A Memorial Offered to John Williams, Part of biography 1 · Letter 24
May it pleaſe your Highneſs,
150. IF I ſhall touch upon any Service, which I may ſeem to have performed towards Your Higneſs, I humbly beſeech your Highneſs to conceive, I do it not to pick Thanks, and much leſs to put any acknowledgment upon your Highneſs; but only to diſcharge my ſelf of that part of Duty, which all the World knoweth I do, above all Men in the World, owe unto your Highneſs. Before I did imagine, that his Majeſty would take any Opinion of mine in the Signing and Swearing of this Treaty, Sir Fr. Cottington, your moſt worthy Servant, had acquainted me with all the diſpatch, and permitted me to Read the Papers over. Upon Saturday laſt the 12 of July, the Council formerly warned to attend his Majeſty the next day at Wanſted, were diſcharged, and ſome hour after my ſelf commanded to attend. Suſpecting thereupon I might be queſtioned, to that Effect I ſent for your Highneſs Secretary, and heard from him it would be ſo indeed, and that His Majeſty was much troubled and perplex'd about his Oaths. Preſently Town-Reports were Raiſed of great Oppoſition among the Lords againſt this Swearing. In ſo much as the ſhameleſs people had made two Orations, the one to be of mine for the Oaths, and the other of my Lord of Canterbury's againſt the ſame (which they ſuppoſed prevailed with the King, and the whole Councel) when neither of us had heard or ſpoken one word in that Theme. I ſpent in a manner all that Night in debating with my ſelf the Streights that your Highneſs was unto; and at the laſt fell upon this Reſolution contained in this Letter, which I deliver'd upon Sunday Morning in private to his Majeſty, with an excuſe for my Boldneſs therein. His Majeſty accepted thereof very well, and Read it over three or four times that day, and ſeemed to me at that time to approve thereof in all Points, and put off further Diſcourſe till the Afternoon. I was ſo far emboldned therewith, that after Dinner (becauſe I found ſome whiſpring among the Lords preſent) I ſtept again to His Majeſty, and deliver'd him an Opinion, that for the Oath of the Lords, his Majeſty ſhould not leave it to their Diſputation, but command them to take …, there being no matter of ſcruple or moment in the ſame; as indeed there is not. This his Majeſty well approved of, and put in practiſe afterward, with good ſucceſs. The Council being met, whereof ſome were there by Reaſon of their Attendance, as my Lord Chamberlain, Earl of Carliſle, Lord Fenton, and Mr. Treaſurer, others warned, as the Duke, LordTreaſurer, Lord Marſhal, my ſelf, Sir R. Weſton,and the two Secretaries, his Majeſty made a Speech unto us full of perplexity, becauſe of your Highneſs's Streits, and his own Remorſe of Conſcience. Chiefly he inſiſted, it would be frivolous to be put upon it, to move the next Parliament to abrogate the Laws already Eſtabliſh'd againſt Recuſants, which would not be Heard, much leſs Granted; and that in point of Conſcience and Religion, he could not promiſe, that no Laws hereafter ſhould be made againſt them. This his Majeſty, having utter'd with much Paſſion and earneſtneſs, left us to hear all the Papers Read, and having Commanded us very paſſionately to give him our beſt Advice, retired into his Chamber, and left us together for two hours. After the End of the Reading, many odd and extravagant Propoſitions were made of Advice, to be given to his Majeſty, how to get your Perſon home again; wherein I durſt not ſay one word, finding none of my Opinion (unleſs it were Secretary Calvert) nor my ſelf to concur with any of theirs. At the laſt, preſſed thereunto, I ſaid, that I conceiv'd upon the Diſcourſe of his Majeſty, we could not deliver any Advice, or Opinion at all. For if his Majeſty made a Conſcience of taking the Oaths, and had already Framed unto himſelf this Concluſion, the immoveable Rule in this Caſe is, Quod dubitas ne feceris, nor there was no more in Policy, or Divinity to be ſaid therein. On the other ſide, if His Majeſty would otherwiſe declare himſelf, that he was not moved in Conſcience, or Religion, but only in Honour and Safety to Refuſe thoſe Oaths, I did hope no Lord in this Company would Adviſe his Majeſty to deſert his only Son, and to deſert him in this manner in the Face of all Chriſtiandom. For to pretend an excuſe to fetch him home, to b…lp…his Majeſty to facilitate theſe Affairs, would never repair his Credit, who had ſubſcribed that which his Father would not make good, nor was he himſelf any way able to accompliſh. Beſide that I made it a Queſtion, Whether the King of Spain, after all this wooing, would ſo eaſily be deceived in Licenſing him to depart. At the laſt his Majeſty Returning, and calling upon us for our Advice, all the Lords Aſſented to this laſt Opinion, and told his Majeſty, they durſt not Adviſe him any thing, until he expreſs'd himſelf more fully in the point of Conſcience. His Majeſty turning to me (whom he ſaid he had made for this time his Counſellor and Confeſſor) affirmed his Conſcience to ſtand, as he had ſaid before, but that he was willing to hear any thing that might move him to alter the ſame. To the which, as far as I can remember, I ſpake in this manner.