Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A36048
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A Direct road to peace and happiness in church and state
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1696
(1696)
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Wing D1525A; ESTC R26699
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25,392
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45
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which whosoever liveth is accounted dead before God None questions the Kings Legal Power or who made him King but such as are of the Israelites kidney that questioned Moses who made him a Ruler and a Judge and caused him to fly his Country for doing a Brotherly Office The King is a wise Prince and a profest Protestant had he time to read the Case and Petitions of his meanest Subjects he would certainly do them speedy and cheap Justice It is his Misfortune as well as thine That he is busily imployed Circa Ardua negotia regni The Heathen Philosopher that could say We are not born for our selves but partly for our Country Condemns all Free-born and Naturalized Subjects especially such as are under the obligation of Oaths and Associations to be true to his Majesty and his Government that are not as serviceable as they may or can be Can any profest Protestant be ungrateful to His Majesty that calls to mind the many eminent Dangers both by Sea and Land to which his Majesties Sacred Person hath been so often exposed to secure Protestants from Arbitrary Power and Popery and sees how freely His Majesty leaves all things to be setled and done in Parliament for the common Interest of the Crown and People So that if we be not wanting to our selves we may be as happy as we can hope to be in this World and the next Therefore Reader I will offer to thee such things as I conceive necessary to be Communicated for the Service of my King and Country If any thing be disliked or not well approved on let thy Charity pardon me it being well intended and remember it was not the Widows Mite but her willing Mind to Contribute more made her Present acceptable Let not private Interest Favour or Affection sway thy Judgmeent read diligently and judge Impartially and give grains of Allowance to thy weak Brother who exhorts thee in the Apostles words Remember them that are in Bonds as bound with them and them that suffer Adversity as being thy self also in the Body In private Families should the Husband Command unreasonable things or the Wife despute her Husbands reasonable Jurisdiction or the Children their Parents or the Servants be Judges in their own Case what distraction would inevitably ensue in case Law and Equity were not Umpire Art thou compelled to take Oaths and Subscribe Associations thou art bound and thou must obey or suffer what the Law Inflicts for thy disobedience if thou discharge thy Oath and Duty and suffer any loss or damage for thy Obedience the Government is bound to make the repairation and to Protect thee If a Law be attended with Inconveniences which were not foreseen at the time of making and thou art prosecuted by force thereof the King can stop proceedings until the Parliament meet to Annul it or Amend what is therein Amiss Art thou Opressed by the neglect or Non Execution of any wholsome Law the King can Command the due Execution of it Hast thou Consumed thy Estate and contracted great Debts in discharge of Oath and Duty and dost thou want Subsistence for thy felf and Family and will not thy Creditors forbear troubling and restraining thee of thy Liberty and will not the Government relieve thee Commit thy Cause to God he is the relief of the Opressed and can make thy case known to the King as he did Mordecais to King Ahasuerus Doth any in Authority under His Majesty upon any Acount whatsoever opress thee His Majesties Propper Courts can Right thee Are the Judges thereof Parties concerned in point of Interest to favour thy Opressors and wrong thee or do the Judges or such as the King intrusts to do thee Justice deny or neglect to do their duty thou hast a just and wise King to apply unto whose Power and Prerogative is the most essential part of the Law It is saith a Learned Judge A Sanctuary for the opressed to fly unto a Fortress to the weak to retire unto and a Curb to the insolent So that thou mayest depend on Justice at His Majesties hands because His Majesty can do no wrong But the wisdom of the Law knows that His Majesty sees with others Eyes and hears with others Ears and acts with others Hands and that they may be gulty of abusing and wronging thee Therefore the Law inflicts severe Punishment on such in Authority under His Majesty as deceive His Majesty by ill Advice or do or suffer any thing to be done against the Honour and Interest of His Majesty and his People and His Majesty may when he thinks sit Sit in Person and see Justice done to any of his opressed or injured Subjects for His Majesty is Supream Chancellor of England and none is to depart his Courts without relief And had His Majesty time and leasure to make one or two Presidents of Persons exemplarily punished for breach of Oath and Duty it would ease His Majesty of much trouble and make His Majesties Reign Glorious Doth not the King understand the Laws and will not his Councel advise him right thou hast thy representatives in Parliament to make thy Case and Condition known to the King Are thy Friends to Justice out-voted by Parties intressed to favour thy Opressors and wrong thee Thou hast frequent Parliaments to apply unto Art thou affraid the People will chuse the same Members Every body knows that old Brooms being stumpy and stubborn will scratch and leave Filth Rubbish in Holes and Crevises where new Brooms being bushy and pliant will sweep clean However thou may do well to give thy Fellow Electors to understand That the Law allows not Parties interested to be either Judges or Jury-men and that under Sherffs are not allowed by Law to be in Office above a Year at a time because the Law presumes new Shereffs are not so Crafty as the old nor will be guilty of their Tricks and Fallacys And it may be believed that it is as requisite for none but indifferent Persons to have Votes in the High Court of Parliament as to have indifferent Judges and Jury-men in the Inferior Courts and that new Members to represent the People may be as necessary as new Sherriffs in every County let the People know the particulars of thy Case and how thou art Oppressed and by whom and for what and thou mayest happily prevail with them to chuse such to represent them and thee as live among them and do all the Neighbourly good Offices they can For the People of England are naturally Stout Generous and lovers of Justice and will do all things that may suit with the Honour and Interest of their King and Country and though Inhumane Wars Plots and Conspiraces have depraved their natural Tempers and Dispositions Yet in proces of time they will be reclaimed and thou mayest be successful Thou knowest that the unjust Judge in the Parable who neither feared God nor reverenced Man was wrought upon by the importunate Widow to do her
were Relieved and due Care taken of the Poorest of them in the First Place Object But Boroughs wherein are few Inhabitants will hardly consider ought but their own private Interest Answ Some may be Stupified until they be Disfranchised The People of England are not so Ignorant and Illiterate as they were when the Duke of Cornwall multiplied Burgesses nor when the Abby-Lands and the Ancient Rights Prerogative and Authorities of Justice 27 Hen. 8. Cap. 24. were rescued out of the hands of the Pope and his Petty Tyrants Object King Hen. the 8th was not involved in War and Espoused the Cause and gave his People to understand his and their Common Interest but the Nation is so Imbroyled with Wars Abroad Factions Plots and Conspiracies at Home that his Majesty wants Leisure to Consider the many Inconveniencies that attend Him and his People by not having the Defects of the Laws against Simony and Buying and Selling Offices supplied and you know several in Authority under Hen. the 8th were as Active as the King to make the People sensible of their own Interest Answ I Answer The People are not so Ignorant and Illiterate at this time but now all that are not wilfully blind see which side their Bread is Butter'd on 'T is thy Duty and mine in our Private and Publick Devotions to Pray for the King and all that are put in Authority under him that they may truly and indifferently Minister Justice and Maintain Truth and we best Express our Christian Duties when we in our particular Callings Professions and Trades be Serviceable Members of the State as well as of the Church 'T is true the King wants time to read but His Majesty hath many Honourable and Worthy Persons in Authority under Him that have Leisure enough and what they conceive fit to be done for His Majesty's Service they will undoubtedly Advise and Counsel His Majesty for the Best All that Truly Love and Honour His Majesty and heartily Desire and Wish the Prosperity of Him and His People are for Extirpating such things as make Parties and Factions in Church and State And seeing 't is usual to describe such Criminals as go by different Names and skulk to avoid Justice I will according to the best of my Skill discover a Symoniacal Parson and an Office-Jobber that they may be known and apprehended The Character of a Parson guilty of Symony He may be known by the extraordinary Pains he takes a little before he is to be examined by the Bishop or his Official a poor Felon who has the Benefit of his Clergy that can neither Write nor Read is not harder put to his Shifts to learn his Neck-verse by Rote than a Parson guilty of Symony is to fit himself for his Examination And as soon as instituted and inducted his whole Study and Business is how to make most of his Benefice And after that he is so taken up with Attending Courts of Justice in Suits between him and his Parishoners that he has much to do to escape the Penalties of the Law against Non-residency When Overtures of Peace are made he saith Let the Law decide it that his Successors may not blame him And never makes any Agreement upon his own Terms without a Salvo jure to his Successors That they may place him in the List of their Benefactors When he sees Complaint will be made of him to the Ordinary or Bishop at his Visitation he has recourse to his Patron and by Contrivance between his Patron and him the Matter is hush'd up if possible but in case it be not their business is by their Parties and Factions to represent the Complaints Schismatical Factions and what not His Flock are ever Bleeting for another Sheepherd as Lambs for want of their Dams and if they are not to be found in their Neighbouring Sheepherd's Fold they are stray'd further and lost The Character of an Office-Jobber He is of a Religion uppermost a most accomplish'd Temporizer his Ambition hates to see any of his poor and beggarly Kindred or to do any thing for them until he hath robed them with Honour Offices and what not at the Nations and Poor Petitioners Cost or he is so Covetous that he cares not what he gets or how he gets so he can but get and heap up Riches He is always Poor crying Give Give but never satisfied with what is given He will not serve any but in Matters wherein he can serve or gratifie himself as little Credit is to be given to his Oaths as to Whores Vows He is true to no Government yet Zealous in Appearance to serve every Government but Water-man-like Looks one way and Rows another He hates all Loyal Services which represent any worthy of a Liberal Reward Especially such as are Poor and cannot purchase it He is never without a Jackhall to Forrage for him When he meets a Man of Merit he cries Shame no Provision is made for him and when his Back is turned he redicules him for a Fool that serves his King and Country to the Prejudice of himself For publick Business he accounts every bodies Work and every bodies Business to be no bodies in particular But the proper Work of such as can serve Turns and themselves at every Turn His common Discourse is Religion Liberty and Property But feeds so greedily on Pippins and Pigg stuffed with Guinea's that he is Sloathful and Unactive to do his King and Country any manner of Service His Complements are I am but one and I will serve you if I can or come again to-morrow and your Business shall certainly be done And when you come in Expectation thereof it is still to-morrow And at last when he had gratified whom he thinks fit he tells you He is Sorry he cannot Serve you And if your Business happens to be done against his Will he tells you how Serviceable he hath been to you And that there is no Fee established for his extraordinary Care Pains and Expedition but will take what you give him In plain Terms Nothing but weighty Presents are weighty Reasons can work him into a Frame or Disposition to do you a Just Favour or Friendly Office by vertue of Hocus Pocus Colore Officii he can Drein your Purses Afflict your Mind and Body and do it so insensibly that you may accuse him but cannot recover any Satisfaction for the Loss and Damage you sustain You may know him by the great number of Petitioners waiting at his Gate for Recommendations or Reports of their Services and when his Tricking is found out and he is likely to fall under His Majesty's Displeasure he of himself fairly acquits all Publick Imployments and becomes a Country-Gentleman and there lives Great among his Neighbours and treats them with all imaginable Courtesie and Civility until they forget what manner of Man he was And in process of Time sets up to be chosen a Member of Parliament And if the People Elect him he Acts his part