Selected quad for the lemma: death_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	act_n	king_n	parliament_n	4,616	5	7.4258	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A67913	The free-born English mans plea for justice: or, A cry against post-fact laws. Being a survey of the controversies touching the late purchased titles through the true perspective of justice. By William Jackson, one who hath lived to see the famine of justice removed, and hopes to see it continue as plentifully amongst us; as food in Samaria; after the flight of these Assirians: 2 Kings, 7.	Jackson, William, 1636 or 7-1680.	1660 (1660)	Wing J93; ESTC R207910	14,659	20

Approbation of the King therefore in this respect their Plea for such a Title is now fully void that Parliament after a double resurrection being quite rooted up by their own Act if the death of the late King had not nulled it before next 't is observable that those Orders they can plead in that behalf were made by scarce half the Parliament the other half being removed to Oxford by the Kings Order for though he had released the power of dissolving he had not that of removing it where they joyntly with the consent of the King set out Proclaimation for the Continuance of all Ministers in their benefices til duly convicted and ejected by a lawful authority so that to any unbyassed man such a Proclimation had much more reason to be regarded than any they can plead to the Contrary as to other sequestrations they and these too have only one excuse that there were Wars then in the Land the Justness of which that things may come to a composure is not fit to be examined which procured many things as necessary that could not be Justified in peace for Inter arma silent leges to which nevertheless it may very well be answered that though sequestrations were then necessitated yet since it hath pleased God that the daies of oppression and violence should be shortened by procuring a right understanding between his Majesty and his People God forbid injustice should stil remain or that postfact Laws should be created at their own unjust desires to confirm injustice because it hath been made good by a strong hand for a while But here may be infer'd the old Objection to Law and Justice that sumum jus is summa injuria which I to avoid other Objections willingly in general grant but if these use this as a reasonable Objection in this case that exactness in doing right be great wrong what is extremity of wrong surely an oppression beyond a name Christ useth this kind of Argument If the light that is in them be darkness then how great is that darkness so if the very extremity of Justice pressed against these men shal be thought great wrong what wrong do they think those suffered that lost wrongfully all they had thus long certainly they may be somthing sensible when they think and reflect on these things I wish they may and repent for somthing else than that they are permitted to do injustice no longer for as hitherto that hath appeared their greatest trouble not for what ill they have done but for what they cannot do But this is no Godly sorrow But having admitted the Objection made against the beauty and benefit of true Justice I say England hath made Happy provision in that behalf for in deciding controversies we have the High Court of Chancery to mitigate the rigor of the Law of proprieties and in matters Capital because they are all Culpae lesae Majestatis they have their mitigation in the Kings breast whose perogative is to remit punishments that are against his royalty or Person as he shall in his clemency see reason for it not medling usually with any mans propriety But neither of these can give any relief in this case to them that plead for mitigation for these can but moderate the rigor of the Law by extenuating or remitting the penalty that is subject to their prerogatives but cannot lay it on the shoulders of them that ought not to bear it for 't were a miserable doing of equity to the guilty by obtruding injustice on the guiltless We have many Commands and examples for being mercifull in our Justice but none that our mercy to offenders should make us unjust and cruel to the innocent 't were a strange sentence if a Judg from the Bench giving Judgment on a Criminall guilty of Burglary or such like offence should say By the Law thou oughtest to die nevertheless that mercy may abate this rigor thou shalt but be half hanged and he whom thou hast robbed shal be half hanged with thee but far worse if he should hang the innocent and let the offender enjoy his booty the transferring the sentence or part on the innocent is of the same nature and holds proportion very wel if the Innocent must lose their whole or part of their estates against Law to save the losses of such as ought to be punished for their unjust intrusion besides the loss of the estates so gotten But if these lay a farther stress on the argument of his Majesties referring all to the sentence of the Parliament I say God forbid that there could be such a thing in England as an unjust Parliament Unjust Factions and pieces of mock Parliaments we have too sensibly felt but to imagine that a whole Parliament free from force or fear can be so perverted is a kind of Blasphemy against the dignity of so Eminent an Assembly so fundamental in our Constitution of Governments as that is And although his Majesty hath been gratiously pleas'd in his clemency to submit these matters of Controversie to their composure his yeilding to their arbritration will not by them be deemed a sufficient warrant for them to be unjust in their umpirage If the matter in Controversie belong to one of the parties 't is not to be called an equal Arbitration if the Umpire shal part it between both parties Equity consists in doing Justice but stil upon lawful considerations so it suffers not the Morgagee to take the forfeiture of the Morgager but it alwaies provides that the morgagee shal have no loss neither in principal nor interest because the Law makes the bargain a just bargain on both parts but when the Law Justifies not the alienation why one man should be justified in buying anothers right of them that had nothing to do with it not any thing to color such sales or disposures more than a Thief that it too strong for a man wil never seem reasonable God be thanked Right and Might were never made termini convertibiles til of late when our nation through the violence of the Feaver it labored withal suffered a delirium hideous Fancies crept into the seat of Reason misinforming the whol Solomon hath given us a very imitable example to follow in our arbitrations for though like a wise Arbitrator he pretended the division of the Child between the true Mother and the false yet having by that found out the truth he restord the Child whol and living to the right Mother with the applause of all for his Justice and Wisdom my hopes and prayers shal be that God wil not suffer either his Wisdom or Justice to shine less in our Senators than in Solomon Now if they make that other general Plea that their acquiesing to the return of his Majesty ought to be Considerable in mitigating the Rigor of Justice his return ought to procure such an Union as to take away all animosities and distinctions whatsoever that they together with others might

have such true Titles to their Possessions as the Laws of the land shall justifie we cannot think such injustice can be permitted by his Majesty as to suffer them to be expelled contrary to Laws of which his Royal Proclaimation hath given them assurance but if the Laws of the Land wil not Justifie their possessions 't is great injustice they should hold them both to the detriment of those in present that ought to enjoy them and to be an il example or encouragement to others to enrich themselves out of others ruines for the future for without a Buyer there can be no Seller therefore where the Law did not Justifie that Title at the time of bargain In the name of God let Justice frustrate and restore to the just owner according to the true Title and let not our Age seek to justifie wrong by a post fact Law for which these Kingdoms have already felt such sore Judgments one such Law to take the blood of one man in that nature hath been revenged upon the whole three nations with the blood of many and should post fact lawes be now created to take the Estates of those which were not forfeitable by Laws extant at the time of the forfeiture I pray God do not revenge it after the same manner upon the three Nations and lay al of them desolate Rom. 7. 7. What shal we say then is the Law sin God forbid Nay I had not known sin but by the Law for I had not known sin except the Law had said Thou shalt not covet Where there is any forfeiture of an Estate there needs no post fact Law to confirm it for that Law which makes a man an offender hath the forfeiture annexed to it If post fact Laws be allowed Who knows when he does amiss Therefore both dispossessed and Possessors gainers and loosers if ye agree in nothing else agree in this one voyce Fiat Iustitia You would be loath either of you to be accounted unjust ye ought not to be your own Judges the Law ought to be our Judg for as Justice is and ought to be the rule to our Law-makers in making their Laws to shew them what should be Law so should the Law be both to them and us the rule of what is Justice They that fear the Law are partial and of a Tyranous spirit seeking a priviledg for themselves above their fellows whereas Justice and Laws are alwaies general priviledg or punish every man alike in the same case making no difference to any and this is the liberty of the subject to have al in the same capacity with him excepting only such as are impowred with the supream oversight of the whol To prevent those innumerable inconveniences which such should they be in hazard might precipitate the Nation into Nevertheless by that exception are they subjected as much or more to the bond of love for their own strength as they could have been by the penal laws but with far more security to the Nation Seeing therefore that Justice is that general priviledg wherein all Just and equal interests are most priviledged let us with one mind think of no other Plea than that which I hope will be so provided for by his Majesty and the Parliament now sitting that there will be no need of promoting any pleas for it for no man petitions at any time for what he hath but what he wants so that it is the part of every man to rest satisfied in expectation of what is preparing by them whom we should very much injure to think would omit or act any thing that Justice should not require but when any such thing is then promote Pleas for Justice according to the known Laws but in your particular Pleas to make such objections as one is out so much monies and is like to be ruined if he be deprived of what he holds or that such were deboist in their lives On the other side that we are brought to poverty those that possest our estates are so or so these savor more of passion than reason for it they that have gamed the sequestred Estates have them by Law the others poverty is no reason they should loose their right but if the others have lost their Estates without Law There is no equity but that Law should restore them 't is not the debauchery laid to their charge which besides is to be proved as wel as said that excuses any man in anothers right for wherof a man is legally possessed of that he is to be deem'd true owner in the same capacity he was at first invested with til the Law disposess him again and whosoever enters without his consent before such declaration be made by Law hath as much title to it as a Thief on the high way to the money in a mans purse for such entries are not by the right door The Laws of the Land are the right door to all manner of possessions Whoso therefore comes not in by the right door the same is a Thief and a Robber saith Christ And though this may have been a Judgment on such as did set their minds too to much upon this world to wean them from laying up treasures to themselves upon earth where moth and rust do corrupt and Thieves break through and steal they should be so deprived that they might lay up treasures in Heaven c. God send all men to make use of his dispensations to his glory he can renew his Judgments on them when they give him the same provocation But as the Infirmities of men if they be true ought not to bar them of the priviledge of the Law so ought not the excellency of any man or Saint-like Godliness to cal it by the usual word priviledg him to do injustice against Law Nay 't is vehemently to be suspected that where a godly man drives on designs of depriving any man of his right before the Law hath divested him of it that his godliness is but seeming not reall for Justice is the fit foundation to build godliness on Justice may be where godliness is not but godliness cannot be where Justice is not therefore such assertors of their own righteousness may wel be conjectured Pharisee like less Justifiable than the poor dejected Publican for though they are more circumspect in Punctillio's yet they omit the weighty matters of doing Justice Obeying Princes and Laws and this their desire of holding what they have without relation had to the Justness of it very much discovers for we Judg by the fruits not the flowers And whereas these may superficially for a mask of such intrusion plead Orders of Parliament to be the Law that authorized their possession 't is very wel known in England that no order of Parlliament was ever pleaded to be in force longer than the Session of that Parliament which made it but that such orders as they hold necessary to continue were drawn into Acts and confirmed by the