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<DATE>2014-08-21</DATE>
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<NAME>TCP Staff (Michigan)</NAME>
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<ITEM>Proofed and reviewed as part of batch B140610.apex.</ITEM>
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<VID>212280</VID>
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<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1">
<PB REF="2" MS="y">
<P> THE PRISONERS ENLARGEMENT: OR <HI>The Poor Mans Relea&s;e out of Pri&s;on.</HI></P>
<P><HI>DISCOVERING</HI> The Mi&s;ery that Poor Men endure, through the Cruelty of their hard-hearted Creditors.</P>
<P>AND The worthy Behaviour and Carriage of the REFERREES concerning PRISONERS: And their Relea&s;ing by their Meanes great Number of Poor Souls.</P>
<P><HI>ALSO,</HI> Shewing how Poor Men may be Relieved, and Releas'd out of Pri&s;on that have hard-hearted Creditors to deal withall.</P>
<P>De&s;iring all men whatever to prevent Impri&s;onment.</P>
<P>Written by a Sufferer and Wel-wi&s;her to Poor PRISONERS, <HI>L. P.</HI></P>
<P><HI>LONDON,</HI> Printed by W. G. for RICHARD HARPER, in Smithfield, 1656.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="to the reader">
<PB REF="3">
<HEAD>To the Courteous Reader.</HEAD>
<P>I Here pre&s;ent thee with a pa&s;&s;age of comfortable Tydings, and good News, brought neither from <HI>Romes</HI> Ponti<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> Chair, <HI>Spains</HI> Inqui&s;ition; nor from any tye of the <HI>Norm<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">n</HI> Linage or Race; But from the fortunate of our dayes, <HI>Oliver</HI> Lord Protector, whom (by the decree of the Almighties power is made chief man of <HI>England, Scotland</HI> and <HI>Ireland,</HI> who having before and &s;ince his Victories heard the grief and angui&s;h of many poor Pri&s;oners Petitions both in writing, and by word of mouth, hath been plea&s;ed to chu&s;e certain noble &s;pirits well de&s;erving Gentlemen, which carry them&s;elves &s;o worthily and wary and &s;o affectionate to poor Pri&s;oners that they rather &s;eem to be taken to be their Brothers, or Dear and intimate freinds then &s;trangers as they are unto them, truely imitating our Lord and Saviours example and rule in comforting the comfortle&s;s, vi&s;iting and relea&s;ing the poor Pri&s;oner in his af|fliction when all outward means hath &s;eemed to fail, yet this comfortable light hath bur&s;t out in the mid&s;t of their calamity, to re&s;tore him that lyes in pri&s;on for debt, not having e&s;tate to defray his Creditor, Shall be as many have been di&s;charged out out of pri&s;on by the&s;e worthy Gentlemen &s;tiled the <HI>Refferrees,</HI> which have and do &s;it at Several places every week on certaine dayes in the week, as <HI>Ludgate, Ely-</HI>hou&s;e, and about the Upper Bench, and in other places which have relation to Pri&s;ons, who are plea&s;ed by the virtue and power that the&s;e <HI>Referrees</HI> have from the Lord Protector to determin di&s;charge and relea&s;e any Pri&s;oner for debt what&s;oever, to Gods glory be it &s;poken; and the worthy <HI>Referrees</HI> they have di&s;charged and &s;et free many hundreds of poor &s;ouls out of pri&s;on, and in the &s;pace of le&s;&s;e then 12. weeks, be&s;ides have debated betwixt Creditor and Debtor above 300. &s;everal mens differences by their pains and indu&s;try; and this not for lucre of gold and &s;ilver, but for the
<PB N="3" REF="3"> glory of God, the comfortable refre&s;hing of many poor Pri&s;oners their liberty. Oh that &s;uch men had been of elder years too, &s;o many then had not been &s;tarved to death in pri&s;on, nor undone by &s;ly-pated Lawyers; the&s;e tread an ea&s;y path for any that &s;hal have occa&s;ion to u&s;e them; the&s;e men take pains, &s;pend their &s;pirits and their time, for no mony wil they take; &s;uch men are no Mountebanks nor Lawyers, for they cheat for their mony, the&s;e Gentlemen delight to right the wronged; the co&s;t of the acom|pli&s;hment of any mans bu&s;ine&s;s to bring it to a hearing is no profit to them, a Petition to be drawn to the Lord Protector that the Scrivener will be paid, for the labourer is worthy of his hire; the Clerks for regi&s;ter mu&s;t have their fees, which is not co&s;tly, the <HI>Referrees</HI> they have their labour for their pains; and for their &s;o charitable actions, the God of heaven fill them all with his grace in this world, and with his glory in the world to come for evermore. Amen.</P>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="text">
<HEAD>The Pri&s;oners Inlargement.</HEAD>
<DIV2 TYPE="letter">
<HEAD>A Greeting from a patient Pri&s;oner to his cruel Creditor.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>GOOD Sir,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P><HI>I</HI> de&s;ire you for the love that one Chri&s;tian ought to bear to another, to look upon my poor and wretched e&s;tate, and withall to pity the &s;ad condition <HI>I</HI> am in; You know that <HI>I</HI> have lain a long time at your mercy here in this doleful Pri&s;on having extreme want of all needful nece&s;&s;aries for a Chri&s;tian to make u&s;e of; my &s;tomach i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> much decayed for want of good and whole&s;om dyet, my fle&s;h is almo&s;t con&s;umed with vermine for want of clean linnen and woollen cloaths to &s;hift me withall; my ribs bones and joynes are ready to peri&s;h for want of fre&s;h lodging which grieves me mo&s;t of all; and be&s;ides that, <HI>I</HI> am among&s;t a company of ill di&s;po&s;ed de&s;perate people, which have not the fear of God before thei eyes.</P>
<PB N="4" REF="4">
<P> And in &s;tead of &s;erving of God, and obeying his commandements&punc; all manner of wicked vices u&s;ed what&s;oever, not fit to mention but with grief of heart, as drunkenne&s;s &s;wearing, and cur&s;ing, Hypocra<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"> di&s;&s;imulation, fraud guil deceit and cruelty, with exactions and great opre&s;&s;ions, at all occa&s;ions and &s;ea&s;ons abu&s;ing their betters, and they who do not revell and rore as the mo&s;t do; &s;o that this place I lye in is more like a den of Divells, then a Pri&s;on for poor men; therefore again I humbly de&s;ire you upon the bended knees of my heart, that you take &s;ome &s;peedy cour&s;e for my releaf, that I may follow my calling with diligence both day and night, till I have given you &s;atisfaction; the which I &s;hall never be able to do in Pri&s;on; and in your di&s;charge of me the great God of mercy will be loving to the mercyfull, and my prayers &s;hall during life be for you and yours,</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><HI>So re&s;ts, Your Poor Captive.</HI> R. L.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="letter">
<HEAD>The Creditors reply to the Pri&s;oners reque&s;t.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>S<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">r,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>I have &s;een your Petition &amp; heard your agreements, which I value <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">o more then I do the barking of a Dog, you &s;ay you are peri&s;ht and <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">o&s;t con&s;umed within you, tho&s;e things &s;hall never trouble me to <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">y your ca&s;e, for in the Pri&s;on you &s;hall lye till you fami&s;h with hun|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> &s;tarve with cold, and rot one limb from another, except you can <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> a meanes to pay me, el&s;e rhere is no way of your enlargment, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">efore remember what is &s;aid unto you, get a friend to pay me <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">n my mony upon the nayl, or el&s;e at the la&s;t I &s;hall make dice of <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> bones, and I think it to be the ju&s;te&s;t deed that ever I did in my <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> to let you dye and <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ot in Pri&s;on, that others which &s;ees your ruin <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> take heed how they run in debt; and &s;o (farewel) thou knowe&s;t <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> mind, I prethee trouble me no more, for thou &s;halt never have thy <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">y till <HI>I</HI> have my mony.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="petition">
<HEAD><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">e Pri&s;oners humble Suit to the wofull and well de&s;erving Referres.</HEAD>
<P><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">ght honored and worthy Gentlemen you that are appointed to do <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">od for the poor, <HI>I</HI> humbly be&s;eech you that you would be plea&s;|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">ake up the matter betwixt me and my Creditor, that thereby <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> once more injoy my liberty, and &s;ince your Wor&s;hips are put in <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">ity and have the full power in your own hands to make a good <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">f bad matters, my reque&s;t is that you will upon the mi&s;erable <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> and &s;ad condition that <HI>I</HI> am in at pre&s;ent, from which mi&s;ery <HI>I</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">ver be redeemed, except the Lord put it in your Wor&s;hips hearts <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">at good work for me; which that you may acompli&s;h, my pray|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> and night to Almighty God for you, &s;hall not be wanting.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Your poor Petitioner <HI>D. C.</HI></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="response to petition">
<PB N="5" REF="4">
<HEAD>The Referres Reply to the di&s;tre&s;&s;ed Pri&s;oners Petition.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>FRiend,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>we have heard thy grievance, and har&s;h u&s;age, and God forbid but we &s;hould di&s;charge our con&s;ciences, and being we are placed, and have authority to make ju&s;t and legal peace, betwixt party and party; we hold it a great &s;in, if we &s;hould &s;uffer a poor man to peri&s;h in pri&s;on for debt, being not able to pay: call for your creditors. <HI>An&s;.</HI> They are not here. Let them be &s;ummoned again on &s;uch a day of the moneth; if they come, we will con&s;ider thy condition; if they come not, we &s;hall order that.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="petition">
<HEAD>A poor Pri&s;oners Petition to the worthy Referres to obtain his liberty.</HEAD>
<OPENER>SHeweth,</OPENER>
<P>Your Petitioner hath endured hard impri&s;onment for above 14. moneths, hath made away all he had to maintain him&s;elf, his Wife and Children, lying on the charity of well di&s;po&s;ed people; and his Wife being brought to bed &s;ince her poor Husbands impri&s;on|ment: all which mi&s;erable conditions are referred to your worthy con&s;iderations, being the Referrees appointed by his Highne&s;s the Lord Protector, for poor pri&s;oners.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="response to petition">
<HEAD>The hard hearted Creditor &s;peaks.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>GEntlemen,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>What's my own, I hope by vertue of the Law, I may claim: the Execution again&s;t the pri&s;oner is for Body or Goods; and one I will have, or ready money: what if his Wife and Children beg &amp; &s;tarve, at their own charge be it, not mine, the Law being ju&s;t, then my looking for my own, is not unju&s;t: what's forty in the hundred, to a man in good Trading? men are not born to pick &s;traws, or maintain prodigalls: the commodities were fre&s;h, and vendable; and had my Debtor had but a Merchant-like con&s;cience, and a nimble wit, he had been better for him&s;elf, and me both: my pure &s;ilver hath been in his hands this 4. tearms, and I have &s;ent good Angels an unhappy way to fetch in the re&s;t, with the di&s;turbance of my nocturnal re&s;t; and this I have undergone to obtain my own, yet I cannot have it, be&s;ides bribes and many a pint of Wine, &s;pent on co&s;tly Lawyers. 15 <HI>s.</HI> Compo&s;ition money, ile fir&s;t be hanged, con&s;cience is no part of my Trade, I have left him this thirty years; and if the &s;eeking to obtain a de&s;perate debt, be the fruits of a bad con&s;cience, then God help the good: he that would thrive, mu&s;t gripe, and have a good pledge; for my com|fort is in a well crammed bag: away with your childi&s;h nicities, I had rather oppre&s;s, then be oppre&s;&s;ed. I look for my own, and <HI>I</HI> have the Law on my &s;ide, therefore his body mu&s;t &s;uffer.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="letter">
<PB N="6" REF="5">
<HEAD>Referrees &s;peak.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>SIR,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>We &s;hall not &s;eek to do you the lea&s;t farthing of wrong th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> may be; but thus, that he is a very poor man, and not wherewith<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> able to di&s;charge you, we wi&s;h you, be incited to mercy, and let h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> pay you quarterly as he is able, which is the means <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> that in time you may be paid: it is not your keeping him in a Pri&s;on, will pay you <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> maintain him, and his Family: he is their head, and do, as you would have others do unto you; di&s;cover any E&s;tate he hath and we &s;hall be a means for your good; but to lie and peri&s;h in a Pri&s;on and his Fami|ly to &s;tarve, how unplea&s;ing it is to God, and good men, let all judge. We have power to relea&s;e him, and not &s;uffer any to peri&s;h and dye in Pri&s;on. The wi&s;e man &s;aith, rob not the poor, becau&s;e he is poor; nei|ther oppre&s;s the afflicted in the Gates; for the Lord will plead their cau&s;e, and &s;poyl the &s;oul of them that have &s;poyled them <HI>Prov.</HI> 21. therefore Sir, &s;eek not to get that which is not; we &s;hall give you leave to con&s;ider of what we have &s;poken; and therefore con&s;ide of that, for if you find no E&s;tate, we are &s;ent to aford comfort to the di&s;tre&s;&s;ed.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="letter">
<HEAD>A Dispute betwixt the Referrees and the Creditors, about a poor man in Pri&s;on.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE><HI>Refer.</HI> SIR,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>We under&s;tand that there is a poor di&s;tre&s;&s;ed man in Pri&s;on, about a debt which he owes you, whereof all his goods and &s;ub&s;tance, if it were &s;old at who gives mo&s;t, it would not pay the tenth part of your debt you claim; and whil&s;t the man lies in Pri&s;on, the Wife and her Children are harborle&s;s. VVe would wi&s;h you take the debt quarterly, or at &s;ix moneths: fir&s;t inquire his ability of working in his Calling, and his earning, and allow him for main|tenance, and a moiety for you: this may be for the Pri&s;oners re&s;taura|tion, the Creditors good, and the hard-hearted Jaylors vexation; a <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">ter of his wages Quarterly: What ground when this poor wretch is out of pri&s;on hath he to plant any thing, but his labour? You know that the credit to be in a Pri&s;on, to have all his friends &s;hake hands with him; nay, his very kindred not owne him, and his acquain|tance to prey upon his E&s;tate, to devoure it as the Crowes do Carrion: therefore yield for his enlargement, el&s;e we will do it. A true &s;aying you know, that a Pri&s;on did never pay debts, neither &s;hall charity be blamed.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="letter">
<HEAD>The Creditors &s;urly an&s;wer to the Wor&s;hipful Referrees concerning his debtors.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>GEntlemen,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>I know that you are men put in Authority, to reconcile differences betwixt Creditors and Debtors, and have power where|by to order things in a fair way, but you have not the power to give a|way
<PB N="7" REF="5"> my debt, whether am I bound to maintain his Family, or my own? you know charity begins at home, &s;o &s;hall it be with me, I will be cha|ritable to my own, but not others, for the pri&s;oner, he owes me a great deal of money, and he &s;hall never have his freedom till he hath paid that.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="letter">
<HEAD>The Referrees Reply.</HEAD>
<P>YOu talk more like a Heathen, a Pagan, a Turk, or a Jew, then a Chri&s;tian; have you &s;o much forgot God and his word: nay your daily prayer al&s;o, that you &s;hould &s;hut up the Bowels of compa&s;&s;ion a|gain&s;t your poor decayed Brother; hath not our Saviour left us an ex|ample? feed the hungry, cloath the naked, harbor the harborle&s;s, re|lieve the oppre&s;&s;ed; and vi&s;it the Pri&s;oner? is this your Con&s;cience, rather to &s;acrifice, ma&s;acre and murther Chri&s;t, and his poor Members? I tell you, if you will not grant to his relea&s;e, we &s;hall free him, and proceed again&s;t you: the world is not now as it was in former times, that the corruption of unju&s;t Lawyers, and hard-hearted Creditors, might do what they would: how many thou&s;ands have been undone, which otherwi&s;e might have lived in good repute and credit; and this for a truth, a poor man that was a pri&s;oner, and undone, through envy went to a Lawyer, and in all civil re&s;pect, as po&s;&s;ibly could be given to a worthier, and I am &s;ure, a ju&s;ter Lawyer then he was; when the &s;aid Lawyer had heard what the Clyent could &s;ay, the Lawyer bad his Clyent go home, buy a halter, and hang him&s;elf, a member of <HI>G. I.</HI> cannot deny this: after the Lawyer had got all he thought he could of the poor mans money, here was the coun&s;el to his Clyent; time to be ordered. And &s;ince, this poor man hath not wherewithall to pay his debt: he &s;hall not be detained in pri&s;on, as &s;ome have lain by report, being brought to Execution in one pri&s;on, 26. years; and the original of that mans mi&s;ery, continued &s;o long about a peny worth of milk; &s;ince which of late, the poor wretch is dead; O mercile&s;s Ju&s;tice!</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="part">
<HEAD>Here followeth the manner of the Pri&s;oners Delivery.</HEAD>
<P>UPon the next day appointed the cruel Creditor was &s;ummon'd in again to make his appearance before the worthy Referrees, where, after a &s;hort di&s;pute he was enforced to &s;tand to the Order which was by them made; and &s;o the poor Pri&s;oner had his fir&s;t Di&s;charge, and was &s;et at liberty; which was done by virtue of an Order newly made by the States of <HI>England;</HI> which doth concerne one man alone,
<PB N="8" REF="6"> but hath relation to all the Pri&s;ons and Pri&s;oners in <HI>England,</HI> that are the like nece&s;&s;ity, which indeed, is one of the pious and charitable works of mercy, as ever was done: the Lord pre&s;erve the founder actors, and Con&s;ervators of that, a work tending much to Gods glory and the good of the Common-wealth.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="part">
<HEAD>Another Pa&s;&s;age.</HEAD>
<P>A Poor Pri&s;oner lying in Pri&s;on about 12 Moneths, and being hope|le&s;s, of any Redemption out of Captivity, accidentally, an acquain|tance of his, came to vi&s;it an old Friend of his, being in pri&s;on, and much grieved, to &s;ee this poor man in pri&s;o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&punc; askt this pri&s;oner, if he would, when God made him able, pay him &s;ome money which he would lay out towards his relea&s;e; whereat the pri&s;oner wept for joy, and promi&s;ed that he would God willing, repay him again with many thanks when God made him able: &s;o the pri&s;oners friend procured his di&s;charg therby the poor pri&s;oner having bin impri&s;oned by a di&s;hone&s;t Lawyer, the Referrees &s;earching the bu&s;ine&s;s with approved judgement, found the poor man unju&s;tly impri&s;oned, &s;o &s;peedily di&s;charged the pri&s;oner, cau&s;ing each party to give di&s;charge to each other.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="part">
<HEAD>Another.</HEAD>
<P>A Poor man that had a VVife, and five &s;mall Children, being impri|&s;oned for a great debt, and (not knowing how to di&s;charge his Cre|ditors, put in practice the means, and left the &s;ucce&s;s to God; after a hearing of the bu&s;ine&s;s on both &s;ides; the parries were de&s;ired ab&s;ence, whereupon the Referrees went to Coun&s;el about that privately, &amp; or|dered that the man &s;hould pay quarterly, according to his Calling and ability, and &s;o the poor man was di&s;charged out of Pri&s;on, and per|forms hone&s;tly his Covenant with his Creditor.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="speech">
<HEAD>A Referrees Speech on this occa&s;ion, in the conclu&s;ion.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>SIR,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>IT had been in our power to have di&s;charged this Pri&s;oner, but you &s;ee how fairly he hath promi&s;ed, and now you are like to be payd your debt in time, better once then never; and for hard Cre|ditors, I am confident, they are the tormentors, or plague of many Pa|ri&s;hes; for when they have any Debtors, that will not hold word with them, they pre&s;ently impri&s;on the mans body; and in time, through the lo&s;&s;e of his neglect of his Trade, the Children they are turned to the Pari&s;h, and thereby many Pari&s;hes have been pe&s;terd therewith, to the undoing both of Parents and Children.</P>
</DIV2>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
