<!DOCTYPE ETS PUBLIC "-//UMDLPS//DTD EEBOPROOF 2.0//EN">
<ETS>
<TEMPHEAD>
<REVDESCR>
<CHANGE>
<DATE>2013-11-11</DATE>
<RESPSTMT>
<NAME>Judith Siefring</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
</RESPSTMT>
<ITEM>Proofed and reviewed as part of batch Z130910.pdcc.</ITEM>
</CHANGE>
</REVDESCR>
</TEMPHEAD>
<EEBO>
<IDG S="marc" R="OX" ID="A81998">
<STC T="W">D44</STC>
<STC T="T">E1082_1</STC>
<STC T="C">R207940</STC>
<BIBNO T="umi">99866955</BIBNO>
<VID>119244</VID>
</IDG>
<TEXT LANG="eng">
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="text">
<PB N="1" REF="1" MS="y">
<HEAD>Short Meditations on, with a briefe De&s;cription of the Life and Death of <HI>Oliver Cromwell.</HI></HEAD>
<BYLINE><HI>Written by</HI> J. D. Durnovariae.</BYLINE>
<P>SEtlement in a Kingdome who&s;e Foundations are out of order, is as truly de&s;irable, as a Propitious Harbour to the Marriners that have been long wearied with the furious Rage of Tempe&s;tious windes, and the proud &s;wel|ling waves of a troubled Sea. To none [except it be to him <HI>qui vivitur ex raptu</HI>] arguments needs be u&s;ed, when the land of his nativity groans under the burden of unnatu|ral war, and the heavy loads of Tyrannical oppre&s;&s;ion, to make u&s;e of this &s;hort prayer,
<Q>Da pacem Domine, pacem te po&s;cimus omnes.</Q> Whence that general fire of Contention which lately broke forth in the&s;e, before that time, mo&s;t happy &amp; glo|rious kingdomes took its fir&s;t fewell: I &s;hall forbear now to enquire into, the flames thereof being kindled e'r I hardly attained <HI>ad etate<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter"> virilem;</HI> but this is evident, that the force thereof was no &s;ooner blown up, but it found &s;ufficient matter to feed on, and its violence could not be &s;topt untill the wi&s;e di&s;po&s;er of all things heard the Cry
<PB N="2" REF="2" MS="y">of the Captives, and let the oppre&s;&s;ed go free; cau&s;ing the wrath of man to turn to his prai&s;e, but re&s;training the remainder thereof.</P>
<P>Pro&s;perity and Succe&s;&s;e in unwarrantable actions, na|turally heightens up the depraved Spirits of men to more unlawfull attempts; yet &s;till there is a guilt that &s;tings the Con&s;cience, and a fear that po&s;&s;e&s;&s;eth the &s;pirits of tho&s;e, who are thus animated to make a progre&s;&s;e, <HI>&agrave; malo ad pe|jus,</HI> lea&s;t one time or other vindictive ju&s;tice &s;hould draw them before the bar of its Tribunal, which to prevent, they con&s;ult with <HI>Gateline,</HI> and make this their Oracle. The ills that we have done cannot be &s;afe without attem|pting greater.</P>
<P><HI>Simulatae Sanctitas duplex iniquitas.</HI> To make religion a Cloak for Villany, hath been a practi&s;e, that hath had too long footing in the world, and it is too u&s;uall, <HI>Quod bonum pretenditur cum malum intenditur. Ahab</HI> proclaims a Fa&s;t before he kils, enters and takes po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion. <HI>Ab&s;alom</HI> when he a&s;pires the Crown, pretends the good of the people. <HI>Judas</HI> that betrayed his Ma&s;ter, and was a Thief, re|pines at the co&s;tly Ointment be&s;towed on our Saviour, under colour of taking care for the poore. But the dogs lick the bloud of <HI>Ahab: Ab&s;olom</HI> in his Rebellion is &s;taid under an Oake, by the beautifull Ornament of his Head, till by the hands of <HI>Joab</HI> he receives a ju&s;t recompence of his Rebellion: <HI>Judas</HI> hangs him&s;elf. And divine Ju&s;tice that not often &s;uffers &s;uch vildene&s;&s;e to go unpuni&s;hed, will at length bring every &s;ecret thing to light, and heap vengeance on &s;uch painted &s;epulchers according to the evill of their doings.</P>
<P>To e&s;tabli&s;h iniquity by a law, is to make Ju&s;tice the mother of Inju&s;tice, and Violence the daughter of that which &s;hould be &s;acred: <HI>Legu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter"> quaedam veneranda pote|&s;tas!</HI>
<PB N="3" REF="2">Words may well be wanting to expre&s;&s;e the horrid impiety of tho&s;e who having broken the laws, make a law for their own impunity in their mo&s;t dete&s;table actions, allowing them&s;elves to give to other rea&s;on for their en|ormities but this, <HI>Sic volo &s;ic jubeo &s;cat pro ratione volantas.</HI> when there was no king in <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> every man did what was right in his own eys, and the legallity of every mans action was by him judged according to the prompt of his own will, and then as <HI>Tot homines tot &s;ententiae,</HI> &s;o many men as there were, &s;o many laws there wore for every man to go|vern him&s;elf by, which jarring again&s;t the common utili|ty and peace, what confu&s;ion it brought forth, what &s;trange and unheard of impieties it fo&s;tered, Sacred Writ hath left us a &s;ufficient Record; Lu&s;t then was taken for law, <HI>non ho&s;pes ab ho&s;pite tutus,</HI> and men were grown to that impudence, as without the lea&s;t remor&s;e in publique view to commit the&s;e very acts which nature abhors, yea, to ju&s;tifie the offenders, and &s;o far to engage for their im|munity as to hazard the perpetual ruin of a famous tribe.</P>
<P>The Devill oft transforms him&s;elf into an Angel of light, Chri&s;tians had need be wi&s;e as Serpents, <HI>Latet anguis in herba;</HI> the biting Serpent lieth under the &s;weete&s;t herbs, and the mo&s;t prevailing temptations under the mo&s;t &s;ee|ming appearances of piety, whereby Dovelike innocency may be for a time mi&s;led, <HI>Humanum e&s;terrare be<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="2 letters">uinum im|mo diaboli<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">um per&s;everare.</HI> Mi&s;ts may for a time darken the &s;ight, but when they are once removed, there is none &s;o blinde as he that can but will not &s;ee.</P>
<P>Ju&s;tice may &s;eem to have &s;low feet, but yet it hath lea|den hands, and becau&s;e vengeance is not &s;peedily execu|ted on the evill doer, he thinks he may &s;till go on and pro&s;per, judging his actions by the pre&s;ent event, yet &s;oo|ner or later vengeance will overtake him, <HI>Licet pede lenta,
<PB N="4" REF="3">&s;ed pede certa,</HI> and my prayer is involved in that of the Poet.
<Q><L>&mdash;careat &s;ucce&s;&s;ibus opto</L>
<L>Qui&s;quis ab eventu facta notanda putat.</L></Q></P>
<P>Ambition carrieth men beyond all bounds, yet no man ordinarily &s;teps but by degrees into the heighth he de&s;ires, and that he may in time accompli&s;h his intended end, for a time, he conceals his intentioned purpo&s;es, till an op|portune &s;ea&s;on profer, that he may &s;afely land him&s;elf on that Harbor, towards which he hath been long &s;ayling in the &s;hip of his affectation; he that u&s;ed policy with his Ambition, is not much unlike the Water-man that looks one way, but rows another. Sometimes that is actived by &s;ubtilty, which could never have been obtained by force, and very oft it is &s;een, that he that is underminde in pol|licy will make u&s;e of force to procure what he de&s;ires, not caring how he attain it, &s;o as he have it <HI>per fas aut nefas:</HI> What though kingdoms be &s;ubverted, Commonwealths confounded, Cities be de&s;troyed, and Countries wa&s;ted, this &s;ticks not on the Ambitious mans heart, the Crown is that this <HI>Nimrod</HI> is hunting after.</P>
<P>He that Hunts but for Recreation, is &s;o intent on his &s;port, that he cares not, he fears not; though he break down the fences, it troubles him not, though his poore neighbours corn be trode down with the &s;wift motion of his pranderfed galopers, he is no way moved at it, though the turnings and windings of his yelping kennel make a thre&s;hing in the corn ere it come to be cut, what is that to him? Gates, Bars, or Stiles keeps him not in, he leaps them all over, and he accompts both hills and ditches to be as levell ground, and venters to leap, where at another time he &s;carce du&s;t to craule. The cour&s;e ended or the game gotten, his carreres are &s;topt; and after &s;ome &s;hort pau&s;e had, he bethinks him&s;elf of the injury he hath done, and
<PB N="5" REF="3">findes more trouble for that than content in the purcha&s;e obtained; what are the hideous Correres of an ambitious &s;pirit: when once he hath &s;eated him&s;elf in that to which God and Nature never de&s;igned him, but he &s;tept into by Violence and Rapine! Then he crys out a Kingdome for a quiet &s;pirit, Oh the Crown for a good Con&s;cience; the one I have parted with all, but I &s;hall never enjoy it again: the other I would part withall, it is aburden to me now; It is not <HI>honos</HI> but <HI>Onus;</HI> I have it indeed, but it vexeth me, it torments me, horrours in the night affright me; but <HI>hinc illae lachrymae,</HI> to tho&s;e that are under his tyranny, then he arms him&s;elf with fury, and more feirce Re&s;olu|tions, taking the Councel of <HI>Reaboams</HI> wilde ones, con|cluding to make his little finger, heavier then the loyns of any of his Predece&s;&s;ors.</P>
<P>Not to rake up the a&s;hes of the late extingui&s;hed flame, and by Chymi&s;try or other art, to finde out their original to our intended purpo&s;e, it &s;hall &s;uffice to give you this &s;hort accompt; that the fiery-headed &amp; fiery faced <HI>Oliver,</HI> who&s;e face was the Index of his mind, before the&s;e un|happy di&s;tractions, having as to the generallity of the kingdom liv'd ob&s;curely, in the &s;adly to be lamented late Dome&s;tique Wars, got into &s;ome command, and by de|grees obtained to be Lievtenant General of the Parlia|ments Army; at which time his ambitious &s;pirit put him upon con&s;ultation, how he having but one &s;tep to be head of the Army, might in &s;hort time become head of the Kingdome, to which afterwards he arrives, though with the ca&s;ting of the whole kingdome into confu&s;ion; being animated to make his progre&s;s therein by his often pro&s;perous &s;ucce&s;&s;es in the wars, endearing him&s;elf into the hearts of his &s;ouldiers, pretending to them Religion and Reformation, when nothing le&s;&s;e was intended,
<PB N="6" REF="4">whereby he &s;o far ingratiated him&s;elf into their affecti|ons, that being backt with their power, none &s;carce dur&s;t &s;ay to him what do&s;t thou.</P>
<P>The fir&s;t apparent e&s;&s;ay he makes to his reign was when an happy conclu&s;ion of all mi&s;under&s;tandings be|tween the King and his Parliament, was very likely to have been, Then did his Ambition by the a&s;&s;i&s;tance of <HI>Pride,</HI> di&s;card the Members, who&s;e reall intentions, and endeavours then were for obtaining a firm and la&s;ting peace; having removed them, as the fir&s;t ob&s;tacle that &s;tood in his way, and left none other, but &s;uch as were of his own faction, or Phanatiques, or low &s;pirited per&s;ons; he beats on them for Ju&s;tice again&s;t our mo&s;t Gracious Soveraign [who&s;e &s;acred memory mu&s;t be Glorious to eternity, maugre the malice of his mo&s;t in placable adver|&s;aries] making then Ju&s;tice the mother of Inju&s;tice, and the&s;e that had no power to admini&s;ter an Oath, contrary to their own Oaths of Allegiance, to make an Act for tri|all of their dread Lord, <HI>O Scelus infandum!</HI> oh that blood thir&s;ty ambition! here the bounds were broken; here was Iniquity e&s;tabli&s;hed by a law: Oh the cur&s;ed effect of that pernicious act. It brought an Innocent Prince to the Butcherly block. It extingui&s;hed his life, and dark|ned the glory of <HI>England.</HI> Oh where were then our &s;pi|rits, what became of the Engli&s;h valour, that we could en|dure that mi&s;creant with the a&s;&s;i&s;tance of his guards thus to violate the faith of Subjects: and not to re&s;cue &s;o pi|ous a Prince from &s;uch bloody Vilains, &s;urely a &s;pirit of Cowardize or &s;lumber did then overwhelm us.</P>
<P>This unparalleld <HI>Regicidium</HI> being acted, he then for|ceth an Act for taking away Kingly Government, thereby intending the perpetual disinher&s;ion of his mo&s;t gracious Maje&s;tie that now is (whom God long pre&s;erve;) yet one
<PB N="7" REF="4">ob&s;tacle more &s;tood in his way to be removed, he mu&s;t un|commi&s;&s;ionate his General, this was not long effecting, but the Generali&s;&s;imo &s;hip &s;oon procured to be conferred on him, then had he liberty and opportunity, like <HI>Cae&s;ar,</HI> from a General to be made an Emperor, which by taking all Authority from them, that gave him Commi&s;&s;ion, he thought the be&s;t way to accompli&s;h; yet acts politiquely, not willing his de&s;igne &s;hould be forthwith publiquely known. But after their Di&s;&s;olution conveens a few to &s;it as a Parliament, who in a few moneths re&s;ign, and gratifie him for their &s;hort command, with the Title of a Protect|or; and now he reigns as <HI>Dominus fac totum.</HI> But had <HI>Zimrie</HI> peace who &s;lew his ma&s;ter; his ha&s;ty motions, his furious and &s;ometime gha&s;tly looks, well &s;hewed the hor|rour of his affrighted Con&s;cience, while&s;t he tyrannized, the three Kingdomes &s;atisfied not his humour, but he a&s;|pires after others, as if he would have given this for his motto, <HI>non &s;ufficit Orbis.</HI> To tell of his inhumanity in his rule would ask a Volume, and it is conceived that at his death, his mo&s;t execrable trea&s;ons &s;o affrighted his &s;pirits, that his heart within him died fir&s;t, when in others, the heart is <HI>Primum moriens &amp; ultimum vivens.</HI> And in his death-bed, certainly <HI>Saul</HI> was among&s;t the Prophets, for then he fortells, that in few moneths, his a&s;hes &s;hould be trampled upon. It might have fared better with him, had he under&s;tood the intent of that <HI>omen,</HI> which befell him upon his fir&s;t marching in arms out of <HI>Cambridge,</HI> wherein his Hor&s;e threw him directly under the Gallows. But the Corps of him who&s;e a&s;piring minde, could never be &s;atisfied, hath now no other Tombe but a Turf under <HI>Tyburn,</HI> and no other Trophie but the Scituation of the common place of Execution circumfering him. <HI>So let all the Kings Enemies peri&s;h O God.</HI></P>
<PB N="8" REF="5">
<P>After his death, what labours were there for a Settle|ment, his way, that way was tryed, and every &s;tone was turned, <HI>England</HI> groaning under more Changes of Go|vernments, than there are changes of the Moon in one year, but could finde no re&s;t.</P>
<P>The Needle toutcht with the load&s;tone, turn it to what point you will, yet will it never be at re&s;t till it come to the North point; <HI>England</HI> having for above five hundred years enjoyed the happy ble&s;&s;ings of the prudent and gracious Government of our mo&s;t Sacred Kings mo&s;t Royal Progenitors, in all tho&s;e Changes it lately &s;uffered could never be &s;etled, untill God out of his infinite good|ne&s;&s;e miraculou&s;ly re&s;tored our mo&s;t Gracious Soveraign to the peaceable po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of his lawfull and undoubted Right in his Imperial Crown and Dignities, Giving him to fit upon the Throne of his Fathers, where God grant he may ever be e&s;tabli&s;hed in Peace and Happine&s;&s;e, and that his Subjects may render unto <HI>Cae&s;ar</HI> the things that are <HI>Cae&s;ars,</HI> Tribute to whom Tribute is due, Honour to whom Honour is due; Obedience, Loyalty and Allegi|ance to him that of right it appertaineth, that they may &s;till fear God and the King, and not meddle with them that are &s;ubject to change: Let &s;hame cover the heads and faces of all his Adver&s;aries, but let his Crown flour|i&s;h; Let the Girdle of Righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e be about his Loyns, let Pro&s;perity be in all his Palaces, let Divine Mercy com|pa&s;&s;e him about, let Angells be his Guard, let him be cloa|thed with Salvation, and let all his Subjects continually pray, <HI>GOD SAVE THE KING.</HI></P>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
<BACK>
<DIV1 TYPE="colophon">
<P><HI>London,</HI> Printed by <HI>T. M.</HI> for <HI>Robert Clavel</HI> at the <HI>Stags|head</HI> in St. <HI>Pauls</HI> Church Yard, 1661.</P>
</DIV1>
</BACK>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
