be more fully detected to prevent greater mischief for the future I shall endeavour to explain some of those Mysterious practices which are used at this day from their very Original in the days of King James the First and then return to what is necessary to be further observed upon this Vindication When that King after that horrid Plot of the Gunpowder Treason being more terrified with the Danger he had escaped than animated by so great a Deliverance to dependance upon the Providence of God who preserved him which that Deliverance in a special manner obliged him to deserting that great Duty and relying upon his own craft sought to secure himself and his own Posterity by Compliance and Alliances with his Enemies the Papists like those who have recourse to Witches and Conjurers instead of that Security he expected he involved himself and his Posterity in such Snares as were the real cause of all those Evils which afterward befel them and out of which they could never after extricate themselves During the long and happy Reign of Queen Elizabeth who generously performing that great Duty kept them at a distance all they could do was only to contrive secret Plots against her Person and Foreign Invasions and to sow Seeds of Division in secret Meetings all which that Providence of God in which she confided dissipated and turned to their own Confusion But when afterward they were favoured and admitted to a nearer Converse with our Princes Statesmen and Bishops they presently found their Advantage to put in practice other Policies of a more deep subtile and dangerous Nature and under the cover of very plausible Pretences whereby they and their Venome might insinuate the deeper These were principally Three 1. To change the Government and make it Arbitrary and Absolute in the Prince 2. To raise and heighten Divisions 3. To corrupt the Manners of the Nation 1. To endeavour a Change of the Government they saw several Reasons 1. They plainly saw it to be utterly unpracticable to deal with the other two Estates to introduce their Religion 2. They also understood very well that such endeavours might be so managed as to ingratiate them with the Prince and many of the Courtiers Ministers of State and of the aspiring Clergy 3. They also foresaw that by slighly insinuating into the Prince and his Favourites and Flatterers such matters as tended to this they should also by the same means promote their other design of raising Divisions between the Prince and the People 2. To raise and heighten Divisions they easily saw would not only weaken and dissolve the strength of the Nation but would also give them a fair opportunity to shelter themselves under one Party or other as they should see occasion These Advantages they might expect by Civil Dissentions and these and some more by Divisions also about matters of Religion and therefore they industriously promoted both 3. And to corrupt the manners of the Nation they might expect would give them these Advantages 1. It would weaken the strength of the Nation making men more inconsiderate and careless of any Publick Concern and indisposing them for either Prudent Counsel or Generous Action 2. It would make them more indifferent in matters of Religion and less apt to give them any disturbance in the prosecution of their Designs 3. And this indifference would dispose them to the more easie admission of theirs when it should be seasonably and prudently proposed to them under some plausible pretences These were the Principal of their Policies and the Grounds of them which were rational enough though it pleased God who hath the Hearts of all Men at his disposal by his over-ruling Providence in his own time to defeat them all But the Contrivances Methods and particular Practices which they used for the promotion of these Policies and Designs were too many to be here discovered nor is that my business at this time I shall therefore only take notice of such as are pertinent to the present occasion that is such as aspiring Courtiers and Clergymen joyned with them in though for different ends of their own and such as we have still reason to beware of Such as these 1. Magnifying the Regal Power upon false Principles beyond its true bounds according to the English Constitution and Vilifying our Laws in general as rude and barbarous and the Fundamentals of our Constitution which limit and restrain the Excesses of Regal Power as encroachments of the People upon Prerogative and so possessing the King and many honest welmeaning People not sufficiently acquainted with the Excellence of our Laws and Constitutions with False Dangerous and Pernicious Notions concerning our Government And having by this means prepared the way and insinuated themselves into Favour they never failed of some Project for their own ends though never so illegal to put the King upon encouraging him to despise the just complaints of the People as clamours and that which was below his Majesty to be aw'd by And because this could not but move all truly Loyal honest and understanding Men who saw the dangerous Consequences to the King as well as to the People of such Courses it was very natural and easie to them to represent all such as Persons of Antimonarchical and Republican Principles And always by how much the more notorious and illegal were their Practices by so much the greater and lowder were the clamours against the Commonwealth Principles and the noise of the Dangers threatning the Monarchy And by this means were our Kings kept in continual Jealousie and ill Opinion of many of their best most honest Loyal and most faithful Subjects But they could never have proceeded so far in these things had they not by inculcating false Notions concerning one branch of the Regal Office the Calling Proroguing and Dissolving of Parliaments and suggesting false Fears and Dangers of the consequence of their Sitting often prevailed with those Kings to abuse the Trust in that respect reposed in them contrary to the Constitution of this Government to the most ancient Laws of this Nation to the true intent and meaning of the Statutes then and still in Force and to their own true interest and safety as I shall shew hereafter By these means were our Civil Dissentions begun and by degrees continually heightened till by these Practices and the like in matters of Religion in the Year Forty one they involved the King in a Civil War to make good those illegal Practices which they before had engaged him in and by consequence in an ill Cause against as good a Parliament as perhaps this Nation ever had This will seem strange to some to come from me who was from my Youth on the Kings side and at Fifteen Years of Age ventured my life for his Service But I know what I say and will presently make it clear The King might have trusted that Parliament they would never have hurt him or diminished any thing of his true Prerogative but
up a Faction for their own Advantage Seventhly That if upon good Information you find that this is a mixt Government composed of the Three Simple Forms the Enquiring Part belonging more specially to the Commons the Judiciary to the Lords the Consultary and Legislative to the King Lords and Commons and the Executive to the King which I believe is the truth upon this Consideration you look upon the Whole as one great Body whereof your self is indeed the Head in Honour and Degree but in effect rather the Hand or if you will the Right Hand but however a Part And therefore that you always retain a great Respect for this Noble Body treating them with all Honour and Affection reputing their Honour and Interest your own as Yours is Theirs and will be so treated by them if a fair Correspondence be kept up between you which will make you not only beloved at home but dreaded abroad Eightly That you be very tender and cautious of invading their Rights or neglecting their Counsel in any matter of Importance but especially of holding up any Favourites against them and to that end that you be very jealous of that Generation and those particular Persons who have been the Authors or Propagators of False Notions concerning the Constitution of this Government or of Evil Counsels and Courses among your Predecessors and more especially those who have already by any Evil Counsels or Unfaithfulness in not well informing you betray'd your self into any Inconvenience Whereof if you please to command me I shall be ready to give you some plain Instances Ninthly That you endeavour wisely to compose the Dissentions and allay the Heats and Animosities of the Nation and to unite all in a mutual Assistance for the Common Interest Our Divisions and the Heats of our Dissentions are for the most part the Reliques of Popish Practices and Effects of Evil Policies of Courtiers These have both conspired for different ends to divide us both in Church and State and to impose upon the People so that it is the truest Wisdom and greatest Interest of this Nation to endeavour so much the more for an Union and to that end to detect their Impostures This Government is in truth a Noble Commonwealth in the Root and Body accommodated with the Advantage and adorned with the Honour and Majesty of a Monarchy in the Execution Crafty Men observing this have practis'd the Division in this manner First By putting the Kings upon illegal Projects till that produced Jealousies of Arbitrary Designs and then improving those to the raising of the like Jealousies in those unhappy Kings of Republican Conspiracies Thus were multitudes imposed upon Whereas the Subversion of the Commonwealth to support the Monarchy is no less Foily Madness and Treachery in an English Man than is the pulling down the Monarchy to support the Commonwealth Nor can any thing endanger our Monarchs but themselves by adhering to Evil Counsellors rejecting or declining the Advice of the Great Council of the Nation and violating their Rights Lastly That to this purpose you avoid all Favour and Encouragement to any Faction and make no other difference between Persons but what the Law hath made except only between the Virtuous and the Vitious and between such as may safely be trusted and such as may not for which end for Parliament-Men and persons admitted to great Offices of Trust and Bishops a Recognition by Act of Parliament may be necessary but by a constant tenor and course of your Actions demonstrate a cordial and universal Affection to All and a great Zeal and Activity for the Service of God and for the Peace Safety and Prosperity of the Nation By these Means you will be a compleat King and rule in the Hearts of the People These will produce in them such a Trust and Confidence in you as will make your Government exceeding easie and such a Government will make your Name Honourable in the Roll of our English Kings But if you once set up for a Separate Interest strike-in with and make your self the Head of any Faction give your self up to the Conduct of particular Favourites suffer the Publick Revenue and the Treasure of the Nation to be squandred away without any Account and the People to be injur'd by Exactions and Delays of Officers and tread in the steps of your Predecessors of the last Race you will ipso facto cease to do the part of a King violate the Trust reposed in you and your Coronation Oath and deceiving the Expectations of all Men after such a Succession of Kings raise such Prejudice against Monarchy it self as may indanger this Noble Government and the Settlement of the Nation and make your Name inglorious to all Posterity But these are things so inconsistent with the Reasons for which you was invited hither the Causes of your Expedition expressed in your own Declaration the Ends for which the Crown was first offered to you and after set upon your Head the Honour and Safety of your Government and which is more than all the Righteous Laws of God who as we hope raised you up to be an Instrument of Mercy not of Vengeance to This Nation as no Man who believes the Character we have received of your great Vertue can easily fear from you though the notorious Miscarriages of the late Reigns may have left some Impressions upon the Minds of some which yet I hope Experience of your Prudence and Justice will totally expunge And I pray God give you as I hope he will true Wisdom to know Him to discern His Hand in these things and what He expects from you to know what is your proper Part in this great Affair and to be more careful to discharge it well than to enlarge it beyond its just Bounds and that all true Happiness may always attend your Majesty Your Majesties most Faithful and Obedient Subject AUTHORITY ABUSED BY THE Vindication of the Last Years Transactions AND The ABUSES DETECTED By the Author of the Reflections OF a great many Evil Arts and Practices which in the late Reigns were used for the Subversion of the True English Government and Suppression of the most ancient common Rights of the People of these Nations one that was most constantly used for that purpose was the Employment of Mercenary Writers to put a colour of Words and Oratory upon those things for which they had no colour of Law And it would be a sad case with us if after so glorious a Deliverance we should be already so far deserted by the Divine Providence as to stand in need of any such Practices or Assistance Yet so it should seem to be unless the Pamphlet Entituled The last Years Transactions Vindicated be a bold and impudent Imposture For it will not be hard to prove That that Pamphlet is a False Scandalous and Impious Libel And to Print it not only as under the Patronage of a Chief Secretary of State but expresly as Published by Authority is
This made them easie to be perswaded to believe that it was their Prerogative to Call and Prorogue and Dissolve Parliaments at their own Pleasure and accordingly to do it in effect at the pleasure that is at the perswasion of those Favourites Whereas not only the Notion is false and set up only for the Advantage of Favourites and Criminals but the Practice was doubly mischievous to the Kings themselves For 1. It was a great cause of Discontent heightned the Differences between the King and the People and made the Kings Cause so much the worse in those Differences and unjustifiable being often times a wilful and obstinate refusal of Justice and Protection of Criminals against the whole Nation 2. It deprived the King as well as the People of the proper Remedy of those Mischiefs For Parliaments are the great Security under God of Kings from Abuses as well as of the People from Oppression and the Persons were either Guilty or Not Guilty If Guilty they ought to be try'd and either suffer according to their Crimes or if there were any special reason for it be pardon'd If not Guilty yet ought they to be try'd that their Innocence might be cleared and the Nation satisfy'd Fifthly The same may be observ'd concerning the great Noise that was made of the Monarchy and the Church as if both were design'd to be presently destroyed which were nothing but false Clamours to incense People and raise a Faction by the Instigation of those evil Men for their own support and defence against Justice The just Punishment of Criminals who betrayed both King and People was the Destruction of Monarchy and Reformation of the manners of the Clergy the Subversion of the Church in their account But by these means were a great many honest well-meaning People impos'd upon and a mighty Faction rais'd Whereas it is certain that the English Monarchy being not meerly an Honorary matter but of great Use and Advantage to the whole Nation both at home and abroad if it be not abused the People and their Representatives in Parliament have always so well understood their Interest therein and do so at this day that nothing but some extraordinary matter ever could or can alienate their Affections from it This is plain in the case of King Charles I. when notwithstanding the great Provocations which are set out in the Remonstrance of the State of the Kingdom 15 Dec. 1642. and some others that Parliament would neither have destroyed the Monarchy nor hurt the King though out of those Confusions a violent Party was rais'd which did both nor would the Nation after be quiet till his Son was restored And for the Church the Bishops and Ecclesiastical Courts might have been quiet had they been truly Christian as they would be called But that which moved the Indignation of most understanding and honest Men against them was to see Christianity prophan'd and Offices of Religion sought and used as Secular Employments to see Formality encouraged sincere Piety though perhaps mixt with some unnecessary Scrupulosity oppressed and the Ministers of the Righteous Kingdom of Christ turn Promoters of Arbitrariness and Tyranny And it is no wonder if such Causes produce such Effects Sixthly It was the raising and heightning of that Faction by the Favourites and Criminal Party that brought things to that Extremity of a War which otherwise might have been composed and all satisfy'd with the Removal of a few Evil Men from about the King the Punishment of a few Criminals and the Reformation of a few necessary things But while these Evil Counsellors and Favourites raised that Faction for the security of themselves under the pretence of the King and the Church they thereby laid the Foundation of the real Destruction of both for some time And I wish all honest Men may take warning by it now and not suffer themselves to be impos'd upon again after such an Example For there is Just such another Faction which hath gone very high of late especially in the business of Elections under the same Pretences of the Monarchy and the Church wherein the greatest Sticklers were those sort of Persons which the Vindicators of the last years Transactions recommend to Favour that is the Criminals of the two last Reigns the Counsellors Agents and Accomplices of King James and the Regency-men and Haesitators who refuse to act under King William with whom the Papists joyned under-hand And their greatest Opposition was for the most part against such as were most Cordial and Active for the present King and Queen I have but one thing more to observe which comes now into my mind and hath not been so well considered as it ought and that is the great and mischievous Influence which such prodigal and unadvised conferring of Honours as was begun by King James I. and has been continued fince is apt to have in the producing of such Troubles Honor and Riches are things which may be of good use for the Benefit of others when they fall to the share of Good Men who have Hearts to make use of them for that purpose But I very much doubt whether ever any Man was the better for them On the contrary it is apparent that many nay most are the worse for them if they be raised much above their own Rank And it is certain that they are no good Men who are very greedy of either but such as will comply with the Means whereby they are to be obtained be they what they will If the Prince who hath the disposing of Honors and Preferments be wise and vertuous be sparing and prudent in conferring them only upon consideration of Worth and Merit it will be an effectual means to incline the People to apply themselves to such means which will be of great advantage to the Commonwealth But if he be prodigal and inconsiderate in the disposing of them he will not fail to attract to him many ill Men of no vertue who will certainly flatter and deceive him make it their business to please him for their own advantage at any rate rather than faithfully serve him And the more Honours he confers upon such the greater Burden he thereby brings upon himself He must provide for his own Creatures and if he hath not good and lawful means to provide for them they will not fail of Projects even of indirect means by him to provide for themselves Besides the Appetite is unsatiable The Man 's no more satisfy'd when made a Lord than when but a Knight I 'm sure not more happy nor when made an Earl than when but a Baron nor when made a Marques than when but an Earl but a Baron but a Knight but a private Gentleman But he needs more his Needs are increased and must be supplied one way or other And from this Root did spring many of those Illegal Projects in the Reigns of King James I. and King Charles I. which in the end produced those bitter Fruits we have been