the Church of England when they so vigorously opposed thâ— Bill of Exclusion and how he also rewarded them we all lately saw and felt Anâ— shall Protestants after this think of obliging such Princes by their Merits They understand better that Merit is no Protestant Doctrine and that there can be none out oâ— the Church of Rome And why should any body expect that which cannot be Naâ— should the late King return again and be as much at the Devotion of his Non-swearinâ— Friends as they promise themselves he will be I very much doubt what the Church 〈◊〉 England will gain by this If we may guess at the Spirit of the Party by the bittâ—â— Zeal which inspires all their Writings I can expect nothing from them but as fierce Persecution of the Church of England as ever it suffered from Papists or Fanaticks excepting Smithfield Fires which possibly may be exchanged for Tyburn All who liâ—â— in the Communion of the Church of England as now Establâ—shed are in their accouâ—â— and constant Language no better than Hereticks and Schismaticks and Perjured Apostates much greater Crimes than the Traditores were guilty of which was the onlâ— pretence for the Donatist Schism and Persecution They seem to comfort themselvâ—â— under their present Sufferings more with the sweet hopes of Revenge than any greâ—â— expectations of future Rewards that they shall live to see the Swearinâ— Bishops and Priests Apol. for the new Separats the contempt of Princes and People for if th◠〈◊〉 B. of York who is particularly named cannot escape them I douâ—â— they will make but very few exceptions And is not this a great eâ—couragement to any who have complyed with the present Govâ—rnment to help theâ— Men to Power again Must not the Nobility and Gentry expect their share of Veâ—geance aâ— well as the Clergie And is not the Church of England then in a â—opeâ—â— state which must be purged and reformed into Jacobite Principies and by a Jacobiâ—â— Spirit These are all very sensible roots as â—ar as we can reason about such matters how â—â—â—tle good is to be expected from the return of the late King with a French Power He must return the lame Man he went and then Popery and Arbitary Povver must return â—vith him nay he must return much vvorse than he vvent because he must return â—ore a Vassal to France vvhich I suppose vvill not mend the Condition of English Subjects â—uring his Reign These things ought to be vvell considered for if his Government vvas so uneasie beâ—â—re and gave us such a frightful prospect as made the Nation very vvilling to part vvith him when he thought fit to leave them it vvould seem very strange to byâ—anders should they novv grovv fond of his return vvhen it is certain if he does reâ—urn and returns by the Methods novv intended Popery and Arbitrary Povver must â—e more Triumphant than ever He vvanted nothing but povver to make himself Absolute and to make us all Papists â—r Martyrs or Refugees and that he will now have For if a French Power can Conquer us it will make him as Absolute as the French King will let him be or to â—peak properly it will make him though not an Absolute Prince yet an Absolute Vice-â—oy and Minister of France He will Administer an Absolute Power and Government â—nder the influence and direction of French Councils and then we know what will become of the Liberties and Religion of England And have â—e so long disdained the â—houghts of subjection to France Has a French League been thought such a National Grievance Has the pretence of a War with France been found such an excellent exâ—edient to get Money of English Parliaments Haâ— the expectation of it fired English â—pirits and upon occasion filled our Armies and Navies without need of Pressing or â—eat of Drum Have we so detested the French Cruelties to Protestants And shall we â—ow so willingly stoop to the yoke and think it a great favour that they will vouchsafe â—o Conquer us Let us never complain hereafter that our Chains pinch and gall us when we our selves are ready with â—o much joy and thankfulness to put them on And whatever some fancy they will find it a very easy and natural think for the late King if he return by Force and Power to make himself Absolute by law Princes always gain new Powers by the ineffectual opposition of Subjects If they lose their Crowns and recover them again they receive them with an addition of some brighter Jewels and turn disputed Prerogatives into Legal and undoubted Rights Thus we know it was when King Ch. 2. Returned from a long Exile all the New Acts are Declarations were made in favour of the Crown and Subjects bound to their good Behaviour as fast as Laws could bind them for in all such Revolutions those who suffered with or for their Prince return with zeal and resentment and take care in the first place to establish all such Prerogatives of the Crown as were disputed before and to grant such new Powers as they think are wanting And others there are always forward to make their fortunes by Complementing the returning Prince and to expiate their former crimes by a forward and flaming Loyalty and the rest are over awed and frighted into a compliance and thus it is commonly seen that between zeal and Flattery and fear the King increases in Power and the People forfeit their Libert es and we must not expect that it should be otherwise now should the late King return The first Complement that must be made to him is a Jacâ—bite Parliament and God knows what such a Parliament will do Will they deny him a Toleration â—oâ— papists the repeal of the Test the forfeitures or surrenders of Charters and a new Regulation of Corporations Will they dispute nay will they not declare his Dispensiâ—g power and approve his Ecclesiastical Commissions Will they make any scruple to declare the Legitimacy of the Prince of Wales or to leave the manner of his Education to those who will certainly breâ—d him up in Popery Will they not take care for new Jacobitâ— Tests to renounce and abhore all the several Hypotheses and Principles of Governmentâ— which have been urged to justify our Submission and Allegiance to their present Majesties And when they have done this How easy will it be for a down right Popish Parliament which will be the next step that will be made to do all the rest It is very evident what advantages the Priests and Jesuits will have in such a juncture to make Proselytes while the People are in a fright and grown giddy with such frequent Revolutions and those who in the late Reign were the great Advocate of the Protestant Cause are disgrac'd at Court threatned into silence their Authority weakned and their Persons reproach'd both by Papists and Jacobites Numbers of Convâ—rts was their great want before and the press and the pulpit their great hindrance but Jacobites
A A LETTER to a Friend Concerning a French Invasion To Restore the Late King JAMES to his Throne AND What may be expected from him should he be Successful in it Published by Authority Printed at London and Re-Printed at Edinburgh by the Heir of Andrew Anderson Printer to Their most Excellent Majesties 1692. A Letter to a Friend c. Sir IN your last you seem much concerned about the French Invasion and desirous to know what I think may probably be expected from the Late King should he prove so successful as to recover his Throne and what English Subjects are bound in Conscience to do should he Land in England and demand his Right The last is a material Question but I wonder how you came to ask the First as if it could be any Question what the Late King will do if he were restored by Power to his Crown For I think it past all doubt that he will do as he did before only in all probability a great deal worse And you remember how that was for Arbitrary Power and Popery are of too great Concernment and have left too frightful an impression behind them to be so soon forgot and this will go a great way towards an answer to your second Question unless you think we are bound to take King James and a French Government and a French Popery with him which I shal not easily be perswaded to and I believe there are not many English Protetestants will But to Answer your Questions distinctly As to the First When we see what the late King James has done what reason have we to expect that should be return with Power he would ever do otherwise Is he more obliged now by his Protestant Subjects than he was before Can he make fairer Promises than he did before Is he less Zealous for Popery or grown more out of Conceit with Arbitrary Power Or will he be less able to make himself Arbitrary and set up Popery when he returns a Conqueror For I take it for granted he must conquer first because King William won't abdicat nor steal away and the Power that Conquers will give Laws and Religion to the Conquer'd I know there are two Things pretended as a Foundation for better hopes First That the late King is now sensible that the English Nation will never bear Popery nor Arbitrary Power and that he has suffered so much by these Attempts already that he will never venture the like again Secondly The great Merits of the Non-swearing Clergy and Gentry which will atone for the Church of England and make him their sure and fast Friend Patron and Defender especially if those who have been too forward in complying with the late Revolution shall expiate the Crime by an early Repentance and a vigorous Assistance to restore him to his Throne First As for the first there are too many Answers to be given to it to hinder it from being the least probable ground of Hope though Hope it self is Rei incertae nomen so very uncertain especially when we guess only at the Inclinations of Princes that Lives and Fortunes and Liberties and Religion are not to be ventured on it against former Experience But to let that pass pray consider what the true Import of this Argument is for it amounts to this that all Men will learn by Experience that Men will not venture on those things a second time which have proved fatal to them once that Princes will certainly for ever after dislike such Counsels and Measures as have already shaken their Thrones and made their Crowns fall from their Heads Now we may Flatter our selves with such Hopes as these which may upon some account be called reasonable Hopes because there is great Reason it should be so but yet they so often fail that there is no Reason to rely upon them The Repentance of dying Sinners and of undone Prodigals who return to their old Sins again if they recover their Health or find new Treasures to waste confutes such Expectations Sufferings rarely cure a vehement Love and fond Passion for any thing which is the Case of old habitual Sinners and no Man can be fonder of any Vice than some Princes are of Unlimited and Arbitrary Power And when this is joyned with a resolved and inflexible Temper which scorns to yield and had rather be undone a Thousand Times than owne retract or amend a Fault Such Misfortunes do but whet Revenge and make them swell as a River does when its Current is stopped which flows with a more rapid and foaming Stream when it has once forced its way Especially when Superstition is the prevailing Ingredient which fires the Spirits and raises imaginary Scenes of Glory out of the Losse of Crowns and Kingdoms And what will such a Prince if he ever recover his Throne and Power forfeit the Glory of losing his Kingdoms again by deserting the Cause for which he lost them before No Man can certainly tell how Superstition will Act nor how it would Reason Especially when the Consciences of Princes are under such Directors as will venture their Crowns for them over and over to carry on their own Designs and know how to Expound Providence to Flatter Superstition And then the Recovery of his Throne may be made a better Argument and a stronger Obligation to revive and prosecute his old Designs than the fear of losing it again can be to make him desist And to make this yet more demonstrative with reference to the Late King we ought to consider That this is not the first Tryal he has had and that this Consideration has done him no good He saw before what his Father King Charles the First suffered only for some Attempts towards Arbitrary Power and for meer Jealousies and Suspitions of his favouring Popery He lost his Kingdoms and his Life and his Sons suffered a long and hard Exile Charles the Second indeed took warning by this and though possibly he might be big with the same Designs yet would be not venture too far nor discover himself too openly for fear of Travelling again as he used to speak But King James had not Patience to conceal his Inclinations till he came to the Crown and that had like to have cost him his Crown before he had it and yet this was not sufficient to caution him against those violent Methods he afterwards used to advance Popery which were so seasonably defeated by the happy arrival of our present Soveraign whom God long preserve And those who are so desirous to try him again in England as they have lately done in Ireland to their full Satisfaction if they could try only for themselves should have my free Consent to make the Experiment Have not the poor Irish Protestants made it to their Cost even since this very Revolution from whence and from the Wisdom he must needs have Learned by it this miraculous Change in Him is now expected And did they find any such Change in him
will by natural instinct learn more Loyalty and others will be taught it as Gideon once taught the men of Succoth with Briars and Thorns And there never was such an opportunity since the Reformation for a plentiful Harvest of Converts as this would be like to prove And who can bear the thoughts of this who has any Compassion for the Souls of Men any Zeal for the Church of England or any concern to preserve and propagate the true Faith and Worship of Christ to posterity All this is upon a supposition of the late King's return which I declare to you I am not afraid of though it is fit to mind those men who are so fond of it what they may reasonably expect if he should return which possibly may abate their zeal in this cause and that may prevent the mischiefs of an attempt for without a hopeful Conspiracy in England the French King is too wary to make such an Attempt But if they have any love to their Countrey any pity left in them for the lives and fortunes of English Protestants I beseech them to consider what the Calamities and Desolations of Civil War will be for that it must end in if there be an Invasion from abroad strengthned with a powerful Conspiracy at home King William as I said before will not Desert or Abdicate for I never heard of a Prince who had ventured so much to rescue a Kingdom out of so great a danger that would so easily expose it again to the same or a greater danger And surely the late King does noâ— expect he should for he knows him too well So that if they look for such another Revolution to turn King William out as brought him in they will in all probability be mistaken There are too many Persons of Honour and Fortune engaged in this Cause who know the late King too well to take his Word and were it possible to wheedle men of Fortune and Sense the genius and spirit of the Nation is against them And that which could make the late Revolution will probably be able to prevent this It must then come to Blows if an attempt be made and the fortune of one Battel may not decide it and those who are too young to remember the desolations which the late Civil Wars in England made lee them look into Ireland and see to what a heap of rubbish a flourishing and fruitful Countrey is reduced by being the scene of a Three Years War It is made a popular pretence to raise discontents and to make people disaffected to the present Government that the Taxes for maintaining this War are grown so intolerable and there is no prospect of an end of them Now I must confess that the Taxes fall very heavy upon some and am sorry that the present posture of our Affairs does require it and that there can be no easier ways found to supply the plain and pressing necessities of the State But we ought to consider that still all this is infinitely easier than Popery and French Slavery if we regard only our Estates The Annual exactions of the Church of Rome besides all the cheating ways their Priests had to get Money while Popery was the Religion of England used to be complained of as a National Grievance and a heavier Tax upon the Subject than all the King's Revenues And if those who â—omplain of our Taxes were but one month in France to see the Poverty and Misery which the French Government has brought upon them they could come home very well contented to pay Taxes and to fight against the French too We are Free Subâ—ects not Slaves we are taxed by our own Representatives who tax themselves as well â—s us and this not by the Arbitrary Will of the Prince We pay for our own Defence â—nd Preservation as all people ought to do and while we do not pay near so much as â—ur Religion and Lives and Liberties are worth and have left wherewithal to mainâ—â—in our selves we have no such great reason to complain But how heavy soever Taxes are are they like a Civil War Like the dread and terrors 〈◊〉 an Enemies Army or of our own Are they like having our Houses filled with â—oldiers or which is worse burnt or plundered Are they like losing our Friends our Fathers Husbands or Children by whose kindness or labours we subsisted in a word Are they like the Spoylâ— of Harvest or the Desolation of a whole Countrey And can we be contented to see England again the Seat of War It is certain in our present circumstances it canot be made so unless we our selves please France has too many Enemies to think of Conquering England without factions at home and were â—t not for them we need not fear its united Force and I hope considering men of what â—erswasion soever they be will not think it worth the while to ruine their Countrey by a Civil War to purchase a French Slavery and Popery two very dear things could we â—urchase them never so cheap What I have said hitherto concerns only England but it becomes us to look a little â—broad and consider what a fatal Influence a French Conquest of England will have â—pon the Affairs of all Europe That it is not mere Justice and Honour that makes the French King espouse the Cause of the late Ling James his Encroachments and Usurpaâ—ions on his Neighbours will witness He has no scruples of Conscience about the Rights â—f other Princes all he can get is his own But England was formerly a Friend and Confederate at least not an Enemy and now the Power of England which the French have never had reason to despise is in the hands of a Kâ—ng who ows the French King a good turn and will not I hope die in his debt This checks his ambitious â—esigns gives life and spirit to the Confederacy threatens to make him restore what he â—as taken and what he keeps by meer force and violence and to reduce him within his â—ncient Bounds and to the Ancient Constitution of the French Government and he â—nows while King William possesses the English Throne and keeps up the Confederacy â—e must not expect to get much more and may be in constant danger of losing what he â—as gotten This makes the French King so concerned to restore the late King James to the Throne â—f England to get râ—d of a Formidable Enemy and to strengthen himself with the Alliâ—nce of a Powerful Friend for England will probably turn the scales on which side soâ—ver iâ— happens to be And there is no doubâ— but the Arms of England must be devoted â—o the service of France if a French Power should place the late K. in hiâ— Throne again 〈◊〉 let any English Protestant who can think coolly of things consider what a malignant â—spect this would have upon the Liberties of Europe and on the whole Protestant Interest The Arms or the Money of Fr. has hitherto been an equal Match at
least for all the Conâ—â—derates while he has found other employment for the Imperial English Forces but â—anks be to God the K. of Engl. the English Forces are novv at leisure to attend his Motions those Forces which beat him at the Boyn at Athlone at Agrim at Lymerick in a word which beat him out of Ireland and have now got a habit of beating the French And it is no wonder that he is not fond of such company in Flanders but endeavours to find some new work for them at home And if he can but send them home again and embroil us in a Civil War that is one great point gained but if he proves successeful in his Attempt he makes England his own and will turn their Arms upon the Confederats and what can them stand in the way What should hinder him from being the sole and absolute Monarch of the West And then it is easie to read the Fate Protestants Thus Sir I have freely told you what I apprehend will be the necessary and unavoidable effects of a French Conquest I pretend not to prophesie nor to demonstration in such cases but what I have said has all the appearances of probability all the degrees of moral certainty that any thing of this nature can have and this is the only Rule in the matters by which wise men are to judge and act And this has appeared a plain and easie Answer to your Second Question what English Subjects are bound in Conscience to do in case the late King should Land in England with French Forces to demand his Crown Now there are two sorts of persons concerned in this question 1. Those who have not sworn Allegiance to King William and Queen Mary but account the late King James as much their King as he was when he sat upon the Throne and that their obligations to him are the same now that ever they were 2. Those who have sworn Allegiance to King William and Queen Mary And there are two parts of this Question 1. Whether they are bound in conscience to assist the late King if he return 2. Whether it be lawful for them to oppose him and fight against him As for the first part of this Question and as far as it concerns the Non-swearers I shal ask them two or three Questions and leave them to answer them themselves 1. The first question is Whether they can think themselves bound in Conscience upon any pretence whatever to fight for Popery against the Protestant Faith and Worship that is as they must confesse if they are Protestants to fight for Heresie and Idolatry against the true Faith and Worship of Christ or to fight for Antichrist and against Christ Can any consideration make this lawful If nothing can as I wilâ— venture to take it for granted that nothing can then whatever duty they may fancy they still owe to their Abdicated Prince it cannot be their Duty to fight for him wheâ— they cannot fight for him without fighting against Christ and his Religion though they must not fight against their Prince for Christ because Christ in such cases require his Disciples to suffer not to fight for him yet it does not follow that they must fight for their Prince against Christ to bring a Persecution upon his faithful Disciples and to contribute what they can to extirpate the Name and the Religion of Protestants out oâ— Europe Do they think themselves bound in Conscience to fight for their Prince against thâ— Laws and Liberties of their Countrey as well as against the Faith and Worship oâ— Christ Let the Rights of Princes be never so Sacred have the rest of mankind no Rights but only Princes Is there no such thing as Justice due to our selves â—or to our Fellowâ— Subjects have the Free-born Subjects of England no Natural no Legal Rights And is there any Law of God or man to fight for our Prince against the Laws and Liberties of our Countrey which are the Measures and boundaries of â—hat Duty which we owâ— to Princes that is to fight for our Prince against the rule of our duty and obedience to Princes when our Prince and the Laws and Liberties of our Countrey are on contrary sides tho we should grant them according to their own Principles that we must not fight against our Prince for our Laws and Liberties yet no more must we fight for our Prince against our Laws and Liberties It is abundantly enough to be Passive in such cases but a Nation which fights against its own Laws and Liberties is Felo de se guilty of the worst kind of Self-Murder Can any English man whatever opinion he has of the late King 's Right think himself bound in conscience to maintain his Right by giving up his Countrey to France To make him King and all his Subjects French Slaves For can any Prince have more Right to be King of England than the Kingdom of England has to be England Is it not an unaccountable tendernesse scrupulosity of Conscience to be so concerned for any one Prince's Right as to sacrifice the Rights and Liberties of all the Princes in Europe to his To set him upon the Throne to drive all other Princes from theirs We are Citizens of the World as well as Subjects of England have our Obligations to Mankind to other Princes as well as to our own though our obligation to no one other Prince is so great as to our own yet the publick good of mankind or of a great part of the world is a more sacred obligation than the particular Interest of our own Prince or Countrey much lesse then can the Right of any particular Prince be it what it will stand in competition with the Rights and Liberties of our own Countrey and of all Europe besides It is no more purpose to dispute with men who do not feel the Force of this Argument at the first hearing than to reason with blind men about Colours they have no sense left nothing but a stupid and slavish Loyalty all things tho never so sacred must give place to this the care of Religion the love of the Countrey their Justice and Charity to all mankind must vail to their senselesse mistake of the true meaning of this word Loyalty by which they will needs understand an Absolute Obedience without Limitation or Reserve when most certainly it signifies no more than Obedience according to Law 2. I would ask them What they would think themselves bound to do in such cases were the late K. upon the Throne again Unlesse they have chang'd their minds then they are not so steady to Principles as they pretend to be we may very reasonably guesse what they would do by what they did while he was upon the Throne It is certain they so much dislik'd his open designs of Popery Arbitrary Power that they opposed him as far as they durst would not Fight for him to keep him on the Throne