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<DATE>2008-09-29</DATE>
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<NAME>Megan Marion</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
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<STC T="W">H995A</STC>
<STC T="T">E349_13</STC>
<BIBNO T="umi">99861612</BIBNO>
<VID>113751</VID>
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<TEXT LANG="eng">
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<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
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<P>THE Parliaments Reformation <HI>Or a Worke for</HI> Presbyters, Elders, and Deacons, TO Engage them&s;elves, for the Education of all poore Children, and imployment of all &s;orts of poore, that no poore body young nor old may be enforced to beg within their Cla&s;&s;es in City nor Country.</P>
<P><HI>Publi&s;hed for the generall good of the Kingdome.</HI></P>
<P>By S. H. A friend of the Common-Wealth.</P>
<Q><P>This we commanded you, he that will not worke, let him not eate,</P>
<BIBL><HI>2</HI> The&s;. <HI>3.10.</HI></BIBL></Q>
<P><FIGURE>
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<P><HI>London,</HI> Printed for <HI>Thomas Bates,</HI> at the Maidenhead on Snow-hill, neere Holborne Conduit. 1646.</P>
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<DIV1 TYPE="text">
<PB REF="2">
<PB N="1" REF="2">
<HEAD>The Parliaments Reformation.</HEAD>
<P>_MAny men, both of Quality, and others, doe approve, that the imployment of the poore, the &s;uppre&s;&s;ing of idle Counterfeits; and the education of all poore Children, (whereby that none may goe about begging or live idle in the &s;treets,) is a very good work; but &s;aith &s;ome &s;hew us which way we may begin it, and what we &s;hall do to bring it to pa&s;&s;e.</P>
<P>To which I an&s;wer, it mu&s;t be a Parliaments power and command, to carry on the worke? My rea&s;on is; becau&s;e the major part of people doe never move to any good work willingly before they are commanded; and the command mu&s;t be upon a penalty too, el&s;e they will doe little; now con&s;ider, who can impo&s;e a command on the Subject for the carrying on of a good worke, and to lay a puni&s;hment upon the neglectors of the command; but a Parliaments power.</P>
<P>When once Authority and Power is gotten from the Parliament, and put into the hands of hone&s;t Gentlemen in this City of London, and &s;o throughout the whole Kingdome for the carrying on of the good work generally; or el&s;e if the Honorable Parliament plea&s;e to commit it to the Presbyters of every Cla&s;&s;e throughout the Kingdome, and they to a&s;&s;i&s;t the Deacons, it will be carryed on with more care, and more ea&s;e, to the joy of all godly people.</P>
<P>Authority being granted; there are 4. things for the Commi&s;&s;ioners to con&s;ider on, for the ea&s;ie carrying on of the weighty and godly bu&s;i|ne&s;&s;e, of relieving, and Reforming the poore of our Kingdome.</P>
<LIST>
<ITEM>1. The buying or building of hou&s;es for that purpo&s;e.</ITEM>
<ITEM>2. The rai&s;ing of &s;tocke.</ITEM>
<ITEM>3. Finding out imployment to imploy young and old.</ITEM>
<ITEM>4. Ordering &s;uch a godly and politick government; that the godly and laborious poore may be countenanced and cheri&s;hed, and the idle, and wicked poore &s;uppre&s;t.</ITEM>
</LIST>
<P N="1">1. For hou&s;es, it is needfull that two &s;orts of hou&s;es be appointed in every Cla&s;&s;e: that is, a workhou&s;e, and a hou&s;e of Correction, tho&s;e two
<PB N="2" REF="3">
hou&s;es will be u&s;efull in every Cla&s;&s;e, for the relieving, and reforming all &s;orts of poore.</P>
<P N="1">1. A common workhou&s;e for all &s;orts of poore to re&s;ort unto, I mean old and young, the old &s;ome of them, will be u&s;efull to teach the young, the young &s;hall have that benefit to be taught to write and read a part every day, be&s;ides doe &s;ome work to helpe relieve them; here will be the benefit, the Children that lye all day in the &s;treets in play|ing, cur&s;ing, and &s;wearing, are now kept under a godly government, which is an excellent &s;tep to Reformation.</P>
<P N="2">2. In ca&s;e any &s;hould be &s;tubborne, and will not take paines nor live orderly and peaceably, that then they be &s;eparated and &s;ent to the hou&s;e of correction, there to remaine in hard work, and hard lodging, till he or &s;he promi&s;e amendment, and when he is di&s;charged, he &s;hall not goe whether his lu&s;t, as the manner is now, being di&s;charged, but &s;hall return to the workhou&s;e from whence he came, by this meanes wickedne&s;&s;e will be kept in &s;ubjection; and this project will either reforme them that are &s;tubborne, or make them run the Country.</P>
<P>Al&s;o if we con&s;ider the great nece&s;&s;ity of hou&s;es or Churches in great Pari&s;hes, where there are little le&s;&s;e then 30. or 40000. people, how &s;hall one Church or hou&s;e receive them all, in &s;uch a ca&s;e many workhou&s;es a|bout London will be very needfull to keepe people together vnder go|vernment on the Sabboth day, as on the weeke dayes; this de&s;erves a con|&s;ideration from the Parliament for the good of the peoples &s;oules, and the preventing of Childrens playing in the &s;treets and beggers begging on the Sabboth dayes; So much for hou&s;es: Secondly for &s;tocke.</P>
<P N="2">2. For the rai&s;ing of &s;tock; To rai&s;e a &s;tock to imploy the poor, I con|ceive the Country may ea&s;ier doe it then the Cities, in regard the Law provides them materials with little charge of mony; I mean Hempe and Flax which the Law enjoynes them to &s;ow; but many pari&s;hes either for want of skill, or will, makes them &s;ow none, which is a great wrong to the Common-wealth, and makes our poor to go almo&s;t naked.</P>
<P>And whereas many if they &s;owe it, know not what to do with it, ei|ther for want of skill or will, therefore I conceive if every Cla&s;&s;es did keep a magazin or &s;tock of mony or materials; then what&s;oever hempe or flax were &s;owne within the Cla&s;&s;e, if any did want skill or time to manage it, they might then bring it to the Magazin and there they &s;hould be payd for it, either in mony or cloth, and what&s;oever cloth was made, the Mer|cers and Drapers in the County to buy it, to the end that they might not be wrong'd, by taking away their Markets.</P>
<P><PB N="3" REF="3">This will rai&s;e &s;tock, to imploy our poor and &s;ave our mony in our Kingdome <GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 word"> reported above a Million of mony goes out of the Land yearly for Linnen Cloth.</P>
<P N="2">2. The Clothiers in the Country that make broad cloth and <GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 word">, do imploy abundance of women and Children, which is a great helpe to the &s;tock in every Cla&s;&s;e.</P>
<P N="3">3. By way of Collection, and by way of charitable gifts, by dying men and women there is &s;ome &s;tock more or le&s;&s;e in every Country pari&s;h, to helpe imploy and &s;uccour the poor.</P>
<P>Having &s;hew'd how the Country may have helpes to rai&s;e a &s;tock to imploy their poor, I will &s;hew how the City of London may rai&s;e a &s;tock with ea&s;e.</P>
<P N="1">1. If the Parliament will be plea&s;ed to grant an Ordinance for a col|lection within the City of London and 1<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">. mile about; and this mony to be imployed for the education and imployment of all Souldiers Chil|dren, becau&s;e many of them, as well Widdowes as maim'd, have a great charge of children, and are very poor, not able to &s;et their Children to Schoole.</P>
<P N="2">2. One halfe yeares exci&s;e hereafter, when things are overpa&s;t.</P>
<P>That which is given to the poor, is lent unto the Lord, &amp;c.</P>
<P N="3">3. The 10. or 20th part of Bi&s;hops Lands, and &s;uch like to maintaine Engli&s;h School-ma&s;ters, for the well governing of all &s;orts of poore Children.</P>
<P N="4">4. That all charitable gifts in every Cla&s;&s;is, may be enquired after, and brought to a bank, and the Elders to &s;ee to the managing of it in every pari&s;h within their Cla&s;&s;; for &s;ome pari&s;hes in a Cla&s;&s;e, may have many gifts, and &s;o rai&s;e a great &s;tock, there it lyes dead, becau&s;e they have but few poor to imploy it, other pari&s;hes within the Cla&s;&s; have many poor, and out little &s;tock, and therefore many of them go a begging, but when the pari&s;hes joyn together within the Cla&s;&s;, they will remedy wandring begging.</P>
<P N="5">5. A weekly meale for one moneth.</P>
<P N="6">6. A voluntary collection twice a quarter at the Church dores, the Mini&s;ter per&s;wading all Journy-men and Maid-&s;ervants that care not to &s;pend a &s;hilling or two vainly, (many times) may give &s;omething out of their vain expences; let them remember that God gives them health and &s;trength to get riches, therefore &s;pare &s;omething to helpe breed up poor Children, and remember, that if they mary, and have children, their
<PB N="4" REF="4">
children may have the benefit of Teaching in the work-hou&s;es, therefore let them be the more liberall to &s;o good a worke.</P>
<P N="7">7. That all penall monies ari&s;ing from Drunkards, Sabboth-breakers, Swearers, and Adulterers, which amounts yearly to a great &s;um in this City and Suburbs, may be brought into this charitable Cla&s;&s;icall &s;tock.</P>
<P N="8">8. A fourth part ari&s;ing of the forfeitures and &s;tre&s;&s;es from the Tenant to the Landlord; Al&s;o the 4th. part of the forfeitures of the Recogni|zance of Ale-hou&s;es, and of all other Recognizance, which part will a|mount to a great &s;um by the yeare.</P>
<P N="9">9. A penalty of mony, upon exce&s;&s;ive pride, and exce&s;&s;ive health-drinkings, which threatens the judgments of God upon King, Parliament and Kingdome, that the Honourable Parliament will con&s;ider of it, and &s;uppre&s;&s;e it, for the honour of God who hath done great things for them.</P>
<P N="10">10. If this work be religiou&s;ly and carefully carryed on; many at their departing this life will be very liberall to advance and hold up &s;o good a work of this nature, which is the only means to reforme wandring beg|ing, &s;o much for rai&s;ing of &s;tocks in City and Country; the next is imployment.</P>
<P N="3">3. The imployment that is mo&s;t needfull to imploy the poore of a Kingdome. I conceive the only imployment principally is to make choice of <HI>Maries</HI> part, which is an earne&s;t endeavoring by faith and obedience to gain a portion in Chri&s;t, for the eternall happine&s;&s;e of our Souls; The next kind of labour that I account next be&s;t is that, that brings food, and Rai|ment and &s;uch like comforts, as plowing and feeding of Cattle, f<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;hing, fowling, gardening, planting and graffing for fewell, Timber, and fruit, all which (by Gods ble&s;&s;ing) brings a plenty to Cities as well as Coun|try, and if God ble&s;&s;e the labours of all the&s;e, we are never like to &s;ee a famine. Al&s;o if men would be but moderate, and not &s;urfeit, and be drunke and abu&s;e the Creature, it would be better for their healths, and better for their families, and &s;ave as much, which they drinke wa&s;tfully, or &s;pue up, which would helpe reliev hundreds of poor Children in work-hou&s;es.</P>
<P>As the labours of the Country is in the fields and gardens; &s;o the la|bour of the City is in their hou&s;es, as &s;pinning linnen and woollen, knit|ting, weaving, &s;owing, with Shoomakers, Taylors, and &s;uch like; Shoo|makers and Taylors if they are good husbands, they are needfull profe&s;&s;i|ons in a Common-Wealth, and can get their living by Sea, or Land
<PB N="5" REF="4">
which many other profe&s;&s;ions cannot doe, as Silke-Weavers and &s;uch, a Trade that brings neither food nor Rayment in City nor Country, and &s;o I have done with the profe&s;&s;ions and imployment for &s;oule and body in City and Country, I will &s;peake of the la&s;t which is like a wall to a City, that keepes all in peace; and that is called GOVERN|MENT.</P>
<P N="4">4. For the order of Government for young and old to walk by, mu&s;t be by a Law and a Rule printed in a faire Table, to the end that every work-hou&s;e may know the mind of the PARLIAMENT, how they would have every one to walk by, to the glory of God, the honour of King and Parliament, and the joy of the Nation.</P>
<P N="1">1. That every one walk, holily towards God and Chri&s;t.</P>
<P N="2">2. That every one walk, curteous, and loving, towards one another.</P>
<P N="3">3. Carefull and Laborious for the good of the Common-wealth.</P>
<P>And if any one refu&s;e, to walke after this rule; but will walke pro|fanely, contenciou&s;ly, and idly, then, in &s;uch ca&s;es the Mini&s;ters and El|ders to have power to &s;end &s;uch per&s;ons to the hou&s;e of correction, and there to abide till he doth promi&s;e amendment; then to be di&s;charged at the Se&s;&s;ions by the Ju&s;tices, upon promi&s;e that he will live orderly and painfully in the work-hou&s;es.</P>
<P>But in ca&s;e, &s;ome will not be reformed, neither in work-hou&s;es nor hou&s;es of correction, that then the Magi&s;trate may have power to &s;end &s;uch per&s;ons to Sea that are fit, to the fi&s;hing trade, or otherwi&s;e, or to the Plantations to rid the Land of &s;uch Brambles, and this is better, then to &s;uffer them to live in mi&s;cheif, and hang them at la&s;t; peradventure God may be gracious to them, and we u&s;ing all wayes and means to re|claime them may prevaile with God.</P>
<P>And whereas I have &s;et down wayes in &s;ome part, for the rai&s;ing of &s;tock, imployment of the poor in City and Country, and for the govern|ment of young and old in a godly, peaceable, and laborious way, or el&s;e to be &s;ent out of the Kingdome, all this good can never be brought to pa&s;&s;e without the power and a&s;&s;i&s;tance of the Parliament by Ordinance: So I conclude with my prayers to God for the pro&s;perity of this worke; and that God will unite King and Parliament, to carry on his holy, god|ly and charitable work, that the poore children unborn may prai&s;e God, for the Parliaments pre&s;ervation, and the Kingdomes Reformation, for which we owe to God prai&s;e, and prayers, and all Spirituall &s;ervice.</P>
<DIV2 TYPE="postscript">
<PB N="6" REF="5">
<HEAD>Po&s;tcript.</HEAD>
<P>The way to reform wandring begging, and other wickedne&s;&s;e in our Kingdom is, that a care may be taken to breed up 3. &s;orts of Children.</P>
<P N="1">1. Children that have no Parents to look to them.</P>
<P N="2">2. Children of carele&s;&s;e Parents that &s;uffer their Children to live in much wickedne&s;&s;e, and they take no care to breed them up in the feare of God.</P>
<P N="3">3. Children of hone&s;t poore parents, that will be glad to have their Children kept to wor<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">, if the Parliament will ordain by a new Statute Law, that all Cla&s;&s;es throughout the Kingdome &s;hall be injoyned upon penalty, to provide a certain number of work-hou&s;es and Bride-wels to reforme rude ungodly Children and idle people, Commi&s;&s;ioners to &s;ee it done according to the mind of the Parliament.</P>
<P>It is conceived that the&s;e 3. &s;orts of Children are the greate&s;t part of Children in the Kingdome, and mo&s;t of them are like to be come wicked members to the Common-wealth without this Government.</P>
<P>La&s;t of all concerning Government, that there may be certain ob&s;er|vations, as Lawes for every work-hou&s;e to ob&s;erve, for the keeping of them by Gods a&s;&s;i&s;tance in holyne&s;&s;e and peace one to another.</P>
<LIST>
<ITEM>1. A Law again&s;t Swearing.</ITEM>
<ITEM>2. Again&s;t all filthy talking.</ITEM>
<ITEM>3. Again&s;t cur&s;ed &s;peeches and ill behaviours again&s;t any.</ITEM>
<ITEM>4. Again&s;t di&s;pi&s;ing their fare in the work-hou&s;e.</ITEM>
<ITEM>5. Again&s;t any that filch and &s;teale.</ITEM>
<ITEM>6. Again&s;t any that goe filthily and &s;lovenly in their face and hands, and Clothes.</ITEM>
</LIST>
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