Selected quad for the lemma: state_n
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A35157
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Great Britain's tears humbly offered to the consideration of the Lords and Commons in Parliament assembled.
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Crosfeild, Robert.
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1695
(1695)
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Wing C7244; ESTC R36056
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8,930
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17
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Great Britain's TEARS Humbly offered to the Consideration OF THE LORDS and COMMONS in Parliament Assembled London Printed in the Year 1695. To the Lords Spiritual and Temporal and Commons in Parliament Assembled IF we look into the World and but view the Actions of Men and see what violent Oppression there is of the Poor and the eager pursuit after Riches we shall be apt to conclude Men are become lunatick or infected with the gross Errors of the Sadduces of old otherways one would think they would never dare to break through the Laws of God and Man at the rate they do so much the more considering the Nation has so lately receiv'd such a signal Deliverance and hath ever since been in imminent Peril yet these things have made no Impression on the Minds of some Men but only serv'd to heighten and encrease their Ambition and Covetousness which hath been the occasion of many Evils for which the Land mourns as will appear by the ensuing Matter but it must with all due Acknowledgment be confest that in Parliament there hath been all imaginable Care taken to prevent Frauds and the Imbezlement of the Publick Money but all hath not been sufficient Yet there hath been one thing wanting that is the inspecting into the Actions of the Court from whence the greatest of our Evils have sprung Our Fore-fathers ever look'd upon them with a jealous Eye as being sensible what Temptations they lay under and what great Opportunities they had of inâ—â—â—hing themselves especially in the time of War to the Prejudice of the Nation and how prone and apt they were to pursue their own Interest notwithstanding their great Pretensions to Loyalty and this is certainly a sore and great Evil the Nation now labours under Therefore vain and fruitless will all Endeavours be as long as there 's so many great and various Corruptions in the Government and we can expect nothing but Poverty and Misery to attend There are many Instances both in Holy Writ and History wherein God hath been pleased to make use of weak and mean Instruments for the bringing his Purposes to pass and finding a general Silence the sense of my Duty and the Apprehension how fatal these things may prove to the Kingdom is that which hath made me thus presume to address my self to this most August Assembly from whom alone it is under God the Nation can expect Relief We are happy in a good Prince who will deny nothing that 's fit for good Subjects to ask and who will be very ready and willing to remove all Grievances or any thing else that may obstruct the Glory of his Actions or the happy Settlement of the Kingdom in Peace I am my Lords and Gentlemen your Honours most humble faithful and obedient Servant Robert Crosfeild GREAT BRITAIN's Tears THIS Nation hath long lain under a great and dangerous War His Majesty's Royal Person expos'd to the greatest Hazards and vast Sums of Money rais'd for carrying on the same yet we have not made use of those Opportunities God hath put into our Hands of improving them to the Advantage of the Kingdom but have all along taken quite different Measures from what our Fore-fathers have done under the like Circumstances of Affairs which is obvious and plain to the Eye of any intelligible Man and there 's a general Complaint thereof through the Kingdom but I find none inquisitive after the Causes from whence these Evils should arise therefore I conceive it would highly conduce to His Majesty's and the Nation 's Interest if we could discover the Fountain from whence they spring which I shall endeavour to do and hope my Labour will not be altogether in vain but shall forbear all Personal Reflections as knowing many honest and worthy Persons may be engaged who have not been able to withstand the Current and Course of things but been oblig'd to go with the Stream neither press harder upon any than what the natural Construction may be upon such and such Actions And when the Kingdom is engaged in War all Men well know that the great Affairs of the Kingdom pass through the Hands of the Right Honourable the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury the Admiralty and the Commissioners of the Navy and so long as the War 's on foot it makes those Employments as likewise many others at Court much more advantagious than in the times of Peace and it must be allowed they have a very great Influence upon the Government so that as they are inclin'd they may be the Authors of much Good or Evil. By which it appears of what mighty Importance it is to the Happiness and Well-being of the Kingdom to have Persons of Honour and Integrity in those Stations to whom his Majesty commits so great a Trust we can no ways better judg of things present than by looking back to those which are past and it can be no Crime but a Duty in me to make somâ— Inspection into the Publick Actions of the Nation during this War God among many other Blessings hath surrounded us with the Sea as with a Wall whereby we are not expos'd to the Insults of the common Enemy and the Oppressor and hath also given us great and numerous Shipping more than ever our Fore-fathers could boast of who notwithstanding perform'd great Actions which sounded into all Parts of the World and by the Power thereof for many Ages gave Law to Europe and were properly and truly the Ballance thereof Now it 's highly worth the Enquiry to see whether we have followed their Footsteps and made a right Use of that Blessing we have and do enjoy and upon View it will be found that we have fallen far short of their Actions and greatly blemish'd the Glory of them which cannot be attributed to our Pusianimity for the same Native Courage remains but to other Causes which I shall endeavour to demonstrate and then leave the Nation to judg Upon the first breaking out of this War his Majesty by his great Prudence and Industry had drawn most of the considerable Kingdoms and States of Europe into an Alliance thereby to put a stop to the growing Greatness of the French King and has to the highest degree expos'd his Royal Person to the greatest of Dangers and by reason of this Alliance hardly to be parallel'd gave this Nation a mighty Opportunity of humbling that proud Monarch who by reason of drawing so great Armies into the Field could not spare any great number of Troops for the Guard of his Maritime Coast by which means it lay expos'd and we might have done him infinite Damage and committed great Spoil and Waste which had not possibly been in his Power to have prevented for where there 's a commanding Fleet at Sea and a competent Army on Board ready to make a Descent when and where they shall see fit and not send Men to a Slaughter-house it could no way possibly be in the Power of the Enemy to prevent their
I humbly conceive all of those Methods will be found to be defective and not answer the End thereby intended for there must not be a stop put to our outward or coasting Trade so that if a Sailer comes to enter himself on Board any of these Ships he may take what Name he pleases upon him or at least name a wrong Port to which he belongs which the Master will wink at if he knows it rather than want Men and he cannot easily be confuted in either and Recourse must be made to the Register upon the account of every Ship that moves which will be endless and uncertain and withal it will be found to be as difficult and as unlikely to make the Sailers regular as to tame a wild Bull so that at last his Majesty will be oblig'd to impress Men as formerly Therefore there must be some better Method taken than these In short if the Sailers be justly paid and their Wages somewhat advanced and better Provision made for them in case they are wounded or maim'd then his Majesty will never want Men tho there be no impressing them which I humbly cenceive may be done by these means That all Coasters whatever of an hundred Tun do pay 1 s. each Voyage they shall make and so proportionable according to the Burden of each Ship and all outward-bound Shipping to pay agreeable to their Burden and Voyage according to the Proposal I made the last Session of Parliament this Money to be employ'd only to the Use and Benefit of such Sailers as shall be wounded or maim'd in the Publick Service which may be collected without any Charge and this to continue as well in Peace as War which would fully answer all the Ends proposed and if it be charged upon Sailers and Bottom as the Parliament shall see fit neither of them would grumble at it or if it be charged only upon the Sailers there 's none of them would grudg to pay it by reason it 's so small a matter and they know not how soon they may be in his Majesty's Service then if they have the Misfortune to be maim'd they are sure to be provided for the very Apprehension of which will make all Sailers extream willing to pay the Money And as the Affair may be order'd it may be of good use to such of them as may happen to be wounded on Board Merchant Ships As for Instance The Lame Hospitals of this Town do admit into them many sick poor and lame Persons but in case there happens any Action at Sea whereby many Sailers are wounded then those poor Persons are turn'd out and forc'd to make room for the Sailers yet notwithstanding it must be allow'd that the Poor receive great Relief from the said Hospitals so by the same Rule may Sailers that are wounded or maim'd on board Merchant-men be reliev'd by this as things may be order'd by the great Wisdom and Prudence of the Parliament and without all doubt it would be a great Inducement to many thousands of Men to take to the Sea more than now do and it would be greatly to the Honour and Interest of the Nation And if after all it shall be found his Majesty must have recourse to a Press then no doubt a Land-Press will be the most effectual that is to take up the Sailers in all the out-Ports by the Custom-house Officers with the Assistance of the Constables c. who generally know the Sailers and not by the Press-Ketches which is but an absurd way altho antient and kept on foot only by Interest upon the sight of which the Sailers abscond which the Ports look upon little better than Enemies as being Obstructers to their Trade and Business so upon that account they would be very willing to assist in a Land-Press which may be done by Letter that so they may not be plagu'd by the Press-Ketches This had been long since done only it 's against the Interest of the Admiralty therefore it can never be expected they will promote it but under-hand oppose it to the uttermost of their Power but at the same time they forget the great Duty and Obligations they lie under but what shall we say Interest is the God that some Men worship And if once a Publick and National Interest comes to be but heartily and sincerely espoused and not be forc'd to truckle to the Intrigues and Designs of private Persons as it hath done hitherto then no doubt but this Matter will take place because all Persons that are likely to be concern'd in the Payment of the Money will be so ready and willing to part with it I shall now give some short Account of a Matter I propos'd to the Right Honourable the Lords of the Treasury for laying aside all the Receiver-Generals for the Land-Tax as being a great and unnecessary Charge to the Government which I shew'd to many Persons of eminent Quality who very well approv'd on it yet however their Lordships would never so much as vouchsafe me a hearing and when I petition'd his Majesty in Council that I might be heard I was there obstructed and my Petition not suffered to be read but I find it 's not my case alone for there are four or five hundred Petitions now lying at the Council-Board which are stifled and not suffered to be read It cannot be judg'd that the Clerks of the Council dare to act so great a piece of Impudence of themselves but they must be supported in it by some Persons of greater Quality which I conceive to be a Crime of the greatest Magnitude for thereby his Majesty is depriv'd of the true Knowledg and State of his Affairs the Corruption and Abuses that creep into the Government and the Oppression his Subjects lie under and by these means there 's no possibility of Redress so long as this Bar remains which is an Act of the greatest Injustice but those Proceedings are diametrically opposite to his Majesty's Goodness and tend to nothing but Ruin All these Evils happen and come to pass by there being a predominate Party at Court that seek themselves and not the Nation 's Good being Slaves to their own Lusts and who govern Affairs as they please Therefore so long as they are in Power there can be little reason to expect his Majesty's Affairs should prosper or the Nation be successful in what shall be undertaken for they by Interest and Policy will so clog the Wheel of Publick Affairs that we shall even remain in the same State we were in when we first began I have one Matter more to offer in which I shall be very brief and do declare I can make appear that there have been two or three hundred thousand Pounds of the publick Money imbezled and in whose Hands it now remains this doth no ways relate to any thing by me before publish'd if the Parliament will be pleased but to take the same Methods that are usually taken in the like cases and