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<DATE>2014-09-23</DATE>
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<NAME>Simon Charles</NAME>
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<DIV1 TYPE="answer">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<HEAD>Mrs. <HI>JAMES</HI> her New ANSWER TO A SPEECH &s;aid to be lately made by a Noble PEER of this REALM.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>My Lord,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>_I Very much wonder that the Kings Speech, that was &s;o &s;hort and moderate, as though his Maje|&s;ty was loath to offend with too many Circum&s;tances; and &s;ure I am, if the care of his King|dom had not compelled him, he would not have troubled your Honours with any; there|fore I much wonder you return'd His Maje&s;ty &s;uch an An&s;wer, which never was &s;poken by any Peer to a King or in his pre&s;ence: therefore I can hardly believe any Peer of this Realm would &s;o &s;peak; becau&s;e it is to be &s;uppo&s;ed that your Wi&s;dom &s;hould teach you better things, than to go above your Element: for God never gave &s;uch power, no not to his Church; but to &s;ubmit to all Authority: Nay Chri&s;t him&s;elf &s;ubmitted for Ex|amples &s;ake, and I am &s;ure that the Church of <HI>Eng|land</HI> hath no &s;uch Principles; but the Whore of <HI>Baby|lon,</HI> and the <HI>Pope,</HI> and <HI>Antichri&s;t,</HI> is known to u&s;urp Authority over Kings and Princes, and compels them to go again&s;t their Con&s;cience for their own Intere&s;t; but the Primitive Chri&s;tians were known by their puri|ty: and if their Prince did command them any thing that was again&s;t their Con&s;cience, they would &s;acrifice their lives rather than to offend God or Man; but God be thanked this is not our Ca&s;e, why then &s;hould any one be &s;o jealous without a Cau&s;e, when God out of his infinite Goodne&s;s hath given us a Prote&s;tant King, that abhors the Super&s;tition and Idolatry of the Church of <HI>Rome?</HI> Give me leave, Sir, to &s;peak a little in this matter; for I know if the King was not a true &s;incere Prote&s;tant, he would never have hearkened to a poor Subject, who about 9 or 10 years ago was by chance compelled to have &s;ome Di&s;cour&s;e with a Roman Catholick; who finding her not ea&s;ily to be per&s;waded, they imployed others, to try if they could per&s;wade her, &s;ometimes lifting her up to Heaven, &s;ometimes flinging her down to Hell; but when they &s;aw that neither flat|teries nor threats would move her to incline or hearken to their pernicious Principles, they fell out a railing, &s;aying, <HI>We were all Hereticks from the highe&s;t to the lowe&s;t.</HI> At which words the Woman was &s;adly trou|bled, and was re&s;olved after few days to &s;hew it to the King, who graciou&s;ly received her Petition. <HI>Though his Maje&s;ty could not tell what to do in the matter, and notwith&s;tanding their Plottings were not manife&s;ted,</HI> within a few days the King put out a Proclamation; by which he delivered the Woman from her Spiritual Adver&s;aries; who &s;hall ever &s;peak of his prai&s;e, and does think it a great &s;in to &s;peak again&s;t the Lords Annointed, or to think much of what God hath given him. No Prince in the World liveth meaner than he doth, therefore it would be a madne&s;s to de&s;ire that to be le&s;s that is too little already. I much wonder, Sir, you pre&s;s &s;o hard for the plea&s;ing of the People, which is unpo&s;&s;ible, for <HI>David</HI> &s;aith, <HI>It is God &s;ub|dued the People unto me.</HI> But I much wonder your Honour being &s;o Good, &s;o Wi&s;e, and &s;o Holy, do forget God in all your Speech. Now it would have been the joy of my Soul that his Maje&s;ty had been &s;o happy as to enjoy a true Prote&s;tant Wife, but &s;uch is the misfortune of Kings and Princes, that they have not that liberty as their Subjects have, to take where they like be&s;t, but they mu&s;t be confined to many di&s;advan|tages; &s;o that his Maje&s;ty who &s;hould be in perfect free|dom, is more confined then any.</P>
<P>May it plea&s;e your Honour, &s;ince the ca&s;e &s;tands &s;o, there is no body much to blame; but however, cur&s;ed are them that part Man and Wife: And as for charge|able Ladies, God forbid that we &s;hould de&s;ire the de|&s;truction of their Souls, that they &s;hould be a Sacrifice to the People.</P>
<P>Sir, you &s;ay there will be a change, but I wonder what change you mean, if you mean as you declare, again&s;t Popi&s;h Favourites, or Popi&s;h Mi&s;tri&s;&s;es, and Popi&s;h Councellors; if it be &s;o that you &s;incerely de|&s;ire it for Gods Glory, and for the Good of his Ma|je&s;ty, and for the Example of others, I &s;incerely de&s;ire it my &s;elf, and I am certain there is no true Chri&s;tian in the World but heartily de&s;ires the &s;ame. But, Sir, may not you be under a mi&s;take, in &s;uppo&s;ing them to be Popi&s;hly inclined that are not; for it is Crime enough to be a Courtier as the World goes now, as though all Courtiers of nece&s;&s;ity mu&s;t be evil, though they are never &s;o good; for I dare to &s;ay there is as many good Souls (for quantity) there as in the City; and it is heighth of my de&s;ire, that as they exceed others in Greatne&s;s, they may exceed them in Goodne&s;s: and I am &s;ure there is no good Soul but would &s;ay <HI>Amen</HI> to that. But who is able to work this Change? None but God alone; for the Almighty has &s;aid, <HI>The Tares and the Wheat &s;hall grow together till the Harve&s;t; and then he will &s;end his Angels:</HI> and methinks you &s;peak like a Man and not like an Angel; becau&s;e the Nature of Angels is to rejoyce at New Converts.</P>
<P>Sir, I know not who you mean, that is a Lady, and belongs not to the Court, that is &s;o mi&s;chievous; &s;ure if I knew her, I &s;hould be her Enemy, if &s;he be as mi&s;chie|vous as you &s;ay.</P>
<P>And for the Kings Di&s;tre&s;s, I hope God will give him &s;uch Courage and Innocency, that he need not fear his Enemies abroad nor at home; and why is your Honour &s;o fearful, for when the ways of men plea&s;e God, he makes their Enemies to be at peace with them.</P>
<P>But, Sir, as to the greate&s;t Influence in your pre&s;ent Councils, let it be the fear of God, that his Wi&s;dom may make you wi&s;e, to &s;earch out the matter; for your Honours may think to do great matters, and without the a&s;&s;i&s;tance of God perform nothing; and if &s;o, how will the King be &s;upplied?</P>
<P>And as for the Hou&s;e of Commons, I hope God will give them &s;uch Wi&s;dom and Goodne&s;s, as they &s;hall ne|ver offer to the King any thing that His Maje&s;ty &s;hall not think worth an&s;wering.</P>
<P>If the King &s;hould fall into any Inconvenience, for want of your Aid and A&s;&s;i&s;tance, would it not be thought that you are ungrateful People; that would not help your King in his nece&s;&s;ities, even Gods Anointed; would not this ju&s;tly provoke the Al|mighties Anger to deliver us up to believe Lies; for what hath provoked the Lord, but Sin and Wickedne&s;s, and Di&s;tru&s;ting of his Providence in Governing the World. If the Lord be your God, &s;tudy to appea&s;e his Anger; for if you were zealous, and in good earne&s;t loved God truly, how could you &s;uffer &s;uch Antichri&s;tian Actions in a Chri&s;tian City, as the Picking up Men and Wo|men in the Streets, which is the Ruin of many Fami|lies, and the De&s;troying of Youth: the very Motion of this Wickedne&s;s every Good Chri&s;tian ought to abhor. So that there is a nece&s;&s;ity laid upon you, fir&s;t by di&s;|couraging and puni&s;hing all known Evils in your &s;elves and out of your &s;elves, both at home and abroad. Then will God make you acceptable in his &s;ight, that you may be helpful to His Maje&s;ty, both for Soul and Bo|dy; but whil&s;t you have Jealou&s;ies and Ill Thoughts, how is it po&s;&s;ible for His Maje&s;ty to joyn with you; for I dare to &s;ay you have no cau&s;e to di&s;tru&s;t him: and that I do really think that he is a Prince that &s;corns to de|ceive, therefore I much wonder how you dare to &s;ay you can't tru&s;t him: but I am certain his Maje&s;ty has been di&s;appointed many times of his hopes; for when his Maje&s;ty expected Figs he found Thi&s;tles: And as for di&s;contented Per&s;ons, the Lord help them, for the Court cannot. And why &s;hould you be &s;o unkind
<PB REF="2" MS="y"> to &s;o excellent a Prince, whom you &s;ay your &s;elf no Story affords us a parallel, and truly no more there don't; for was there ever any King came into his Throne with &s;uch an Arm of Providence, and with &s;uch great Splendor and Glory. Therefore his Ma|je&s;ty can't forget the infinite Mercies of God in pre|&s;erving him, and that Goodne&s;s doth teach him to imitate Chri&s;t, who was kind to his Enemies, even to his Murderers; and as for the Kings Murderers, God will &s;end them to Hell, and all that forgets God, as <HI>David</HI> &s;aith: and I am &s;ure whoever has a de&s;ign to de&s;troy his Maje&s;ty, mu&s;t of nece&s;&s;ity forget God: And for his Thoughts none is able to judge how much or how little his Maje&s;ty is concerned. And for the Tran&s;|actions between him and his Brother, you &s;ay they are admirable, and indeed &s;o they be, but not for mi&s;|chief, but for love and unity; the excellency of that <HI>David</HI> has declared, who &s;aith, <HI>It is more precious than</HI> Aarons <HI>Oyl.</HI> 'Tis not for a King to declare whom he fears or whom he not fears; it is prudence in his Ma|je&s;ty to love his Brother; but if his Royal Highne&s;s had &s;uch early thoughts of aiming at the Crown, many times 'tis the Wi&s;dom of God to di&s;appoint Princes of their expectation as well as ordinary Men. And if his Royal Highne&s;s be treacherous, &s;hall not God find it out? But if he be innocent, God forbid that we &s;hould impo&s;e that upon him that we are not willing to &s;uf|fer our &s;elves.</P>
<P>Sir, I much wonder that you reflect upon the Duke of <HI>York,</HI> in the making of Bi&s;hops, as though his pre+&s;ence had more operation to infect them with Pope|ry, than their own Con&s;cience, Knowledge of the Truth, Love of God, and the pre&s;ence of all others, to continue them good Prote&s;tants; which I nor any el&s;e can ever believe.</P>
<P>You &s;ay, This Prince changed his Religion to make him&s;elf a Party, and &s;uch a Party as would de&s;troy the King his Brother; certainly the Duke mu&s;t be out of his &s;en&s;es, that would joyn with &s;uch a Party; for he might well be a&s;&s;ured that God would not let Murther go unrevenged; and that he &s;hould meet with a far more numerous Party to oppo&s;e him: Therefore I can|not believe that the Duke is &s;o guilty as &s;ome would have him. Be&s;ides, I have heard him prote&s;t that he is inno|cent, and that if he had a Thou&s;and lives, he would lo&s;e them all to defend the King his Brother. I am apt to believe him by what I hear you &s;ay, That be &s;hould &s;o long have his Lodgings at <HI>Whitehall,</HI> his Guards upon the &s;ame Floor, without any interpo&s;ition between him and the King; &s;o that the King was in his hands. Cer|tainly if he had been &s;o gacele&s;s and wicked, what op|portunities had he to accompli&s;h &s;uch Devilli&s;h De&s;igns many year ago. But God forbid that the Duke &s;hould have &s;uch thoughts.</P>
<P>And as touching the Kings Behaviour, the World, as you &s;ay, knows very well, and truly &s;o it does; for ne|ver any King in this world governed with greater mo|deration than he doth towards all men; which be&s;peaks His Maje&s;ty to be a very Gracious Prince, and one that feareth no hurt, becau&s;e he doeth none. Therefore you have great rea&s;on not to doubt the King or the Court, or to imagine that the King could ever think Presbyterians to be Plotters, who pretend to &s;o much zeal and loyal|ty for His Maje&s;ties Intere&s;t. The Papi&s;ts may plot to inlarge the Popes Dominions and to think to merit Hea|ven, but what can the Presbyterians plot for?</P>
<P>Sir, You wonder at a Parliament, and cannot under|&s;tand the Riddle of it, &s;urely it is not &s;o hard, but your Wi&s;dom may unfold greater My&s;teries.</P>
<P>And for the Duke's going away, I dare to think he would rather have &s;taid, if he might have had that happine&s;s; but to prevent unquietne&s;s he went, though unwillingly; and can his Highne&s;s go to a better place than <HI>Scotland,</HI> for their zeal again&s;t Popery is known of old; and you need not fear a Popi&s;h Army coming from thence, for I hope they may be In&s;trumental to make him a Convert; for I believe he is not &s;o popi&s;hly incli|ned as you imagine.</P>
<P>Let us leave our Sins, and put our whole tru&s;t in God, and for&s;ake our Sins; and not reflect upon His Maje&s;ty for any thing that is done; for I am certain the King will do nothing but what is for his own &s;afety and your good: And how contrary is it to rea&s;on, that a King &s;hould betray him&s;elf; and what advantage would it bring him? Is not his &s;afety the Peoples &s;afety, and the Peoples &s;afety his &s;afety? Far is it from the Kings thoughts to think to &s;et up Popery and Arbitrary Go|vernment. Your Lord&s;hip can't but know how that he is not Ambitious, but contents him&s;elf with mean things; and de&s;ires no greater Trea&s;ure in this World but Peace, Love, and Unity.</P>
<P>Why then does your Lord&s;hip &s;ay you want a Gover|nour and a Prince that you may tru&s;t for &s;ome time, as though this Nation would not always want a Governor, certainly you can have no thoughts of any other, and if no other, Why &s;hould your Honour di&s;incourage this with Fears and Jealou&s;ies? It was the Puni&s;hment of <HI>Cain</HI> to &s;uppo&s;e that every one that met him &s;hould kill him, when God had ordered to the contrary; who was the Fir&s;t Antichri&s;tian in the World, and the Root of Po|pery. Your Honour may &s;eriou&s;ly con&s;ider what dif|ference there is between a true Chri&s;tian and an Anti-Chri&s;tian; for one puts his tru&s;t in God, the other in Man, and God cannot give a greater gift to Mortals, then to make them true Chri&s;tians. I hope the King will never change his Government, nor break the Oath that he has taken. Therefore if your Honour is a true Church-man, according as it is now E&s;tabli&s;hed by Law, you need not fear but the King is yours: Truly I may &s;ay that he is a true Lover of all his People, di|&s;tinqui&s;hed, by what Name &s;oever; for he is &s;o truly Vertuous that he loves all: and that is the Rea&s;on that His Maje&s;ty can &s;carce Puni&s;h any, but thinks that his Mildne&s;s and Sweetne&s;s would move them the more to love him. Would to God that you were his &s;o much as he is yours: For the growing greatne&s;s of <HI>France</HI> we &s;han't have no need to fear, if we have but Unity among our &s;elves: Why &s;hould we not be Chri&s;tians as well by Nature as by Name, and if it hath not been u&s;ual in <HI>England,</HI> for a Prince to want Supplies, why now? For it is not lawful neither by the Law of God or Man, not to afford his Maje&s;ty &s;uch Supports, as may be for the good of the Nation. His Maje&s;ty &s;corns the very thoughts to make his Peoples Slaves or Papi&s;ts. I be|&s;eech your Honours think not Evil of Mini&s;ters who are Gods Me&s;&s;engers, though their Arguments don't plea&s;e you; neither put you too much confidence in your Trea&s;ure, lea&s;t God &s;hould bla&s;t it with a Cur&s;e. There is no need for any man to fear the Kings Fidelity, for he is re&s;olved to Die in Defence of the true Prote|&s;tants of the Church of <HI>England;</HI> therefore I much wonder what Principles you mean the King mu&s;t change: certainly it is not the Principles of his Religion; for if it be &s;o, His Maje&s;ty had better want your A&s;&s;i&s;tance, then &s;ubmit to &s;uch Impo&s;itions; for certainly I &s;hould think then that Gods Wrath &s;hould de&s;troy us for chang|ing our Principles for a little money. That is that as the Devil and the Pope would have, but we will Sacrifice our Lives, rather than change the lea&s;t Tittle contrary to Gods Will. We have been bereav'd of one King already and of our Religion too, and now how many does envy our happine&s;s, and would fain make us believe he is not ours, and that is the ready way they may bereave us of him, by taking away his good Name. Now Sir if you would oblige me to think well of you, you mu&s;t love His Maje&s;ty your &s;elf; and exhort all others to love him; for that is the way through Gods Ble&s;&s;ing to make us all happy.</P>
<P>Noble Sir, I &s;hould not have &s;poke &s;o much at this time, but that I could not re&s;t &s;atisfied that my Sovereign &s;hould be thought &s;o hardly of; becau&s;e I am &s;ure His Maje&s;ty doth not de&s;erve it: and I hope I &s;hall obtain your Candid Cen&s;ures to pardon her who is a zealous Lover of her King and Countrey, and longeth for the happine&s;s of every Individual Soul, as much as for her own; hoping the Almighty will accept of my &s;incere, though weak endeavours, to defend my Sovereign according to my knowledge; for I hope no body &s;hall have cau&s;e to &s;ay I have &s;poke an Untruth.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>I am your humble Servant and Souls Well-wi&s;her, <HI>E. James.</HI></SIGNED></CLOSER>
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