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<NAME>John Latta</NAME>
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<P>THE GRAND DESIGNE: OR A Di&s;covery of that forme of Slavery, enten|ded, and in part brought upon the <HI>free People of England;</HI> by a <HI>powerfull Party</HI> in the <HI>Parliament:</HI> And L. G. <HI>Crumwell,</HI> Commi&s;&s;ary Gen. <HI>Ireton,</HI> and others of that facton in the Army; tending to the utter ruine, and en&s;laving of the whole Nation.</P>
<P><HI>With the true grounds of the Kings removall to the I&s;le of</HI> WIGHT.</P>
<P>ALSO The pretended de&s;igne of Levelling refuted, and cleared from tho&s;e fal&s;e a&s;per&s;ions lately, ca&s;t upon the Authors and Promoters of the <HI>Peoples Agreement.</HI></P>
<P>Written by <HI>SIR RAHNIHO,</HI> not an invective, but moderate and im|partiall ob&s;erver of the tran&s;actions of the Parliament and Army.</P>
<P>Printed in the la&s;t yeare of Englands Slavery, 1647.</P>
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<HEAD>The Grand De&s;igne, OR A di&s;covery of that forme of &s;lavery entended, and in part brought upon the free People of <HI>England.</HI></HEAD>
<P>IN all Ages publique pretences have been made u&s;e of, for the advantaging and &s;ecuring of particular intere&s;ts: Not to trace the foot-&s;teps of our Ance&s;tors, I &s;hall come a little nearer, and bring to memory only the actings of a great party in our pre&s;ent Parliament, and &s;ome, yea mo&s;t mem|bers in power in the Army, for the proving my A&s;&s;ertion.</P>
<P>And now O ye free Commons of <HI>England,</HI> remember, at the beginning of this Parliament, what publique pretences were made u&s;e of to unite your affections in the management of their then de&s;igned undertakings? Was there any vi&s;ible &s;uffrage, or indeed &s;uppo&s;ed grievance, depending as a con&s;equent upon the King, and his Parties deportment, that was not laid down, and de-painted in the mo&s;t lively colours; to the end that the actors and contrivers might appeare odious; and the di&s;coverers, and then oppo&s;ers, famous; per&s;ons de&s;erving both the love and a&s;&s;i|&s;tance of that People, which they &s;eemingly pretended to deli|ver from &s;uch their then declared pre&s;&s;ures and grievances,</P>
<P>At the beginning of this Parliament the whole Repre&s;entative declared again&s;t tho&s;e illegall practi&s;es of the King and his Coun|cell, touching <HI>Pattens, Monopolies, illegall Taxes,</HI> as <HI>Ship-money,</HI> and the like, to the end they might the better catch the affections of the People, that groaned under tho&s;e un&s;upportable burthens: But it may be remembred, that after tho&s;e Declarations had net|led the Royall party therein concerned; and that &s;elf-intere&s;t be|gan to run a conte&s;t with publique concernments; how &s;oon (al|though before we had a full Parliament declaring) had we an
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empty Hou&s;e owning or vindicating the ju&s;tice of tho&s;e <GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="blotted" EXTENT="1 word"> which they had before declared to be legall, and pro&s;ecuting the contrivers and abetters of tho&s;e things which were (as they had declared) illegal, nay rather how &s;oon had we a great party (&s;waid by honour and intere&s;t) that (contrary to their own De|clarations) did joyne in the maintenance of tho&s;e things, which they had before &s;o egerly declared again&s;t; <HI>viz.</HI> the now Lord <HI>Hop<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">on,</HI> the Lord <HI>Capell,</HI> Sir <HI>Edward Deering,</HI> and many others of the Repre&s;entative or Parliament: Which acting and di&s;&s;enting of theirs, how de&s;tructive it proved to the Kingdome &s;ince, I leave to all wi&s;e men to judge; but to proceed:</P>
<P>After many per&s;ons had declined, and deviated from their fir&s;t principles (whereby a bloudy War was occa&s;ioned) a &s;econd party remaining in power, and plau&s;ibly pretending the pub|like &s;afety (having by pretences of freedome beguiled the Nati|tion to a belief) took upon them (in&s;tead of executing ju&s;tice and judgement without partiality, and imploying the Law, in a way of &s;afety and pre&s;ervation) to oppre&s;&s;e the oppre&s;&s;ed, and pervert ju&s;tice, to exerci&s;e power, more then rea&s;on, and to make Law &s;ubject to their own inordinate wills; &s;training their pri|viledges beyond their due limmits, making them altogether un|limmited: which being ob&s;erved and di&s;covered by &s;ome great men in the Army (who pretended) as in the field) &s;o in all pla|ces) to endeavour the redemption of the Kingdome from &s;lave|ry and oppre&s;&s;ion) a de&s;igne was carried on in the Army, and engagements pa&s;&s;ed thereupon, without, yea, again&s;t the Parlia|mnts liking; in as much as the Parliament had not (by rea&s;on of a malignant party prevalent therein) done tho&s;e things which they had formerly &s;worn to performe, &amp; were in con&s;cience bound to do, in the di&s;charge of their tru&s;t to them by the free Commons commited, and for as much as there was a de&s;ign to engage the Kingdome in another war, &amp; en&s;lave the People of <HI>England</HI> un|der an Arbitrary power; carryed on by Mr. <HI>Hollis,</HI> Sir <HI>Philip Sta|pleton,</HI> and others, as was &s;uppo&s;ed, and as indeed afterwards did manife&s;tly appear: The Army and Councell thereof did agree, and enter into an engagement, (again&s;t the Parliaments liking)
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to endeavour and employ all their force to breake and prevent that de&s;ign of rai&s;ing another Army, and to defend, maintaine, and vindicate <HI>the liberties, and Native Birth-rights of all the free Commons of England,</HI> again&s;t all the endeavours, or oppo&s;ition that could he made again&s;t it. In pur&s;uance whereof, it was by &s;ome per&s;ons at L. Gen. <HI>Crumwels,</HI> he him&s;elfe being pre&s;ent, up|on monday at night before <HI>Whit&s;unday,</HI> 1647. re&s;olved, that for a&s;much as it was probable that the &s;aid <HI>Hollis</HI> and his Party had a determination privately to remove the King to &s;ome place of &s;trength, or el&s;e to &s;et him in the head of another Army; <HI>That therefore</HI> Cornet George Joyce, <HI>&s;hould with as much &s;peed and &s;ecre|cy as might be, repaire to</HI> Oxford, <HI>to give in&s;tructions for the &s;ecu|ring the Garri&s;on, Magazine and Traine, therein, from the &s;aid Par|ty then endeavouring to get the &s;ame, and then forthwith to gather &s;uch a Party of Hor&s;e as he could conveniently get to his a&s;&s;i&s;tance, and either &s;ecure the per&s;on of the</HI> King <HI>from being removed by any o|ther, or if occa&s;ion were,</HI> to remove him to &s;ome place of better &s;ecurity, <HI>for the prevention of the de&s;ign of the afore&s;aid pretended traiterous Party:</HI> Which was accordingly done, both with the knowledge and approbation of L. G. <HI>Crumwell,</HI> although he af|terward (like a <HI>&s;ubtle Fox)</HI> would not be plea&s;ed to take notice of it.</P>
<P>This being done, and the two Polititians, <HI>Crumwell</HI> and <HI>Ireton,</HI> finding them&s;elves compleatly &s;eated in the affections of the &s;ol|diery, having caught them by their plau&s;ible pretences of <HI>Liber|ty, Freedome. Indempnity, &s;ecurity,</HI> and the like; and being &s;ure likewi&s;e (by rea&s;on of their many Creatures in the Army, which they had advanced to places of promotion, and brought into the Councell) being &s;ure I &s;ay, to carry any thing that they &s;hould propound, though they might meet with &s;ome oppo&s;ers; they ca&s;t about fir&s;t how to un-hor&s;e that Faction that oppo&s;ed them; which by a charge of Trea&s;on, and other mi&s;demeanours <HI>(which they never yet had lei&s;ure to prove, nor ever will)</HI> they in a &s;hort time accompli&s;hed; which being done they made an e&s;&s;ay to do &s;omething which &s;eemed to tend to the e&s;tabli&s;hment of ju&s;tice, &s;ecuring the freedomes of the People, and ea&s;ing of
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the burthens of the Kingdome (that they might the better catch the affections of the People) which when they found to be ab|&s;tructed, and that the &s;ame party and their adherents were &s;till prevalent in the Hou&s;e,, and did vote again&s;t their proceedings, and by &s;ecret complotments did bring a tumult upon the Hou&s;e, forcing all members that were not of that party to ab&s;ent them|&s;elves, e&s;pecially the Speakers, who with many other members came to the Army for &s;ecurity; which members &s;itting and a&s;|&s;uming a parliamentary power during the <HI>Speakers</HI> ab&s;ence, they declared to be illegall, and thereupon entred into a farther en|gagement at <HI>Houn&s;lo-heath,</HI> to march up to <HI>London,</HI> to purge the Hou&s;e of tho&s;e u&s;urpers of the Parliamentary Power, and to &s;etle the free Parliament with honour and &s;afety.</P>
<P>In order whereunto the Army marched up to <HI>London,</HI> and being in a capacity to performe, what they had undertaken, and declared &s;o nece&s;&s;ary, &amp; conducing to the peace of the Kingdom (by the &s;ubtill Sophi&s;try of <HI>Crumwell</HI> and <HI>Ireton)</HI> the Generall was advi&s;ed to leave it unto the Hou&s;e to purge it &s;elfe, which was accordingly done, and what the effect hath been &s;ince; and how well the Hou&s;e hath been purged, I leave to all wi&s;e men to Judge; they all, or mo&s;t of them &s;till remaining therein, and they &s;ince owned and declared a true Parliament.</P>
<P>But by the way you may take notice, that as a gratification the Hou&s;e made the Generall High Con&s;table of the <HI>Tower,</HI> and I am &s;ure the L. Generall lo&s;t nothing by that, for he had an old &s;ervant or two to gratify, which he did &s;uddenly after with pla|ces both of profit and concernment; be&s;ides, another Creature of his, Col. <HI>Hamond</HI> was pre&s;ently advanced to be Governour of the <HI>I&s;le</HI> of <HI>Wight.</HI></P>
<P>But to proceed, Having now got almo&s;t what they aimed at (to wit) The Per&s;on of the King; a con&s;iderable party in the Parliament; the Militia of the City; and the name of &s;aving the Kingdome; they then begin to ca&s;t about how, to keep what they haye got, and that they find to be done but by two waies: the fir&s;t, by clo&s;ing with the Parliament, in making &s;uch <HI>Propo|&s;itions</HI> as may plea&s;e the King, and thereby linke them&s;elves &s;o
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to the Kings intere&s;t and power, that they may be thereby &s;e|cured from the ju&s;t Taxes of the People which they have &s;o op|pre&s;&s;ed and betrayed; or el&s;e by bringing the Army to the obe|dience of the Parliament, that by their power, the Parliament might be &s;trengthened and enabled to hold both King and Kingdome to hard meate, and at la&s;t if the King would not a&s;|&s;ent to what they declare to be fit and requi&s;ite, then to depo&s;e him, and take the power into their own hands, and if the King|dome did not recent or reli&s;h the bu&s;ine&s;&s;e, then by the power of the Army to quell and curb them: In order whereunto they &s;ent Propo&s;itions to the King, which being not a&s;&s;ented unto by him, it was put to the que&s;tion, whether they &s;hould make any more addre&s;&s;es; which argues that they had a good mind to throw off the King, if they could any way keep their power, and &s;ecure them&s;elves without him: But <HI>Ireton</HI> declares that he could not promi&s;e the a&s;&s;i&s;tance of the Army in any &s;uch matter; <HI>his Father in lawes pul&s;es now beating a Lord-like pace,</HI> ha|ving a little before <HI>ki&s;&s;ed the Kings hand,</HI> and therefore &s;ince they are not likely to &s;ecure their power without him, they will by him; and to that end the Army mu&s;t be taught a new le&s;&s;on, and whereas before, <HI>freedome, &s;ecurity, the purging of the Hou&s;e, a peri|od &s;et to the Parliament,</HI> and the like, was the only theame; now only <HI>&s;ecurity for Arreares, a little pay, &amp;c.</HI> mu&s;t be all that the Army de&s;ires, and to what end think you, but that they might appear <HI>&s;eekers of them&s;elves,</HI> and &s;o by degrees be lo&s;t in the af|fections of the People; thus have they in a full careere po&s;ted from the <HI>Saving,</HI> to the <HI>En&s;laving</HI> the Kingdome: But by the way they met with a <HI>rub,</HI> for notwith&s;tanding that, they thought they had made all &s;ure, yet &s;o it plea&s;ed God to order and di&s;|po&s;e things, that their de&s;igne was made manife&s;t, and &s;ome men of upright hearts, were carried out in the &s;eeking of ju&s;tice, and preventing the en&s;laving of the Nation, and in order there|unto, did &s;everall times, not only oppo&s;e all their <HI>en&s;laving practices,</HI> but al&s;o offer unto them in open Councel, &s;ome <HI>foun|dations of common freedome,</HI> ab&s;olutely nece&s;&s;ary to be in&s;i&s;ted on, for the re-e&s;tating of the free Commoners of <HI>England</HI> in
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their <HI>antient birth-rights;</HI> which they, the &s;aid <HI>De&s;igners,</HI> (to wit) <HI>Crumwell</HI> and <HI>Ireton;</HI> and the re&s;t of that <HI>rayalized Faction</HI> could by no meanes relli&s;h; neither would their high aimes ever ad|mit them to debate the ju&s;tne&s;&s;e thereof; it being altogether cro&s;&s;e to the Pias of their Ambition: But contrarily they rayled and reviled again&s;t tho&s;e, which either propounded or owned any &s;uch matter, branding them with the name of dividers of the Army, factious per&s;ons, and the like: And being fearefull that after all their labour they &s;hould now be fru&s;trated of their expectations, and by &s;ome under-hand dealing be deprived of the <HI>darling</HI> of their <HI>hopes,</HI> the <HI>King,</HI> there mu&s;t be a pretended de&s;igne again&s;t the Kings per&s;on, di&s;covered by L. G. <HI>Crumwell</HI> to his Cozen <HI>Whaley,</HI> and immediately after, (the Guards being fir&s;t doubled) there mu&s;t be a pretended e&s;cape of the King to avoid that pretended danger; but by the way remember, the King affirmes he had withdrawn his promi&s;e made to Col. <HI>Wha|ley,</HI> long before this pretended di&s;covery, which was in order to his departure at that time determined without que&s;tion, and the other but a pretence made u&s;e of to colour the bu&s;ine&s;&s;e.</P>
<P>It may be remembred that the&s;e manner of pretences are no new things; for when the King fir&s;t di&s;certed the Parliament, the pretence was Tumults, and the danger of his Per&s;on; and if you would know what tho&s;e tumults were, they were no o|ther but the approaches of his oppre&s;&s;ed Subjects, with cryes for ju&s;tice, which he unju&s;tly denyed both his Parliament and Peo|ple which becau&s;e he would not grant, he ab&s;ented him&s;elfe, and made the danger of his Per&s;on by tho&s;e tumults as he called them, the ground of his departure; although it be notoriou&s;ly apparent, that he was then privately providing to make warre with his Parliament and People, and in order thereunto, was &s;ending the jewels of the Crown to purcha&s;e Armes in <HI>Holland</HI> for the managing of the de&s;ign afore&s;aid.</P>
<P>Which acting and pretences then being compared with his pre&s;ent acting in relation to his departure from <HI>Hampton Court,</HI> and the now pretended cau&s;e thereof, will plainly appeare to be of the &s;ame &s;tamp with the former; and in deed no other but a
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de&s;ign, not only to make odious, but al&s;o if advantage be offered, to cut off, and de&s;troy all the godly per&s;ons in the Kingdome, that &s;hall but in the lea&s;t endeavour to oppo&s;e the exerci&s;e of his, and their Prerogative en&s;laving tiranni|call practi&s;es, in the &s;ecuring of the Peoples ju&s;t Rights and Freedomes.</P>
<P>But if you &s;hall con&s;ider further, whether mu&s;t the King fly, or rather be carried, to avoid the pretended danger, but to <HI>Hammond</HI> at the <HI>I&s;le</HI> of <HI>Wight,</HI> one of <HI>Crumwels</HI> own crea|tures, there to remain, untill &s;uch time as Propo&s;itions can be made ready &s;utable to the Kings de&s;ire, and an Act be pa&s;|&s;ed for the Parliaments indempnity; and <HI>then O you poore be|trayed Commons, where will you obtain ju&s;tice or &s;ecurity, when your</HI> Tru&s;tees <HI>that pretended to deliver you, &s;hall have thus</HI> to advance them&s;elves, <HI>betraied you.</HI></P>
<P>And now if you &s;hall de&s;ire a rea&s;on why the&s;e men &s;hould now at la&s;t derogate from their former pretended Princi|ples; and &s;hould not now, as heretofore, endeavour to &s;e|cure the Peoples ju&s;t freedomes.</P>
<P>I an&s;wer; the Parliament, (or at lea&s;t a great part of them) are now brought to &s;uch an exigency, that they cannot act otherwi&s;e with &s;ecurity to them&s;elves.</P>
<P>It is ea&s;ie to demon&s;trate unto the world, that many of their actions have not, neither can they be warranted by Law, <HI>e&s;pecially their Arbitrary and illegall &s;ommoning, and committing per&s;ons</HI> (contrary to Law) <HI>which all knowing men are re&s;olved for the future to prote&s;t again&s;t, and oppo&s;e, maugre the power of all that &s;hall endeavour the execution or ju&s;tification of tho&s;e unju&s;t and tyrannicall practi&s;es:)</HI> And likewi&s;e, that by their continued, and redoubled oppre&s;&s;ions brought up|on the Kingdome, they have not only lo&s;t the friend&s;hip of the People, but in a great mea&s;ure purcha&s;ed their enmity; &s;o that now their condition is &s;uch, that either they mu&s;t clo&s;e with the King, who&s;e intere&s;t in the People is now greater then theirs, having got what they have lo&s;t) that &s;o,
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what they cannot promi&s;e them&s;elves by their own power, they can a&s;&s;ure them&s;elves by his, (who without doubt hath &s;o much policy as to promi&s;e both &s;ecurity &amp; advancement to a part, that he may the ea&s;ilyer get into a capacity of en|&s;laving the whole.</P>
<P>To be a little plainer; It cannot be immagined impro|bable, that the Parliament having lo&s;t the love of the Peo|ple, doubting the a&s;&s;i&s;tance of the Army, and wanting means (though without que&s;tion they have wills) to enable them to throw off the King, and by force to maintain their actions legall; I &s;ay, can it by any that have &s;ence or rea&s;on be imagined, that they will not to &s;ecure them&s;elves from the <HI>taxes of the People,</HI> the <HI>la&s;h of the Law,</HI> and <HI>Levelling,</HI> as they tearme it; that is, from being made (as all other Subjects) accountable to the Law, and People for all their actions) take any advantage or oportunity? And what better ad|vantage can they have, then to joyn with the King? that by a&s;&s;enting unto his de&s;ires, they may engratiate them&s;elves into his favour, and wrapping them&s;elves up in his <HI>Mantle of tirannicall Royalty,</HI> and <HI>Protection,</HI> in their own honour &amp; &s;ecurity, leave all the free Commons of England, (by them animated, authorized, nay enforced to fight again&s;t, and &s;ubdue him) expo&s;ed to the exa&s;perated rage of a <HI>conquered King,</HI> and incen&s;ed Party, who will not faile, being once in power, to exalt them&s;elves in, and by the ruine of their op|po&s;ers; and like legitimate <HI>Imps</HI> of their <HI>Tyrant-exalter,</HI> Lord it over the <HI>Kingdome.</HI></P>
<P>And if you &s;hall ask, wherein <HI>Crumwell, Ireton,</HI> and the re&s;t of that Faction, are concerned in the Parliaments acti|ons; I An&s;wer, they are Parliament men, and &s;o bound up in the Parliaments actings; and indeed &s;o involved in the Parliaments intere&s;t, (joyned to their own ends) that I can thinke it no other then a difficult matter, for them to deny them&s;elves in this Particular; Honour and profit being very potent allurements in the&s;e our &s;elf-loving dayes.</P>
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It is ob&s;ervable that the&s;e two Polititians <HI>Crumwell,</HI> and <HI>Ireton,</HI> at fir&s;t were eager again&s;t all per&s;ons that vi&s;ibly op|po&s;ed them in the Parliament, but would never yeeld to the purging of the Hou&s;e,, only they would never be quiet till they had got out all tho&s;e that any way oppo&s;ed them; wit|nes the late charge again&s;t the eleven Members, where (al|though <HI>Crumwel</HI> him&s;elfe confe&s;&s;ed at <HI>Colbrooke,</HI> that he had nothing again&s;t Sir <HI>John Mainard;</HI> yet he mu&s;t be put in a|mong the re&s;t, and only becau&s;e he was a bu&s;ie man again&s;t him and his faction: Having removed them he remaines &s;atisfyed, untill he finds another party of <HI>Pellamites</HI> which endeavour to throw him out of the Sadle; and then he comes in with (I am per&s;waded) a hearty &s;orrow, confe&s;&s;ing, and praying God to forgive him, becau&s;e he had hindered the purging of the Hou&s;e: And why is the Lievtenant Generall &s;o penitent thinke you? but only becau&s;e he feared they would be &s;ome hinderance to his high aimes.</P>
<P>And here I &s;hall in&s;ert this Quere, <HI>Whether, con&s;idering that there are two Parties acting for particular intere&s;t, and each of them endeavouring to bring in the King, for the advancement of their own party,</HI> whether, I &s;ay, <HI>it be not probable that the King was removed by de&s;ign, and enduced by engagement, to alter his former re&s;olution of not being removed; le&s;t the</HI> Pellamites <HI>&s;hould have &s;erved</HI> Crumwell <HI>at</HI> Hampton, <HI>as he &s;erved them at</HI> Holdenby? For my part if it were not &s;o, it is to me a Ridle, which none I believe can unfold but hone&s;t <HI>Oliver,</HI></P>
<P>But to proceed, It may be demanded, &s;eing that <HI>Crumwell</HI> is &s;o active for his own parties intere&s;t, why the other party being as yet mo&s;t powerfull in the Hou&s;e have not outed him of his power?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, could they but bring the King in upon their own intere&s;t, and thereby &s;ecure them&s;elves in the attempt; I am confident they would tread him and his adherents low e|nough: and that the Lievtenant General knowes well; o|therwi&s;e
<PB REF="7">
<HI>Hammond</HI> had never been Lord Chamberlaine; nor the King removed to the I&s;le of <HI>Wight;</HI> though I believe he never dreamt of the con&s;equences that have happened, and and are like to &s;ucceed therupon; that by the way; but to proceed, the King being gone, the City di&s;ta&s;ting them, or in|deed over-awed, not daring by rea&s;on of their own divi&s;ions, to appeare with, or for them; the Country wearied, and ra|ther enclinable to endeavour the di&s;&s;olution of their power, then any way to a&s;&s;i&s;t them in the maintenance or &s;upport thereof; and which is wor&s;t of all, the Army, (which &s;hould by their power make their commands authentique) utterly rejecting their authority, and rendering them a trayterous Party, and per&s;ons endeavouring the de&s;truction of the ju&s;t rights and freedomes of the People; the&s;e things being duely con&s;idered, you may plainly &s;ee, that it is more for feare, then favour, that they clo&s;e with him, he being both politicke and powerfull, by rea&s;on of his adherents in the Hou&s;e, and creatures in the Army, in re&s;pect of which al&s;o they could not make u&s;e of a fitter in&s;trument, to draw the Army to their a&s;&s;i&s;tance, if it might be; for the Father and the Sonne, with the re&s;t of their Family, from generation to generation, have the command of halfe the Army, all which having received their promotion and Principle from <HI>Crumwell,</HI> and looking &s;till to ri&s;e with him, will not move a foot beyond his in&s;truction, nor as neare as they can, fall &s;hort of it; and as the King is his Idoll, &s;o he is theirs, hang|ing altogether in the executing what their own honour and intere&s;t dictates unto them.</P>
<P>It is a commendable thing in the Lievetenant Generall to advance his kindred, and &s;ervants, &s;o it be done by good wayes, and for ju&s;t ends; not to advance lawle&s;&s;e ambition, &amp; &s;trengthen irregular attempts, if &s;o; he may chance in the mid&s;t of his Golden hopes meet with <HI>Buckinghams</HI> Fate, or <HI>Straffords</HI> doome, and in &s;tead of honour inherit infamy.</P>
<P><PB REF="7">
Thus having in &s;ome mea&s;ure di&s;covered unto you their actings in relation to the <HI>betraying the free People of England to an Arbitrary power,</HI> contrary to the <HI>Protestations</HI> of Parlia|ment, and <HI>engagements</HI> of the <HI>Army.</HI></P>
<P>I will now, in oppo&s;ition to this their practice, lay you down the heads of that <HI>foundation of freedome prop<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">unded,</HI> and by them oppo&s;ed, and to the Kingdome rendered odi|ous, under the notion of <HI>Parity, Community, Levelling, de|&s;troying Magi&s;tracy,</HI> and the like, to the end that you may plainly judge betwixt us and them, and &s;ee who they be that indeed labour to inve&s;t you with your ju&s;t rights and liberties.</P>
<DIV2 TYPE="agreement">
<HEAD>The Agreement:</HEAD>
<P N="1">1. <HI>That the People of England being at this day very une|qually di&s;tributed by Counties, Cities and Boroughs, for the E|lection of their Deputies in Parliament, ought to be more indif|ferrently proportioned according to the number of the In|habitants.</HI></P>
<P>That is, for as much as by the late co&s;tomes of this Nati|on, there were but two per&s;ons cho&s;en as Repre&s;entatives for each County, and tho&s;e by the con&s;ent and approbati|on of per&s;ons of &s;uch a rancke, quality, and condition, as free-holders, &amp;c. which per&s;ons cho&s;en as Repre&s;entatives have commonly been &s;uch as were in &s;ome mea&s;ure linckt in, or related to, the prerogative of the King, either by pro|motions received or expected; and likewi&s;e for as much as the per&s;ons cho&s;ing are commonly more &s;waid by favour then rea&s;on in their choyce, being Tenants either to the per&s;ons cho&s;en, or their friends; which hath been one main rea&s;on that the lo&s;t liberties of the Kingdome have beene from time to time no better vindicated and pre&s;erved; That therefore from henceforth their might be per&s;ons cho&s;en for Repre&s;entatives for every County, proportio|able
<PB REF="8">
to the number of Inhabitants in each County, and that not by freeholdolders only, but by the voluntary a&s;&s;ent of all men that are not &s;ervants or Beggers, it being pure equity, that as all per&s;ons are bound to yeild obedience to the de|crees of the Repre&s;entative or Parliament, &s;o they &s;hould have a voyce in the electing their Repre&s;entatives, or Mem|bers of Parliament.</P>
<P N="2">2. That to prevent the many inconveniences apparently a|ri&s;ing from the long continuance of tho&s;e per&s;ons in autho|rity, this pre&s;ent Parliament be di&s;&s;olved, &amp;c.</P>
<P>That is, for as much as the long continuance of the Power of Parliament men proveth very de&s;tructive to the liberty of the People, and occa&s;ioneth their falling into parties and factions, and giveth them great countenance in the exerci|&s;ing of an arbitrary power: that therefore they be continued but for a &s;hort time, and that during that time they may re|main accountable to tho&s;e that cho&s;e and entru&s;ted them.</P>
<P>And for that clau&s;e in the agreement, to wit, <HI>That in all Lawes made or to be made, every per&s;on may be bound alike, and that no Tenure, Estate, Charter, De&s;igne, birth or place; doe con|ferre any exemption from the ordinary cour&s;e of legall procee|dings whereunto others are &s;ubjected,</HI> which they make the ground of a&s;per&s;ing the pro&s;ecutors thereof with the name of <HI>Levellers</HI> and pulling down Magi&s;tracy; it is indeed no other but this, That whereas now &s;everall per&s;ons are by an u&s;urped power exalted above the Law, and protected from due proce&s;s at Law, <HI>(viz)</HI> Lords as Peers, allhough legally indebted, may not be touched with an arre&s;t, nor be made &s;ubject to the cen&s;ure of the Law; whereby they have made little con&s;cience when they have got mens e&s;tates in their hands, to returne the &s;ame, but have &s;tood upon their Pre|rogative and thereby been protected, to the utter ruine and undoing of many of the free people of <HI>England.</HI></P>
<P>And likewi&s;e whereas not only the per&s;ons but habitati|ons
<PB REF="8">
of &s;uch Per&s;ons are made &s;anctuaries for per&s;ons in|debted; that the&s;e things might be for the future removed, and both per&s;ons and places put under the power of the Law,; and this is the whole &s;umme of that great de&s;ign of <HI>Levelling</HI> you hear &s;o much of.</P>
<P>For all other matters I referre you to the <HI>Agreement</HI> it &s;elf, which being &s;eriou&s;ly and impartially &s;canned, I am confi|dent will give any man not &s;waid with intere&s;t or prejudice, &s;ufficient &s;atisfaction; and I doubt not, (maugre the malice and oppo&s;ition of all &s;orts of men) will ere long appear to be indeed that which ultimately conduceth to the freedome and &s;ecurity bothof the Magi&s;tracy (if &s;etled in its right orbe) and all other the now oppre&s;&s;ed and almo&s;t en&s;laved Commons of <HI>England.</HI></P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="part">
<HEAD>Quere.</HEAD>
<P><HI>Whether it be not more then probable that the encrea&s;ing the hea|vy burthens of the Kingdome by taxations from the Parliament and free quarter from the Army, whether I &s;ay, may it not be done by de&s;igne, and on purpo&s;e to weary out the People, that they may thereby be made willing to accept of peace on any tearmes?</HI></P>
</DIV2>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
