Selected quad for the lemma: enemy_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
enemy_n	advance_v	army_n	great_a	1,374	5	3.0767	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A56178	A legall vindication of the liberties of England, against illegall taxes and pretended Acts of Parliament lately enforced on the people: or, Reasons assigned by William Prynne of Swainswick in the county of Sommerset, Esquire, why he can neither in conscience, law, nor prudence submit to the new illegall tax or contribution of ninety thousand pounds the month; lately imposed on the kingdom, by a pretended Act of some commons in (or rather out of) Parliament	Prynne, William, 1600-1669.	1649 (1649)	Wing P3996A; ESTC R206108	46,568	58

by my voluntary payment of it of purpose to maintain an Army to justifie and make good all this by the meer power of the Sword which they can no waye●… justifie and defend by the Lawes of God or the Realm before any Tribunall of God or Men when legally arraigned as they shal one day be Neither of which I can or dare acknowledg wi●…hout incurring the guilt of most detestable Perjury and highest Treason against King Kingdom Parliament Laws and Liberties of the people and therfore cannot yeeld to this Assessment Thirdly the principal ends and uses proposed in the pretended Act and Warrants thereupon for payment of this Tax are strong obligations to me in point of Conscience Law Prudence to withstand it which I shall particularly discuss The ●…irst is the maintenance and contiuuance of the present Army and Forces in England under the Lord Fairfax To which I say First as I shall with all readiness gratitude and due respect acknowledg their former Gallantry good and faithfull Services to the Parliament and Kingdom whiles they continued dutifull and constant to their first Engagements and the ends for which they were raised by both Houses as far forth as any man so in regard of their late monstrous defections and dangerous Apostacies from their primitive obedience faithfulness and engagements in disobeying the Commands and levying open war against both Houses of Parliament keeping an horrid force upon them at their very doors seising imprisoning secluding abusing and forcing away their Members printing and publishing many high and treasonable Declarations against the Institution Priviledges Members and Proceedings of the late and Being of all future Parliaments imprisoning abusing arraigning condemning and executing our late King against the Votes Faith and Engagements of both Houses and dis-inheriting His posterity usurping the Regall Parliamentall Magistraticall and Ecclesiasticall power of the Kingdom to their Generall-Councell of Officers of the Army as the supreme swaying Authority of the Kingdom and a●…empting to alter and subvert the ancient Government Parliaments Laws and Customs of our Realm And upon serious consideration of the ordinary unsufferable Assertions of their Officers and Souldiers uttered in most places where they Quarter and to my self in particular sundry times * That the whole Kingdom with all our Lands Houses Goods and whatsoever we have is theirs and that by right of Conquest they having twice conquered the Kingdom That we are but their conquered slaves and Vassals and they the Lords and Heads of the Kingdom That our very lives are at their mercy and courtesie That when they have got ten all we have from us by Taxes and Free-quarter and we have nothing left to pay them then themselves will sei●…e ●…pon our Lands as their own and turn us and our Families out of doors That there is now no Law in England nor never was i●… we beleeve their lying Oracle Peters but the Sword with many such like vapouring Speeches and discourses of which there are thousands of witnesses I can neither in Conscience Law nor Prudence assent unto much less contribute in the least degree for their present maintenance or future continuance thus to insult inslave and tyrannize over King Kingdom Parliament People at their pleasure like their conquered Vassals And for me in particular to contribute to the maintenance of those who against the Law of the Land the priviledges of Parliament and liberty of the Subject pulled me forcibly from the Commons House and kept me prisoner about two months space under their Martiall to my great expence and prejudice without any particular cause pretended or assigned only for discharging my duty to the Kingdom and those for whom I served in the House without giving me the least reparation for this unparallell'd injustice or acknowledging their offence and yet detain some of my then fellow-Members under custodie by the meer power of the Sword without bringing them to Triall would be not only absurd unreasonable and a tacit justification of this their horrid violence and breach of priviledg but monstrous unnaturall perfidious against my Oath and Covenant 2. No Tax ought to be imposed on the Kingdom in Parliament it self but in case of necessity for the common good as is clear by the Stat. of 25 E. 1. c. 6. Cooks 2 Instit. p. 528. Now it is evident to me that there is no necessity of keeping up this Army for the Kingdoms common Good but rather a necessity of disbanding it or the greatest part of it for these reasons 1. Because the Kingdom is generally exhausted with the late 7 years Wars Plunders and heavy Taxes there being more moneyes levied on it by both sides during these eight last yeares then in all the Kings Reigns since the Conquest as will appear upon a just computation all Counties being thereby utterly unable to pay it 2. In regard of the great decay of Trade the extraordinary dearth of cattell corn and provisions of all sorts the charge of relieving a multitude of poor people who starve with famine in many places the richer sort eaten out by Taxes and Free-quarter being utterly unable to relieve them To which I might adde the multitude of maimed Souldiers with the widows and children of those who have lost their lives in the Wars which is very costly 3. This heavie Contribution to support the Army destroies all Trade by fore-stalling and engrossing most of the Monies of the Kingdom the sinews and life of Trade wasting the provisions of the Kingdom and enhancing their prices keeping many thousands of able men and horses idle only to consume other labouring mens provisions estates and the publick Treasure of the Kingdom when as their employment in their Trades and callings might much advance trading and enrich the Kingdom 4. There is now no visible Enemy in the field or Garrisons and the sitting Members boast there is no fear from any abroad their Navie being so Victorious And why such a vast Army should be still continued in the Kingdom to increase its debts and payments when charged with so many great Arrears and Debts already eat up the Country with Taxes and Free-quarter only to play drink whore steale rob murther quarrell fight with impeach and shoot one another to death as Traitors Rebels and Enemies to the Kingdom and Peoples Liberties as now the Levellers and Cromwellists doe for want of other imployments and this for the publick Good transcends my understanding 5. When the King had two great Armies in the Field and many Garisons in the Kingdom this whole Army by its primitive Establishment consisted but of twenty two thousand Horse Dragoons and Foot and had an Establishment only of about Fortie five thousand pounds a month for their pay which both Houses then thought sufficient as is evident by their (o) Ordinances of Febr. 15. 1644. and April 4. 1646. And when the Army was much increased without their Order sixty thousand pounds a month was thought abundantly sufficient by the Officers