Selected quad for the lemma: england_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
england_n	according_a	king_n	parliament_n	2,747	5	6.4655	4	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A85396	Hybristodikai. The obstructours of justice. Or a defence of the honourable sentence passed upon the late King, by the High Court of Justice. Opposed chiefly to the serious and faithfull representation and vindication of some of the ministers of London. As also to, The humble addresse of Dr. Hamond, to His Excellencie and Councel of warre. Wherein the justice, and equitie of the said sentence is demonstratively asserted, as well upon clear texts of Scripture, as principles of reason, grounds of law, authorities, presidents, as well forreign, as domestique. Together with, a brief reply to Mr. John Geree's book, intituled, Might overcoming right: wherein the act of the Armie in garbling the Parliament, is further cleared. As also, some further reckonings between thesaid [sic] Dr. Hamond and the authour, made straight. / By John Goodwin.	Goodwin, John, 1594?-1665.; Glover, George, b. ca. 1618, engraver.	1649 (1649)	Wing G1170; Thomason E557_2; ESTC R12380	138,495	164

for him whom they had chosen in his room By the way he here bids us note that the right of electing whom they please is by the impartial testimony of an Emperour in the people for said he a just Prince ought to be prefered before an unjust and the end of Government before the Prerogative And to prove that some of our own Monarchs have acknowledged that their high Office exempted them not from punishment they had the sword of Saint Edward born before them by an Officer called Earle of the Palace ev●n at the time of their highest pomp and solemnity to mind them saith Matthew Paris the best of our Historians that if they erred the sword had power to restrain them The fact of E●ud in killing Eglon and so of Jehu in slaying Jehoram the said Authour reconcileth with rules for standing practice with much more to this purpose which I leave to the Readers peru●al in the discourse it self In another discourse lately published we have this President Sect. 77 recorded Brutus Generall of the Souldiers Lucr●tius Emperour of the city of Rome assembled the people against Tarquinius Superlus and by their Authority thrust him from his Royall Throne his goods were confiscated and if Tarquinius had been apprehended undoubtedly he should have been according to the publick Laws corporally punished * 〈…〉 p ●4 The same Authour subjoyneth that Christiern lost the Crown of Denmark Henry that of Sweden Mary Stuart King Charls his Grand-mother that of Scotland and Edward the second that of England for the same misgovernment as our late King lost his Crown and head The Parliament in their late Declaration mention this last President of Edward the second and Peter Martyr concerning that of Christiern King of Denmark writeth thus In our daies the Daues d●pos●d their King and kept him prisoner a long time * where also he adds out of Pol●dore Virgil that the English 〈…〉 P. M●●● ●● ●ud ● ●● 〈◊〉 have sometimes compelled their Kings to give an account of their money or treasure ill disposed of M r Prynne in his Appendix to the fourth part of the Sovereign power of Parliaments and Kingdoms undertakes in the front of this Lucubration and in the body of it performed the undertaking v●ry laudably to manif●st by sundry Histories and forraign Authorities that in the ancient Kingdome of Rome the Roman Gr●ek German Empires the old the peresent Grecian Indian Aegyptian French Spanish Gothish Italian Hungarian Polo●ian Bohemian Danish Swedish Scottish with other forrein Kingdoms ●ea in the Kingdoms of Judah and Israel and other Gentile Royalties mentioned in Scriptu●e the Supreme Sovereign power resided not in the Emperours or Kings themselves but in the whole Kingdom Senate Parliament State People who had not onely Authority to restrain r●sist yea call their Emperous and kings to account but likewise when they saw just cause to censure suspend deprive them for their Tyranny vices misgovernment and sometimes CAPITALLY TO PROCEED AGAINST THEM with a brief answer to the contrary objections c. Afterwards in pursuit of this his notable ingagement out of Georgius Obrec●us a publick Professour of Law and Advocate to the City of Strasburg he furnisheth us with these Presidents besides that of Tarquinius devested of his kingdom by the people under the conduct of Brutus Lucretius the Roman Senate judged Nero an enemy of the Republick condemned him to the Gallows punished Vitellius with death ignominiously mutilated and dragg'd through the Citie and spoiled Maximinus of the Empire setting up Albinus in his place Thus the French by Authority of a publique Councel thorough the care of the Officers of the Realm deprived Childerick the first Sigebert Theordoric and Childerick the third of the Government In the same manner * M 〈…〉 ●f 〈◊〉 ●n● Kingdom A●pend p. ●●● saith the same Authour from Junius Brutu● we read Adolp●us deprived of the German Empire An. 1296. because corrupted with money he had made War with France in favour of the English Wenceslaus A 1400. Although these may be called not so well evil as lesse good Princes Thus in the Realm of England Edward the second for his Tyrannic to his Subjects especially the Nobles whom he destroyed without hearing their cause was at his Queens request adjudged unworthy of his Crown by the Parliament Not long since Christierne in Denmark Ericus in Sweden Queen Mary very lately in Scotland were deprived which Histories worthy credit testifie hath been frequently done in the Kidgdom of England Hungaria Spain Portugall Bohemia and the rest Thus far M r Prynne in Precedents of Kings and Emperours deposed and punished with death to which you may please to add what he relates out of Sozomen and Nicephorus concerning the death of Julian by one of his Souldiers and the fact of the Christians at Antioch upon it together with his Annotation upon both as they were formerly presented Sect. 67. of this discourse beyond whom no man that I know hath travailed with his pen in asserting the Legality of such proceedings against them He that will please to read the Historie of the Reformation of the Realm of Scotland by M John Knox shal find many like Presidents cited and argued from the Scriptures themselves So that the Parliament of England in their Judiciary processe against the late king did not walk alone in an untrodden path but in an high-way occupied upon like occasion by all the chief Nations of Europe yea by the once onely Heaven-beloved Nation of the World The premises from first to last considered that Doctrine Sect. 78. which Prerogativeth kings above the stroke of human justice upon the account of their being unaccountable unto men for whatsoever they do which the Parliament taketh notice in their Declaration of March 17. 1648. pag. 13. to have been the late kings Assertion appears to be very extravagant and and Eccentricall to all principles both of Reason and Religion Such an unaccountable Officer as the said Declaration well expresseth it were a strange monster to be permitted by man-kind For if the main ground of erecting publick Administrations of justice and Courts of humane judicature in all Polities and States whatsoever be both in Reason and Religion to secure and protect those who live justly and peaceably against the violence and injustice of oppressours and unjust men it must needs be contrary unto both to exempt such persons from the jurisdiction of these Court and Administrations who have alwayes the greatest opportunities and temptations and for the most part the strongest bent of disposition and will to practice such unrighteousnesse and oppression Put case a man hath received several wounds in fight amongst which there is one more dangerous and threatening life than all the rest would it not be a solo●cisme in reason for this man with all diligence and care to send for the skilfullest Chirurgion he can get and when he is come to limit him in his applications to the wounds

aggravating circumstance one or more the Justice of God in this case may well be conceived proportionably to allow somewhat out of course and above the rule for ordinary cases touching the manner of inflicting the punishment When a sin which for the kind of it and without any aggravating circumstance deserveth death is committed with any unnaturall and execrable aggravation besides God usually covereth all irregulariti●s which are found in or about the Execution of Justice upon the sinner and justifieth the Execution though it be not managed in all circumstances according to standing rules of Justice in ordinary cases There is the same consideration of the fact of E●ud in killing Eglon unto whom by right of conquest the Israelites had now been in subjection 18 years For howsoever some Court Rabbies secretly to enchant Kings into Tyrants for their unworthy ends have endeavoured to disguise the face of this example also and to make it look like the naturall off-spring of some super-Scripturall converse between God and the spirit of the Actour yet hath the devise been too hard for them to perform neither Scripture nor sound reason affording any assistance to the attempt But this by the way Thus then we see that according to the Scriptures when Sect. 44 Superiour Magistrates faulter in such executions of just Laws which properly and by office belong unto them the right of these Executions acc●ue to the Inferiour and in case these faulter and fail likewise the power right and care of all such executions devolves not onely by way of right or power but of duty also upon the people Nor is this principle of Devolution in case of failer in the Superiour asserted onely by God in the Scriptures our adversaries themselves in the ca●se now under plea are friendly yea and zealous assertours of it also The Scottish Covenanters in the year 1639. upon the Kings delay in calling their Nationall Synod published a writing to this purpose that the power of calling a Synod in case the Prince be an enemie to the Truth or negligent in promoting the Churches good is in the Church it self * T●● M●● 〈◊〉 ●●●●●l●…nt c. l●b 3 ● ●● M r. Prynne borrowing Junius Brutus his pen in case of the incroachment of Tyranny upon the people w●o as he saith are Lords of the Publick from the Prince and the conniveance or collusion of most of the Nobles doth not onely acknowledge it as a thing lawfull but enforceth it as a duty and matter of conscience that any one of the Nobles who considers the inc●oaching Tyranny and detests it from ●is soul take care lest the Common-wealth receive any detriment Yea saith he he shall preserve the Ki●gdom even against the Kings will and resistance by which ●e ●imself becomes a King * 〈…〉 c. with much more to like purpo●e So that M r. Prynne is clear that in case the next of kin refuseth he that is more remote may lawfully take the relict to wife In the Tractate last mentioned he c●teth the Judgement of Georgius Ob●●c●us a great Lawyer wit● severall others standing to the same point M● R●t●e●ford the great Patron of Presbytery notwithstanding patronizeth also that devolution we speak of Convention of the Subject saith he in a tumultuary way for a s●ditious end to make War without warrant of Law is forbidden but not when Religion Laws Liberties invasion of forreign enemies neces●itat●th the subjects to convern though the King and ordinary Judicat●res going a corrupt way to pervert judgement shall refuse to consent to their conventions c. * 〈…〉 And more plainly in another place When the King defendeth not true Religion but presseth upon the people a false and Idolatrous R●ligion in that they are not under the King but are presumed to have no King eatenus so far and are presumed to have the power in themselves as if they ●ad not appointed any King at all as if we presume the b●dy had given to the right hand a power to war● off strokes and to defend the body if the right hand should by a palsie or some other disease become impotent and be withered up when ill is coming on the body it is presumed that the power of defence is recurred to the left hand and to the rest of the body to defend it self in this case as if the body had no right hand and had never c●mmunicated any power to the right ●and at all * 〈…〉 Long before him M r. John Knox his country-man and great Architect of the Presbyterian disciplin in Scotland in a generall Assembl● a●ouched it in a dispute against Lethington Secretarie of State to be the judgement of Calvin and of the most godly and most learned Presbyterian Divines that be in Europe that the Inferiour Magistrates and upon their final default the people may and ought to execute their Princes for murthering or destroying there liege Subjects Pol●nus a learned man and a Reformed Divine of good note expresly granteth that when Bishops and Ecclesiastiques are defective either in will or skill for the Reformation of Religion and the Church laiques or private men may lawfully supply their defect herein and act the part of Bishops or Ecclesiasticall persons in such Reformation * 〈…〉 So that opinion which asserteth the right of Authoritative Executions unto Inferiour Magistrates though properly and primarily appertaining unto Superiour when these neglect or refuse them and unto the people when all Magistracie as well that which is Inferiour as that which is Superiour neglect them is no Independent opinion much lesse any private opinion of mine own it is the signall Doctrine of the greatest Rabbies in the Presbyterian School Let me adde this from a late writer that from dilig●nt search m●de into our ancient books of Law it is affirmed that the Peers and Barons of England had a legall right to judge the King which was the cause most likely for it could be no slight c●●se that they were called his Peers and Equalls And to conclude as to this point this present Parliament whilst as yet the Legality of it was not questioned in the least through any dismembering or otherwise and whilst it was as yet it remains for ought I know Presbyterian enough viz. in May 164● upon that Kings refusall of the Bill for the calling of the Assembly o●t tendered unto him fell to argue fully a●gued what i●●●c● cas●● might ●e done by Authority of Parliament when t●e Kingdoms g●●d is so m●ch concerned when a King refuseth a●● abs●nt●th himself from the Parliament And at last it was brought to this Conclusion that an Ordinance of Parliament wh●r● t●e King is so absent and refusing is by the Laws of the Land of as good Authority to ●ind the peo●le for the time present as a● A●● of Parliam●nt it self can be * Th● M●● H●●● ●●●●r●…● l●b ● ● ●● Therefore this Conclusion stands like a great mountain immoveable that the Justice and

artificial day made of candles for the design speaking of the King whilst yet his hands were but half full of the violence and bloud which were found in him at the time of his arraignment expresseth himself in the businesse thus What severe judgement may such Christian Kings expect from the God of Heaven who contrary to their own frequently reiterated solemn publick Vowes Protestations Imprecations MOST INHUMANELY DESTROY their own flourishing Christian Realms with fire and sword plunder pillage captivate slay MURTHER their most pious Protestant Subjects every where without pitie or remorse * Popish Royal Favoritie Epist to the R●ader pag ● Immediatly after If Ahab Jezabel with all their Royal Posterity were utterly cut off e●tirpated in a moment for countenancing Idolaters and putting Naboth unjustly to death onely for a pretended blasph●●ie against God and the King of purpose to gain his single vine-yard then what will become of those Kings Jezabels and their Posterities who not onely cherish and protect many Romish Idolaters Priests Jesuites but likewise use their armed power to murther plunder ruin many thousands of innocent Protestant Naboths yea seize upon their whole Estates as forfeited under a pretence of Treason or Rebellion c. The Authour of these passages was not ●ender of arraigning the King as a Murtherer because he never murthered or s●ew any with his own hands The Prophet Nathan by Commission from God chargeth David with slaying ●ri●●●ith the sword * Sa● ●● 9. though he was so far from slaying him with his own hands that he gave no expresse order or warrant to have him slain by others but onely to have him set in a place of danger in the battel with an intent that he might be slain by the sword of his Enemies Yea and David himself in his humiliation before God upon the same account prayeth to be delivered from bloud-guiltinesse * Ps●l ●● 14. To murther with the hand is too servile and small a game of wickednesse for Kings to play at He that murthereth with the hand must take pains and besides is like to be weary before he can dispatch many the way and Method of murther appropriate unto Kings is to murther thousands without striking a stroak and whilst themselvs take their ●ase onely by speaking a word or subscribing a Commission and in this sence the King may be said to have murthered many thousands of his poor Subjects even with his own hands inasmuch as he signed those Commissions by means whereof many thousands of them were murthered with his own hand as the late mentioned Aut●our besides many others frequently chargeth him The best and most zealous Protestants both he Ministers People both in England and Ireland have been every where most cruelly Ma●●acred Pludered Tortured Imprisoned Ruined by the blood-thirsty Popish Cavaliers many of their houses and almost whole Towns fired and sackt by his speciall COMMISSION * ●●pish ●● vo●●●● ●p ●● the Reader A little after since this unhappy civill War the Papists both in England and Ireland have been armed against the Parliament BY HIS MAJESTIES SPECIALL COMMISSION c. In another place he affirms that the Irish Rebels whom the King calls his good Roman Catholick Subjects in the Articles of Pacification were authorized by COMMISSIONS FROM HIS MAJESTY under the Great Seal now at last if not at first to take up Arms against all Protestants who shall not submit to this strange Pacification there after the bloudy slaughter and butchery of above an hundred and forty thousand innocent Protestants whose bloud must passe altogether unrevenged by the hands of publick Royall Justice and by SPECIALL COMMISSIONS as we are most certainly informed a very probable Argument they had not onely pretended but reall COMMISSIONS FROM THE KING at first for what they acted against the Protestants in Ireland are now sent for over into England where thousands of them are lately arrived and more daily expected to fight against the Parliament and Massacre English Protestants in their own countrey as freely as they did in Ireland his Majesty making base Irish moneys current in England by speciall Proclamation in favour of the Irish Rebels to be transported and made current Subjects here to MURTHER us By all these our whole three Kingdoms if not the very blindest and incredulous Malignants unlesse given over to a Reprobate sence must of necessity see and acknowledge that there is and hath been all his Majesties Reign till this instant a most strong cunning desperate confederacie prosecuted to set up Popery in perfection and extirpate the Protestant party and religion in all his Majesties Dominions which Plot now visibly appears above ground * The Popish Ro●●●● F●vorite ●●● 39. The Commissioners of both Kingdoms spake thus unto the King in their answer of Jan. 13. 1645. Concerning the Personall Treaty by your Majesty there having been so much innocent bloud of your good Subjects shed in this War by your Majesties Commands and Commissions Irish Rebels brought over against the Parliament and Kingdom by your Majesties COMMISSION the War in Ireland fomented and prolonged by your Majesty whereby the three Kingdoms are brought near to utter ruin and destruction we conceive that untill satisfaction and security be first given to both your Kingdoms your Majesties comming hither cannot be convenient nor by us assented unto * See the Collectio● of all the publick Orders Ordinances and Declarations of both Houses in f●● Append. pag. ●● By the way these things considered with ten times more of Sect. 87 like tendency which might readily be cited from M r Prynne especially what he hath written concerning the Kings most solemn and avowed ingagements to the Pope avouching these for the root and spring of all our late troubles and blood-shed can he be looked upon as a person worthy to breath in English ayre or to tread upon E●glish ground much more to sit in an English Parliament who in the face of so many pregnant circumstances breathing out nothing but certain ruin and destruction to the Peace and Liberties of the English Nation in case the King should ever have repossessed his Throne set himself with all his might called up his heart and soul all his parts Wit Learning Law and all that was within him to Re-inthrone him and that without the least colour or shew of the least touch of Repentance in him for those his most disloyall and disroyal enslavements and ingagements of himself to the Pope and popish Interests He talks at random of I know not what Jesuiti●all undermining projects swaying in all the consultations and proceedings of the Army and of the Armies being spurred on and ridden with a full carrier by Jesuiticall furies * The Substance of a Speech 〈…〉 by 〈…〉 c. but certainly those Counsels by which M r. Prynne and his Partisans were acted and swayed in their attempt to advance into a three-Kingdom'd Throne a person so deeply and desperatly devoted

Thou see'st not whom thou see'st then doe not say That this is HEE who cash a lump of clay Without it's soule a man● thou see'st ne● more Nay but the SHADOW of that lumpe what 〈…〉 Of gifts and graces what perfections rare Among ten thousand persons scatt'red are Gather in one Imagine it to bee This SHADOWES substance and then say us HEE DT G G sc●●t Ὑβριστοδικαι THE OBSTRVCTOVRS OF JUSTICE OR A Defence of the Honourable SENTENCE passed upon the late KING by the High COURT of JUSTICE Opposed chiefly to The Serious and Faithfull Representation and Vindication of some of The Ministers of LONDON As also to The Humble Addresse of D r. HAMOND to His Excellencie and Councel of Warre Wherein the Justice and Equitie of the said SENTENCE is Demonstratively Asserted as well upon clear texts of Scripture as principles of Reason grounds of Law Authorities Presidents as well Forreign as Domestique Together with A brief Reply to M r. Jolm Geree's Book intituled Might overcoming Right wherein the Act of the Armie in garbling the Parliament is further cleared As also Some further Reckonings between the said Dr. Hamond and the Authour made straight By JOHN GOODWIN But thou O God shalt bring them down into the pit of destruction bloudie and deceitfull men shall not live out half their dayes Psal 55. 23. Howl Fir-tree for the Cedar is fallen Zech. 11. 2. And all the people of the land rejoyced and the citie was in quiet For * So the former Transl read it 〈◊〉 and Tr●mell Post q●●● ● after that they had slain Athaliah with the sword beside the Kings house 2. Kings 11. 20. Fiat Justitia ruat Coelum Ad Generum Cereris sine caede sanguine pauci Descendunt Reges siccâ morte Tyranni Juven 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Hom. Odyss LONDON Printed for Henry Cripps and Lodowick LLoyd and are to be sold in Popes-head-Alley 1649. TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE THE COMMONS of ENGLAND Assembled in Parliament RIGHT HONOVRABLE THe Glorious God who as Elihu saith accepteth not the persons of Princes * Jo● ●4 19 hath by your hand cast down the mighty from their seat his next work I trust will be the exaltation of those of low degree by the same hand I mean the redemption of this poor afflicted distracted distressed and long oppressed Nation out of all her troubles I confes when I look upon the manifold grand discouragements which you still meet with from the unthankfulnesse of that People with whose liberties comforts and well being in every kind your soul daily is in travail I apprehend great cause of fear lest your hands should hang down from the work considering that the arm of omnipotencie it self contracted an impotencie when time was from the unworthinesse of those for whose sake it was otherwise readie to have lift up it self gloriously And he COVLD ●aith Mark speaking of the Lord Christ being now in his own countrey there DO NO MIGHTY WORK * M●●● 6. 5. the reason whereof is plainly expressed by another Evangelist viz. because of their unbelief † Matth. 1● ●● ● by a metonymie of the effect put for the cause because of the frowardnesse and great aversnesse of their spirits either to inquire after or to consider of such things which were proper and effectuall being duly considered to have raised a belief in them that he indeed was their Messiah He COVLD DO NO mightie work for this People .i. he had no mind no desire the want whereof is an impotencie ●s to action to gratif●e so unworthy a generation of men at so high a rate Or else He could do no mighty work c. ● it was repugnant to the Law of that wisdom and righteousnesse by which as God he governs the world for him to do any matters of that sacred import for such men But he who once by himself could do no mighty work for a carelesse froward and thanklesse People at another time by Moses his servant was able and willing too to bring water in abundance out of a rock for the preservation of the lives of such men and their cattell whom Moses himself thought it no wrong to call Rebels * M●●●●● 1● 11. As the Devil whether through want of will or of power otherwise i● not so ●a●●e to determine is not wont to work those mischiefs in the world immediately or by himself which he frequently worketh by the mediation of Witches and other Instruments anointed by him for his service so neither is the glorious God pleased to act such matters of Grace for the children of men with his arm unbared which he is many times readie and willing to do for them when he hath Agents at hand taken from amongst m●n pleasing to him and meet to make a covering for his arm in reference unto such actions Thus whilest he had Joshua by whom to negotiate the affair and so those Elders who had lived with Joshua and out-lived him he kept the people of Israel from Idolatry * Josh 24. 31. Afterwards he did the like by the hand of those Judges whom he was pleased in a way more than ordinarie to raise up and set over them whereas still in the intervalls between Judge and Judge which were sometimes larger and sometimes lesser he suffered this People to turn aside after Idols In like manner by the hand of the faithfull High-Priest ●●●●●ada whilest he was in being he steered the young King ●●●sh in wayes that were good but his Instrument and Steers-man failing him by death he suffered this King to ruin himself by groves and Idols † Esa 31 3. Examples in this kind are no ●arities in Scripture The 2 Chr. 24 ●● 18. hope I have that God hath fitted you for a covering of complacencie and delight to his own arm in order to the lifting up of this poor Nation from the gates of death will not I trust make me ashamed I beseech you therefore know no discouragements after the flesh Your enemies ar● m●n and not God and th●i● horses fl●sh and not spirit * W●●● the Lord shall stretch out his hand both he that helpeth your opposers and he that is holpen shall fall down and they shall all fail tog●th●r There is but a st●p between those mountains which magnifie themselves against you and their melting down into plains You know who it is that onely by touching the mountains makes them to smoke If you value your selves by your selves and by your friends made of men you estimate your hay and stubble but forget your silver and gold The strength of the Almightie becomes yours onely by-laying claim to it and dependance on it How came Ch●mosh to be the god of the Moab●t●s or Ashtaroth the god of the ●●donians Did these relations acc●ue unto them upon any other account than meerly their own choise of these abominations to serve and worship them as Gods If you

OF OUR OWN 4. If the Parliament of England because of the sequestration Sect. 36 of some of their Members by the Army were under force or in no capacity to act Parliament-wise doubtlesse the Parliament of Scotland now sitting is much more under force and upon this account all they have acted since the first of their sitting or shall act yet further must be null yea more formally and apparantly null than any the Acts of the present Parliament of England For about six moneths since the Army of the Parliament of Scotland which invaded this Kingdom being by the blessing of God overcome those that now govern affairs there who were before oppressed by them raised forces of their own Authority and by force caused them who See the Parliaments Declaration o● 〈…〉 17. 16●● Pag. 12. 13. had the Parliamentary Authority to flee from Edenburgh and by the help of the English forces than in the North invited to their assistance did compell the disbanding of the forces there remaining that were raised by the Parliament and having modelled their own forces did call another Parliament while the former was by Adjourment continued and gave such limitations to the new Elections as they judged most for the interest safety and peace of that Kingdom And that Parliament hath since sat under the Protection of those forces so raised So that the present Parliament of England is much more free than the Parliament of Scotland For 1. The Members of the former were Elected without any limitations prescribed to or about their Election whereas the Election of the Members of the latter was incumbered and not carried or made with the like freedom 2. The Parliament of England now in being was not brought in by force over the head of another Parliament legally chosen this being forced to flee to make way for that which is the case of the Scottish Parliament 3. And lastly the Parliament of England sitteth under the Protection of forces raised by their whole body and whilest all their Members had full liberty to sit whereas the Parliament of Scotland is attended for their security by forces raised by some few of them onely the forces raised by their free Legall Parliament being by force compelled to disband But 5. That the Parliament of England acteth freely and not as Sect. 37 under any force since the want of their secluded Members or at least as freely as they did before is evident because they now act by the same principles and according to the same genius by which they acted whilest those Members sat with them though by the number and potent influence of these Members upon the House matters were still over-ruled in opposition to them as well as to the liberties and safety of th● Kingdom 6. There is no colour to judge the Parliament now sitting to be under force in as much as those under whose Protection they sit are their reall cordiall and ●ried friends being their own Army raised by themselves and who have stood by them and by the Kingdom with all faithfulnesse and with the eminent hazard of their own lives from the first untill now Do m●n use to be afraid of their friends their known their long their throughly experienced friends Suppose they had been under such a kind of force which had strongly inclined them to act contrarie to their judgements I mean contrarie to such principles as by which it is like they would have acted in case such a force had not diverted them yet unlesse it can be proved that those judgements of theirs according unto which it is supposed they would have acted in case no force at all had influenced them were consistent with the liberties peace and safety of the Nation which consistencie hath not yet been proved nor ever will there can no sufficient reason be given why their acts should be judged null or illegall It is the saying of Seneca It is an happy necessity which compelleth men to better 〈…〉 c●●p●… wayes than otherwise they were like to take And in case Parliamentary Acts should be questioned in point of legall validity u●on a supposall yea and this in some degree reasonable that Parliaments at the time of their transaction were under force or which is the same under fear of acting otherwise upon this account the validity of all Parliamentary Acts whatsoever in this Kingdom if not in others also will be obnoxious and liable unto question For it may very reasonably be doubted whether any Parliament were ever so free in the passing of any Act but that they were under fear either of the King and his power and party on the one hand or of the people and their discontent on the other and consequently whether ever any Parliament acted with such precisenesse of liberty or freedom as that the genuine and native ducture of their judgements was no wayes touched or wrought upon by any influence of persons or things feared by them If it be yet objected yea but it was onely the House of Sect. 38 Commons that voted the Erection of that Court of Justice which gave sentence against the King The House of Lords concurred not with it Therefore the Authority of this Court was illegall it being contrarie to the fundamental Laws of the Kingdom that either of the two Houses should assume unto themselves or exercise a compleat Parliamentary power without the concurrence of the other I answer 1. Many talk of the fundamental Laws of the Kingdom who I beleeve understand not at least consider not what the word fundamental imports Certain it is that no other Law or Laws of this Kingdom can with any propriety of speech be termed fundamental but onely such the observation whereof by the body of the Kingdom is of absolute necessity to the wel-being of it And no lesse certain it is but that the welfare and prosperity of this Kingdom may stand without any house of Lords at all and much more without their concurrence with whatsoever the House of Commons shall passe in order thereunto Upon the same ground evident it is that the Trial of Malefactours or Delinquents especially in extraordinary cas●● of Delinquencie by Juries is no fundamental Law of the Kingdom in as much as the wel-being of the Kingdom may subsist as well without it 2. All Authority and Power of Government being originally Sect. 39 and fundamentally in the people as hath been already proved at large they have a just and legall power in their Representative which is the House of Commons without the Lords to act and do whatsoever they rightly judge conducible to their wealth and safety especially when the Lords shall refuse to concurre with them in such things It is unreasonable to conceive that it should be a matter of sin or unlawfull for a Kingdom to make provision for it self and it is own good unlesse such or such a small party amongst them who prefer their own undue personal Interests before