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<NAME>Olivia Bottum</NAME>
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<HEAD>TO The right Honourable, the Knights, Citizens, and Burge&s;&s;es, the Parliament of England, a&s;&s;embled at We&s;tmin&s;ter, <HI>The humble Appeale and Petition of</HI> Mary Overton, <HI>pri&s;oner in Bridewell:</HI></HEAD>
<OPENER>SHEWETH,</OPENER>
<P>THat whereas the publike &s;afety and liberty of the <HI>people</HI> is the maine end of all Government, and Go|vernours, whether Regall, Parliamentarie, or other; and the Law of the Land u&s;ually called the <HI>Com|mon-Law,</HI> being grounded upon right rea&s;on and equity, the true Rule and Directory, both for ruling and obeying, which to pre&s;erve, as the King declareth in his An&s;wer to your Pe|tition of the 23. of May, 1643. <HI>ought to bee the perpetuall and vigilant care of a Prince,</HI> and acknowledgeth, that <HI>upon the ob&s;ervation of the Fundamentall Lawes, the publike hap|pine&s;&s;e and welfare of the people is founded and con&s;tituted;</HI> calling God to witne&s;&s;e, <HI>That the pre&s;ervation of the Law, and the Liberty of the People, &s;hould alwaies be as much his care and indu&s;try, as the life or lives of his deare&s;t children;</HI> profe&s;&s;ing, <HI>to make the Law the mea&s;ure of his Power, and that there was no man &s;o neare unto him in place or affection, whom hee would not leave to the ju&s;tice of the Law;</HI> him&s;elfe acknowledging <HI>the Law to be the Inheritance of every Sub|ject, and the only &s;ecurity hee can have for his life, liberty, or e&s;tate, the which being neglected, violated, or di&s;e&s;teemed under what &s;pecious &s;hewes or pretences &s;oever, a very great mea&s;ure of infelicity, if not irreparable confu&s;ion would in a+voydably en&s;ue;</HI> and that he was <HI>re&s;olved not only to ob&s;erve the Lawes him&s;elfe, but to maintaine them again&s;t all oppo&s;iti|on:</HI>
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and the Law re&s;pecteth nothing more then the Liber|ty and Freedome of a mans per&s;on, according to the ancient and grave Lawyer <HI>Forte&s;eue, Impius &amp; crudelis e&s;t, qui li|bertati non favet: Angliae Jura in omni ca&s;u libertati dant favorem;</HI> yet notwith&s;tanding the&s;e &s;o many reiterated profe&s;&s;ions and a&s;&s;everations, &s;o often emitted in the Kings Declarations and An&s;wers, and other golden baites of pro|fit and preferment, neither your Petitioners husband (now pri&s;oner in Newgate by the Hou&s;e of Lords) nor your Peti|tioner could in the lea&s;t wi&s;e be induced to comply with the King or his party again&s;t this honourable Hou&s;e, as many thou&s;ands have done, who now are at liberty, and under your protection, to your high di&s;honour, and to the great griefe of your be&s;t and mo&s;t faithfull friends: but being confident that you the betru&s;ted of the Kingdome, accor|ding to your many Vowes and Prote&s;tations, Covenants, Declarations, Remon&s;trances, Ordinances, and to the high and great Tru&s;t repo&s;ed in you, would have long ere now improved all your endeavours, powers, and intere&s;ts for the redemption and advancement of our antient (though of late yeares much invaded) Rights, Lawes and Liberties, which are our Birthright and Inheritance, as you (as well as the King) have often told us, <HI>calling God to witne&s;&s;e, that the peace and good of the people ever was your only aimes; profe&s;&s;ing unto us in the pre&s;ence of the all-&s;eeing Diety, that our peace and &s;afety is the onely end of all your Coun&s;ells, and endeavours, re&s;olving therein to continue free from all private aimes, or per&s;onall re&s;pects what&s;oever: and that you never intended to introduce any new Law to our prejudice, much le&s;&s;e to exerci&s;e any arbitrary power at all, but to your utmo&s;t to prevent it, holding it your duty to u&s;e your be&s;t endeavours that the meane&s;t of the Commonalty might enjoy their Rights, Liberty, and Benefits of the Law, being equally in|tere&s;ted and entitulled thereto, with the greate&s;t Sub|ject,</HI> confe&s;&s;ing and acknowledging, that the &s;itting of the PARLIAMENT ought not to <HI>&s;u&s;pend the Law,</HI> the execution thereof according to equity, being
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<HI>the very Spirit</HI> (as you tell us) <HI>which gives life to authority;</HI> from all which and manifold other Premi&s;es, and Obligati|ons, even out of your owne mouths, the Commonalty of England are invited and enabled ju&s;tly to challenge and expect from this Hou&s;e the ju&s;t defence, pre&s;ervation, and fruition of all their Rights, Lawes, and Liberties, in their lives, per&s;ons and e&s;tates, re&s;traint of, and protection again&s;t the malice and fury o tho&s;e that &s;eeke their ruine, by any ar|bitrary domination, or other practi&s;es what&s;oever; and therefore for that end are all obliged to &s;tand by you, and for you: but on the contrary, to return contrary effects, for <HI>con|trariorum contraria &s;unt con&s;equentia.</HI></P>
<P>But now &s;o it is, though your Petitioners husband hath con&s;tantly adhered to the Parliament, and hath given ample te&s;timony of his &s;incere and upright affections to this hono|rable Hou&s;e, to the ju&s;t Lawes and Freedomes of England in generall, and to the Rights and Properties of all and e|very Commoner in particular, by his con&s;tant and faithfull endeavours to that end, as many hundreds in the City, yea (I may take the boldne&s;&s;e to &s;ay) many thou&s;ands in the Kingdome can witne&s;&s;e in his behalfe, yet notwith&s;tanding upon the 11. of Augu&s;t, 1646. had his hou&s;e &s;ur|rounded with divers armed men with &s;words and mus|kets, under the Conduct of one <HI>Robert Eales,</HI> and by the &s;aid <HI>Robert Eales</HI> (Deputy-Catchpole to the Hou&s;e of Lords) with his Sword drawne in his hand, and by one M. <HI>Eveling</HI> (dweller at the greene Dragon in the Strand) with his pi&s;toll ready cock'd, was &s;ud|denly and violently entred, and his per&s;on laid hold of, with|out Warrant either Legall or pretended fir&s;t &s;hewen, and &s;o by force of arms was in an ho&s;tile manner led captive to the Hou&s;e of Lords, who would (High-Commi&s;&s;ion-like) have examined him again&s;t him&s;elfe; which he refu&s;ing, and ap|pealing to this honourable Hou&s;e as his proper and compe|tent Judges, was therefore by the Lords, under the pretence of contempt to that Hou&s;e, committed to the infamous Goale of Newgate, there to be kept til their plea&s;ures &s;hould
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be further &s;ignified; Which (as your Petitioner humbly conceiveth) tendeth to the high violation of the fundamen|tall Lawes of this Land, the utter &s;ubver&s;ion of the Com|mon Liberties of the people, and of your Petitioners hus|bands native Right and Inheritance in particular, for by the great Charter of Liberties the Lords cannot pa&s;&s;e Judge|ment upon any Commoner in ca&s;es criminall concerning life, liberty, or e&s;tate, neither can any other Court or Ju&s;tices what&s;oever, before Indictment or pre&s;entment, or by other due proce&s;&s;e in Law, take away Commoners life, liberty, or goods; nor ought any man by Law, to be forced by Oath to an&s;wer to Interregatories to accu&s;e him&s;elfe in any crimi|nall cau&s;es, which concerne either his life, liberty, lo&s;&s;e of goods, or freehold, but ought to bee convicted fir&s;t by witne&s;&s;es, pre&s;entment, or the verdict of twelve men, or upon or by his owne voluntarie confe&s;&s;ion without oath or co-action, as by the Lawes, Statutes, and Authorities here &s;et downe, is clearly proved.</P>
<P>The Statute of <HI>Magna Charta</HI> (31. times confirmed in Parliament) cap. 29. Enacts, <HI>That no Free-man &s;hall be ta|ken, or impri&s;oned, or di&s;&s;ea&s;ed of his Freehold or Liberties, or free Cu&s;tomes, or out-lawed, or exiled, or otherwi&s;e de|&s;troyed: neither will we pa&s;&s;e upon him, nor condemne him, but by lawfull Judgement of his Peers, or by the Law of the Land.</HI> Now what is under&s;tood by the Law of the Land, the&s;e en&s;uing Statutes yet in force, declare and explaine. The Statute of 5. <HI>Edw.</HI> 3. <HI>c.</HI> 9. ordains, <HI>That no man from hence|forth &s;hall be attached for any Accu&s;ation, nor fore-judged of life, nor limbe, again&s;t the forme of the great Charter.</HI></P>
<P>The Statute of the 25. <HI>Edw.</HI> 3. <HI>c.</HI> 4. enacts, <HI>That from henceforth none &s;hall be taken by Petition or Sugge&s;tion made to the King, or to his Councell, unle&s;&s;e it be by Indictment and pre&s;entment of good and lawfull men, where &s;uch deeds bee done, in due manner, or by proce&s;&s;e made by Writ Originall at the Common-Law, &amp;c. and if any thing be done again&s;t the &s;ame, it &s;halbe redre&s;&s;ed, and holden for none.</HI></P>
<P>The Statute of 28. <HI>Edw.</HI> 3. <HI>c.</HI> 3. provides <HI>That none of what e&s;tate or condition that he bee, &s;hall be taken or impri&s;oned,
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without being brought to an&s;wer by due proce&s;&s;e of Law.</HI></P>
<P>The Statute of 42. <HI>Edw.</HI> 3. <HI>c.</HI> 3. complaines and concludes thus, <HI>To e&s;chew the mi&s;chiefs and dammages done to divers of the Commoners by fal&s;e accu&s;ers, which have often times made their accu&s;ations more for vengeance and &s;ingular profit, then for the profit of the King, or of his People, of which accu|&s;ed per&s;ons &s;ome have been impri&s;oned, and others cau&s;ed to come before the Kings Councell by Writ, and otherwi&s;e upon grievous paine again&s;t the Law: It is a&s;&s;ented and accor|ded for the good Government of the people, that none be put to an&s;wer without pre&s;entment before Ju&s;tices, or other matter of Record, or by due Proce&s;&s;e, or by &s;ome Writ Originall, ac|cording to the old Law of the Land; and if any thing from henceforth be done the contrary, it &s;hall be void in Law and hol|den for errour.</HI></P>
<P>All the&s;e recited Statutes are mentioned and ratified as the undoubted Lawes and Liberties of the Kingdome, by the late Petition of Right, 3. <HI>Caroli.</HI></P>
<P>The Statute of 25. <HI>Hen.</HI> 8. <HI>c.</HI> 14. recites, <HI>That it &s;tandeth not with the right order of ju&s;tice nor good equity, that any per&s;on &s;hould be convict and put to the lo&s;&s;e of his life, name, or goods, unle&s;&s;e it be by due accu&s;ation and witne&s;&s;e, or by pre&s;entment, verdict, confe&s;&s;ion, or Proce&s;&s;e of Outlawry: &s;ince by the Law of the Realme no man can be put to death for trea&s;on committed to the perill of the Kings mo&s;t royall Ma|je&s;ty, but by Pre&s;entment, Verdict, Confe&s;&s;ion or Proce&s;&s;e of Outlawry.</HI></P>
<P>And the Statute of 1. <HI>Eliz.</HI> c. 1. enacts, that no man &s;hall be indicted or arraigned for any offence again&s;t the Law, but by two &s;ufficient Witne&s;&s;es at the lea&s;t, and that <HI>viva voce,</HI> face to face, if they be alive, or within the Realme. The rea|&s;on given in the Law-books again&s;t inforced Oaths, is, be|cau&s;e no man is bound to bewray him&s;elfe in things which concerne his credit, liberty, life, or forfeiture of his e&s;tate; in which ca&s;es any may lawfully refu&s;e to take an oath, or give any an&s;wer at all, as the&s;e Law-Authorities conclude and re|&s;olve. 49. <HI>Ed.</HI> 3. 2. <HI>a. Fitz. Challenge.</HI> 100. <HI>Brooke</HI> 25. 7. <HI>H.</HI> 4. 10. <HI>a. Fitz.</HI> Ju&s;tice of Peace. 172. <HI>Cromptons</HI> Ju&s;tice
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of Peace, 182. 219. 2. <HI>Eliz.</HI> 33. <HI>Dier.</HI> 288. p. 51.</P>
<P>Al&s;o many godly Martyrs have by their doctrine and practice taught and affirmed it a thing contrary to the Law of God, of nature, equity, common rea&s;on, and to the Com|mon and Civill Law it &s;elfe, for men to bewray and accu&s;e them&s;elves; and therefore refu&s;ed to take any oaths, or to an&s;wer any Articles to accu&s;e them&s;elves, declaring again&s;t &s;uch oaths and proceedings as Antichri&s;tian, bloody, tyran|nicall, unnaturall, uncharitable, unrea&s;onable, unju&s;t, yea ex|ecrable and diabolicall. <HI>Fox Acts and Monuments,</HI> printed <HI>Anno</HI> 1510. <HI>pag.</HI> 950, 951. 1006. 1022. 1643. 1616. 1661. 1777. 1778. 1813. 1814. 1815. 1849. 1872. 1873. And the Ancients (called the Fathers) as <HI>Athana&s;i|us, Ambro&s;e, Chry&s;o&s;tome,</HI> and many others, mentioned by <HI>Sextus Senen&s;is in Bibliotheca &s;ancta,</HI> l. 6. p. 434, 435. as well as Moderne Writers, have all pa&s;&s;ed joynt &s;entence of condemnation again&s;t tho&s;e &s;elfe-oaths and proceedings, ex|ceedingly declaiming again&s;t them, as the direct road to per|jury, and the very Devills pre&s;cript to tumble men head|long into hell, as <HI>Slades Ca&s;e,</HI> 4. <HI>Report fol.</HI> 95.</P>
<P>Now in direct oppo&s;ition to all the &s;ore-cited Lawes, Statutes, Antiquities, Authorities, &amp;c. and contrary to the cour&s;e of all other Courts of Ju&s;tice (even of the Starre-Chamber while it continued) the Hou&s;e of Lords did with|out any Summons, or other Proce&s;&s;e for appearance, not on|ly attach, apprehend, and impri&s;on your Petitioners husband, violently (by their Officers) breaking open, &s;earching and ran&s;acking his hou&s;e, felloniou&s;ly taking away his goods, not &s;aving to him his contenniment or livelihood, but al&s;o, before any Indictment, Pre&s;entment, or other due Proce&s;&s;e of Law preceding, &s;end forth their Officers againe to enter, &s;earch, ran&s;ack and rifle your Petitioners hou&s;e, her trunks, che&s;ts, &amp;c. to rob, &s;teal, plunder, and beare away her goods, which were her then pre&s;ent livelihood for her impri&s;oned husband, her &s;elfe, and three &s;mall children, her brother and &s;i&s;ter; and to bring your Petitioner, with <HI>Thomas Overton</HI> her husbands brother, unto their Prerogative-Barre, which was accordingly done. And by rea&s;on your Petitioner
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would not be &s;ubject to the arbitrarie and diabolicall accu|&s;tomarie proceedings of that Hou&s;e, to an&s;wer to Interroga|tories, or to make oath again&s;t her husband or her &s;elfe, con|cerning his or her life, liberty, or goods, was, together with her &s;aid Brother-in-Law, (him&s;elfe al&s;o refu&s;ing &s;ubjection to the &s;aid illegall proceedings) committed to the New Pri|&s;on in Maiden Lane, where he &s;till mo&s;t unju&s;tly remaineth, and is illegally detained: and from thence, under colour of another Arbitrary Order from the Hou&s;e of Lords, your Petitioner, with her tender Infant in her armes of halfe a yeares age, was mo&s;t inhumanely and barbarou&s;ly dragged headlong upon the &s;tones through all the dirt and the mire in the &s;treets, and by the way was mo&s;t unju&s;tly reproached and vilified by their Officers, with the &s;candalous, infamous names of wicked Whore, Strumpet, &amp;c. and in that con|temptible, barbarous manner was ca&s;t into the mo&s;t re|proachfull Goale of Bridewell, that common center of Whores, Strumpets, &amp;c. where from the 8. of January 1646. to this pre&s;ent, &s;he remaineth in cruell re&s;traint, being mo&s;t unnaturally and tyrannically divided and divorced by a forced &s;eparation, from the comfort and &s;ociety of her hus|band in this her afflicted condition; her husband, her &s;elfe, and her brother being impri&s;oned, and her three helple&s;&s;e chil|dren expo&s;ed to the mercy of the wide world; an act &s;o ab|horred of God, of Nature, of Nations, yea of the mo&s;t wild and barbarous Heathens, of Turks, Infidels, and Pa|gans. Which proceedings of the&s;e mercile&s;&s;e cruell Lords exceed all temporall exorbitant V&s;urpers before them, in vi|olence, inju&s;tice, cruelty, and oppre&s;&s;ion, being parallel'd by none but by the Spani&s;h or Romi&s;h Inqui&s;itors: a tyranni|call grievance and exorbitancie &s;o exce&s;&s;ive and intolerable, &s;o contrary to all Law, equity and ju&s;tice, that the Parliament 7. <HI>Iacobi</HI> in their Petition of Grievances exhibited to King <HI>Iames,</HI> and by &s;undry Parliaments &s;ince, and by this pre&s;ent Parliament in their Remon&s;trance of the 15. of December 1642. is complained again&s;t as an in&s;ufferable Outrage, Bur|glarie and oppre&s;&s;ion, de&s;iring a &s;peedy reformation; upon
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which they and you received royal promi&s;es, that tho&s;e exor|bitances &s;hould be redre&s;&s;ed: yet notwith&s;tanding this kind of in&s;ufferable tyrannie, inju&s;tice, violence, inforced &s;laverie and oppre&s;&s;ion of the Lords, through your neglect of re|&s;traint and moderation, is now become more frequent and common then in any former ages, &s;ubjecting us under wor&s;e &s;laverie, and greater and more exorbitant unlimited arbitrary power and u&s;urpation, then formerly we were by the Prero|gative, Star-Chamber and High-Commi&s;&s;ion: yet when we have appealed to this Hou&s;e both for judgement and redre&s;&s;e, all approaches to ju&s;tice have beene interrupted and hitherto delayed, our Petitions and Complaints &s;leightly rejected or di&s;regarded, our friends wearied, vexed and mole&s;ted with long &amp; fruitles attendance, while we, our husbands, brethren, friends and &s;ervants, contrary to all Law (&s;everally, and in a forced and unju&s;t &s;eparation from our husbands) are kept and mewed up in your &s;everall &s;tarving, &s;tinking, murthering pri&s;on-hou&s;es, and if at any time we get acce&s;&s;e, or a Petiti|on read, which is &s;eldome obtained, we are referred over to one Committee or other, who never will bring their reports unto the Hou&s;e, to the ob&s;tructing and perverting the whole cour&s;e of ju&s;tice. Whereas the grand Traitors, the rebelli|ous Lords, who have been in armes again&s;t you, and other the profe&s;&s;ed and known enemies of the Kingdome, yea &s;ome of the Rebells exempted from pardon in the Propo&s;i|tions &s;ent to the King, can have liberty upon their paroll, en|joy their e&s;tates, obtaine favour and free acce&s;&s;e unto you, ready acceptance and hearing of their Petitions, quick di&s;|patches of their bu&s;ine&s;&s;e: And notwith&s;tanding the great and urgent Affaires of the Kingdome (that common pre|tence for the ob&s;truction and &s;u&s;pen&s;e of the ju&s;t and nece&s;|&s;ary redre&s;&s;e of your be&s;t friends, and faithfull lovers of their countrey) you can finde lei&s;ure, and take time weekly and daily to pa&s;&s;e Ordinances for compo&s;itions and pardons for Delinquents, declared Traitors, &s;omtimes twenty, &s;omtimes more upon one day; to heare the Petitions of &s;uch as are malevolently affected, not onely again&s;t your be&s;t, mo&s;t
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faithfull untainted friends, a&s;&s;i&s;tants and adherents, but even again&s;t the &s;inewes of yours and the Kingdomes defen&s;ive might, the Army, endeavouring and &s;upplicating their &s;pee|dy di&s;&s;olution, and the removall of all the be&s;t affected, e|ven while there was a threatning, pui&s;&s;ant Army of another Nation within the bowells of the Land, to pa&s;&s;e Votes, Or|dinances, Declarations, &amp;c. again&s;t preaching of the Go&s;|pell, ju&s;t as if you were running a tilt again&s;t Chri&s;t, to de&s;troy, root out, and confound all &s;uch as are religiou&s;ly affected, and have been (under God) the very props and pillars of your hou&s;e, the &s;ubduers and conquerers of yours and the Kingdomes enemies, and all under the &s;acred pre|tence of &s;uppre&s;&s;ion of Heretickes, Schi&s;maticks, &amp;c. pre|vention of Here&s;ies, Schi&s;mes, Bla&s;phemies, &amp;c. and under that religious gui&s;e &s;tab your friends to the heart; and when &s;uch your faithfull oppre&s;&s;ed A&s;&s;i&s;tants come with their Petitions for redre&s;&s;e and ca&s;e of their grievances, they are ordinarily &s;leighted, &s;coffed and derided, even by the Mem|bers of your Hou&s;e: a mo&s;t abhorred impiety, mo&s;t bar|barous ingratitude! for the&s;e and &s;uch like enormities and abu&s;es of the people, you can finde lei&s;ure and opportunity enough, but you are &s;o bu&s;ied with the great affaires of the Kingdome (as you call it) that you can find no time the&s;e &s;ixe years to proclaime liberty to the captive, freedome to the oppre&s;&s;ed, to right the cau&s;e of the poore, to heare the cry of the fatherle&s;&s;e and widdow, to reforme the cruelties and extortions of Goalers, which like &s;o many vulters upon a dead karka&s;e, eat the fle&s;h, and pick the bones of tho&s;e poor mi&s;erable &s;oules that are ca&s;t into their cu&s;tody; to protect or countenance the Commoners again&s;t the Prerogative u|&s;urpers and invaders of the great Charter of their Liber|ties, or to re&s;traine or curb their in&s;olent a&s;piring domina|tions; to re&s;tore the Citie of London and other Cities, Towers and Burroughs to their antient Liberties and Fran|chi&s;es; to di&s;robe the London Gown-men of their Preroga|tive u&s;urpation of the freemens Property in the election of their publike Officers: to bring Delinquents among&s;t you to triall,
<PB N="10" REF="6">
to give encouragement to the people to bring in their ju&s;t charge again&s;t any among&s;t you, which &s;hall betray their tru&s;t, or deale treacherou&s;ly with the people, Lawes, Free-Cu&s;tomes, or Liberties; to reforme the abu&s;es of the Law through all the Courts in the Kingdome, to cau&s;e the Lawes of the Land to be tran&s;lated out of Pedlars French and La|tine, into the Engli&s;h Tongue, &amp;c. So that many begin to feare by the&s;e your delayes of ju&s;tice, by your connivance at the Lords encrea&s;ing u&s;urpations, and attonement with and pardons of the Kingdomes Enemies, by your di&s;cou|ragements and &s;leightings of your friends, you give way to the Lords to carrie on a de&s;igne to alter the whole frame of the Legall Government of the Land, and of &s;ubjection of us to a tyrannous, lawle&s;&s;e orbitrary Power, and va&s;&s;i|lage, to the totall overthrow and irrecoverable lo&s;&s;e and ruine of all our ju&s;t Rights, and native Liberties; for what is tyranny, but to admit no Rule of Government, but their wills, as with them by your permi&s;&s;ion is familiar and frequent: and we know (as &s;ometimes the King hath told you) the mi&s;ery of Athens was at the highe&s;t, when it &s;uffered under thirty Tyrants; and if in&s;tead of one Tyrant we have got three or foure hundred, we cannot be far from the height of ours.</P>
<P>Now for as much as by the Lawes and Statutes of this Kingdome, no Ju&s;tices or other Judges of the Realme can make a Warrant upon bare &s;urmi&s;e to breake any mans hou&s;e for a fellon, or for &s;tollen goods (much le&s;&s;e for a free-mans owne) the &s;ame being again&s;t <HI>Mag. Charta cap.</HI> 29. and con|trary to the Statute of 42. <HI>Ed.</HI> 3. <HI>c.</HI> 3. &amp;c. and in this ca&s;e before Indictment, neither the Con&s;table nor any other man can breake open any mans hou&s;e for the apprehen&s;ion of the partie &s;u&s;pected, or charged with Fellony, for it is in Law, the arre&s;t of the partie that hath the knowledge or &s;u&s;pition, who cannot breake any hou&s;e, 2. <HI>H.</HI> 7. 3. and 15. 4. <HI>H.</HI> 7 2 3. 5. <HI>H.</HI> 7. 4. 10. <HI>H.</HI> 7. 17. 20. <HI>H.</HI> 7. 12. 7. <HI>Ed.</HI> 4 20. 8. <HI>E.</HI> 4 3. 10. <HI>E.</HI> 4. 17. 9. <HI>E.</HI> 4 26. 11. <HI>E.</HI> 4. 4. 13. <HI>E.</HI> 4. 9. 7. <HI>H.</HI> 4. 35. 17. <HI>E.</HI> 4. 5. 27. <HI>H.</HI> 8. 23.
<PB N="11" REF="6">
<HI>Dier.</HI> 7. <HI>Eliz.</HI> 23. 6. <HI>Cooks Reports</HI> 1. 5. <HI>Fol.</HI> 9. 92. <HI>Semanies ca&s;e.</HI></P>
<P>And fora&s;much as impri&s;onment by the Lords is inflicted by their cen&s;ures as a puni&s;hment, and &s;o their fir&s;t impri&s;on|ing before other Summons being no other then to begin exe|cution before hearing, which is contrary to all Law and Rea&s;on: And fora&s;much as ju&s;tice and right is to bee done freely without faile, fully without deniall, and &s;peedily without delay, <HI>Quia dilatio e&s;t quaedam negatio;</HI> for &s;o bee the words of the great Charter, <HI>We will deferre ju&s;tice to no man, cap.</HI> 29. confirmed by the Statutes, 2. <HI>E.</HI> 3. <HI>c.</HI> 8. 14. <HI>E.</HI> 3. <HI>c.</HI> 14. 20. <HI>E.</HI> 3, <HI>c.</HI> 1, 2. 11. <HI>Ric.</HI> 2. <HI>c.</HI> 11. And la&s;tly, for that no Act, Order, or Ordinance of the Lords binds the Subject without concurrence of this Honourable Hou&s;e, as notably appeareth by &s;everall Records, <HI>An.</HI> 6. <HI>Ed.</HI> 3. <HI>n.</HI> 6. <HI>Rot. Clau&s;. An.</HI> 44. <HI>E.</HI> 3. And the Lords plead a joynt con|currence for nullity of the proceedings and Compo&s;itions of Gold&s;miths Hall.</P>
<P>Your Petitioner therefore doth make her humble Appeale from the Juri&s;diction of the Hou&s;e of Lords, to the legall triall, judgement and determination of this Hou&s;e, either for ju&s;tification or condemnation, as by your Honours it &s;hall be legally found.</P>
<P>And &s;hee humbly prayeth this honourable Hou&s;e to take into your due and &s;peedy con&s;ideration the mi&s;erable di&s;tre&s;&s;e and deplorable condition of your Petitioner, her husband, and brother, long groaning under the oppre&s;&s;ion and inju|&s;tice of the arbitrary and tyrannicall power of the Lords, who without fault or Law have ca&s;t them into three &s;eve|rall chargeable Goales, and &s;omtimes have kept your Peti|tioners husband in double irons.</P>
<P>And in regard the Committee for con&s;ideration of the Commoners Liberties having taken your Petitioners hu&s;|bands cau&s;e into their triall and judgement, and have for the&s;e three moneths deferred the report thereof unto this Hou&s;e, concluded by the &s;aid Committee, to the great mi&s;e|ry and dammage of your Petitioner, her husband and chil|dren,
<PB N="12" REF="7">
by rea&s;on of his long and tedious impri&s;onment (in expectation of the legall determination of this Hou&s;e) to the great wrong and prejudice of the Peoples Liberties in the generall.</P>
<P>It is therefore further the humble de&s;ire of your Petitio|ner, that her husband, her &s;elfe, and her brother, without further procra&s;tination and delay, may receive the ju&s;t and &s;peedy &s;entence of this Hou&s;e accordingly as it &s;hall bee le|gally found and determined by the Vote of this Hou&s;e; that in ca&s;e by Law it &s;hall be found that your Petitioners hu&s;|band, her &s;elfe and her brother have done ought worthy of death, or other exemplary puni&s;hment, that they may forth|with receive their ju&s;t execution accordingly. But and if your Petitioner, her husband and her brother bee legally found not guilty of any tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion of the knowne Lawes of the Land, that then by an Order from this Hou&s;e they may forthwith be di&s;charged from under the va&s;&s;allage and bondage of tho&s;e in&s;ulting tyrannizing Lords; and that for the future you would be plea&s;ed to protect them and the re&s;t of their Nationall Brethren the free Commoners of England from the like Prerogative-in&s;olencies, cruelties and oppre&s;|&s;ions: and that in ca&s;e this Hou&s;e by the Law of the Land &s;hall finde your Petitioners husband, her &s;elfe and her bro|ther wronged and abu&s;ed, that you would according to ju&s;tice give them ful and ample reparations for their long and unju&s;t impri&s;onment, like as you have done of late to &s;undry of your owne Members your Petitioners Fellow Commoners; that you will not any longer deny them the benefit of the Law, which is their birthright and inheritance, and let them not be deprived of that which every monethly Se&s;&s;ions you do allow to theeves and murtherers, to have a free and &s;pee|dy triall: and as you can and doe without interruption of your other affaires, free and di&s;charge your owne Servants and Attendants out of pri&s;on the &s;ame or the next day after their commitments; &s;o now at length, after &s;o long atten|dance, and &s;o many moneths cruell and har&s;h impri&s;onment, let us receive the like impartiall &s;peedy ju&s;tice.</P>
<P><PB N="13" REF="7">And by rea&s;on your Petitioners husband, your Petitioner and her brother have cho&s;en bonds and affliction under the&s;e Norman Prerogative-Task-ma&s;ters the Hou&s;e of Lords, rather then they will for their parts yeeld up the birth-right and inheritance of the Commoners unto their Lord&s;hips Prerogative-juri&s;diction. Let not therefore your Petitioners husband, her &s;elfe and her brother be more unju&s;tly and ille|gally dealt with then traitors, theeves and murtherers, but let them with &s;uch have an equall benefit of the Law, whe|ther for &s;peedy penalty or pre&s;ent relea&s;e; which reque&s;t is &s;o legall and rea&s;onable; that if it be by you denied, it will be a certaine evidence of your di&s;affection to the Commonal|ty of England, and of your evill intentions to their Lawes, Rights and Freedomes. And if for your Petitioners plain|ne&s;&s;e with you, and ju&s;t de&s;ires for redre&s;&s;e of her mo&s;t in|&s;ufferable grievances, you &s;hall be provoked to exerci&s;e fur|ther cruelty and affliction either upon her &s;elfe or her hu&s;|band, it will be a certain confirmation to all that &s;hall heare of it (which &s;hall be the whole Kingdome, if your Petitioners husband mi&s;&s;e not of his aime) that you are ab&s;olutely re|&s;olved, if po&s;&s;ibly you can, to in&s;lave the Commons of Eng|land to a Lordly arbitrary va&s;&s;allage and bondage, to conquer and de&s;troy their Lawes, Rights, Liberties and Freedomes, and to turn co-V&s;urpers and joynt-Tyrants with that Nor|man brood of in&s;olent domineering Tyrants and V&s;urpers, the Hou&s;e of Lords.</P>
<P>Doe therefore ju&s;tice, and di&s;charge your tru&s;t unto the People, and do no le&s;&s;e unto us who have ingaged our &s;elves, our lives and all for their Rights and Freedomes to well as for our owne, then you would be e&s;teemed to do unto all and every Commoner of England, but remove this grievous Norman Prerogative yoke of bondage from off our necks, and from the necks of all the free Commoners of England; then which nothing will more manife&s;t your reall and cordi|all care and affection to the publike liberty and &s;afety of the People, which is the Soveraigne Law, and for which all o|ther
<PB N="14" REF="8">
Lawes are and ought to be made, and for no other end. And thus you &s;hall in a high manner di&s;charge your tru&s;t un|to the People, conciliate and beget their affections, their hearts, hands, &amp;c. and become the prai&s;e among&s;t the people above all other Parliaments before you; and give ju&s;t cau&s;e to your Petitioner, her husband, &amp;c. to ble&s;&s;e God for you.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><HI>And your Petitioner (as in duty bound) &s;hall ever pray, &amp;c.</HI>
Per me <HI>Mary Overton.</HI></SIGNED></CLOSER>
<PB REF="8">
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
