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<NAME>Alexis Jakobson</NAME>
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<P>A Helpe to the right under&s;tanding of a DISCOURSE CONCERNING INDEPENDENCY. Lately publi&s;hed by <HI>WILLIAM PRYN</HI> OF <HI>Lincolnes Inne,</HI> E&s;quire.</P>
<Q><BIBL><HI>PROV. 12.13.</HI></BIBL> The evill man is &s;nared by the wickedne&s;&s;e of his lips, but the ju&s;t man &s;hall come out of adver&s;ity.</Q>
<P>Printed <HI>Anno Dom.</HI> 1644.</P>
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<HEAD>A helpe to the right under&s;tanding of a Di&s;cour&s;e concerning INDEPENDENCY, &amp;c.</HEAD>
<P>AS it is a very great benefit to the world when wi&s;e and con&s;iderate men, &s;uffer for maintenance of a ju&s;t cau&s;e: &s;o al&s;o it proveth often|times very prejudiciall to a Nation, when ra&s;h incon&s;iderate men, wi&s;e only in their owne &s;trong conceits, doe &s;uffer, though for a cau&s;e as ju&s;t as common freedome it &s;elfe: becau&s;e &s;uffering winneth reputation to the per&s;on that &s;uffereth, whereby his &s;ayings, opinions, and writings carry authority with them: and though never &s;o much blended with &s;lightne&s;&s;e, arrogance, impurity, violence, error, and want of charity: yet make they deep impre&s;&s;ion in the minds of many well meaning people, and &s;way them to the like, or di&s;like of things: not as they are really good, or palpably evill in them&s;elves, but according to the glo&s;&s;e, or dirt, that &s;uch men through ignorance, impatience, or malice ca&s;t upon them.</P>
<P>For in&s;tance whereof, I am &s;omewhat troubled that I mu&s;t alledge Mr. <HI>William Pryn,</HI> who to his great commendation in the late arbitrary times &s;uffered for the maintenance of the ju&s;t liberties of his Country: but in a great example of late it is too &s;adly proved that he that did the greate&s;t &s;ervice, may live to doe the greate&s;t mi&s;chiefe: and I am fully in&s;tructed. That only per|&s;everance in well-doing, is prai&s;e-worthy: and therefore I conceive I may without breach of charity, be as bold with him as with any other man what|&s;oever: that others may learne by me to re&s;pect good men no longer then they continue &s;o.</P>
<P>Of late he is fallen upon &s;o unhappy a &s;ubject (The difference of judge|ment in matters of Religion) and hath &s;o totally engaged him&s;elfe therein, that even men who have formerly had him in great repute for integrity, be|gin to doubt his ends; &s;uppo&s;ing that he &s;trikes in with the ri&s;ing party in hope to rai&s;e him&s;elfe with them, and by them; and that he is carried away with that infirmity unto which men of his tribe have been much &s;ubject.</P>
<P>Others there are that conceive he is defective only in his under&s;tanding, and ea&s;ily out-witted, and wrought to doe that, which he intended not to do, charitably hoping by his endeavours in the argument of Church government, that he really intended the reconciling of all parties, and that he hath unhap|pily wrought a contrary effect, and made the divi&s;ion greater, through his want of judgement, and naturally pa&s;&s;ionate weakne&s;&s;e: incon&s;iderately engaging, and (being engaged) and pro&s;ecuting with violence: and they argue it to be &s;o, from his publi&s;hing Romes ma&s;ter-piece; and the Arch|bi&s;hops Diary; intending, no doubt, to blazon the vilene&s;&s;e of that Arch In|cendiary to the world; whereas to an advi&s;ed Reader, it will be evident, that the fir&s;t is framed of purpo&s;e to lay the de&s;igne of all our troubles upon the Papi&s;ts; and make the Archbi&s;hop &s;uch an enemy thereunto, as that they plotted to take away his life; as if Satan were divided again&s;t Satan; and his
<PB N="2" REF="3">Diary is &s;o &s;ubtilly contrived, as that among tho&s;e from whom he expecteth honour, it cannot faile to worke mo&s;t powerfully thereunto, &s;o great are his good workes therein expre&s;&s;ed, &s;o large are his pious intentions, &s;o watchfull over his wayes, &s;o &s;eldome offending, &s;o penitent after offences, &s;o devout in prayer, &s;o learned and patheticall in his expre&s;&s;ions; that to any that are but tainted with the lea&s;t Prelaticall &s;uper&s;tition, he will appeare a Saint, if not equall to <HI>Noah, Lot</HI> and <HI>David,</HI> yet full parallel with the mo&s;t holy Primitive Fathers; e&s;pecially when they &s;hall con&s;ider that the&s;e his works were publi|&s;hed by his greate&s;t enemy, which was the Archbi&s;hops Ma&s;ter-piece indeed, being both written of purpo&s;e to be publi&s;hed in their be&s;t &s;ea&s;on; and by a per&s;on that &s;hould mo&s;t advantage the deceit: if it had not been &s;o, they had ea&s;ily been fiend or concealed, pa&s;t his finding: no man can thinke the Bi&s;hop &s;o impolitick, as after &s;o long impri&s;onment, not to be warned con|cerning his notes.</P>
<P>Others judge him to be much of the Archbi&s;hops &s;pirit, his late adver&s;ary, and feare that if he had equall power to that he once had, he would exceed him in cruelty of per&s;ecution; and their rea&s;on is, becau&s;e he is &s;o violently bu&s;ie already, egging and inciting the Parliament, like their evill Genius, to acts of tyranny again&s;t a people he knows innocent: how much more would he rage again&s;t them had he that command of cen&s;ure, fine, pillory, impri|&s;onment and bani&s;hment, which the Archbi&s;hop unju&s;tly u&s;urped; e&s;pecially &s;ince his rage again&s;t them has &s;o exceeded all bounds of mode&s;ty already, as to affirme that their writings are <HI>de&s;tructive to the very being of Parliaments, and as bad or wor&s;e then the Popi&s;h Gunpowder-plot,</HI> and to tearme their hone&s;t and &s;ubmi&s;&s;e demeanours, <HI>In&s;olencies, unparalleld publicke violations and impeachments of the rights and priviledges of Parliament, and of the tranquility and &s;afety of our Church and State.</HI> I am at &s;tand Methinks, and cannot but grieve within my &s;elfe to con&s;ider how full &s;wolne with bitter malice, yea and the very poy|&s;on of A&s;pes, that brea&s;t mu&s;t needs be from whence proceeds &s;uch malevo|lent and &s;candalous &s;peeches, yet &s;o gro&s;&s;ely untrue and un&s;utable to the &s;pi|rits of the Independents.</P>
<P>Men likewi&s;e &s;ay that this mu&s;t needs proceed from &s;pleene: for if he were a really con&s;cientious man he would fir&s;t pull the beame out of his own eye, as he is a Lawyer, and examine his owne wayes in the cour&s;e of his practi&s;e, or &s;et out &s;omething to &s;et out the unlawfulne&s;&s;e of tythes, as learned Mr. <HI>Selden</HI> hath done. Mr. <HI>Pryn</HI> profe&s;&s;eth the true Chri&s;tian Religion, and that mo&s;t zealou&s;ly, yet continueth to take fees for pleading mens cau&s;es, a thing that the vertuous men among&s;t the very heathens accounted ba&s;e, and would doe it gratis: and what fees taketh he? no le&s;&s;e then treble the value of what is taken by pleaders in Popi&s;h Countries; but he taketh as little as any man of his calling, and no more but what is lawfull for him to take: therein, &s;ay they, con&s;i&s;ts the mi&s;ery of the Common-wealth, with all other the extreame abu&s;es of our Laws, the very way of the ending of controver&s;ies, being &s;o to|tally pernicious and full of vexation: that were he truly con&s;cientious for the good of the whole Nation, as he pretendeth, he would have laid open to the Parliament, how improper it is that our Laws &s;hould be writen in an un|knowne
<PB N="3" REF="3">language, that a plaine man cannot under&s;tand &s;o much as a Writ without the helpe of Councell; how prejudiciall it is that for ending a con|tover&s;ie, men mu&s;t travell Terme after Terme from all quarters of the Land to London, tiring their per&s;ons and &s;pirits, wa&s;ting their e&s;tates, and beggering their families; tending to nothing but the vexation of the people, and en|riching of Lawyers; with a little labour had he been &s;o vertuou&s;ly di&s;po&s;ed, he could have di&s;covered the corrupt originall thereof, and have layed open all the ab&s;urdities therein, and &s;hewed the di&s;agreement thereof to the rules of Chri&s;tianity: he could al&s;o have &s;hewed to the Parliament what of our Lawes them&s;elves are unnece&s;&s;ary, what are prejudiciall to good men, and have moved for reducing all to an agreement with Chri&s;tianity: were he (&s;ay they) truly pious, and could deny him&s;elfe, this he would have done, though he had thereby made him&s;elfe equall to men of low degree, both in e&s;tate, food, and rayment: yea though for his livelihood hee had beene con&s;trained to have laboured with his hands, &amp;c. This indeed had beene a proper worke for him a Chri&s;tian Lawyer in a time of Reformation: What needed he to have meddled again&s;t the Independent and Separation, there being &s;o many learned Divines (as hee him&s;elfe e&s;teemes them) &s;itting in Councell &s;o neare the Parliament, which &s;hewes him to bee too officious?</P>
<P>And as concerning Church-Government: If hee had really inten|ded the good of the Nation, and the weal<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="pdcc" EXTENT="1 letter"> of all peaceable minded men, he would have had in minde &s;uch con&s;iderations as the&s;e.</P>
<P>The Parliament are now upon &s;etling the affaires of the Church, a thing of a very nice and dainty nature, e&s;pecially being undertaken in a time of a homebred Warre: If it be not very advi&s;edly and cautiou&s;ly done, it may &s;oone divide the wel-affected party within it &s;elfe, then which no|thing can be more pernitious and de&s;tructive: already I have &s;eene &s;ome that have laid downe Armes, and many withdraw their per&s;ons and e&s;tates into forreigne parts, for no other cau&s;e but for being di&s;turbed or di&s;cou|raged in exerci&s;ing of their con&s;ciences in matters of Religion: And it was but thus in the Prelaticall time. I finde by my &s;elfe, that Chri&s;tians cannot live, though they &s;hould enjoy all naturall freedome and content, where they are not free to wor&s;hip God in a way of Religion: And I finde al&s;o by my &s;elfe that Chri&s;tians cannot wor&s;hip God in any way but what a|greeth with their under&s;tandings and con&s;ciences; and although I may be at liberty to wor&s;hip God according to that way which the Parliament &s;hall &s;et up for a generall rule to the whole Nation; yet if I were not per|&s;waded that I might lawfully &s;ubmit thereunto, all the torments in the World &s;hould not enforce mee: and this I finde to bee the ca&s;e of many con&s;cientious people, very well affected to the Parliament and to com|mon freedome: Men that have &s;pent their e&s;tates, and hazarded their lives as freely in defence of ju&s;t Government, as any men what&s;oever; and whether they are under the names of Anabapti&s;ts, Browni&s;ts, Separation, Independents, or Antinomies; wee have had all their
<PB N="4" REF="4">mo&s;t affectionate helpe in throwing down Epi&s;copacy and arbitrary govern|ment: men they are that &s;till remaine in mo&s;t oppo&s;ition to the Popi&s;h and malignant parties; &s;omewhat we mu&s;t doe for the ea&s;e of the&s;e our brethren, it mu&s;t not be in the &s;ettlement of our Reformation that they remaine under the &s;ame re&s;traint or mole&s;tation for their con&s;ciences as they were in the Prelaticall time; we mu&s;t doe as we would be done unto: if any &s;ort of them were greater in number then we, and had authority to countenance them, we &s;hould e&s;teem it hard mea&s;ure, to be re&s;trained from exerci&s;ing our Religion according to our con&s;ciences, or to be compelled by fines, impri|&s;onments, or other puni&s;hments, to wor&s;hip contrary to our con&s;ciences, we mu&s;t beare with one anothers infirmities; no condition of men in our dayes have an infallibility of judgement: every one ought to be fully per&s;waded in his owne minde of the lawfulne&s;&s;e of the way wherein he &s;erveth God; if one man ob&s;erve a day to the Lord, and others not; and both out of con&s;ci|ence to God, both are allowed by the Apo&s;tle; and the one is not to mole&s;t, no not to de&s;pi&s;e or condemne. <HI>Rom.</HI> 14. <HI>v.</HI> 3. much le&s;&s;e compell the other to his judgement, becau&s;e what&s;oever is not of faith or full a&s;&s;urance of minde is &s;in: had Mr. <HI>Pryn</HI> debated thus with him&s;elfe, he had &s;hewed him&s;elfe a true Di&s;|ciple of Chri&s;t and his Apo&s;tle: differing opinions would not then have ap|peared &s;uch abominable, damnable things in his &s;ight: The dealing of our Saviour with tho&s;e mo&s;t erronious Sadduces, would have come into his mind, they beleeved that there was neither Angell nor Spirit, and that there was no re&s;urrection: Opinions as contrary to the current of the then Interpreters, as any in our time, and yet they profe&s;&s;ed it openly, as appeareth by their at|tempting our Saviour, and were as unreproved of him as of authority; he re|&s;olves their que&s;tion by an an&s;wer which removed that ab&s;urdity which they thought impo&s;&s;ible: briefly telling them, That they neither marry nor are married, but as the Angels of God in heaven; u&s;ing them gently, without threats or reproaches.</P>
<P>If Mr. <HI>Pryn</HI> had thought of this Subject, with &s;uch like con&s;iderations, he would &s;oone have &s;een, <HI>That the people of a Nation in chu&s;ing of a Parliament cannot confer more then that power which was ju&s;tly in them&s;elves: the plain rule be|ing this: That which a man may not voluntarily binde him&s;elfe to doe, or to forbear to doe, without &s;inne: That he cannot entru&s;t or refer unto the ordering of any other: What&s;oever (be it Parliament, Generall Councels, or Nationall A&s;&s;emblies:) But all things concerning the wor&s;hip and &s;ervice of God, and of that nature; that a man cannot without wilfull &s;in, either binde him&s;elfe to doe any thing therein contrary to his under&s;tanding and con&s;cience: nor to forbeare to doe that which his under&s;tanding and con&s;cience bindes him to performe: therefore no man can refer matters of Religi|on to any others regulation. And what cannot be giuen, cannot be received: and then as a particular man cannot be robbed of that which he never had; &s;o neither can a Parliament, or any other ju&s;t Authority be violated in, or deprived of a power which cannot be entru&s;ted unto them.</HI></P>
<P>That Emperours, and Kings, and Popes, have a&s;&s;umed an ab&s;olute power over Nations in matters of Religion, need not to have beene &s;o laboriou&s;ly proved; nor that Councels and Parliaments have done the like: the matter
<PB N="5" REF="4">is what they have done of right: who knowes not that all the&s;e have erred as often as they did &s;o: our pre&s;ent Parliament have greater light then any for|mer, and propo&s;e to them&s;elves to abandon what ever former Parliaments have either a&s;&s;umed, or done upon mi&s;-information; and have not yet decla|red them&s;elves to di&s;&s;ent from the fore recited rule: and then Mr. <HI>Pryn</HI> may con&s;ider, whether he hath not extreamly mi&s;pent his time, and with much uncharitablene&s;&s;e injured that faithfull &s;ervant of God, and &s;incere lover of his Country, Mr. <HI>John Goodwin,</HI> a man that to my knowledge, and to the know|ledge of many, values neither life nor livelihood, could he therewith, or with lo&s;&s;e thereof, purcha&s;e a peaceable liberty to his Country, or a ju&s;t Parliamen|tary government; &s;o far is he, or that other worthy man Mr. <HI>Burton;</HI> or any Independent, Anabapti&s;t, Browni&s;t, or any of the Separation now extant, from de&s;erving either tho&s;e &s;light, but arrogant expre&s;&s;ions of his in his &s;aid Epi&s;tle, telling the honourable Parliament, That he knows not what evill Genius, and Pithagorian Metemp&s;ycho&s;is, the Antiparliamentary &s;oules for|merly dwelling in our defunct Prelats earthly Tabernacles, are tran&s;migrated into, and revived into a new generation of men (&s;tarted up of late among&s;t us) commonly knowne by the name of Independents: &s;uch bumba&s;t inck|horne tearmes, &s;avouring &s;o much of a meer pedanticke, as ill be&s;eemeth his relation to that &s;upream power of Parliament: And thogh tho&s;e Independents, for the mo&s;t part are &s;uch by his owne acknowledgement, who&s;e affections and actions have demon&s;trated them to be reall and cordiall to the Parlia|ment and Church of England, for which (&s;aith he) and for their piety they are to be highly honoured, yet hath not he &s;o much charity as to &s;hew any inclination that they &s;hould be relieved in their ju&s;t de&s;ire of Chri&s;tian liber|ty; but pro&s;ecutes all tho&s;e their &s;everall judgements, as derogatory and de|&s;tructive unto Parliament and Church in their Anarchicall and Antiparlia|mentary po&s;itions; for which, and for their late gathering of Independent Churches, contrary to Parliamentary injunctions (which were never &s;een) they are he &s;ayes, to be ju&s;tly blamed as great Di&s;turbers of our publicke peace and unity: the&s;e his great words make a great noi&s;e, I confe&s;&s;e: a man that did not conver&s;e among&s;t the&s;e people, may ea&s;ily be induced to be|lieve them to be very dangerous. Mr. <HI>Pryn</HI> is of great credit with many in authority, and how far he hath therein done them wrong, his owne con&s;ci|ence will one day tell him to his co&s;t.</P>
<P>If Mr. <HI>Pryn</HI> were a &s;tranger to the Separation, and unacquainted with the innocency of their wayes and intentions, I might charitably judge him to plead for the per&s;ecution of Gods people ignorantly, as St. <HI>Paul</HI> did: but &s;ince he cannot but know that they are both in affection and action re all and cor|diall to the Parliament, as him&s;elfe confe&s;&s;es, and hath found them for his owne particular compa&s;&s;ionate in his &s;ufferings, and liberally a&s;&s;i&s;tant to him in his mi&s;eries: I profe&s;&s;e, I can make no other con&s;truction of his &s;o violent pleading for per&s;ecution, and incen&s;ing the Parliament again&s;t a People he knowes harmle&s;&s;e, and mode&s;t and rea&s;onable in their de&s;ires who&s;e utmo&s;t end is only not to be mole&s;ted in their &s;erving of God: I can make no other con&s;truction of it, I &s;ay, that engagement to the Divines, and &s;ome intere&s;t
<PB N="6" REF="5">of his owne hath begot a hardne&s;&s;e over his heart, and clouded that noble courage, and common &s;pirit which did po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e him. If he wanted informa|tion, I would labour with him, but &s;ince I cannot doubt but that he hath &s;uffi|cient of that, I will leave him till the truth and excellency of that freedome again&s;t which he fights, till the &s;incerity and uprightne&s;&s;e of the Separation which he delivers up to the &s;word, in the&s;e words, <HI>Immedicabile vulnus en&s;e recidendum e&s;t,</HI> make him one day appeare even to his pre&s;ent admirers, the man he is indeed.</P>
<P>In the meane time, I turne to the people, and de&s;ire them to enquire after the Separation, and have full knowledge of them: they will then finde they are extreamly mi&s;under&s;tood by authority, and all others that apprehend them to be any other then a quiet harmle&s;&s;e people, no way dangerous or trouble&s;ome to humane &s;ociety: I have found them to be an ingenious en|quiring people, and charitable both in their cen&s;ures of others, and due re|gard to the poore. I am become their advocate, out of no engagement or relation to them, I profe&s;&s;e, more then what my knowledge of their &s;inceri|ty and true affection to their Country hath begotten in me.</P>
<P>Mr. <HI>Goodwin,</HI> I need not &s;peak much of, he is a man &s;o well knowne, that Mr. <HI>Pryns</HI> &s;o rigid urging of his expre&s;&s;ions upon him, as he hath too largely and &s;pleeni&s;hly done in his Epi&s;tle, making &s;o un&s;avoury and utterly di&s;pro|portioned compari&s;ons betwixt him, and the malignant Prelats, and Anti|parliamentary Cavaliers, that a man that knows the antipathy betweene them cannot but &s;tand amazed thereat; and nece&s;&s;arily conclude that &s;ome|thing hath blinded not only the light of Mr. <HI>Pryns</HI> con&s;cience, but of his un|der&s;tanding al&s;o, and then after a mo&s;t unchri&s;tian application, his &s;entence is in the&s;e di&s;mall old Antichri&s;tian and Prelaticall tearms; if they will not be reclaimed, <HI>fiat ju&s;titia,</HI> better &s;ome &s;hould &s;uffer then all peri&s;h: but happy it is, that <HI>the power of Parliament is not in</HI> Mr. <HI>Pryn:</HI> if it were (in the minde he is now in) 'tis much to be doubted, his part would differ little from <HI>Bon|ners</HI> or <HI>Gardiners</HI> in Queen <HI>Maries</HI> dayes: but ble&s;&s;ed be God, it is otherwi&s;e; nor will that ju&s;t Authority I pre&s;ume be moved either with his fierce excla|mations, or incomparable flatteries to doe any thing contrary to right rea&s;on and true Chri&s;tianity: nor is there indeed (the fore mentioned rule holding) any cau&s;e why that &s;upreme Authority &s;hould be offended: for all &s;orts of In|dependents, whether Anabapti&s;ts or Browni&s;ts, or Antinomians, or any o|ther doe all agree, that in all Civill and Military cau&s;es and affaires, they have an ab&s;olute &s;upreme power: And if they &s;hall conceive it ju&s;t and nece&s;&s;ary for the State to propo&s;e one way of wor&s;hip for a generall rule throughout the Land, and &s;hall ingratiate the &s;ame by an exemption from all offence and &s;candall of weake con&s;ciences as far as is po&s;&s;ible; The Independents, &amp;c. have nothing to oppo&s;e again&s;t their wi&s;domes: and if the publicke way &s;hould be &s;uch as &s;hould agree with any of their judgements and con&s;cien|ces, they would mo&s;t readily joyne in fellow&s;hip therein: but if their judge|ments and con&s;ciences &s;hould not be fully &s;atisfied concerning the &s;ame, then what&s;oever is not of faith is &s;inne; and they cannot but disjoyne: and in &s;uch a ca&s;e, all good men that know them will &s;hew them&s;elves true Chri&s;tians
<PB N="7" REF="5">indeed, in becomming humble &s;uters to the Parliament, that as for conveni|ence to the State they propo&s;e one generall publicke way: &s;o for the ea&s;e of tender con&s;ciences, and for avoyding of &s;inne either in compelling of wor|&s;hip contrary to con&s;cience, or in re&s;traint of con&s;ciencious wor&s;hip; they would be plea&s;ed to allow unto all men (that through difference of judge|ment could not joyne with the publicke congregations) the free and un|di&s;turbed exerci&s;e of their con&s;ciences in private congregations.</P>
<P>And if they &s;hould be plea&s;ed &s;o to doe; it is but what is agreeable to com|mon equity and true Chri&s;tian liberty: It hath beene the wi&s;dome of all judi|cious Patriots to frame &s;uch laws and government as all peaceable well min|ded people might delight to live under; binding from all things palpably vi|tious by the greate&s;t puni&s;hments, and propo&s;ing of rewards and incourage|ments to all publicke vertue: but in things wherein every man ought to be fully per&s;waded in his particular minde of the lawfulne&s;&s;e or unlawfulne&s;&s;e thereof; there to leave every man to the guidance of his owne judgement; and where this rule is ob&s;erved, there all things flouri&s;h, for thither will re&s;ort all &s;orts of ingenious free borne minds: &s;uch Commonwealths abound with all things either nece&s;&s;ary or delightfull, and which is the chiefe &s;upport of all: &s;uch a government aboundeth with wi&s;e men, and with the generall af|fections of the people: for where the government equally re&s;pecteth the good and peace of all &s;orts of virtuous men, without re&s;pect of their different judgements in matters of Religion: there all &s;orts of judgements cannot but love the government, and e&s;teem nothing too pretious to &s;pend in defence thereof.</P>
<P>Who can live where he hath not the freedome of his minde, and exerci&s;e of his con&s;cience? looke upon tho&s;e Governments that deny this liberty, and ob&s;erve the envyings and repinings that are among&s;t them, and how can it be otherwi&s;e, when as if a man advance in knowledge above what the State alloweth, he can no longer live freely, or without di&s;turbance exerci&s;e his con&s;cience? what follows then? why he takes his e&s;tate, and trade, and family, and removes where he may freely enjoy his minde, and exerci&s;e his con&s;cience: and as this hath been the &s;ad condition of this Nation to its ex|treame lo&s;&s;e divers wayes: &s;o Mr. <HI>Pryn</HI> would have it continued for ought by his writings can bee di&s;covered; nor is he any whit troubled in &s;pirit to &s;ee at this day of Jubile, and of Reformation unto all ju&s;t liberty: thou&s;ands of well-affected per&s;ons at their wits end, not knowing where to &s;et their foot, for want of encouragement in the cau&s;e of con&s;cience.</P>
<P>I but, &s;ayes Mr. <HI>Pryn,</HI> our Covenant bindes us to maintaine an ab&s;olute Eccle&s;ia&s;tick power in the Parliament: it bindes us to maintaine their un|doubted rights, power, priviledges: but Mr. <HI>Pryn</HI> mu&s;t ever beare in minde, that what the people cannot entru&s;t that they cannot have; which will an|&s;wer all objections of that nature.</P>
<P>As for our Brethren of Scotland: there is no doubt, but they are &s;ad ob&s;er|vers of all the di&s;tempers and mi&s;under&s;tandings that are among&s;t us, and would be mo&s;t glad that the wi&s;dome of Parliament would mini&s;ter a &s;peedy remedy; although therein they &s;hould &s;omewhat vary from their way of
<PB N="8" REF="6">Church Government; as well knowing there can be no greater advantage given to our common Enemy, then the continuance of the&s;e our divi&s;ions and di&s;affections.</P>
<P>And where Mr. <HI>Pryn</HI> may &s;uppo&s;e all liberty of this kinde, would tend to the encrea&s;ing of erronious opinions, and di&s;turbance to the State; I beleeve he is mi&s;taken; for let any mans experience witne&s;&s;e whether freedome of di&s;|cour&s;e be not the readie&s;t way both to give and receive &s;atisfaction in all things.</P>
<P>And as for di&s;turbance to the State: admit any mans judgement be &s;o mi&s;|informed, as to beleeve there is no &s;inne; if this man now upon this govern|ment &s;hould take away another mans goods, or commit murder or adulte|ry; the Law is open, and he is to be puni&s;hed as a malefactor, and &s;o for all crimes that any mans judgement may mi&s;lead him unto.</P>
<P>And truly you are to con&s;ider in reading his great Book (improperly en|tituled, Truth triumphing over fal&s;hood) that he acknowledges them to bee but nocturnall lucubrations, di&s;tracted &s;ubitane collections; and if you truly weigh them you will finde them very light, and little better compacted then meere dreams, or &s;uch fumes as men u&s;e to have betwixt &s;leeping and wa|king: and when you have viewed all tho&s;e many &s;heets, con&s;ider them as in one, and it will re&s;emble Saint <HI>Peters</HI> vi&s;ion, a mixt multitude of unclean te|&s;timonies raked out of the &s;erpentine dens of meer tyrannous Princes, Anti|chri&s;tian and Machivillian Councells, erronious Parliaments, and bloudy per|&s;ecuting Councells and Convocations, which he hath produced, to be per|&s;waders and controlers in the&s;e times of pure Reformation. Certainly if a man were not in a deep Lethargy, &s;uch a ma&s;&s;e of &s;o gro&s;&s;e excrements could not pa&s;&s;e from him without offence to his owne no&s;trill; if it be his ca&s;e, hee that &s;cracheth him mo&s;t, and handles him mo&s;t roughly, is his be&s;t friend, there being no other remedy; when he is recovered and broad awake hee will thanke his Phy&s;itian: in the meane time thus much is pre&s;ented to his admirers, to pre&s;erve them from that malevolent infection, unto which his writings and reputation of former &s;ufferings might &s;ubject them unto; and this by one who is no more obliged to any Independent, Anabapti&s;t, Brow|ni&s;t, Separation, or Antinomian, then Mr. <HI>Pryn</HI> him&s;elfe; but hath taken paines to know them &s;omewhat better, and cannot but love them for their &s;incere love to our dear Country, to the ju&s;t liberties thereof, and to our ju&s;t Parliamentary Government: mo&s;t heartily wi&s;hing them their ju&s;t de&s;ires, and a peacefull life among&s;t us: That they might be encouraged to joyne heart and hand with us, in pro&s;ecution of the common Enemies, of our com|mon liberties, knowing no rea&s;on why I &s;hould not love and a&s;&s;i&s;t every per&s;on that loves his Country unfeignedly, and endeavours to promote the good and freedome thereof, though of different judgement with me in mat|ters of Religion; in which ca&s;e I am not to judge or controle him, nor he me: and I heartily wi&s;h all true lovers of their Country were in this minde; and when they are &s;o, then the mi&s;eries of this Nation will &s;oon be ended, and untill then, they will continue, as is too much to be feared: I could heartily wi&s;h that what is here written, might worke a good alteration in Mr. <HI>Pryn:</HI>
<PB N="9" REF="6">but when I remember the &s;tory, That a certain Lawyer came to our Saviour, tempting him; I fear it is in re&s;pect of him&s;elf, but wa&s;hing of a Blackamoore: &s;elf deniall, is too hard a le&s;&s;on for him; and if &s;o, you &s;hall have him in &s;ome bitter reply in&s;tantly; for though he cannot out-rea&s;on men, yet if he can but out-write his oppo&s;ers, he claps his wings and crows <HI>victoria,</HI> that he hath &s;ilenced them all. Truly for writing much, I verily believe that he out-does any man in England, which is no commodity at all to a State or the Truth, and then con&s;idering what free liberty he hath to Print what&s;oever he wri|teth, di&s;creet men will con&s;ider what a great advantage he hath therein, and will not deem it want of ability in his oppo&s;ers, though they doe not &s;ee him pre&s;ently an&s;wered to their full &s;atisfaction; and yet I am confident his great Booke will be &s;uddenly an&s;wered throughly: but if Mr. <HI>Pryn</HI> would deale upon equall tearmes, and u&s;e meanes that the Pre&s;&s;e may be open for all Subjects, but for &s;ix moneths next comming free from the bonds of Licencers; if Mr. <HI>Pryn</HI> be not &s;o &s;ilenced, as that all his former and late books doe not un|der &s;ell browne paper; let me be henceforward e&s;teemed as vaine a boa&s;ter, as now I e&s;teem him: for his oppo&s;ers, as in the ju&s;tne&s;&s;e of this cau&s;e they cannot regard his &s;pleene; &s;o nothing would be more welcome to them then his love, and change of minde, whereof &s;ome doe not di&s;paire: however, I end with his owne words, more ju&s;tly applyed <HI>fiat ju&s;titia;</HI> better it is that he undergoe this my plaine dealing, then that either the Readers of his bookes &s;hould be &s;educed, or &s;o many innocent well-affected per&s;ons be &s;o gro&s;&s;ely abu&s;ed by him.</P>
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