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<NAME>Alexis Jakobson</NAME>
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<PB REF="1">
<PB N="1" REF="1" MS="y">
<HEAD>Londons Liberty In Chains di&s;covered. <HI>AND,</HI> Publi&s;hed by Lieutenant Golonell JOHN LILBURN, pri&s;oner in the Tower of <HI>London, Octob.</HI> 1646.</HEAD>
<EPIGRAPH>
<BIBL><HI>JER. 22.15.16.17.</HI></BIBL>
<Q><P>Shalt thou reign, becau&s;e thou clo&s;e&s;t thy &s;elfe in Cedar? Did not thy Father eat and drinke, and doe judgement and ju&s;tice, and then it was well with him?</P>
<P>He judged the cau&s;e of the poore and needy, then it was well with him: was not this to know me, &s;aith the Lord?</P>
<P>But thine eyes and thine heart are not, but for thy covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e, and for to &s;hed innocent blood, and for oppre&s;&s;ion and violence to doe it.</P>
<P>Therefore thus &s;aith the Lord concerning Iehoiakim the &s;onne of Io&s;iah King of Iudah, They &s;hall not lament for him, &s;aying, Ah my bro|ther, or ah my &s;i&s;ter: they &s;hall not lament for him, Ah Lord, or ah his glory.</P></Q>
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<P>IT is to be ob&s;eb&s;erved, That the illegall election of great Mini&s;ters and Officers for the admini&s;tration and execution of Ju&s;tice, and where the people have been and are depri|ved of this their ju&s;t right and liberty; there have ever all act<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">ons and practi&s;es of inju&s;tice and oppre&s;&s;ions abounded: Freedome and Liberty being the onely Jewels in e&s;teem with the Commonalty, as a thing mo&s;t pretious unto them, and meriting that men &s;hould expo&s;e them&s;elves to all danger, for the pre&s;ervation and defence thereof again&s;t all tyranny and oppre&s;&s;ion of what na|ture and condition &s;oever.</P>
<P>For prevention therefore of the&s;e mi&s;chiefes and mi&s;eries (which through evill government of magi&s;trates by their inju&s;tice and o|ther
<PB N="2" REF="2">
oppre&s;&s;ive practices) doe u&s;ually fall upon Kingdomes and Ci|ties. And for that all lawfull powers re&s;ide in the people, for who&s;e good, welfare, and happine&s;&s;e, all government and ju&s;t policies were ordained: And fora&s;much as that government which is violent and forced, (not re&s;pecting the good of the common people, but onely the will of the commander) may be properly called <HI>Tyranny:</HI> (the people having in all well ordered and con&s;tituted Comon-wealths, re&s;erved to them&s;elves the right and free election of the greate&s;t Mi|ni&s;ters and Officers of State.) Now although the tyranny whereby a City or State oppre&s;&s;eth her people, may for the pre&s;ent &s;eem to be more moderate then that of one man; yet in many things it is more intollerable: And it will clearly appeare, that the mi&s;eries wherewith a Tyrant loadeth his people, cannot bee &s;o heavy as the burthens impo&s;ed by a cruell City.</P>
<P>Therefore all free Cities, le&s;t their government &s;hould become a tyranny, and their Governours, through ambition and mi&s;go|vernment, take liberty to oppre&s;&s;e and in&s;lave the people to their lu&s;ts and wils; have in their fir&s;t Con&s;titutions provided, that all their Of|ficers and Magi&s;trates &s;hould be elective <HI>By Votes and Approbation</HI> of the free people of each City; and no longer to continue then a yeare, (as the <HI>Annuall Con&s;uls in Rome.</HI>) By which moderation of Government, the people have &s;till pre&s;erved their ancient Liberty, enjoyed peace, honour, and accord: and have thereby avoyded tho&s;e calamities incident to people &s;ubjected to the Lawes and <HI>Ar|bitrary Dominion of their in&s;ulting Lords and Magi&s;trates</HI> (or Ma|&s;ters;) of all which this Honorable Citie, and Metropolis of this Kingdome, upon the fir&s;t erecting of this I&s;land into a Monarchy, or Kingdome, by that valiant, wi&s;e, and victorious Prince, <HI>Alfrede,</HI> who fir&s;t freed the Land from under the <HI>Dani&s;h</HI> yoke and &s;lavery, under which it had a long time groaned; did with the approba|tion of their King, and States, then a&s;&s;embled in Parliament, for their well-being, and more peaceable good government, agree, and by a perpetuall law, ordaine; That all their Governours, and Magi&s;trates, &s;hould be <HI>Annuall</HI> and <HI>Elective,</HI> by the free votes of the free men of the Citie, <HI>Then,</HI> and <HI>Yet,</HI> called by the Names of <HI>Barons,</HI> and <HI>Bur|ge&s;&s;es of London,</HI> as appeares by their generall Charters of Con|firmation of their Liberties, by &s;everall Princes (before and &s;ince the Conque&s;t) although in proce&s;&s;e of times, their Titles, and Names
<PB N="3" REF="2">
of their Offices, bee changed; yet the power and right of election &s;till remains, and ought to continue in the body of Commonalty, and not in any particular or &s;elect per&s;ons of any Company, or Bro|therhood what&s;oever. And for illu&s;tration, and more cleare mani|fe&s;tation hereof, I need none other Evidence, or Proofe, then the Charter of King <HI>John,</HI> granted to the Citizens before the Incorpo|ration of any Company: The fir&s;t Company that was incorporate, about the yeare of our Lord, 1327. being more then an hundred yeares after the date and grant of the afore&s;aid Charter; which hath been &s;ince by &s;undry Kings and Parliaments confirmed. Their Char|ter I have here &s;et down at large; which, compared with the Prote|&s;tation, will make good your right, and Ju&s;tifie your claime to vote <HI>In electing the Major of this Citie.</HI></P>
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<DIV1 TYPE="charter">
<HEAD>The Charter.</HEAD>
<P><HI>IOhannes Dei gratia Rex Angliae, Dom. Hiberniae, Dux Norman. A|quitania, &amp; Comes, Anjou. Archiepi&s;c. Epi&s;cop. Abbatis, Com. Baron. Ju&s;tic, Vic. Prapo&s;itis, &amp; omnibus Ballivis fidelib. &s;uic. Salu|tem, Sciatis nos conce&s;&s;i&s;&s;e, &amp; prae&s;enti Charta no&s;tra confirma&s;&s;a Ba|ronibus no&s;tris de London, quod eligant &s;ibi Majorem de &s;eip&s;is &s;ingu|lis annis, qui nobis &s;it fidelis, di&s;cre<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">us &amp; idoneus ad regimen Civi|tatis: ita quod cum electus fuerit; nobis, vel Ju&s;tic. no&s;tro, &s;i prae&s;en|tes non fuerimus, prae&s;entetur, &amp; nobis Juret fidelitatem&punc; &amp; quod liceat eis ip&s;um in fine Anni amovere, &amp; alium &s;ubstituere &s;i voluerunt vel eundem retinere. Ita tamen quod nobis o&s;tendatur idem vel Ju|&s;tic. no&s;tr. &s;i prae&s;entes non fuerimus. Conce&s;&s;imus etiam ei&s;dem Ba|ronibus no&s;tris, &amp; hac Charta no&s;tra confirmavimus quod habeant be|ne &amp; in pace quiete &amp; integre omnes libertates &s;uas quibus hactenus u&s;i &s;unt, tam in Civitate quam extra tam in terris quam aquis, &amp; omnibus aliis locis. Salva nobis Chamblengeria no&s;tra. Quare vo|lumus &amp; firmiter praecipimus quod praedicti Barones no&s;tri Civita|tis no&s;trae London eligant &s;ibi Majorem &s;ingulis Annis de &s;eip&s;is prae|dicto modo: &amp; quod omnes praedictas <HI>Libertates,</HI> &amp;c. bene &amp; in pace ha|beant &s;icut praedict. &amp;c. Te&s;tibus, &amp;c. Anno regni decimo &s;exto.</HI></P>
<P><PB N="4" REF="3"><HI>JOHN</HI> by the grace of God, King of <HI>England,</HI> Lord of <HI>Ireland,</HI> Duke of <HI>Normandy, Aquitain,</HI> and Earl of <HI>Anjeou,</HI> To his Arch-Bi&s;hops, Bi&s;hops, Abbots, Earls, Barons, Ju&s;tices, Sheriffes, Stewards, and all his Bayliffes, and faith|full Subjects greeting; Know ye, rhat We have granted, and by this pre&s;ent <HI>Charter,</HI> have confirmed to our Barons of <HI>London,</HI> That they may chu&s;e to them&s;elves every year a Ma<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter"> of them&s;elves, who is faithfull to Us, being di&s;creet and fit for government of the City. So that when he &s;hall be cho&s;en, he be pre&s;ented to Vs, or to Our Ju&s;tice, if We be not pre&s;ent, and &s;wear to Us fidelity, and that it may be lawfull for them at the end of the Year, to remove him, and and appoint another, or retain him, if they plea&s;e; yet &s;o, as the &s;ame be &s;hewed to Us, or to Our Ju&s;tice, if Wee bee not pre&s;ent. Moreover. We have granted to Our &s;aid Barons, and by this Our Charter have confirmed, that they may wel, and in peace quietly and fully have and enjoy all the Liberties which hitherto they have u&s;ed, as well in the City as without: in the Land as in the Waters, and in all other places, &s;aving to Us Our <HI>Chamberiege;</HI> Wherefore We will and firmly command, that Our &s;aid Barons of Our City of <HI>London,</HI> may yearly elect a Major of them&s;elves, after the afore&s;aid manner, and have and enjoy, well and in peace, wholly and fully, all their &s;aid Liberties, with all things appertaining to the &s;ame afore|&s;aid; Witne&s;&s;e, &amp;c. in the 16. Year of Our Raign.</P>
<P>Wherein is fit to be ob&s;erved. 1. That all the Free-men of <HI>London</HI> be all and every of them Barons, being &s;o intituled and ordained by the Kings Grant or Charter. 2. That every of them hath his free Vote in the election of their Major. 3. That they have liberty to chu&s;e any Baron or Burge&s;&s;e from among&s;t them&s;elves, without re|&s;triction or reference to any particular per&s;on or per&s;ons, or to any other Fraternities of Aldermen, Co~mon-Councell men, or any other particular Gown or Livery-men only; &s;o as he be faithfull, di&s;creet, and &s;uch as they judge fit to govern. 4. That no Major may con|tinue in office above one year, without a new Election. 5. That Aldermen were likewi&s;e eligible by the Commonalty, and but to continue for the yeare, <HI>Patent</HI> 22. <HI>Edw.</HI> 2. <HI>No:</HI> 2. <HI>Cook</HI> 2. <HI>Part In&s;titutions, fol.</HI> 253. 6. Sheriffes are only eligible by the Barons
<PB N="5" REF="3">
or Burge&s;&s;es of the City, as appeareth by by the Charter of <HI>Henry</HI> the 3. made in the 11. Year of his Raign, confirmed after by <HI>Henry</HI> the 5. <HI>Charta de</HI> 2. <HI>Hen.</HI> 5. <HI>Part.</HI> 2. <HI>No.</HI> 11. But of late yeares the Al|dermen and Common-Councell of this City, by their power and po|licy, have invaded your rights and ju&s;t priviledges, and contrary to the fundamental Law of the Land, &amp; the antient cu&s;toms of the City, mo&s;t injuriou&s;ly have betrayed the tru&s;t repo&s;ed in them: &s;poiled you of your Liberties: taken upon them (of them&s;elves, with &s;ome &s;elected Companies) without the free vote, the re&s;t of the Barons or free Bur|ge&s;&s;es (the Commonalty) of this City, the &s;ole Power &amp; Government of the City, changing and altering your Lawes and Cu&s;tomes at their plea&s;ure, and chu&s;ing of Majors and Sheriffes, &s;uch, and whom they plea&s;ed, hindering and prohibiting all others (who ever had the like equall right and intere&s;t with them) to have their Votes in the choi&s;e and election of the Major and Sheriffes. Whence have en&s;ued many calamities and mi&s;eries, even to the indangering of the utter over|throw and de&s;olation of this mo&s;t famous and honourable City of <HI>Europe,</HI> being wholly disfranchi&s;ed of tho&s;e liberties, and immuni|ties, which even the meane&s;t Burrough or Corporation in <HI>England</HI> now enjoyeth.</P>
<P>Hence, by their craft and policy, have &s;o many Monopolies and Pattents under pretext of publike good, been brought in, and &s;et up to the ruining of thou&s;ands, and great decay of Trade &amp; Traffique, bringing in and countenancing of Arbitrary Lawes, and unlimited Power and Government, and whereby <HI>Tyrannie, Inju&s;tice,</HI> and <HI>Op|pre&s;&s;ion,</HI> have without controle been exerci&s;ed and practi&s;ed by the&s;e your late Governours and Rulers, as well as by tho&s;e your former Governours and Magi&s;trates, not by the Commonalty.</P>
<P>Were not the Land-Money, Ship-money (and many other illegall Taxes and Impo&s;itions) with rigour and force exacted of you Citi|zens by the&s;e your illegall Governours? Were not many of you free Barons of this City (for refu&s;ing to pay tho&s;e exactions, and to part with your e&s;tates by &s;uch illegall tyrannous cour&s;es) impri&s;oned by the&s;e your Governours (thus illegally forced upon you without your own free Election?) Were not the cruell Edicts, and bloudy tyran|nous Decree of the <HI>Star-Chamber, High Commi&s;&s;ion,</HI> and <HI>Councell-Table,</HI> withall readine&s;&s;e in a compul&s;ive Torrent executed? Nay, to reckon up in particular, the &s;everall cruelties, exactions, oppre&s;&s;i|ons,
<PB N="6" REF="4">
in&s;olencies, violencies, and the illegall practi&s;es and proceedings of the&s;e your Magi&s;trates, and their &s;ubordinate Mini&s;ters; would require a particular Tractate, which I rather de&s;ire might be buried in Oblivion, by a timely re&s;tauration of you to your antient and ju&s;t freedomes in electing your own Officers. But if &s;till you be denied Ju&s;tice, and may not enjoy your due and accu&s;tomed priviledges; I &s;hall be occa&s;ioned to remon&s;trate at large, and in particular, &s;et forth your &s;everall heavy burthens, har&s;h dealings, great grievances, and &s;everall incroachments upon your Franchi&s;es: how, and by whom your Rights and Liberties have been invaded: and how you are in|&s;laved, that were, and are (or at lea&s;t of Right ought to be) free Bur|ge&s;&s;es and Barons, but now captivated to the Lawes, covetous Lu&s;ts, and the Arbitrarie unlimitted power and dominion of your illegal|ly imperious lording Magi&s;trates.</P>
<P>Therefore, for the pre&s;ent, I will in&s;i&s;t only upon the manner of the election of your now new Lord Major: The Narrative whereof will fully di&s;cover, how much the Barons of this City &s;uffer, and that by their long forbearance, or rather neglect, to own and claime their ju&s;t priviledges and immunities (if they &s;toutly &s;tand not up) and re&s;olve to be no longer robbed and &s;poyled of their Birth-right and Inheritance; They are, and wil be then in danger to be reduced into a condition wor&s;e then ever any of your Progenitors, were, under the <HI>Ba&s;tard Norman Bondage.</HI> For indeed, you Citizens are but free-men in name, as in truth this your giving up your &s;elves to the power and government of men, without your free and publike choice and ap|probation, demon&s;trates: and therefore (truly) you can be accompted none other then meer &s;laves to your thus elected Governour<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">, as the re&s;t of the whole Nation is become, unto Lawyers, Attornies, Clerks, Solicitors, and cruell Jaylors, and &s;uch in&s;truments of contenti|ons, by whom the peace and flouri&s;hing State of this Kingdome is quite devoured and the people wholly in&s;laved to their wills; for truth hereof, I appeal to all the Inhabitants of every countie through|out this Kingdome, who&s;e e&s;tates, pur&s;es, and per&s;ons, have for the&s;e many &s;core of years groaned under the inhumane burden thereof; all which, is farther demon&s;trated unto us all, the Inhabitants of this Land, by the (&s;till continued) frequent, unju&s;t, and illegall Commit|ments of your fellow-Citizens, and all the free Commoners of <HI>Eng|land</HI> to the &s;everall murthering-hou&s;es (&s;tiled Pri&s;ons) in this King|dome,
<PB N="7" REF="4">
aboundnig in cruelty, murther, and oppre&s;&s;ion: being mo&s;t wickedly and powerfully countenanced and &s;upported by their Po|tent Adherents.</P>
<P>I have &s;hewed you, how by right, the meane&s;t Baron of this City of <HI>London</HI> (by their Charter) hath as good right to have his vote in the Election of the new Major, and other the &s;ubordinate Officers, as the Lord Major, or any Aldermen (for the time being) with their Golden Chaines. Notwith&s;tanding, this undoubted Right be ac|knowledged; yet is it denied to the people upon bare &s;urmi&s;es, and vain pretences of danger, by tumults and di&s;order, if the &s;ame &s;hould be yeelded unto, which in truth is, but a poor allegation, and fri|volous excu&s;e: The vanity and weakne&s;&s;e whereof, mu&s;t needes be apparent to any who is <HI>impartiall,</HI> and not carryed a&s;ide with de&s;ire of Rule, through Ambition, and blinded with affection, or bea&s;tly be&s;otted, and again&s;t Nature and Rea&s;on, loving Bondage more then Liberty. For what mi&s;chief (I pray you) do we find, or have we ever heard of in any Town, City, or Corporation, (where the Citizens have, and enjoy this freedome) of any di&s;order or tumults that have grown thence?</P>
<P>Were not the Sheriffes (till now of late) ever cho&s;en by the free-holders in full County? &amp; yet we find not that chu&s;ing to have bin complained of but rather (only) by Prerogative Power taken away to defrauding the people of their free choice due &amp; of right belong|ing unto them, by the great <HI>Charter</HI> of the Kingdom. And how are the Commons and Burge&s;&s;es now a&s;&s;embled in that High Court of <HI>Par|liament,</HI> elected? Whether by the Sheriffe, and &s;ome few &s;elected <HI>Grandees</HI> of each County, or by the Majority of voyces of all &amp; eve|ry the Free-holders that will appear, &amp; give their votes upon the day a&s;&s;igned by Proclamation, if our great Senators come in place, and be cho&s;en by the generall and free voyce of all, and not of a few (like &s;ome) which hath been the right manner of Election from the fir&s;t e&s;tabli&s;hment of this Kingdome, and &s;o hath continued to this day, being conceived to be the be&s;t forme of Government, and &s;o hath been found to be by approved experience? For, did <HI>Rome</HI> ever &s;o flouri&s;h, as when, not any thing was done but by the Senate and People there? But of this, expect a larger Di&s;cour&s;e.</P>
<P>I pray you, whence have we fetched this new wi&s;dome? Surely, not from above, but beneath; it being none other then Satanicall
<PB N="8" REF="5">
pride in thus de&s;pi&s;ing their fellowes, and free Commoners. For the&s;e can be of no other &s;pirit, but &s;uch as affect <HI>Tyranny, Inju&s;tice,</HI> and <HI>Oppre&s;&s;ion:</HI> And being thus, is it not then a lawle&s;&s;e Domini|on, <HI>and &s;o, not of God, but of the Divell?</HI></P>
<P>But let us now &s;ay &s;omewhat of the election of the Maior upon the 29. of <HI>September,</HI> 1646. the day a&s;&s;igned for electing the Maior of <HI>London;</HI> at which time Mr <HI>Wan&s;ie,</HI> a Citizen and Ba|ron of <HI>London,</HI> came to the Guild-Hall, <HI>London,</HI> the place appoin|ted for electing the Lord Maior for the yeare en&s;uing the doore of the Hall being kept &s;hut) the Mar&s;hal of <HI>London,</HI> who was with di|vers others, &s;tanding with &s;taves, to keep the doore: But Mr. <HI>Wan&s;ie,</HI> with divers other Citizens of <HI>London,</HI> de&s;ired, that they might have liberty to goe into the Hall; telling them, that they came with intent to pa&s;&s;e their free votes in electing the new Lord Maior. But could not by any meanes obtain liberty to enter the Hall, (although by them earne&s;tly de&s;ired) but were kept out forcibly with Hal|berts, Bills, and Staves, upon a &s;peciall command of the now Lord Maior, <HI>Thomas Adams:</HI> Whereupon the &s;aid Citizens having fra|med a Prote&s;t, (which they intended to deliver in the open Court) the &s;aid Mr. <HI>Wan&s;ie</HI> having the &s;aid Prote&s;t in his hand, and reading it to the re&s;t of the Citizens there pre&s;ent; the &s;aid Mar&s;hall thereupon with force, and much violence, laid hold on him (with the &s;aid prote&s;t in his hand) and dragged him into the Guild-Hall, and kept him there as a pri&s;oner for the &s;pace of an houre, until the Lord Maior, and Aldermen came from the Sermon: and then hee was brought before the Lord Maior, and Court of Aldermen; who there examined him &s;trictly about the &s;aid Prote&s;t; demanding where he had it, and who delivered it to him. And th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="2 letters"> they all threatned him very violently, that they would &s;end him to <HI>New</HI>-gate. But he an&s;wered, That he knew not the framer of it, nor him that delivered the &s;aid prote&s;t unto him: and then al&s;o affirming, that he and the re&s;t of the Citizens, intended to have &s;ub&s;cribed it, and then to have delivered it unto h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">s Lord&s;hip, and the re&s;t of the Court. But the &s;aid Prote&s;tation was derained from him. And he thereupon di&s;mi&s;&s;ed for the pre&s;ent, with ingagement by pro|mi&s;e, that he would attend his Lord&s;hip the day following. But for more a&s;&s;urance, his Lord&s;hip &s;ent an Officer for him (as for a De|linquent.) Upon who&s;e appearing before the Lord Maior, the &s;aid
<PB N="9" REF="5">
&s;aid Mar&s;hall made a great complaint again&s;t the &s;aid M. <HI>Wan&s;ie,</HI> for &s;aying that he would que&s;tion him the &s;aid Mar&s;hall for abu&s;ing him, as afore&s;aid, being very earne&s;t with his Lord&s;hip to have him committed. But the Lord Maior and &s;ome of the Aldermen for that time, di&s;mi&s;&s;ed and let him goe.</P>
<P>Thus you may &s;ee how imperious this Mar&s;hal is (being none o|ther then a meere va&s;&s;all or &s;ervant unto the Citizens of <HI>London</HI>) &s;he|wing and expre&s;&s;ing his di&s;affection to all hone&s;t and good men, in the highe&s;t nature.</P>
<P>After the thus election of the Lord Maior, the Livery men depar|ting, and the Court not ri&s;en, the Hall doore then being opened; the Lord Maior, <HI>Thomas Adams,</HI> gve command to the Con&s;tables and Halbert-men then &s;tanding at the doore, that they &s;hould take care that no Cloak-men &s;hould come in; fearing, as it is conceived, le&s;t the Citizens &s;hould come in, and prote&s;t again&s;t that unju&s;t and undue election of the new Lord Maior.</P>
<P>This briefe relation, that made unto you, may bee a &s;ufficient di&s;covery of the intentions and &s;ini&s;ter ends of your great <HI>Ma&s;ters,</HI> to continue you &s;till under an enforced &s;lavery and &s;ubjection, who e&s;teeming you no other then as objects, &amp; as unworthy to have any thing to do in the choyce of your own <HI>Officers,</HI> withholding fro~ you your <HI>Charter</HI> of <HI>Liberties,</HI> and <HI>Franchi&s;es,</HI> the more to blind you, and keep you in ignorance, that they may the better <HI>carry on their de&s;ignes</HI> again&s;t you, for the continuance of your <HI>thraldome,</HI> and to hold your necks under their yoak.</P>
<P>The very relation of the bad u&s;age of M. <HI>Wanfie,</HI> with the manner of the election of the <HI>Maior,</HI> compared with your Claim of Right, and Prote&s;tation again&s;t the &s;ame, is &s;ufficient to &s;hew &amp; plainly &s;et forth the illegality therof, to which you cannot &s;ubmit, without be|traying your own <HI>Liberty.</HI> Your <HI>Prote&s;tation</HI> being in my hand, I held it my duty no longer to conceal it: but for your common good to publi&s;h the &s;ame, hoping, that as you have freely fought for your <HI>Liberties,</HI> &s;worn to <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 word"> your <HI>Liberties,</HI> and largely contributed to the State to inable them to protect you in your <HI>Liberties:</HI> &s;o you will not &s;it &s;till, and pa&s;&s;e by this injury and indignity of tho&s;e that would and doe make them&s;elves Lords and Ma&s;ters over you, by violence <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 word"> wrong. But in&s;tantly adhere to your <HI>Prote&s;tation,</HI> conclude the claime of your right, and with courage and re&s;olution,
<PB N="10" REF="6">
maintain and pre&s;erve your iu&s;t and undeniable Liberties and Privi|ledges, which are thus unju&s;tly extorted, and kept from you by fraud and force, le&s;t it be &s;aid in after ages; <HI>The&s;e were the men, the&s;e were the Fathers that dur&s;t not, would not, own their Liberties and Rights: The&s;e were the men, who when a free Parliament were &s;itting, &s;ubjected them, and their Po&s;terity to voluntary &s;lavery.</HI> If you neglect this opportunity, and advantage offered you, for the regai|ning of your Liberties, and recovery of your Birth-right (the Law;) the lo&s;&s;e will be irrepayable, irrecoverable, bringing with it certain ruine, &amp; unavoidable va&s;&s;alage upon you, and your whole City; yea, though I am not a Citizen, yet no &s;tranger, nor forreigner, but a free-man of <HI>England,</HI> who hath freely hazarded all, for the recovery of the common Liberty, and my Countries freedome; and it is no &s;mall griefe unto me; yea, it lyes more heavy upon me, then all o|ther my troubles undergone, to &s;ee our <HI>Nationall and Fundamentall Lawes, Rights, and Priviledges, thus trodden under foot,</HI> even by tho&s;e, by who&s;e endeavours we expected a re&s;tauration of the &s;ame. Oh! the unexpre&s;&s;able mi&s;ery, and be&s;otted condition po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ing this Na|tion, that we &s;hould be &s;o regardle&s;&s;e of our &s;elves and Po&s;terity, as thus in, and by cowardly &s;ilence, to betray our &s;elves, and to beget Children, to live and remain (by our meanes) <HI>Bond-men,</HI> and <HI>Bond-women;</HI> yea, <HI>Slaves.</HI></P>
<P>Look but upon your indu&s;trious Neighbour-Nation, the <HI>Nether|lands,</HI> how for a long time, under faire and colourable pretences; <HI>(As Conformity, and Religion,)</HI> they were &s;poyled of their Lives, Li|berties and E&s;tates. But at the length, they di&s;covered the cunning and crafty dealings and devi&s;es of the Bi&s;hops, and their Clergie, whom the Spaniard promoted, and u&s;ed as his In&s;truments, by whom he intended to bring tho&s;e Countries under the power of his Soveraignty, and cruell will. The&s;e your Neighbours were con|&s;trained to knit them&s;elves together by Bond and Oath, to &s;tand up for their common Liberties, and Countries &s;afety, leaning every man (in matters of Religion) according to that common Principle, <HI>Re|ligio &s;uadenda non cogenda,</HI> Religion may be per&s;waded, not for+ced; &amp; the good &s;ucce&s;&s;e they have had therein, and tranquility and &s;ecurity they thereby enjoy; may be great incouragement to us, not to de&s;paire of the recovery of our Native, and ju&s;t Freedoms, and by the like meanes to put an end to the&s;e our troubles, &amp; unnatural op|pre&s;&s;ions,
<PB N="11" REF="6">
if we will but tread in the &s;ame &s;teps, each one labouring in his place to pre&s;erve the common Liberties and Lawes of the Kingdome, which makes us indeed true free-men, without &s;eeking, or endeavouring to Lord it thus (as now we do) one over anothers faith; your Brethren, together with you, and all the Commons of <HI>England,</HI> have an equall intere&s;t, and property in the Law, being all of us free-born <HI>Engli&s;h-men.</HI></P>
<P>Therefore look about you, and be no longer deluded to be by a meer &s;hadow of greatne&s;&s;e and flattery, fooled into &s;lavery; But ac|cording to your <HI>Prote&s;tation,</HI> endeavour to pre&s;erve, or rather recover your lo&s;t Liberties, which under conformity, and other &s;pecious pre|tences and glo&s;&s;es, you have been long deprived of: Till when, ex|pect not any Ju&s;tice or Right to be done unto you: For, it is impo&s;&s;i|ble, for tho&s;e that have reduced you to this &s;lavery, to degenerate &s;o far from them&s;elves, as to maintain or give you any a&s;&s;i&s;tance or countenance, in &s;tanding for liberty, untill they lay down their Offi|ces and Functions, which they all this time have unju&s;tly u&s;urped, and intruded them&s;elves into. I will forbear to in&s;i&s;t further upon this matter for the pre&s;ent, being ready and willing, if any &s;hould pre&s;ume to que&s;tion the Citizens ju&s;t rights, in the election of their Major; upon the perill of my head, and forfeiture of my life (if I be called thereunto, and may have a ju&s;t and equall hearing) to prove and maintain, <HI>That it is the ju&s;t and due Right and Liberty, for any free Citixen and Baron to give his vote in the election of the Major, and Sheriffes, and other the publike Officers: the &s;ame being grounded upon the Law of God and Nations, and agreeable, as well with the Fun|damentall Lawes of this Kingdome, and Cu&s;tomes of this City, as by the Charter and Acts of Parliament (yet unrepealed,) is confir|med.</HI></P>
<P>But one thing I cannot pa&s;&s;e by (which may cau&s;e &s;ome &s;cruples) which is thi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">&punc;</P>
<P>By the words <HI>(Barons of London)</HI> mentioned in King <HI>John</HI> his <HI>Charter,</HI> Whether, all, or but &s;ome &s;peciall Citizens of note, are to be under&s;tood; to be the Electors of the Major and Sheriffes of <HI>Lon|don;</HI></P>
<P>That all and every Citizen is there meant and implyed; The very words of the <HI>Charter</HI> it &s;elf clearly manife&s;t: For, the Liberties
<PB N="12" REF="7">
there granted by the <HI>Charter,</HI> are to them all as <HI>Barons,</HI> and not o|therwi&s;e, nor to any other particular per&s;ons of any Society: Yet the &s;ame may be farther cleared, thus in that before the Conque&s;t; all Free-holders of this Kingdome, (as well as in <HI>Scotland,</HI> are yet to this day) were called <HI>Barons;</HI> and therefore &s;aith, <HI>Lamb. fol</HI> 128. and 136. <HI>Court-Baron is &s;o called,</HI> becau&s;e among&s;t the Laws of King <HI>Edward the Confe&s;&s;our,</HI> it is &s;aid thus, <HI>Barones vero qui &s;uam habent Curiam de &s;uis hominibus,</HI> &amp;c. Baro~s are tho&s;e who have their Court for their Tenants or men. And this Juri&s;diction hath every Free-holder, according to <HI>Mirrour,</HI> C. 1. <HI>Sect.</HI> 3. <HI>&amp; ch<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">un, free Tenant u&s;e juri&s;diction ordinary:</HI> every Free-holder hath this ordinary ju|ri&s;diction; and the name <HI>Baron</HI> in the eye of the Law hath relation to Free-holders, &s;aith Sir <HI>Edward Cook</HI> 1. <HI>Part, In&s;titut. fol.</HI> 58. and in very antient Charters and Records, &s;aith he, The Barons of <HI>London,</HI> and the Barons of the Cinque-Ports, doe &s;ignifie, the Free-men of <HI>London,</HI> and the Free-men of the Cinque-Ports, <HI>Cook ibid.</HI> All which, I de&s;ire may be taken into due con&s;ideration: which, as I writ the <HI>Prote&s;tation,</HI> &s;o this I have publi&s;hed for the good of this famous City, and for the benefit of all the Barons thereof; and if you will own this your right, and not &s;uffer your &s;elves to be brought into voluntary &s;ervitude; I &s;hall be encouraged to make a farther di&s;co|very of the Priviledges and ju&s;t Rights, now unju&s;tly detained, and holden from you.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>By the Contriver of the Citizens Prote&s;tation, here following.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="protestation">
<PB N="13" REF="7">
<HEAD>The Copy of the Prote&s;tation made by the Citizens of <HI>London,</HI> the 29. of <HI>Septemb.</HI> 1646.</HEAD>
<P><HI>The right and claime of the Free-men Citi|zens, and Commonalty of the famous and mo&s;t antient City of <HI>London,</HI> for their Votes in the election of their great and highe&s;t Officer, the Lord Major, &amp;c. With their <HI>Prote&s;tation</HI> again&s;t the ele|ction of &s;uch, who &s;hall be elected Ma|jors, as illegall and de&s;tructive to the Li|berties and Priviledges of this City, if in ca&s;e the Commonalty, and Freemen there|of, or any of them, be denied, and not ad|mitted to have their Votes in the Electi|on.</HI></P>
<P>WHereas this City hath had, and enjoyed before, and &s;ince the Conque&s;t, many great and notable Franchi&s;es, Cu&s;tome, and Priviledges, often and &s;undry times confirmed, as well by the Laws
<PB N="14" REF="8">
and Statutes made in the &s;everall Parliaments, as by the &s;everal Char|ters of the Kings and Queens of this Realme appeareth; among&s;t which, it hath been an antient and laudable cu&s;tome&punc; (Time out of mind) for all, and every the Free-men and Citizens of <HI>London,</HI> in the <HI>annuall</HI> elections of the Majors thereof, to have their votes, as for|merly they had,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Porte Gra|ve,</HI> &s;ignifieth the Gover|nour, &amp; &s;afe Keeper of the City, or Town gates.</NOTE> in the election of their <HI>Porte Graves.</HI> In who&s;e place and office, the Major &s;ucceeded; as appeareth by the Charter of King <HI>John,</HI> granted in the &s;ixteenth yeare of his Raigne, where hee granteth to the Citizens, Liberty and Authority to chu&s;e yearly a Major out of them&s;elves, <HI>Cook</HI> the 4. Part, <HI>In&s;titut. fol.</HI> 253. Printed by Authority of this pre&s;ent Parliament.</P>
<P>Which Cu&s;tome, of Election of Majors, by majority of voyces of the Free-men and Commoners of the City, agreeth with the Fundamentall Law of this Kingdome, and the manner of election of Majors, in all other the Cities and Burroughs of this Realme as Coroners, were, and are cho&s;en in full County, by the Free-holders of each County, <HI>Inter leges Edward. Sanct. Chap. Lambert, folio</HI> 136. <HI>Artic. &s;uper. Charta, chap.</HI> 8. <HI>&amp;</HI> 10, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> The Major is Coro|ner within the City of <HI>London.</HI></P>
<P>Now, fora&s;much as we be Free-men, and Commoners, and Bur|ge&s;&s;es of this City, and &s;o have right, and ought to have our Votes in the election of the Major; Do hereby claime, and demand, as our Right, Cu&s;tome, and Priviledge, to vote in the election of this pre|&s;ent Major to be cho&s;en; and doe likewi&s;e hereby &s;ignifie, That for the &s;ame end wee are come hither, to give our free votes in elect|ing a Major for the en&s;uing year, if we may freely, without mole&s;ta|tion, di&s;turbance, and interruption, doe the &s;ame, according to the Statute of <HI>We&s;tmin&s;ter,</HI> the 5. <HI>chap.</HI> the 9. of <HI>Edward</HI> the 2. 14. The words whereof are the&s;e;</P>
<P><HI>And for that Elections ought to be free;</HI> it is ordained, upon pain of great forfeiture, That no Noble man, or other, by force of Armes, neither through malice or menacies, &s;hal hinder to make free Ele|ctions in Counties, Vniver&s;ities, Cities, Corporations, and other pla|ces, <HI>Cook</HI> 2. <HI>Part, In&s;tit. fol.</HI> 169.</P>
<P>And fora&s;much, as all the due, ju&s;t, and accu&s;tomed Priviledges, Franchi&s;es, Liberties, and Immunities of this City, are confirmed by
<PB N="15" REF="8">
this pre&s;ent <HI>Parliament, The Petition of Right,</HI> And <HI>Magna Charta,</HI> the great Charter of Liberties, where it is &s;aid, That the City of <HI>London</HI> &s;hall have and enjoy all its antient Liberties, and Cu&s;tomes, <HI>Mag. Chart. chap.</HI> 9. and the 28. of <HI>Edw.</HI> 1. <HI>E.</HI> 1.</P>
<P>And although it may &s;eeme, by rea&s;on of &s;ome undue elections of late yeares made, through u&s;urpation of &s;ome few, who by power and menacies, hindering the free Elections, not &s;uffering us the Free-men and Commoners to give our votes upon chu&s;ing and ele|cting the Majors to be a Barre, let, or hinderance to this our pre&s;ent voting; yet the &s;ame doth nothing at all prejudice our Rights, but rather aggravates the wrong done unto us: For there is a benefici|all Statute (yet unrepealed) made for the &s;trengthening and pre&s;er|vation of our Liberties and Rights, which no other Corporation hath that we know of; Whereby it is enacted, That the Citizens of <HI>London,</HI> &s;hall enjoy all their whole Liberties what&s;oever, with this clau&s;e, <HI>Licet u&s;i vel abu&s;i fuerunt,</HI> Although they have not u&s;ed or abu&s;ed the &s;ame, and notwith&s;tanding any Statute to the contrary, <HI>Parl. Rot. R.</HI> 2. <HI>N.</HI> 37.</P>
<P>Therefore, if we may not be admitted, being Free-men and Citi|zens of <HI>London,</HI> to enjoy our due and accu&s;tomed Priviledges and Liberties, to have and give our free votes in the election of the Ma|jor, we being by <HI>Parliament</HI> injoyned, and by Oath and Prote&s;tation bound, to our uttermo&s;t power, to defend and pre&s;erve the lawfull Rights and Liberties of the People; Doe declare and prote&s;t again&s;t all &s;uch who &s;hall any-wi&s;e hinder us, or any of us, in a free way, to vote in the electing of the &s;aid Major; as oppugnors and violators of the Lawes and Liberties of the Kingdome, <HI>and de&s;troyers of the Pri|viledges of this antient Metropolitan City,</HI> and &s;hall by all lawfull wayes and meanes, labour to bring them to condigne puni&s;hment, for &s;uch their offences.</P>
<P>And wee doe hereby declare, and prote&s;t again&s;t the Major, &s;o unduly and illegally elected, being cho&s;en without our free Votes and con&s;ents, who have right, and are come hither to give in our
<PB N="16" REF="9">
free votes, if wee might have freely, peaceably, and without let or trouble done the &s;ame, alwayes acknowledging our obedience, and &s;hall bee ready, with all alacrity and cheerfulne&s;&s;e to manife&s;t the &s;ame, to our lawfull Magi&s;tracie duly elected, in all their ju&s;t Commands.</P>
<CLOSER><DATELINE><HI>LONDON.</HI></DATELINE></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="postscript">
<PB N="17" REF="9">
<HEAD>A <HI>Po&s;t&s;cript</HI> written by Lieutenant Colonell <HI>Iohn Lilburn,</HI> Pri&s;oner in the Tower of <HI>London,</HI> Octob. <HI>1646.</HI></HEAD>
<P>THE omnipotent, glorious, and wi&s;e God, creating man for his own prai&s;e; made him more glorious then all the re&s;t of his Creatures that he placed up|on earth: creating him in his own Image, (which principally con&s;i&s;ted in his rea&s;on and under&s;tan|ding) and made him Lord over the earth, and all the things therein contained, <HI>Gen.</HI> 26, 27, 28, 29. and <HI>chap.</HI> 5.1. and 9.6. 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 11.7. <HI>Col.</HI> 3.10; But made him not Lord, or gave him dominion over the individuals of Mankind, no further then by free con&s;ent, or a|greement, by giving up their power, each to other, for their better being; &s;o that originally, he gave no Lord&s;hip, nor Soveraignty, to any of <HI>Adams Po&s;terity,</HI> by Will, and Prerogative, to rule over his Brethren-Men, but ingraved by nature in the &s;oule of Man, this goulden and everla&s;ting principle, to doe to another, as the would have another to do to him; but man by his tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion, falling from his perfection of rea&s;on (that Image in which God created him, <HI>Col.</HI> 3.10.) became tyrannicall, and bea&s;tly in his principles and actions; the effect of which, we &s;ee in <HI>Caines</HI> &s;laying of <HI>Abel;</HI> for which he was accur&s;ed of God, and all things hee went about, <HI>Gen.</HI> 4.8, 10, 11, 12. but God taking mercy of Mankind in &s;ome mea|&s;ure, and not executing the fulne&s;&s;e of his wrath, in the 9. of <HI>Gen.</HI> to revenge that bea&s;tline&s;&s;e, bloody, revengfull, and devouring temper of Spirit, that, by the fall, had now entred into the Spirits of all
<PB N="18" REF="10">
Mankind; in&s;titutes a perpetuall, morall, unchangeable, and everla|&s;ting Law; that is to &s;ay, <HI>That who&s;oever he was, that would be &s;o bea&s;tly, beari&s;h, and Woolvi&s;h, as to fall upon his neighbour, brother, or friend, and to do vnto him that, which he would not he &s;hould do to him, by taking away his life and blood from him; God ordaines, and expre&s;ly &s;aith he &s;hall lo&s;e his life without mercy or compa&s;&s;ion for &s;o doing, ver&s;.</HI> 5.6. Yea, and afterwards, when he chu&s;eth unto him&s;elf <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> out of all the Nations of the world to be his peculiar people, <HI>Levit.</HI> 19.15, 16, 17, 18. ordaines this for a &s;tanding Law among&s;t them; <HI>Yee &s;hall do no unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e in judgment; thou &s;halt not re&s;pect the per|&s;on of the poore, nor honour the per&s;on of the mighty; but in righteou&s;|ne&s;&s;e &s;halt thou judge thy Neighbour. Thou &s;halt not go up and down as a Tale-bearer among&s;t thy people; neither &s;halt thou &s;tand again&s;t the bloud of thy neighbour: I am the Lord. Thou &s;halt not hate thy Brother in thy heart: thou &s;halt in any wi&s;e rebuke thy neighbour, and not &s;uffer &s;inne upon him. Thou &s;halt not avenge, nor bear any grudge again&s;t the Children of thy People; but thou &s;halt love thy Neighbour as thy &s;elfe: I am the Lord.</HI></P>
<P>And when the fulne&s;&s;e of time was come, that Chri&s;t the Re&s;to|rer and Repairer of mans lo&s;&s;e and fall, &s;hould come and preach Righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e &amp; Ju&s;tice to the world; <HI>He &s;aith, it is the Law, &amp; the Prophets, that what&s;oever we would that men &s;hould do to us, that wee &s;hould do to them,</HI> Matth. 7.12. Luke 6.31. Yea, and further &s;aith, <HI>That as it is the great Commandement, that we &s;hould love</HI> (our Sove|raign Creator, and Pre&s;erver) <HI>the Lord our God with all our hearts, and all our &s;oules, and with all our minds;</HI> &s;o the &s;econd Commande|ment, which is like unto it, is, <HI>That we &s;hould love our neighbours as our &s;elves;</HI> and on the&s;e two, &s;aith <HI>hee, hang all the Law and the Prophets:</HI> So that by this, it is cleerly evident, that Religion, Chri|&s;tianity; or the knowledge of Chri&s;t, doth not de&s;troy morality, civi|lity, ju&s;tice, and right rea&s;on; but rather re&s;tores it to its fir&s;t perfe|ction, beauty, &s;plendor, and glory: and therefore the Apo&s;tle exhorts Saints and Believers, <HI>Ephe&s;.</HI> 4.17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24. <HI>Not to walk as other Gentiles do, in the vanity of their mind, having their un|der&s;tanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, through the ignorance that is in them, becau&s;e of the blindne&s;&s;e of their heart. Who being pa&s;t feeling; have given them&s;elvs over to la&s;civiou&s;n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;&s;e, to work all uncleanne&s;&s;e with greedine&s;&s;e.</HI> But (&s;aith the Apo&s;tle to all that
<PB N="19" REF="10">
love Chri&s;t,) <HI>Ye have not &s;o learned Chri&s;t: If &s;o be ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Je&s;us. That ye put off, concerning the former conver&s;ation, the old man; which is corrupt, according to the deceitfull lu&s;ts: And be renewed in the Spirit of your mind. And that ye put on that new man, which after God is created in righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, and true holine&s;&s;e;</HI> and excellent to this purpo&s;e, is that of the Apo&s;tle, <HI>Col</HI> 3.7, 8. where &s;peaking of, and to tho&s;e that have put off the old man, with his deeds; and have put on the new man, which (&s;aith he) is <HI>renewed in knowledge, after the Image of him that created him.</HI></P>
<P>And therefore the &s;ame Apo&s;tle layeth down his exhortation at large, and declareth, it is not only the duty of the Saints, to doe good each unto other, but <HI>as much as in them lyes, to doe good unto all the Sons of Adam;</HI> &s;aying, <HI>Gal.</HI> 6.10. <HI>as we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto</HI> all men; <HI>e&s;pecially, unto them, who are of the Hou|&s;hold of Faith.</HI> But the greate&s;t good that I know of, that any man can do unto the Sons of Men be&s;ides the di&s;covery of the knowledge of Chri&s;t, and the benefits and priviledges that are to be injoyed by him; is, rationally to di&s;cover the privilege, that is, the Right, Due, and Propriety of all the Sons of <HI>Adam,</HI> as men: that &s;o they may not live in bea&s;tline&s;&s;e, by devouring one another: and not onely &s;o, but al&s;o to &s;tand for, and maintain tho&s;e Rights and Priviledges in any Kingdome, or Nation, where&s;oever they are in any mea&s;ure e&s;ta|bli&s;hed: that &s;o the tru&s;ted, made great and potent, by a power con|ferred upon them; may not there-with (as is too commonly &s;eene) Lord it, domineer over, and de&s;troy by their Prerogative-will and plea&s;ure, the Betru&s;ters: yea, and al&s;o to maintain the liberties and priviledges e&s;tabli&s;hed in a Land, by Law, again&s;t the incroaching u&s;urpations of &s;ome great and mighty <HI>Nimrods</HI> of the world, made &s;o by wayes and meanes, more immediatly and properly flowing from the Divell, then God: and by their fal&s;e-a&s;&s;umed incroach|ing power, tyrant-like tread under their feet, all ju&s;t, and innocent per&s;ons: and protect, defend, and countenance none but tho&s;e, that will comply, applaud, and a&s;&s;i&s;t them, in their bruti&s;h, woolvi&s;h, and tyrant-like proceedings: which practi&s;es are contrary to the very end of Government, and Magi&s;tracy; as is largly declared by the Apo|&s;tle, Rom. 13.3, 4. where he plainly &s;aith, <HI>Rulers are not</HI> (no nor ought not to be) <HI>a terrour to good workes, but to the evill: wilt thou
<PB N="20" REF="11">
then not be afraid of the power? Do that which is good, and thou &s;halt have prai&s;e of the &s;ame. For he is the Mini&s;ter of God to thee for good: But if thou do that which is evill, be afraid, for he beareth not the &s;word in vain; for he is the Minister of God, a Revenger to execute wrath upon him that doth evill, but not upon him that doth good.</HI> The knowledge of which, in &s;ome mea&s;ure, in my own &s;oule, hath been the true ground, that con&s;cienciou&s;ly made me out of duty to my &s;elfe, and neighbours, and obedience to God; &s;tand again&s;t, and op|po&s;e my &s;elf again&s;t the Bi&s;hops, and with re&s;olution &s;o often &s;ince, in the midde&s;t of many deaths; hazard my life for my liberties, and the lawes, liberties, and rights of all the people of this Land, &amp; which is the only principle that now carryes me on in oppo&s;ition again&s;t the Lords: unto whom, as &s;o many men, I have and mu&s;t confe&s;&s;e, I am ten times more oblieged, for my own particular, than to the hou&s;e of Commons it &s;elf, having found at their hands &s;everal times cordiall and &s;peedy Ju&s;tice, which I never enjoyed from the Hou&s;e of Commons in my life; although I have waited upon them there|fore, the&s;e &s;ix years, and followed them as clo&s;e as any man (I think) in <HI>England:</HI> and I dare &s;afely &s;ay it, without vain or lying boa&s;ting; for the&s;e nine or ten years together, I have been as &s;erviceable to the Common-wealth of <HI>England</HI> in my place and condition, as any one man what&s;oever that &s;its in that hou&s;e; though I have been as un|gratefully dealt with by them, as ever man in <HI>England</HI> was: yet I &s;ay, when the Lords forced me to conte&s;t with them, which I pro|fe&s;&s;e, I was as unwilling to do, as I was to run my head again&s;t the wall, the which I told unto one of them&s;elves; yet I &s;ay, before I would have parted with my rea&s;on and under&s;tanding, and &s;o have defaced, obliterated, and annihilated, as much as in me lay, the Image that God created me in, (and which Chri&s;t by communicating of him&s;elf to me; hath re&s;tored, confirmed, and inlarged) and degenera|ted into the habit of a bea&s;t, (which all &s;laves that live in the World without a rationall and ju&s;t Law are in) by parting with, and be|traying my native, naturall, ju&s;t liberties, which the fundamentall lawes of this Land give me; I will part with my very heart-blood fir&s;t; yea, and if I had a thou&s;and lives, they &s;hould all go, before I will part with my ju&s;t liberties, either to them, or any power on earth, what ever it be, that dare a&s;&s;ume unto them&s;elves &s;o much ty|ranny, and &s;atanicall pride as to go about it, or endeavour it. And it
<PB N="21" REF="11">
is this very principle that now engageth to write this <HI>Po&s;t&s;cript,</HI> to beget a Conte&s;t with the Prerogative-men of <HI>London, Englands</HI> mighty <HI>Nimrods,</HI> who haue in&s;laved not only this City, but beene &s;trong In&s;truments from time to time, to doe the &s;ame to the whole Land. And the pre&s;ent ground of my putting pen to paper at pre|&s;ent, ari&s;eth from this en&s;uing: The day the la&s;t Lord Major was ele|cted; <HI>It &s;eemes, Major Wan&s;ie, a Watch-maker in Cornhill, (a man that in the&s;e late wars, hath freely and gallantly adventured his life for the pre&s;ervation of the pre&s;ent Parliament, and Englands Liberties) and &s;ome other free Citizens,</HI> commonly by the Prerogative-men of <HI>Lon|don,</HI> di&s;tingui&s;hed by the name of <HI>Cloak-men;</HI> intended to have clai|med their right, to give their Vote in the election of the Lord Major, as by Law, and the Charters of <HI>London,</HI> every free-man therof ought to do; as al&s;o, in both the Sheriffes, &amp;c. And in ca&s;e the prerogative- L. Major <HI>Adams,</HI> and the prerogative-Aldermen his Brethren, would not permit them; They then intended, to deliver in a Prote&s;t in wri|ting; the Copy of which Prote&s;t within a day or two after, I &s;aw and read, and not before: and under&s;tanding how ba&s;ely Major <HI>VVan&s;ey</HI> was u&s;ed by the Mar&s;hall of <HI>London,</HI> and of my Lord Ma|jors prerogative-Ma&s;tives; and how that contrary to Law, Guild-Hall Gate was guarded with armed men, which rendered the electi|on in no &s;ence to be free, as all elections of all publike Officers ought to be; and reading the Prote&s;t over, the rea&s;on of it, and the inju|&s;tice offered to its well-willers; It inflamed my &s;pirit with indignati|on, and &s;et my very &s;oule as it were all on fire; In&s;omuch, that I went immediatly to old Mr. <HI>Colet,</HI> the Record-keeper of the Tower, and asked him, if hee had the originall Records of the Charters of <HI>London;</HI> and under&s;tanding he had them; out of my penury, I be|&s;towed three or foure pound for the Copies of tho&s;e that were mo&s;t u&s;efull for me; and al&s;o the Copy of <HI>H.</HI> 5. prerogative, and unbind|ing Proclamation: by vertue and authority of which, they have in|vaded the rights of all the free men of <HI>London,</HI> in divers particulars, and as much as in them lies, annihilated divers of the antient and ju&s;t Charters, and legall priviledges of this City confirmed by <HI>Magna Charta;</HI> and making further inquiry of a man ver&s;ed in antiquity, <HI>I under&s;tood that there was an antient book in print, above</HI> 100. <HI>yeares agoe, containing many of the Liberties and Franchi&s;es of London;</HI> for which I &s;ent into <HI>Duck-lane,</HI> and with &s;ome indu&s;try found it out,
<PB N="22" REF="12">
which is a mo&s;t excellent book, which with the Records I &s;ent to a true friend of mine, to get him to tran&s;late the Records into Eng|li&s;h, and all the Latine and French that is in that book, who &s;ent unto me the fore-going Di&s;cour&s;e; which in regard he was a &s;tranger to <HI>London,</HI> he was unwilling to &s;et his name to it, and I reading the Di&s;|cour&s;e, and liking it very well, judged my &s;elf bound in duty to my &s;elf, and all my fellow-Commoners, <HI>the Cloak-men of London,</HI> to pub|li&s;h it in print; and in regard, by Gods a&s;&s;i&s;tance, I intend &s;hortly to publi&s;h and print the Records, with a Co~mentary in point of Law upon them; I judged it convenient hereby, by way of Po&s;t-&s;cript, to give you the under&s;tanding thereof; and al&s;o, to give you the rea|&s;ons which moved me to re&s;olve, to hazard no &s;mall adventure there upon, which are the&s;e:</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, becau&s;e <HI>the Prerogative-Pattentee monopolizing Merchant ad|venturers,</HI> have contrary to Right, Law, and Ju&s;tice, robbed me of my trade, who&s;e illegall, arbytrary, de&s;tructive practi&s;es, to the liberties, freedome, and pro&s;perity of <HI>England;</HI> I have in my an&s;wer to Mr. <HI>VVill. Pryn</HI> (called <HI>Innocencie and Truth ju&s;tified</HI>) punctually anato|mized, as there you may reade from page 48. to page 63. Now, as <HI>Paul</HI> &s;aith, 1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 5.8. <HI>If any provide not for his own family, and &s;pe|cially for tho&s;e of his own hou&s;e, he hath denied the Faith, and is wor&s;e then an Infidell;</HI> In which, to me is implyed, that a man mu&s;t not on|ly be provident and indu&s;trious to keepe and pre&s;erve what hee hath, but al&s;o to maintain and defend his rights liberties, and proprieties, that they be not invaded or taken from him: and this made hone&s;t <HI>Naboth,</HI> that he would not part-with his Vineyard, his inheritance to wicked King <HI>Ahab,</HI> although he offered him very good tearmes for it, 1 <HI>Kings</HI> 21.1, 2, 3. much le&s;&s;e &s;hould I part with my trade, to any illegall Monopoli&s;er and every individuall Free-mans of <HI>London,</HI> &amp;c. and that not only by the principles of nature and rea&s;on, but al&s;o by the Law of <HI>England,</HI> as is not onely proved by the fore-named Di&s;cour&s;e, but al&s;o by another excellent Treati&s;e, called, <HI>Di&s;cour&s;e for free Trade,</HI> publi&s;hed about two years agoe by a Merchant of <HI>Lon|don.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, the readine&s;&s;e of the <HI>Prerogative-Magi&s;trates of Lon|don,</HI> to execute any illegall Commands upon the free-men thereof, and particularly upon my &s;elf; as for in&s;tance, when I was pri&s;oner in Newgate, illegally committed by the hou&s;e of Lords, that had no
<PB N="23" REF="12">
juri&s;diction over me in that ca&s;e, and when upon the 22. of <HI>June</HI> la&s;t, by their Warrant, <HI>they commanded me to dance attendance at their Bar, for what cau&s;e they did not expre&s;&s;e:</HI> neither know I any Law extant that authorizeth them &s;o to do. Which action, I looked upon, as a trampling the Lawes of the Land, and the Liberties of all the free Commons of <HI>England,</HI> under their feet; and therefore, for the pre|vention of further mi&s;chiefe, I writ this following Letter to Mr. <HI>VVoolla&s;ton,</HI> the chiefe Jaylor of Newgate under the Sheriffes of <HI>London.</HI></P>
<LETTER LANG="eng">
<OPENER><SALUTE>SJR,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>I This morning have &s;een a Warrant from the hou&s;e of Lords, made ye&s;terday, to command you to bring me this day at ten a clock be|fore them, the Warrant expre&s;&s;eth no cau&s;e wherfore I &s;hould dance attendance before them; neither do I know any ground or rea&s;on wherefore I &s;hould, nor any Law that compels, mee thereunto; for their Lord&s;hips &s;itting by vertue of Prerogative-pattents, and not by election or common con&s;ent of the people, hath, as <HI>Magna Charta</HI> (and other good Lawes of the Land) tels me, nothing to do to try me, or any Commoner what&s;oever in any criminall ca&s;e, either for life, limb, liberty, or e&s;tate: but, contrary hereunto, as incrochers and u&s;urpers upon my freedomes and liberties; they lately and illegally endeavoured to try me a Commoner at their Bar, for which I under my hand and &s;eale, prote&s;ted to their faces again&s;t them, as violent and illegal incrochers upon the rights and liberties of me, and all the Commons of <HI>England</HI> (a copy of which &amp;c. I in Print herewith, &amp; &s;end you) and at their Bar I openly appealed to my competent, pro|per, legall tryers, and Judges, the Commons of <HI>England</HI> a&s;&s;embled in Parliament (for which their Lord&s;hips did illegally, arbytrarily, and tyrannically, commit me to pri&s;on into your cu&s;tody) unto whom divers dayes agoe I &s;ent my appeale &amp;c. which now remains in the hands of their Speaker, if it be not already read in their hou&s;e, unto which I do, and will &s;tand, and obey their commands.</P>
<P><PB N="24" REF="13">Sir, I am a free-man of <HI>England,</HI> and therefore I am not to bee u&s;ed as a &s;lave or Va&s;&s;all by the Lords, which they have already done, and would further doe. I al&s;o am a man of peace and quiet|ne&s;&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">, and de&s;ire not to mole&s;t any, if I be not forced thereunto: therefore I de&s;ire you as you tender my good and your own; take this for an an&s;wer, that I cannot without turning traytor to my liberties; dance attendance to their Lord&s;hips Barre: being bound in con&s;cience, duty, to God, my &s;elf, mine, and my Country; to op|po&s;e their incroachments to the death: which by the &s;trength of God I am re&s;olved to doe.</P>
<P>Sir, you may, or cau&s;e to be exerci&s;ed upon me, &s;ome force or violence to pull and drag me out of my chamber, which I am re|&s;olved to maintain, as long as I can, before I will be compelled to go before them; and therefore I de&s;ire you, in a friendly way, to be wi&s;e and con&s;iderate before you do that, which it may be, you can never undoe,</P>
<CLOSER><SALUTE>Sir,</SALUTE>
<SIGNED><HI>I am your true and faire conditioned pri&s;oner, if you will be &s;o to me,</HI> JOHN LILBURN.</SIGNED>
<DATELINE><HI>From my Cock-lo&s;t in the Pre&s;&s;e-yard of New|gate</HI> <DATE><HI>this</HI> 13. <HI>of June</HI> 1646.</DATE></DATELINE></CLOSER>
</LETTER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="order">
<HEAD>The Copy of the Order.</HEAD>
<OPENER><DATELINE><DATE>Die Lunae 22 Junij 1646.</DATE></DATELINE></OPENER>
<P>ORdered by the Lords in Parliament a&s;&s;embled, that Lieutenant Colonel <HI>John Lilburn</HI> now a pri&s;oner in Newgate, &s;hall bee brought before their Lord&s;hips [in the High Court of <HI>Parliament</HI>] to+morrow morning by ten of the clock: And this to be a &s;ufficient War|rant in that behalf.</P>
<P><HI>To the Gent. U&s;her of this Hou&s;e, or his Deputy, to be delivered to the Kee|per of Newgate, or his Deputy.</HI></P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Iohn Brown Cler. <HI>Parliamentorum.</HI></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT></Q>
<P><PB N="25" REF="13">Which Letter I &s;ent by my wife, and a friend; but they not fin|ding Mr. <HI>Wolla&s;ton</HI> within, I ordered them to carry it to Mr. <HI>Ken|drick,</HI> and Mr. <HI>Foot, the Sheriffes of London his Ma&s;ters,</HI> whom they found at <HI>Guild Hall,</HI> at the <HI>Court of Aldermen;</HI> to whom they de|livered the letter, with my Prote&s;t again&s;t the Lords, and appeale to to the Hou&s;e of Commons therein mentioned; who (as they told me) carried it in to the Court of Aldermen: and, as they judged, there read them. But, in &s;tead of any remedy, according to my ju&s;t expectation; I had my chamber wall immediatly after broke down by force, by <HI>Ralph Bri&s;co,</HI> the Clerk of <HI>Newgate,</HI> and their Officer: &amp; a violent and forcible entry made into my chamber, and my per&s;on by force carried away before the Lords, who had no Legall, or Magi|&s;teriall power over me. I confe&s;&s;e, I was &s;uddenly &s;urprized, it be|ing pa&s;t ten a clock at night before I knew of it: and &s;o could nei|ther provide my &s;elfe of victuals, or any defen&s;ive Armes; the which if I had had, I would (to the death) have defended my &s;elfe again&s;t all the Officers in <HI>London</HI> that had come to have fetched me out of my Chamber (my legall Ca&s;tle) by vertue of that illegall Warrant, to carry me before the Lords, who had nothing to doe with me: e&s;pecially co~&s;idering I had legally prote&s;ted again&s;t them; and legally appealed to the Hou&s;e of Commons, my proper and le|gall Judges; who had accepted, read, and approved of my appeale, as ju&s;t and legall: And therefore not onely that bu&s;ine&s;&s;e, or procee|ding of the Lords; but all their after proceedings: yea, the &s;entence it &s;elfe, in this very particular alone; was, and is, illegall: For they ought not, neither (in law) had they any ground to meddle or make with me any further; unle&s;&s;e the Hou&s;e of Commons had judged my proceedings with the Lords, illegall, and had given mee up to them as my legall Judges to try me. And therefore the af|front of the Lords (in point of right and priviledge) is as great to the Hou&s;e of Commons, in proceeding to judgement again&s;t mee without their leave, or &s;o much as ever de&s;iring it; as their u&s;urpa|tions are de&s;tructive to me and my Liberties, and the Liberties of all the Co~mons of <HI>England:</HI> And opportunity they could not have had to have made me &s;o fully as they did, the object or &s;ubject of their u&s;urpation; if it had not been that the prerogative-Sheriffs of <HI>Lon|don</HI> had been as full of prerogative-Principles, as the Lords them|&s;elves, and as de&s;irous to de&s;troy the Lawes and Liberties of <HI>Eng|land,</HI>
<PB N="26" REF="14">
as they; for which I will never forgive them, till they have ac|knowledged their great wickedne&s;&s;e therein, and made me (accor|ding to Law and Ju&s;tice) ample reparations: which by Gods a&s;&s;i|&s;tance I will with all the &s;trength and might I have, unce&s;&s;ant|ly &s;eek for.</P>
<P>But their malice and indignation to mee, for &s;tanding for the Lawes, Liberties, and Freedomes of <HI>England,</HI> cea&s;ed not here; but when the Lords committed me, by their tyrannicall order, clo&s;e pri|&s;oner to <HI>Newgate,</HI> to be lockt up clo&s;e in my Chamber; The&s;e Arbi|trary &amp; tyrannicall Sheriffes and their Officers executed it upon me to &s;ome purpo&s;e for 3 weeks together. For; contrary to all law and ju&s;tice, they kept my wife from me, &amp; would not &s;o much as &s;uffer her, or any of my friends, to &s;et their feet over the thre&s;hold of my chamber doore: nor &s;uffer my wife, &s;ervant, or any of my friends, to deliver either meat, drink, money, or any other nece&s;&s;aries. And when I pre&s;&s;ed the Jaylors to permit my wife to come into the pri|&s;on yard, that &s;o I might (in their pre&s;ence) &s;peak with her out of my chamber window; they ab&s;olutely refu&s;ed it, and told mee, I little knew what a &s;trict charge was laid upon them to the contrary, by the great ones at <HI>Guild-Hall.</HI> And therefore my wife was forced to &s;peak with me out of the window of a neighbouring hou&s;e, at a|bout fourty yards di&s;tance: who&s;e cruelty and malice was &s;o enra|ged, that they often threatned to boord and naile up the poore mans windows: Yea, <HI>Bri&s;co,</HI> the Clerk came up into my chamber, and commanded me to forbeare &s;peaking to my wife, (although it were at &s;uch a di&s;tance) or el&s;e hee would boord up my win|dowes, and &s;o deprive me not onely of &s;eeing and &s;peaking to my wife; but al&s;o rob me of the greate&s;t part of that little aire that I had coming in at my Ca&s;ements. But I bid him doe his wor&s;t: for I would pull them down as fa&s;t as he naild them up; or el&s;e if I could not, I would &s;et <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">re to them, though it burnt the Hou&s;e down to the ground: And al&s;o I would &s;peake to my wife in &s;pite of his teeth, and all his great Ma&s;ters; unle&s;&s;e they either &s;ewed up my lips, or cut out my tongue. And then in a rage hee told me, Hee would carry me into <HI>Newgate</HI> it &s;elf, and lay mee in a clo&s;e place, where I &s;hould &s;peak with none, nor &s;ee none, whereupon I de&s;i|red him to cea&s;e his threatning of me; for I &s;corned him, and bid de|fiance to the malice of him and all the Men and Devils in earth and
<PB N="27" REF="14">
hell; having my confidence fixed in and upon that God that I knew would pre&s;erve and keep me, and who by his power was able to de&s;troy him, and ten thou&s;and &s;uch, in the twinkling of an eye; tel|ling him, that to lock me up in &s;uch a place, was the ready way &s;pee|dily to get me my liberty: For then all my friends and acquain|tance would conclude, that the Lords had &s;et his Ma&s;ters and him on to murder me: (as the <HI>Earle of Northampton,</HI> and the <HI>Earle</HI> of <HI>Sommer&s;et,</HI> &s;et <HI>Sir Gervis Elvis,</HI> the Lieutenant of the Tower, and <HI>We&s;ton</HI> his &s;ervant, to murder Sir <HI>Thomas Overbury</HI> in his impri&s;on|ment in the Tower of <HI>London;</HI> for which act they were both de|&s;ervedly and ju&s;tly hanged) which might hazard, at the lea&s;t, either the pulling down, or breaking open the pri&s;on; to &s;ee what was be|come of me: Therefore I wi&s;hed him to be advi&s;ed what he did; for I a&s;&s;ured him, I would improve all the intere&s;t I had in the world to effect it. For, before I will be murdered, I would &s;ell my life at as deare a rate as it was po&s;&s;ible for me to &s;ell it at. And at another time I turned him to the Parliaments Declaration, 2 <HI>N.</HI> 1642. <HI>Book Declar. pag.</HI> 722.723. Where, &s;peaking of the difference betwixt the King and them&s;elves, in an&s;wer to &s;omething &s;aid by him about the interpretation of the Statute of 25. <HI>E.</HI> 3. that they would take a|way his power from him; they demand a que&s;tion, How that doth appeare? And they an&s;wer, <Q>Becau&s;e we &s;ay it is trea&s;on to de|&s;troy the Kingdome of <HI>England,</HI> as well as the King of <HI>England;</HI> and becau&s;e we &s;ay, that the King of <HI>England</HI> hath not a power to de&s;troy the lawes and people of <HI>England.</HI> And what is that in|terpretation of that Statute, that no learned Lawyer will &s;et his hand to? That trea&s;on may be committed again&s;t the <HI>Kings Au|thority,</HI> though not directed again&s;t his <HI>Per&s;on.</HI> Doe there want (&s;ay they) pre&s;idents, or Book-ca&s;es to make this good? Or, is it not, that they cannot &s;ee wood for trees, that look after pre&s;idents to prove this, which at length is acknowledged in his Maje&s;ties Proclamation of the 18. of <HI>June?</HI> Is it then that interpretation of the Statute, that the rai&s;ing of force in the maintenance of his Maje&s;ties Authority, and of the Lawes, again&s;t tho&s;e that would de&s;troy both it and them, is no trea&s;on, though &s;uch acts of trai|tors and rebels &s;hould be in pur&s;uance of his <HI>Maje&s;ties per&s;onall commands,</HI> and accompanied with his <HI>Pre&s;ence?</HI> And have we cited no pre&s;idents to this purpo&s;e? What are tho&s;e then of <HI>A|lexander</HI>
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Archbi&s;hop of <HI>Yorke, Robert de &V;eere,</HI> Duke of <HI>Ire|land,</HI> and the re&s;t in the time of <HI>Richard the &s;econd,</HI> which we cau|&s;ed to be publi&s;hed: who&s;e levying of Forces again&s;t the authoriy of the Parliament, and to put to death divers principall members of both Hou&s;es, by the <HI>Kings expre&s;&s;e command,</HI> which he promi|&s;ed to accompany with his pre&s;ence; was by two Acts of Parlia|ment <HI>judged Trea&s;on:</HI> And the Act of &s;uch levied forces to &s;up|pre&s;&s;e them, was judged <HI>good &s;ervice</HI> to the Common-wealth. The&s;e pre&s;idents are &s;aid to be grounded upon repealed Statutes: and wee have indeed heard it &s;aid &s;o twice; but wee never heard the Statute that repealed them, cited once. And whether the Par|liament of the <HI>eleventh of Richard the &s;econd,</HI> was a more forced Parliament then that of the <HI>twenty fir&s;t of Richard the &s;econd,</HI> which repealed the Acts thereof: And whether that of the <HI>fir&s;t of Henry the fourth,</HI> which repealed that of the <HI>twenty fir&s;t of Ri|chard the &s;econd,</HI> and all the acts thereof, and revived that of the <HI>eleventh of Richard the &s;econd,</HI> and all acts made therein; was e|ver yet repealed: And con&s;equently, whether tho&s;e two acts of the <HI>eleventh of Richard the &s;econd,</HI> and the fir&s;t of <HI>Hen: the fourth,</HI> doe not &s;till &s;tand in force; None that are acquainted with the Records and Hi&s;tory of that time, can deny, or &s;o much as doubt. But doe we need Pre&s;idents in this ca&s;e? Is it not a known Rule in Law, <HI>That the Kings illegall commands, though accompanied with his pre&s;ence, doe not excu&s;e tho&s;e that obey him?</HI> And how then (&s;ay they) &s;hall it excu&s;e Rebels and Traytors? and how &s;hall it hinder the Kings Courts and Mini&s;ters to pro|ceed again&s;t them judicially, if they &s;ubmit; or by force, if they make oppo&s;ition with force? If the King might controll all the Courts in <HI>We&s;tmin&s;ter Hall,</HI> and the High Court of <HI>Parliament</HI> it &s;elfe, and make it good by force; what were become of the known legall government of this Kingdome? or what a <HI>Jewell</HI> had we of the Law? or what benefit of being <HI>Governed according to Law;</HI> if all Lawes might by force be overthrown, and by force might not be upheld and maintained?</Q></P>
<P>Now Mr. <HI>Bri&s;co,</HI> &s;aid I, if the Kings commands and power can|not overthrow the Law; much le&s;&s;e can the Lords commands, who are farre inferiour in power unto him, their ab&s;olute earthly Creator and Ma&s;ter, from whom they have derived all that they have; and
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therefore cannot be above him. For it is a maxime in Nature and Rea&s;on, <HI>That there is no Being beyond the power of Being.</HI> And ano|ther Maxime it is, <HI>That every like begets its like;</HI> but not more: And therefore impo&s;&s;ible it is, that their power &s;hould be above the power of their begetter, or Improver, the King.</P>
<P>Again, Mr. <HI>Bri&s;co,</HI> &s;aid I, if here, by the confe&s;&s;ion of the Lords them&s;elves; <HI>(for they joyned in the making of this very Declaration)</HI> it be a known Rule in Law, <HI>That the Kings illegall commands, though accompanied with his pre&s;ence, doe not excu&s;e tho&s;e that obey him;</HI> then much le&s;&s;e are you, your Ma&s;ter <HI>Wolla&s;ton,</HI> nor his Ma&s;ters, the <HI>She|riffes of London,</HI> excu&s;able, for executing the Lords illegall and bar|barous Warrants and Orders upon me; which they doe not accom|pany with their pre&s;ence to &s;ee put in execution. Therefore, Mr. <HI>Bri&s;co,</HI> a&s;&s;ure your &s;elfe, that if I live, I will turn all the &s;tones in <HI>England</HI> that po&s;&s;ibly I can turne, but I will have ju&s;tice, &s;atisfa|ction, and reparations from you and all your ma&s;ters, for executing the Lords illegall Orders and Commands upon me. At which hee told me, he and his Ma&s;ters were Officers, and mu&s;t execute the commands the Lords gave them, without the di&s;puting the illegality of them. Wel then, &s;aid I, by the &s;ame Rule, if the Lords (who have no legall authority over me) &s;end you a Warrant to hang, &s;trangle, or &s;tab me, or cut off my head in pri&s;on, although I have had no le|gall triall <HI>according to the Law of the Land;</HI> you will put it in execu|tion: And as well, &s;aid I, may you doe that, as to doe to me as you have done: and be&s;ides I know no Ground they had to receive mee a pri&s;oner upon the Lords Warrant, at all: e&s;pecially con&s;idering according to <HI>Magna Charta,</HI> the <HI>Petition of Right</HI> &amp;c. none of their Warrants of commitments of me, have either legall begin|ning, or legall conclu&s;ions. And excellent to this purpo&s;e are tho&s;e <HI>Golden expre&s;&s;ions</HI> of the mo&s;t worthy Lawyer, Sir <HI>Edward Cook</HI> in his expo&s;ition of the 29. <HI>chap. of Magna Charta, in his</HI> 2. <HI>Part. In&s;tit. fol.</HI> 52. Where expounding what is meant by <HI>per legem ter|rae,</HI> that is, the law of the land, having &s;poken of divers things, he comes to &s;peak of Commitments, and &s;aith,</P>
<P><HI>Now &s;eeing no man can be taken, arre&s;ted, attached, or impri&s;oned, but by due proce&s;&s;e of law, and according to the law of the land; the&s;e conclu&s;ions hereupon doe follow.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Fir&s;t, that a Commitment by lawfull warrant, either in deed, or in
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law; is accounted in law due proce&s;&s;e or proceeding of law, and by the law of the land, as well as by proce&s;&s;e by force of the Kings Writ.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Secondly, That he or they which doe commit them; have lawfull authority.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Thirdly, That his warrant or MITTIM&V;S be lawfull, and that mu&s;t be in writing under his hand and &s;eale.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Fourthly, The CA&V;SE mu&s;t bee contained in the WAR|RANT, as for Trea&s;on, Felony, &amp;c. or for &s;u&s;pition of Trea&s;on, or Felony, &amp;c. Otherwi&s;e if the MITTIM&V;S contain no cau&s;e at all, if the pri&s;oner e&s;cape; it is no offence at all: Whereas if the MIT|TIM&V;S contained the cau&s;e; the e&s;cape were Trea&s;on or Felony: though he were not guilty of the offence. And therefore for the Kings benefit, and that the pri&s;oner may bee the more &s;afely kept; the MIT|TIM&V;S ought to contain the cau&s;e.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Fifthly, the Warrant, or MITTIM&V;S containing a lawfull CA&V;SE, ought to have a lawfull CONCL&V;SION, Viz. and him &s;afely to keep, untill he be delivered by Law &amp;c. and not un|till the party commiting doth further order. And this doth evidently appeare by the Writs of</HI> Habeas Corpus, <HI>both in the Kings Bench, and Common Pleas, Exchequer, and Chancery, which there Hecites.</HI></P>
<P>But, Mr. <HI>Bri&s;coe,</HI> I am <HI>a legall man of England,</HI> who in all my acti|ons have declared a conformity to the lawes thereof, and have as freely adventured my life for the pre&s;ervation of them, as any Lord in the Land, what&s;oever he be, hath done. And be&s;ides, I have to doe with tho&s;e very LORDS that have &s;tiled them&s;elves, <HI>The Con&s;ervators of the Lawes and Liberties of England;</HI> and wi&s;h in their printed <HI>Declarations,</HI> the <HI>plague and vengeance of heaven to fall upon them, when they indeavour the de&s;truction and &s;ubver&s;ion thereof.</HI> And therefore I expect in every particular to be dealt with accor|ding to Law <HI>(my inheritance, and the inheritance of all the free Com|moners of England)</HI> and not otherwi&s;e; and my life and blood I will venture again&s;t that man, what-ever he bee, that &s;hall attempt the contrary upon me: for the Free-born men of <HI>England (yea the mea|ne&s;t of them) can neither by the command of the King, nor by his Com|mi&s;&s;ion, nor Councell, nor the Lord of a Villain can, or could im|pri&s;on, arre&s;t, or attach any man, without due proce&s;&s;e of law, or by legall judgement of his equalls, viz. MEN OF HIS OWN CONDITION, or the Law of the Land, again&s;t the forme of
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our defen&s;ive great Charter of Liberty.</HI> Nay, in old time a Pagan or an Heathen could not be unju&s;tly impri&s;oned, or attached, or arre|&s;ted, without due proce&s;&s;e of Law, as appeares <HI>by the Lawes of King Alfred, Chap.</HI> 31. and con&s;onant to this doctrine, and that fore|mentioned in the Parliaments Declaration; is the judgment of Sir <HI>Edward Cook in the</HI> 186, 187. pages of the 2. part of his <HI>In&s;titut.</HI> and which was &s;o re&s;olved for Law, as hee there declares 16. <HI>H.</HI> 6. and yet notwith&s;tanding all the di&s;cour&s;e I had with <HI>Bri&s;coe,</HI> the Sheriffes Clerk of Newgate, about 9 a clock at night; the Sheriffes the next morning &s;ent 30. or 40. of their Varlets that wait upon the Theeves and Rogues, and the Hang-man to Tyburn, to carry me by force, <HI>nolens, volens,</HI> to the Lords Bar <HI>(tho&s;e V&s;urpers and Incrochers)</HI> to receive my mo&s;t <HI>illegall, unju&s;t, barbarous, and tyrannicall &s;en|tence.</HI></P>
<P>My third rea&s;on is, becau&s;e I have not only been &s;o evilly and un|ju&s;tly dealt with this year by the <HI>Sheriffes of London;</HI> but al&s;o the la&s;t year by the <HI>Lord Major of London, Alderman Atkins, and Mr. Glyn Recorder thereof,</HI> when I was committed to <HI>Newgate</HI> by the <HI>Hou&s;e of Commons;</HI> for what, to this day, I doe not yet know: yet Mr. <HI>Glyn</HI> &s;o thir&s;ted after my blood, that as I was from very good hands credibly informed, he was a main &s;tickler to get an Order to pa&s;&s;e that Hou&s;e, <HI>to have me tryed at the Se&s;&s;ions of Newgate for my life;</HI> &s;aying (as I am told) in the hou&s;e, to &s;ome members thereof, <HI>turn him over to me&punc; and I will hamper him to the purpo&s;e:</HI> of which, when I heard; it was not for me to &s;it &s;till; and therefore, I got pub|li&s;hed certain Quere's to &s;tate my ca&s;e, in one &s;ide of a &s;heet or pa|per: the &s;ub&s;tance of which, you may read in a printed Book cal|led <HI>Englands Birth-right.</HI> And what was the i&s;&s;ue of that bu&s;ine&s;&s;e, you may fully and truly read in my fore-mentioned an&s;wer to Mr. <HI>Pryns</HI> notorious lyes, fal&s;hoods, and calumnies; e&s;pecially, in pag. 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33 34. to which, I refer the Reader.</P>
<P>And then &s;econdly, there was a fal&s;e, and ba&s;e report rai&s;ed, &s;pread, and divulged by Mr. <HI>Pryn,</HI> and &s;ome other of my bitter Presbyte|rian Adver&s;aries <HI>(tho&s;e bloudy cozen-Germans to the per&s;ecuting Bi|&s;hops)</HI> meerly to make me and my friends odious to the people that &s;o in&s;tead of enjoying a legall tryall, and the benefit of the Law, <HI>our common Inheritance;</HI> we might by the rude multitude, be either &s;to|ned to death, or pulled in pieces: which report was, <HI>that I had con|&s;pired
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with other Separates &amp; Anabapti&s;ts to root out the Members of this Parliament by degrees, beginning with Mr.</HI> Speaker; <HI>whom if we could cut off, (as</HI> Pryn <HI>&s;aith it in print,</HI> in his book, called, <HI>The Lyar co~|founded) all the re&s;t would follow: and if this &s;ucceeded not, then, to &s;up|pre&s;&s;e &amp; cut off this Parliament by force of Arms, &amp; &s;et up a new Par|liament of our own choice &amp; faction;</HI> my an&s;wer to which abominable fal&s;e charge, you may read in my fore-mentioned an&s;wer to him, pa. 35. And there running divers of his Authentical witne&s;&s;es and Crea|tures (little better then Knights of the Po&s;t) up and down <HI>London;</HI> and at la&s;t, one or more of them came into <HI>Houndsditch,</HI> to one Mr. <HI>Rogers, &amp;c.</HI> to in&s;nare him, and told him of the plot; but he like a wi&s;e man, apprehended him by a Con&s;table, and carryed him before the then Lord Major, who dealt neither faire, hone&s;tly, nor ju&s;tly with me, nor them; no, nor with the Kingdome, &amp;c. But in regard it may at a di&s;tance, touch upon &s;ome pre&s;ent Member or Members of the Hou&s;e of Commons, with whom, I do ingeniou&s;ly confe&s;&s;e, I have no de&s;ire at all to conte&s;t; I cea&s;e it: though it was as mi&s;che|vous a plot again&s;t me, as ever in my life was contrived again&s;t mee, and which had come out to the bottome, if my Lord Major had been as ju&s;t and hone&s;t, as a righteous Judge ought to be, and had not been &s;o full of <HI>prerogative-principles,</HI> as to feare Man, more then God.</P>
<P>My fourth rea&s;on, is, becau&s;e <HI>I have not only been robbed of my trade, by the monopolizing Merchant-Adventurers; and &s;o evilly, hardly, and unju&s;tly dealt with, by the late Lord Major, the two Sheriffes, and tho Jaylors of Newgate, all Mr. Recorders pride and malice, all prerogative Officers in London;</HI> but al&s;o, have been &s;o evilly, illegally, and unju&s;tly dealt with all, by Col. <HI>Francis West,</HI> the pre&s;ent Lieutenant of the Tower (thereunto appointed by the principall prerogative-men of <HI>London,</HI>) which you may briefly reade in a late publi&s;hed book of a friend of mine, called, <HI>Liberty vindicated again&s;t Slavery,</HI> and which I &s;hall, by the help of God, fully lay open in due time; and al&s;o, in regard of that late abu&s;e, given unto my wife at <HI>We&s;tmin&s;ter,</HI> at the very Parliament door, when &s;he was peaceably wayting there with eight Gentlewomen more of her friends, for an An&s;wer to her late Petition, and for Ju&s;tice from the hou&s;e, about my illegall &s;ufferings, which it is their duty to hold put to her, and all others what&s;oever, that have ju&s;t cau&s;e to &s;eek it from them; where came unto her
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one <HI>Richard Vaughan,</HI> En&s;ign to the Guard that day, and a Citizen of <HI>London,</HI> being a Gold&s;mith in <HI>Foster-lane;</HI> who, after he had &s;et his Guard at the doore, that goes into the Roome next to the Hou&s;e of Commons: my wife, with other of her friends, &s;tanding in a peace|able manner at the bottome of tho&s;e &s;taires; hee came, and enquired of them which was <HI>Lilburns wife;</HI> at which my wife an&s;wered, <HI>&s;he was &s;he;</HI> upon which he wi&s;hed, I had been out of the Land when I fir&s;t went out in the Parliaments &s;ervice; and without any more adoe, laid violent hands upon her, and endeavoured to throw her down the next &s;taires, which are three or four &s;teps, that goe down into the Court of Reque&s;ts, and had gone neer to have &s;poyled and undone her, if &s;ome of her friends by her, had not pre&s;erved her from the fal: but being not co~&s;ent with this, he followed her into the Court of Reque&s;ts-chamber, and then again laid violent hands upon her, and took her by the throat, as if he would have throtled her, and would have drag'd her away as a pri&s;oner, calling out to his armed men to help him: a piece of unmanlike cruelty and barbari&s;m, which will be in future ages, a badge of &s;hame to the &s;ufferers of it, to go unpu|ni&s;hed, and which renders him to be one of the malicious, ba&s;e&s;t, un|worthie&s;t, and cowardlie&s;t of men, to u&s;e a Gentlewoman in &s;uch a barbarous manner, that neither affronted, nor medled, nor made with him, and which makes me judge him to be a fellow more fitter to feed hogs and Swine, then to be named a Soldier, or ranked among&s;t the number of martiall men: but yet notwith&s;tanding, it gives me cau&s;e to think, and judge, that &s;ome of my prerogative-adver&s;aries either in the City, or el&s;e-where, &s;et him on of purpo&s;e, at la&s;t, to a|bu&s;e and affront my wife; that &s;o, &s;he &s;hould never dare any more to come thither to &s;eek for ju&s;tice, at the hands of tho&s;e who have &s;worn to hand it over impartially to every legall man &amp; woman of <HI>England.</HI> The comparing of which, with what I have but very late|ly heard, puts my thoughts into a deep and &s;erious mu&s;e: the late relation of which, as it is told me, is thus; That day my wife deli|vered her Petition in print to the Members of the Hou&s;e of Com|mons, <HI>there was a Barri&s;ter at Law in the Lords Hou&s;e</HI> (it &s;eemes before they &s;ate) <HI>reading my wifes Petition, and there came a Lord to him, and &s;aid unto him in a familiar manner, What art thou reading?</HI> unto which; he an&s;wered, <HI>the Petition of Lieut. Col.</HI> Lilburns <HI>wife to the Hou&s;e of Commons:</HI> Unto which that Lord &s;aid, <HI>the Plague on
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him for a Rogue; how are wee troubled with him? but if the</HI> Lords <HI>would be ruled by me, and be all of my mind; we would di&s;patch him, and &s;tretch him up without any more adoe:</HI> But truly, my Lord, I mu&s;t tell you, you have no Law to do it, I am &s;ure of it; and therefore in reference to that, <HI>I challenge you, and your whole Hou&s;e, to a tryall of Law, for all the differences betwixt us,</HI> begin when you plea&s;e: and your Lord&s;hip knowes very well, that when I was la&s;t at your Bar, <HI>I challenged you all face to face to a tryall at Law:</HI> But, my Lord, &s;ee|ing I find and meet with &s;uch ready In&s;truments, among&s;t the pre|rogative-men of <HI>London,</HI> my unnaturall fellow-Citizens, to put in execution, without di&s;pute, feare, or check of Con&s;cience; (all your unju&s;t Commands) I have &s;ome cau&s;e to be jealous, that I may meet with Sir <HI>Thomas Overburies</HI> portion, to be murdered in pri&s;on, there being a very near parallell betwixt divers of his u&s;ages and mine, as appears to me, by the printed relation thereof, made by the Right Honourable <HI>Foulke,</HI> Lord <HI>Brooke,</HI> and printed at <HI>London</HI> for <HI>N. R.</HI> 1643.</P>
<P>And therefore, for all the&s;e rea&s;ons laid together, I am re&s;olved, both in point of con&s;cience, prudence, and &s;afety, to &s;it no longer in &s;ilence; but to give to you Lords, and your Kin&s;men, <HI>the prerogative men of London</HI> (by &s;ome of whom, I have &s;uffered &s;o much of late, &amp; have ju&s;t cau&s;e to fear, that they will be your arbitrary and illegall In&s;truments, to make me yet &s;uffer much more) a joynt and home-charge both together; and this I &s;end you forth, as a forlorn Hope: the body of which (do all of you the wor&s;t you can) by the &s;trength of God, &s;hall follow after; although you &s;hould tye, and fetter both my hands and feet, and &s;et twenty Warders upon me, to keepe mee from Pen and Ink: for I am now re&s;olved, by the power of the Al|mighty, to &s;ell my life to you my conjoyned adver&s;aries and ene|mies, as dear (if it be po&s;&s;ible) as ever <HI>Samp&s;on</HI> did his to the <HI>Phi|li&s;tines:</HI> of whom it is &s;aid, he did them more mi&s;chiefe at his death, then he did them in all his life, <HI>Judg.</HI> 16. and good rea&s;on have I &s;o to do, in point of con&s;cience; both in the &s;ight of God, and all rati|onall men that are not di&s;tempered with the principles of pruden|tiall cowardline&s;&s;e; and that I prove thus:</P>
<P>If to do <HI>to another, as we would have another to doe to us,</HI> be a prin|ciple, &s;o acceptable to God, and all good men, and an unalterable Law e&s;tabli&s;hed by God, before <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> Law, and under his Law, and
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al&s;o e&s;tabli&s;hed by Chri&s;t, the ju&s;t and righteous Prince of peace, under the Go&s;pel; as the mo&s;t tran&s;cendent excellente&s;t Law, that can be among&s;t the &s;ons of men, and which purely flowes, from the pure fountaine of rea&s;on: then from the &s;ame pure principle of rea&s;on and Ju&s;tice; I deduct this which naturally ari&s;eth from the le&s;&s;e to the greater;</P>
<P><HI>That which in point of con&s;cience is unlawfull for me to do to ano|ther, is much more in point of con&s;cience, unlawfull to do unto my &s;elfe:</HI></P>
<P>But, to do evill unto another, to mi&s;chiefe, rob, &s;poyle, kill, or any way de&s;troy another, in point of con&s;cience, is unlaw|full;</P>
<P>And therefore, in point of con&s;cience, it is much more unlaw|full for me to do any evill unto my &s;elfe, or to mi&s;chiefe, rob, &s;poyle, kill, or any way de&s;troy my &s;elfe.</P>
<P>And the rea&s;on of all is, <HI>becau&s;e in my &s;elf, is nature nearer to my &s;elf then all the world be&s;ides.</HI> And again, if by the Co~mand of God, and the in&s;tinct of nature; I mu&s;t as much as much as in me lyes, do good to all men: then by the &s;ame &s;trength of rea&s;on, <HI>mu&s;t I much more do good unto my &s;elfe.</HI> And therefore for me to know of, and &s;ee mi&s;chiefe before my eyes intended me, and to be &s;o &s;tupid and &s;otti&s;h, as not to take care, by all ju&s;t and rationall meanes to prevent it; is to be fellonious to my &s;elfe, and to do that unto my &s;elfe, which I &s;hould not do unto another, no, nor &s;uffer to be done unto another: But my adver&s;aries have taken from me, <HI>my liberty, (and tormented and tortured my body with cruel and clo&s;e impri&s;onment) and &s;poyled me of my trade and liveli|hood, and disfranchi&s;ed me without cau&s;e or ground, by robbing me of my right and benefit in the lawes and liberties of England (more deare to me then any earthly trea&s;ure what&s;oever) and thereby as much as in them lyes, have made a &s;lave and a bea&s;t of me, and &s;o changed the property that God created me in: and now thir&s;t after my life and blood, which is all they have left me.</HI> To pre&s;erve which (finding no remedy at the hands of Ju&s;tice (by the powerfull operation of &s;ome prerogative-men there, the names and qualities of whom you &s;hall &s;hortly knowe) to whom I have appealed; I &s;end my adver&s;aries this bone to pick, as a&s;peciall meanes (appearing &s;o to my under&s;tanding) to breake their cruel fangs, and devoure|ing
<PB N="36" REF="19">
tusks; and <HI>the mighty and omnipotent power of the Lord JE|HOVAH, goe along with it, and make it effectuall for the accompli&s;hing that end.</HI> And I hope no rationall man will blame me for doing herof, &s;eeing as <HI>Iob</HI> &s;aith, <HI>eye for eye, tooth for tooth, and all that a man hath will he give,</HI> (or venture) <HI>for his life.</HI> And &s;o much for the particular rea&s;ons concerning my &s;elfe, which moved me to write this.</P>
<P>I will onely give you two more, which are more generall; and then conclude.</P>
<P>And the fir&s;t is, <HI>becau&s;e the greate&s;t bondage of this land ari&s;eth from the monopolizing patentee-Clergy,</HI> who have been and &s;till are the men that as <HI>Iohn</HI> in his <HI>Reu.</HI> (Chap. 7.1.) &s;aith, hould the four winds of the earth, that the winde thereof &s;hould not blow up|on the earth. And though in <HI>Pauls</HI> time, <HI>&s;ome preached the Go&s;pel of envy, and others of good will;</HI> yet he forbids none to preach it; <HI>but rejoyceth that it was preached by any, whether in pretence or truth,</HI> yea, <HI>and thereat would rejoyce,</HI> Phil. 1.15.16.17.18 But the&s;e Clergy-men, like &s;o many of the Divels Agents, who&s;e King|dome is a Kingdome of darkne&s;&s;e; &s;et them&s;elves on purpo&s;e to over&s;pread the earth, with blindne&s;&s;e and darkne&s;&s;e, and &s;o by con&s;equence; with inju&s;tice, cruelty, and blood-&s;hed: and rather then any, though never &s;o able, &s;hould preach Chri&s;t and his Go|&s;pel, that will not receive power; therefore, from them, by their mouldy, greazy con&s;ecration and impo&s;ition of hands; <HI>thou&s;ands, and ten thou&s;ands of &s;oul<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">s</HI> &s;hall peri&s;h for want of knowledge, and &s;o run headlong to hell eternally: yea, men that will not be conformable unto them, and be ab&s;olutely of their cut, and fa&s;hi|on; though never &s;o extraordinarily adorned with the know|ledge of Chri&s;t, and of his will and minde; <HI>&s;hall neither eat, and drinke, buy, nor &s;ell among&s;t them, no nor live, nor have a habitation</HI> among&s;t them in the land of their nativity: witne&s;&s;e that mo&s;t DIVELISH, WICKED, BLOODY, VNCHRI|STIAN, PAPISTICALL REMONSTRANCE <HI>of the prerogative-men of London,</HI> &amp;c. who among&s;t many other ba&s;e and wicked de&s;ires, would have us reduced back to the Pope of Rome againe, <HI>to believe as the Church believes;</HI> for they <HI>would have us be conformable in Church Government,</HI> &amp;c. not onely to what is already e&s;tabli&s;hed, <HI>but what ever &s;hall be e&s;ta|bli&s;hed:</HI>
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and to &s;peake properly, this very Remon&s;trance is but one of their brats, which with other of their actions, doth demon|&s;trate them cleerly to be part of that Antichri&s;tian bea&s;tly power, &s;poken of <HI>Reu.</HI> 13.11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17. And what Doctor <HI>Leighton</HI> in his booke called <HI>Syons Plea,</HI> pag. 69. &s;aith of the prelates in reference to the popi&s;h Bi&s;hop; may we &s;ay of the pre&s;ent Clergy in reference to the Bi&s;hops, who&s;e office and function they have condemned for Antichri&s;tian, viz. <HI>that they are garments cut out of the very &s;ame cloth, a paire of &s;heeres</HI> (as we &s;ay) <HI>went but betweene them, only divers hands have cut them out.</HI> And to me it is the greate&s;t riddle in the world, how the Bi&s;hops can be Antichri&s;tian as them&s;elves &s;ay, and them&s;elves Chri&s;ts Mini&s;ters, although they have no other ordination but what is derived from them, &s;eeing as nature tells me, <HI>every like begets its like:</HI> and rea&s;on al&s;o tells me; <HI>that there is no being, beyond the power of being:</HI> and the Scripture &s;aith, without all contradiction, the le&s;&s;e is ble&s;&s;ed of the greater, <HI>Heb.</HI> 7.7. but no where &s;aith, the better or greater is ble&s;&s;ed of the le&s;&s;er: and <HI>Iames</HI> demands a que&s;tion which in rea&s;on, and the ordinary cour&s;e of nature is impo&s;&s;ible to be, &s;aying, <HI>Iames</HI> 3.11. <HI>doth a fountaine &s;end forth at the &s;ame place, &s;weet water and bitter?</HI> and <HI>Iob</HI> demands to know who he is, <HI>that can bring a cleane thing out of an uncleane<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter"> and an|&s;wers: <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">ot one.</HI></P>
<P>Now the&s;e Clergy-men demon&s;trating by all their actions, that they are the naturall and true-bred children of their bloody fa|thers the Prelates, if not wor&s;e then they; for all their faire &s;peeches and glo&s;ing pretences to the contrary: therefore we may &s;afely avert, that propo&s;ition to be true of them, that Doctor <HI>Leighton</HI> in the fore&s;aid booke, pag. 51. averrs and proves to be true of their &s;pirituall forefathers, viz. that of all the evills in|flicted, and of all the good hindered, &s;ince Anno. 600; one or more of the hierarchy, have been a principall cau&s;e. And I add and averr, that there is no mi&s;ery befallen this Kingdome, nor no good hindered from coming to it, &s;ince the Prelates were put downe; but &s;ome of the pre&s;ent Clergy have been the maine principall in it, witne&s;&s;e their continuall and daily dividing and di&s;tracting the Kingdome in all the parts of it, on <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">et purpo&s;e for the e&s;ta|bli&s;hing that divili&s;h and tyrannicall intere&s;t of pride, Lord|&s;hip,
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and Domination, which they will effect, or el&s;e they will lay it in blood and force. Witne&s;&s;e their bloody intended Ordinance, brought in by Mr. <HI>Tate,</HI> and Mr. <HI>Bacon.</HI> And have they not alrea|dy almo&s;t brought us to the doore of a new warre with the <HI>Scots;</HI> which, God prevent. But, if for a plague to us it &s;hould come upon us; I hope the people of <HI>England</HI> will have their eyes opened to &s;ee the Clergy to be no &s;mall cau&s;es of it, whom I hope they will not let pa&s;&s;e without due puni&s;hment, as grand di&s;turbers of the peace of this di&s;tre&s;&s;ed Common-wealth: Seeing that the temporall and trade-Monopolizers, and other prerogative-men in <HI>London,</HI> are their &s;talking-hor&s;es, by which they act their de&s;ignes the more &s;trongly: the one helping the other to in&s;lave the people, and there|fore are and may ju&s;tly be called <HI>Simeon</HI> and <HI>Levi,</HI> brethren in evill, and wickedne&s;&s;e, who&s;e tyrannicall my&s;tery wants an Anatomy, the beginning of which; this is.</P>
<P>The la&s;t rea&s;on why I publi&s;h this, is, becau&s;e that although the fundamentall Lawes of <HI>England,</HI> be rationall and ju&s;t lawes, and &s;o plea&s;ant and delight&s;ome to the people: the&s;e Prerogative-Mono|polizing Patentee-men of <HI>London,</HI> have done as much as in them lies, to pervert them, and to turn them into Wormwood and Gall: And though they be the common birth-right and inheritance of e|very particular individuall freeman of <HI>England;</HI> yea, of the meane&s;t Cobler and Tinker, as well as of the greate&s;t Gentleman or Noble|man. And therefore ju&s;tly doth the King call the Law, <HI>The Birth-right of every &s;ubject of this Kingdome. Book Declar.</HI> 312. and in pag. 328. he &s;aith, <HI>The Law is the common inheritance of his people.</HI> And in pag. 385. he calls the Law, <HI>The common Birth-right of his Sub|jects;</HI> to which onely, they owe all they have be&s;ides: And therfore are bound in the <HI>defence of it,</HI> to bee made <HI>MARTYRS</HI> for it. And in pag. 28. he &s;ath, <HI>The Law is not onely the inheritance of eve|ry &s;ubject, but al&s;o the onely &s;ecurity he hath for his life, liberty, or e|&s;tate: And the which, being neglected, or di&s;e&s;teemed;</HI> (under what &s;pecious &s;hewes &s;oever) a great mea&s;ure of infelicity, if not an irre|parable confu&s;ion, mu&s;t without doubt fall up them. The meane&s;t of which, he &s;aith, p. 650. <HI>are born equally free,</HI> (and to whom the Law of the Land is an EQUALL INHERITANCE) <HI>with the greate&s;t Subject. And that the wealth and &s;trength of this Kingdome, is in the number and happine&s;&s;e of the people; which is made up of men
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of all conditions: and to whom in duty without Di&s;tinction, he ac|knowledgeth</HI> he oweth <HI>an EQVALL Protection.</HI> And he in pag. 140. 163. pa&s;&s;eth a mo&s;t &s;uperlative high commendation upon tho&s;e golden expre&s;&s;ions of Mr. <HI>John Pyms</HI> &s;peech again&s;t the Earle of <HI>Strafford:</HI> and publi&s;hed in print by a &s;peciall order of the Hou&s;e of Commons, which are, <HI>That the Law is the SAFEGVARD, the CVSTODY of all private intere&s;ts: Your honours, your lives, your liberties, and e&s;tates; are all in the keeping of the Law: And without this, every man hath alike right to any thing. And therefore</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>the Law is that which puts a difference betwixt good and evill, be|twixt ju&s;t and unju&s;t. If you take away the Law, all things will fall into a confu&s;ion; every man will become a law unto him&s;elf: which, in the depraved condition of humane nature, mu&s;t needs produce many great enormities: Lu&s;t will become a law, and envy will become a law, cove|tou&s;ne&s;&s;e and ambition will become lawes: and what dictates, what divi|&s;ions &s;uch lawes will produce; may ea&s;ily be di&s;cerned.</HI></P>
<P>And in this very language doth the Parliament &s;peak in their de|clarations, <HI>Book Declar.</HI> pag. 6. where they &s;peak with a great deal of vehemency and bitterne&s;&s;e again&s;t the bold and pre&s;umptuous inju&s;tice of &s;uch Mini&s;ters of Ju&s;tice as before this Parliament, <HI>made nothing to breake the lawes, and &s;uppre&s;&s;e the liberties of the Kingdom, after they by the Petition of Right, &amp;c. had been &s;o &s;olemnly &amp; evidently declared.</HI> Yet <HI>they ob&s;tructed</HI> (among&s;t abu~dance of other grievous crimes there enumerated, <HI>the ordinary cour&s;e of Ju&s;tice;</HI> which they there (pag. 7.) call the <HI>COMMON BIRTH-RIGHT</HI> of the Subjects of <HI>England.</HI> And in pag. 38. they &s;peaking of the Kings dealing with the five accu&s;ed Members: who, by his Maje|&s;ties Warrant, had their <HI>Chambers, Studies, and Trunkes &s;ealed up: Which action</HI> (they &s;ay) <HI>is not only against the priviledge of Parlia|ment, but the common liberty of every Subject.</HI> And in the &s;ame page they &s;ay, <HI>His Maje&s;ty did i&s;&s;ue forth &s;everall warrants to divers Offi|cers under his own hand, for the apprehen&s;ion of the per&s;ons of the &s;aid members, which by Law he cannot do; there being not all this time, any legall charge, or accu&s;ation, or due PROCESSE of law i&s;&s;ued a|gain&s;t them, nor any pretence of charge made known to that Hou&s;e whereof they were Members. All which are against the fundamen|tall lawes and liberties of the Subject, &amp;c.</HI> And in pag. 458, 459. they declare, <HI>That in all their endeavours &s;ince this Parliament began, they
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have laboured the regaining of the ancient</HI> (though of late yeares much invaded) <HI>rights, lawes, and liberties of England, being the Birth-right of the Subjects thereof.</HI> And therefore pag. 660. they own it as their duty, to u&s;e their be&s;t endeavours, <HI>That the meane&s;t of the Commonalty may enjoy their own Birth-rights, freedome, and liberty of the law of the land; being equally</HI> (as they affirm) <HI>intitled there|unto with the greate&s;t Subject.</HI> And in pag. 845. they declare, that to be a&s;&s;aulted or &s;ei&s;ed on without due Proce&s;&s;e or Warrant; <HI>is a|gain&s;t the legall priviledge of every private man:</HI> but the Prerogative-Monopolizing arbitrary-men of <HI>London,</HI> as though they had an ab|&s;olute Deity-power in them&s;elves, and were to be ruled and gover|ned by nothing, but the law of their own will: And as though they were more ab&s;olute and &s;overaigne in power, then either the King or Parliament, divided or conjoyned; di&s;-franchi&s;ing the greate&s;t part of the Commons of <HI>London,</HI> of their Liberties, Trade, and Free|domes, at their plea&s;ure; which is granted unto them not onely by God, and the great Charter of Nature, and Principles of Rea&s;on, but al&s;o by the <HI>Fundamentall Lawes and Con&s;titutions of this King|dome:</HI> by which lawes, and by no other; is <HI>London,</HI> as well as the re&s;t of <HI>England,</HI> to be governed. And therefore Arbitrary, Irratio|nall, and Illegall it is for them, or any of their brother-hoods, Mo|nopolizing Corporations and Companies, by the authoirty of any pretended Royall Patent, Proclamation, or Commi&s;&s;ion, what&s;oever; to a&s;&s;ume unto them&s;elves a power to de&s;troy, annihilate, and make voyd the Fundamentall lawes of the Land; which yet notwith&s;tan|ding they daily doe. And &s;ure I am, by the <HI>Petition of Right,</HI> the King of him&s;elf can neither make an oath, nor impo&s;e 6 pence upon any of his people, nor impri&s;on, nor puni&s;h any of them, but by the Law, &amp; by the Statutes of <HI>Magna Charta, chap.</HI> 29. <HI>&amp;</HI> 2. <HI>E.</HI> 2.8. <HI>&amp;</HI> 5. <HI>E.</HI> 3.8.9. <HI>The King &s;hall neither by the great Seal, nor little Seale, di&s;turb, delay, nor deferre judgment, or common right: And though &s;uch commandements doe come; the Ju&s;tices &s;hall not therefore leave to do right in any point.</HI> But yet notwith&s;tanding, they meerly by their illegall prerogative, both frame oathes ab&s;olutely-de&s;tructive to the publick law of the kingdome: impo&s;e arbitrary fines, and illegall levies and payments of moneys: and act illegall impri&s;onments and puni&s;hments: yea, and at their plea&s;ure &s;ei&s;e upon the goods of free-men. All which is con&s;tantly practi&s;ed in their Patentee-Monopo|lizing
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<HI>Companies, Corporations</HI> and <HI>Fraternities.</HI> So that to &s;peak properly, really, and truly, their <HI>Brotherhoods are &s;o many con&s;pira|cies to de&s;troy and overthrow the lawes and liberties of England, and to ingro&s;&s;e, inhance, and de&s;troy the trades and Franchi&s;es of mo&s;t of the Freemen of London.</HI></P>
<P>But if it &s;hould be objected. That the&s;e things are the ancient cu&s;tomes and practices of the Grandees of <HI>London:</HI> and therefore by pre&s;cription of time are become lawes thereto;</P>
<P>I an&s;wer: Cour&s;e of time amends not that which was nought from the beginning. And that which was not grounded upon good right, and found rea&s;on; is not made good by continuance of time. And therefore to give a definition of the Lawes of <HI>England,</HI> as it may be proved out of the workes of the be&s;t and mo&s;t con&s;cienti|ous Lawyers thereof.</P>
<P><HI>It con&s;i&s;ts of the ancient con&s;titutions, and modern acts of Parlia|ment, made by the States of the Kingdome: but of the&s;e onely &s;uch as are agreeable to the word of God, and law of Nature, and &s;ound Rea&s;on.</HI></P>
<P>Or the Fundamentall Law of the Land, is the PERFECTION <HI>of Rea&s;on, con&s;i&s;ting of Lawfull and Rea&s;onable Cu&s;tomes, received and approved of by the people: and of the old Con&s;titutions, and modern Acts of Parliament, made by the E&s;tates of the Kingdome. But &s;uch only as are agreeable to the law Eternall and Naturall,</HI> and not con|trary to the word of God: For what&s;oever lawes, u&s;ages, and cu|&s;tomes, not thus qualified; <HI>are not the law of the land:</HI> nor are to be ob&s;erved and obeyed by the people, being contrary to their Birth-rights and Freedomes, which by the Law of God, and the <HI>great Charter of Priviledges,</HI> they ought not to be.</P>
<P>And therefore Sir <HI>Richard Emp&s;on,</HI> and <HI>Edm. Dudley,</HI> Ju&s;tices of Peace, were both hanged in <HI>Henry</HI> the eighths dayes, for putting in execution, &s;everall illegall practices grounded upon an unju&s;t law made in the 11. <HI>H.</HI> 7. <HI>chap.</HI> 3.1. which, as honorable Sir <HI>Edw. Cook</HI> &s;aith, <HI>was made again&s;t, and in the face of the Fundamentall Law of the great Charter,</HI> 2. <HI>part. In&s;tit. fol.</HI> 51.</P>
<P>And ju&s;t it was they &s;hould be thus dealt with, becau&s;e it is ho|norable, beneficial and profitable for the Common-wealth, that guil|ty per&s;ons &s;hould be puni&s;hed, le&s;t by the omi&s;&s;ion of the puni&s;h|ment of one, many men by that ill example, may be encouraged to
<PB N="42" REF="22">
commit more heinous offences. And excellent to this purpo&s;e, is that &s;aying of the Parliament, which I de&s;ire they may never for|get, <HI>Book, Declar</HI> pag. 39. which is, <HI>That they are very &s;en&s;ible, that it equally imports them, as well to &s;ee ju&s;tice done against them that are criminous, as to defend the ju&s;t rights and liberties of the Subjects and Parliament of England.</HI> And therefore pag 656. they call the execu|tion of the law, <HI>the very life and &s;oule of the law,</HI> as indeed it is: without which; it is but in truth a dead letter, and a &s;encele&s;&s;e block. But woe unto you prerogative Patentee-Citizens, if the Law &s;hall be executed upon you; I profe&s;&s;e I will not give three pence for an hundred of your e&s;tates, for all the greatne&s;&s;e rhereof, what-ever become of &s;ome of your liberties, or lives; which many of you have hitherto pre&s;erved by bribes, and other indirect cour&s;es. Witne&s;&s;e &s;ome of you in a jo<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">nt fraternity, like brethren in evill, giving above <HI>three&s;core thou&s;and pounds</HI> at once for a bribe in the dayes of the Councell-Table, to pre&s;erve you from Law and Ju&s;tice; and to de&s;troy the Law, and to buy and rob your fellow-Citizens, as free as your &s;e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">ves, of their liberties, franchi&s;es, trades, and livelihoods. Read the Di&s;cour&s;e for <HI>Free Trade.</HI></P>
<P>Onlye wor&s;e then <HI>high-way men, pick-pockets, &amp; hou&s;ebreakers,</HI> who now would fain transform your &s;elves into Angels of light, like your old wicked Father, &amp; become godly Presbyters, that now-&s;prung-up Sect and Here&s;ie in <HI>England;</HI> who&s;e Lordline&s;&s;e and pride, was long &s;ince as Heatheni&s;h, and Gen<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">ili&s;me, condemned by Chri&s;t and his Apo&s;tles; and zealous Covenanters, which you make your &s;talking hor&s;e, to disfranchize all hone&s;t and tender con&s;cience men, that cannot take that impo&s;&s;ible to be kept, and double-faced Covenant, the greate&s;t make-bate and &s;nare, that ever the Divell, and the Cler|gy his Agents, ca&s;t in among&s;t hone&s;t men in <HI>England,</HI> in our age; which I dare pawn my head and life &s;o to prove it to be, in a fair &amp; publike di&s;cour&s;e, again&s;t the greate&s;t maintainer thereof in <HI>England.</HI> But alas! If it were ten times wor&s;e, your we&s;ons are wide enough to &s;wallow it down, and your con&s;ciences large enough to di&s;ge&s;t it, without the lea&s;t danger of vomiting: But I hope the true, faith|full, and ju&s;t God of Heaven and Earth, will rai&s;e up heroical In&s;tru|ments, to unvaile, and unmask you, and bring about wayes &amp; means enough, for all your jugling, and machivel-like endeavours, to divide the peoples affections, each from other, about tho&s;e unhappy names
<PB N="43" REF="22">
of <HI>Independents</HI> and <HI>Presbyters,</HI> to bring you to condigne, and ju&s;t de|&s;erved puni&s;hments, before you have fully &s;adled and bridled them, and made them fit to be rid by you as &s;laves: And therefore, for the further di&s;covery of you, I judge it not ami&s;&s;e, here to in&s;ert, that ex|cellent Petition of Mr. <HI>William Sykes,</HI> and <HI>Thomas John&s;on,</HI> delivered in writing fir&s;t to the hou&s;e of Commons, and then in print to the Members thereof; which thus followeth:</P>
<Q><TEXT LANG="eng">
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="petition">
<HEAD>To the Honourable the <HI>Knights, Citizens,</HI> and <HI>Burge&s;&s;es</HI> of the <HI>Commons Hou&s;e</HI> in <HI>Parliament</HI> A&s;&s;embled.</HEAD>
<HEAD>The humble Petition of <HI>William Syeks,</HI> and <HI>Thomas Iohn&s;on,</HI> Marchants, on the behalfe of them&s;elves, and all the freemen of <HI>England.</HI></HEAD>
<OPENER>Sheweth,</OPENER>
<P>THat whereas divers Marchants in the 21. year of the Raign of Queene <HI>Elizabeth,</HI> under the great Seal of <HI>England,</HI> obtained a large and illegall Charter of incor|poration, for them and their Company, to u&s;e the traffi|que and &s;eat of Marchandize, out, and from any of Her then Ma|je&s;ties Dominions, through the <HI>Sound</HI> into divers Realmes, Kingdoms, Dominions, Dukedoms, Countries, Cities, and Townes, <HI>viz. Norway, Swethi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">, Poland,</HI> &amp;c. Whereby none but them&s;elves, and &s;uch as they &s;hall think fit, and for &s;uch fines and compo&s;itions as they &s;hall impo&s;e, &s;hall take any benefit by the &s;aid Charter; disfranchi&s;ing thereby, all other the free-borne people of <HI>England,</HI> who during the time of all the&s;e warres, have been in divers re&s;pects, greatly charged for the defence of this pre&s;ent Parliament; the lawes and liberties of their native
<PB N="44" REF="23">
Country, and therefore ought indifferently to enjoy the benefit of the good lawes, franchi&s;es, and immunities by <HI>Magna Charta</HI> e|&s;tabli&s;hed: which great Charter hath been ratified by 31. &s;e&s;&s;i|ons of Parliament; as al&s;o this pre&s;ent Parliament, being bound by prote&s;tations, oaths, and covenants to maintaine the &s;ame: by rea&s;on whereof, and other illegall monopolies, they are de|barred from that free inlargement of common traffique, which the Kingdoms of <HI>Scotland</HI> and <HI>Ireland</HI> do enjoy; the &s;ame being de&s;tructory to their laudable liberties and priviledges, the funda|mentall lawes of the Land, to the manife&s;t impoveri&s;hing of all owners of &s;hips, ma&s;ters, mariners, clothiers, tuckers, &s;pin&s;ters, and multitudes of poore people; be&s;ides the decrea&s;e of cu&s;toms, the ruine and decay of navigation, together with the abating the price of our wools, cloth, &s;tuffe, and &s;uch like commodities, ari|&s;ing and growing within this Ralm, and the inhauncing of all commodities imported from tho&s;e forraign parts, by rea&s;on of the in&s;ufficiency of the merchants, they being few in number, and not of ability to keepe the great &s;tore of our &s;hips and &s;ea|faring men a work, and to vend our native manufactories, and likewi&s;e by rea&s;on that tho&s;e forraign commodities are in few mens hands, much hurt and prejudice hath redounded to every private or freeman of this Kingdom, and tendeth to the ruine of the con&s;titutions thereof.</P>
<P>Your Petitioners mo&s;t humble &s;uit is, that the charter and mo|nopoly of the <HI>Ea&s;tland</HI>-merchants, the charters and monopolies of the merchant <HI>Adventurers, Turkie</HI>-marchants, <HI>Greenland</HI>-marchants, <HI>Mu&s;covia</HI>-merchants, &amp;c. upon mi&s;-informations, and untrue pretences of publike good, &s;o unduely obtained, and unlawfully put in execution, to the great grievance and incon|venience of the free Denizons of this Realm, contrary to the great Charter, and divers other &s;tatutes of former Parliaments, <HI>viz.</HI> the 12. <HI>H.</HI> 7&punc; the 3. <HI>Jac.</HI> which was made for the over|throw of the <HI>Spani&s;h</HI> Corporation, &amp;c. the Petition of Right, the act made for the aboli&s;hing of the <HI>Star-Chamber</HI> in this pre|&s;ent Parliament (in which our liberties and freedoms are con|firmed) may be, as indeed they are, declared to be contrary to law, and to be utterly void, and of none effect, and in no wi&s;e to be hereafter put in execution: and this we are the rather im|boldened
<PB N="45" REF="23">
to crave, for that the Parliament in the 3. <HI>Car.</HI> by the Petition of Right, and this Parliament by the act for aboli&s;hing the <HI>Star-Chamber,</HI> have confirmed the &s;tatute of tallage, made in the 34. of <HI>Edw.</HI> 1. whereby in the 4. chaptar, it is enacted; that we &s;hall have our lawes, liberties, and free cu&s;toms, as large|ly and wholly as we or our ance&s;ters have u&s;ed to have the &s;ame at any time, when we had them at the be&s;t: and if any &s;tatute hath been made, or any cu&s;tome brought in contrary to them; that &s;uch manner of &s;tatutes and cu&s;toms, to be void and fru&s;trate forevermore: and by another &s;tatute of the 25. <HI>Edw.</HI> 1. yet in force, and unrepealed, It is enacted, that if any Iudgement be given contrary and again&s;t the &s;ubjects liberties, confirmed by <HI>Magna Charta,</HI> by any Iu&s;tices, or by any other Mini&s;ters, that hold plea before them; the &s;ame &s;hall be undone, and holden for nothing: all which your Petitioners doubts not but you will grant and confirme, and no more &s;ubject your Petitioners to tho&s;e law-de&s;troying monopolizers: but that free trade and traffique may be re&s;tored in all points, according to law, as of right it ought to be: the&s;e Corporations called to a &s;trict account for all their wrongs and oppre&s;&s;ions, and reparations made to the parties grieved, as &s;hall be agreeable to ju&s;tice (the life and &s;oule of all well-governed Common wealths) that all men hereafter to &s;ucceeding generations, may be terrified from making in|chroachments upon the common liberties and freedoms of the people.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><HI>And your Petitioners &s;hall ever pray,</HI> &amp;c.
<LIST>
<ITEM>William Sykes.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Thomas John&s;on.</ITEM>
</LIST></SIGNED>
<DATELINE><DATE><HI>March the</HI> 4. 1645.</DATE></DATELINE></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT></Q>
<P>And I doe hereby exhort all my fellow-Citizens that have been denied and prohibited by you to follow their trades and vend their goods, &s;eriou&s;ly to read over the Statute of Monopolies, made 21. <HI>James,</HI> chap. 3. and &s;eriou&s;ly with the be&s;t advice and coun&s;ell they can get, con&s;ider thereof; and I believe they will, by it, finde your practi&s;es to be again&s;t the Fundamentall Laws of <HI>England,</HI> and your &s;elves liable to pay treble dammages, and double co&s;ts, to every man that &s;hall ground his action upon this Statute; and, <HI>&s;ue you at com|mon-law, for hindering, grieving, di&s;turbing, or di&s;quieting, or his, or
<PB N="46" REF="24">
their goods, or chattels, any way &s;eizing, attaching, di&s;training, taking, carrying away, or detaining by occa&s;ion, or pretext of any Monopoly, or of any &s;uch Co~mi&s;&s;ion (as in the Declaratory-part of this Statute, is mentio|ned) grant, licence, power, liberty, faculty, Letters-Pattents, proclama|tion, inhibition, re&s;traint, warrant of a&s;&s;i&s;tance, or other matter, or any thing tending as afore&s;aid.</HI></P>
<P>And for the incouragement of all tho&s;e, that &s;ue upon this mo&s;t excellent Law; it is enacted in the body thereof, <HI>That he that de|layes an action grounded upon this Statute, incurs a Praemunire, accor|ding to the Statute of the</HI> 16. <HI>R.</HI> 2. <HI>chap.</HI> 5.</P>
<P>But if you &s;hall think, that you are free, by rea&s;on of the 5. <HI>provi&s;o</HI> therein contained: I believe you are meerly cuzoned; for if you read the Preamble or Declaratory-part of the Statute, you &s;hall find it there declared, <HI>That all grants of Monopolies, and of the benefit of any pe|nall Lawes, or of power to di&s;pence with the Law, or to compound for the forfeiture, are contrary to Law;</HI> So that thereby it appears, the antient fundamentall known law of the Land, is ab&s;olutely again&s;t Monopoli&s;ts; &s;o that this Statute is no new law, but a declaration and confirmation of the old and ju&s;t law of the Land, which makes the Statute the more &s;tronger: but lea&s;t it &s;hould in future time, by any &s;crupulous or cautious Judge, be que&s;tioned, whether it bee a true Declaration of the Law: Therefore, to make it &s;trong, without &s;taggering; it is not only declared to be law, but it is <HI>enacted to be &s;o,</HI> and that by all the e&s;tates, in a free and peaceable time; which makes it as firme, and &s;ure, without the lea&s;t flaw in the world, as it is po&s;|&s;ible for any humane law to be made: And therefore, for the avoy|ding, and preventing of the like mi&s;chiefs in future time, as had hap|pened in the Kingdome in times pa&s;t, to the great grievance and in|convenience of the people; May it plea&s;e your mo&s;t excellent Ma|je&s;ty, at the humble &s;uit of the Lords Spirituall and Temporall, and the Commons in this pre&s;ent Parliament a&s;&s;embled, <HI>That it may be declared and enacted; And be it declared and enacted, by authority of this pre&s;ent Parliament, That all Monopolies, and all Commi&s;&s;ions, Grants, Licences, Charters, and Letters Pattents, heretofore made or granted, or hereafter to be made or granted to any per&s;on or per&s;ons, bo|dies politike, or corporate what&s;oever, of, or for the &s;ole buying, &s;elling, making, working, or u&s;ing of any thing within this Realme or the Domi|nion of Wales, or of any other Monopolies, or of power, liberty, or facul|ty,
<PB N="47" REF="24">
to di&s;pence with any others, or to give licence or toleration to doe, u&s;e, or exerci&s;e any thing again&s;t the tenour or purport of any Law or Sta|tute, or to give or make any Warrant for any &s;uch di&s;pen&s;ation, licence, or toleration to be had or made or to agree, or compound with any others for any penalty, or forfeitures limitted by any Statute, or of any Grant or promi&s;e of the benefit, profit, or commodity of any forfeiture, penalty, or &s;umme of money, that is, or &s;hall be due by any Statu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">e, before judg|ment thereupon had, and all Proclamations, Inhibitions, Re&s;traints, War|rants of A&s;&s;i&s;tants, and all other matters and things what&s;oever, any way tending to the in&s;tituting, erecting, &s;trengthening, furthering, or countenancing of the &s;ame, or any of them; are altogether contrary to the Lawes of this Realm, and &s;o are, and &s;hall be utterly void, &amp; of none effect, and in no wi&s;e to be put in ure or execution.</HI></P>
<P>Now I pray tell me, ye Monopolizers of <HI>London,</HI> of what &s;trength, validity, or authority, is your provi&s;o again&s;t this &s;trong declared Law? truly, not worth a button, being ab&s;olutely weaker, then all the other 9 Provi&s;oes.</P>
<P>But let us a little con&s;ider of your provi&s;o; the conclu&s;ion of which, expre&s;ly &s;aith, <HI>That your Fraternitie, Charters, Cu&s;tomes, Corporations, Companies, Fellow&s;hips, and Societies, and their Liberties Priviledges, Powers, and Immunities, &s;hall be, and continue of &s;uch force and effect</HI> (mark it well) <HI>as they were before the making of this Act, and of none other: any thing before in this Act contained,</HI> to the con|teary, <HI>in any wi&s;e notwith&s;tanding.</HI> And truly, they were all of them illegall before, and therefore of no force and effect, as is fully proved and declared in the Preamble, &s;o that you get not the breadth of a hair, either in point of benefit or power, by this provi&s;o. But, not|with&s;tanding, your Pattents, Charters, &amp;c. are not onely <HI>declared</HI> and <HI>enacted,</HI> to be illegall, but al&s;o your e&s;tates liable to pay treble dam|mages, and double co&s;ts, to all men that you wrong, contrary to this ju&s;t and excellent Law: in which, be&s;ides the incurring the Premu|nire, to any that &s;hall delay an Action grounded upon this Sta|tute: It is al&s;o enacted, <HI>That no E&s;&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">ign, Protection, Wager of Law, Aid Prayer, Priviledge, Injunction, or order of re&s;traint, &s;hall in any wi&s;e be prayed, granted, admitted, or allowed, nor any more then one imper|lance.</HI></P>
<P>And for the further illu&s;tration, that the Provi&s;o of <HI>London</HI> is un|der, both the <HI>declaratory,</HI> and <HI>penall part,</HI> of this Statute; &s;eriou&s;ly read
<PB N="48" REF="25">
and con&s;ider, the &s;trength of the five la&s;t provi&s;oes, which onely are fenced in unque&s;tionably, and you &s;hall find their provi&s;oes run clear in another &s;train to that of <HI>London,</HI> viz. <HI>Provided al&s;o, and be it enact|ed, that this Act, or any Declaration, provi&s;ion, di&s;ablement, penalty, or other thing before in the Act mentioned; &s;hall not extend to, &amp;c.</HI> and in the conclu&s;ion of their provi&s;o, the words run thus. <HI>That all &amp;c. &s;hall be, and remain of the like force and effect, and no other, and as free from the declarations, provi&s;ions, penalties, and forfeitures contained in this Act, as if this ACT had never been had nor made, and not other|wi&s;e.</HI></P>
<P>But compare the provi&s;o for <HI>London</HI> (which is ab&s;olutely the weake&s;t of the re&s;t) and you &s;hall find no &s;uch words in it at all; the words of which Provi&s;o; thus followe:</P>
<P>"Provided al&s;o, and it is hereby further intended, declared, and enacted; that this Act, or any thing therein contained, &s;hall not in any wi&s;e extend, or be prejudiciall unto the City of <HI>London,</HI> or to a|ny City, Borough, or Towns-Corporate within this Realm; for, or concerning any Grant, Charters, or Letters-Pattents to them, or any of them, made or granted, or for, or concerning any cu&s;tome or cu|&s;tomes u&s;ed by or within them, or any of them, or unto any Corpo|rations, or Fellow&s;hips of any Art, Trade, Occupation, or My&s;tery, or to any Companies, or Societies of Merchants within this Realm, erected for the maintenance, enlargement, or ordering of any Trade of Mar|chandize; but that the &s;ame Charters, Cu&s;tomes, Corporations, Companies, Fellow&s;hips and Societies, and their liberties, priviledg|es, powers, and immunities &s;hall be and continue of &s;uch force and effect, as they were before the making of this Act (which was ju&s;t none at all) and of no other: any thing before in this Act contained to the contrary in any wi&s;e: notwith&s;tanding, the Statute of 3. <HI>James, chap.</HI> 6. which Statute opens and make free, the trade for <HI>Spain, Portugall,</HI> and <HI>France,</HI> with Sir <HI>Edward Cookes</HI> Coment upon the Statute of Monopolies, in the 3. part of his <HI>In&s;titut. fol.</HI> 181. and his &s;ayings upon the &s;ame &s;ubject, in his Expo&s;ition of <HI>Magna Char|ta,</HI> 2. part, In&s;titut. fol. 47. is extraordinary well worth the judicious Readers &s;erious peru&s;all; for they will give a great deale of light a|bout the&s;e Monopoli&s;ts, &amp;c. But in ca&s;e the Reader have not the bookes by him, nor cannot furni&s;h him&s;elf therewith without a great deal of money; if he plea&s;e to furni&s;h him&s;elf with my fore-menti|oned
<PB N="49" REF="25">
Treati&s;e (which for a very &s;mall matter he may) called <HI>Inno|cencie and Truth ju&s;tified,</HI> and read the 55, 56, 60, 61, 62. pages there|of: you &s;hall finde there, both the fore-mentioned Statute at large, and the marrow of Sir <HI>Edward Cookes</HI> Aaguments; to which I re|fer you.</P>
<P>But if any man &s;hall propound the que&s;tion, and ask what's the rea&s;on that the Statute of Monopolies, being a Law of &s;o great con|cernment, to all the people of <HI>London,</HI> is no plainer penned.</P>
<P>I an&s;wer (according to that information that I have from every good hand, and one that knowes as much of the hammering contri|ving, and pa&s;&s;ing of that Statute; as I think any one man in <HI>England</HI> doth) that in the Parliament before this mo&s;t excellent Law pa&s;&s;ed, it was in more plainer expre&s;&s;ions then now it is &s;ent up to the Lords, who judged it &s;o prejudiciall to the Prerogative, and divers great Courtyers, that with &s;corne and indignation they tare it in their hou&s;e, and threw it over their Bar; &s;o that there was an end of it for that Parliament: But it being of &s;o much u&s;e to the Common|wealth, as it was; &s;ome Patrons thereof in the next Parliament, &s;et it on foot again, and pro&s;ecuted it very clo&s;e: but judging it impo&s;&s;i|ble, purely without clogs to pa&s;&s;e the Lords; and if it did pa&s;&s;e the Lords, yet they feared it would &s;tick at the King; and therefore put in &s;ome colourable provi&s;oes, which not one in a hundred could rightly under&s;tand: but it coming into the Lords hou&s;e with the provi&s;oes, much all alike, the &s;ubtle, crafty, Attorney Generall, then Sir <HI>Thomas Coventry</HI> late Lord-Keeper pre&s;ently found out the falla|cie; and being put upon it by his Ma&s;ter the King, &s;trengthened the five la&s;t provi&s;oes as they are, which principally &s;erved his turn, and beating then a good-wil to the Common-wealth and the Law of the Kingdome, pa&s;&s;ed by that provi&s;o of <HI>London,</HI> &amp;c. that &s;o the Act might be as beneficiall for the Kingdom, as po&s;&s;ible it could bee got to be then: and to be the promoters of that Statute, were willing to plea&s;e the King and his Courtiers, in admitting the five la&s;t provi|&s;oes, having gained <HI>London,</HI> &amp;c. being the main and principal of all the re&s;t, rather then not to have it pa&s;&s;e at all; which then it was impo&s;&s;ible to do without them: and therefore there was an extraor|dinary great nece&s;&s;ity, to pen it &s;o ambiguous &amp; doubtful as it is, not only for ca&s;ting a mi&s;t over the Citizens eyes, as indeed they have done it excellently well; who if it had been plain, per&s;picuous, and
<PB N="50" REF="26">
ea&s;ie to their under&s;tandings, would have interpo&s;ed with all their might and &s;trength: and if they could not have prevailed to &s;top it in the Hou&s;e of Commons; would have gone near to have bribed all the Courtiers about the Court (in which practi&s;es they are very well ver&s;ed) before it &s;hould have pa&s;&s;ed either with the Lords, or King.</P>
<P>Now &s;eeing the Patentee-Monopolizers are &s;o pernicious and de|&s;tructive to the lawes and liberties of <HI>England,</HI> as by con&s;tant expe|rience they are found to be; that both informer Parliaments, and this pre&s;ent Parliament, the Hou&s;e of Commons have thrown di|vers Patentee-Monopoli&s;ts, out of the Hou&s;e; as altogether unfit to be law-makers, who have been &s;uch law-de&s;troyers. It had been pure Ju&s;tice indeed, if they had made no exceptions of per&s;ons; but &s;wept the Hou&s;e of all &s;uch: and then the King in his Declaration of the 12. <HI>Augu&s;t,</HI> 1642. <HI>Book Declar.</HI> pag. 516. had not had &s;o much cau&s;e too ju&s;tly to hit them in the teeth, with being partiall in kee|ping, Ju&s;tice <HI>Laurence Whittaker, &amp;c.</HI> who the King there &s;aith, <HI>hath been as much imployed as a Commi&s;&s;ioner in matters of that na|ture, as any man.</HI> And by all the information that I can get, or heare of, from tho&s;e that knew him well before the Parliament; the King in this particular hath &s;poken nothing but truth: and I am &s;ure, and will to his face make it good, <HI>&s;ecundum legem terrae</HI> (that is by the law of the land, but not by the arbitrary law of Committees, that his e&s;tate and head will not make a &s;ufficient &s;atisfaction to the kingdome for tho&s;e intolerable In-rodes that he hath made &s;ince this Parliament, into &amp; upon, the fundamental and e&s;&s;ential liberties, pri|vileges, and lawes of <HI>England.</HI> Therefore to you my fellow-Citi|zens, the Cloke-men of <HI>London,</HI> I make this exhortation, to make a petition to the Parliament, to bring him, &amp; all &s;uch Delinquents, to condigne puni&s;hments: which both the mo&s;t of you, and the Parlia|me~t are bound unto (not only by your own intere&s;t, but al&s;o) by your prote&s;tation, &amp;c. <HI>Book. Declar.</HI> 156. 191. 278, 629. And good en|couragement you have from their own Declarations, &s;o to doe: For there they &s;ay, <HI>Book. Decl.</HI> 656. <HI>The execution of Ju&s;tice is the very &s;oul and life of the law.</HI> And pag. 39 they &s;ay, <HI>They are very &s;en&s;ible, that it equally imports them, as well to &s;ee ju&s;tice done again&s;t them that are criminous, as to defend the ju&s;t rights and liberties of the Sub|jects and Parliament of England.</HI> And in pag. 497. they &s;ay, <HI>Woe un|to
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them if they doe not their duty.</HI> Therefore never think that the Parliament will be wor&s;e then their words, or throw their own Declarations behind their backs: and therefore if you want the fruit of them; blame your &s;elves for not pre&s;&s;ing them to make them good unto you. For I am &s;ure it is their own Maxime and &s;aying, that, of the Parliament there ought not to be thought or imagined a di&s;|honourable thing, page 28. and therefore, as they would have men to believe the truth of this Maxime; &s;o undoubtedly they will be ve|ry careful and wary not to do a di&s;honourable action, much le&s;&s;e to protect vi&s;ible Delinquents and Offendors among&s;t them&s;elvs in the great Councel of the Kingdom, which were not only a di&s;honoura|ble action, but would ju&s;tly open all rationall mens mouths (not on|ly to think, but al&s;o) to &s;peak di&s;honourably of them.</P>
<P>But it may be, you will &s;ay, that your Grandees of <HI>London</HI> tell you, the Parliament will receive no Petitions from a multitude of Citizens, unle&s;&s;e it come through the Common-councel.</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, true it is, there hath been a very &s;trong report of &s;uch a thing in <HI>London;</HI> but roguery, knavery, and &s;lavery is in the bottome of it: for if the prerogative-men of <HI>London</HI> could once bring you to that; they might tyrannize over you at their plea&s;ure, ten times more then they do. Therefore, an enemy to the Liberties of <HI>England</HI> and <HI>London</HI> in the highe&s;t degree; hee is that would per&s;wade you, to believe any &s;uch thing: Yea, and I &s;ay further, he is an enemy to the honour, dignity, and &s;afety of the Parliament that &s;o doth: for this were to de&s;troy the fundamentall freedomes of <HI>England,</HI> which the Parliament them&s;elves cannot de&s;troy, being appointed to provide for our weal, but not for our woe, Book Decl. p. 150, 81, 179, 336, 361, 382, 509, 663 721, 726. and them&s;elves &s;ay, pag. 700. that all intere&s;ts of tru&s;ts are for the u&s;e of others, for their good, and not o|rherwi&s;e.</P>
<P>And puni&s;hable is he, that &s;hal make the people believe any &s;uch thing: the Parliament judging it the greate&s;t &s;candal, that can be laid upon them, that they either do, or ever intended &s;uch a thing, as to in&s;lave the people, and rob them of their liberties and freedomes, Book Decl. p. 264, 281, 494, 496, 497, 654, 694, 696, 705, 716.</P>
<P>And therefore, when the King chargeth it upon them as a crime, that they have received Petitions again&s;t things that are e&s;tabli&s;hed by Law; they acknowledge it to be very true, <HI>And fur|ther
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&s;ay, that all that know what belongeth the cour&s;e and practice of Parliament, will &s;ay, that we ought &s;o to do; and that both our Prede|ce&s;&s;ours, and his Maje&s;ties Ance&s;tors have con&s;tantly done it, there be|ing no other place, wherein lawes, that by experience may be found grie|vous and burthen&s;ome, can be altered or repealed; and there being no other due and legall way, wherein they which are agrieved by them, can &s;eek redre&s;&s;e, Book Decl. pag.</HI> 720.</P>
<P>Yea, and when his Maje&s;ty hits them in the teeth, with the great numbers of people that u&s;ed to come up to <HI>We&s;tmin&s;ter,</HI> the begin|ning of this Parliament, calling them tumultuous numbers; <Q>They tell him, that they do not conceive that numbers do make an A&s;&s;em|bly unlawfull; but when either the end, or manner of their car|riage &s;hall be unlawfull. Divers ju&s;t occa&s;ions (&s;ay they) might draw the Citizens to <HI>We&s;tmin&s;ter,</HI> where many publike and pri|vate Petitions, and other cau&s;es were depending in Parliament, and why that &s;hould be found more faulty in the Citizens, then the re|&s;ort of great numbers every day to the ordinary Courts of Ju&s;tice, we know not, <HI>Book Decl. p.</HI> 201. 202. <HI>And therfore, pag.</HI> 209. they af|firme, that &s;uch a concour&s;e of people, carrying them&s;elves quietly and peaceably (as they did) ought not in his Maje&s;ties apprehen&s;i|on, nor cannot in the interpretation of the Law, be held tumultary and &s;editious:</Q></P>
<P>And therefore up and be doing againe, as then you did, and al&s;o petition for the exemplary puni&s;hment of tho&s;e among&s;t them&s;elves, that have robbed you of your <HI>Lawes, Liberties, Fran|chi&s;es,</HI> and <HI>Trades;</HI> for be&s;ides all that is before named, a grea|ter is behinde, namely, the <HI>disfranchi&s;ing</HI> of all you <HI>Clokemen of London,</HI> in giving any vote in chu&s;ing your Burge&s;&s;es for Par|liament, although I am confident you are above three hundred, for one <HI>Livery-man,</HI> and although your Per&s;ons and E&s;tates, I dare &s;ay it have been voluntarily ten times more ready and &s;er|viceable, in the&s;e late di&s;tractions, to pre&s;erve the Parliament, and the Kingdome, and the lawes and liberties thereof, then the Gowne or Livery-men; although you be rob'd, by them of yours. Truly for my part, I &s;peake from my &s;oule, and con&s;ci|ence, without feare, I know no rea&s;on <HI>(unle&s;&s;e it can be proved that you are all &s;laves &amp; va&s;&s;als(</HI> why you &s;hould be concluded by the determinations, orders, and decrees of tho&s;e, that you
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have no vote in chu&s;ing: (for it is a true and ju&s;t maxim in na|ture, <HI>no man can binde me but by my own con&s;ent</HI>) neither do I &s;ee how in rea&s;on or con&s;cience it can be expected from you, to pay any taxes, &amp;c. but that the whole charge that is layd upon this City, &s;hould totally be borne by the Aldermen, and the Livery men till you be actually put in po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion, and injoy your equall &s;hare in the lawes, liberties and freedoms thereof; as by the law of nature, rea&s;on, God and the land, yea, and your own an|tient and originall Charters, the meane&s;t of you ought to do, as fully and largely in every perticuler, as the greate&s;t of them.</P>
<P>And now I am upon this theame, I will make bold humbly to propound or declare to the con&s;ideration of the Parliament, an in&s;ufferable injury, and wrong, that is done unto thou&s;ands of the freemen of England, by vertue of <HI>Prerogative Charters,</HI> and corporations, and the re&s;trictive and unju&s;t &s;tatute of the 8. <HI>H.</HI> 6. chap. 7. Fir&s;t, by <HI>Prerogative Charters,</HI> the King makes corpo|rations of what paltery Townes he plea&s;eth, to chu&s;e two Bur|g<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;&s;es for the Parliament, in diver of which a man may buy a Burges&s;hip for 40. or 50. l. and in &s;ome of which is &s;carce, 3. le|gall men to be found according to the Statute of 8. <HI>H.</HI> 6 7. that is to &s;ay, <HI>men that are worth</HI> 40. s. <HI>in land by the yeare, above all charges,</HI> and in others of them, are &s;car&s;e any but Ale-hou&s;e|keepers, and ignorant &s;ots, who want principles to chu&s;e any man, but only tho&s;e, that either &s;ome lord, or great man writes for, and re|commends; or el&s;e one who bribes them for their votes; and this undenezing of tho&s;e Corporations, is an undenezing to all the towns and villages adjacent; in which live thou&s;ands of people, that by name are free-men of <HI>England,</HI> and divers of them men of great e|&s;tates in money and &s;tock; which al&s;o al&s;o are <HI>disfranchi&s;ed,</HI> and <HI>unde|nezed,</HI> by the fore-mentioned <HI>unrighteous Statute;</HI> becau&s;e they have not in land 40. <HI>s. per annum,</HI> and &s;o &s;hall have no vote at all in chu|&s;ing any Parliament man, and yet mu&s;t be bound by their Lawes, which is meer <HI>va&s;alage;</HI> and be&s;ides, unrighteous it is, that <HI>Cornwall</HI> &s;hould chu&s;e almo&s;t 50. Parliament-men; and <HI>Yorke&s;hire</HI> twice as big, and three times as populous, and rich, not half &s;o many; and my poor Country the Bi&s;hoprick of <HI>Durham,</HI> none at all; and &s;o indeed, and intruth, are meer va&s;&s;als and &s;laves, being in a great mea&s;ure like the <HI>French Pea&s;ants,</HI> and the <HI>Va&s;&s;als</HI> in <HI>Turkie:</HI> but the more fooles
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they: for I profe&s;&s;e, for my part, I would lo&s;e life and e&s;tate, lived I now in that Country, before I would pay 6. d. taxation; unle&s;&s;e it might enjoy the <HI>common, and undeniable priviledge in chu&s;ing, (as o|thers,</HI> and all the Countries in <HI>England,</HI> be&s;ides, do) Knights and Burge&s;&s;es, to &s;it and vote in <HI>Parliament:</HI> the greate&s;t hinderer of which, at the pre&s;ent, I judge to be old Sir <HI>Henry Vane,</HI> the <HI>&V;aine</HI> and unworthy <HI>Lord Lieutenant</HI> thereof, who hath done more mi&s;chiefe to that poor Country, by his <HI>negligence,</HI> if not ab&s;olute <HI>wilfulne&s;&s;e, perfidiou&s;ne&s;&s;e,</HI> and <HI>treachery,</HI> (the di&s;covery of which you may partly read in the 19, 20, 21. pages of <HI>Englands Birth-right;</HI> and which I under&s;tand is likely &s;hortly more fully to be <HI>anatomized</HI> (if he turn not the more hone&s;ter and ju&s;ter &s;peedily) by them or him, that to the death will avouch it,) then his life and e&s;tate can make &s;atisfacti|on. And therefore, me thinks it were a great deale of more Ju&s;tice and Equity, to fixe upon the certain number of the men, that the <HI>Hou&s;e of Commons</HI> &s;hould <HI>con&s;i&s;t of at</HI> 500. <HI>or</HI> 600. <HI>or more, or le&s;&s;e, as by common con&s;ent &s;hould be thought mo&s;t fit;</HI> and equally to pro|portion out to every County, to chu&s;e a proportionable number, &s;u|table to the rates, that each County by their Bookes of Rates are a&s;|&s;e&s;&s;ed, to pay towards the defraying of the Publique charge of the Kingdome; and then each County equally and proportionable by the common con&s;ent of the People thereof to divide it &s;elfe into <HI>Divi&s;ions, Hundreds,</HI> or <HI>Wapentakes,</HI> and every Divi&s;ion of and with|in them&s;elves, <HI>to chu&s;e one or more Commi&s;&s;ioners to &s;it in Parlia|ment,</HI> &s;utable to the proportion that comes to their &s;hare: which would put an end and period to all tho&s;e inconveniencies that rare|ly happen, which are mentioned in the fore&s;aid Statute of the 8. <HI>H.</HI> 6, 7. and re&s;tore every free-man of <HI>England,</HI> to his <HI>native,</HI> and <HI>legall rights and freedomes:</HI> Oh! that <HI>England</HI> might enjoy this peace of pure Ju&s;tice; the which if it do not, the free-men thereof may blame them&s;elves.</P>
<P>But now to return back to the City, and its prerogative-Mono|polizers, who, and their predece&s;&s;ors, I may ju&s;tly &s;ay, have been main and principall In&s;truments of all <HI>Englands</HI> woe and mi&s;erie; as I dare pawn my life upon it, cleerly, ju&s;tly, and rationally to demon&s;trate: for what hath brought all the pre&s;ent wars upon us, but the unju&s;t &s;welling of the <HI>Prerogative,</HI> beyond the <HI>ju&s;t Bounds</HI> of the known, and e&s;tabli&s;hed Law? and who hath put the <HI>arbitrary commands</HI> ther|of
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in execution; but principally the <HI>Monopolizing Citizens?</HI> as in hundred of particulars, might cleerly be evidenced, and furni&s;hed the <HI>King</HI> from time to time, and year to year, with <HI>vast &s;ums of money,</HI> to &s;upply his <HI>extravagancies,</HI> and the <HI>extravagancies of his extrava|gant Courtiers,</HI> which did inable him to break off <HI>former Parliaments at his plea&s;ure,</HI> and to keep them off, &s;o long, till this poor Kingdome with oppre&s;&s;ion and inju&s;tice was almo&s;t de&s;troyed.</P>
<P>And &s;ure I am, if the King had found none to obey, or put in exe|cution his illegall commands; our former mi&s;eries, and the&s;e pre&s;ent warres had never been: and impo&s;&s;ible it would have been for the King to have kept off Parliaments &s;o long as he he did, if the&s;e men and their predece&s;&s;ors had not been beginning, originall, and ill pre|&s;idents, illegally (from time to time for their own particular ends and advantages) to &s;upply his nece&s;&s;ities with va&s;t <HI>&s;ummes of mo|ney:</HI> yea, I have heard it from very good hands, of &s;olid and &s;ub&s;tan|tiall Citizens, <HI>That after the breaking up of the Parliament in the third of this King, the Corporation of MERCHANT AD|VENT&V;RERS, freely and voluntarily without any compul&s;ion, made a mo&s;t unju&s;t, and England-de&s;troying and in&s;laving order, in their Company, TO PAY VNTO THE KING CV|STOMES, &amp;c. for all their Merchandi&s;e, contrary unto law, and the liberties of England.</HI> Yea, and in affront of the late, or mo&s;t excellent Parliament that had made the <HI>Petition of Right,</HI> by which all royall impo&s;itions, and levies what&s;oever, are damn'd: and not onely enacted, but al&s;o declared, to be again&s;t the Fundamentall lawes of the kingdom; and yet I never heard of any of the&s;e men, who&s;e life and e&s;tate was made a ju&s;t &s;acrifice there-for; although to my under&s;tanding, they as much, if not more, de&s;erve it, then the <HI>Earle of Strafford,</HI> But contrary to their de&s;erts, divers of the <HI>Grandees</HI> of this very <HI>Monopoly,</HI> and illegall <HI>Corporation,</HI> are become the great Trea&s;urers of the kingdomes money, both in the Cu|&s;tome-hou&s;e, and Exci&s;e; contrary to law, right, equity and con&s;ci|ence: which action of the Parliaments, in putting them into tho&s;e a grand places, lo&s;eth the Parliament more in the affections of thou|&s;ands of hone&s;t people; and will, if not &s;peedily prevented, make a greater breach in the peace of this di&s;tre&s;&s;ed kingdome, then all their e&s;tates <HI>confi&s;cated</HI> will repay: For people doe already very much murmure, and begin privatly to que&s;tion the intentions of the
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Parliament in reference to the&s;e men: and many begin to &s;ay, that this demon&s;trates unto them, that they &s;hall but only have a change of Ma&s;ters, and not of their <HI>Bondage, &s;lavery,</HI> and <HI>oppre&s;&s;ion;</HI> &s;eeing &s;uch <HI>Varlets, Vipers, Pe&s;ts, enemies and de&s;troyers of the lawes and li|berties of England</HI> imployed in the great <HI>Places</HI> of the kingdom, who mu&s;t needs act according to their old and corrupt principles, and drive on their habituated and de&s;tructive de&s;ignes again&s;t the weale, peace, trade, and tranquillity of this poore bleeding kingdome. And if (&s;ay the people) the&s;e wor&s;t of men, who eat up mens trades and livelihoods, and &s;o &s;uck their bloods, as Sir <HI>Edward Cook</HI> in his fore|mentioned di&s;cour&s;e well ob&s;erves, and de&s;troy men and this poore kingdome, with <HI>a &s;ecret de&s;truction,</HI> &s;hall po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e the Cu&s;tome-hou&s;e; are they not enabled thereby to curb every Merchant that hath any Principles in him for the lawes and freedomes of <HI>England;</HI> are they not enabled hereby, to &s;end their <HI>agents, creatures,</HI> and <HI>&s;er|vants,</HI> to all the Ports and Sea-townes of <HI>England,</HI> where, they have an influence into the elections of all the Burge&s;&s;es that in any of them are cho&s;en to &s;it in Parliament. By means of which we may have (&s;ay they) wickedne&s;&s;e, bondage, &s;lavery, and all kind of Mo|nopolies e&s;tabli&s;hed by a Law: and then <HI>our la&s;t error will be wor&s;e then the fir&s;t,</HI> and all our money, &amp; blood, and fighting, &s;hed and &s;pent in vain. And have not the Exci&s;e-men the &s;ame power in every par|ticular, in their hands likewi&s;e: For can they not, yea doe they not &s;it upon the skirts of every man that hates and oppo&s;es their <HI>tyran|nizing</HI> and <HI>monopolizing</HI> wayes? And doe they not <HI>authorize,</HI> and &s;end their <HI>Sub-commi&s;&s;ioners, &amp;c.</HI> into all the Counties and Corpo|rations in <HI>England,</HI> where they have the &s;ame influence into all ele|ctions, that their brethren at Cu&s;tome-hou&s;e have in Sea-ports and Havens? Nay, the&s;e <HI>Blades</HI> &s;trengthen their intere&s;t, and make it double. <HI>Threfore look about you Gentlemen, before it be too late.</HI> For &s;ure I am, were it not for tho&s;e unhappy, unnaturall and irrationall divi&s;ions, that the&s;e men (with the help of their Monopolizing bre|thren the Clergy) have made among&s;t us; I am a&s;&s;uredly and confi|dently per&s;waded, that neither the <HI>King nor the Scots,</HI> nor yet the un|ju&s;t Lords, would be &s;o high in the <HI>In&s;tep,</HI> as they are; which is like to beget a new warre again. For &s;hame therefore unite in affe|ction, though you cannot in judgement, in matters of Religion, and &s;tudy and &s;tand for your <HI>common intere&s;t,</HI> lawes and liberties, and
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take heed the <HI>French</HI> come not creeping in at a back doore: For they have already got <HI>Dunkirk,</HI> and &s;o are furni&s;hed with a good <HI>Harbor</HI> and &s;tore of &s;hipping, from whence with a faire wind they can in 6 or 8 hours land in the coa&s;ts of <HI>Kens, E&s;&s;ex, Suffolk</HI> or <HI>Norfolk:</HI> Therefore beware of tho&s;e two dangerous places, <HI>Lin,</HI> &amp; the I&s;le of <HI>Lovingland,</HI> hard by <HI>Yarmouth:</HI> therefore up, and as one man, to the Parliament with a Petition, to di&s;place all tho&s;e <HI>Monopoli|lize<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">s,</HI> and to put hone&s;t <HI>Engli&s;hmen</HI> into their places, that love the <HI>Fundamentall lawes,</HI> and the <HI>common</HI> and ju&s;t liberties of the Nation; And al&s;o de&s;ire the Parliament to reduce the publick trea&s;ure of the kingdom, into the cheap, publick, and old good way of the king|dome. The Exchequer for the&s;e ob&s;cure clande&s;tine wayes of the&s;e mens receiving and paying moneys, is not &s;afe nor profitable for the kingdome, if you will beleeve Mr. <HI>John Pyms</HI> Speech, made at the Barre of the Hou&s;e of Peeres again&s;t the Duke of <HI>Buckingham,</HI> which is a mo&s;t excellent &s;peech. And al&s;o de&s;ire the Parliament, not onely to remember, but al&s;o <HI>cordially, heartily,</HI> and <HI>really</HI> to put in execution their &s;elfe-denying Ordinance, that they them&s;elves may be examples of &s;elf-deniall to all the men in the kingdome. For a hard matter is it for any Parliament-man what-ever he be, in &s;uch times of di&s;tre&s;&s;e as the&s;e are, wherein Souldiers that have ventured their lives for eight pence a day, to &s;ave both the Parliament and the kingdome, and many poore Widowes and fatherle&s;&s;e children, that have lo&s;t their husbands and Fathers in the warres, and are now ready to &s;terve and peri&s;h for want of bread; and yet cannot get their &s;mall arreares. And when the kingdome is reduced to that po|verty, that Exci&s;e and Taxes mu&s;t be laid upon poor men, that have wives, children and families, and nothing to maintain them with, but what they earn with the labour of their lands, and the &s;weat of their browes, and yet then for &amp;c. to have great places of 1000. l. 1500. l. or 2000. l. <HI>per annum,</HI> and the &s;alaries and &s;tipends of them paid out of the publick &s;tock, when they are able to live in pomp and gallantry of them&s;elves be&s;ides: and it is po&s;&s;ible to get hone&s;t, faithfull, and experienced men, that have ventured life and all for the common wealth, to officiat in tho&s;e places, as well, if not bet|ter, for 100. l. or 150. l. or 200. l. <HI>per annum:</HI> let &s;uch men, if there be any profe&s;&s;e what hone&s;ty or Religion they wil;l I profe&s;&s;e &s;eri|ou&s;ly, that to me &s;uch actions, at &s;uch a time as this; are cleare de|mon&s;tration
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to me, that &s;uch men have neither hone&s;ty, Chri|&s;tianity, nor Religion; but meerly make them pretences for their own unworthy ends.</P>
<P>And this Parliament being now a &s;tanding Parliament, and like &s;o to continue; it is very hard that the Lawyers thereof &s;hould run from Bar to Bar to plead cau&s;es before Judges made by them&s;elves, who dare not ea&s;ily di&s;plea&s;e them, for feare of being turned out of their places by their meanes. Sure I am, well and con&s;cienciou&s;ly to officiate the &s;ingle place of a Parliament man; is enough for one.</P>
<P>But to return again to the Monopolizers, the endevourers, &amp; con|trivers of <HI>Englands</HI> de&s;truction. If <HI>Alex.</HI> Archb. of <HI>Yorke,</HI> and <HI>Rob. de Veere,</HI> Duke of <HI>Ireland, &amp;c.</HI> de&s;erved to be pro&s;ecuted as traytors, for but endeavouring at the Kings co~mand to de&s;troy certain members of both Hou&s;es: How much more doe the&s;e law-and-kingdome-de&s;troying <HI>Monopolizers,</HI> de&s;erve the &s;ame, that have not onely en|devoured the de&s;tructions of &s;ome Parliament-men, but al&s;o the ve|ry Being of all <HI>Parliaments them&s;elves;</HI> and &s;o by con&s;equence; the <HI>whole kingdome.</HI> Sure I am, if the Commonalty of <HI>London</HI> will carefully peru&s;e their own ancient and ju&s;t <HI>Charters,</HI> they &s;hall find, <HI>That they within them&s;elves have power enough not onely to di&s;fran|chi&s;e all the&s;e Monopolizers,</HI> but al&s;o <HI>all other freemen of London that &s;hall endevour the de&s;truction of their ancient fundamentall and ju&s;t Freedomes, Liberties and Franchi&s;es:</HI> And that they, namely, the <HI>Commonalty,</HI> have not onely liberty <HI>to chu&s;e their Lord Maior,</HI> and that not onely from among&s;t <HI>the Court of Aldermen;</HI> but al&s;o if they plea&s;e, they may <HI>chu&s;e a di&s;creet man from amongst them&s;elves: And the Commonalty in every Ward; upon a fixed day, are inabled once e|very yeare to chu&s;e an Alderman in every Ward, with an expre&s;&s;e Pro|hibition, that one man &s;hall not be Alderman two yeares together.</HI> And the Commonalty expre&s;ly have a power to chu&s;e <HI>Chamberlaine,</HI> common <HI>Sergeant, Bridge-ma&s;ter,</HI> &amp;c. and to whom alone they are to be accountable for the moneys in their offices received.</P>
<P>Now having brought this Di&s;cour&s;e to this period; it behoves me a little to Apologize for my &s;elfe: becau&s;e I beleeve I &s;hall have <HI>a whole &s;ea of indignation</HI> to ari&s;e again&s;t me; which I heere pro|fe&s;&s;e I feare not, nor value, if I may have faire play, and have not my hands and feet bound, and then challeng to fight, and defend my &s;elf. And truly I mu&s;t &s;ay, and that in the pre&s;ence of God. I have
<PB N="59" REF="30">
in the &s;inglene&s;&s;e of my heart, <HI>without ends of my owne; di&s;charged my con&s;cience: the boylings of which I could not with&s;tand,</HI> being at the writing hereof in <HI>Jeremies</HI> ca&s;e, when he &s;aid, pleading with God, <HI>Thy word was in my heart as a burning fire &s;hut up in my Bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not &s;tay,</HI> Jer. 20.9.</P>
<P>But yet, becau&s;e what-ever I meet with be&s;ides, I <HI>per&s;wade my &s;elfe</HI> I am &s;ure to meet with the revilings, and reproches of the barking curs of the times, &s;uch as (S. <HI>Shipard</HI>) &amp;c. who in my clo&s;e captivity have nibbled at my heeles, like brats of the old Serpent; I &s;hall therefore, for my pre&s;ent apologie, publi&s;h to the view of the world, the dealings of Mr. <HI>Iohn White,</HI> a Warder in the Tower with me, who lately writ a mo&s;t fal&s;e and &s;candalous book again&s;t me, &amp; with much importuning the Lieutenant of the Tower, (being pro|hibited Pen, Ink, and Paper) I obtained leave from him, upon certain conditions made with him, to write an an&s;wer to it; which was, that I &s;hould not in the lea&s;t meddle with his ma&s;ters that committed me; and to let him &s;ee it, before it was printed, which I performed. But my Angatoni&s;t, old <HI>Iohn White,</HI> as it appears to me, hearing the An&s;wer was very plain, and home Engli&s;h; &s;ent me a me&s;&s;age by a Gentleman, my fellow-pri&s;oner, <HI>That he de&s;ired to put the difference betwixt us to arbitration:</HI> And I being a man of peace, and willing to avoid jangling, if it were po&s;&s;ible; upon agreement to compo&s;e it.</P>
<P>I did chu&s;e two of my fellow pri&s;oners, &s;trangers to me, and men of oppo&s;ite principles; but knowing the Ju&s;tice of my cau&s;e, and be|ing convinced <HI>of the morall Ju&s;tice of the Gentlemen:</HI> I cho&s;e Sir <HI>Lewis Dive,</HI> and Sir <HI>William Morton;</HI> and he chu&s;e Sir <HI>John Strangewayes,</HI> and Sir <HI>John Glanvill;</HI> and the fir&s;t day of the hearing of the bu&s;i|ne&s;&s;e was before Col. <HI>Francis West</HI> Lieutenant of the Tower at his own hou&s;e, where we both referred our &s;elves, to &s;tand to the finall award of our fore&s;aid Arbitrators: at which hearing, they were plea&s;ed to give my <HI>Antagoni&s;t</HI> certain dayes time to procure Wit|ne&s;&s;es, to prove the e&s;&s;entials of his Charge; and he out-&s;tripping the time, and I lying under his publike di&s;grace and calumny; I pre&s;|&s;ed them for a conclu&s;ion: upon which they i&s;&s;ued out this follow|ing Warrant.</P>
<Q><TEXT LANG="eng">
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="warrant">
<P>WE who&s;e names are &s;ub&s;cribed, <HI>Arbitrators</HI> indifferently cho&s;en to end all differences betwixt Lieutenant-Colonell <HI>John Lil|burn</HI>
<PB N="61" REF="31">
of the one party, and Mr. <HI>John White</HI> one of the Warders of the Tower of the other party, have appointed to morrow next at three of the clock in the afternoon, at Mr. Lieutenants hou&s;e in the &s;aid Tower, fur|ther to hear, and finally to determine the &s;aid differences; whereof wee de&s;ire the &s;aid parties to take notice, and then to be pre&s;ent with their Witne&s;&s;es, and all &s;uch proofe, as they will u&s;e in the premi&s;es. Given un|der our hands this <HI>5.</HI> of October, <HI>1646.</HI></P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><LIST>
<ITEM><HI>John Glanvill.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>John Strangewayes.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Lewis Dive.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>William Morton.</HI></ITEM>
</LIST></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT></Q>
<P>But the next day, the Lieutenants office not permitting him to be pre&s;ent at the finall hearing; we all met at <HI>Sergeant Glanvils</HI> Cham|ber, where after a large and faire hearing, they made this award un|der their hands and &s;eales; <HI>the Copy of which, thus followeth:</HI></P>
<Q><TEXT LANG="eng">
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="award">
<P><Q>TO all true Chri&s;tian people to whom the&s;e pre&s;ents indented &s;hall come;</Q> We Sir <HI>John Strangewayes,</HI> Sir <HI>Lewis Dive,</HI> Sir <HI>John Glanvill,</HI> and Sir <HI>William Morton</HI> Knights, Arbitrators, here|tofore (that is to &s;ay, upon the 26. day of <HI>Septemb.</HI> la&s;t pa&s;t, before the date hereof) indifferently cho&s;en by Lieutenant Col. <HI>John Lil|burn,</HI> "of the one party, and <HI>John White,</HI> one of the Warders of the Tower of <HI>London,</HI> of the other party, for the ending of all differen|ces, and matters of controver&s;ie betwixt them; having entred into the hearing of the &s;aid differences, and matters of controver&s;ie, upon the &s;aid 26. day of <HI>September,</HI> and having upon the 6: day of this in|&s;tant <Q>moneth of <HI>Octob.</HI> 1646. in the 22. Yeare of the Raigne of our Soveraign Lord King <HI>Charles,</HI> fully heard the &s;aid differences, and matters of controver&s;ie; Doe find the &s;ame to be, and ari&s;e by, and upon the writing and publi&s;hing in print, of a certain Book, enti|tuled, <HI>John Whites Defence,</HI> in behalf of him&s;elf, &amp;c. again&s;t a lying and &s;candalous Pamphlet, written by <HI>John Lilburn,</HI> entituled, <HI>Liber|ty vindicated again&s;t Slavery:</HI></Q> In the 7. p. of which Book, to written, and publi&s;hed by the &s;aid <HI>John White;</HI> he intimateth, That the &s;aid <Q>Lieut. Col. Lilburn, was, and is the Author of another &s;candalous Libell; entituled, <HI>An Alarum to the Hou&s;e of Lords:</HI></Q> and in a
<PB N="60" REF="31">
<HI>Po&s;t&s;cript</HI> added to the &s;ame Book of the &s;aid <HI>John White,</HI> pag. the 12; he alleadgeth the &s;aid Lieut. Col. <HI>John Lilburn,</HI> to be the Author and "contriver of a printed Letter, annexed to the &s;aid Book or Trea|ti&s;e, of <HI>Liberty vindicated again&s;t Slavery:</HI> <Q>of which Letter, hee re|hear&s;eth a pa&s;&s;age, reflecting in a &s;candalous way upon the honou|rable hou&s;es of Parliament: Of which Book, entituled, <HI>John Whites Defence,</HI> &amp;c; the &s;aid <HI>John White</HI> confe&s;&s;eth, and acknowledgeth him&s;elf to be the Author and Publi&s;her.</Q></P>
<P><Q>But the &s;aid Lieut. Col. <HI>Lilburn</HI> denied him&s;elf to be in any &s;ort the Writer, Contriver, Author, or publi&s;her of the &s;aid other Books, Treati&s;e, and Letter, or of any of them; or that he had any hand, di|rection, or approbation, in, or concerning the writing, printing, or publi&s;hing of the &s;ame, or any of them.</Q></P>
<P>"And the &s;aid <HI>John White,</HI> did not at our entring into the hearing of the &s;aid differences, and matters of controver&s;ie, nor at any time &s;ince produce or offer unto us any &s;ufficient proofs, by witne&s;&s;es, or other|wi&s;e: <Q>Wherby it did, or might appear unto us, That the &s;aid Lieut. Col. <HI>Lilburn</HI> was the Writer, Contriver, Author, or publi&s;her of the &s;aid Bookes, Letters, and Treati&s;e, &s;o by him denied as afore|&s;aid, or of any of them: And the &s;aid <HI>John White</HI> being now offered further time to produce his witne&s;&s;es, or other good proofs, which he had to in&s;i&s;t upon, for the making good of the &s;everall Imputa|tions, in, and by his the &s;aid <HI>John Whites</HI> book, laid and fixed upon the &s;aid Lieut. Col. <HI>Lilburn;</HI> He the &s;aid <HI>Iohn White,</HI> ab&s;olutely re|fu&s;ed to take any further time in that behalf; expre&s;ly &s;aying, hee would travell no more in it; We the &s;aid Arbitrators, upon due con&s;ideration of the whole premi&s;es afore&s;aid, a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">e c<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">eer of opinion;</Q> That the &s;aid <HI>Iohn White</HI> (as the ca<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">e hath been, &amp; is repre&s;ented &amp; appearing before us) had no &s;ufficient ground to write print, or pub|li&s;h, That the &s;aid Lieut. Col. <HI>Lilburn</HI> was the Writer, or Author of the &s;aid Bookes, Treati&s;e, and Letter, or any of them: <Q>But that the &s;aid <HI>Iohn White</HI> in and by his writing, p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">inting and publi&s;hing of his &s;aid Book, entituled, <HI>Iohn Whites Defence, &amp;c.</HI> in manner and form as afore&s;aid <HI>hath unju&s;tly &s;candalized the &s;aid L. Col. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">ohn <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">il+burn;</HI> And thefore, we the &s;aid Arbitrat<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="2 letters">s do mo&s;t unanimou&s;ly <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">+ward, That the &s;aid <HI>Iohn White</HI> &s;hall before the 10. day of this in|&s;tant moneth of <HI>October,</HI> make a publike acknowledgment before Col. <HI>Francis We&s;t,</HI> Lieutenant of the &s;aid Tower of <HI>London,</HI></Q> at his
<PB N="62" REF="32">
the &s;aid Lieutenants hou&s;e in the &s;aid Tower, <Q>That he the &s;aid <HI>Iohn White</HI> hath done the &s;aid Lieut. Col. <HI>Iohn Lilburn</HI> wrong, and &s;hal make and pronounce the &s;aid acknowledgment, in the&s;e words following;</Q> That is to &s;ay, <HI>I Iohn White, one of the Warders of the Tower of London; Do acknowledge, that I have unju&s;tly wronged Lieu|tenant Col.</HI> I. Lilburn, <HI>in, and by my writing, and publi&s;hing in print, in &s;uch &s;ort as I did, That he was the Writer, Author, or Contriver of a Book called,</HI> Liberty vindicated again&s;t Slavery, <HI>And of a Printed Let|ter thereunto annexed; And of a Booke, called,</HI> An Alarum to the Hou&s;e of Lords: <HI>For all which, and for all the unju&s;t, and &s;candalous matters and language alleadged, and u&s;ed by me, in my &s;aid Booke, refle|cting upon the &s;aid Lieutenant Col.</HI> Lilburn; <HI>I am heartily &s;orry.</HI></P>
<P><Q>We the &s;aid Arbitrators doe al&s;o award, That after the &s;aid <HI>Iohn &V;&V;hite</HI> hath &s;o made and pronounced the &s;aid acknow|ledgment before the &s;aid Mr. Lieutenant;</Q> Hee the &s;aid <HI>Iohn White</HI> &s;hall then deliver his &s;aid acknowledgment in writing (&s;ub|&s;cribed by him the &s;aid <HI>Iohn &V;&V;hite</HI>) into the cu&s;tody of the &s;aid <Q>Lieutenant Colonell <HI>Iohn Lilburn,</HI> to be by him kept and di&s;po|&s;ed of, for his better vindication, again&s;t the &s;aid &s;candals &s;aid upon him by the &s;aid <HI>Iohn White,</HI> in his the &s;aid <HI>Iohn &V;&V;hites</HI> &s;aid Book.</Q></P>
<P>La&s;tly, we the &s;aid Arbitrators do award, That this our award &s;hall be a finall end of all differences and matters of controver&s;ie <Q>what&s;oever betwixt the &s;aid Lieut. Col. <HI>I. Lilburn,</HI> and the &s;aid <HI>Iohn White,</HI> to us, or to our award in any wi&s;e, &s;ubmitted by the &s;aid parties, from the beginning of the world, unto the day of their &s;aid &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion to our award;</Q> &s;o farre as the &s;ame doth, or may concern the &s;aid parties, or either of them in their particulars: and that the &s;aid parties from henceforth &s;hall&punc; continue lovers <Q>and friends, without any repetition of former injuries on either part.</Q></P>
<P><Q>And for the better clearing of the &s;aid <HI>Iohn White</HI> in his cre|dit, touching &s;ome rumours of couzenage, and perjury by him &s;uppo&s;ed to be committed, or touching his being for&s;worn, late|ly &s;cattered abroad to his di&s;credit;</Q> We the &s;aid Arbitrators, do unanimou&s;ly declare; that we have not found any colour, much <Q>le&s;&s;e any ju&s;t ground to fix upon the &s;aid <HI>Iohn VVhite</HI> any &s;u&s;pi|tion,
<PB N="63" REF="32">
of, or for the &s;ame, or any part thereof; But doe thereof in our opinions, ab&s;olutely cleer him.</Q> Given under our hands and &s;eales the 7. day of <HI>Octob.</HI> afore&s;aid, 1646.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><LIST>
<ITEM><HI>John Strangwaies.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Lewis Dives,</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>John Glanvill.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>William Morton.</HI></ITEM>
</LIST></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT></Q>
<P>But the Lieutenant not being willing, for cau&s;es be&s;t knowne to him&s;elf, that the &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion or recantation, &s;hould be made before, or in his pre&s;ence; it was done at Lir <HI>John Glanvils</HI> chamber: the Copy of which, thus followeth:</P>
<Q><TEXT LANG="eng">
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="recantation">
<P><HI>I</HI> John White, one of the Warders of the Tower of <HI>London,</HI> Doe ac|knowledge, that I have unju&s;tly wronged <HI>Lieut. Col. Iohn Lilburn,</HI> in, and by my writing, and publi&s;hing in print, in &s;uch &s;ort as I did; that he was the Writer, Author, or Contriver, of a Booke called, <HI>Liberty vindicated again&s;t Slavery;</HI> and of a Printed Letter thereunto annex|ed; and of a Book or Treati&s;e, called, <HI>An Alarum to the Hou&s;e of Lords:</HI> For all which, and for the <HI>unju&s;t, and &s;candalous matters and language alleadged, and u&s;ed by me, in my &s;aid Book, reflecting up|on the &s;aid Lieut. Col. Lilburn;</HI> I am heartily &s;orry: and in te&s;timony thereof, I have hereunto &s;ub&s;cribed my hand, the <HI>8.</HI> day of <HI>October, 1646.</HI></P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>JOHN WHITE.</SIGNED>
<DATELINE><HI>Sub&s;cribed, pronounced, and acce|pted,</HI> <DATE><HI>the 9. day of</HI> Octob. <HI>1646, in the pre&s;ence of us;</HI></DATE></DATELINE>
<SIGNED><LIST>
<ITEM><LIST>
<HEAD>Knights.</HEAD>
<ITEM>John Strangwaies,</ITEM>
<ITEM>Lewis Dive,</ITEM>
<ITEM>Iohn Glanvill,</ITEM>
<ITEM>William Morton,</ITEM>
<ITEM>Henry Vaughan,</ITEM>
</LIST></ITEM>
<ITEM>Chri&s;topher Comport, <HI>Warder in the Tower.</HI></ITEM>
</LIST></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT></Q>
<P><PB N="64" REF="33">And now to conclude at the pre&s;ent; becau&s;e there is not any, di&s;cour&s;e of mine own abroad in Prin<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter"> (&s;ince I was fir&s;t locked up &s;o clo&s;e, <HI>as I was by the Lords in Newgate</HI>) by way of Narrative, to &s;tate my ca&s;e to the world; I &s;hall, it may bee, informe and &s;i|lence, many mens ra&s;h cen&s;ures; by in&s;erting fir&s;t my Wifes late Petition to the Hou&s;e of Commons; and becau&s;e by a Gentle|man of the Committee to whom my cau&s;e was referred, it was judged a D<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">claration, rather then a Petition, and &s;o unfit to be in|&s;i&s;ted upon any further, after once reading there: although I am not apt to think, <HI>if I had been a man accu&s;tomed to write Letters to my Lord Cottington,</HI> when he was at <HI>Oxford</HI> at that time; when by Ordinance of Parliament, it was little le&s;&s;e then death &s;o to doe, her Petition, and my cau&s;e, would have found more favour from that Gentleman, then they did, who&s;e cavels nece&s;&s;itated me to &s;end a Petition of my own, to the &s;ame Committee, which I &s;ha<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">l al&s;o in&s;ert. But fir&s;t of all, my wifes Petition thus follow|eth:</P>
<Q><PB N="65" REF="33" MS="y"><TEXT LANG="eng">
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="petition">
<HEAD>To the Cho&s;en and betru&s;ted Knights, Citizens and Burge&s;&s;es, a&s;&s;embled in the high and &s;upream Court of PARLIAMENT.</HEAD>
<HEAD TYPE="sub">The Humble Petition of <HI>ELIZABETH LILBURNE,</HI> wife to Lieu. Col. <HI>JOHN LILBURNE,</HI> who hath been for above eleven weeks by-pa&s;t, mo&s;t unju&s;tly divorced from him, by the Hou&s;e of Lords, and their tyrannicall Officers, again&s;t the Law of <HI>GOD,</HI> and (as &s;he conceives) the law of the Land.</HEAD>
<OPENER>Sheweth,</OPENER>
<P>THat you only and alone are cho&s;en by the <HI>Commons of Eng|land,</HI> to maintain their Lawes and Liberties, and to do them ju&s;tice and right;<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Coll. of decl: pag. 264. 336. 382, 508, 613. 705. 711. 716, 721, 724, 725, 726, 729. 730.</NOTE> which you have often before <HI>God</HI> and the World <HI>&s;worn</HI> to do:<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Coll. decl. page <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">6<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter"> 6<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="2 letters">&punc; prote&s;tation <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter"> and covena<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="2 letters">&punc;</NOTE> yea, and in divers of your <HI>De|clarations</HI> declared; it is your duty (in regard of the tru&s;t repo&s;ed in you) &s;o to doe;<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Coll. decl. pag. 81<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter"> 17<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">&punc; 262, 266, 267, 340, 459. 462, 471, 473, 5<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="2 letters">, 690.</NOTE> without any private aimes, per&s;onall re&s;pects, or pa&s;&s;ions what&s;oever:<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Col. declar p. 464, 490, 750.</NOTE> And that you think nothing too good to be hazarded in the di&s;charge of your con&s;ciences for the obtaining of the&s;e ends:<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Coll. declar. p. 214. 67.</NOTE> And that you will give up your &s;elves to the ut|termo&s;t of your power, and judgement; to maintain truth, and con|form your &s;elves to the will of God;<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Col. decla. p. 666.</NOTE> which is to doe ju&s;tice and<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Ier. 22.<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">5.16, 17.</NOTE> right, and &s;ecure the <HI>Per&s;ons, E&s;tates,</HI> and <HI>Liberties</HI> of all that joyned with you;<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Col. declar. 666. 673.</NOTE> imprecating the <HI>judgements of heaven</HI> to fall upon you when you decline from the&s;e ends:<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Col. Declar. 4</NOTE> you judging,
<PB N="64" REF="34">
<GAP DESC="duplicate" EXTENT="1 page">
<PB REF="34">
<PB N="65" REF="35" MS="y">
<GAP DESC="duplicate" EXTENT="1 page">
<PB N="66" REF="36">
it the greate&s;t <HI>&s;candall</HI> that can be laid upon you, that you either doe or intend to <HI>&s;ubvert the Lawes, Liberties, and Freedoms of the people.</HI><NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">Col. decla p 264, 281, 494. 497. 654, 694, 696.</NOTE> Which <HI>Freedoms, &amp;c.</HI> you your &s;elves call, <HI>The co~mon Birth-right of Engli&s;h-men,</HI><NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">col. declar. p. 738, 14845.</NOTE> who are born equally free, and to whom the law of the land is an equall inheritance: And therefore your confe&s;&s;e in your Declaration of 23. <HI>Octob.</HI> 1642.<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Pag. 660.</NOTE> It is your duty to u&s;e your be&s;t endevours, that the meane&s;t of the <HI>Commonalty</HI> may enjoy their own <HI>birth-right, freedome and liberty</HI> of the lawes of the land; being <HI>equally</HI> (as you &s;ay) <HI>intiteld thereunto with the greate&s;t &s;ubject,</HI> The knowledge of which, as coming from your own mouthes, and Pen, imboldned your <HI>Petitioner,</HI> with confidence, to make her humble ad|dre&s;&s;e to you, and to put you in mind, that her husband, above 2 mo|neths agoe, made his formall and legall appeal to you again&s;t the in|ju&s;tice and u&s;urpation of the <HI>Lords</HI> acted upon him; which you re|ceived, read, committed, and promi&s;ed him ju&s;tice in: But as yet no report is made of his bu&s;ines, nor any relief or actuall ju&s;tice holden out unto him; although you have &s;ince found time to pa&s;&s;e the Com|po&s;itions and pardons, for the infranchi&s;ing of tho&s;e that your &s;elves have declared <HI>Traytors</HI> and <HI>Enemies</HI> to the <HI>kingdome:</HI> which is no &s;mall cau&s;e of &s;orrow to your <HI>Petitioner,</HI> and many others, that her h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">sband, who hath adventured his life, and all that hee had in the World, in your lowe&s;t condition for you &s;hould; bee &s;o &s;lighted and di&s;regarded by you, as though you had forgot the duty you owe to the <HI>kingdome,</HI> and your many <HI>Oathes, Vowes,</HI> and <HI>Declarations</HI><NOTE N="**" PLACE="marg">Decl. 460. 498. 666. 673</NOTE> which neglect hath ha&s;tned the almo&s;t utter ruine of of your Petiti|oner, her husband, and &s;mall children. For the <HI>Lords</HI> in a mo&s;t ty|rannicall and barbarous manner (being encouraged by your neg|lect) have &s;ince committed her husband, for about three weeks, <HI>clo&s;e pri&s;oner to Newgate,</HI> locked him up in a little room, without the u&s;e of pen, ink, or paper (for no other cau&s;e but for refu&s;ing to kneel at the Bar of tho&s;e, that by Law are none of his Judges.)<NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Magna <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">harta 29 Sir <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">. <HI>Cook</HI> 2. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 word"> In&s;tit, fol. 28, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">9. Rot. 2. Ed. 3.</NOTE> The cruell Jaylors all that time refu&s;ing to let your Petitioner, or any of his friends, to &s;et their, feet over the thre&s;hold of his chamber doore, or to come into the pri&s;on-yard to &s;peak with him, or to deliver un|to his hands, either meat, drink, money, or any other nece&s;&s;aries. A mo&s;t barbarous &amp; illegall cruelty! &s;o much complained of by your &s;elves in your <HI>Petition and Remon&s;trance to the King,</HI> 1. <HI>Decemb.</HI> 1641.<NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">col. declar. 6, 7, 8.</NOTE> <HI>and dige&s;ted and abhorred there,</HI> by you, as <HI>actions and cruelties be|ing
<PB N="67" REF="36">
more the proper i&s;&s;ues of Turks, Pagans, Tyrants, and men without any knowledge of God, then of the&s;e that have the lea&s;t &s;park of Chri|&s;tianity, Honour, or ju&s;tice in their brea&s;ts.</HI> And then while they thus tyrannized over your Petitioners husband; they command (as your Petitioner is Informed) Mr. <HI>Sergeant Finch,</HI> Mr. <HI>Hearne,</HI> Mr. <HI>Haile,</HI> and Mr. <HI>Glover,</HI> to draw up a charge again&s;t your Petitioners hu&s;|band, without giving him the lea&s;t notice in the world of it, to fit him&s;elf again&s;t the day of his <HI>tryall:</HI> but contrary to all law, ju&s;tice, and Con&s;cience, dealt wor&s;e with him, then ever the <HI>Star-Chamber</HI> did; not only in keeping his Lawyers from him, but even all manner of <HI>Councellors</HI> and <HI>Friends</HI> what&s;oever, even at that time when they were about to try him: and then of a &s;udden &s;end a Warrant for him to come to their Bar (who had no legall authority over him) to heare his charge read: where he found the Earle of <HI>Manche&s;ter</HI> his profe&s;&s;ed enemy, and the onely party (of a Lord) concerned in the bu&s;ine&s;&s;e; to bee his chiefe Judge, contrary to that ju&s;t Maxime of law, <HI>That no man ought to be both party and judge;</HI> (a practice which the unju&s;t <HI>Star-chamber</HI> it &s;elfe, in the dayes of its tyranny, did blu&s;h at, and refu&s;e to practice, as was often &s;een in the Lord <HI>Coventries ca&s;e,</HI> &amp;c.) And without any regard to the Earle of <HI>Man he&s;ters</HI> im|ment (in your Hou&s;e) of treachery to his Countrey, by Lieu. Gen. <HI>Cromwel,</HI> which is commoely reported to bee punctually and fully proved, and a charge of a higher nature then the Earle of <HI>Straffords,</HI> for which he lo&s;t his head: And which al&s;o, renders him, &s;o long as he &s;tands &s;o impeached; uncapable in any &s;en&s;e, of being a Iudge. And a great wrong and inju&s;tice it is unto the <HI>kingdome</HI> to permit him; and to him&s;elfe, if innocent; not to have had a legall triall ere this, to his ju&s;tification or condemnation. And be&s;ides all this, be|cau&s;e your <HI>Petitioners husband</HI> &s;tood to his apeale, to your <HI>Honours,</HI> and would not betray <HI>Englands liberties;</HI> which you have, all of you, &s;worn to pre&s;erve, maintain, and defend: they mo&s;t <HI>arbitra<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">i|ly, illegally,</HI> and <HI>tyrannically,</HI> &s;entenced your Petitioners &s;aid hu&s;|band to pay 4000.l. to the King (not to the State) <HI>for ever to be un|capable to beare any Office in Church or Common-wealth, either Mar|tiall or Civill, and to lie &s;even yeares a pri&s;oner in the extraordinary chargeable pri&s;on of the Tower;</HI> where he is in many particulars ille|gally dealt withall, as he was, when he was in <HI>Newgate.</HI></P>
<P>Now fora&s;much as the <HI>Lords</HI> as they claime&punc; them&s;elves to bee a
<PB N="68" REF="37">
<HI>Hou&s;e of Peeres</HI> have no legall judgement about Commoners, that your (Petitioner can heare of, but what is expre&s;&s;ed in the Statute of the 14 <HI>Ed.</HI> 3. 5. which are, <HI>delayes of ju&s;tice, or error in judgement in inferior Courts</HI> onely, and that with &s;uch limitations and qualifica|tions, as are there expre&s;&s;ed; which are, that there &s;hall be <HI>one Bi&s;hop</HI> at lea&s;t in the judgment, and an expre&s;&s;e <HI>Comi&s;&s;ion from the King,</HI> for their medling with it. All which was wa~ting in the ca&s;e of your Pe|titioners husband, being begun and ended by them&s;elves alone. And al&s;o &s;eeing that by the 29 of <HI>Magna Charta,</HI> your Petitioners husba~d, or any other Commoner what&s;oever; in criminall ca&s;es, are not to be tried otherwi&s;e then by their Peeres: which Sir <HI>Ed. Cook,</HI> in his expo&s;ition of <HI>Magna Charta,</HI> (which book is printed by your owne &s;peciall authority) &s;aith, is meant [equals] <HI>fol.</HI> 28. <HI>In which,</HI> (&s;aith he, fol. 29.) <HI>are compri&s;ed, Knights, E&s;quires, Gentlemen, Citizens, Yeomen, and Burge&s;&s;es of &s;everall degrees; but no Lords.</HI> And in p. 46. he &s;aith: <HI>No man &s;hall be di&s;&s;ei&s;ed]</HI> that is, put out of <HI>&s;ei&s;on,</HI> or di&s;|po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed of his <HI>freehold;</HI> that is, (&s;aith he) <HI>lands,</HI> or <HI>livelihood, or of his liberties or free cu&s;tomes,]</HI> that is, of &s;uch franchi&s;es and freedoms, and free cu&s;tomes as belong to him by his free <HI>Birth-right, unle&s;&s;e it be by the lawful judgment</HI> (that is, verdict of his <HI>Equals;</HI> that is (&s;aith he) of men of his own co~dition:] <HI>or by the law of the land;</HI> that is (to &s;peak it once for all) <HI>By the due cour&s;e and proce&s;&s;e of law.</HI> And, &s;aith he, <Q>No man &s;hall be in any &s;ort de&s;troyed, unle&s;&s;e it be by the ver|dict and judgment of his Peeres] that is, Equals or by the law of the land. And the Lords them&s;elves in old time, did truly confe&s;&s;e: That for them to give judgement of a Commoner in a criminall ca&s;e, is contrary to law; as is clear by the Parliaments record in the ca&s;e of Sir <HI>Simon d' Bereford.</HI> 4. <HI>Ed.</HI> 3. <HI>Rot.</HI> 2.</Q> the copy of which is now in the hands of Mr. H. <HI>Martin,</HI> &amp; they there record it, <Q>That his ca&s;e who was condemned by them for murthering King <HI>Edw.</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">. &s;hall not bee drawne in future time into pre&s;ident, becau&s;e it was contrary to law, they being not his Peeres, that is, his Equals.</Q> And fora&s;much as the manner of their proceedings was contrary to all the former wayes of the law publickly e&s;tabli&s;hed by Parliament in this kingdom, as appeares by &s;everall <HI>Statutes</HI><NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">5. Ed. 3. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">. 25. Ed. 3 4. 28. E. 3. 3. 37. Ed. 3. 8. 38. Ed. 3. 9. 42, Ed. 3. 3. 17. Ri. 2. 6. Rot. parli. 43. E 3. Sir Io: A|lees ca&s;e, Num. 21, 22, 23, &amp;c. lib. 10. fol. 74. in ca&s;e delar. mar&s;hal&s;es, &s;ee Cook, 2 part In&s;tit. fol. 46.</NOTE> which expre&s;ly &s;ay, <Q>That none &s;hall be impri&s;oned, nor put out of his free-hold, nor of his franchi&s;es, nor free cu&s;tomes, unle&s;&s;e it be by the law of the land, And that none &s;hall bee taken by Petition, or &s;ugge&s;tion
<PB N="69" REF="37">
made to the King, or to his Councell, unle&s;&s;e it bee by indict|ment, or pre&s;entment of good and lawfull people of the &s;ame neighbourhood where &s;uch deeds be done, in due manner, or by proce&s;&s;e made, or by Writ originall at the common-law.</Q> Which Statutes are nominally and expre&s;ly confirmed by the <HI>Petition of Right,</HI> by the <HI>Act made this pre&s;ent Parliament for the aboli&s;hing the Star-chamber;</HI> and thereby, all acts repealed that formerly were made in derogation of them. But contrary hereunto, the Lords (like tho&s;e wicked <HI>Ju&s;tices</HI> &s;poken of by Sir <HI>Ed. Cook</HI><NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">2. Part. In|&s;tit. 51.</NOTE> in &s;tead of try|ing her husband by the law of the land; proceed again&s;t him by a partiall tryall, flowing from their arbitrary will, plea&s;ure, and di&s;|cretion, &amp;c.<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Rot. part. 2. 1. H. 4. mem. 2. num. 1.27. In&s;tit. f. 51. Book declar. 58. 39. 278. 845.</NOTE> For though they &s;ummoned him up to their <HI>Barre, June</HI> 10. 1646. to an&s;wer a <HI>Charge:</HI> yet they refu&s;ed to &s;hew it him, or give him a Copy of it, but committed him to <HI>Newgate, June</HI> 11. 1646. (although he behaved him&s;elfe then with re&s;pect towards them both in word and ge&s;ture), meerly for refu&s;ing to an&s;wer to their <HI>Spani&s;h Inqui&s;ition-like Interrogatories,</HI> and for delivering his legall Prote&s;tation. Their <HI>Mittimus</HI> being as illegall as their &s;um|moning of him, and their own proceedings with him. Their com|mitment running, <HI>To be kept there:</HI> not till hee be delivered by due cour&s;e of Law; but, <HI>During their plea&s;ure:</HI> which Sir <HI>Edward Cook</HI> &s;aith, <HI>is illegall,</HI><NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">2. part. in&s;tit fol. 52, 53.</NOTE> and then locked up clo&s;e, that &s;o hee might bee in an impo&s;&s;ibility to under&s;tand how they intended to proceed a|gain&s;t him.</P>
<P>Wherefore your Petitioner humbly prayeth, to grant unto her husband the benefit of the law, and to admit him to your Bar him|&s;elf, to plead his own cau&s;e, if you be not &s;atisfied in the maner of his proceedings, or el&s;e according to law, ju&s;tice, and that duty &amp; obli|gation that lieth upon you; forthwith to relea&s;e him from his unju&s;t impri&s;onment: and to re&s;tain &amp; prohibit the illegal &amp; arbitrary pro|ceedings of the <HI>Lords,</HI> according to that <HI>&s;ufficient power</HI> en&s;tated upo~ you, for the enabling you faithfully to di&s;charge the tru&s;t repo&s;ed in you, &amp; to vacuate this his <HI>illegal &s;entence and fine,</HI> and to give him ju&s;t and honorable reparations from the Lords, &amp; all tho&s;e that have unju&s;tly executed their unju&s;t <HI>Commands:</HI> It being <HI>a Rule in law,</HI> and a <HI>Maxime</HI> made u&s;e of by your &s;elves in your <HI>Declaration</HI> 2. <HI>No|vemb.</HI> 1642.<NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">col declar. 723.</NOTE> <HI>That the Kings illegall commands, though accompani|ed with his pre&s;ence, doe not excu&s;e tho&s;e that obey them;</HI> much le&s;&s;e the
<PB N="70" REF="38">
Lords, with which the law accordeth, and &s;o was re&s;olved by the Judges, 16. <HI>Hen.</HI> 6.<NOTE N="s" PLACE="marg">See Cook. 2. part. In&s;tit. fol. 187.</NOTE> And that you will legally and judicially, ex|examine the crimes of the <HI>Earle of Manche&s;ter,</HI> and Col <HI>King,</HI> which the Petitioners husband, and others, have &s;o often complained to you of, and doe <HI>exemplary ju&s;tice</HI> upon them, according to their de&s;erts: or el&s;e, according to <HI>law</HI> and <HI>ju&s;tice,</HI> puni&s;h tho&s;e (if any) that have fal&s;ly complained of them.<NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">3. E. 33. 2. R. 2.5. 37. E. 3. 18. 38. E 39. 12. R. 2. 11. 17. R. 2. 6. 122. p. &amp; M. 3. 1 El. 6.</NOTE> And that you would, without further delay, give us reliefe by doing us ju&s;tice.<NOTE N="v" PLACE="marg">9 H. 3. 29 2. E. 3. 8. 5. E 3. 9. 14. E. 3 14. 11. E. 2. 10.</NOTE> All which, &s;he the ra|ther earne&s;tly de&s;iteth, becau&s;e his impri&s;onment in the Tower is extraordinary chargeable and in&s;upportable: although by right, and the cu&s;tom of that place; his <HI>fees, chamber, and diet, ought to be allowed him, and paid out of the Trea&s;ure of the Crown</HI>) he having wa&s;ted &amp; &s;pent him&s;elf with almo&s;t <HI>&s;ix years attendance,</HI> and expectation up|on your Honours for ju&s;tice and raparations again&s;t his barbarous <HI>Sentence, &amp;c.</HI> of the <HI>Star-chamber,</HI> to his <HI>extraordinary charge and dammage,</HI> and yet never received a peny; and al&s;o lo&s;t divers <HI>hundred pounds,</HI> the yeare he was a pri&s;oner in <HI>Oxford Ca&s;tle</HI> for you. Neither can he receive his <HI>Arreares</HI> for (the price of his blood) his faithfull &s;ervice with the <HI>Earle</HI> of <HI>Manche&s;ter,</HI> although he &s;pent with him much of his own money. And the la&s;t year, by the unadvi&s;ed means of &s;ome <HI>Members</HI> of this <HI>Honorable Hou&s;e,</HI> was committed pri&s;o|ner for above 3. moneths, to his extraordinary charges and expen|ces: And yet in conclu&s;ion he was relea&s;t, and to this day knoweth not wherefore he was impri&s;oned. For which, according to <HI>law</HI> and <HI>ju&s;tice,</HI> he ought to receive reparations; but yet he never had a peny. All which particulars con&s;idered, doe render the condition of your <HI>Petitioner,</HI> her <HI>husband</HI> and <HI>children,</HI> to be very nigh ruine and de|&s;truction, unle&s;&s;e your <HI>&s;peedy</HI> and <HI>long-expected ju&s;tice</HI> prevent the &s;ame. Which your <HI>Petitioner</HI> doth earne&s;tly intreat at your hands, as her right, and that which in equity, honour, and con&s;cience, cannot be denied her.<NOTE N="w" PLACE="marg">col. declar. 127, 174, 244, 253, 282, 284, 285, 312, 313, 321, 322, 467, 490, 514, 516, 520, 521, 532, 533 534, 535, 537, 539, 541, 543, 555, 560.</NOTE></P>
<P><HI>And as in duty bound, &s;he &s;hall ever pray, that your hearts may be kept upright, and thereby enabled timely and faithfully to di&s;|charge the duty you owe to the kingdome, according to the <HI>Great Tru&s;t</HI> repo&s;ed in you: And &s;o free your &s;elves from giving cau&s;e to bee judged men that &s;eeke your &s;elves more then the publick good.</HI></P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="petition">
<PB N="71" REF="38">
<HEAD>To the Honourable, the cho&s;en, betru&s;ted, and repre&s;entative Body of all the Free-men of <HI>England,</HI> in <HI>PARLIAMENT</HI> a&s;&s;embled.</HEAD>
<HEAD TYPE="sub">The humble Petition of Lieut. Col. <HI>John Lilburn,</HI> a legall Free-man of <HI>England;</HI> though now unju&s;tly impri&s;oned by the Lords, in the ex|traordinary chargeable Pri&s;on of the Tower of <HI>London.</HI></HEAD>
<OPENER>SHEWETH, THAT</OPENER>
<P>WHereas the Petitioner is a legall and free-born <HI>Engli&s;h-man,</HI> and ought by the fundamentall lawes of this Land, to enjoy the benefit of all the lawes, liberties, priviledges, and immunities of a free-born man, and a Commoner of <HI>England:</HI> and whereas by the Lawes and Statutes of this Realm; no free-man may be taken &amp; im|pri&s;oned, but by lawfull judgment of his equals, who are men of his own condition, and the Law of the Land: and by the Law of the &s;ame, no man ought to be impri&s;oned, before he be taken upon in|dictment, or pre&s;entment, by good men of the &s;ame neighbour-hood, or by due proce&s;&s;e of Law. And whereas, every man that is taken or impri&s;oned by the common Lawes of the Land, ought to be bayled: But he that is taken and convicted for Murder or Felony, or for &s;ome other offence for which a man ought to lo&s;e life or member. And by the Statutes of this Realm, every man is baylable; unle&s;&s;e he be ta|ken for Trea&s;on, Murder, Felony, or &s;ome particular ca&s;e excepted; wherof the Petitioner is no wayes guilty. But your Petitioner &s;hew|eth, that he being taken and impri&s;oned above 4 Moneths, by colour of unju&s;t orders, and an illegall &s;entence of the Lords pronounced a|gain&s;t him in their hou&s;e (although they have no legall jurisdiction over him) for &s;uppo&s;ed contempts and &s;candals committed again&s;t
<PB N="72" REF="39">
them, which was nothing el&s;e then a defence of his own liberty, and of all the free-men of <HI>England,</HI> in a plea and defence put into the &s;aid hou&s;e, which contained an Appeal to your Honours, again&s;t their un|ju&s;t proceedings: for which &s;uppo&s;ed contempts, he is by their un|ju&s;t &s;entence committed to the Tower, there to remain for the &s;pace of 7. years, and di&s;abled to bear any office, either Military or Civill, and to pay 4000.l. Fine: All which proceedings of their Lord&s;hips, the Petitioner doth prote&s;t again&s;t as unju&s;t, illegall, and de&s;tructive to the liberties, immunities, and priviledges of all the Commons of <HI>England;</HI> which he doubts not to free him&s;elf, and all other free-born <HI>Engli&s;h-men,</HI> of, by the Ju&s;tice of this honourable Hou&s;e (to whom he hath formerly, and now al&s;o doth Appeale) and by the a&s;|&s;i&s;tance of the Lawes of this Land.</P>
<P>Therefore, your Petitioner doth mo&s;t humbly pray, that he may be inlarged, at lea&s;t upon bayle, being by Law liable to follow and pro&s;ecute his cau&s;e depending before you, and redemption from the &s;aid illegall &s;entence, and to obtain ju&s;t and legall re|parations from the inflictors and executors thereof.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><HI>And he &s;hall pray, &amp;c.</HI> JOHN LILBURN.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT></Q>
<P><HI>COurteous Reader,</HI> by rea&s;on I am prohibited to have Pen, Ink, and Paper; I am forced now to write a peece, and then a peece, and &s;carce have time and opportunity &s;eriou&s;ly to peru&s;e and correct what I write; and in regard I cannot be at the Pre&s;&s;e, either to cor|rect, or revi&s;e my own lines (which be&s;ides is attended with many difficulties and hazards,) I mu&s;t intreat thee, as thou reade&s;t, to amend with thy Pen, what in &s;ence or quotations may be wanting, or fal&s;e; &amp; I &s;hal re&s;t thy true and faithfu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter">l Country-man, ready to &s;pend my bloud for the fundamentall Lawes and Liberties of <HI>England,</HI> again&s;t any power what-ever that would de&s;troy them.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>JOHN LILBVRN.</SIGNED>
<DATELINE><HI>From my prerogative, and illegall impri&s;onment in the Tower of</HI> London, <DATE><HI>this pre&s;ent</HI> Octob. 1646.</DATE></DATELINE></CLOSER>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
<PB REF="39">
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
