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A40502
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A frivolous paper, in forme of a petition: framed and composed by a disaffected party in this citie of London, intended by them to be presented to the honourable House of Commons. With certaine considerations propounded by way of advertisement and caution unto those who through unadvisednesse, are apt to subscribe the same. / By a Wel-willer to peace and truth.
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Wel-willer to peace and truth.
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1642
(1642)
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Wing F2232; ESTC R21272
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5,178
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8
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A Frivolous PAPER In FORME of a PETITION Framed and composed by a DISAFFECTED PARTY in this Citie of London intended by them to be presented to the honourable House of COMMONS WITH Certaine Considerations propounded by way of Advertisement and Caution unto those who through unadvisednesse are apt to subscribe the same By a wel-willer to PEACE and TRUTH ENLARGED With new Additions by way of Advertisement to all such who unadvisedly had subscribed and three speciall Rules for their presenâ— Caution and future Admonition LONDON Printed for STEPHEN BOWTEIL and are to be sold at his Shop in Popes bead Alley 1642. A COPIE OF THE Frivolous PAPER Before-mentioned THat the present sense of our Mistries and Apprehensions of mevitable Ruine both of Church and Common-wealth maketh us to become humble Suiters to this Honourable Assembly the likeliest meanes under God for our reliefe to consider our distressed state and to provide a speedy remedy for our present and future evils Earnestly desiring you to weigh the Care and Judgement of our Predecessors who by a known Law settled and preserved our Protestant Religion our Liberties and Properties with the right vnderstanding betweene King and Subjects which produced Plenty and Peace in our Streets And to reflect with serious thoughts upon our present Distempers violating Religion by Papists and Sectaries ingaging our Nation in a Civill bloudy and destructive Warre in invading our Lawes and Liberties indangering all our Lives and utter disabling us to relive our distressed Bretheren in Ireland Wee beseech you likewise to consider the effect of a continued Warre as the Destruction of Christians the unnaturall effusion of blood Father against Son Brothers by Brothers Friends by Friends slaine then a Famine and sicknesse the followers of a Civill Warre making way for a generall confusion and Invasion by a forreigne Nation while our Treasure is exhausted our Trade lost and the Kingdome dispeopled These things weighed and inlarged by your Wisedomes we doubt not will be as strong motives in you to labour as in us to desire a speedy Peace an I happy Accomodation Wherefore wee humbly crave that not lending an eare to any Fomenters of the presenâ— Warre under what pretence soever nor remembring ought that may increase Jealousies or continuall Divisions betweene his Majesty and his Houses of Parliament you will speedily tender his Majesty according to his Royall Intimations such Propositions for Accomodation as hee may with Honour and safety to the whole Kingdome accept For effecting whereof wee shall be ready to assist you with the best and utmost of our abilities and whilst you endeavour Peace wee shall send up our Prayers to Heaven for the blessing of Peace upon you and all that desire it CERTAINE CONSIDERATIONS UPON THE PREFIXED PETITION AS God and his Church never wanted enemies so the Divel I and Antichrist never wanted friends for the promotion of prophanesse and Idolatry in all places it is hard to say whether are more the enemies of truth and peace with God or friends of error and peace with the Divell men whom the Apostle calls sensuall fleshly and Divellish lovers of pleasures more then Lovers of God who can see no further then this life fearing more the terrors of man then of the Almighty chuse rather peace with man and wrath with God then the wrath of man and peace with God the truth of all which doth appeare by a Petition now in agitation concerning which I have gathered some plaine and undeniable observations presenting them by way of caution unto others from these particulars viz. 1. The chiefe composersof this Petition 2. The Malignant nature of this Petition 3. The most probable Consequences Reasons and Aimes of this Petition First consider whether the chiefe sticklers and fomenters thereof are not notoriously know to be Pattentees Proctors Delinquents Malignants who either have not at all or any of them in any considerable measure according to their Estates assisted the common cause of the Kingdome against the common enemy â—hereof whose pretences though they are for Religion and Law and the aid of poore bleeding Ireland yet they are men Popish Atheisticall and prophane in point of Religion some whereof and they not of the lowest sort have most propâ—anely and blasphemously in the presence of those who being desired denied to subscribe to a Petition for peace without truth cursed truth saying a pox on truth give us peace truth will follow and let us have pâ—ace and the Divell take truth c. and as for the Law consider whether many of them have not gotten their Estates by Pattents a lawlesse occupation and as for bleeding Ireland let their Receipts shew what they have don for its recovery which will amount to the same nothing as the summe which they have disbursed for distracted England they are mutinous and tumultuous profesâ—ing in the presence of many that if this Petition died they will die with it and if one suffer all will suffer with such like mutinous expressions These are the parties Secondly consider the nature of this Petition and see if yee finde it not intolerably saucy and peremptory against the Parliament in many particulars First in taxing closely but cleerely this present Parliament with inconsideration of the kâ—own Laws of the Land as if either they were ignorant thereof or impotent thereby as not able to repeale or alter the same being made by themselves in their predecessors having power to nul the same at their pleasure Secondly consider whether they do not covertly but unavoidably tax this present Parliament either with indiscretion in that they presume to be wiser then their predecessors and therefore desire them to weigh the care and judgement of our predecessors who by a known Law setled and preserved our Protestant Religion and Property c. or else closely implying that this present Parliament accuseth former Parliaments of folly and unadvisednesse in that they have confirmed those things that must now be reversed either whereof is most unsufferable arrogancy and Nationall injury Thirdly consider whether they do not tax this present Parliament with their tendring unto his Majesty such Propositions hithetâ—o which hee may not with his honour and safety of the Kingdom accept and therefore they desire that they would speedily tender unto his Majesty according to his reg all intimations such Propofitions for Accommodation as He may with honour and safety to the whole Kingdom accept Whereas it is most evidently known that many Propositions have bin tendred and not one either to the dishonour of the King whose greatest honour would be to governe his Kingdom by the advise of his great Councell and faithfull Parliament and not by the Malignant Counsells of Papists and Traytors and out-law'd Delinquents neither hath there bin one Proposition tendred which doth not most unberously carry along with it the safety and future prosperity of this Kingdom Fourthly consider whether the Malignity of this Petition doth not appeare in many phrases and expressions
scattered up and down therein as if it were the birth of the same womb which hath lately bin very fruitfull in many printed and scandalous Pamphlets in casting reproaches and most unworthy scandalls upon both Houses of Parliament such as The known Law of the Land ascribing the violation of our Relâ—gion to Papists and Sectaries Under which latter word hath ever bin implied every man that in any thing hath differed from the Bishops Innovations and superstitious Ceremonies in the government of the Church Thus the malignity of this Petition appeares in the nature of it Thirdly consider the undoubtedly aimed at Consequences and Tendences thereof which must be such as these First the raising of mutinies divisions and discontents in the City the unity whereof is the ruine of the common enemie that the report hereof in the Countries whose eyes are upon the City may discourage the well affected there and so the common cause may meet with reluctancy throughout the whole Kingdom Secondly that the enemy now very weake and like to fall of themselves for want of Amunition and meanes the vitall blood of an Army may yet strengthen and encourage themselves and make shift by plundering robbing and spoyling the Countrey to spin out a little time knowing that our division here if continued will effectually advantage them in their bloody designes and thus these hypocriticall Petitioners as Ehud to Pglon cry Peace Peace to the Kingdom while they secretly and maliciously endeavour to thrust a Sword of destruction into the bowels thereof Thirdly a third aim'd at effect must be this the stiring up of other their Brethren malignant wretches in other parts of the Kingdom aa exemplum to do the like that so they may bring the whole Kingdom dividâ—d against iâ— selfe to inevitable ruine whereas by the mercy of the Almighty the present care and endeavour of our Parliament by our Forces abroad and associations of the severall Counties against the common enemy may put a very speedy and timely end unto these present troubles with all advantages both to Church and State and desired assistance of our poore Brethren in Ireland Fourthly they now well perceive that they shall no longer be tolerated either in their detected malignity or unworthy newtrality but Nolentes Voleâ—tes shall be compel'd by just assesments and censures in their estates to helpe the present state of the Kingdom and therefore will now adventure such courses as may bring all to confusion rather then be helpefull endeavouring like Iudas for a little moneys sake under colour of a kisle of peace to betray the Kingdom into the hands of violent and bloody men and although like reverend Plush-cloakes and intelligent States-men they cry out against the Parliament saying did they not plead the Subjects propertie loe where is property if they shall take what they please from us yet they may know that though we may plead property in respect of the Kings taxing without Law yet wee can pleade no property from the Parliament in a time of imminent danger into whose disposall we have committed our estates and all that we have which we never did to the King and surely were our Parliament as selvish as these Petitioners are we should all have known long before this time what the power of a Parliament had bin by our ruine and slavery being not in the tenth measure so provoked by such ingratitude and unnaturall provocations as they have bin Fiftly consider what a rock we may run upon thus unthankfully to provoke the Parliament may they not compremise differences to their own personall safeâ—y and preferment and our irrecoverable slavery have they not us at such advantage that they may undoe us every houre can we alleadge any thing against them wherein they have bin unfaithfull in that trust we committed to their charge is it not in the prosecution of our peace wherein they meet with such frownes and oppositions from above have they not hazarded their estates and livelyhoods for us did not many of them oppose with their blood in their personall adventures the malignity of that unnaturall and bloody Army that came against their mother Nation did we not chuse them because we thought they would be faithfull and shall we distast them for their faithfullnesse hath not the peace and wel-fare of the Kingdom bin pretious in their eyes let malice it selfe produce any instance to the contrary what had become of us before this time had not their care and diligence in securing the Seas prevented those preparations made beyond the Seas by known Traytors to the Kingdom hath God by them discovered so many plot prevented so many apparant dangers freed us from so many preslures and taxations procured so much freedom for us and doe we thus requite them had they not every day a fresh ointment from above with the Spirit of meeknesse and love unto the Kingdom they would make our hearts ake for such daring provocations as this Petition imports It is not to be doubted but many have put their hands hereunto no discerning any such malignity either in the nature or consequences thereof whose integrity and discrerion can no way better be vindicated but by their Recantation which if I might be their Monito should be as publiquely divulged as is their unadvisednesse against these the imputation implyed in what haâ—h been said is not intended but because honest men have beene more then once taken by this slight I shall desire to propound two or three Rules of advise for their caution and prevention astainst another time First take speciall notice of the prime and chiefe Actors and Promoters in matters of this nature It is hard to draw evill men to good actions especially for Church and State therefore will I suspect that wherein they are more forwarder then honester men Secondly observe these men and their number who seconds any thing of this kind once begun evill men though one age hath been delivered of two such births may happily both centrive and bring forth a Designe intending both the purity of Religion and Peace of the Kingdome together but seldome seconded by many such as themselves and never deserted by a more conscientious party if I cannot see who the Lâ—aders are I will take the more notice of the followers and accordingly will I come up in the Reare or decline them Thirdly let not the goodnesse or badnesse quality or number of men in any matter wherein your subscription is required quit your owne personall examination thereof if any thing bee propounded chiefly by suspitious men lege per lege â—elege read it and that throughly and over againe for though such men are most ap◠〈◊〉 call men more uprighâ— then themselves hypâ—crytes and dissemblers yet you shall find a great dexterity in this â—ivillish Art of dissembling in such mens expressures plausible intimations of aiming at Religion and the good of the Kingdome are commonly the greene leaves under which they hatch their Cockatrice Eggs as is their pretence in this Petition though the chief Actors were never knowne to have the least dram of true love either to Religion or Kingdome In fine let us follow hard after Peace but harder after Truth the best peace will follow truth though truth will not follow every peace let us pray for peace but of Jerusalem not of Babylon if our peace be enmity to truth truth will quickly devour our peace let us admit of a pâ—ace upon any termes of personall disadvantage so we engage not the God of peace against us what ever we abate of that which is called ours yet let us not leave a hoof behinde of all that is called Gods better it is to purchase Truth for our posterity by our blood then to betray them by a sinfull peace God hath hither to bin with us while we have bin with him if we forsake him he will forsake us though the Sons of Anak be great and tall yet shall God drive them out before us as he hath don If we honour God by believing he will honour us by sâ—cceeding our endeavours 't is true God bids us follow Peace but never without Holynesse FINIS