I abhorred the exorbitance of the High Commission all which the King readily rectified in the beginning of this Parliament You know with what cheerefulnesse I tendred my purse my person being unserviceable for the Reformation of Religion the suppressing Popery the establishment of our liberties and properties the removing of evill Counsellors the reducing the King to his great Counsel the Parliament and the uniting of the Sister Countries in a Brotherly Union You remember how willingly we declared and protested that for the safety of the Kings person the defence of the Houses of Parliament the Protestant Religion established the Lawes Liberty and Peace of the Kingdome we would live and dye with the Earle of Essex And this being first commanded by the Houses of Parliament then seconded by the Pulpit carryed the face of Law and the voice of Religion so that with us was all Israel from Dan to Beersheba We possest all the walled Cities while the King like David in the mountaines had not a Towne to retreat to Wee had thousands of the choice men strongly armed while the King had only a handfull of out-law'd Cavaliers as we call them and them naked not a musket scarce a sword among them We had all the Crowne revenue all the City plate to bodkins and thimbles even talents of gold and silver and the King scarce enough to buy his dinner Our Magazines swelled with Armes Ordnance Ammunition of all sorts while the King the Houses having seized his wanted all And lest he should have supplyes from beyond Sea we possest all his Navie all his Port-Townes and left him not a Cock-boat not a Haven And better then all these we had the advantage of a just Cause fighting for God and reformation of religion as our Preachers taught us for the defence of the Kings Person our Lawes the properties and liberties as the Two Houses told us of Subjects and these backed with the pious Fasts and Humiliations of Sanctified Congregations with humble and earnest prayers for successe And could so iust a Cause so piously mannaged by such religious Patriots can such miscarry or want successe Especially while on the other side the Kings small Army was unarmed Idolatrous and Popish Cavaliers their Cause iustifying of Idolatry Popery Superstition maintenance of Bishops rebellion against the Parliament and subversion of the fundamentall lawes their prayers if any for successe but supplications out of a Popish Liturgy And what can such Armies such Persons such a Cause such prayers expect but destruction Thus both Pulpit and Parliament misse-led me untill of late I considered the successe of both sides and doe you weigh them indifferently and then tell me where wee can boast a Victory For if wee consider the Battailes wee most brag of those at Keinton Alresford Lansdowne Yorke Newbury we shall finde the successe such as if heaven rather intended both sides vanquished then us Victors On the other side examine the Actions at Runawaydowne Newbury Newarke Cropready Lestithiell Pontfract and elsewhere weigh the disproportions and disadvantages the Kings Armies fought with and then view their successe and you will finde it so farre beyond the expectation of reason as it is scarce within the reach of our beliefe Inquire what plenty of Men Armes Ordnance great Townes and strong holds the King now hath and so many have we lost Consider how many thousands of men how many Armies my Lord of Essex my Lord of Manchester and Sir William Waller have lost how much treasure they have exhausted how our Navy is decayed how many of our ships and men drowned while we had no enemy at Sea but heaven Nay how many of our Ships with their lading have the windes siding against us carried into the Kings aide and our destruction And can these argue lesse then Gods displeasure against our proceedings These ill successes made me looke backe upon our State Actors that sit at the helm and direct all things and among them even those that were best reputed of for Reformation and integrity to the Common-wealth as Master Hampden that first raised Armes against the King when as wee thought out of danger you shall find him shot in Chalgrove field where the year before he had first taken up his Armes You may see Patriot Pym whom the people for his Speech applaud like Herod like Herod eaten up of Lice The Lord Brooke armed as Death could not enter him and at a distance danger could not reach breathing out threats against the Church is before the Church with a single bullet shot in the eye My Lord Say whom Heaven cannot hurt if the plot hold hath one Sonne scorned for being a Coward in so good a bad Cause his other Sonne condemned to be hanged for being honester then his Father in delivering Bristol Sir John Hotham and his Sonne whom the Houses justified for Treason against the King the Houses to maintaine their priviledge execute first the Sonne then the Father by a Court of Warre for thinking to be honest And as if the same method were to be observed for the whole House they are hanging young Waineman to come to my Lord his Father The Earle of Essex whom the first yeere they salute with Hosanna's passe votes for his thanks and trophies but now decry and as much as they dare scorn and neglect him Warwick and Manchester like Tinker Fox and Rag-man Phips must now be squeezed as orenges to make sauce for the Juncto palats they are rich Others there be deserve observation While I contemplated these great active men and their misfortunes I could not thinke them lesse then farthing sparrowes which fall not without the Divine providence therefore strictly examined our Cause by the Rules of Law and Gospel and in a matter of this consequence I have taken the best opinions both of Divines and Lawyers and of both the most moderate yet such as were rather engaged on ours then on the Kings side All the Divines agree our Kings to have their power from God and therefore Saint Peter commands obedience to Kings as to the Supreame Saint Paul to the Higher powers for there is no power but from God and therefore saith he pay ye tribute And they observe that these commands were to Christians the obedience commanded to be given to Pagans to heathenish Kings as the Romans those of Pontus Asia Bithynia c. The Divines observe that Saint Peters Epistle was to Strangers
c. Touching the opinion raised this Parliament that the two Houses are aboue the King and therefore the King ought and must passe such Bills such Acts as they resolve and offer to him That say the Lawyers is totally false and against all reason law and practice in all ages And in considering thereof they have not bin led by the pamphlets published this Parliament on either side because such like Schoole-Disputants rather endeavour to maintaine their position and side then to discover truth therefore the Lawyers grounded their judgement upon bookes formerly written upon precedent of moderate times when the Kings Prerogative and Subjects liberty both knew and kept their proper bounds The Parliament say they of the 24. Hen. 8 cap. 12. Declares That the Realme of England is an Empire governed by one Supreame Head and King having the Dignity and estate of the Imperiall Crowne unto whom a body politique compact of all sorts and degrees of people by the name of the Spirituality and Temporaliy been bound and one next so God a naturall and humble obedience being by Gods goodnesse endued with plenary whole and entire Power Authority and Iurisdiction within His Realme This body politique no doubt is the two Houses of Parliament and doubtlesse then the two Houses owe this naturall and humble obedience and then sure if the Servant be not greater then his Master to whom he owes his obedience the Creature then his Creatour then the two Houses that as appeares by their owne act for the continvance of this Parliament are called by the King and by Him dissolveable are not above the King that is their breath and gives life to all their actions And it the King be by God endued with plenary power entire Authority and Iurisdiction Consider from whom can the two Houses have their power their authority and Jurisdiction to be above that given by God In Caudries case in the 5. Report fol 10. the King is said to be the Vicar of the Highest King Ordained to governe and rule the Kingdom and People The Parliament in the 25. Hen. 8. acknowledged the Jurisdiction of Kings to be immediatly from God The Statute of the 26 of Hen. 8. cap. 1. declares the King to be the onely Supreame Head in Earth under God of the Church of England and that hee hath Power to redress and reforme all Errors and abuses in the Church In the 26 Hen. 8. cap. 3. the Parliament declares that the King is the onely Supreame Head under God of the Church of England having the whole Governance tuition and defence thereof and of His Subjects And consonant to that is our Statute 1 Eliz. and in our Oath of Alleagiance ordained by Act of Parliament wee and especially the Members of the House of Commons acknowledge and sweare That the Kings Highnesse is the onely Supreame Governour of the Realme both in Ecclesiasticall and Temporall causes And our Lawyers say that the King being the Supreame governour cannot have any Governour naturall or politique as the two houses above him and as hee is the onely Supreame Governour must needs bee above all other Governours either naturall or politique By the same Oath we sweare allegiance to Him and His Heires and Successours which must needs be to his Naturall capacity for his politique cannot have Heires And in the case of the Dutchy of Lancaster Plowd 213. It is resolved that the body politique of the King cannot be severed from his naturall body And then it is ridiculous to thinke much more to say that the politique capacity of the King is included in the two Houses of Parliament when his naturall is absent and dissenting to what they doe If the two Houses could make a Law or Ordioance to binde the Subject without the Kings assent why should not all the bils that passed both houses but had not the Kings assent why should not they be good and valid and binde the Subject they had the Votes of both Houses when full and entire they had more consideration more circumstance all necessaries but the Kings assent to the making of a Law yet these Bills in all ages have beene held naught and invalid And shall the votes of the two houses upon motion of a worthy Member though not a 5th part of either House be present and without the Kings assent shall they make a good Ordinance to repeale five Statutes in the Reignes of Edw 6. and Queene Eliz. as in the Ordinance for the Directory and the booke of Common Prayer all which have stood unquestioned these 100 yeares in which time wee have had 20 Parliaments in which our now Parliament-mens Fathers and Grand-fathers were Members and I believe as wife as honest and as Religious as their Sonnes and Grand-children and they approved they practiced and followed that Liturgy The Parliament 1 Jacob. cap. 1. prayes the Kings Royall assent to a Bill without which nothing say they can be compleate and perfect nor remaine to posterity And Cowell who writ about 40 yeares since speaking of the regally of the King comprised under the title of Prerogative There is not one saith he that belonged to the most absolute Prine in the world which doth not also belong to our King only by the custome of this Kingdome he maketh no lawes without the consent of the three Estates Lords spirituall Lords temporall and the Commons though HE MAY Qâ—ASH ANY KAVV CONCLUDED BY THEM Then how shall the Votes and Ordinances of a small part of the House be good when against Magn. Char. against the Petition of Right against our Allegiance and Protestation Yet must we venture our lives to murther our brothers and fellow Subject or they us or both to maintaine what they vote though against Law contrary to the Gospell and without precedent But the two Houses do but endeavour to take the King from His Evill Counsellours to bring him to his Parliament where he ought to be present resident or else they may force him yea eradicate three ears of Wheate to destroy one of Tares For that say the lawyers there is no precedent no book unlesse writ within these two yeares But Mr. Hooker alias Vowell who writ about the beginning of Queene Elizab. and is much quoted by Mr. Pryn writing the manner of holding of Parliaments as we may see in Hollinshead 2 part fol. 121 saith that the King is Gods Anointed his Deputy and Vicar on earth the Head of his Realme the Cheifest Ruler on whom wholly and only depends the government of the Estates of the Realme That the King ought to be personally present in Parliament three daies in every Parliament first on the day of appearance secondly on the day when the Speaker of the House of Commons is presented the third when the Parliament is prorogued And for other daies saith the Book he is at his choice to come or not to come And it appeares by the Statute of 3â— Hen. 8 c p. 21. That if the King be absent