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<DATE>2008-11-04</DATE>
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<NAME>John Pas</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
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<ITEM>Proofed and reviewed as part of batch B080913.pdcc.</ITEM>
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<VID>160702</VID>
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<TEXT LANG="eng">
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<DIV1 TYPE="petition">
<PB REF="1" MS="y"><!-- PDF PAGE 8 -->
<HEAD>To the Honourable, the Knights, Citizens, and Burge&s;&s;es of the Hou&s;e of Common by Gods goodne&s;&s;e a&s;&s;embled, and by his gratious good providence hitherto pre&s;erved in Parliament: The humble Petition of divers Barronets, Knights, E&s;quires, Gentlemen, Mini|&s;ters, Freeholders, and others of the County of Darby, to the number of 7077.</HEAD>
<OPENER>Sheweth,</OPENER>
<P>THat when we have &s;eriou&s;ly con&s;idered that unexpre&s;&s;ible danger this Kingdome was in at the time of your election, to that great and honourable burthen, which for the glory of God, and good of this Church and Common-wealth you have now a long time with patience undergone, together with the manifold grievances, which then did, and &s;ome whereof &s;till doe di&s;quiet the peace and happine&s;&s;e of the Kings Maje&s;ty, and this Kingdome, and the great oppo&s;ition the ble&s;&s;ed work of Reformation hath met with by tho&s;e who are ill affected to the State; And when we call to minde (notwith&s;tanding all this enmity) the many and great workes which God hath been plea&s;ed already to effect by the wi&s;dome, paines and unwearyed diligence of this Honourable Parliament, God &s;ometimes turning even the plots and practi&s;es of the adver&s;e party to the furtherance of his own work, we cannot but give God the glory of his free Grace in Chri&s;t to this Kingdome, and with all due thankfulne&s;&s;e commemorate your indu&s;trious labours to perfect the great de&s;igne of this Kingdomes happine&s;&s;e, &s;o ju|diciou&s;ly begun, and accordingly pro&s;ecuted, and which we hope by the continued mercy of God, your accu&s;tomed co-operations, and the willing agreement of our gratious Soveraign, will in Gods due time ari&s;e to a &s;weet perfection, to the joy of us, and your po&s;terities: And yet although we live far off, wee cannot but heare of tho&s;e many late ob&s;tructions, and malevolent hinderances with which this good work hath been oppo&s;ed by meanes of the malignant party, who by evill councels and other &s;trange, and formerly unheard of cour&s;es, have endeavoured to infringe the lawfull power and liberties of Par|liament, to continue Popi&s;h Innovations, to oppre&s;&s;e our con&s;ciences with unnece&s;&s;ary Ceremonies, and to de&s;troy the lawfull rights of the Subject; All which we conceive are contrary to that happy Prote|&s;tation &s;o providently commended unto us by this Honourable Hou&s;e: Be&s;ides, the cur&s;ed plots that have been invented again&s;t our beloved friends of Scotland, and our poore di&s;tre&s;&s;ed brethren in Ire|land, who&s;e mo&s;t lamentable condition our &s;oules bleed within us to remember, and other &s;en&s;ible grie|vances at large declared in your late faithfull Remon&s;trance of the State of this Kingdome.</P>
<P>IN tender con&s;ideration whereof, and for that many thou&s;and of poore people among&s;t us doe alrea|dy feele the heavy pre&s;&s;ures of tho&s;e long delayes in &s;etling the State of this Kingdome, As we doe give humble thankes to Almighty, the Kings mo&s;t excellent, and this this high and ever to be honour|ed Parliament, both the Hou&s;e of Peeres and Commons, for that happy agreement in tho&s;e good and whol&s;ome Lawes already voted by you both, and enacted for the welfare of Church and Common|wealth, and e&s;pecially the late Acts for freeing the Bi&s;hops and Clergy from their di&s;tractions by tem|porall affaires, And that hopefull beginning of provi&s;ion for reliefe of Ireland, So we doe willingly joyn with the many thou&s;ands of our faithfull brethren and fellow Petitioners in and about the Ho|nourable City of London, and other &s;everall Counties of this Kingdom, humbly to &s;upplicate this Ho|nourable A&s;&s;embly of Parliament, &s;till earne&s;tly to mediate with his Maje&s;ty, and the Hou&s;e of Peeres, for their concurrence with you (and by the power of Chri&s;t) to goe on cheerefully with what &s;peed you may, to the perfecting of tho&s;e good endeavours &s;o worthily begun, and to finde out, pro&s;ecute, and pu|ni&s;h all notorious offendors in Church and Common-wealth: That the popi&s;h Lords may al&s;o be re|moved from having Votes in Parliament, Papi&s;ts fully di&s;armed and confined, Church papi&s;ts di&s;co|vered, and the evill Councels of the popi&s;h and malignant party di&s;appointed, and for the time to come wi&s;ely prevented, &s;peedily and fully according to your good beginning to &s;uccour poore Ireland, and that by a quiet execution of your late agreeing Votes England may be armed with a pre&s;ent care of defence by a po&s;ture of war: That all power and places of &s;trength may by your happy proceedings be e&s;tabli&s;hed in per&s;ons of tru&s;t, and &s;uch as this Honourable Parliament and Kingdome may under God confide in, that the power and priviledges of Parliament may be confirmed, and for future time predefended, that all Congregations may by your religious wi&s;dome be prov<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">ded of fit and able Mini|&s;ters, and that the Doctrine and Di&s;cipline of Chri&s;t may be vindicated from all corruptions, and by Gods ble&s;&s;ing we &s;hall make good our afore&s;aid prote&s;tation to the uttermo&s;t, that England may &s;till continue one of Chri&s;ts golden Candle&s;ticks, the Mini&s;ters Stars in his right hand, the whole Kingdom a people in covenant with God, and in the ble&s;&s;ed peace of the Go&s;pell, we may &s;it every man under his own Vine and Figtree, and enjoy a happy peace to us and our po&s;terity to the worlds end.</P>
<CLOSER>Thus &s;hall your Petitioners be bound daily to pray.</CLOSER>
<TAILNOTE>
<P><HI>This Petition was pre&s;ented the fourteenth day of March, by Sir</HI> John Curzon <HI>Knight and Baronet; who &s;erves for that County, and after it was read, was thankfully accepted by the Hou&s;e, and &s;peciall order given for the Recording of it, with the Petitions of &s;everall other Counties.</HI></P>
</TAILNOTE>
</DIV1>
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<BACK>
<DIV1 TYPE="colophon">
<P>London Printed. An. Dom. 1642.</P>
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