<!DOCTYPE ETS PUBLIC "-//UMDLPS//DTD EEBOPROOF 2.0//EN">
<ETS>
<TEMPHEAD>
<REVDESCR>
<CHANGE>
<DATE>2012-02-24</DATE>
<RESPSTMT>
<NAME>Judith Siefring</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
</RESPSTMT>
<ITEM>Proofed and reviewed as part of batch Z200905.pdcc.</ITEM>
</CHANGE>
</REVDESCR>
</TEMPHEAD>
<EEBO>
<IDG S="marc" R="OX" ID="A25530">
<STC T="W">a3320</STC>
<BIBNO T="oclc">11674293</BIBNO>
<VID>48074</VID>
</IDG>
<TEXT LANG="eng">
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="text">
<PB REF="1">
<PB N="1" REF="1" MS="y">
<HEAD>An An&s;wer to a LETTER Written by a Member of Parliament in the Countrey, upon the occa&s;ion of his reading of the <HI>Gazette</HI> of the <HI>11th</HI> of <HI>Decem|ber, 1679.</HI></HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>SIR,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>I Received your Letter, when I was engaged in much other bu&s;ine&s;s, which will excu&s;e me that I have not returned an An&s;wer &s;ooner, and that it is done no better now: You de&s;ire me to let you know what that Judgment is which my Lord Chancellor acquainted my Lord Mayor and his Brethren with, and what my thoughts are upon it: and that I may obey you in both, I will fir&s;t Tran|&s;cribe that Ca&s;e, as it is reported by Ju&s;tice <HI>Crook,</HI> that being already put into <HI>Engli&s;h,</HI> whereas the Ca&s;e in <HI>Moor</HI> is in <HI>French.</HI></P>
<P><HI>MEmorandum,</HI> That by Command from the King, all the Ju&s;tices of <HI>England,</HI> with divers of the Nobility, <HI>viz.</HI> the Lord <HI>Elle&s;mere</HI> Lord Chancellor, the Earl of <HI>Dor|&s;et</HI> Lord Trea&s;urer, Vi&s;count <HI>Cranbourn</HI> Principal Secretary, the Earl of <HI>Nottingham</HI> Lord Admiral, the Earls of <HI>Northumberland, VVorce&s;ter, Devon</HI> and <HI>Northampton,</HI> the Lords <HI>Zouch, Burghley</HI> and <HI>Knowles,</HI> the Chancellor of the <HI>Dutchy,</HI> the Archbi&s;hop of <HI>Can|terbury,</HI> the Bi&s;hop of <HI>London, Popham</HI> Chief Ju&s;tice, <HI>Bruce</HI> Ma&s;ter of the Rolls, <HI>An|der&s;on, Gawdy, VValme&s;ley, Fenner, King&s;mil, VVarberton, Savel, Daniel, Yelverton</HI> and <HI>Snigg,</HI> were a&s;&s;embled in the <HI>Star-Chamber,</HI> where the Lord Chancellor after a long Speech made by him concerning Ju&s;tices of Peace, and his Exhortation to the Ju&s;tices of A&s;&s;ize, and a di&s;cour&s;e concerning Papi&s;ts and Puritans, Declaring how they both were di&s;turbers of the State, and that the King intending to &s;uppre&s;s them, and to have the Laws put in Execution again&s;t them, demanded of the Ju&s;tices their Re&s;ulutions in three things: Fir&s;t, Whether the Deprivation of Puritan-Mini&s;ters by the High Commi&s;&s;ioners, for refu&s;ing to conform them&s;elves to the Ceremonies appointed by the la&s;t Canons, was Lawful? Whereto all the Ju&s;tices an&s;wered, That they had conferred thereof before, and held it to be Lawful, becau&s;e the King hath the Supreme Eccle&s;ia|&s;tical power, which he hath delegated to the Commi&s;&s;ioners, whereby they had the power of Deprivation by the Canon-Law of the Realm. And the Statute of 1 <HI>Eliz.</HI> which appoints Commi&s;&s;ioners to be made by the Queen, doth not confer any new power, but explain and declare the ancient power. And therefore they held it clear, <HI>That the King without Parliament might make Orders and Con&s;titutions for the Govern|ment&lindx; of the Clergy, and might deprive them if they obeyed not. And &s;o the Commi&s;&s;ioners might deprive them.</HI> But they could not make any Con&s;titutions without the King: And the divulging of &s;uch Ordinances by Proclamation is a mo&s;t gracious Admonition; And for as much as they have refu&s;ed to obey, they are Lawfully deprived by the Com|mi&s;&s;ioners <HI>ex Officio,</HI> without Libel <HI>Et ore tenus convocati.</HI> Secondly, Whether a Pro|hibition be grantable again&s;t the Commi&s;&s;ioners upon the Statute of 2 <HI>H.</HI> 5. if they do not deliver the Copy of the Libel to the party; Whereto they all an&s;wered, That that Statute is intended where the Eccle&s;ia&s;tical Judg proceeds <HI>ex Officio &amp; ore tenus.</HI> Thirdly, Whether it were an offence puni&s;hable, and what puni&s;hment they de&s;erved, who framed Petitions, and collected a multitude of hands thereto, to prefer to the King in a publick cau&s;e, as the Puritans had done, with an Intimation to the King, That if he denied their &s;ute, many thou&s;ands of his Subjects would be di&s;contented? Whereto all the Ju&s;tices an&s;wered, That it was an offence finable at di&s;cretion, and very near <HI>to Trea&s;on and Felony in the puni&s;hment.</HI> For they tended to the rai&s;ing of Sedition, Re|bellion, and di&s;content among the people: To which Re&s;olution all the Lords agreed. And then many of the Lords declared, That &s;ome of the Puritans had rai&s;ed a fal&s;e Ru|mor of the King, how he intended to grant a toleration to Papi&s;ts: Which offence the Ju&s;tices conceived to be heinou&s;ly finable by the Rules of the Common Law, either in the Kings Bench, <HI>or by the King and his Councel;</HI> or now &s;ince the Statute of 3 <HI>H.</HI> 7. in the Star-Chamber. And the Lords &s;everally declared how the King was di&s;con|tented with the &s;aid fal&s;e Rumor, and had made but the day before a prote&s;tation unto
<PB N="2" REF="2">them, that he never intended it, and that he would &s;pend the la&s;t drop of blood in his body before he would do it; and prayed that before any of his I&s;&s;ue &s;hould maintain any other Religion than what he truly profe&s;&s;ed and maintained, that God would take them out of the world.</P>
<P>I doubt not but your &s;elf, and every <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> Prote&s;tant will joyn with this Royal Pe|titioner, and will heartily &s;ay <HI>Amen.</HI></P>
<P>But you de&s;ire to know if I think that the Re&s;olution of the Judges in this ca&s;e ought to deter us from humbly Petitioning His Maje&s;ty, that this Parliament may effectually &s;it on the 26th day of <HI>January</HI> next. In order to this, give me leave to ob&s;erve to you, As it is mo&s;t certain, that a great Reverence is due to the Unanimous opinion of all the Judges; &s;o there is a great Difference to be put between the Authority of their Judg|ments, when &s;olemnly given, in Ca&s;es depending before them, and their &s;udden and ex|trajudicial Opinions. The Ca&s;e of Ship-money it &s;elf is not a better proof of this, than that which you have now read, as you will ea&s;ily &s;ee, if you con&s;ider di&s;tinctly what they &s;ay to the &s;everal Que&s;tions propo&s;ed to them.</P>
<P>As to their An&s;wer to the fir&s;t Que&s;tiom, it much concerns the Reverend Clergy to enquire whether they did not mi&s;take in it? and whether the King by his Proclama|tion can make new Con&s;titutions, and oblige them to Obedience under the penalty of Deprivation? Should it be &s;o, and &s;hould this unhappy Kingdom ever &s;uffer under the Reign of a Popi&s;h Prince, he might ea&s;ily rid him&s;elf of &s;uch ob&s;tinate Hereticks, and leave his Eccle&s;ia&s;tical Preferments open for men of better Principles: He will need only to publi&s;h a Proclamation, that Spittle and Salt &s;hould be u&s;ed in Bapti&s;m, that Holy water &s;hould be u&s;ed, and Images &s;et up in Churches; and a few more &s;uch things as the&s;e, and the bu&s;ine&s;s were effectually done. But if you will believe my Lord Chief Ju&s;tice <HI>Cook,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">12. <HI>Co.</HI> 19:</NOTE> he will tell you that it was agreed by all the Judges upon Debate, <HI>Hill.</HI> 4<HI>to Jacobi,</HI> and that it was re&s;olved by the whole Court of Common Pleas, <HI>Trin.</HI> 6<HI>to Jacobi,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">12. <HI>Co.</HI> 49:</NOTE> that the King cannot change his Eccle&s;ia&s;tical Laws; and you may ea&s;ily remem|ber &s;ince the whole Parliament declared, that he could not alter or &s;u&s;pend them.</P>
<P>I have the uniform Opinion of all the Judges given upon great Deliberation, <HI>Mich.</HI> 4<HI>to Jac.</HI> to ju&s;tifie me,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Co. Mag. Char. <HI>616.</HI></NOTE> if I &s;ay that our Judges here were utterly mi&s;taken in the An&s;wer which they gave to the &s;econd Que&s;tion. I will not cite the numerous &s;ub&s;equent Au|thorities, &s;ince every man knows that it is the con&s;tant practi&s;e of <HI>VVe&s;tmin&s;ter-Hall</HI> at this day to grant Prohibitions, upon refu&s;al to give a Copy of Articles, where the Pro|ceedings in the Eccle&s;ia&s;tical Courts are <HI>ex Officio.</HI></P>
<P>You &s;ee there was a kind of ill Fate upon the Judges this day, as u&s;ually there was when met in the Star-Chamber, and that they were very unfortunate in an&s;wering two of the three Que&s;tions propo&s;ed to them; let us go to on to con&s;ider what does princi|pally concern us at pre&s;ent, their An&s;wer to the la&s;t Que&s;tion.</P>
<P>You have ju&s;t done reading it, and therefore I need not repeat to you either the Doubt or the Solution of it; but one may be allowed ro &s;ay mode&s;tly, that it was a &s;udden An|&s;wer: 'Tis po&s;&s;ible the Lords then pre&s;ent were well enough inform'd, when they were told that &s;uch kind of Petitioning was an offence next to Trea&s;on and Felony; but I dare be &s;o bold as to &s;ay, That at this day not a Lawyer in <HI>England</HI> would be the wi&s;er for &s;uch an An&s;wer; they would be confounded, and not know whether it were mi&s;pri&s;ion of Trea&s;on, which &s;eems an offence neare&s;t to Trea&s;on, or petty-Larceny, which &s;eems neare&s;t to Felony.</P>
<P>You will be apt to tell me that I mi&s;take my Lords the Judges, and they &s;poke not of the nature of the crime, but of the manner of the puni&s;hment; but this will mend the matter but little; for &s;ince the puni&s;hments of tho&s;e two Crimes is &s;o very different, you are &s;till as much in the dark as ever, what the&s;e ambiguous words mean.</P>
<P>Well, but we will agree, that the Crime about which the Enquiry was made, was a very great one. When men arrive to &s;uch in&s;olence, as to threaten their Prince, it will be but little excu&s;e to them to call their <HI>Monaces</HI> by the &s;oft and gentle name of <HI>Petitions.</HI></P>
<P>But you would know for what, and in what manner we are at pre&s;ent to Petition; and I will give you a plain and an infallible Rule.<NOTE PLACE="marg">13. <HI>Car.</HI> 2. <HI>c.</HI> 5.</NOTE> It is the Statute 13. <HI>Car.</HI> 2. <HI>c.</HI> 5.</P>
<P>Be it enacted, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> that no per&s;on or per&s;ons what&s;oever &s;hall &s;olicite, labour, or pro|cure the getting of hands, or other con&s;ent of any per&s;ons above the number of Twenty, or more, to any Petition, Complaint, Remon&s;trance, Declaration, or other Adre&s;&s;es to the King, or both, or either Hou&s;es of Parliament, for alteration of matters e&s;tabli&s;hed by Law in Church or State, unle&s;s the mattet thereof have been fir&s;t con&s;ented to, and ordered by three or more Ju&s;tices of the County, or by the major part of the Grand Jury of the County, or Divi&s;ion of the County, where the &s;ame matter &s;hall ari&s;e at their publick A&s;&s;izes, or general Quarter-Se&s;&s;ions; or if ari&s;ing in <HI>London,</HI> by the Lord Mayor, Aldermen, and Commons in Common Council A&s;&s;embled; and that no per&s;on or per&s;ons
<PB N="3" REF="2">what&s;oever &s;hall repair to His Maje&s;ty, or both, or either of the Hou&s;es of Parliament, upon pretence of pre&s;enting or delivering any Petition, Complaint, Remon&s;trance, or Declaration, or other Addre&s;&s;es, accompanied with exce&s;&s;ive number of people, not at any one time with above the number of ten per&s;ons, upon pain of incurring a penalty, not exceeding the &s;um of 100 <HI>l.</HI> in money, and three months Impri&s;onment, without Bail or Mainprize for every offence; which offence to be pro&s;ecuted at the Court of <HI>Kings-Bench,</HI> or at the Affizes, or general Quarter-Se&s;&s;ions, within &s;ix months after the offence committed, and proved by two or more credible Witne&s;&s;es.</P>
<P>Here you ob&s;erve the Parliament, who &s;et them&s;elves directly to obviate all the incon|veniences which might ari&s;e to the Government from tumultuous Petitioning, will not allow that great Numbers &s;hould joyn in Petitions for alteration of the Laws (becau&s;e it is po&s;&s;ible ill men might abu&s;e &s;uch a liberty), unle&s;s the mattet of the Petition be con|&s;ented to in &s;uch a manner as the Act directs; but in all other ca&s;es, they leave the Sub|jects to their undoubted liberty, as well knowing that from thence there could ari&s;e no po&s;&s;ible inconvenience; but on the contrary, that to bar the people of that humble way of making their wants known, might force them upon wor&s;e ways of doing it.</P>
<P>And therefore I mu&s;t tell you, that you do my Lord Chancellor great inju&s;tice if you think his Speech tends to deter men from all manner of Petitioning: No, that wi&s;e and eloquent Lord, who receives every day &s;o many Petitions, will, I &s;uppo&s;e, be content the King &s;hould receive &s;ome too. It never yet was thought &s;editious or tumultuous in any Government, for the Subjects in an humble manner to beg, That he who has the only power to do it, would redre&s;s their Grievances: 'Tis the way by which we apply our &s;elves to the King of Heaven, who knows all our wants, and yet expects from us that we &s;hould daily expre&s;s them to him in humble Petitions. And the Wi&s;dom of the Church, which has appointed Liturgies. and forms of Common-Prayer, &s;eems to in&s;truct us, that God is plea&s;ed when huge Numbers joyn in the &s;ame Petition. Why &s;hould not then &s;uppliant Subjects, with like humility, and in like manner addre&s;s them&s;elves to the Gods on Earth? e&s;pecially &s;ince Kings cannot know our De&s;ires, or our Grievances, till we our &s;elves inform them what they are.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Dan.</HI> ch. 6.</NOTE> I remember &s;ome wicked Councellors of <HI>Da|rius</HI> did once obtain a Law to be made, that none &s;hould Petition any one but the King for Thirty days; but there never yet was found &s;o ab&s;urd a State&s;man as to advi&s;e a Law, that Subjects &s;hould not &s;upplicate their Prince. 'Tis probable it would be well for &s;ome Favourites, who are near a King, if &s;uch a right could be taken from the people, for then all their fal&s;e &s;ugge&s;tions and informations might pa&s;s undi&s;covered; but 'tis impo&s;&s;ible that a King &s;hould long be &s;afe in &s;uch a condition. I will &s;uppo&s;e a malicious State&s;man, intending to rai&s;e a jealou&s;ie in the mind of the Soveraign, &s;hould inform him in dangerous times, that he was not beloved by his people, and that he was not to tru&s;t them: How could the Subjects in &s;uch a ca&s;e recover the Princes good opinion, in the ab&s;ence of a Legal Repre&s;entative, but by humble and affectionate Addre&s;&s;es? Or &s;uppo&s;e &s;ome good Prote&s;tant Prince &s;hould be &s;o unfortunate, as to have &s;ome Councellors near him who are conceal'd; and others, who&s;e Crimes make them fear Parliaments; it is ea&s;ie to &s;uppo&s;e, that the one &s;ort will be filling his ears with Stories, that a great part of his Kingdom are inclined to Popery; and the other &s;ort, that the be&s;t of his Subjects are quite out of love with Parliaments, as factious and &s;editious A&s;&s;emblies. Into what unfortunate cir|cum&s;tances would &s;uch a Prince be apt to fall, if his people were precluded from addre&s;|&s;ing them&s;elves, and opening their de&s;ires to him!</P>
<P>I might go on to trouble you with infinite In&s;tances of this nature, but there is no want of any in &s;o plain a ca&s;e: 'Tis the Doctrine of our Church, that the only Arms of Sub|jects, are Prayers, Petitions, Supplications, and Tears; and they are no friends either to the King or Church, who would di&s;arm us of the&s;e. My Lord Chief Ju&s;tice <HI>Hobbart</HI> tells us,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Hob. <HI>220.</HI> Wren|hams <HI>Ca&s;e.</HI></NOTE> That it is lawful for any Subject to Petition to the King for redre&s;s in an humble and mode&s;t manner; for (&s;ays he) acce&s;s to the Soveraign mu&s;t not be &s;hut up in ca&s;e of the Subjects di&s;tre&s;&s;es.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Vet. Magn. Chart. Exil. Hugi. De Spen|cer <HI>51.</HI></NOTE> It was one of the Crimes for which the <HI>Spencers</HI> were bani&s;hed by Parliament, that they hindred the King from receiving and an&s;wering Petitions from great men, and others.</P>
<P>And as it is our unque&s;tionable Right, &s;o in all ages the u&s;age has been by Petition, to inform our King of our Grievances. In the Reign of King <HI>Ed.</HI> the II. and <HI>Ed.</HI> the III. Petitions were frequent for Redre&s;s of publick Grievances, and for Parliaments, e&s;peci|ally out of <HI>Ireland</HI> (though that is a conquer'd Nation), as may be &s;een in the clo&s;e Rolls of the Reigns of tho&s;e two Kings. One in&s;tance I will give you for your &s;atisfaction, but I will tire you with no more, for that would be endle&s;s.</P>
<P>'Tis <HI>Clau&s;.</HI> 10. <HI>Ed.</HI> 2. <HI>M.</HI> 28. <HI>intus Pro communitate Hiberniae. Rex Dilect.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Clau&s;. <HI>to.</HI> E. <HI>2.</HI> M. <HI>28.</HI> intus Pro communi|tate Hiberniae!</NOTE> &amp; fidelibus &s;uis Ju&s;ta. Cancellar. &amp; The &s;aur. &s;uis Hib. &s;alutem ex parti populi no&s;tri terrae predict. per Petitionem &s;uam eoram nobis &amp; Concillio no&s;tro exhibitum nobis e&s;e cum in&s;tantia &s;uppli|catum, quod cum, <HI>&amp;c.</HI></P>
<PB N="4" REF="3">
<P>In the 5th year of King <HI>Richard</HI> the II.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Coke</HI> Juri&s;|diction of Courts, <HI>p.</HI> 79. <HI>Burarts</HI> Hi&s;to|ry of the Re|formation, <HI>pag.</HI> 231. <HI>Procl. Dat.</HI> 7. <HI>Feb.</HI> 11. <HI>Jac.</HI></NOTE> the whole body of the Realm Petition'd, that the mo&s;t wi&s;e and able men within the Realm might be cho&s;en Chancellors.</P>
<P>King <HI>Henry</HI> the VIII. told his Subjects then in Arms again&s;t him in <HI>York &s;hire,</HI> that they ought not to have Rebell'd, but to have applied them&s;elves to him by Petition.</P>
<P>King <HI>James</HI> by a Proclamation publi&s;ht in the 12th year of his Reign, begins thus: The complaints lately exhibited to us by certain Noblemen, and others of our Kingdom of <HI>Ireland,</HI> &s;ugge&s;ting di&s;orders and abu&s;es, as well in the proceedings of the late be|gun. Parliament, as in the Martial and Civil Government of the Kingdom, We did re|ceive with extraordinary grace and favour.</P>
<P>And by another Proclamation in the 12th year of his Reign,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Procl. 12 <HI>Jac.</HI></NOTE> he declares, That it was the right of his &s;ubjects to make their immediate addre&s;&s;es to him by petition; and in the 19th year of his reign he invites his &s;ubjects to it.</P>
<P>And in the 20th year of his Reign he tells his people,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Procl. dat. 10th <HI>July.</HI> 19. <HI>Jac.</HI> Procl. dated 14 <HI>Feb.</HI> 20. <HI>Jac.</HI></NOTE> That his own, and the ears of his Privy-Council did &s;till continue open to the ju&s;t complaints of his people; and that they were not confined to times and meetings in Parliament, nor re&s;trained to par|ticular Grievances; not doubting but that his loving &s;ubjects would apply them&s;elves to his Maje&s;ty for relief; to the utter aboli&s;hing of all tho&s;e private whi&s;perings and cau&s;le&s;s rumours, which without giving his Maje&s;ty any opportunity of reformation by particular knowledg of any fault, &s;erve to no other purpo&s;e but to occa&s;ion and blow abroad di&s;contentment.</P>
<P>It appears that the Hou&s;e of Lords both &s;piritual and temporal,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Lords Jour|nal <HI>An.</HI> 1640.</NOTE> <HI>nemine contradi|cente,</HI> voted thanks to tho&s;e Lords who petitioned the King at <HI>York,</HI> to call a Parlia|ment.</P>
<P>And the King by his Declaration printed in the &s;ame year,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Declar. 1640.</NOTE> declares his Royal will and plea&s;ure, That all his loving &s;ubjects who have any ju&s;t cau&s;e to pre&s;ent or com|plain of any Grievances or Oppre&s;&s;ions, may freely addre&s;s them&s;elves by their hum|ble petitions to His Sacred Maje&s;ty, who will graciou&s;ly hear their complaints.</P>
<P>Since His Maje&s;ty's happy Re&s;tauration,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Temp. Car. <HI>2.</HI></NOTE> the inhabitants of the County of <HI>Bucks</HI> made a petition, That their County might not be over-run by the Kings Deer; and the &s;ame was done by the County of <HI>Surry</HI> on the &s;ame occa&s;ion.</P>
<P>'Tis time for me to conclude your trouble: I &s;uppo&s;e you do no longer doubt but that you may join in Petition for a Parliament, &s;ince you &s;ee it has been often done heretofore; nor need you fear how many of your hone&s;t Countreymen join with you, &s;ince you hear of Petitions by the whole body of the Realm; and &s;ince you &s;ee, both by the opinions of our Lawyers, by the Doctrine of our Church, and by the Declara|tions of our Kings, That it is our undoubted right to petition. Nothing can be more ab&s;urd than to &s;ay, That the number of the Supplicants makes an innocent petition an offence; on the contrary, if in a thing of this publick concernment, a few only &s;hould addre&s;s them&s;elves to the King, it would be a thing in its &s;elf ridiculous; the great end of &s;uch Addre&s;&s;es being to acquaint Him with the general de&s;ires of His people, which can never be done unle&s;s multitudes join. How can the complaints of the diffu&s;ive body of the Realm reach His Maje&s;ty's ears in the ab&s;ence of Parliament, but in the actual concurrence of every individual per&s;on in petition? for the per&s;onal application of multitudes, is indeed unlawful and dangerous.</P>
<P>Give me leave,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Stat.</HI> 13. <HI>Car.</HI> 2. <HI>c.</HI> 5.</NOTE> &s;ince the <HI>Gazette</HI> runs &s;o much in your mind, to tell you (as I may mo|de&s;tly enough do, &s;ince the Statute directs me) what an&s;wer the Judges would now give if &s;uch another Ca&s;e were put to them, as was put to the Judges 2 <HI>Jacobi.</HI></P>
<P>Suppo&s;e the Nonconformi&s;ts at this day (as the <HI>Puritans</HI> then did) &s;hould &s;ollicit&eacute; the getting of the hands of multitudes to a Petition to the King for &s;u&s;pending the ex|ecution of the penal Laws again&s;t them&s;elves; the pre&s;ent Judges would not tell you that this was an offence next to Trea&s;on or Felony, nor that the offenders were to be brought to the Council-board to be puni&s;hed; but they would tell you plainly and di&s;tinctly, That if the hands of more per&s;ons than twenty were &s;ollicited or procured to &s;uch a petition, and the offenders were convicted upon the evidence of two or more credible Witne&s;&s;es upon a pro&s;ecution in the Kings Bench, or at the A&s;&s;izes or Quarter Se&s;&s;ions, within &s;ix months, they would incur a penalty not exceeding a hundred pounds, and three months impri&s;onment, becau&s;e their petition was to change a matter e&s;tabli&s;ht by Law. But I am &s;ure you are a better Logician than not to &s;ee the difference which the Statute makes between &s;uch a petition which is to alter a thing e&s;tabli&s;ht by Law, and an innocent and humble petition, That a Parliament may meet according to Law, in a time when the greate&s;t dangers hang over the King, the Church, and the State.</P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
<PB REF="3">
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
