Selected quad for the lemma: prince_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A52946
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The New oath examined, and found guilty
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1690
(1690)
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Wing N690; ESTC R41049
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2,448
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1
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The New Oath Examined and found Guilty SInce Oaths are Solemn Serious Things The best Security to Kings And since we'ave all Allegiance swore To J as King or Successor I can't imagine how we may Swear that or Fealty away Nought sure but Death or Resignation Can free us from that Obligation All Oaths are vain both those and these If we may break 'em as we please And did I fairly swallow both who 'de give a Farthing for my Oath If you affirm as many do They both consistent are and true I ask Can you Two Masters serve And never from your Duty swerve Or can you True Allegiance bear To Two at once and not forswear What 's due to J if W have And J have what you W gave It 's plain you 're false to both and shou'd Or take no Oaths or make 'em good Which here you cannot if you wou'd Nor will these Oaths as some contend To your own private Meaning bend You swear to each as to a King And ought to mean the self same Thing And 't is Allegiance Full and True Is sworn to both to both as due To say The People have a Right Kings to depose as they see fit Is Pop'ry or as bad as it There is no Law or Charter for 't Kings can't be try'd in any Court Bradshaw's High Court had but the Name Of Justice and was Bradshaw's Shame But that 's by all condemn'd Or he that dares such Presidents plead Deserves like him to lose his Head And hang for 't or alive or dead Now to condemn the King untry'd Seems something worse than Bradshaw did 'T is English Priviledge to be heard Before the Judge can give Award I know some Conquest plead and say The King was driv'n and forc'd away Convention though pleads Abdication Because unforc'd he left the Nation Hard 't is these Things to reconcile He chose to leave us ' gainst his Will These Pleas and Proofs are opposite And cannot both be True and Right A Sign their Cause is desperate They'd something say but know not what Their Non-agreement is enough To shew each Plea of theirs wants proof Now as for Conquest Why shou'd we Make Slaves of People that are Free Why shou'd we make so much ado 'Bout what Prince ne'er pretended to He from Convention took the Crown Convention plac'd him in the Throne Convention gave him all his Pow'r Convention made the Oaths you swore And therefore if to him we 'de swear 'T is as their High Commissioner And if they have no Right to chuse We may Allegiance refuse We may and ought to keep 't entire For Lawful King and Lawful Heir If People say they have such Right They ought to shew how they came by 't If People made their Sov'reign Lord They ought to shew it by Record The Law o' th' Land says no such Thing By Law Succession makes the King They can't plead Scripture if they wou'd The Scripture says All Pow'r's from God God says himself By me Kings Reign 'T is he doth Higher Pow'ers Ordain 'T is he doth make them all Supream The People's Choice is People's Dream Nor can you prove by Law of Nature That Princes are the People's Creature 'T is plain the People never gave What they ne're had nor cou'd they have I mean the Power which Princes bear If People had it make 't appear And tell us who and when and where Our King has Pow'r o're Subjects Lives By Law he takes away or gives The Sword the People never bore They ne're o're their own Lives had Pow'r Self-Murder never was allow'd By Law of Nature or of God Wherefore the Pow'r which Kings have now The People never cou'd bestow Indeed for Self-Defence to fight ' Gainst private Foes was Nature's Right They ever had it and still have it And therefore to their Prince ne're gave it Besides the Magistrate's empowr'd In other cases t' use the Sword Though Vengeance is the Subject's Crime It 's very innocent in him Vengeance belongs to God alone Who has it not from God has none In state of Nature People were All free and equal and cou'd ne're That Pow'r possess much less confer No 't is the Prince God's place supplies 'T is his Prerogative to chastiâ—e The Evil redress Injuries If Rulers are for publick Good Their Jus divinum's understood Unerring Wisdom can't be thought To leave the Choice to giddy Rout. But granting Peoples Right I say They ought not cou'd not give 't away In vain had they such Right from Heaven If they shou'd part with 't ' soon as given It were Impiety and Sin To give away a Right Divine Nor is it like they 'd all consent To lose their share of Government Nor cou'd they meet all for a Choice That ev'ry Man might give his Voice Some might be Busy others Sick Some their Proceedings might dislike Now if they all were free before How cou'd those who did ne're concur Lose that their Liberty and Pow'r These Kâ—â—â—â— and such like I dâ—fy Pretended Patriots to unty Be sure they can't And then their Cause Is grown much weaker by the Laws The Laws which own our Kings Divine And tye the Crown to Royal Line The Laws which make Allegiance due Without your Oaths or theirs to you The Laws which give to ev'ry Man his own To People their Estates to Kings their Crown Some idly fancy That protection Doth nat'rally infer Subjection To which I say if this were True Subjection were ev'en Cromwel's due He was Protector Name and Thing He did th' whole Office of a King No 't is a Right for to Protect us Can only Lawfully Subject us Who has no Right to Englands Throne To Englands Fealty can have none And when the lawful King 's turn'd out Whose will to govern is past doubt It is not Merit but a Crime His People to Protect ' gainst him It is to keep him from his Right Who wou'd Protect us if he might It is to make himself Supreme And to Protect himself not them It 's to maintain his Usurpation And to entail on Captive Nation A lasting War and Desolation And is this such a mighty Favour As to deserve the Name of Saviour For my part I shou'd give him rather A harder Name than that of Father And with the Cynick wish him gone Not stand betwixt me and the Sun If where it 's due we pay Subjection My Friends we shall not want Protection And now I think I 've made it clear We cannot with good Conscience swear We cannot take Oaths Old and New And to both Faithful prove and True And if I must Starve or Comply Be sure I wou'd not swear I 'de dir I 'de suffer ought for my dear Saviour's Laws Who dy'd for me I can't well suffer in a better Case FINIS