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<DATE>8-28-09</DATE>
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<NAME>John Latta</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
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<IDG S="marc" R="UM" ID="A94706">
<STC T="W">T1744</STC>
<STC T="T">669.f.23[28]</STC>
<BIBNO T="umi">99870249</BIBNO>
<VID>163684</VID>
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<TEXT LANG="eng">
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<DIV1 TYPE="speech">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<HEAD>To the Supreme Authority, the Parliament of the Common-wealth of England. The Humble Addre&s;s and Congratulation of many thou&s;ands of Watermen belonging to the River of Thames.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>Mo&s;t Renowned and Worthy Patriots,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>THe various changes and troubles that this Nation of late yeares hath been involved into (the oppre&s;&s;ions and mi&s;eries thereby entering into
the doors of every private per&s;on) hath made us &s;en&s;ible of the mi&s;-government and male-admini&s;tration of publick affairs; and though we
are not exerci&s;ed in matters of Rule, but wholly &s;ubjected to the &s;everal U&s;urping Powers that have been over us, yet are we thereby (though
to our &s;ad and woful experience) taught the rea&s;ons of our growing mi&s;eries and &s;trange alterations in Government, (unhinging and mo|ving
the Nation from the firm foundations of all &s;afety and peace) and we cannot expect any remedy, but a further addition of confu&s;ion and
mi&s;ery, untill the Original Cau&s;e and Root of tho&s;e evills be clean taken <GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">way, all that is of per&s;onal and private Con&s;titution (whether of
antient or latter date) weeded out, and the Publick &s;ecured and centered upon the grounds of common Concernment, equal and impartial to all. Of old
time indeed our Parliaments have been intermixt and clogg'd with King&s;hip and Peerage, and though owned and of long continuance, yet were they of
great abu&s;e and violation to the ju&s;t Rights of the People, (a meer Family-Intere&s;t, and in perpetual oppo&s;ition to the whole) neither King nor Lords being
any part of the true Parliaments of <HI>England,</HI> but an impo&s;ed power upon them from the Intere&s;t of the Old <HI>Norman</HI> Sword; a true Parliament being the
Repre&s;entative of the People, their cho&s;en Deputies in Council, neither King nor Lords being cho&s;en or repre&s;enting either County, City, or Burrough, but
meerly as unnatural Wens and Bunches upon that Authority, the evills whereof this Nation hath felt through all &s;ucce&s;&s;ion of times, the Over-balance of tho&s;e
Families proving fatal to the whole, multiplying mi&s;eries and calamities upon us at meer will and plea&s;ure, till the &s;ame at la&s;t (extending too far) broke forth
into an ab&s;olute warr, the Parliament taking up armes again&s;t the King in the ju&s;t vindication and defence of our Lawes and Liberties; and after many &s;harp
and bloody battles, it plea&s;ed God to give the People in Parliament Conque&s;t over the&s;e Prerogative Powers.</P>
<P>But after the fir&s;t Warr was over, and God had delivered the King (the Capital and Grand Author of our Troubles) into your hands, de&s;perate Combina|tions
and Endeavors were then u&s;ed by the now &s;ecluded Members to render that Conque&s;t fruitle&s;s and in vain; which the better to effect, a malignant tumult
of Apprenti&s;es and rude people was procured to come up to <HI>We&s;tmin&s;ter,</HI> who put the fir&s;t grand Di&s;turbance and Force upon the Parliament, that the <HI>Speaker</HI>
and tho&s;e Members who had not forfeited their right of Se&s;&s;ion in Parliament, were forced to fly from the Hou&s;e for &s;helter to their Army, while the apo|&s;tate
Members in their ab&s;ence cho&s;e them&s;elves a new <HI>Speaker,</HI> rai&s;ed the City, and proceeded to the forming of an Army under <HI>Poynze</HI> and <HI>Ma&s;&s;ey,</HI> admit|ting
the impeached Members to &s;it in the Hou&s;e, and Vote as formerly, when they had been expelled by this Hou&s;e in full Parliament from their Se&s;&s;ion
there, for the trea&s;onable Engagement in the City of <HI>London</HI> 1647. and drawing the <HI>Scots</HI> to invade this Nation.</P>
<P>And now the Old Enemy again (under a pretended Right from the fir&s;t Election of the &s;aid impeached and confederate Members) endeavoureth their re|admittance
in Parliament, on purpo&s;e to re-inforce our old bondage of Monarchy again upon us, putting the Ambition of a &s;ingle Family in competition
with the Republick of <HI>England;</HI> this being the apparent de&s;igne of the now &s;ecluded Members again&s;t us. But as your Honors have upon ju&s;t grounds de|clared
and adjudged their Exclu&s;ion lawfull, So we will with our lives and fortunes &s;tand by you therein.</P>
<P>Now after your Honors had pa&s;t over this fir&s;t grand Interruption, and were freed in your Coun&s;els from the &s;aid trayterous Confederates, and &s;o entered
upon the free exerci&s;e of your Tru&s;t again, cut off the King, and were &s;ettling the Government in the way of a Free State, without King&s;hip, Peerage and
Per&s;ecution, wholly paid off your Armies and Navies, and even brought us to the Harbour of Freedom and Safety, another Interruption &s;ucceedeth by that
Apo&s;tate and Tyrant <HI>Oliver,</HI> who introduceth a more ab&s;olute Monarchy then before. And being thus removed from the Freedom of a Common-wealth to
a Family-Intere&s;t again, horrible and innumerable were the Evills which naturally followed: Peace made with the <HI>Dutch</HI> upon di&s;honorable terms, when by
your Navies they were almo&s;t &s;ubdued; the Act of this Parliament for the encrea&s;e of Navigation and Trade totally neglected, an unnece&s;&s;ary and de&s;tru|ctive
Warr with <HI>Spain</HI> contracted, Taxes and Impo&s;itions exacted without con&s;ent in Parliament, all Law and Ju&s;tice over-awed at plea&s;ure, the great Trea|&s;ure
of the Nation left by this Parliament in Banck wholly &s;pent, new va&s;t Sums rai&s;ed, and an unparallel'd Debt contracted, multitude of Shipping lo&s;t, and
thou&s;ands of the free People of <HI>England</HI> de&s;troyed in <HI>Jamaica</HI> and <HI>Flanders,</HI> all Trade ruin'd, and Beggary and Confu&s;ion brought upon us; no other being
the I&s;&s;ues to be expected from King&s;hip or Single Per&s;on.</P>
<P>But it having plea&s;ed God to take this Tyrant from us, and to bla&s;t the de&s;ignes of that Family, and once again to make way for your Return, whereby the
hearts of your mo&s;t cordial Friends were made glad and revived with fre&s;h hopes of an happy &s;ettlement by your hands, and in that little re&s;pite of time you
had you gave an honorable beginning to that happy Work; but the ambition and private intere&s;t of the Great Officers of the Army not being able to en|dure
the &s;ame, you received another Interruption, which carried the face of a more univer&s;al and fatal Calamity to the Nation then all that went before; this
Parliament, our Lawes, and all future Parliaments &s;eeming thereby to be extingui&s;hed, (the blow being aimed thereat) and all Civil Authority di&s;&s;olv'd. In
which time of publick Confu&s;ion, your Servants (the Watermen) mo&s;t of us gave in our names to Colonel <HI>William Wetton</HI> and his Officers (being by them
much animated thereunto) with full re&s;olution to venture our lives under his Command, for Re&s;tauration of this Parliament again, again&s;t all Enemies and Op|po&s;ers
thereof.</P>
<P>And now it having plea&s;ed Almighty God, by a mo&s;t wonderfull and no le&s;&s;e then miraculous appearance to bring you together again in great honor and
freedom, we do render all due prai&s;e and acknowledgments to God for the &s;ame, and do heartily congratulate your mo&s;t happy Return, owning this Parliament
to be the Natural Head of our Countrey, the Supreme Authority of the Commonwealth of <HI>England,</HI> and do humbly pre&s;ent our Obedience to your Ho|nors
Command in the ju&s;tification and defence of your Per&s;ons and Authority again&s;t all Enemies what&s;oever; hoping you will now clearly free us from all
per&s;onal and private Faction, (God hitherto bla&s;ting all the Coun&s;els and Undertakings of &s;uch) and &s;afely &s;ettle us upon the &s;peedy &s;ucce&s;&s;ion of Equal Re|pre&s;entatives,
wherein (according to your late Declaration) our Lawes and Liberties may be pre&s;erved, all Arbitrary Powers prevented, Trade and Navigation
encouraged, Divi&s;ion and Differences ended, and the whole People quieted in the common Brotherhood of Unity, Freedom and Peace; that not only this
Age, but the Generations to come may be happy therein, and call you Ble&s;&s;ed; which is the hearty Prayer of</P>
<CLOSER><SALUTE>Right Honorable,</SALUTE>
<SIGNED>Your dutiful and mo&s;t obedient Servants.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="Parliamentary report">
<OPENER><DATELINE><DATE>Tue&s;day, January 31. 1659.</DATE></DATELINE></OPENER>
<P>THe Hou&s;e being informed that divers Petitioners were at the Door, they were called in; and being come to the Barr, one of the Petitioners (in the be|half
of him&s;elf and the re&s;t of the Petitioners) did humbly de&s;ire the Hou&s;e to take into con&s;ideration the humble Addre&s;s of the <HI>Watermen,</HI> and
thereupon withdrew. After the Petitioners were withdrawn, their Addre&s;s, Entituled <HI>The Humble Addre&s;s and Congratulation of many thou&s;ands of Water|men
belonging to the River of Thames,</HI> was read.</P>
<P><HI>Re&s;olved by the Parliament,</HI> That the Petitioners have the hearty thanks of the Parliament.</P>
<P>The Petitioners being again called in, Mr Speaker gave them this An&s;wer.</P>
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<DIV1 TYPE="speech">
<OPENER><SALUTE>Gentlemen,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>THe Hou&s;e have read your Petition, and they have weighed it, and finde in it much more matter and &s;ub&s;tance then could have been expected, and much faith|fulne&s;s
in you to the good and &s;afety of this Commonwealth; They finde al&s;o much of truth &s;et forth therein; They al&s;o take notice of your good affections, who
are their Neighbors; as yee have alwaies had, &s;o now you have manife&s;ted your good affections to the Parliament. &V;pon all the&s;e Con&s;iderations, the Parliament
have commanded mee to give you hearty thanks, and in their names I do give you hearty thanks accordingly.</P>
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<P><HI>RE&s;olved by the Parliament,</HI> That this Humble Addre&s;s and Congratulatuion of the <HI>Watermen</HI> be printed and publi&s;hed.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><HI>Thomas St Nicholas,</HI> Clerk of the Parliament.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
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<P><HI>LONDON,</HI> Printed by <HI>John Streater,</HI> and <HI>John Macock,</HI> Printers to the Parliament. 1659.</P>
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