<!DOCTYPE ETS PUBLIC "-//UMDLPS//DTD EEBOPROOF 2.0//EN">
<ETS>
<TEMPHEAD>
<REVDESCR>
<CHANGE>
<DATE>2013-05-14</DATE>
<RESPSTMT>
<NAME>Sarah Wingo</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
</RESPSTMT>
<ITEM>Proofed and reviewed as part of batch B120732.pdcc.</ITEM>
</CHANGE>
</REVDESCR>
</TEMPHEAD>
<EEBO>
<IDG S="marc" R="UM" ID="A83694">
<STC T="W">E2570</STC>
<STC T="C">R8329</STC>
<BIBNO T="umi">99897526</BIBNO>
<VID>132665-01</VID>
</IDG>
<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>A DECLARATION OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE <HI>HONO&V;RABLE COMMITTEE</HI> Of the Hou&s;e of COMMONS, AT <HI>Merchant-Taylors Hall,</HI> For Rai&s;ing the People of the Land as one MAN.</P>
<P>Vnder the command of Sir <HI>William Waller.</HI> Augu&s;t 3. 1643.</P>
<P><HI>Ordered by the Committee to be printed.</HI></P>
<P><HI>LONDON,</HI> Printed by <HI>T. Pain</HI> and <HI>M. Simons.</HI> 1643.</P>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="declaration">
<PB REF="2">
<PB N="3" REF="2">
<HEAD>A DECLARATION OF the Honorable Committee of the Hou&s;e of COMMONS at <HI>Merchant-Taylors Hall,</HI></HEAD>
<OPENER><DATELINE><DATE> Augu&s;t 3d. 1643.</DATE></DATELINE></OPENER>
<P>_THou&s;ands of judicious well minded men being throughly &s;en&s;ible of the mi&s;erable condition of the Common-wealth, &s;ee|ing their mo&s;t faithfull Friends Com|manders, and Souldiers de&s;troyed in &s;mall parties again&s;t &s;trong and treache|rous Enemies; and finding by long and &s;ad experience, that all endeavours of Parliament whe|ther by gentle or forcible meanes, availed not to prevent or &s;ubdue their implacable malice, but as they increa&s;ed in numbers, &s;o they continued to &s;poile and murther ho|ne&s;t religious people in all places where they came. And being throughly &s;en&s;ible of the di&s;tre&s;&s;ed e&s;tate of our bre|thren in Ireland, and the wants and nece&s;&s;ities of the poore through decay of Trade, and want of Fuel, and fore&s;eeing that famine and de&s;truction, were even &s;eizing upon the
<PB N="4" REF="3">whole Nation, if not &s;peedily, and by extraordinarie meanes prevented, did propo&s;e unto them&s;elves the gene|rall rai&s;ing of the whole people (as one Man) as the onely meanes to give a &s;peedie end to this de&s;tructive warre. To effect which, they pre&s;ented a Petition to the Com|mons of ENGLAND in <HI>Parliament</HI> a&s;&s;embled the 20^t^h. day of Iuly <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">643. wherein they manife&s;ted, that they rightly under&s;tood the condition of their Enemies, and were no whit blinded by their delu&s;ions: and in mo&s;t ear|ne&s;t, and humble manner de&s;ired, that that Honorable Hou&s;e would be plea&s;ed to appoint a Committee to ma|nage that great affaire of Rai&s;ing the whole people. The Petition was received with great expre&s;&s;ions of affection; and a Committee of worthie Members of the Hou&s;e ap|pointed for advance of that Service.</P>
<P>This Honorable Committee with great re&s;olution and confidence undertooke this burthen&s;ome and great em|ployment, as conceiving the &s;ame to be the la&s;t refuge of the people: in pur&s;uance whereof they proceeded with great caution, to lay a &s;ound Foundation and good me|thod: which being agreed upon both for the City of London, and all other Counties; they then &s;u<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">moned all &s;orts of well-affected per&s;ons of London, We&s;tmin&s;ter, Southwark, and parts adjacent, to appeare at Marchant-Taylers Hall on Thur&s;day the 27^t^h of Iuly, there to &s;ub|&s;cribe for Moneys, Ammunition, Armes, Hor&s;e, &amp;c. and to li&s;t their per&s;ons.</P>
<P>The people appeared in great numbers, the Right Ho|norable the Lord Major, and many worthie Aldermen and Gentlemen were there to countenance the Work, which went on with great alacritie and cheerfulne&s;&s;e; Amid&s;t
<PB N="5" REF="3">the&s;e proceedings, the people were very de&s;irous that Sir <HI>William Waller</HI> might be appointed Commander in Chief. The peoples de&s;ire therein was pre&s;ented to the Com|mittee by Mr. Sheriffe <HI>Langham;</HI> which was immediately taken into debate, and upon mature deliberation agreed upon to be pre&s;ented to the Honorable Hou&s;e of Com|mons for approbation, which &s;ucceeded according to the peoples earne&s;t de&s;ire and expectation. Sir <HI>Will. Waller,</HI> upon motion of the Committee, being voted Comman|der in Chief of the Forces to be Rai&s;ed by this Com|mittee, and was al&s;o made a Member of this Committee: all which was effected in few houres, and the Order of the Hou&s;e &s;ent unto the people to cheare their hearts, and gra|tifie their willingne&s;&s;e to pre&s;erve the Kingdome; The Committee in &s;hort time returned to the Hall, and after them Sir <HI>William Waller,</HI> and &s;ate with the Committee; and after &s;ome di&s;cour&s;e, they all with him went out unto the people, where he entertained their loves with a brief, but mo&s;t pertinent Speech, which they requited with loud, acclamations of joy and thankfulne&s;&s;e, &s;o as they &s;eemed to be mutually engaged one unto the other, with the greate&s;t &s;olemnitie that affection could expre&s;&s;e, to the great contentment and joy of all good men; e&s;pecially the Commitee, who returned to their con&s;ultations full of confidence, that nothing would be too difficult to a Com|mander, and a people &s;o united.</P>
<P>They found by that dayes proceedings, that it would be mo&s;t convenient that &s;ub&s;criptions &s;hould be taken, and men li&s;ted, by cho&s;en men, and none e&s;cape from be|ing demanded to &s;ub&s;cribe according to ability: Or if any
<PB N="6" REF="4">&s;hould, that their an&s;wers might be knowne, being deter|mined to proceed in the &s;ame method in all Counties. There came unto them divers Citizens, manife&s;ting de|fires to further the work of the generall rai&s;ing of the people, as the onely means to pre&s;erve the Kingdome; but differed in their opinions from the judgement of the Committee, about the method intended for the advance of Men and Monies, utterly di&s;liking all endeavours for voluntary &s;ub&s;criptions and li&s;tings, and earne&s;tly pre&s;|&s;ing, that without a compul&s;ive power, by which all men &s;hould be compelled to goe in per&s;on, or to contribute Monies, the work would be retarded, and nothing done; and de&s;ired that my Lord Maior might be moved to call a Common-Hall for the furthering of the worke. The Committee remained firm in their judgements, that the voluntary way was fir&s;t to be proved, as not doubting, but that the people being now &s;en&s;ible of their approach|ing mi&s;eries, and upon the generall rai&s;ing for a &s;peedy end of all their feares and troubles, they would not be backward, but liberally disbur&s;e their monies, and ad|venture their per&s;ons; which if contrary to their expecta|tions &s;hould prove defective, would &s;oone appeare, and did not doubt, but in &s;uch a ca&s;e to be &s;upplied by a co|ercive power from the Hou&s;e.</P>
<P>Neverthele&s;&s;e they agreed that my Lord Maior &s;hould be de&s;ired to call a Common-Hall, where the promo|ting of the work of this Committee &s;hould be commen|ded to the generality of the Citizens; which was done accordingly by Colonell <HI>Martin,</HI> and exceeding joy|fully approved of, to the great encouragement of the
<PB N="7" REF="4">Committee to proceed in their endeavours and inten|tions, and thereupon have i&s;&s;ued forth their Warrants, and particular in&s;tructions to the Alderman and his De|puty of every Ward, to call unto them the Mini&s;ters, the Common-Councell men, and other fit per&s;ons to pro|mote the &s;aid work, according to the method and in&s;tru|ctions &s;ent unto them.</P>
<P>The like cour&s;e is taken in We&s;tmin&s;ter, Southwarke, and the places adjacent, whereof it is mo&s;t nece&s;&s;ary, that every good man &s;hould take notice, lay to heart, and endeavour to promote the &s;ame, as the greatne&s;&s;e and ne|ce&s;&s;ity of the worke doth require; there having been no other way propo&s;ed by them for li&s;ting of men, or ta|king &s;ub&s;criptions. And therefore what ever other good workes or de&s;ignes are on foot, let none be wanting unto this, the greate&s;t of all, and la&s;t refuge of the people. Care will be taken that your Monies &s;hall be faithfully and frugally disbur&s;ed, and that no bad Officer be ad|mitted, and the common Souldier carefully provided for: And experience will prove, that this is no vain bait or allurement; may the people be but as faithfull to them&s;elves, as the&s;e Gentlemen will be unto them, and as liberall to the work as they are ready to &s;pend them|&s;elves in behalfe of the plaine&s;t and poore&s;t people in the Common-wealth. And then our enemies will &s;oon feel the &s;mart, and our friends the comfort of their endevours. Therefore let no man &s;tand to &s;ee what others will do; let no mans evill &s;ugge&s;tions upon faire pretences prevaile: who ever endevours to di&s;turb or divert this work by ne|ver &s;o faire a &s;hew, will be found no friend to the Com|mon-wealth:
<PB N="8" REF="5">What you do, do with all your might: the work is Gods, to deliver the captive, and &s;et the oppre&s;&s;ed free. Let none therefore incurre that cur&s;e, which is due unto tho&s;e that doe the work of the Lord negligently; nor that bitter cur&s;e that will &s;uddenly fall upon tho&s;e that come not forth to help the Lord again&s;t the mighty.</P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
