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<DATE>2007-04-26</DATE>
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<NAME>Emma Leeson Huber</NAME>
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<P>A PLAIN FAVLT IN Plain-Engli&s;h. AND The &s;ame in Doctor <HI>FEARNE:</HI> Who (upon different grounds) build one Error; but this is the be&s;t of it, that their diffe|rence de&s;troyes the &s;ame Error, which they would build upon the Ruine of PARLIAMENTS.</P>
<P><HI>LONDON,</HI> Printed for <HI>T. &V;nderhill.</HI> 1643.</P>
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<HEAD>A PLAIN FAVLT IN Plain - Engli&s;h.</HEAD>
<P>_AS two Ships &s;etting Saile out of one Har|bour, the one going to the We&s;t, &amp; the other to the Ea&s;t, yet (if they continue in that cour&s;e) mu&s;t n&eacute;eds m&eacute;et together in the wrong &s;ide of the world: So <HI>Plain-Engli&s;h</HI> going one way in an intention for the Pub|lique, and Doctor <HI>Fearne,</HI> (going another way again&s;t the Publique) m&eacute;et in one and the &s;ame wrong opinion and error, de&s;tructive to Parliaments.</P>
<P><HI>Plaine-Engli&s;h</HI> will de&s;troy Parliaments, by the peoples re&s;uming their power, becau&s;e the Parliament goes not high enough, in Termes, Conditions, and Actions.</P>
<P>The Doctor, and his fellow-Malignants, will have the Par|liament di&s;&s;olved, becau&s;e it goes too high, and will not lay down the Common-wealth at the f&eacute;et of the Cavaliers, preten|ding the name of the King.</P>
<P>So both &s;peak to have it done, but upon contrary Rea&s;ons, confuting each other: For, if the Rea&s;on of <HI>Plain-Engli&s;h</HI> be
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good, the Doctors Rea&s;on is naught; and if the Doctors Rea&s;on be good, <HI>Plaine-Engli&s;h's</HI> Rea&s;on is naught. But the Doctor &s;aith <HI>Plain-Engli&s;h's</HI> Rea&s;on is naught, and <HI>Plain-Engli&s;h</HI> &s;aith the Doctors Rea&s;on is naught, and I bel&eacute;eve both, and &s;o the bu&s;ine&s;&s;e is ended.</P>
<P>Yet to talk and walk a little farther with them, (but &s;etting one on the one hand, and the other on the other, and my &s;elfe in the middle to keep them from fighting) I would ask them &s;ome Que&s;tions of Iu&s;tice, Hone&s;ty, and Rea&s;on.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Is it ju&s;t that the debts of the Kingdome &s;hould be paid? and if &s;o, I intreat my fellow-walkers to tell me who &s;hall pay them, if the Parliament &s;hall be di&s;&s;olved? If they &s;ay, Another Parliament, how be they &s;ure that another Parli|ament may not be more di&s;plea&s;ing to them then this, and de|&s;erve to be di&s;&s;olved as well as this?</P>
<P>Secondly, Did not men lend upon the Act of continuing this Parliament? So that the Act of Continuance is the very Si|new of their &s;ecurity, and that which drew them into the Con|tract of lending. And of whom &s;hall our Brethren the Scots require the performance of Publique Faith, if the Parliament (that gave this Faith) be annihilated and di&s;&s;olved? And is it hone&s;t to borrow money upon Security, and then to take a|way the Security, upon which it was borrowed? Surely, he that borrowes money upon Bonds, and then takes away the Bonds, de&s;erves another name be&s;ides that of an hone&s;t man, and mu&s;t look to borow no more of any that know it. And thus the Act of Continuance is turned into an Act of Cou&s;inage, while it is made a Lure to draw in Tru&s;t, but di&s;abled to per|forme it.</P>
<P>Thirdly, In Rea&s;on, or in many Rea&s;ons, (if any Rea&s;on can be alledged, for which indeed none can be &s;ufficient) it is for the Publique good, <HI>Quia periclitatur &s;alus populi,</HI> The Publique is in danger. This Publique danger mu&s;t be &s;o evidently and apparently cau&s;ed by the Parliament, that the whole People, or (at lea&s;t) the greater part of it mu&s;t plain|ly &s;ee it, judge it, and agree in it: But while there are two
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parts, one that &s;aith the danger is cau&s;ed by the Parliaments <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="OXF" EXTENT="1 letter">i&s;ing too high, a &s;econd by the Parliaments going too low, a third bel&eacute;eving neither, (for neither of the&s;e bel&eacute;eves one another) but thinking the Parliament goes aright, or (at lea&s;t) a tolerable way: How &s;hall we think &s;o many di&s;&s;ent|ing parts will agr&eacute;e upon one evident cau&s;e of danger? And of &s;o many parts and &s;ides differ, who &s;hall be the Iudge of the Controver&s;ie betweene the Conte&s;tants? Surely, if the Par|liament may continue but till the&s;e thr&eacute;e parts agr&eacute;e, either up|on the Rea&s;on for which the Parliament &s;hall be di&s;&s;olved, as <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="OXF" EXTENT="2 letters">u&s;ing a publique danger, or upon a Iudge to determine and <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="OXF" EXTENT="1 letter">udge their agr&eacute;ement, the Parliament may continue long enough, and by the Parliaments not ending, this Que&s;tion may be at an end. And certainly this Que&s;tion was rai&s;ed in a mo&s;t un&s;ea&s;onable, and therefore mo&s;t unrea&s;onable time: For, (when the people are divided into divers opinions, as well as Armies) is that a fit time to &s;peak of agr&eacute;eing toge|ther, in re-a&s;&s;uming their power, when they di&s;agr&eacute;e in the Rea&s;ons of it unto death?</P>
<P>But againe, if the Votes of the people mu&s;t be gathered by <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="OXF" EXTENT="1 letter"> Iudge, where &s;hall this Iudge &s;it when he gathers the&s;e Votes? Mu&s;t the people m&eacute;et all together in one place, or be taken by poll in their &s;everall pari&s;hes? If they m&eacute;et in one place, that will end the Que&s;tion, by putting out of que|&s;tion, that <HI>Salus Populi periclitabitur,</HI> publique danger will certainly follow, by this way of avoiding publique danger: For you mu&s;t bring two &s;orts of people together, that have main Armies on each &s;ide, and if &s;o, whether wil not the people be in more danger by this m&eacute;eting, then by the Parliament? but this the Swords and Guns will &s;oone tell you. And if he mu&s;t goe or &s;end into pari&s;hes, &s;urely I think <HI>Plain-Engli&s;h</HI> will be loath to compute the Votes of the pari&s;hes in <HI>Oxford,</HI> or <HI>New-ca&s;tle,</HI> nor the Doctor to take the Votes in <HI>Wind&s;or</HI> or <HI>London.</HI> And if the Parliament may continue untill this polling be done, I think it will be as good as an Act of Con|tinuance.</P>
<P><PB N="6" REF="4">But yet further, if mo&s;t Votes mu&s;t carry it, it will be a Legall <HI>Quare,</HI> Whether tho&s;e that have le&s;&s;e then 40. s. <HI>per Ann.</HI> &s;hall have Votes, which is denyed in the choice of the Knights of the Shire?</P>
<P>Againe, Whether tho&s;e that are maintained by the Pari&s;hes &s;hall give Votes, who have no Votes in choo&s;ing of Burge&s;&s;es, and e&s;pecially whether &s;uch men &s;hall be fit to judge of pub|lique danger, for the di&s;&s;olving of a Parliament?</P>
<P>But thus Error is infinite in by-paths, and wandrings, and thus it falls out, when men (leaving the old lawfull, and fun|damentall way) will tread out paths of their own making, and being onely of private condition, will take upon them the Go|vernment or rather the Di&s;&s;olution of the frame of the Pub|lique. But this is the common fault of mutable and ever|repining Man-kind: If <HI>Ziklag</HI> be burnt, and wives and chil|dren carryed away, then they talk of &s;toning <HI>David.</HI> But if the foundations be thus de&s;troyed, what hath the righteous done? Surely it had b&eacute;en a point of di&s;cretion, (I will not &s;ay of ci|vility and good manners) to have &s;pent &s;ome thoughts fir&s;t in a faire and admonitory way to have obtained this end, before they fall to de&s;troying and rooting out Foundations, and plucking up Parliaments, and con&s;equently Kingdoms by the roots: For certainly, if &s;uch a thing &s;hould be done, (which ind&eacute;ed is as un&s;ea&s;onable as it is de&s;tructive) there could be no fr&eacute;edome, certainty, nor continuance in Parliaments, &amp; then, as good to have none at all. They mu&s;t vote like men in chaines, not their owne votes and con&s;ciences, but the votes and opinions of others: and they mu&s;t not promi&s;e nor con|tract any thing for the Publique, except they &s;end home to know their opinion that mu&s;t rule them in their Votes. And certain|ly if this way be throughly followed, it may lead men, a&s;well to re-a&s;&s;ume Laws, as power of Law-making, and then into what a Chaos of confu&s;ion doe they re&s;olve (or rather di&s;&s;olve) this ancient, and wel-grounded Government?</P>
<P>But (as I &s;aid) if they would have had &s;uch a thing done a hand&s;ome way, the&s;e re-a&s;&s;umers &s;hould have brought the peo|ple
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together, to have found out, and agr&eacute;ed upon &s;ome invin|cible and manife&s;t Rea&s;ons (for &s;uch they had n&eacute;ed to be) to prove that the Parliament &s;hould cea&s;e for the publique good, and &s;o propo&s;e them to the Parliament: For, they know the Parl. hath power to di&s;&s;olve it &s;elfe, and it is very prepo&s;terous to thru&s;t them out of doores, before you aske them whether they will goe out voluntarily of them&s;elves, e&s;pecially being &s;etled by an Act of Parl. And I a&s;&s;ure you, by that knowledge I have of many (if not mo&s;t) of the Hou&s;e of Commons, if you can <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="OXF" EXTENT="1 letter">hew a way how Religion, Liberty and &s;afety, and con&s;equently <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="OXF" EXTENT="1 letter">he Common good, can be better &s;etled by their ab&s;ence then pre&s;ence, (that &s;o they may leave their bani&s;hment, and return to their homes) I think you may have ea&s;ily not their places onely, but their thanks: For, little plea&s;ure, and certainly le&s;&s;e profit it is for them to leave their own bu&s;ine&s;&s;es and Fa|milies, (I &s;ay not Recreations) to work and toile in publique bu&s;ine&s;&s;es, yea to be often put to make brick without &s;traw, even to work impo&s;&s;ibilities, and to plea&s;e two contrarieties, or el&s;e to be beaten (on all &s;ides) with &s;uch terrible Ta&s;k-ma|&s;ters as the&s;e Re-a&s;&s;umers.</P>
<P>But perchance too much hath b&eacute;en &s;aid again&s;t tho&s;e cruel, unrea&s;onable, and unju&s;t &s;p&eacute;eches of re-a&s;&s;uming, e&s;pecially where the people, P&eacute;eres and King have given their Votes and Faith (by an Act of Continuance) that there &s;hall be no re|a&s;&s;uming. And if nothing el&s;e, yet let Gods owne wonderfull hand &s;tretched out in working for the Parliament, and by it, &s;top the mouthes that are opened again&s;t it. It was wont to be the common language of the Petitions of mo&s;t Counties, to ac|knowledge the great ble&s;&s;ings God had &s;ent to them, by the un|wearied labour and &s;ervice of the Parliament, as the taking a|way the High-Commi&s;&s;ion, Star-Chamber, and Ship-money, &amp;c. but now advantages and exceptions mu&s;t be &s;ought out again&s;t it. And admit there are &s;ome failings, and &s;ome weak|ne&s;&s;es; was there not a great Apo&s;tle that gloryed in infirmi|ties, becau&s;e when he was weak, he was made &s;trong? and no wonder, for God him&s;elfe had told him, that in weakne&s;&s;e
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his &s;trength doth appeare. And appeared it hath, &s;ince God (by them) hath overthrowne &s;uch &s;trong-holds, as former Par|liaments have not b&eacute;en able to remove, but have rather &s;treng|thened again&s;t them&s;elves. Doe not weaken tho&s;e whom God doth &s;trengthen for him&s;elfe, but rather joyne with God in &s;trengthning their weakne&s;&s;e by &s;upplyes, prayers, and (if you will) faithfull, and petitionary advice: and doe not fight a|gain&s;t a Miracle of Gods making: a miracle, I &s;ay, (for &s;uch our Fore-fathers would have e&s;teemed a Parliament &s;etled by an Act of Continuance) de&s;troy not then what he hath &s;o won+derfully built, neither de&s;pi&s;e his building, though it appeare, not very glorious in fle&s;hly eyes: Rather &s;ay with the Prophet, <Q><NOTE PLACE="marg">Hag. 2. 3.</NOTE>Who is among you that &s;aw this hou&s;e in her fir&s;t glory? and how do you &s;ee it now? is it not in your eyes (in compari&s;on of it) as nothing? Yet now be &s;trong O Zerubbabel, and be &s;trong O Io&s;hua the &s;on of Io&s;edech (the High Prie&s;t) and be &s;trong ye people of the land, and worke; for I am with you (&s;aith the Lord of Ho&s;ts) The Glory of this latter Hou&s;e &s;hall be greater then of the frrmer (&s;aith the Lord of Ho&s;ts) and in this place I will give peace (&s;aith the Lord of Ho&s;ts)</Q> And let all the people &s;ay. <HI>Amen.</HI></P>
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