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<DATE>2007-10-03</DATE>
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<NAME>Mona Logarbo</NAME>
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<ITEM>Proofed and reviewed as part of batch B070922.apex.</ITEM>
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<STC T="W">L2085</STC>
<STC T="T">669.f.17[16]</STC>
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<VID>163266</VID>
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<DIV1 TYPE="address">
<PB REF="1" MS="y"><!-- PDF PAGE 9 -->
<HEAD><HI>The Bani&s;hed mans &s;uit for Protection</HI> To his Excellency The Lord Generall CROMVVELL, Being the humble addre&s;s of Lieutenant Colonel <HI>John Lilburn.</HI></HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>May it plea&s;e your Excellency,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>_SInce your &s;elf with your Councell of Officers in your re&s;pect to the welfare of this Commonwealth, were plea&s;ed to di&s;&s;olve the late Parliament, I have made many humble addre&s;&s;es to your Excel|lency for a Pa&s;s to return to my native Country; having &s;uffered extraordinary much under the late Parliaments &s;entence of Bani&s;hment. But being informed that &s;uch addre&s;&s;es are conceived only fit to be made to &s;uch an authority as &s;hal &s;ucceed the late Parliament in their Legi&s;lative Power: And my condition being &s;uch, as could not admit of time to expect the i&s;&s;ue of new addre&s;&s;es to be made to the &s;ucceeding Power, being in &s;uch daily and hourly hazard of my life where I had my re&s;idence beyond the Seas; only becau&s;e I had faithfully &s;erved the Commonwealth, that it concerned my life, either &s;peedily to re&s;olve upon a perpetual ba|ni&s;hment into &s;ome foreign Country, where none &s;hould know me; hoping there to live &s;ecurely in an utter ob&s;curity and u&s;ele&s;sne&s;s to my generation, and a burthen to others for my bread; or otherwi&s;e to run the ha|zard of returning to <HI>England</HI> without a Pa&s;s, or promi&s;e of protection.</P>
<P>And my di&s;po&s;ition led me to chu&s;e the la&s;t, not without much wavering in my thoughts, in regard of &s;ome provocations which I believe I have even lately by Letters put particularly upon your Excellency: yet I hoped and believed that the har&s;he&s;t and mo&s;t di&s;gu&s;tfull pa&s;&s;ages in them might po&s;&s;ibly be con&s;trued to be the fruits of my highe&s;t pa&s;&s;ions, when my rea&s;on was clouded, not only by my &s;ad and mo&s;t heavy &s;ufferings, but al&s;o by the mi&s;apprehen&s;ions of your Excellencies actions and intentions, which I could not have the know|ledge of beyond the &s;eas, but as others mi&s;repre&s;ented them unto me; hereupon I hoped that God in his mercy to me, and my poor ruined Family, might incline your mind &s;o to conceive of all former pa&s;&s;ages of what&s;oever nature.</P>
<P>And then finding that your Excellency with your Councel, had declared that you would take upon you the care and protection of all Engli&s;hmen living godly, quietly and peaceably untill the great tru&s;t of the Govern|ment of this Nation be ve&s;ted in &s;uch as are cho&s;en for the &s;ame. And in the mid&s;t of all the&s;e thoughts, it be|ing much upon my &s;pirit that God by his providence would re&s;tore me to my native Country; and my heart being filled with a &s;trong faith in the goodne&s;s of God, and his protection in my endeavours therein. There|upon I re&s;olved, come life, come death, to ca&s;t my &s;elf, my life, and all that's left me in this world be&s;ides (under God) upon your Excellency, pre&s;uming upon your protection, at lea&s;t untill tho&s;e that are cho&s;en for the Su|preme Authority be &s;etled therein, and their an&s;wer be given to my humble addre&s;s. I confe&s;s I judged my &s;elf an Engli&s;hman, and among&s;t my Countrymen, capable of your Excellencies promi&s;ed protection, being ab&s;o|lutely re&s;olved to live as quietly and &s;ubmi&s;&s;ively to the pre&s;ent and &s;ucceeding Power as any man, having no o|ther re&s;olutions, intentions, nor thoughts then to live godly and peaceably with my poor di&s;tre&s;&s;ed Family; and to &s;tudie to &s;erve the Commonwealth, if tho&s;e tru&s;ted with the Government thereof, &s;hould at any time conceive me fit for their Service; or otherwi&s;e to confine my &s;elf to the mo&s;t private life.</P>
<P>This I de&s;ired to make known unto your Excellency by my wife (the bearer hereof) and my true Friend Mr <HI>William Kiffin,</HI> the fir&s;t hour of my return hither from <HI>Callis</HI> to <HI>London</HI> (in one day, in the private&s;t manner I po&s;&s;ible could) and they having waited for, or upon your Excellency &s;everal hours this morning; and your great Affairs preventing their audience, I pre&s;umed thus to declare it in writing, le&s;t any mi&s;con&s;truction &s;hould be made of my &s;udden return: the true occa&s;ions of it, and my ends and intention therein, being nakedly and <HI>bona+fide,</HI> herein fully declared, and only according to the integrity of my heart in the&s;e real expre&s;&s;ions; I humbly hope for, and confide in your Excellencies goodne&s;s to protect,</P>
<CLOSER><DATELINE><HI>From my pre&s;ent lodging in little</HI> Moor-fields <HI>in</HI> London, <DATE><HI>Tue&s;day this</HI>
14. <HI>of</HI> June 1653.</DATE></DATELINE>
<SALUTE>My Lord,</SALUTE> <SIGNED>Your Excellencies mo&s;t humble Servant,
John Lilburn.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
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<P><HI>London,</HI> Printed by <HI>Tho. Newcomb</HI> dwelling in <HI>Thame&s;treet</HI> over again&s;t <HI>Baynards Ca&s;tle.</HI></P>
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