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<DATE>2014-08-21</DATE>
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<NAME>TCP Staff (Michigan)</NAME>
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<DIV1 TYPE="case">
<PB REF="1">
<PB REF="2" MS="y">
<PB N="1" REF="2">
<HEAD>The Ca&s;e of the Undertakers For reducing Po&s;tage of Inland Letters to ju&s;t and moderate Rates, STATED.</HEAD>
<HEAD TYPE="sub">And therein, the Liberty of a Commonwealth, the weal of the Merchant and indu&s;trious Trader, and the birth|right of every Free-man vindicated from Monopolizing re&s;traints, and Mercenary Farming of PUPLIKE OFFICES.</HEAD>
<DIV2 TYPE="part">
<HEAD>The Ca&s;e &s;tated.</HEAD>
<P>22 <HI>_JUnii,</HI> 13 <HI>Car.</HI> the late King by Letters Parents erects a new Office called <HI>The Letter-Office of England,</HI> to &s;end all Letters to and fro within <HI>England, Scotland,</HI> and <HI>Ireland,</HI> (except &s;uch Letters as &s;hould be &s;ent by common known Carriers, along with their Carts, Wag|gons, or Pack-hor&s;es; or a Letter or more &s;ent by a me&s;&s;enger on purpo&s;e, or by a friend:) and to have and take for po&s;tage and con|veyance certain Rates therein &s;pecified.</P>
<P>And grants that Office to <HI>Thomas Withering</HI> for life, <HI>ab&s;&abque; aliquo inde reddendo;</HI> and with re&s;traints of all others to carry, <HI>&amp;c.</HI></P>
<P>Notwith&s;tanding tho&s;e re&s;trictions, divers per&s;ons continued their Liberty in &s;end|ing and carrying Letters by Po&s;t; and when <HI>Withering</HI> offered to put in execution his re&s;trictive clau&s;es, and by colour thereof impri&s;oned <HI>Grover, Chatman, Cotton,</HI> and <HI>Mackedral,</HI> for po&s;ting with Letters; by the Votes of the late Parliament, on the 16 of <HI>August</HI> 1642. re&s;olved, That the taking of Letters from, and the &s;everal re&s;traints and impri&s;onments of the &s;aid per&s;ons, was again&s;t Law, Liberty, and freedom of the Subject; and that tho&s;e &s;everal per&s;ons ought to have reparations from <HI>Cook, Winde|bank,</HI> Secretaries of State, and <HI>Withering;</HI> and that the &s;aid Secretaries and <HI>Withe|ring</HI> were Delinquents for the &s;ame: as by the Votes appeareth.</P>
<P>Mr. <HI>Prideaux,</HI> upon this occa&s;ion, and upon the right of Liberty that every man had to the employment, &s;teps into it, keeps up a re&s;traint, and continues to exact the high rate of 6 <HI>d.</HI> for every Letter.</P>
<P>The UNDERTAKERS ob&s;erving this extortive rate to be held up, as well in <HI>Withe|rings</HI> life-time, as after his death, when the pretence of that illegal Grant was ended in point of limitation: and ob&s;erving that the whole benefit went into one private hand, and that many publike and well-affected people were very much agrieved there|at; They conceived it would be a work both acceptable to the State, and beneficial to the people, to contrive the abatement of tho&s;e exce&s;&s;ive rates; and therefore, maugre all oppo&s;itions and abu&s;es of the Monopolizer and his intere&s;t, they at fir&s;t da&s;h adventured on Po&s;tage at the rates of 3 <HI>d.</HI> a Letter beyond 80 miles, and 2 <HI>d.</HI> a Letter within or to 80 miles; and to make return three times weekly. And their ex|act performance in that Undertaking was &s;o grateful to the people, and &s;ucce&s;sful, that it forced the Monopolizer, for the pre&s;ent onely, and out of a de&s;igne to &s;upplant the Undertakers, to publi&s;h his readine&s;s to carry at the &s;ame rates.</P>
<P>But his de&s;ignes not working with the people, (who were &s;en&s;ible from whom their benefit came) the Undertakers per&s;i&s;t, till it plea&s;ed God to devolve Authority on &s;uch as had from the beginning countenanced this free undertaking, and who, in their fir&s;t entrance on the management of Publike affairs, concurred with the peoples approba|tion of the Undertakers, and intru&s;ted them with their ordinary and extraordinary Di&s;patches; which &s;o daunted their Antagoni&s;t, that he de&s;erted the bu&s;ine&s;s, and the Undertakers per&s;i&s;ted to perform the &s;ervice to the State <HI>gratis,</HI> and to all others faith|fully, at the lowe rate afore&s;aid: and reducing the &s;ame into one chanel, they enter|tained
<PB N="2" REF="3"> as many of the old Po&s;t-ma&s;ters as were hone&s;t and well-affected, according to the direction of the Councel of State; provided Packet-boats for <HI>Ireland,</HI> &amp;c. and have adventured, after &s;o &s;hort experience, to make an offer of &s;inking the rates yet lower, <HI>viz.</HI> to 2 <HI>d.</HI> and 1 <HI>d.</HI> a Letter. <NOTE PLACE="marg">&rindx;</NOTE></P>
<P>But to fru&s;trate the Undertakers, and before their great expences were reimbur&s;ed, an Order was procured from the late Councel of State, during the interval of Parlia|ment, to inve&s;t one Mr. <HI>John Manley,</HI> in the Inland and Forreign Po&s;tage, under a farm of 10100 <HI>l. per an.</HI> And the &s;aid <HI>Manley,</HI> immediately thereor, in the company of Mr. <HI>Prideaux,</HI> did, in a riotous manner, with &s;words and other weapons, by force break into the hou&s;e where the Goods and Letters of the Undertakers were, and thru&s;t their &s;ervants out of doors; and, after threatning &s;peeches, and many more outrages com|mitted, required the Undertakers to receive no more Letters.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="part">
<HEAD>The right of Liberty vindicated and proved.</HEAD>
<P>THis being the &s;um of the Ca&s;e, it follows that the right of Liberty on which they grounded their Undertaking be vindicated.</P>
<P>Wherein the Que&s;tion is, Whether there be a Right of Liberty in the Free peo|ple of <HI>England,</HI> up and down the common roads of <HI>England,</HI> by way of common Po&s;tage to &s;end &amp; carry as they plea&s;e, and at &s;uch rates as they &s;hall agree, Letters, Packets, and &s;uch-like Di&s;patches incident to Commerce and Communication, without being re|&s;trainable to one per&s;on, whom all mu&s;t be nece&s;&s;itated to tru&s;t, and by whom onely all mu&s;t &s;end in the way of common Po&s;tage, and at &s;uch rates as it &s;hall plea&s;e the granter of that re&s;traint to limit.</P>
<P>The very light of Nature &s;hews, that originally to a Community of free men link|ed <NOTE PLACE="marg">First proof, by the light of Na|ture, and by the original nature of a Free State.</NOTE> together as a Commonwealth, and by civil Commerce and Intercour&s;e aiming at Temporal weal, a right of Liberty to communicate their intents and mindes, by all lawful ways, and therefore by this way of Po&s;tage, as well as by any other, is innate and inherent, as that without which free Commerce cannot con&s;i&s;t.</P>
<P>If then in the original Con&s;titution of the Free State of <HI>England,</HI> (as of every other Civil Community) this Liberty was a right inherent in the People, it &s;till remains in them, unle&s;s it can be &s;hewn that they have given it up; which never can be &s;hewn: for why &s;hould rhey give up their liberty to communicate their affairs by this way of common Po&s;tage, more then by any other way? Or how can &s;teady limits or di&s;tin|ctive bounds be &s;et between this way of Liberty that they would re&s;train, and other ways of Liberty that they would &s;eem to leave them? For if one, and two, and ten may u&s;e a &s;pecial Po&s;ter, why may not a Corporation do the like? and what &s;hall di|&s;tingui&s;h &s;uch a &s;pecial Po&s;t as you &s;eem to allow, from a common, which you would re&s;train?</P>
<P>To re&s;train all ways of Free Communication, is downright to de&s;troy Society: to re&s;train &s;ome lawful ways, is to impair Society, and de&s;troyeth freedom of Society, and maketh way arbitrarily, by further and further re&s;traints, to impair it at plea&s;ure.</P>
<P>Be&s;ides that it admini&s;treth occa&s;ion of dayly quarrels about the limits of Re&s;traint.</P>
<P>All which rea&s;ons make it more then probable, that the Original Liberty of the free People in all lawful ways to communicate, was by them never yeelded up to re&s;traint.</P>
<P>On the other &s;ide, it will ea&s;ily be proved, that they never intru&s;ted the Supreme <NOTE PLACE="marg">Secondly, by the Fundamental Law of Eng|land.</NOTE> Ordinary Power with Authority in any way to re&s;train lawful employments, but with watchful jealou&s;ie have in all Ages pre&s;erved a full and free Liberty to every man to undertake them; well con&s;idering, that any re&s;traint of lawful Indu&s;tries, is a kinde of &s;trangling and &s;topping the Life-blood to flow freely in all its veins: This de&s;troys or hurts the whole Natural body, That the Politick.</P>
<P>And therefore by the Fundamental Common Law of <HI>England,</HI> a Bond, though the party him&s;elf will give it to re&s;train him&s;elf of his lawful Trade or Indu&s;try, is adjudged void, and not binding. 2 <HI>H.</HI> 5. <HI>fol.</HI> 5. <HI>Plito</HI> 26.</P>
<P>On the &s;ame ground it is, that the Fundamental Law of <HI>England</HI> will not permit you to di&s;trein and take from a man, though for a ju&s;t duty, any In&s;trument nece&s;&s;ary to his Trade, or free cour&s;e of Indu&s;try, 14 <HI>H.</HI> 8. The Anvil from a Smith, or Mill|&s;tone from the Mill, may not be di&s;trained or taken, becau&s;e it would interrupt and re&s;train their lawful Employments. And hereto accords the Law of God, <HI>Deut.</HI> 24. 6. <HI>No man &s;hall take the nether or the upper mil&s;tone to pledge: for he taketh a mans life to pledge.</HI>
<PB N="3" REF="3"> To re&s;train any man of his lawful means of Livelihood, is to take away his life: and yet Mr. <HI>Manley</HI> would, <HI>&amp;c.</HI></P>
<P>On the &s;ame ground it i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">, that Corporations or Bodies Politick (though authorized to make Con&s;titutions and by Laws, yet) if they make a Law any way re&s;training any man from any lawful way of Employment or Indu&s;try, &s;uch Con&s;titution o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> Law (be it never &s;o &s;pecious, and though perhaps it intended Order and Regulation of Employments, yet) re&s;training, it is null and void. 11 <HI>Rep. fol.</HI> 53. <HI>Taylors of Ip&s;wich,</HI> Their Con&s;titu|tion (That none within their Coporation &s;hould exerci&s;e the Faculty or Employment of a Taylor until they had pre&s;ented them&s;elves, and had approbation from the Ma&s;ter and Wardens) adjudged void, though it did not ab&s;olutely re&s;train, as Mr. <HI>Manley</HI> would in this ca&s;e all others from executing this lawful Employment of Po&s;tage.</P>
<P>On the &s;ame ground, Letters Patents (though pa&s;&s;ed under the Great Seal of <HI>England)</HI> if they re&s;train any lawful Employment to one man, &amp; leave it not free to every other, are void; as in the 11 <HI>Rep. fol.</HI> 85. the Patent that <HI>Darcy</HI> onely &s;hould have the making and importing of Playing Cards, the Re&s;traint of others from that Employment (though it &s;erved but to Vanity and Gaming, which might be prohibited) adjudged unlawful, on grave and weighty rea&s;ons. May then the&s;e Undertakers be re&s;trained from this Employment, that &s;erves eminently to enliven Merchandi&s;e &amp; all Commerce?</P>
<P>50 <HI>E.</HI> 3. <HI>Rot.</HI> 33. <HI>Parl. Rol.</HI> one <HI>Peachey</HI> obtained a Patent that he &s;hould be the onely Importer of Sweet Wines: but his Patent was damned by Judgment in Parliament.</P>
<P>21 <HI>E.</HI> 4. <HI>fol.</HI> 79. <HI>Edw.</HI> the fourth by Patent granted to one <HI>Molle,</HI> that he &s;hould have the Office of Brokage, or of driving Bargains 'twixt Citizen and Citizen in <HI>London;</HI> and the Patent cen&s;ured, as again&s;t Law. And yet Mr. <HI>Manley</HI> will expect to be the onely Po&s;ter with Letters and Di&s;patches; by which Citizens and all others are to drive their Bargains and Contracts.</P>
<P>Hundreds of In&s;tances might be heaped up, to &s;hew the vigilancie of the Courts of of Law and of Parliaments in all Ages, to with&s;tand all re&s;traints of lawful Employ|ments. One In&s;tance more &s;hall conclude; which is this.</P>
<P>The Corporation of <HI>Grave&s;end</HI> had by Pre&s;cription an ancient Ferry and Pa&s;&s;age with a common Barge for the benefit of poor Pa&s;&s;engers to and fro 'twixt <HI>London</HI> and <HI>Grave&s;end,</HI> which carried them for 2 <HI>d.</HI> apiece, and was to pa&s;s away as &s;oon as at that rate it had 4 <HI>s.</HI> But the Corporation finding that oftentimes when the common Barge had 23 Pa&s;&s;engers, and was to &s;tay but for one more, other Water-men that plyed at the Ferry, would take up the next Pa&s;&s;enger at cheap rates, whereby the Barge lay long for want of a compleat number; to rectifie which Mi&s;chief, the Corporation (being thereto impowered by Letters Patents) make a Con&s;titution or Law, That no other &s;hould carry, till the common Barge had its full number. This (though it re&s;trained not others to carry, but onely gave pre-eminence to the Barge, and that at that onely Ferry, and that for &s;o good an end, yet) on great and grave rea&s;ons, <HI>Tr.</HI> 10 <HI>Jac. C. B.</HI> it was adjudged an unlawful re&s;traint, for that others were thereby abridged to make u&s;e of a lawful means of Livelihood: And when a Pa&s;&s;enger was willing to be carried by another Water-man, and he willing to carry, what rea&s;on to abridge him of his lawful Employment? And if pre-eminence might be given in that Ca&s;e, then Letters Patents might grant pre-eminence to one Coach-man to carry in <HI>London-</HI>&s;treets, before another &s;hould take a Carriage; and way would be made to &s;ome re&s;traint in every lawful Employment.</P>
<P>Now if to grant a pre-eminence in carriage, be not to be permitted; &s;hall it be thought lawful to exclude the&s;e Undertakers totally from carrying for all that are willing to &s;end by them?</P>
<P>To the&s;e proofs of Liberty drawn out of the Fundamental Common Law of <HI>Eng|land,</HI> <NOTE PLACE="marg">By the Great Charter, and o|ther Acts of Parliament.</NOTE> adde that of <HI>Magna Charta,</HI> cap. 29. <HI>No free man &s;hall be di&s;&s;eized of his Free|hold or Liberties,</HI> &amp;c. Which the Chief Ju&s;tice <HI>Cook</HI> glo&s;&s;eth, in the&s;e words: <HI>This word LIBERTIES</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>&s;ignifieth the freedom that the Subjects have. For example: The Company of the Merchant-Taylors of</HI> London <HI>having power by their Charter to make Ordinances, made an Ordinance that every brother of the &s;ame Society &s;hould put the one half of his Clothes to be dre&s;&s;ed by &s;ome Cloth-worker free of the &s;ame Company; and it was adjudged that this Ordinance was again&s;t Law, becau&s;e it re&s;trains the Liberty of the Subject to put his Cl<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">thes to be dre&s;&s;ed by whom he will:</HI> &amp; &s;ic de &s;imilibus. <HI>And &s;o it is if &s;uch or the like Grant had been made by Letters Patents.</HI> Thus he.</P>
<PB N="4" REF="4">
<P> And was this <HI>partial</HI> re&s;traint of liberty to u&s;e whom they would for dre&s;&s;ing, a|gain&s;t Law and Liberty confirmed by <HI>Magna Charta;</HI> and is not this <HI>total</HI> of the Peoples Liberty to u&s;e whom they will for Po&s;ting with their Letters and Di&s;patches, again&s;t the &s;ame <HI>Magna Charta?</HI> And if again&s;t <HI>Magna Charta,</HI> again&s;t more then 20 other Acts of Parliament confirming the &s;ame. So that it is needle&s;s to adde more Acts of Parliament for vindication of this right of Liberty.</P>
<P>Now to the&s;e proofs, onely adde the Re&s;olves in Parliament, and Re&s;olution of <NOTE PLACE="marg">Re&s;olves of Parliament, &amp; Re&s;olution of Judges in the point.</NOTE> Judges in the very point in this particular Ca&s;e.</P>
<P N="1">1. The Re&s;olve 16 <HI>Augu&s;ti,</HI> 1642. in &s;tating the Ca&s;e above mentioned.</P>
<P N="2">2. In pur&s;uance of an Order of the Lords in Parliament, 22 <HI>Julii,</HI> 1646. the opi|nions of Judge <HI>Rolle</HI> and <HI>Phe&s;ant</HI> were delivered, <HI>That the clau&s;es of Re&s;traint in</HI> Wi|therings <HI>Patent were void, and not good in Law.</HI> And the Committee of Lords of Par|liament concurred in opinion with the Judges. Whereupon, <HI>Ordered,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P>This which is &s;aid, together with the manifold mi&s;chiefs and mi&s;eries that ever en|&s;ue on &s;uch Re&s;traints (which the Authorities cited give &s;ome touch of) &s;hall &s;erve to conclude this Part, which is to vindicate and prove a legal right of Liberty not &s;ubject to Monopolizing Re&s;traints.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="part">
<HEAD>Farming of Publike Offices condemned.</HEAD>
<P>NOw as Re&s;traint of ju&s;t Liberty is condemned by Law, as pernitious to a free People; &s;o yet further, the mercenary farming of Publike Offices or Employments is much more abhorred, as the very bane of a Republike. This abu&s;e was it that cau|&s;ed the Romane Patriot to bid a &s;ad and &s;harp farewel to <HI>Rome:</HI></P>
<Q><HI>Vade venalis civitas, mox peritura &s;i emptorem invenias.</HI> Salu&s;t.</Q>
<P>Again&s;t this abu&s;e the wi&s;dom of Parliament bendsit &s;elf, 12 <HI>R.</HI> 2. <HI>c.</HI> 2. <HI>That none &s;hould be put in Offices by &s;uit, or for reward, gift, or brokage, but upon de&s;ert.</HI> A Law (&s;aith <HI>Cook)</HI> worthy to be written in letters of gold.</P>
<P>Again&s;t this abu&s;e in many Offices of the like nature, the Stat. 5 <HI>E.</HI> 6. <HI>c.</HI> 16. provides a &s;harp penalty; and the Preamble condemns it in all Places of Publike Tru&s;t. And Rea&s;on and Experience &s;hew it to be very incovenient: for will not he that thus buys his Employment by whole-&s;ale, &s;ell by retail, in polling and exacting on the people? And though his Exactions &s;hould be grievous, will he not hope to finde favour again&s;t Complaints, as being the States Farmer?</P>
<P>And &s;eeing the State are at no co&s;ts to accommodate the People with Po&s;tage, what ground is there to nip a Farm or peny towards it, out of every poor mother that de&s;ires to hear from her childe? Is not this that <HI>Tallagium non concedendu~,</HI> again&s;t which the Stat. 25 <HI>E.</HI> 1. &amp; 34 <HI>E.</HI> 1. <HI>de Tallagio,</HI> do provide? <HI>Within this Act</HI> (&s;aith <HI>Cook</HI> 2 In&s;t. 533) <HI>are all new Offices erected with new Fees, or old Offices with new Fees: for that is a Tallage put upon the Subject.</HI> And therefore &s;uch Grant, though made <HI>pro bono publico,</HI> was in Parl. 13 <HI>H.</HI> 4. <HI>num.</HI> 43. condemned, <HI>quia &s;onat in oppre&s;&s;ionem populi.</HI> And if this of Po&s;tage be not a new Office, yet in the re&s;trictive part it is no elder then 13 <HI>Car.</HI> and that re|&s;triction no &s;ooner put in u&s;e, but condemned in Parl. 1642. And in this point of rai|&s;ing a Farm out of this publike employment, the de&s;igne is &s;o new, that to this day the Free-men of <HI>England</HI> have not been acquainted with it; nor did any polling Courtier, when the &s;trains of Prerogative were at highe&s;t, ever offer at it: but the Kings Grant was always <HI>Ab&s;que aliquo inde reddendo.</HI></P>
<P>If it be objected, <HI>That the ab&s;olute power of Parliament is not re&s;trained to the Law that is, but may make a</HI> <MILESTONE UNIT="Object."> <HI>a Law for erecting an Office, and with re&s;traint of all men to u&s;e that Officer, and at &s;uch a fee or rate out of which they may re&s;erve a Farm:</HI> 'Tis humbly conceived that the wi&s;dom of Parliament will not be <MILESTONE UNIT="An&s;w."> taken in the wiles of &s;uch a Project, though the Projector &s;hall bait his de&s;ign with 10100 <HI>l. per an.</HI> profit. For that it is not only again&s;t Law, but again&s;t the fundamental Common law, again&s;t the innate liberty of a free-born people, again&s;t the Great Charter of Liberties, and &s;undry high-prized Acts of Parlia|ment; and &s;o, that it makes way to, and introduceth all manner of Monopolies. The oppo&s;ing whereof, hath made former Parliaments mo&s;t dear to the people, and their memory precious. And it &s;eems pro|bable, that the People would better brook 10100 <HI>l. per men&s;.</HI> added to the publike Tax, then 10100 <HI>l. per an.</HI> this way to be rai&s;ed: for that being grounded on extraordinary occa&s;ions, cannot be drawn into ex|ample to charge them ordinarily (as this way:) That rai&s;eth no more then is impo&s;ed, &amp; which comes to the Publike u&s;e; This gives occa&s;ion to the Farmer, under colour of rai&s;ing his Farm, to rai&s;e to him&s;elf tre|ble as much, by keeping up high rates, and exacting. That proportionably lays the charge on all men according to their value, This pincheth the Merchant and active Dealer (mo&s;t to be favoured and en|couraged) and lets the idle Drone and lazie Pea&s;ant go free; which is again&s;t Di&s;tributive ju&s;tice.</P>
<P>All which Rea&s;ons and Con&s;iderations are humbly &s;ubmitted to judgement of the true Patriots of the Peoples Liberty, the pre&s;ent Parliament.</P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV2>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="text">
<PB REF="4">
<HEAD>To all ingenuous People: A &s;econd Intimation from the <HI>New &V;ndertakers</HI> for conveyance of Letters at half the rates to &s;everall parts of <HI>England</HI> and <HI>Scotland.</HI></HEAD>
<P>VVHereas &s;everall printed Papers have been &s;cattered up and down the Cities of <HI>London,</HI> and <HI>We&s;tminster,</HI> and in many con&s;iderable Townes and places in <HI>England</HI> and <HI>Scotland,</HI> intimating, that if any per&s;ons &s;end their Letters by the Old Po&s;t, they will have a free and &s;afe going and coming, but if they &s;end by the New Undertakers, their pa&s;&s;age will be interrupted, which we cannot but look upon as a De&s;ign on purpo&s;e to deter all per&s;ons from bringing their Letters to us, which De&s;ign we per|ceive is &s;till carried on, as appears by a bufie Pamphleteer in his la&s;t weekly book of &s;everall Proceedings, in which the &s;aid Paper is recited, as if the State had allowed thereof. And though divers per&s;ons imployed by us in the carriage of our Mayle, have of late under fal&s;e colours and pretences been much affronted and interrupted by &s;ome malitious Po&s;t-Ma&s;ters and o|thers, acting only upon the account of Self-intere&s;t, yet again&s;t them we are (upon good advice) proceeding by &s;everall Actions and Indictments, and doubt not of Ju&s;tice and reparation, according to due cour&s;e of Law, all &s;uch interruption being contrary to the Law of the Land.</P>
<P>And whereas we have hitherto gone on, and re&s;olve &s;till to proceed in the management of our hone&s;t and ju&s;t undertaking (which hath already been &s;o &s;erviceable to this Nation) in a legall and warrantable way: Now for the future prevention of abu&s;es and affronts to tho&s;e per&s;ons that &s;hall be im|ployed by us, and to the end the people of this Nation may not be deceived by tho&s;e fal&s;e &s;ugge&s;tions and pretences, which hitherto have been publi&s;h|ed only to delude them and abu&s;e us; We who&s;e names are hereunto &s;ub|&s;cribed, being the fir&s;t Undertakers for the &s;peedy conveyance of Letters at half the Rates to &s;everall parts of <HI>England</HI> and <HI>Scotland,</HI> do hereby declare to all Gentlemen, Merchants, and other per&s;ons what&s;oever, that we do in|tend re&s;olvedly (by the help of God) to continue the management of this our undertaking, and for the further accommodation of all men of bu&s;ine&s;&s;e, and for improvement of Trade, to carry to places not formerly &s;upplied, with the like conveyance; as al&s;o to add one day more weekly for the &s;end|ing out of Letters, (that is to &s;ay) <HI>Thur&s;daies</HI> as well as <HI>Tue&s;daies</HI> and <HI>Satur|daies,</HI> and to have returns an&s;werably, the fir&s;t <HI>Thur&s;day</HI> to begin the 28. of this pre&s;ent <HI>April,</HI> and the &s;ame places of receipt to continue as formerly, we having received much incouragement by ingenuous and publike minded peo|ple, and no di&s;couragement at all from Supreme Authority, nor can it rati|onally be imagined, that ever they will countenance the Di&s;turbers of &s;o pub|like and beneficiall an undertaking.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><LIST>
<ITEM>Clement Oxenbridge.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Francis Thom&s;on.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Richard Blackwall.</ITEM>
<ITEM>William Malyne.</ITEM>
</LIST></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
