which time the sayd Iustice Seate was called by adjournment the sayd Iohn Lord Finch then Lord Chiefe Iustice of his Majesties Court of Common Pleas and was one of the Iudges assistants for them he continued by further unlawfull and unjust practices to maintaine and confirme the said verdict and did then and there being assistant to the Iustice in Eyre advise the refusal of the traverse offered by the County and all their evidences but onely what they should verbally deliver which was refused accordingly IV. That hee about the Moneth of November 1635. hee being then Lord Chiefe Iustice of the Common Pleas and having taken an oath for the due administration of Iustice to his Majesties Liege people according to the Lawes and statutes of the Realme contrived in opinion in haec verba when the good and safety c. and did subscribe his name to that opinion and by perswasions threats and false suggestions did solicite and procure Sir Iohn Bramstone Knight then and now Lord Chiefe Iustice of England Sir Humfrey Davenport Knight Lord chiefe Baron of his Majesties Court of Exchequer Sir Richard Hutton Knight late one of the Iustices of his Majesties Court of Common Pleas Sir Iohn Denham Knight late one of the Barons of his Majesties Court of Exchequer Sir William lones Knight late one of the Iustices of the said Court of Kings Bench Sir George Crock then and now one of the Iudges of the said Court of Kings Bench Sir Thomas Trevor Knight then and now one of the Barons of the Exchequer Sir George Vernon Knight late one of the Iustices of the said Court of Common Pleas Sir Robert Barkley Knight then and now one of the Iustices of the said Court of Kings Bench Sir Francis Crawly Knight then and now one of the Justices of the said Court of Common Pleas Sir Richard Weston Knight then and now one of the Barons of the said Court of Exchequer some or one of them to subscribe with their names the said opinion presently and enjoyned them severally some or one of them secresâ— upon their allegeance V. That he the fifth day of Iune then being Lord Chiefe Iustice of the said Court of Common Pleas subscribed an extrajudiciall opinion in answer to questions in a letter from his Majesty in haec verba c. And that he contrived the said questions and procured the said Letter from his Majesty and whereas the said Iustice Hutton and Iustice Crook declared to him their opinions to the contrary yet hee required and pressed them to subscribe upon his promise that hee would let his Majesty know the truth of their opinions notwithstanding such subscriptions which neverthelesse he did not make knowne to his Majestie but delivered the same to his Majesty as the opinion of all the Iudges VI. That hee being Lord Chiefe Iustice of the said Court of Common Pleas delivered his opinion in the Chequer Chamber against Master Hampden in the case of Ship-money that hee the said Master Hampdâ—n upon the matter and substance of the case was chargeable with the money then in question a Coppy of which proceedings the Commons will deliver to your Lordships and did solicite and threaten the said sudges some or one of them to deliver their opinions in like manner against Master Hampden and after the said Baron Denham had delivered his opinion for Master Hampden the said Lord Finch repaired purposely to the said Baron Denhams Chamber in Serjeants Inne in Fleetstreet and after the said Master Baron Denham had declared and expressed his opinion urged him to retract the said opinion which hee refusing was threatned by the said Lord Finch because hee refused VII That hee then being Lord chiefe Justice of the Court of Common Pleas declared and published in the Exchequer Chamber and westerne circuit where he went Judge that the Kings right to Ship-money as aforesaid was so inherent a right to the Crowne as an Act of Parliament could not take it away and with divers malicious speeches inveighed against and threatned all such as refused to pay Ship-money all which opinions contained in the foure five sixth Articles are against the Law of the Realme the Subjects right of property and contrary to former resolutions in Parliament and to the petition of right which said resolutions and petition of right were well knowne to him and resolved and enacted in Parliament when he was Speaker of the Commons house of Parliament VIII That hee being Lord chiefe Justice of the Court of Common Pleas did take the generall practice of that Court to his private Chamber and that hee sent warrants into all or many shires of England to severall men as to Francis Giles of the County of Devon Rebert Renson of the County of Yorke Attorneys of that Court and to divers others to release all persons arrested on any utlawry about 40. shillings fees whereas none by Law so arrested can be bailed or released without Supersedeas under seale or reversall IX That hee being Lord Chiefe Iustice of the Court of Common pleas upon a pretended suit begun in Michaelmas Terme in the 11. yeare of his Majesties Reigne although there was no plaint or Declaration against him did notoriously and contrary to all Law and Iustice by threats menaces and imprisonment compell Thomas Laurence an Executor to pay 19 pound 12 shillings and likewise caused Richard Bernard being onely over-seer of the last Will of that Testator to bee arrested for the payment of the said Money contrary to the advice of the rest of the Iudges of that Court and against thâ— knâ—wne and ordinary course of Iustice and his said Oath and knowledge and denyed his Majesties Subjects the common and ordinary Iustice of this Realme as to Mr. Liâ—â—rick and others and for his private benefit endammaged and ruined the estates of very many of his Majesties Subjects contrary to his oath and knowledge X. That hee being Lord Keeper of the great Seale of England and sworne one of his Majesties Privie Counsell did by false and malicious slanders labour to incense his Majestie against Parliaments and did frame and advise the publishing the Declaration after the dissolution of the last Parliament All which Treasons and misdemeanors above mentioned were done and committed by the said Iohn Lord Finch Baron of Fordwich Lord Keeper of the great Seale of England and thereby he the aforesaid Finch hath trayterously and contrary to his allegiance laboured to lay Imputations and Scandalls upon his Majesties government and to alienate the hearts of his Majesties liege people from his Majestie and to set a division betweene them and to ruine and destroy his Majesties Realme of England for which they doe impeach him the said Lord Finch Baron of Fordwich Lord Keeper of the Great Seale of England of high Treason against our Soveraigne Lord the King his Crowne and Dignity of the misdemeanours above mentioned And the said Commons by Protestation saving to themselves the libertie of exhibiting at any time
their office then is to governe But in my opinion they governe worse than they Preach though they preach not at all for wee see to what passe their government hath brought us In conformity to themselves They silence others also though Hierom in one of his Epistles saith that even a Bishop let him be of never so blamelesse a life yet he doth more hurt by by his licence then he can doe good by his example Mr. Speaker It now behooves us to restraine the Bishops to the duties of their Function as they may never more hanker after heterogeneous extravagant employments Not be so absolute so single and solitary in actions of Moment as Excommunication Absolution Ordination and the like but to joyne some of the Ministry with them and further to regulate them according to the usage of Ancient Churches in the best times that by a well-temper'd Government they may not have power hereafter to corrupt the Church to undoe the Kingdome When they are thus circumscribed and the publique secur'd from their Eruptions then shall not I grudge them a liberall plentifull subsistence else I am sure they can nevâ—â— be given to Hospitality Although the calling of the Clergie be all glorious within yet if they have not a large considerable outward support they cannot be freed from vulgar Contempt It will alwaies be fit that the flourishing of the Church should hold proportion with the flourishing of the Common-wealth wherein it is If we dwell in houses of Ceaar why should they dwell in skins And I hope I shall never see a good Bishop left worse than a Parson without a Gleab Certainly Sir this superintendencie of eminent men Bishops over divers Churches is the most Primitive the most spreading the most lasting Government of the Church Wherefore whilest we are earnest to take away Innovations let us beware wee bring not in the greatest Innovation that ever was in England I doe very well know what very many doe very servently desire But let us well bethinke our selves whether a popular Democraticall Government of the Church though fit for other places will be either sutable or acceptable to a Regall Monarchicall Government of the State Every man can say It is so common and knowne a Truth that suddaine and great changes both in naturall and Politick bodies have dangerous opperations and give mee leave to say that we cannot presently see to the end of such a consequence especially in so great a Kingdome as this and where Episcopacie is so wrap'd and involv'd in the Lawes of it Wherefore Mr. Speaker my humble Motion is that we may punish the present offenders reduce and preserve the Calling for better men hereafter Let us remember with fresh thankfulnesse to God those glorious Martyr-Bishops who were burn'd for our Religion in the times of Popery who by their learning zeale and constancy upheld and convey'd it downe to us We have some good Bishops still who doe Preach every Lords Day and are therefore worthy of double honour they have suffered enough already in the Disease I shall bee sorry we should make them suffer more in the Remedy 〈…〉 A message delivered from the Commons to the Lords of the Vpper House in Parliament by Mr. Pym Novemb. 11. 1640. My Lords THe Knights Citizens and Burgesses now assembled for the Commons in Parliament have received information of divers traiterous designes and practices of a great Peere of this House and by vertue of a command from them I doe here in the name of the Commons now assembled in Parliament and in the name of all the Commons of England accuse Thomas Earle of Strafford Lo. Lieutenant of Ireland of high Treason and they have commanded me further to desire your Lordships that he may be sequestred from Parliament and forthwith committed to prison They have further commanded mee to let you know that they will within a very few dayes resort to your Lordships with the particular Articles and grounds of this accusation And they doe further desire that your Lordships will thinke upon some convenient and fit way that the passage betwixt England and Ireland for his Majesties subjects of both Kingdomes may be free notwithstanding any restraint to the contrarie The Lord Lieutenant being required to withdraw and after a debate thereof called in kneeled at the Bar and after standing up the L. Keeper spake as followeth My Lord of Strafford THe House of Commons in their owne name and in the name of the whole Commons of England have this day accused your Lordship to the Lords of the Higher House of Parliament of high treason The articles they will within a very few dayes produce In the meane time they have desired of my Lords and may Lords have accordingly resolved that your Lordship shall be committed to safe custody to the Gentleman Vsher and be sequestred from the House till your Lordship shall cleare your selfe of the accusations that shall be laid against you Articles of the Commons assembled in Parliament against Thomas Earle of Strafford in maintenance of his accusation whereby he stands charged of High Treason 1. THat he the said Thomas Earle of Strafford hath traiterously endevoured to subvert the fundamentall Lawes and government of the Realmes of England and Ireland and in stead thereof to introduce on Arbitrary and Tyrannicall Government against Law which hee hath declared by traiterous words counsels and actions and by giving his Majestie advice by force of Armes to compell his loyall Subjects to submit thereunto 2. That hee hath traiterously assumed to himselfe Regall power over the lives liberties persons lands and goods of his Majesties Subjectâ— in England and Ireland and hath exercised the same tyrannically to the subversion and undoing of many both of Peeres and others of his Majesties Liege people 3. That the better to enrich and enable himselfe to goe thorow with his traiterous designes hee hath detained a great part of his Majesties revenue without giving legall account and hath taken great summes out of the Exchequer converting them to his owne use when his Majestie was necessitated for his owne urgent occasions and his Army had beene a long time unpaid 4. That he hath traiterously abused the power and authoritie of his government to the encreasing countenancing and encouraging of Papists that so hee might settle a mutuall dependance and confidence betwixt himselfe and that partie and by their help prosecute and accomplish his malicious and tyrannicall designes 5. That hee hath maliciously endevoured to stir up enmitie and hostilitie between his Majesties subjects of England and those of Scotland 6. That he hath traiterously broken the great trust reposed in him by his Majestie of Lieutenant Generall of his Army by wilfully betraying divers of his Majesties Subjects to death his Army to a dishonourable defeat by the Scots at Newborn and the Towne of New-Castle into their hands to the end that by the effusion of bloud by dishonour and so great a losse of New-Castle his Majesties
Reprieve him till Satterday May 11th 1641. THis Letter all written with the Kings own hand the Peers this day received in Parliament delivered by the hand of the Prince It was twice read in the House and after serious and sad consideration the House resolved presently to send 12. of the Peers Messengers to the King humbly to signifie that neither of the two intentions expressed in the Letter could with duty in them or without danger to himselfe his dearest Consort the Queene and all the young Princes their Children possibly be advised With all which being done accordingly the reasons shewed to his Maiesty He suffered no more words to come from them but out of the fulnesse of his heart to the observance of Justice and for the contentment of his people told them that what he intended by his Letter was with an if if it may be done without discontentment of his People if that cannot be I say againe the same that I writ fiat justitia My other intention proceeding out of charity for a few dayes respite was upon certain information that his Estate was so distracted that it necessarily required some few dayes for setlement thereof Whereunto the Lords answered their purpose was to be Suitors to his Maiesty for favour to be shewed to his innocent Children and if himselfe had made any provision for them that the same might hold This was well liking to his Maiesty who thereupon departed from the Lords at his Maiesties parting they offered up into his hands the Letter it selfe which he had sent but He was pleased to say my Lords what I have written to you I shall content it be Registred by you in your House In it you see my minde I hope you will use it to my honor This upon returne of the Lords from the King was presently reported to the House by the Lord Privy Seal and ordered that these Lines should go out with the Kings Letter if any copy of the Letter were dispersed THAT BISHOPS ought not to have Votes in PARLIAMENT 1 BEcause it is a very great hinderance to the exercise of their Ministeriall Function 2 Because they doe vow and undertake at their Ordination when they enter into holy Orders that they will give themselves wholly to that Vocation 3. 4 Because Counsells and Canons in severall Ages do forbid them to meddle with secular affairs because 24 Bishops have dependancie on the two Archbishops and because of their Canonicall obedience to them 5 Because they are but for their lives and therefore are not fit to have legislative power over the honors inheritance persons and liberties of others 6 Because of Bishops dependancie and expecting translations to places of great profit 7 That severall Bishops have of late much incroached upon the consciēnces and liberties of the Subjects and they and their Successors will be much incouraged still to incroach and the Subjects will be much discouraged from complaining against such incouragements if 26 of that Order be to be Judges of those complaints the same reason extends to their legislative power in any Bill to passe for the regulation of their power upon any emergent inconveniencie by it 8 Because the whole number of them is interessed to maintaine the jurisdiction of Bishops which hath beene found so grievous to the three Kingdomes that Scotland hath utterly abolished it and multitudes in England and Ireland have petitioned against it 9 Because Bishops being Lords of Parliament it setteth too great a distance betweene them and the rest of their Brethren in the Ministry which occasioneth pride in them discontent in others and disquiet in the Church To their having Votes a long time Answ If inconvenient Time and usage are not to be considered with Law-makers some Abbots voted as anciently in Parliament as Bishops yet are taken away Therefore the Bishops Certificate to plenary of Benefice and loyalty of Marriage the Bill extends not to them For the secular Jurisdictions of the Deane of Westminster the Bishops of Durbam and Ely and the Archbishop of Yorke which they are to execute in their owne persons the former reasons shew the inconveniencies therein For their Temporall Courts and Jurisdictions which are executed by their Temporall Officers the Bill doth not concerne them The Lord Keepers Speech in the Upper House of Parliament Novemb. 3. 1640. My Lords ANd you the Knights Cittizens and Burgesses of the House of Commons you have been summoned by His Majesties Gracious Writ under the great Seal of England and you are here this day assembled for the holding of a Parliament The Writ tels you t is to treat and consult of the High Great and weighty affairs that concern the estate and safety of the Kingdom It tels you true that since the Conquest never was there a time that did more require and pray for the best advice and affection of the English people It is ill viewing of objects by viewing them in multiplying Glasse and it is almost as mischievous in the speech of such a broken Glasse which represents but to the half The onely and the perfect way is to look in a true Mirror I will not take upon me to be a good looker in it I will onely hold it to you to make use of it The Kingdom of England is this multiplying Glasse you may there see a State which hath flourished for divers hundred yeers famous for time of peace and warre glorious at home and ever considerable abroad A Nation to whom never yet any Conqueror gave new Laws nor abolished the old nor would this Nation ever suffer a Conqueror to meddle with their Laws no not the Romanes who yet when as they subdued all the people made it part of the Conquest to leave their Laws in triumph with them For the Saxons Danes and the Normans if this were a time to travell into such particulars it were an easie task to make it appear that it never changed the old established Lawes of England nor ever brought in any new so as you have the frame and constitution of a Common-wealth made glorious by antiquity And it is with States as with persons and families certainly an interrupted pedigree doth give lustre It is glorious in the whole frame wortth your looking upon long and your consideration in every part The King is the head of the Common-wealth the Fountain of Justice the life of the Law He is anima deliciae legis Behold Him in His glorious Ancestors that have so swayed the Scepter of the Kingdome Behold Him in the high attributes and the great prerogatives which so ancient and unalterable Laws have given and invested him with Behold Him in the happy times that we have so long lived under His Monarchiall government For His excellent Majesty that now is our most Gratious Soveraign you had need wipe the Glasse and wipe your eyes and then you shall truely behold him a King of exemplary Pietie and Justice and a King of rare endowments and
your most sacred Majesty And is our happinesse shut up in the remembrance of times past onely No. Those gracious expressions lately falne from your sacred lips as hony from the combe make glad the hearts of your people So that now we doe more than promise to our selves a large and free consideration of the wayes to compose the distempers of these Kingdomes and then present them to your royall hand for perfection And such shall be our deportment that as we shall labour the continuance of our Liberties so shall wee carry a high regard to preserve that Soveraigne power wherewith your Majesty is invested for the preservation of your Kingdome and to render your sacred Majesty terrible to the Nations and glorious at home Are these the fruits we have enjoyed by Parliaments wee cannot then but wonder at that horrid invention in this place projected Monstrum horrendum informe ingâ—ns but the Lord bee thanked Cui lumen ademptum est Can this receive a Palliation Men Fathers and Brethren and all at one blast no reverence to sacred bones of Princes were wee not all in a lumpe by them intended to bee offered up to Moloch Let us never forget this dayes solemnization But whither It is too much boldnesse to presume longer on your Majesties grace and goodnesse and therefore for the better expedition of this service Wee humbly desire 1. That our selves and servants may obtaine freedome from arrests of their persons and goods 2. That we may have free liberty of speech without confinement with a full and free debate 3. That your Majesty will vouchsafe our repaire to your sacred person upon matters of importance according to the ancient priviledges of the house That with such alacrity wee may now proceed to manifest to the world that our retirements were to reinforce a greater unity and duty and to endeavour a sweet violence which may compell pardon dread Soveraigne the word Compell your Majesty to the love of Parliaments And thus God will have the honour your sacred Majesty splendor the Kingdome safety and all our votes shall passe that your sacred Majesty may long long long reigne over us And let all the people say Amen The Lord DIGBIES Speech the 9. of Novemb. 1640. Concerning Grievances and the Trienniall Parliament Mr. Speaker YOu have received now a solemne accompt from most of the Shires of England of the severall grievances and oppressions they sustaine and nothing as yet from Dorset shire Sir I would not have you thinke that I serve for a Land of Goshen that we live there in Sun-shine whilst darknesse and plagues over-spread the rest of the Land As little would I have you thinke that being under the same sharp measure that the rest we are either insensible and benummed or that that Shire wanteth a servant to represent its sufferings boldly It is true Mr. Speaker the County of Dorset hath not digested its complaints into that formall way of Petition which others I see have done but have intrusted them to my Partners and my delivery of them by word of mouth unto this Honourable House And there was given unto us in the County Court the day of our Election a short memoriall of the heads of them which was read in the hearing of the Free-holders there present who all unanimously with one voyce signified upon each particular that it was their desire that we should represent them to the Parliament which with your leave I shall doe and these they are 1. The great and intollerable burthen of Ship-money touching the legality whereof they are unsatisfied 2. The many great abuses in pressing of Souldiers and raising moneys concerning the same 3. The multitude of Monopolies 4. The new Canon and the Oath to be taken by Lawyers Divines c. 5. The Oath required to bee taken by Church-Officers to present according to Articles new and unusuall Besides this there was likewise presented to us by a very considerable part of the Clergy of that County a note of remembrance containing these two particulars First the imposition of a new Oath required to bee taken by all Ministers and others which they conceive to be illegall and such as they cannot take with a good Conscience Secondly the requiring of a pretended Benevolence but in effect a Subsidie under the penalty of suspension excommunication and deprivation all benefit of appeale excluded This is all wee had particularly in Charge But that I may not appeare a remisse servant of my Countrey and and of this House give me leave to adde somewhat of my owne sence Truly Mr. Speaker the injurious sufferings of some worthy members of this House since the dissolution of the two last Parliaments are so fresh in my memory that I was resolved not to open my mouth in any businesse wherein freedome and plaine dealing were requisite untill such time as the breach of our priviledges were vindicated and the safety of speech setled But since such excellent Members of our House thought fit the other day to lay aside that Caution and to discharge their soules so freely in the way of zeale to his Majesties service and their Countries good I shall interpret that confidence of theirs for a lucky Omen to this Parliament and with your permission licence my thoughts too a little Mr. Speak r under those heads which I proposed to you as the grievances of Dorsetshire I suppose are comprised the greatest part of the mischiefs which have of late years layed battery either to our Estates or Consciences Sir I doe not conceive this the fit season to search and ventilate particulars yet I professe I cannot forbear to adde somewhat to what was said the last day by a learned Gentleman of the long Robe concerning the acts of that reverend new Synod made of an old convocation Doth not every Parliament mans heart rise to see the Prelats thus usurpe to themselves the Grand Preeminence of Parliament The granting of Subsidies that under so preposterous a name as of a Benevolence for that which is a Malevolence indeed A Malevolence I am confident in those that granted it against Parliaments and a Malevolence surely in those that refuse it against those that granted it for how can it incite lesse when they see wrested from them what they are not willing to part with under no lesse a penalty then the losse both of Heaven and Earth of Heaven by excommunication and of the Earth By Deprivation this without Redemption by appeal What good Christian can think with patience on such an insnaring Oath as that which is by the new Canons enjoyned to be taken by all Ministers Lawyers Physitians and Graduates in the Vniversities where besides the swearing such an impertinence as that things necessary to salvation are contained in Discipline besides the swearing those to be of Divine right which amongst the learned never pretended to it as the Arch things in our Hierarchy Besides the swearing not to consent to the change of that which
the learnedst of the Reformed Churches abroad and lastly a government under which till these late yeares this Church hath so flourished so fructified that such a government such a function should at the fagge end of 1640. yeares bee found to have such a close Devill in it as no power can Exercise no Law Restraine appeares Sir to mee a thing very improbable I professe I am deceived Sir if Trienniall Parliaments will not be a Circle able to keep many a worse Devill in order For the second I know not the strength of other mens fancies but I will confesse unto you ingenuously the weaknesse of my faith in the poynt that I doe not beleeve there can any other government bee proposed but will in time bee subject to as great or greater inconveniences than Episcopacy I meane Episcopacy so ordered reduced and limitted as I suppose it may bee by firme and solid Boundaries T is true Sir we cannot so well judge before-hand of future inconveniences for the knowledge of the faults and mischiefes of Episcopall government resulting from fresh and bleeding experience And the insight into dangers of any new way that shall be proposed being to rise onely from speculation the apprehension of the one is likely to be much more operative than of the other though perhâ—ps in just reason it ought to bee the weaker with us it is hard in such cases for us to preserve an equall and unpropense judgement since being in things of this world so much too hard for faith and contemplation yet as Divine as our inspection is into things not experimented if wee hearken to those that would quite extirpate Episcopacy I am confident that in stead of every Bishops wee put downe in a Diocesse wee shall set up a Pope in every Pariâ—h Lastly Mr. Speaker whether the subversion of Episcopacy and the introducing of another kinde of Government be practiceable I leave it to those to judge who have considered the Connexion and Interweaving of the Church Government with the Common Law to those who heard the Kings Speech to us the other day or who have looked into reason of state For my part though no Statesman I will speake my minde freely in this I doe not thinke a King can put downe Bishops totally with safety to Monarchy not that there is any such allyance as men talk of 'twixt the Myter and the Crowne but from this reason that upon the putting downe of Bishops the Government of Assemblies is likely to succeed it That to bee effectuall must draw to it selfe the supremacy of Ecclesiasticall jurisdiction that consequently the power of Excommunicating Kings as well as any other brother in Christ and if a King chance to be delivered over to Sathan judge whether men are likely to care much what becomes of him next These things considered M. Speaker let us lay aside all thoughts of such dangerous such fundamentall such unaccomplished Alterations and all thought of countenancing those thoughts in others let us all resolve upon that course wherein with union wee may probably promise our selves successe happinesse and security that is in a through Reformation To that no mans vote shall be given with more zeale with more heartinesse than mine Let us not destroy Bishops but make Bishops such as they were in the Primitive times Doe their large Terriories their large Revenues offend let them be retrencht the good Bishops of Hippo had but a narrow Diocesse Doe their Courts and subordinates offend let them be brought to governe as in the Primitive times by Assemblies of their Clergy Doth their intermedling in secular affaires offend exclude them from the capacity it is no more than what Reason and all Antiquity hath interdicted them That all this may bee the better effected M. Speaker my mottion is that First we may appoynt a Committee to collect all grievances springing from the misgovernment of the Church to which the Ministers head of Government will bee sufficient without countenancing this Petition by a Commitment and to represent it to this house in a Body And in the next place that wee may if it stand with the order of Parliaments desire that there may bee a standing Committee of certain members of both Houses who with a number of such learned Ministers as the Houses shall nominate for Assistants may take into consideration all these grievances and advise of the best way to settle peace and satisfaction in the Government of the Church to the comfort of all good Christians and all good Common-wealths Men. The Accusation and Impeachment of John LORD Finch Baron of Fordwich Lord Keeper of the Great Seale of England by the House of COMMONS IMprimis That the said Iohn Lord Finch Baron of Fordwich Lord Keeper c. hath traiterously and wickedly endeavoured to subvert the fundamentall Lawes and established Government of the Realme of England and in stead thereof to introduce an arbitrary tyrannâ—call government against Law which hee hath declared by trayterous and wicked words counsells opinions judgements practices and actions II. That in pursuance of those his trayterous and wicked purposes hee did in the third and fourth yeare of his Majesties reigne or one of them being then Speaker of the Commons House of Parliament contrary to the commands of the House then assembled and sitting denyed and hindred the reading of some things which the said House of Commons required to bee read for the safety of the King and Kingdome preservation of the Religion of this Realme and did forbid all the members of the house to speake and said that if any did offer to speake he would rise and goe away and said nothing should bee then done in the house and did offer to rise and goe away and did thereby and otherwise in as much as in him lay endeavour to subvert the ancient and undeubted rights and course of Parliaments III. That he being of his Majesties Councell at the Iustice seate held for the County of Essex in the moneth of October in the tenth yeare of his now Majesties reigne at Strafford Langton in the same County being then of his Majesties Councell in that Service did practise by unlawfull meanes to enlarge the Forrest of that County many Miles beyond the knowne bounds thereof as they had beene enjoyed neere 300 yeares contrary to the Law and to the Charter of the liberties of the Forest and other Charters and divers Acts of Parliament and for effecting the same did unlawfully cause and procure undue returnes to be made of Iurors and great numbers of other persons who were unsworne to be joyned to them of the Iury and threatned and awed the sayd Iurors to give a Verdict for the King and by unlawfull means did surprise the County that they might not make Defence and did use severall menacing wicked Speeches and Actions to the Iury and others for obtayning his unjust purpose aforesaid and after a Verdict obtained for the King in the Moneth of April following at
hereafter any other accusation or impeachmens against the said Lord Finch and also of replying to the answer that the said Iohn Lord Finch shall make unto the said Articles or to any of them and of affering proofe of the premisses or any of their impeachments or accusations that shall be exhibited by them as the case shall according to the course of Parliaments require doe pray that the said Iohn Lord Finch Baron of Ford wich Lord Keeper of the Great Seale of England may be put to answer to all and every of the premisses and such proceedings examinations tryalls and judgements as may be upon every of them bad and used as is agreeable to Law and Iustice. The Lord FAULKLANDS second Speech Made the 14. of January after the reading of the Articles against the Lord FINCH THese Articles against my Lord Finch being read I may bee bold to apply that of the Poet Nil refert tales versus qua voce legantur and I doubt not but your Lordships must be of the same opinion of which the House of Commons appeares to have beene by the choyce they have made of me that the charge I have brought is such as needs no assistance from the bringer leaving not so much as the colour of a colour for any defence including all possible evidence and all possible aggravation that addition alone excepted which he alone could make and hath made I meane his Confession Included in his flight Here are many and mighty Crimes Crimes of Supererogation So that high Treason is but a part of his Charge pursuing him fervently in every severall condition being a silent Speaker an unjust Iudge and an unconscionable Keeper That his life appeares a perpetuall Warfare by Mines and by Battery by Batteil and by Stratagem against our fundamentall Lawes which by his own confession severall Conquests had left untoucht against the excellent constitution of this Kingdome which hath made it appeare unto strangers rather an Idea than a reall Common-wealth and produced the honour and happinesse of this to be a wonder of every other Nation and this wiâ—h unfortunate successe that as he alwayes intended to make our Ruines a ground of his advancement so his advancement the meanes of our further ruine After that contrary to the further end of his place and the end of that meeting in which he held his place hee had as it were gagg'd the Common-Wealth taking away to his power all power of Speech from that body of which he ought to have beene the Mouth and which alone can perfectly represent the condition of the people whom that onely represent which if he had not done in all probability what so grave and judicious an Assembly might have offered to the consideration of so gracious and just a Prince had occasioned the redresse of the grievances they then suffered and prevented those which we have since endured according to the ancient Maxime of Odisse quos laeferis he pursued this offence towards the Parliament by inveighing against the Members by scandalizing their proceedings by trampling upon their Acts and Declarations by usurping and devolving the right by diminishing abrogating the power both of that other Parliaments making them as much as in him say both uselesse and odious to his Majesty and pursued his hatred to this fountain of Iustice by corrupting the streames of it the Lawes and perverting the Conduit Pipes the Iudges He practiced the annibilating of Ancient and Notorious perambulations of particular Forrests the better to prepare himselfe to annihilate the Ancient and Notorious perambulation of the whole Kingdome the meeres and bounders betweene the liberties of the Subject and Soveraigne power he endeauoured to have all tenures in durante bene placito to bring all Law from his Majesties Courts into his Majesties brest he gave our goods to the King our lands to the Deere our liberties to his Sheriffes so that there was no way by which wee had not beene opprest and destroyed if the power of this person had beene equall with his will Or that the will of his Majestie had beene equall to his power He not onely by this meanes made us lyable to all the effect of an Invasion from within and by destruction of our Liberties which included the destruction of our propriety which included the destruction of our Industry made us lyable to the terriblest of all Invasions that of want and poverty So that if what hee plotted had taken Root and he made it as sure as his Declaration could make it what himselfe was not Parliament proofe in this wealthy and happy Kingdome there could have beene left no aboundance but of grievances and discontentment no satisfaction but amongst the guilty It is generally observed of the plague that the infection of others is an earnest and constant desire of all that are seized by it and as this designe resembles that disease in the ruine destruction and desolation it would have wrought so it seemes no lesse like it in this effect he having so laboured to make others share in that guilt that his solicitation was not onely his action but his workes making use both of his Authority his Interest and Importunity to perswade and in his Majesties Name whose Piety is knowne to give that Excellent prerogative to his person that the Law gives to his place not to be able to doe wrong to threaten the rest of the Iudges to signe opinions contrary to Law to assigne answers contrary to their opinions to give Iudgement which they ought not to have given and to recant Iudgement when they had given as they ought so that whosoever considers his care of and concernment both in the growth and the immortality of this project cannot but by the same way by which the wisest judgment found the true mother of the Child discover him not onely to have beene the Fosterer but the Father of this most pernicious and envious designe I shall not need to observe that this was plotted and pursued by an English man against England which encreaseth the Crime in no lesse degree than parricide is beyond Murther that this was done in the greatest matter joyned to the greatest Bond being against the generall liberty and publike propriety by a sworne Iudge and if that salt it selfe because unsavory the Gospell it selfe hath design'd whither it must be cast that he poysoned our very Antidotes and turned our Guard into a destruction making Law the ground of illegalitie that he used this Law not onely against us but against it selfe making it as I may say Felo de se making the pretence for I can scarce say the appearance of it so to contribute the utter ruine of it selfe I shall not need to say that either this or more can be of the highest kinde and in the highest degree of Parliamentary Treason a Treason which need not a computation of many severall actions which alone were not Treason to prove a Treason altogether and by
holy Church and of his grace and bounty he will confirme all those liberties priviledges and rights granted and given by him and his noble Progenitors to the Church by their Charters which plainly sheweth that they have their Episcopall Jurisdiction from the Kings of England and not Iure divino by divine right and this likewise is acknowledged by themselves in the Statute of 37. H. 8. cap. 17. that they have their Episcopall jurisdiction and all other Ecclesiasticall jurisdiction whatsoever solely and onely by from and under the King The second thing that is trenching upon the Crowne is this that it is holden at this day that Episcopacy is inseparable to the Crowne of England and therefore it is commonly now said No Bishop no King no Miter no Scepter which I utterly deny for it is plaine and apparant that the Kings of England were long before Bishops and have a subsistance without them and have done and may still depose them The third is likewise considerable as trenching upon the Crowne which is that was said under the Gallery that Episcopacy was a third estate in Parliament and therefore the King and Parliament could not be without them This I utterly deny for there are three estates without them as namely the King who is the first estate the Lords Temporall the second and the Commons the third and I know no fourth estate Besides the Kings of England have had many Parliaments wherein there have beene no Bishops at all as for example Ed. 1.24 of his reigne held his Parliament at Edmundbury excluso Clero and in the Parliament 7. R. 2. c. 3. 7. R. 2. c. 12. it doth appeare that they were enacted by the King with the assent and agreement of the Lords Temporall and Commons where the estates of Parliamen are mentioned and not the Clergie Divers other statutes might likewise be named to this purpose which I omit The fourth and last thing is of the Bishops holding of the Ecclesiasticall Courts in their owne names and not in the name of the King nor by Commission from him contrary to the Statute of 1 Edw. 6. cap. 2. and contrary to the practice of Bishop Ridley Coverdale and Ponnet who tooke Commissions from the KING for holding their Ecclesiasticall Courts as may be seene at this day in the Rolles And although it will be objected that by a late Proclamation in the yeare of our Lord God 1637. wherein the opinion of the Iudges mentioned it is declared upon their opinion that the act of 1 Edw. 6. was repealed and that Bishops may now keep Courts in their owne names and send processe under their owne Seales yet it is well knowne that the Statute of 1 Q. Mary which repealed the Statute of 1 Ed. 6. was it selfe repealed by the Statute of 1 Iac. cap 25. Whereupon it was holden upon a full debate of this poynt in Parliament 7 Iac. which I have seene that upon consideration of the Statutes of 1 Iac. and 1. Eliz. cap 1. and 8 Eliz. cap. 1. that the Statute of 1 Ed. 6. was revived and that Bishops ought not to keepe Courts in their owne names So that for these reasons so nearely concerning the right of the Crowne of England in the poynt of Episcopacy I am against the proposall of that question and am for the retaining of the London Petition and for a thorow Reformation of all abuses and grievances of Episcopacy mentioned in the Ministers Remonstrance which Reformation may perhaps serve the turne without alteration of the Government of England into a forme of Presbytery as it is in other Kingdomes of Scotland France Genâ—va and the Low Countries which for mine owne part had I lived in these Kingdomes I should have bin of the opinion of the Protestant party in point of Presbytery because those Kingdomes are governed by the Civill Law which maintaines the jurisdiction of the Pope and Papall Episcopacy which the ancient Lawes of England condemne being likewise in themselves opposite to the Civill and Canon Lawes And if notwithstanding all the Reformation that can be made by the Lawes of this Land a better forme of government may evidently appeare to us concerning which there is no forme now before us it is to be taken by us into consideration according to that imperiall Constitution in these words In rebus nobis constituendis evidens utilitas esse debet ut ab eo jure recedatur quod diu aequum visum est And so Mr. Speaker I shortly conclude that for these Reasons omitting divers more the London Petition is to be retained The Speeches of Sir Benjamin Rudyer in the High Court of Parliament Mr. Speaker WEe are here assembled to doe Gods businesse and the Kings in which our owne is included as wee are Christians as wee are Subjects Let us first feare GOD then shall wee honour the King the more for I am afrayd wee have beene the lesse prosperous in Parliaments because wee have preferred other matters before Him Let Religion be our Primum Quarite for all things else are but Etcaetera's to it yet we may have them too sooner and surer if wee give God his precedence We well know what disturbance hath been brought upon the Church for vain petty trifles How the whole Church the whole Kingdome hath beene troubled where to place a Metaphor an Altar Wee have seene Ministers their Wives Children and Families undone against Law against Conscience against all Bowells of Compassion about not dancing upon Sundayes What doe these sort of men think will become of themselves when the Master of the house shall come and finde them thus beating their fellow servants These Inventions were but Sives made of purpose to winnow the best men and that 's the Devills occupation They have a minde to worry preaching for I never yet heard of any but diligent preachers that were vext with these and the like devices They despise prophesie and as one said They would faine be at something were like the Masse that will not bite A muzzl'd Religion They would evaporate and dis-spirit the power and vigour of Religion by drawing it out into solemne specious formalities into obsolete antiquated Ceremonies new furbish'd up And this belike is the good worke in hand which Dr. Heylin hath so often celebrated in his bold Pamphlets All their Acts and actions are so full of mixtures involutions and complications as nothing is cleare nothing sincere in any of their proceedings Let them not say that these are the perverse suspitious malicious interpretations of some few factious Spirits amongst us when a Romanist hath bragged and congratulated in print That the face of our Church begins to alter the Language of our Religion to change And Sancta Clara hath published That if a Synod were held Non intermixtis Puritanis setting Puritanes aside our Articles and their Religion would soone be agreed They have so brought it to passe that under the name of Puritans all our Religion is branded and under
Realme of England might be engaged in a Nationall and irreconciliable quarrell with the Scots 7. That to preserve himselfe from being questioned for those and other his traiterous courses hee laboured to subvert the right of Parliaments and the ancient course of Parliamentarie proceedings and by false and malicious slanders to incense his Majestie against Parliaments By which words counsels and actions hee hath traiterously and contrary to his allegiance laboured to alienate the hearts of the Kings Liege people from his Majestie to set a division betweene them and to ruine and destroy his Majesties Kingdomes for which they impeach him of high Treason against our Soveraigne Lord the King his Crown and dignitie 8. And he the said Earle of Strafford was Lord Deputie of Ireland and Lieutenant Generall of the Army there viz. His most excellent Majestie for his Kingdomes both of England and Ireland and the L. President of the North during the time that all and everie the crimes and offences before set forth were done and committed and hee the said Earle was Lieutenant Generall of all his Majesties army in the North parts of England during the time that the crimes and offences in the fifth and sixth articles set forth were done and committed 9. And the said Commons by protestations saving to themselves the libertie of exhibiting at any time here after any other accusation or impeachment against the said Earle and also of replying to the answers that hee the said Earle shall make unto the said articles or to any of them and of offering proves also of the premisses or any of them or any other impeachment or accusation that shall be exhibited by them as the cause shall according to the course of Parliaments require doe pray that the said Earle may be put to answer for all and every the premisses that such proceedings examinations trials and judgements may be upon everie of them had and used as is agreeable to Law and Iustice The further impeachment of Thomas Earle of Strafford by the Commons assembled in Parliament 1640 WHereas the said Commons have already exhibited Articles against the said Earle formerly expressed c. Now the said Commons doe further impeach the said Earle as followeth c. 1. That he the said Earle of Strafford the 21. day of March in the 8. yeare of his now Majesties Reigne was president of the Kings Counsell in the Northerne parts of England That the said Earle being president of the said Counsell on the 21. day of March a Commission under the great Seal of England with certaine Schedules of instructions thereunto annexed was directed to the said Earle or others the Commissioners therein named wherby amongst other things power and authority is limited to the said Earle and others the Commissioners therein named to heare and determine all offences and misdemeanors suits debates controversies and demaunds causes things and matters whatsoever therein contained and within certaine precincts in the said Northerne parts therein specified and in such manner as by the said Schedule is limited and appointed That amongst other things in the said instructions it is directed that the said President and others therein appointed shall heare and determine according to the course of proceedings in the Court of Starchamber divers offences deceits and falsities therein mentioned whether the same be provided for by the Acts of Parliament or not so that the Fines imposed be not lesse then by Act or Acts of Parliament provided for by those offences is appointed That also amongst other things in the said instructions it is diâ—ected that the said president and others therein appointed have power to examine heare and determine according to the course of proceedings in the Court of Chancery al manner of complaints for any matter within the said precincts as well concerning lands tenements and hereditaments either free-hold customary or coppy-holde as Leases and oter things therein mentioned and to stay proceedings in the Court of Common Law by Injunction or otherwise by all wayes and meanes as is used in the Court of Chancery And although the former Presidents of the said Counsell had never put in practise such Instructions nor haâ— they any such Instructions yet the said Earle in the moreth of May in the said 8. yeare and divers years following did put in practise exercise and use and caused to be used and put in practise the said Commission and Instructions and did direct and exercise an exorbitant and unlawfull power and jurisdiction on the persons and estates of his Majesties subjects in those parts and did disin-herit divers of his Majesties subjects in those parts of their inheritances sequestred their possessions and did fine ransome punish and imprison them and caused them to be fined ransomed punished and imprisoned to their ruine and destruction and namely Sir Conier Darcy Sir Iohn Bourcher and divers others against the Lawes and in subversion of the same And the said Commission and Instructions were procured and issued by the advice of the said Earle And he the said Earle to the intent that such illegall unjust power might be exercised with the greater licence and will did advise Counsell procure further directions in and by the said instructions to be given tha nâ— prohibition he granted at all but in cases where the said Counsell shall exceed the limits of the said instructions And that if any Writ of Habeas Corpus be granted the party be not discharged till the party performe the Decree and Order of the said Counsell And the said Earle in the 13. yeare of his now Majesties Reigne did procure a new Commission to himselfe and others therein appointed with the said Instructions and other unlawfull additions That the said Commission and Instructions were procured by the solicitation and advice of the said Earle of Strafford 2. That shortly after the obtaining of the said Commission dated the 21 of March in the 8 yeare of his now Majesties Reigne to wit the last day of August then next following he the said Earle to bring his Majesties liege people into a dislike of his Majestie and of his Governement and to terrifie the Iustices of the Peace from executing of the Lawes He the said Earle beeing then President as aforesaid and a Iustice of Peace did publiquely at the Assises held for the County of Yorke in the City of Yorke in and upon the said last day of August declare and publish before the people there attending for the administration of Iustice according to the Law in the presence of the Iustices sitting That some of the Justices were all for Law but they should finde that the Kings little finger should be heavier then the loynes of the Law 3. That the Realme of Ireland having been time out of minde anne xed to the Imperiall Crowne of England and governed by the same Lawes The said Earle being Lord Deputy of that Realme to bring his Majesties liege people of that Kingdome likewise into distike of his
ruine and destruction of the Kingdome of England and of his Majesties Subjects and of altering and subverting of the fundamentall Laws of this Kingdome And shortly after the said Earle of Strafford returned into England and to sundry persons declared his opinion to be that his Majesty should first try the Parliament here and if that did not supply him according to his occasions he might use then his Prerogative as he pleased to levie what he needed and that he should bee acquitted both of God and man hee tooke some other courses to supply himselfe though it were against the will of his Subjects 23. That upon the thirteenth day of Aprill last the Parliament of England met and the Commons house then being the representative Body of all the Commons in the Kingdome did according to the trust reposed in them enter into debate and consideration of the great grievances of of this Kingdome both in respect of Religion and the publike libertie of the Kingdome and his Majestie referring chiefly to the Earle of Strafford and the Archbishop of Canterbury the ordering and disposing of all matters concerning the Parliament He the said Earle of Strafford with the asistance of the said Archbishop did procure his Majesty by sundry speeches and messages to urge the said Commons house to enter into some resolution for his Majesties supply for maintenance of his warre against his Subjects of Scotlaâ—d before any course was taken for the reliefe of the great and pressing grievances wherewith this Kingdome was then afflicted Whereupon a demand was then made from his Majesty of 12. Subsidies for the release of ship-money onely and while the said Commons then assembled with expressions of great affection to his Majestie and his service were in debate and consideration of some supply before resolution by them made he the said Earle of Strafford with the helpe and assistance of the said Archbishop did procure his Majesty to dissolve the last Parliament upon the 5. day of May last and upon the same day the said Earle of Strafford did treacherously falsely and maliciously endeavour to incense his Majesty against his loving faithfull Subjects who had been members of the said house of Commons by telling his Majesty they had denyed to supply him And afterward upon the same did treacherously and wickedly counsell and advise his Majesty to this effects viz. that having tryed the affections of his people he was loose and absolved from all rules of government and was to doe every thing that power would admit and that his Majesty had tryed all ways and was refused and should be acquitted both of God and man that he had an Army in Ireland meaning the Army above mentioned consisting of Papists his dependants as is aforesaid which he might imploy to reduce this Kingdome to obedience 24 That in the same month of May he the said Earl of Strafford falsly treacherously and maliciously published and declared before others of his Majesties Privie Counsell that the Parliament of England had forsaken the King and that in denying to supply the King they had given him the advantage to supply himselfe by other wayes and divers other times he did maliciously wickedly and falsely publish and declare that seeing the Parliament had refused to supply his Majesty in the ordinary and usuall way the King might provide for the Kingdome in such waies as he should hold fit and that he was not to suffer himselfe to be mastered by the frowardnesse of the people And having so maliciously slandered the said house of Commons he did with the helpe and advice of the said Archbishop of Canterbury and the Lord Finch late Lord Keeper of the great Seal of England cause to be printed and published in his Majesties name a false and scandalous book entituled his Majesties Declaration of the causes that mooved him to dissolve the last Parliament full of bitter and malicious invectives and false and scandalous aspersions against the said house of Commons 25 That not long after the dissolution of the said last Parliament viz. In the moneths of May and Iune he the Earle of Strafford did advise the King to goe on rigorously in leavying the Ship-money and did procure the Sheriffes of severall Countries to be sent for for not leavying the Ship-money divers of which were threatned by him to be sued in the Starre-Chamber and afterwards by his advice were sued in the Star-chamber for not leavying the same and divers of his Majesties loving Subjects were sent for and imprisoned by his advice about that and other illegall payments And a great loane of a hundred thousand pounds was demanded of the City of London and the Lord Major and the Aldermen and the Sheriffes of the said City were often sent for by his advice to the Councell Table to give an account of their proceedings in raising of Ship-money and furthering of that loane and were required to certifie the names of such Inhabitants of the said City as were fit to lend which they with much humility refusing to doe he the said Earle of Strafford did use these or the like speeches viz. That they deserved to be put to Fine and Ransom and that no good would be done with them till an example were made of them and they were laid by the heeles and some of the Aldermen hanged up 26 That the said Earle of Strafford by his wicked Counsell having brought his Majesty into excessive charges without any just cause he did in the month of Iuly last for the support of the said great charges counsell and approve two dangerous and wicked Projects viz. To seize upon the Bullion and the money in the Mint And to imbase his Majesties Coyne with the mixtures of Brasse And accordingly we procured one hundred and thirty thousand pounds which was then in the Mint and belonging to divers Merchants Strangers and others to bee seized on and stayed to his Majesties use And when divert Merchans of London owners of the said Bullion came to his house to let him understand the great mischiefe that course would produce here and in other parts what prejudice it would bee to the Kingdome by discrediting the Mint and hindring the importation of Ballion hee the said Earle told them that the City of London dealt undutifully and unthankfully with his Majesty and that they were more ready to helpe the Rebell than to helpe his Majesty and that if any hurt came to them they may thank themselves and that it was the course of other Princes to make use of such monies to serve their occasions And when in the same Moneth of Iuly the Officers of his Majesties Mint came to him and gave him divers reasons against the imbasing the said money hee told them that the French King did use to send Commissaries of Horse with Commission to search into mens estates and to peruse their accounts so that they may know what to levie of them by force which they did accordingly leavie and turning
that the Parliament was broken he tels the King he had 8000 foot and 1000 horse to reduce this Kingdome to obedience My Lords consider in what a sad time this man tooke to infuse this sad Counsell into the Kings eare My Lords he doth advise the King that he was absolved from all rules of government but if no rule of government what rule of obedience Surely he meant to reduce us to a chaos and confusion c. would have us without all rule of government or obedience My Lords those that he would have brought to reduce us were Papists Enemies of our Religion This strikes us neer my Lords and is the griefe of our hearts that an Irish army should be brought into England to reduce us My Lords I hope we were nere so far gone as to need an army to reduce us to obedience My Lords he had raised this Army and if such Counsell had taken effect in his Majesties eare he like proud Haman would have thought to have been Generall of the Army And thus my Lords you see this Lord of Strafford falls upon a Counsell which might make an irreconcileable difference to subdue us by his power The Earle of Bristowes Speech in the High Court of Parliament upon the delivering of by him the Scottish Remonstrance and Schedule of their charges OUr Ancestors were accustomed to heare propositions in an other manner We represent unto you a very distressed estate sad tidings and dishonourable to our Nation That we should suffer our Countrey to relieve an Army that is come against us This may seeme to withdraw from the greatnes and honor of this Nation but I am sorry it should be thought a Nationall dishonour as the case now standeth But I wish it may light upon those that have been the ill instruments by their imprudent Counsells to bring this Kingdome into such an unhappy businesse that hath produced miserable effects and Calamities But let us labour to build the honour of this Nation and if ill and wicked men have brought this great dishonour great let the honour be when a state is so distressed by wisdom and prudence to relieve it I doe remember when the Common-wealth of Rome was in great distresse after the great Battayle of Cannae they gave thankes that the Counsell did not despaire of the safety of the Common-wealth and me thinkes there is no cause to despair If those ill Counsels and ill ways have brought us to this Calamity shall hereafter bee turned to wise prudent and setled wayes if God may so blesse us that we again prove happy for this Nation the strength and Scituation of it would hardly be brought to this condition were it not for want of Vnity and for discord among our selves When a happie Vnitie among our selves I doubt not to see the honour of this Nation set vp againe by the wisedome of his Majesty and prudent endeavour of this assembly this whole Monarchy once reunited I meane the 3. Kingdomes will render us very considerable abroad His Majesty hath granted our brethren in Scotland their demands in matter of Religion and liberty and doubt not but with humility and duty may likewise obtaine what wee shall desire concerning religion and libertie graciously from his Majesties hands And I am most confident his Majestie may expect from us all that duty affection and assistance as he hath just cause to expect from good people If God shall blesse us and this whole Monarchy with unity love and concord certainly these great Armies that do now trouble us and are ready to offend one an other may shew a capability with united mindes and well designed to effect great matters and may by unity of Counsell raise us up againe in the world to a good estimation and as great an honour as ever I hope God will blesse us with good Counsells and that the King as a gracious good and prudent Prince and all his Subjects joyning in this way no doubt but God will bring us againe to a convenient condition of consistancie yea since our armies are vnited under one King and Nation and in one Iland from a state gasping it will bee easie thence to bring us to a condition of prosperity therefore let us procure and maintaine a good correspondency amongst our selves and for the proposition it much started us at first but I must say thus much That where wars have fallen between Nations it is not unlawfull nor great dishonour to let men part upon reasonble conditions though with good consideration our Kings passed many times into France and returned with recompence but this a friendly demonstration of one Nation to another there is great difference in point of honour if we consider the state wherein wee now are two Armies in the field and consider it was not through our default nor the fault of the Kingdome that we are brought into these calamities The Instruments will bee made an example and the dishonour will light upon them and then certainly we doe conceive a wise and prudent Senate to apply themselves to some things by necessity is no dishonour A State lying gasping and bleeding to restore it is an essentiall part of honour This is that I had in command to say unto you His Majesties Speech to both the Houses of Parliament February 3. 1640. HAving taken into my serious consideration the late Remonstrance made unto mee by the House of Parliament I give you this answer That I take in good part your care of the true Religion established in this Kingdome from which I will never depart as also for the tendernesse of my safety and security of this State and Government It is against my minde that Popery or Superstition should any way encrease within this Kingdome and will restraine the same by causing the Laws to be put in execution I am resolved to provide against the Jesuites and Papists by setting forth a Proclamation with all speed commanding them to depart the Kingdome within one Moneth which if they faile or shall returne then they shall be proceeded against according to the Lawes Concerning Resettie I give you to understand that the Queene hath alwayes assured me that to her knowledge hee hath no Commission but onely to entertaine a personall correspondence betweene her and the Pope in things requisite for the Exercise of her Religion which is warranted to her by the Articles of Marriage which give her a full Liberty â—f Conscience yet I have perswaded her that since the misunderstanding of the Persons condition gives offence shee will within a convenient time remove him Moreover I will take a speciall care to restraine my Subjects from resorting to Masse at Denmark house St James and the Chappell of Ambassadors Lastly concerning John Goodman the Priest I will let you know the reason why I reprived him that as I am enformed neither Queene Elizabeth nor my Father did ever avow that any Priest in their times was executed meerely for Religion which to me
fully planted in this Kingdome againe and so they are encouraged to persist therein and to practice the same openly in divers places to the high dishonour of God and contrary to the Lawes of the Realme II. Secondly the discouragement and destruction of all good Subjects of whom all Multitudes both Ciothiers Marchants and others being deprived of their Ministers and overburthen'd with these pressures have departed the Kingdome to Holland and other parts and have drawn with them a great part of manufacture of Cloth and Trading out of the Land into other places where they reside whereby Wooll the great staple of the Kingdome is become of small value and vends not Trading is decayed many poore people want work Sea-men lose imployment and the whole Land much impoverished to the great dishonour of this Kingdome and blemishment to the government thereof III. The present warres and Commotions happened betweene his Majesty and his Subjects of Scotland wherein his Majesty and all his Kingdome are indangered and suffer greatly and are like to become a prey to the common Enemy in case the warres goe on which we exceedingly feare will not onely goe on but also encrease to an utter Ruine of all unlesse the Prelates with their dependancies be removed out of England and also they and their practices who as we under your Honours favour doe verily beleeve and conceive have occasioned the Quarrell All which wee humbly referre to the consideration of this Honourable Assembly desiring the Lord of Heaven to direct you in the right way to redresse all these evills FINIS The Resolution of the House of Commons touching the six Demands of the Scots for restitution of their Losses and Dammages THis House thinks fit that a friendly Assistance and reliefe be given towards supply of the losses and necessities of the Scots and in due time this House wil take consideration both of the manner and measure of it The Scottish Commissioners Answer to the resolution of the Parliament AS wee doe with all thankfulnesse receive the friendly and kindly resolution of the Parliament concerning our Demands wee doe therein acknowledge your Lordships noble dealing for which we may assure that the whole Kingdome of Scotland will at all occasions expresse themselves on all respect and kindnesse so doe we entreat your Lordships to present unto the Parliament our earnest desire that they may be pleased howsoever their conveniencie may serve to consider of the proportion wishing still that as wee expect from our friends the testimonies of their kindnesse friendly Assistance so the Justice of the Parliament may be declared in making the burthen more sensible to the Prelates and Papists our Enemies and Authors of all our evills then to others who never have wronged us which will not onely give unto us and the whole Kingdome of Scotland the greater satisfaction but will also as wee can conceive conduce much to the honour of the Kings Majestie and Parliament Wee doe also expect that your Lordships will be pleased to report unto us the Answer of the Parliament that wee may in this as in the former Articles give Account to those who sent us The Peeres Demands upon the aforesaid Answer VVEe desire to understand since as we conceive the particulars are like to require much time whether we may not from you let the Parliament know that whilest they are debating of the proportion and the wayes how they finde assistance may be raised you will proceed to the agreeing to the Articles of a firme and durable peace that thereby both time may be saved and both sides proceed mutually with the more cheerefulnesse and alacrity The Scottish Commissioners Answer to the Peeres Demands AS wee desire a firme Peace so is it our desire that this Peace may be with all mutuall Alacrity speedily concluded and therefore let 's entreat you all to shew the Parliament from us that how soon they shall be pleased to make the proportion knowne to us that wee may satisfie the expectation of those who have instructed us which wee doe conceive may be done in a short time since they are already acquainted with all the particulars of our Demands wee shall stay no longer upon the manner and wayes of raising the assistance which may require a longer time and yet we trust it will be with such conveniencie as may serve for our two moneths reliefe but remitting the manner and wayes to the oportunity of the Parliament shall most willingly proceed to the considerations of the following Articles especially to that which wee most of all desire a firme and setled Peace 26. Ian. 1640. FINIS Articles of the House of Commons in Parliament against Secretary WINDEBANKE INprimis Seventy foure Letters of grace to Recusants within this foure yeares signed with Secretary Windebankes owne hand 2 Sixty foure Priests in the Gate-house within this foure yeares discharged for the most part by Secretary Windebanke 3 Twenty nine discharged by a verball warrant of Secretarie Windebanke 4 A warrant to protect one Muffon a condemned Priest and all the houses he frequented 5 One committed by the Kings owne hand and discharged by Secretarie Windebanke without signification of the Kings pleasure therein 6 A Petition of Saint Giles in the Fields neere London to the King of the encrease of Popery in their Parish wherein twenty one persons were seduced and turned by two Priests the which Priests were both discharged by Secretary Windebanke Die Lunae 21. Decembris 1640. A Speech made by John Lord Finch Lord Keeper of the great Seale of England in the Commons house of Parliament Master Speaker I Do first present my most humble thanks to this Honourable Assembly for this favour vouchsafed me in granting me admittance to their presence and doe humbly beseech them to beleeve it is no desire to preserve my selfe or my fortune but to deserve the good opinions of those that have drawne mee hither I do professe in the presence of him that knoweth all hearts that I had rather go from dore to dore and crave Da obulum Belizario c. with the good opinion of this Assembly then live and enjoy all the honours and fortunes I am capable of I doe not come hither with an intention to justifie my words my actions or my opinions but to make a plaine and cleare narration for my selfe and then humbly to submit to the wisedome and justice of this House my selfe and all that concernes me I doe well understand Master Speaker with what disadvantage any man can speake in his owne cause and if I could have told how to have transmitted my thoughts and actions by a clearer representation of another I doe so much defie my owne judgement in working and my wayes in expressing that I should have beene a most humble suiter another might have done it But this House wil not take words but with cleare and ingennous dealing and therefore I shall beseech them to think I come not hither with a set or
it like a busie angry Waspe his sting is in the tayle of every thing wee have likewise this day heard the report of the conference yesterday and in it the accusation which the Scottish Nation hath charged him withall and we doe all know he is guilty of the same if not more herein this Kingdome Master Speaker hee hath beene the great and common enemie of all goodnesse and good men and it is not safe that such a Viper should be neare his Majesties person to distill his poyson into his sacred eares nor is it safe for the Common-wealth that he sit in so eminent a place of government being thus accused wee know what we did in the Earle of Straffords case this man is the corrupt fountaine that hath infected all the streames and till the Fountaine be purged we can never expect or hope to have cleare channels I shall be therefore bold to offer my opinion and if Jerre it is the error of my judgement and not my want of zeale and affection to the publique good I conceive it is most necessary and fit that we should now take up a resolution to doe somwhat to strike while the iron is hot and to goe up to the Lords in the names of the Commons of this House and in the names of the Commons of England and to accuse him of high Treason and to desire their Lordships his person may be sequested and that in convenient time wee may bring up his charge FINIS A Message sent from the Queenes Majestie to the House of Commons by Mr. Comptroller 5o. Febr. 1640. THat her Majestie hath beene ready to use her best endeavours for the removing of all misunderstanding between the King and people That at the request of the Lords who petitioned the King for a Parliament her Majestie at that time writ effectually to the King and sent a Gentleman expresly to perswade the King to the holding of a Parliament That shee hath since beene most willing to doe all good Offices betweene the King and his People which is not unknowne to divers of the Lords and so shall ever continue to doe as judging it the onely way of happinesse to the King her selfe and Kingdome That all things be justly setled betweene the King and his people and all cause of misunderstanding taken away and removed That her Majestie having taken a knowledge that having one sent to her from the Pope is distastfull to this Kingdome She is desirous to give satisfaction to the Parliament which is convenient time shee will doe and remove him out of the Kingdome That understanding likewise that Exception had beene taken to the great resort to the Chappell of Denmark House shee will be carefull not to exceed that which is convenient and necessary for the Exercise of her Religion Shee further taketh notice that the Parliament is not satisfied with the manner of raising mony for the assistance of the King in his Journey to the North in the yeare 1639 at her entreaty from the Catholiques Shee was moved thereunto meerely out of her deere and tender affection to the King and of the Example of other his Majesties Subjects She seeing the like forwardnesse shee could not but expresse her forwardnesse to the assistance of the King If any thing be illegall shee was ignorant of the Law and was carried therein onely out of a great desire to be assisting to the King in so pressing an occasion but promiseth to be more cautious hereafter not to doe any thing but may stand with the established Lawes of the Kingdome Her Majestie being desirous to imploy her whole power to unite the King and people desireth the Parliament to looke forwards and passe by such mistakes and errors of her Servants as may be formerly committed And this your respect shee promiseth shall be repayed with all the good Offices shee can doe to the House which you shall finde with reall effects as often as there shall be occasion FINIS The Report of the Kings Message by the Lords to the House of Commons January 25. 1640. THat the occasion of his Majesties taking knowledge of the Conviction of John Goodman the Priest lately reprived was upon the constant order that hath been taken for divers yeares that the Recorder hath at the end of every Sessions attended his Majestie with the names of the persons convicted with an expression of their offences to the end that his Majestie might be truly enformed of the Natures of their Crimes and consequently not to be enduced by information to reprive such as were fit for grace and mercy And thereupon that he was lately Condemned for being in order of a Priest meerely and was acquited of the Charge of perverting the Kings people in their beliefe and had never beene Condemned or Banished before His Majestie is tender in matter of blood in Cases of this nature In which Queene Elizabeth and King James have beene often mercifull but to secure his people that this man shall doe no more hurt Hee is willing that he be imprisoned or banished as their Lordships shall advise And if he returne into the Kingdome to be put to Execution without delay And Hee will take such fit course for the expulsion of other Priests and Jesuites as Hee shall be councelled unto by your Lordships And that Hee doth not intend by this particular Mercie to lessen the force of the Lawes FINIS SIR THOMAS ROE his Speech in Parliament 1640. IT is a generall opinion that the trade of England was never greater and it may be true that if it be so yet it will not absolutely conclude that the Kingdome doth increase in riches for the Trade may by very aboundant and yet by consumption and importance of more then is expected the stocke may waste The Ballance would be a true solution of the Question if it could be rightly had but by reason it must be made up by a Medium of the Books of Rates it will be very uncertaine Therefore we must seeke another rule that is more sensible upon which wee may all judge and that may be by the plenty or scarcity of money for it is a true rule If money increase the Kingdome doth gaine by Trade if it be scarce it loseth Let us therefore consider first whether our Gold and Silver be not decreased and then by what meanes it is drayned and lastly how it may be prevented and what Remedies are appliable to effect it It is out of doubt our Gold is gone to travaile without Licence that is visible beyond Seas and every receiver of summes of money must find it privately and I feare the same of Silver for observing the species of late Coyning many halfe Crownes were stamped which are no more to be seene and by this measure I conclude the Kingdome growes poore The causes of this decay of Money may be many It may be stolne out for profit going much higher beyond Seas especially in France and Holland Much hath been
bee bound together If this Treason had taken effect our Soules had been inthralled to the Spirituall Tyranny of Sathan our Consciences to the Ecclesiasticall Tyranny of the Pope our Lives our Persons and Estates to the Civill Tyranny of an arbitrary unlimited confused Government Treason in the least degree is an odious and a horrid Crime other Treasons are particular if a Fort bee betrayed or an Army or any other treasonable fact committed the Kingdome may out-live any of these this Treason would have dissolved the frame and beeing of the Common-wealth it is an Universall a Catholike Treason the venome and malignity of all other Treasons are abstracted digested sublimated into this The Law of this Kingdome makes the King to be the fountaine of Justice of Peace of Protection therefore we say the Kings Courts the Kings Judges the Kings Lawes The Royall Power and Majestie shines upon us in every publique blessing and benefit wee enjoy but the Author of this Treason would make him the fountaine of Injustice of Confusion of publike misery and calamitie The Gentiles by the light of Nature had some obscure apprehensions of the Deity of which they made this expression that hee was Deus optimus maximus an infinite goodnesse and an infinite greatnesse All soveraigne Princes have some Characters of Divinity imprinted on them they are set up in their dominions to bee Optimi Maximi that they should exercise a goodnesse proportionable to their greatnesse That Law terme Laesa Majestas whereby they expresse that which wee call Treason was never more thorowly fulfilled then now there cannot bee a greater laesion or diminution of Majestie then to bereave a King of the glory of his goodnesse It is goodnesse My Lords that can produce not onely to his people but likewise to himself honour and happiness There are Principalities Thrones and Dominions amongst the Divels greatness enough but being uncapable of goodness they are made uncapable both of honour and happinesse The Lawes of this Kingdome have invested the Royall Crowne with power sufficient for the manifestation of his goodness and of his greatness if more bee required it is like to have no other effects but povertie weaknesse and miserie whereof of late wee have had very wofull experience It is farre from the Commons to desire any abridgement of those great Prerogatives which belong to the King they know that their own Liberty Peace are preserved and secured by his Prerogative they will alwayes be ready to support and supply his Majesty with their lives and fortunes for the maintenance of his just and lawfull Power This My Mords is in all our thoughts in our prayers and I hope will so be manifested in our indeavours that if the proceedings of this Parliament bee not interrupted as others have beene the King may within a few moneths bee put into a cleare way of as much greatnesse plenty and glory as any of his Royall Ancestors have enjoyed A King and his People make one Body the inferiour parts conferre nourishment and strength the superiour sense and motion If there be an interruption of this necessary intercourse of bloud and spirits the whole Body must needs bee subject to decay and distemper therefore obstructions are first to bee removed before restoratives can be applyed This My Lords is the end of this Accusation whereby the Commons seeke to remove this person whom they conceive to have beene a great cause of the obstructions betwixt his Majesty and his People for the effecting whereof they have commanded mee to desire your Lordships that their proceedings against him may bee put into as speedy a way of dispatch as the courses of Parliaments will allow First that hee may bee called to answer and they may have liberty to reply that there may bee a quick and secret examination of witnesses and they may from time to time bee acquainted with the depositions that so when the cause shall bee ripe for Judgement they may collect the severall Examinations and represent to your Lordships in one entire Body the state of the Proofes as now by mee they have presented to you the state of the Charge Mr. PYM his SPEECH After the Articles of the Charge against Sr. GEORGE RATCLIFFE were read My LORDS BY hearing this Charge your Lordships may perceive what neere conjunction there is betweene this Cause and the Earle of STRAFFORDS the materials are for the most part the same in both the offences of the Earle moving from an higher Orb are more comprehensive they extend both to England and Ireland these except in one particular of reducing of England by the Irish Army are confined within one Kingdome the Earle is charged as an Authour Sir GEORGE RATCLIFFE as an Instrument and subordinate Actor The influences of superiour Planets are often augmented and inforced but seldome mitigated by the concurrence of the inferiour where merit doth arise not from well-doing but from ill the officiousnesse of ministers will rather adde to the malignity of their Instructions then diminish it that so they may more fully ingratiate themselves with those upon whom they depend In the crimes committed by the Earle there appears more haughtinesse and fiercenesse being acted by his owne principles those motions are ever strongest which are neerest the Primum mobile But in those of Sir GEORGE RATCLIFFE there seemes to be more basenesse and servility having resigned and subjected himselfe to bee acted by the corrupt will of onother The Earle of STRAFFORD hath not beene bred in the study and practice of the Law and having stronger lusts and passions to incite and lesse knowledge to restraine him might more easily be transported from the Rule Sir GEORGE RATCLIFFE in his naturall temper and disposition more moderate and by his education and profession better acquainted with the grounds and directions of the Law was carried into his offences by a more immediate Concurrence of will and a more corrupt suppression of his owne Reason and Judgement My Lords as both these have beene partners in offending so it is the desire of the Commons they may bee put under such tryall and examination and other proceedings of justice as may bring them to partake in a deserved punishment for the safety and good of both Kingdomes Mr SPEAKERS SPEECH At the presenting of these three BILLS viz. An Act For the shortning of Michaelmas Terme For the pressing of Mariners for the Kings Ships For the remainder of the six entire Subsidies May it please your most excellent Majesty THE great security of the Kingdome rests in the happy concurrence of the King and people in the unity of their hearts These joyned safety and plenty attends the Scepter but divided distraction and confusion as Bryers and Thorns overspreads and makes the Land barren No peace to the King No prosperity to the people The duties and affections of your subjects are most transparent most cleare in the cheerfull and most liberall contributions given to knit fast this union with
My Lord Keeper did first let us know that his Majesty had commanded the Lords Commissioners of the great Councell to give an account of their Treaties at Yorke and Rippon to both Houses and of his Majesties gracious intentions in a businesse so much importing the honour and safety of the Kingdome that there might be made a faithfull relation with all candor and clearnesse which was the summe of his Majesties instructions His Lordship declaring that my Lords of the upper House for the saving of time had thought fit to give this account to a Committee of both Houses which hath occasioned the meeting at this Conference and election being made of the Earle of Bristoll by the Lords Commissioners he began his Narration directed to the Lords of the upper House and to the Knights Citizens and Burgesses of the house of Commons and thus the Earle of Bristoll began That the Lords Commissioners intended not to looke further back into the businesse then the Acts of their own imployments They did intend to give no account of the pacification interrupted nor war renewed no account how the Armies in England Ireland and by Sea were designed nor of any occasion They purposed not to lay fault upon any man nor to enquire into the cause why the Scots as they pretended from necessity were drawne to enter this Kingdome nor why the Kings Army when service was to be done was out of the way But that those through whose hands these have passed might hereafter give their own account His Lordship told us that his Majesty was pleased to call his great Councell at Yorke to whom he made two propositions The first was how his Army which seemed to be in distresse for want of pay should be relieved and maintained To this to shew their duties to the King the Lords resolved to ingage themselves and to that purpose to send chosen Deputies to London to negotiate a supply The second proposition was that after the Scots had passed Northumberland taken Newcastle and possessed the Bishopricke of Duresme they sent a Petition to his Majesty which containeth in generall termes a desire to have their grievances taken into consideration Which Petition and Answer thereunto was read unto us A. N. A. and presented for our clearer understanding Upon receipt of his Majesties Answer the Scotish Lords sent his Majesty a second Petition directed in a Letter to the Earle of Lanrick K. Q. in which they made their particular demands and declared that according to his Majesties command they would advance no further and this Petition was also read and delivered unto us of which his Lordship desired that great Assembly to take especiall notice for that much of the future discourse would depend upon it The businesse thus stated at the great Councell the second proposition was what Answer should be made to that Petionary Letter and in what manner it should be carried In which his Majesty required their Councell Whereupon the Lords replyed that it was impossible for them to give any well grounded advice unlesse the true state of his affaires and the Condition of his Army were laid before them Whereupon his Majesty commanded the Earle of Traquaire N. L. to make the Narration of the Scotish businesse and their late Acts of Parliament and the Lord Lievtenant generall to give an account in what condition the Army stood and what was answered by my Lord Lievtenant was read in his owne words Besides this declaration the Earle of Bristoll delivered upon a further enquiry how the state of the businesse then stood That the Scots Army had passed Northumberland without resistance that they had disputed the passage of the River of Tyne at Newburne where our horse retyred in disorder that his Majesties foot Army consisting of twelve or fourteene thousand men in Newcastle likewise retired to Yorke whereby the Towne of Newcastle a place of great consideration was without one stroke strucken fallen into the Scots hands and the Bishopricke of Duresme drawn under Contribution That in this state the Gentry of the Bishopricke repayred to Master Treasurer who carryed them to his Majesty from whom they were referred to my Lord Lievtenant of the Army who gave them this answer positively That they could looke for no help nor protection from the King and therefore they might use the best meanes they could to preserve their lives and estates Whereby those distressed Provinces the ancient Bulwarks of this Kingdome full of brave and valiant men being now fallen into the power of an Army which of necessity must live were forced to consent to a contribution by Treaty and a very heavy one though such without which the Scotish Army could not subsist The agreement was 350. l. a day for the Bishopricke of Duresme 300. l. a day for Northumberland 200. a day for the Towne of Newcastle in all 850. l. a day which should it continue would amount unto 300000. l. for one yeare These Gentlemen much lamented their estates that the Scots should be irritated as they call it by being proclaimed Traytors His Lordship made a little digression and asked leave to speake truth in such language as the Scots had presented their state unto them That having proclamation made against them being threatned with a great Army of thirty or forty thousand men another of ten thousand out of Ireland and by Parliament declared Traytors and Rebels and having heard of another Army providing of eight or ten thousand by shipping to hinder their Trade at least their Commerce with England that they were drawne together by necessity as they pretended of defence further alledging that it was a common discourse of which they had seene papers that they should bee reduced into a Province which would be but one Summers worke and therefore they having drawne their power together as any Nation would doe and being assembled and their Country being poore taking advantage of the time and that all those Armies that should oppose them were out of the way and those unfortunate Provinces left like a list of Cloath they were forced to enter in England that thus they had lamented and thus the state stood before the Lords when it was examined in the great Councell Thus their Lordships found that the Scots had increased their confines neere fourescore miles in England and had passed the Rivers of Tweed and Tyne and that the River of Tees the boundary of Yorkeshire Duresme being possessed was not to be defended being foordable in many places by forty horse a front that if the Scots should passe that River there was no possibility to hinder them from comming to Yorke or to any part of England without hazarding a Battell which my Lord Lievtenant had declared unto them he would not advise for though the Kings Army consisted of seventeene or eighteene thousand good bodies of men yet being untrained and unused to Armes he would be loath to hazzard such an Adventure upon them but if they
This it was Master Speaker His advising the King to employ the Army of Ireland to reduce England This I was assured would be proved before I gave my consent to his accusation I was confirmed in the same beliefe during the prosecution and fortified in it most of all since Sir Henry Vaines preparatory examinations by the assurances which that worthy member Mr. Pymme gave me that his Testimony would be made convincing by some notes of what passed at the Junto concurrent with it which I ever understanding to be of some other Counsellour you see now prove but a Copie of the same Secretaries notes discover'd and produc't in the manner you have heard and those Such disioynted fragments of the venemous part of discourses no results no conclusions of Counsels which are the onely things that Secretaries should register there being no use at all of the other but to accuse and to bring men into danger But Sir this is not that which overthrowes the evidence with mee concerning the Army of Ireland nor yet that all the rest of the Iunto upon their oathes remember nothing of it But this Sir which I shall tell you is that which works with mee under favour to an utter overthrow of his evidence as unto that of the Army of Ireland Before whil'st I was a prosecutor and under tye of Secrecie I might not discover any weakenesse of the cause which now as a Judge I must Master Secretary was examined thrice upon Oath at the preparatory Committee The first time he was questioned to all the Interrogatories and to that part of the seventh which concernes the Army of Ireland he said positively in these words I cannot charge him with that But for the rest he desires time to recollect himselfe which was granted him Some dayes after he was examined a second time and then deposes these words concerning the Kings being absolved from rules of government and so forth very clearely But being prest to that part concerning the Irish Army againe can say nothing to that Here wee thought wee had done with him till divers weeks after my Lord of Northumberland and all others of the Junto denying to have heard any thing concerning those words of reducing England by the Irish Army it was thought fit to examine the Secretary once more and then he deposes these words to have beene said by the Earle of Strafford to his Majestie You have an Army in Ireland which you may imploy here to reduce or some word to that sence this Kingdome Mr. Speaker these are the circumstances which I confesse with my Conscience thrust quite out of dores that grand Article of our charge concerning his desperate advice to the King of employing the Irish Army here Let not this I beseech you be driven to an aspersion upon Master Secretary as if he should have sworn otherwise then he knew or beleeved hee is too worthy to doe that onely let thus much be inferr'd from it that hee who twice upon Oath with time of recollection could not remember any thing of such a businesse might well a third time misremember somewhat and in this businesse the difference of one Letter here for there or that for this quite alters the case the latter also being the more probable since it is confest of all hands that the debate then was concerning a warre with Scotland and you may remember that at the Bar he once said to employ there And thus Mr. Speaker I have faithfully given you an account what it is that hath blunted the edge of the Hatchet or Bill with me towards my Lord of Strafford This was that whereupon I accused him with a free heart prosecuted him with earnestnesse and had it to my understanding beene proved should have condemned him with innocence Whereas now I cannot satisfie my conscience to doe it I professe I can have no notion of any bodies intent to subvert the Lawes treasonably or by force and this designe of force not appearing all his other wicked practises cannot amount so high with me I can finde a more easie and more naturall spring from whence to derive all his other Crimes then from an intent to bring in Tyrannie and to make his owne posterity as well as us Slaves as from revenge from Pride from Avarice from Passion and insolence of Nature But had this of the Irish Army been proved it would have diffused a complexion of Treason over all it would have beene a With indeed to bind all those other scattered and lesser branches as it were into a Faggot of Treason I doe not say but the rest may represent him a man as worthy to dye and perhaps worthier then many a Traytor I doe not say but they may justly direct us to Enact that they shall be Treason for the future But God keepe mee from giving judgement of death on any Man and of ruine to his innocent Posterity upon a Law made â posteriori Let the mark be set on the dore where the Plague is and then let him that will enter dye I know Master Speaker there is in Parliament a double power of life and death by Bill a judiciall power and a Legislative the measure of the one is what 's Legally just of the other what is prudentially and politickly fit for the good and preservation of the whole But those two under favour are not to be confounded in Judgement Wee must not peece up want of Legality with matter of convenience nor the defailance of prudentiall fitnesse with a pretence of legall Justice To condemne my Lord of Strafford judicially as for Treason my conscience is not assured that the matter will bear it And to doe it by the Legislative power my reason consultively cannot agree to that since I am perswaded neither the Lords nor the King will passe the Bill and consequently that our passing it will be a cause of great divisions and combustions in the State And therefore my humble advice is that laying aside this Bill of Attainder we may think of another saving only life such as may secure the State from my Lord of Strafford without endangering it as much by division concerning his punishment as he hath endangered it by his practices If this may not be hearkned unto let me conclude in saying that unto you all which I have throughly inculcated to mine owne conscience upon this occasion Let every man lay his hand upon his heart and sadly consider what we are going to doe with a breath either justice or murther justice on the one side or murther heightned and aggravated to its supreamest extent For as the Casuists say that he who lyes with his sister commits incest but he that marries his sister sinnes higher by applying Gods Ordinance to his crime So doubtlesse he that commits murther with the sword of Justice heightens that crime to the utmost The danger being so great and the case so doubtfull that I see the best Lawyers in diametrall opposition concerning it
MY Lord Primate of Ireland and my Lords and the rest of these noble Gentlemen It is a great comfort to me to have your Lordships by me this day because I have been known to yours long time and I now desire to be heard a few words I come here my Lords to pay my last debt to sin which is death and through the mercies of God to rise again in eternall glory My Lords if I may use a few words I shall take it as a great curtesie from you I am come here my Lords to submit to the judgement that is passed against me I do it with a very quiet and contented minde I do freely forgive all the world a forgivenesse not from the teeth outwards as they say but from my heart I speak it in the presence of Almighty God before whom I stand that there is not a displeasing thought that arifeth in me against any man I thank God I say truely my conscience bears me witnesse that in all the honour I had to serve his Majesty I had not any intention in my heart but did aime at the joynt and individuall prosperity of the King and his people although it be my ill hap to be misconstrued I am not the first man that hath suffered in this kinde it is a common portion that befalls men in this life righteous judgement shall be hereafter here we are subject to errors and misiudging one another One thing I desire that I might be heard and do hope that for Christian charities sake I shall be beleeved That I was so farre from being against Parliaments that I alwayes did think Parliaments in England to be the happy constitutions of the Kingdome and Nation and the best means under God to make the King and his people happy As for my death I do hear acquit all the world and beseech God to forgive them In particular I am very glad his Majesty conceives me not meriting so severe and heavy a punishment as the utmost execution of this sentence I do infinitely rejoyce in it and in the mercy of his and do beseech God to return to him the same that he may finde mercy when he hath most need of it I wish this Kingdom all prosperity and happinesse in the world I did it living and now dying it is my wish And I professe heartily and do humbly recommend it to you and wish that every man would lay his hand on his heart and consider seriously whether the beginning of the peoples happinesse should be written in letters of bloud I fear they are in a wrong way I desire Almighty God that no one drop of my bloud rise up in judgement against them I have but one word more and that is for my Religion My Lord of Armagh I do professe my self seriously faithfully and truly to be an obedient sonne of the Church of England in that Church I was borne and bred in that Religion I have lived and now in that I dye prosperity and happinesse be ever to it It hath been said I was inclined to Popery if it be an obiection worth the answering let me say truly from my heart that since the time that I was 21. yeers of age unto this day going on 49. yeers I never had thought or doubt of the truth of this Religion nor had ever any the boldnesse to suggest to me the contrary to my best remembrance and so being reconciled to the mercies of Christ Jesus my Saviour into whose bosome I hope shortly to be gathered to enioy eternall happinesse which shall never have end I desire heartily to be forgiven of every man if any rash or unadvised words or deeds hath passed and desire all your prayers and so my Lord farewell and farewell all things in this world The Lord strengthen my faith and give me confidence and assurance in the merits of Christ Jesus I trust in God we shall all meete to live eternally in Heaven and receive the accomplishment of all happinesse where every fear shall be wiped from our eyes and sad thought from our hearts And so God blesse this Kingdome and Jesus have meroy on my soul Then turning himself about he saluted all the Noblemen and took a solemne leave of all considerable persons on the Scaffold giving them his hand And after that he said Gentlemen I would say my prayers and I intreat you all to pray with me and for me then his Chaplain laid the book of Common-prayer upon the chair before him as he kneeled down on which he praied almost a quarter of an houre then he prayed as long or longer without a book and ended with the Lords prayer then standing up he spies his brother Sir George Wentworth and cals him to him and saith brother we must part remember me to my sister and to my wife and carry my blessing to my eldâ—st sonne and charge him from me that he fear God and continue an obedient sonne of the Church of England and that he should approve himself a faithfull subject to the King and tell him that he should not have any private grudge or revenge towards any concerning me and bid him beware that he medle not with Church livings for that will prove a moth and canker to him in his estate and wish him to content himself to be a servant to his Country as a Justice of peace in his County and not aiming at higher preferments carry my blessing also to my daughters Anne and Arrabella charge them to fear and serve God and he will blesse them not forgetting my little Infant that yet knowes neither good nor evill and cannot speak for it self God speak for it and blesse it then sayd he now I have nigh done one stroke will make my wife husbandlesse my dear children fatherles and my poore servants master lesse and seperate me from my dear brother and all my friends but let God be to you and them all in all After that going to take off his doublet and to make himselfe unready he sayd I thank God I am no more afraid of death nor daunted with any discouragements rising from any fears but do as cheerfully put off my doublet at this time or ever I did when I went to bed Then he put off his doublet and wound up his hair with his hands and put on a white cap. Then he called where is the man that should do this last office meaning the Executioner call him to me When he came and askt him forgivenesse he told him he forgave him and all the World Then kneeling down by the block he went to prayer again himself the Bishop of Armagh kneeling on the one side and the Minister on other to the which Minister after prayer he turned himself and spoke some few words softly having his hands lifted up this Minister closed his hands with his then bowing himself to the earth to lay his head on the blocke he told the Executioner that he would first lay down his hâ—ad to
this next Michaelmas Let thither also reach their prescribed time for liberty And that till then their protections shall remain in as full vertue and authority as if the Parliament were actually sitting To the Right Honorable the LORD Deputie SHewing that in all ages past since the happy subiection of this Kingdome to the imperiall Crown of England it was and is a principall study and Princely care of his Maiesty and his most Noble Progenitors Kings and Queens of England and Ireland to the vast expence of Treasure and bloud that their loyall and dutifull people of this land of Ireland being now for the most part derived from the Brittish Ancestor should be governed according to the municipiall and fundamentall lawes of England that the Statute of Magna Charta or the great Charter for the liberties of England and other laudable lawes and Statutes were in severall Parliaments here enacted and declared that by the means thereof and of the most prudent and benigne government of his Maiestie and his royall Progenitors this Kingdome was untill of late in its growth to a flourishing estate whereby the said people were hertofore enabled to answer their humble and naturall desires to comply with his Maiesties Royall and Princely occasions by the free gift of 150000 l. ster and likewise by another gift of 120000 l. ster more during the government of the Lord Viscount Faulk-land and after by the gift of 40000. l. and their free and chearfull gift of 6. entire Subsidies in the 10. year of his Maiesties Reign which to comply with his Maiesties then occasions signified to the then H. of Commons they did allow should amount in the collections unto 250000. l. although as they confidently beleeve if the sayd Subsidies had not been levied in a moderate Parliamentary way they would not have amounted to much more than half the said sum besides the four entire Subsidies granted in this present Parliament So it is may it please your Lordship that by the occasion of the ensuing and other grievances and innovations though to his Maiestie no considerable profit this Kingdome is reduced to that extreme and universall poverty that the same is now lesse able to pay a Subsidie then it was heretofore to satisfie all the before recited great payments and his Maiesties most faithfull people of the same do conceive great fears that the grievances and the consequences therof may hereafter be drawn into precedents to be perpetuated upon their posterity which in their great hopes and strong belief they are perswaded is contrary to his Maiesties Royall and Princely intention towards his said people some of which said grievances are as followeth I. First the generall and apparent decay of Trades occcasioned by the new and illegall raysing of the book of Rates and Impositions as xii d. a piece custome for Hides bought for 3.4 or 5. s. and many other heavie Impositions upon native and other commodities exported and imported by reason thereof and of the extream usage and sensures Marchants are beggered and both disinabled and discouraged to trade and some of the honorable persons who gain thereby are often Iudges and parties and that in conclusion his Maiesties profit therby is not considerably advanced II. Secondly the arbitrary decision of all civill causes and controversies by paper petitions before the Lord Lievetenant and Lord Deputy and infinite other Iudicators upon references from them derived in the nature of all actions determinable at the Common-law not limited unto certain times seasons causes and things whatsoever and the consequence of such proceedings by receiving imomoderate and unlawfull fees by Secretaries Clerkes Pursivants Serjants at Armes and otherwise by which kinde of proceedings his Majesty loseth a considerable part of his Revenue upon originall writs and otherwise and the Subject loseth the benefit of his writ of error Bill of reversall vouchers and other legall and just advantages and the ordinary course and Courts of Justice declined III. Thirdly the proceedings in civill causes at the Councell boord contrary to the law and great Charter and not mitted to any certain time or season IV. Fourthly that the Subject is in all the materiall parts thereof denyed the benefit of the principall graces and more especially of the Statute of Limitations of the 21. Jan. granted by his Majesty in the 4 year of this Reign upon great advice of the Counsell of England and Ireland and for great consideration and th n published in all the Courts of Dublin and in all the Courts of this Kingdome in open Assizes whereby all persons do take notice that contrary to his Majesties plous intention his Subiects of this Land have not enioyed the benefit of his Maiesties Princely promise thereby made V. Fiftly the extraiudiciall avoyding of Letters Patents of estates of a very great part of his Maiesties Subiects under the great Seale the publique faith of the Kingdome by private opinions delivered at Councell Boord without legall Evictions of their estates contrary to the Law and without precedent or example of any former age VI. Sixtly the Proclamation for the sole exemption and uttering of Tobacco which is bought at very low Rates and uttered at high and excessive Rates by means wherof thousands of Families within this Kingdome and of his Maiesties subiects in severall Islands and other parts of the West Judies as your Petitioners are informed are destroyed and the most part of 〈◊〉 Coyne of this Kingdome is ingrossed into particular hands Insomuch that your Petitioners do conceive that the profit arising and ingrossed thereby doth surmount his Maiesties Revenues certaine and casuall within this Kingdome and yet his Maiestie receiveth but very little profit by the same VII Seventhly the unusuall and unlawfull increasing of Monopolies to the advantage of few to the disprofit of his Maiesty and the impoverishment of his people VIII Eighthly the extream and cruell usage of certain late Commissioners and other towards the Brittish Farmers and Inhabitants of the City and County of London-derry by meanes whereof the worthy plantation of that Country is almost destroyed and the Inhabitants are reduced to great poverty and many of them forced to forsake the Country the same being the first and most usefull Plantation in the large Province of Vlster to the great weakning of the Kingdome in this time of danger the sayd Plantation being the principall strength of those parts IX Ninthly the late erection of the Court of high Commission for causes Ecclesiasticall in these necessitous times the proceedings of the sayd Court in many causes without legall warrant and yet so supported as prohibitions have not been obtained though legally sought for and the excessive fees exacted by the ministers thereof and the incroaching of the same upon the iurisdiction of other Ecclesiasticall Courts of this Kingdome X. Tenthly the exorbitant and Barbarous Fees and pretended Customes exacted by the Clergie against the Law some of which have beene formerly represented to your Lordship XI Eleventhly the
Petitioners do most heartily bemone that his Maiesties services and profits are much more impaired than advanced by the grievances aforesaid And the Subsidies granted in the last Parliament having much increased his Maiesties Revenue by the buying in of Grants and otherwise and that all his Maiesties debts then due in this Kingdome were satisfied out of the sayd Subsidies and yet his Maiesty is of late as your Petitioners have beene inform'd in the House of Commons become indebted in this Kingdome in great sums and they do therefore humbly beseech that an exact account may be sent to his Maiesty how and in what manner his treasure issued XII Twelfthly the Petitioners do humbly coâ—ceive great and iust fears at a Proclamation published in this Kingdome in Anno Dom. 1635. prohibiting men of quality or estate for to depart this Kingdome into England without the Lord Deputies License whereby the Subiects of this Kingdome are hindered and interrupted from free accesse and addresse to his sacred Maiesty and Privie Counsell of England to declare their iust grievances or to obtaine remedie for them in such sort as their Ancestors have done in all ages since the Reigne of King Henry the second and great Fees exacted for every of the said Licenses XIII Thirteenthly that of late his Maiesties late Attourny generall hath exhibited informations against many ancient Burroughs of this Kingdome into his Mai sties Court of Exchequer to shew by what warrant the sayd Burroughes who heretofore sent Burgesses to the Parliament should send the sayd Burgesses to the Parliament And thereupon for want of an answer the sayd Priviledge of sending Burgesses was seized by the sayd Court which proceedings were altogether Coram non Judice and contrary to the Lawes and Priviledges of the House of Parliament and if way should be given thereunto might tend to the subversion of Parliaments and by consequence to the ruine and destruction of the Common-wealth and that the House of Commons hath hitherto in this present Parliament bin deprived of the advice and Counsell of many profitable and good members by means thereof XIV Fourteenthly that by the powerfulnesse of some ministers of State in this Kingdome the Parliament in its members and actions hath not his naturall freedome XV. Fifteenthly that the fees taken in all the Courts of Iustice in this Kingdome both Ecclesiasticall and Civill and by other inferiour Officers and Ministers are so immoderately high that it is an unspeakable burthen to all his Maiesties Subiects of this who are not able to subsist except the same be speedily remedied and reduced to such a moderation as may stand with the condition of this Realme And lastly That the Gentry Merchants and other his Maiesties Subiects of this Kingdome are of late by the grievances and pressures aforesayd and other the like very neere to ruine and destruction And Farmers of Customes Customers Waiters Searchers Clearks of unwarrentable proceedings Pursevants and Gaolers and sundry others very much inriched whereby and by the slow redresse of the Petitioners grievances his Maiesties most faithfull and dutifull people of this Kingdome do conceive great feares that their readinesse approved upon all occasions hath not been of late rightly represented to his Maiesty For Remedy whereof the said Petitioners do humbly and of Right beseech your Lordship that the grievances and pressures may be speedily redressed And if your Lordship shall not think sit to afford us present relief therein that your Lordship may admit a select Committee of this House of persons un interessed in the benefit arising the aforesaid grievances to be licensed by your Lordship to repaire to his sacred Maiesty in England for to pursue the same and to obtain fitting Remedies for their aforesaid and other iust grievances and oppressions and upon all iust and honorable occasions they will without respect of particular interest or profit to be raised thereby most humbly and readily in Parliament extend their utmost indeavours to serve his Maiesty and comply with his Royall and Princely occasions And shall pray c. A Speech against the Judges per Ignotum quendam Mr. Speaker IT was a custome among the Romans who as by their power they once gave laws so by the happy successe of their long flourishing Government might they well give examples to all the world that in their Senates the yongest men spake first partly that they might not have their weaker notions anticipated by the more knowing Senators And partly that the Senate might not be diverted from the mature resolutions of the more ancient by the interposition of the younger men They as all free States ever allowing free members to expresse themselves according to their severall capacities And me thinks 't was a happy Method So your opinions and inclinations of the Assembly being discovered and ripened to resolution by such gradations the sentences of the Sages sounded as Iudgements not orations their wisedome and gravity put a seasonable Period to others perhaps otherwise endlesse discourses Their precedent encourges me who worst may to break the Ice Children can lay their fingers on the Sore point out their pain and Infant Graduates in Parliament may groan out the grievances of a diseased Common-wealth but they must be Doctors in the Art of Government that can apply apt remedies to recover it Mr. Speaker Ancient and approved hath been that parallell of the body politique with the body naturall 'T is the part of their Patients in either distempered to impart freely their griefs to the Physitians of the body or state if they expect a cure This Common-wealth is or should be but one body This house the great Physitian of all our maladies and alas Mr. Speaker of what afflicted part shall we poor Patients complain first Or rather of what shall we not complain Are we not heart-sick Is there in us that which God requires unity purity and singulari y of heart Nay is not Religion the soul of this body so miserably distracted that I speak it with terrour of heart 't is to be feared there is more confusion of religions amongst us then there was of tongues at the subversion of Babell And is it not then high time that we understand one another that we were reduc'd to one Faith one Government Sir Is the Head whole The sear of Government and Justice the Fountain from whose sweet influence all the inferiour members of this body should receive both vigour and motion Nay hath not rather a generall Apoplexy or Palsie taken oâ—shaken all our members Are not some dead Others buried quick Some dismembred all disordered by the diversion of the course of Justice Is the Liver Natures Exchequer open from whose free distribution each limb may receive his proper Nutriment or rather is it not wholly obstructed Our property taken from us So that it may properly be said of us Sic vos non vobis fertis aratra our Ancestors drunk the juyce of their own Vines reap'd and eat the fruit
unanimously endeavour to oppose and prevent the Counsels and Counsellours which have brought upon us all these miseries and the fears of greater to prevent the ends and bring the Authors of them to condigne punishment and thereby discharge themselves better before God and man The Protestation your Lordships shall have read unto you together with ground and reasons which have induced the House of Commons to make it which are prefixed before it by way of Preamble Then the Protestation was read by Master Maynard Die Mercurii 5 May 1641. IT is this day ordered by the House of Commons now assembled in Parliament that the Preamble togtheer with the Protestation which the Members of this House made the third of May shall be forthwith Printed and the Copies printed brought to the Cleark of the said House to Attest under his hand to the end that the Knights Citizens and Burgesses may send them down to the Sheriffes and Justices of Peace of the severall Shires and to the Citizens and Burgesses of the severall Cities Boroughes and Cinque Ports respectively And the Knights Citizens and Burgesses are to intimate unto the Shires Cities and Boroughes and Cinque Ports with what willingnesse all the Members of this House made this Protestation And further to signifie that as they justifie the taking of it in themselves so the cannot but approve it in all such as shall take it A Preamble with the Protestation made by the whole House of Commons the third of May 1641. and assented unto by the Lords of the upper House the fourth of May last past WE the Knights Citizens and Burgesses of the Commons House in Parliament finding to the griefe of our hearts that the designes of the Priests and Jesuits and other adherents to the See of Rome have of late more boldly and frequently put in practice then formerly to the undermining and danger of the Ruine of the true reformed Religion in his Majesties Dominions established and finding also that there hath bin and having cause to suspect there still are even during the sitting in Parliament endeavours to subvert the fundamentall Lawes of England and Ireland and to introduce the exercise of an Arbitrary and tyrannicall government by most pernicious and wicked counsells practises plots and conspiracies and that the long intermision and unhappier breach of Parliaments hath occasioned many illegall Taxations whereupon the Subjects have beene prosecuted and grieved and that divers Innovations and Superstitions have been brought into the Church Multitudes driven out of his Maiesties Dominions Jealousies raised and Fomented between the King and his people a Popish Armie leavied in Ireland and two Armies brought into the bowels of this Kingdome to the hazard of his Majesties Royall Person the Consumption of the Revenue of the Crown and the treasure of this Realme And lastly finding the great causes of Jealousie endeavours have beene and are used to bring the English Armie into mis-understanding of this Parliament thereby to encline that Armie by force to bring to passe those wicked counsells have therefore thought good to ioyn our selves in a Declaration of our united affections and resolutions and to make this ensuing Protestation The Protestation I A.B. Do in the presence of Almighty God promise vow and protest to maintain and defend as farre as lawfully I may with my life power and estate the true Reformed Protestant Religion expressed in the Doctrine of the Church of England against all popery and popish Innovation within this Realm contrary to the said Doctrine and according to the duty of my Allegiance I will maintain and defend his Majesties Royall Person Honor and Estate As also the power and priviledge of Parliaments the lawfull Rights and Liberties of the Subjects And every person that shall make this Protestation in whatsoever he shall do in the lawfull pursuance of the same and to my power as farre as lawfully I may I will oppose and by all good wayes and means endeavour to bring condigne punishment on all such as shall by force practice counsels plots conspiraces or otherwise do any thing to the contrary in this present protestation contained and further that I shall in all Just and Honorable wayes endeavour to preserve the union and peace betwixt the three Kingdoms of England Scotland and Ireland And neither for hope fear or any other respects shall relinquish this promise vow and Protestation The Bill of Attainder that passed against Thomas Earl of STAFFORD WHereas the Knights Citizens and Burgesses of the House of Commons in this present Parliament assembled have in the name of themselves and of all the Commons of England impeached Thomas Earl of Strafford of high Treason for endeavouring to subvert the Ancient and Fundamentall Laws and Government of his Majesties Realms of England and Ireland and to introduce an Arbitrary and Tyrannicall Government against Law in the said Kingdoms and for exercising a Tyrannous and exorbitant power over and against the Laws of the said Kingdoms over the Liberties Estates and Lives of his Majesties Subjects and likewise for having by his own authority commanded the laying and asseising of souldiers upon his Majesties Subjects in Ireland against their consents to compell them to obey his unlawfull commands and orders made upon papâ—r Petitions in causes between party and party which accordingly was executed upon divers of his Majesties Subjects in a Warlike manner within the said Realm of Ireland and in so doing did levie Warre against the Kings Majesty and his liege people in that Kingdome And also for that he upon the unhappy Dissolution of the last Parliament did slander the House of Commons to his Majesty and did counsell and advise his Majesty that he was loose and absolved from the rules of Government and that he had an Army in Ireland by which he might reduce this Kingdom for which he deserves to undergo the pains and forfeitures of high Treason And the said Earl hath been also an Incendiary of the Warres between the two Kingdoms of England and Scotland all which offences have been sufficiently proved against the said Earl upon his impeachment Be it therefore enacted by the Kings most Excellent Majesty and by the Lords and Commons in this present Parliament assembled and by authority of the same That the said Earl of Strafford for the haynous crimes and offences aforesaid stand and be adjudged and attainted of high Treason and shall suffer such pain of death and incurre the forfeitures of his Goods and Chattels Lands Tenements and Hereditaments of any estate of Free-hold or Inheritance in the said Kingdoms of England and Ireland which the said Earl or any other to his use or in trust for him have or had the day of the first sitting of this present Parliament or at any time since Provided that no Judge or Judges Justice or Iustices whatsoever shall adiudge or interpret any Act or thing to be Treason nor in any other manner than he or they should or ought to have done before
price of moneys must rise and fall to fit their occasions we see this by raising the Exchange of Franckford and other places of their usuall time of the Marts This frequent and daily change in the Low-Countries of their moneys is no such injustice to any there as it would be here for there they being all Merchants or mechanicks they can rate accordingly their labour and their Ware whether it be Coyne or other merchandize to the present condition of their own money in Exchange And our English Merchants to whose profession it properly belongeth do so according to their just intrinsique valew of their forreign Coyn in all barter of commodities or Exchange except usance which we that are rated and tyed by the extrinsiques measure of moneys in all our constant reckonigs and annuall bargains at home cannot do And for us then to raise our Coyn at this time to equall their proportions were but to render our selves to a perpetuall incertainty for they will raise upon us daily them again which we of course shall follow else receive no profit by this present change and so destroy the Policie Justice honor and tranquilitie of our State for ever To the Right Honourable the Lord Deputy The â—â—mble and just Remonstrance of the Knights Cittizens and Burgesses in Parliament assembled SHewing that in all ages since the happy subjection of this Kingdome to the Imperiall Crowne of England it was and is a principall study and Princely care of his Majesty and his most noble Progenitors Kings and Queens of England and Ireland to the vast expence of treasure and blood That their loyall and dutifull people of this Land of Ireland beeing now for the most part derived from Brittish Ancestors should be governed according to the municipall and fundamentall Lawes of England That the statute of Magna Charta or the great Charter of the liberties of England and other laudable lawes and statutes were in severall Parliaments heere enacted and declared that by the means thereof of the most prudent benign government of his Majestie his Royall Progenitors this Kingdome was untill of late in its growth a flourishing estate whereby the said people were heretofore enabâ—ed to aâ—â—iver their humble and naturall desires to comply with his Majesties Princely and royall occasions by their free gift of 150. thousand pounds sterling and likewise by another free gift of 120. thousand pounds more during the government of the Lord Viscount Faulkland and after by the gift of 40. thousand pounds and their free and cheerefull gift of siâ—â— intire Subsidies in the tenth yeare of his Majesties Reignâ— which to comply with his Majesties then occasions signified to the then house of Commons they did allow should ammount in the Collections unto 2 hundred and fifty thousand pounds although as they confidently believe if the Subsidies had been levyed in a moderate Parliamentary way they would not have amounted to much more then halfe the sum aforesaid besides the foure intire Subsidies graunted in this present Parliament Soe it is may it please your Lordship by the occasion of insuing and other grievances and Innovations though to his Majesty no considerable profit this Kingdome is reduced to that extreame and universall poverty that the same is lesse able to pay 2 Subsidies then it was hertofore to satisfie all the before-recyted great payments his Majesties most faithfull people of the Land do conceive great fears that the said grievances and consequences thereof may be hereafter drawne into presidents to be perpetuated upon their posterity which in their great hopes and strong beliefe they are perswaded is contrary to his Royall and Princely intention towards his said people of which greivances are as followeth 1 First the generall apparant decay of Trades occasioned by the new and illegall raising of the booke of rates and impositions upon native and other Commodities exported and imported by reason whereof and of extreame usage and censures Merchants are beggered both and disinabled and discouraged to Trade and some of the honourable persons who gaine thereby often Iudges and parties And that in the conclusion his Majesties profit thereby is not considerably advanced 2. The arbitrary decision of all civill causes and controversies by paper petitions before the Lord Lieutenant and Lord Deputy and infinite other Iudicatories upon references from them derived in the nature of all actions determinable at the Common Law not limited into certaine time cause season or thing whatsoever And the consequences of such exceeding by immoderate and unlawfull fees by Secretaries Clarkes Pursivants Serjeants at Armes and otherwise by which kinde of proceedings his Majesty looseth a considerable part of his revenue upon originall writs and other wise and the Subject looseth the benefit of his writ of Error bill of reversall vouchees and other legall and just advantages and the ordinary course and Courts of Iustice declined 3. The proceedings in civill causes at Counsell board contrary to the Law and great Charter not limited to any certaine time or season 4 That the Subject is in all the materiall parts thereof denyed the benefit of the Princely graces and more especially of the statute of limitations of 21. of Iac. Graunted by his Majesty in the fourth yeare of his Raigne upon great advice of Counsell of England and Ireland and for great consideration and then published in all the Courts of Dublin and in all the Counties of this Kingdome in open assizes whereby all persons doe take notice that contrary to his Majesties pious intentions his Subjects of this land have not enjoyed the benefit of his Majesties Princelie promise thereby made 5. The extrajudiciall avoyding of Letters Pattents of estates of a very great part of his Majesties subjects under the great Seale the publique faith of the Kingdome by private opinions delivered at the Counsell board without legall evictions of their estates contrary to the law and without president or example of any former age 6. The Proclamation for the sole emption and uttering of Tobacco which is bought at every low rates and uttered at high and excessive rates by meanes whereof thousands of families within this Kingdome and of his Majesties Subjects in severall Ilands and other parts of the West Indies as your Petitioners are informed are destroyed and the most part of the coyn of this Kingdome is ingross ed into particular hands Insomuch as the petitioners do conceive that the proffit arising and engrossed thereby doth surmount his Majestyes revenue certain or cosuall within this Kingdome and yet his Majesty receiveth but very little profit by the same 7. The universall and unlawfull increasing of Monopolies to the advantage of a few to the disprofit of his Majesty and Impoverishment of his people 8. The extream and cruell usage of certain late Commissioners and other stewards the Brittish Farmers and Inhabitants of the City and County of London Derry by meanes whereof the worthy Plantation of that Country is almost destroyed and the
Inhabitants are reduced to great poverty and many of them forced to forsake the Countrey the same beeing the first and most usefull Plantation in the large Province of that Ulster to the great weakning of the Kingdome in in this time of danger the said plantation being the principall strength of those parts 9. The late erection of the Court of high Commission for causes Ecclesiasticall in those necessitous times the proceedings of the said Court in many causes without legal warrant and yet so supported as prohibitions have not been obtained though legally sought for And the excessive fees exacted by the Ministers thereof and the encroaching of the same upon the jurisdiction of other Ecclesiasticall Courts of this Kingdome 10. The exorbitant fees and pretended Customes exacted by the Clergy against the Law some of which have been formerly represented to your Lordship 11. The Petitioners doe most heartily bemone that his Majesties service and profit are much more impaired then advanced by the grievances aforesaid the Subsidies graunted in the last Parliament having much increased his Majesties revenue by the buying of graunts and otherwise and that all his Majesties debts then due in this Kingdome were satisfied out of the said Subsidies and yet his Majesty is of late as the petitioners have been informed in the house of Commons become indepted in this Kingdome in great somes And they doe therefore humbly beseech that an exact accompt may bee sent to his Majesty how and in what manner his treasure issued 12. The Petitioners doe humbly conceive just and great feares at a Proclamation published in this Kingdome in Anno Domini 1635. Prohibiting men of quality or estates to depart this Kingdome into England without the Lord Deputies Licence wherein the Subjects of this Kingdome are hindered and interrupted from free accesse to addres to his sacred Majesty and privie Counsell of England to declare their just grievances or to obtaine remedies for them in such fort as their Ancestors have done in all ages since the Reigne of King Henry the second and great fees exacted for every of the said Licenses 13. That of late his Majesties late Atourney generall hath exhibited Informations against many Boroughs of this Kingdome into his Majesties Court of Exchequer to shew cause by what warrant the said Burgesses who heretofore sent Burgesses to the Parliament should send the Burgesses to the Parliament and thereupon for want of an answere the said priviledges of sending Burgesses was seised by the said Court which proceedings were altogether Coram non Iudice and contrary to the lawes and priviledges of the house of Parliament and if way should be given thereunto would tend to the subversion of Parliaments and by consequence to the ruine and destruction of the Common-wealth And that the house of Commons hath hitherto in this present Parliament been deprived of the advice and Counsell of many profitable and good members by means thereof 14. By the powerfulnesse of some Ministers of state in this Kingdome the Parliament in its members and actions hath not his naturall freedome 15. And lastly that the Gentry and Merchants and other his Majesties Subjects of this Kingdome are of late by the grievances and pressures before said other the like brought very neere to ruine and destruction And Farmers of Customes Customers Waiters Searchers Clarkes of unwarrantable proceedings Pursivants and Goalers and sundry others very much enriched whereby and by the slow redress of the petitioners his Majesties most faithfull and dutifull people of this Kingdome doe conceive great feares that their readinesse approved upon all occasions hath not beene of latere presented to his sacred Majesty For remedy whereof the said Petitioners doe humbly and of right beseech your Lordship that the said grievances and pressures may bee speedily redressed and if your Lordship shall not thinke fit to afford present reliefe that your Lordship might admit a select Committee of this house of Persons uninteressed in the benefit a rising of the aforesaid grievances to be licensed by your Lordship to repaire to his sacred Majesty in England for to pursue the same and to obtaine fitting remedy for their aforesaid and other just grievances and expressions and upon all just and honourable occasions they will without respect of particular interest or profit to be raised thereby most humbly and readily in Parliament extend their uttermost endeavour to serve his Majesty and comply with his royall and princely occasions And shal pray c. Mr. Secretarie Windebancks Charge in Parliament 7. December 1640. 1 SEventie fower Letters of grace to Recusants within this fowr yeares signed with his owne hands 2. Sixtie foure Priests discharged from the Gatehouse at Westminster within these 4. years and for the most part by him 3. Twenty nine discharged by a verball warrent from him 4. Awarrant to protect one Musket a condemned Priest and alâ— the houses he frequented 5. One committed by the Kings own hand and discharged by him without signifying the Kings pleasure 6. The Retition of the parish of St. Gyles in the fields to the King of the increase of Poperie and that 21. were turned by two Priests Mosse and Souther which being committed were suddenly discharged by Secretary Windebanck A message from the House of Commons to his Majesty 15. December 1640 Mr. Treasurer IS intreated from this house to acquaint his Majesty with the great care and affection of the house to advance and settle his Majesties Revenue and for that purpose we humbly desire his Majesty will give us leave to enter into debate of his revenue and his expence His Majesties answere thereto by Mr. Treasurer HIs Majesty being by me acquainted with the great care and affection of the house of Commons to advance and settle his Maiesties Revenew doth very graciously interpret the same and hath commanded me to give the House thankes for it in his name and his Majesty doth give the House free leave to enter into debate of his Revenews and Expences as is desired and hath given order that all his Officers and Ministers from time to time shall assist the House therein as there shall be occasion Vote concerning the Cannons in the House of Commons 15. Decem. 1640. THat the Clergy of England Convented in any Convocation or Synod or otherwise have no power to make any Constitutions Cannons or Acts whatsoever in matter of Doctrine or otherwise to bind the Clergy or Laity of this Land without the Commons consent of Parliament That the severall Constitutions and Cannons Ecclesiasticall Treated upon by the Arch-bishop of Canterbury and Yorke Presidents of the Convocation for the respective Provinces of Canterbury and Yorke and the rest of the Bishops and Clergy of these Provinces and agreed upon by the Kings Maiestics lycence in their several Synods began at London and York 1640. do not bind the Clergy or Laity of this Land or either of them An Order concerning Monopolers 19. November 1640. JT is ordered that upon
the question that all Projectors and Monopolizers whatsoever or that have had any share in any Monopolies or that doe receive or lately have received any benefit by any Monopolies or Patten or that have procured any warrant or command for the restraynt or molesting of any that have refused to conforme themselves to any Proclamation or project are disabled by order of this House and if any man have been known to have been a Monopolizer or Pattentee shall repaire to have beene a Monopolizer that he shall nominate him that ony member of this House that is a Monopolizer or Pattentee shall repayre to Mr. Speaker that a new warrant may issue forth or other wise that he be dealt with as a stranger that hath no power to sit here Order against Monopolies and Pattens 25. Nov. 1640. IT is this day ordered in the Commons House now assembled in Parliament that all Pattens and Grants of Monopolies that have been complained of in this house The Scottish Commissioners thanks to his Majesty 30. Decemb. 1640. WEE doe in the Name of the PARLIAMENT and whole Kingdome of Scotland acknowledge in all humility and thankfulnesse in granting our first demand beving fully assured that the Parliament will leave nothing undone that may serve for his Majesties honour the whole Kingdome is Testimony of their thankfulnesse will earnestly pray that God will graunt his Majesty a long and prosperous Reigne Adam Blaire The humble Declaration of the Master and Wardens of Vintners William Abel Alderman of London and the rest of the Court of Assistants of that Company how in what manner the said Company Farmers and Adventurers have proceeded in the Farmes of 40. shillings per tunne and wine Licence IN the yeare 1632. The Lord Weston beeing then high Treasurer of England sent for the Master and Wardens of the Company of Vintners and demanded of them the Vent and consumption of Wines one peny a quart which is 4 pound per tun which they utterly refused alleadging it would be the utter undoing of the retayling Vintners In Anno 1633. a Decree was made by the advice of the Judges of England in the Star-chamber That the Retaylers of wines might not sell or dresse Victuals in their houses which time out of mind they were accustomed to doe And this done without any information or bill or any called to defend or Iustifie their trade or usage of it In Anno 1634. his Majesty questioned the Vintners and Retaylers of Wine for the breach of the said Decree and drew 6000. pounds from the Vintners to be lent him And thereon his Majesty did by order give way to the Retaylers of Wines to dresse and sell Victuals till December then next following at which time his Majesty promised to settle it as he thought fit for him to signe and then to have the Vintners relying upon that Temporary Lycence and of his Majesties gracious Declaration continued to dresse meate beyond the tyme. In Anno 1635. The retaylors of Wines were again questioned for breach of the former Decree by his Majesty and the Lord Cottington then propounded to yeeld to pay somewhat on their vent of Wines to his Majesty which the Retayling Vintners utterly refused to doe In Anno 1636. many retaylors of Wynes were by information in Master Attourneys name questioned in Star-chamber for breach of the decree and so farre proceeded against as that they were served with Processe of that Court to hear judgment That things thus depending Sir Richard Kilvert repayred to Alderman Abell then Master of the Company beeing a meere stranger to Master Kilvert and told him his Majesty bid him command by warrant to prosecute the Vintners in the Star-chamber for selling above the price and breach of the Decree for dressing of meat and against the Merchants scopers and others Intimating further it was his Majesties pleasure that some of the Company of Vintners should attend the Right Honourable Marquis Hambleton concerning the same In October Anno 1637. at Vintners Hall London William Abell Alderman beeing then Mr. of that Company imparted to the Company that Master Richard Kilvert had been lately with him and acquainted him with the former passages At this court the company of vintners taking their busines into their serious considerations weighing how they might hazard the utter undoing of such as had transgressed the Decree if they should be brought to a sentence in Star-chamber made choyse and did intreate Alderman Abell then their master Edward Kinaston Robert Shawe Ralph Moore George Hubburt and Michaell Gardiner For the Committee to waite upon the said Lord Marques Hambleton by whom Master Killvert had intimated his Majesties pleasure should bee made knowne and to impart the same againe unto the Company That Alderman Abell and the rest did attend the Marquesse who told them that his Majesty had given him the Fines of all the Vintners to be imposed in Star-chamber but yet if the Vintners would condescend to pay his Majesty 4 pound a Tunne upon Consumption of wines he could forbeare the fines and all prosecutions should be stayed and himselfe would depend upon his Majesties favour in some other thing And after many attendances and severall reasons offered by them on the behalfe of the Company against paying any thing on the Consumption of Wines and not prevailing beeing then by the Lord Marquesse promised some advancing price and other priviledges and beeing advised by Counsell that wine beeing a forraygn Commodity his Majesty might prohibite the comming of it and impose what he pleased on it thereupon and upon the aforesaid threats and promises after the same was imparted and often debated by the Companie they submitted to the payment of 40. shillings per Tunne 4. pound beeing demanded And soon the 11. of Iune 1638. together with the French and Spanish Merchants they the said Company of Vintners contracted by Indenture Quadrupartite with his Majesty to pay him fourtie shillings per Tunne on all such wines as they bought and Vented and the Company of Vintners beeing enformed that the Farmers of his Majesties Customes and some particular Merchants of the Company of Coopers London moved and sued to his Majesty to farme the sayd Duties and the Company of Vintners well knowing what great hinderance it would bee to them if strangers should come in search their sellers know the particular of what they had bought and sould the Company to prevent many inconveniences desired rather to Farme the duty from his Majesty his Majestic declaring that he would not contract with a generality of company for the same but with some particular members The Company did desire Alderman Abell and nine others freemen of their Company to performe the contract with his Majesty for the same duty who tooke it to farme at 3000. Pounds Per Annum for eight yeares And it was agreed by the Company that the farmers should have no more share of profit and losse in the Farme then other brethren had which should be
submit it to your Lordships wisdome and goodnesse and seeing there is no malignity in it nor prejudice to the state That your Lordship would vouchsafe me your favour and protection and preserve me from perishing Callis January 11. 1640. Your Lordships most humble and faithfull though much distressed servant Fran. Windebanck The Lord Andevers speech concerning the pacification the 6 of March. My Lords I Did lately move your Lordships that the breach of the pacification might be speedily reviewed as the â—num necessarium and truly my opinion at that time is yet nothing altered although upon better thoughts me thinks it would first be known who did actually engage us in these fruitles dissentions and so derive the mischiefe from some originall For my Lords the kingdome cannot now long stant at gaze or undergoe new burthens Wherefore what is to be done if you intend it should prosper must presently receive life from the whole people otherwise we shall expire in a dream and when the successe differs from expectation it is not enough to cry quod non put ar am My Lords the wiseman saies there is a proper season for all things under the Sun and we often finde the experiment in naturall bodies which are voluntarily weakned to recover strength yet with a restriction to such bounds and limits as the Physitian prescribes himself and truly I think it is your Lordships case at this point either to consider what should further be done then is already or else how to get out of those labyrinths we now are in lest the words of the Psalmist come home to our selves Vendidisti populum sinepretio My Lords I am confident the House of Commons doth throughly see both into the prejudice and vast expence that these two armies lay upon the land and undoubtedly so many Gentlemen of worth as sit there will have tender eyes upon the Commonweale It will therefore become your Lordships to second them in your way and whilest they apply to publique wounds the care of this house may search the intestines for if they be not cleansed it will be but a superficiall Cure and break out againe My Lords it seems the Earle of Strafford and the Archbishop of Cant. have gone the high waies of iniquity and every one knows how to trace them but Mines under ground are most considerable which unlesse they be likewise found out may at any time spring and supplant the whole fabrick of all our labours Let us then examine this fantastick warre ab initio lest as the Duke of Burgundy made a few Sheepskins the cause of his quarrel so we shall find those sheets of paper sent under the name of a Liturgy and book of Canons were but the Mopsas of the story to divert our eyes from the main designe Therefore my humble motion shall be for a selected Committee of no great number who may have power from the House to begin ab origne mali revise every mans negotiations who was either an Actor or Counsellor since the first appearance of those troubles in Scotland and that they may examine the Scottish Counsell upon such Articles as the heavy pressure of this Kingdome shall upon common fame administer unto them By the Major The Order of the House of Commons to the Lord Major for the due observing the Sabbath day IT is this day ordered by the House of Commons the Aldermen and Citizens that serve for the City of London shall intimate to the Lord Major from this House that the Statutes for the due observing of the Sabbath be put in execution And it is further ordered that the like intimation from this House be made to the Justices of Peace in all the Counties of England and Wales And the Knights of the Shire of the severall Counties are to take care that the Copies of this Order be accordingly sent to the Justices of Peace in the severall Counties FOasmuch as the Lords Day commonly called Sunday is of late much broken and prophaned by a disorderly sort of People in frequenting Taverns Ale-houses and the like and putting to sale victuall and other things and exercising unlawfull games and pastimes to the great dishonor of God and reproach of Religion whereof the House of Commons now assembled hath been pleased to take notice and by their order intimation hath been given unto me that the Statutes for the due observing of the Sabbath be put in execution These are therefore in his Majesties name to will and require you forthwith upon the sight hereof that you give strict charge and command unto all and every the Churchwardens and Constables within your Ward that from henceforth they doe not permit or suffer any person or persons in the time of divine service or at any other time upon the Sunday to be drinking or playing in any Tavern Inne Tobacco-shop Ale-house or other victualling house whatsoever nor suffer any Fruiterer Milkwoman or Hearbwomen to stand with fruit milk herbs or any other Victuall or Wares in any the streets lanes or allies within your ward or any other wayes to put those things or any other to sale upon the Sunday at any time of the day or in the evening not to permit or suffer any Person or Persons to use or exercise upon that day any unlawfull exercises and Pastimes within your ward and that expresse charge be given to every keeper of any Tavern Inne Cookshouse Tobaccohouse Alehouse or any other tipler or victualler whatsoever within your ward that hereafter they receive not or suffer to remain any person or persons whatsoever as their guests or customers to tiple eate drinke or take Tobacco in their houses upon any Sunday other then that Inholders may receive their ordinary guests or Travellers and such like who come to remain for a time in their Inne for dispatch of their necessary businesse And if any person or persons shall be found offending in the premisses that then they be brought before me the Lord Major or some other of his Majesties Justices of Peace to the end they may receive such punishment as to justice shall appertaine And hereof not to faile as you will answer the contrary at your perill This thirteenth of Aprill 1641. Occasionall Speeches made in the House of Commons this Parliament 1641. Concerning Religion Novemb. 12. 1640. Mr. SPEAKER IT was well observed by my Lord Keeper that a multiplying Glasse may deceive but the right English Glasse of the Common-wealth never In which I discern so comely and active a Motion that out of all question some great work is here to be done some thing extraordinary is here to be decreed or else God and the King beyond all our expectations at the last breath would never so soon have cemented us again to meet in in this great Councell Mr. Speaker What an happy sight will it be to see the King and his People accord A threefold cord is not easily broken and I hope King Charles his threefold Kingdomes shall never
manifold and grosse superstitions and idolatries and to be repugnant to the Doctrine Discipline and order of our Reformation to the confession of faith constitutions of generall Assemblies and Acts of Parliament establishing the true Religion that this also was Canterburies worke we make manifest By the memoirs and instructions sent unto him from our Prelates wherein they gave a speciall account of the diligence they had used to do all which herein they were enjoyned by the approbation of the Service booke sent to them and of all the marginall corrections wherein it varieth from the English book shewing their desire to have some few things changed in it which notwithstanding was not granted This we finde written by Saint Androis own hand and subscribed by him and nine other of our Prelates By Canterburies owne letters witnesses of his joy when the booke was readie for the Presse of his prayers that God would speed the worke of the hope to see that Service set up in Scotland of his diligence to send for the Printer and directing him to prepare a black letter and to send it to his servants at Edinburgh for printing this booke Of his approbation of his proofes sent from the Presse Of his feare of delay in bringing the worke speedily to an end for the great good not of that Church but of the Church Of his encouraging Rosse who was entrusted with the Presse to go on in this peece of service without feare of enemies All which may be seen in the Autographs and by letters sent from the Prelate of London to Rosse wherein as he rejoyceth at the sight of the Scottish Canons which although they should make some noise at the beginning yet they would be more for the good of the Kirk than the Canons of Edinburgh for the good of the Kingdom So concerning the Leiturgy he sheweth that Rosse had sent to him to have an explanation from Canterbury of some passage of the Service booke and that the Presse behoved to stand till the explanation come to Edinburgh which therefore he had in haste obtained from his Grace and sent the dispatch away by Canterburies own conveyance But the booke it selfe as it standeth interlined margined and patcht up is much more than all that is expressed in his letters and the changes and supplements themselves taken from the Masse-booke and other Romish Ritualls by which he maketh it to vary from the Booke of England are more pregnant testimonies of his popish spirit and wicked intentions which he would have put in execution upon us then can be denied The large declaration professeth that all the variation of our booke from the booke of England that ever the King understood was in such things as the Scottish humour would better comply with than with that which stood in the English Service These popish innovations therefore have been surreptitiously inserted by him without the Kings knowledge and against his purpose Our Scottish Prelates do petition that something may be abated of the English ceremonies as the Crosse in Baptisme the Ring in Marriage and some other things But Canterbury will not only have these kept but a great many more and worse superadded which was nothing else but the adding of fewell to the fire To expresse and discover all would require a whole booke we shall only touch some few in the matter of the Communion This book inverteth the ordor of the Communion in the book of England as may be seen by the numbers setting down the orders of this new Communion 1.5.2.6.7.3.4.8.9.10.15 Of the divers secret reasons of this change we mention one only in joyning the spirituall praise and thanksgiving which is in the book of England pertinently after the Communion with the prayer of Consecration before the Communion and that under the name of memorable or oblation for no other end but that the memoriall and sacrifice of praise mentioned in it may be understood according to the popish meaning Bellar. de Missae lib. 2. cap. 21. Not of the spirituall sacrifice but of the oblation of the body of the Lord. It seemeth to be no great matter that without warrant of the book of England the Presbter going from the North end of the Tabls shall stand during the time of Consecration at such a part of the Table where he may with the more ease and decencie use both hands yet being tryed it importeth much as that he must stand with his hinder parts to the people representing sayth Durand that which the Lord sayd of Moses Thou shalt see my hinder parts He must have the use of both his hands not for any thing he hath to do about the bread and wine for that may be done at the North end of the Table and be better seen of the people but as we are taught by the Rationalists that he may be stretching forth his arms to represent the extension of Christ on the Crosse and that he may the more conveniently lift up the bread and wine above his head to be seen and adored of the people who in the Rubrick of the generall Confession a little before are directed to kneel humbly on their knees that the Priests elevation so magnified in the Masse and the peoples adoration may go together That in this posture speaking with a low voyce and muttering for sometimes he is commanded to speak with a lowd voyce and distinctly he be not heard by the people which is no lesse a mocking of God and his people then if the words were spoken in an unknown language As there is no word of all this in the English Service so doth the booke in King Ed. time give to every Presbyter his liberty of gesture which yet gave such offence to Bucer the censurer of the book and even in Cassanders own judgement a man of great moderation in matters of this kinde that he calleth them Nunquam satis execrandos Misse gestus and would have them to be abhorred because they confirm to the simple and superstitious ter impiam exitialem Misse fiduciam The corporall presence of Christs body in the Sacrament is also to be found here for the words of the Mass-book serving to this purpose which are sharply censured by Bucer in King Ed. Leiturgy and are not to be found in the book of England are taken in here Almighty God is incalled that of his Almighty goodnesse he may vouchsafe so to blesse and sanctifie with his Word and Spirit these gifts of bread and wine that they may be unto us the body and bloud of Christ The change here is made the worke of Gods omnipotencie the words of the Masse ut fiant nobis are translated in King Edwards booke That they may be unto us which are againe turned into Latine by Alesius ut fiant nohis On the other part the expressions of the booke of England at the delivery of the Elements of feeding on Christ by faith and of eating and drinking in remembrance that Christ dyed for