The Petition and Argument of Mr Hotham, Floating text 1 – Floating text 3
To the Honorable, the Committee for Reformation of the UNIVERSITIES. The Humble Petition of Charls Hotham, Fellow of Peter-Houſe in Cambridge.
Sheweth,
THat whereas in all Societies of men incorporate, great evils do uſually ariſe from the too exorbitant power of their chief Officer, not annually elected to his Truſt; the ſad experience whereof our Colledge hath of late felt, the Maſter aſſuming to himſelf, or his Preſident (if preſent) the ſole power of Convocating and diſſolving of publike Meetings, and propoſing of Queſtions at his own pleaſure; and ſometimes refuſing to act according to the determination of the major part; and all this onelyonly for want of our Founders ſufficiently expreſſing his minde in a Statute of our Colledge; wherein he Wills, that the Maſter ſhould in the Arduous affairs of the Colledge, conſult with the Fellows in Common, and ſtand to the determination of the Major and ſounder part, but hath through the uncertainty of the laſt expreſſion, left a gap open to the exerciſe of an Arbitrary power; and beſides, conſtituted no penalty to the Maſter at any time, upon ſiniſter ends, refuſing to do his duty in that kind, nor provides the Colledge of any way for calling of Meetings, or making of Acts in form valid, without his, or his Preſidents concurrence.
And ſeeing the Parliament hath always adjudged this unlimitted power in the ſupream Officer of the Nation, of a dangerous and deſtructive nature to the Weal Publike, and hath further proceeded ſo far, as to reſtrain the ſame in the City of London, where yet the danger is not ſo great, as in our ſmaller Corporation, their chief Officer being annually changeable, and new elected to his Truſt: but ours, one and the ſame during the whole term of his life.
May it therefore pleaſe this Honorable Committee, for prevention of future miſchiefs, and for Caution that this root of Corruption left in one of the ancienteſt Fountains of youths education do not ſpread out its pernitious branches to gangrene the whole Nation, To Ordain, That from henceforth the Maſter ſhall not aſſume to himſelf, or his Preſident, ſuch an exorbitant power, but that he or his Preſident, or the Senior Fellow of thoſe preſent at home, ſhall at any time, upon the deſire of two of the ſeven Senior Fellows, left with him in writing under their hands, call a meeting at ſome ſeaſonable time, within 48. hours after their deſire ſo ſignified; and ſhall at that, and all other meetings propoſe to the Society ſuch queſtions as the Major part ſhall think fit, and not diſſolve any meeting without conſent of the major part; And laſtly, ſhall not aſſume to himſelf any Negative or diſtinct voyce, otherwiſe then as one member of the Aſſembly, and in the ſame manner as other members have, but ſhall according to the duty of his place, duly and without delay put in execution the determination of the ſaid Major part, and all this to be eſtabliſht under a ſufficient penalty; the want of which is the greateſt encouragement to mortal men to offend: And that in caſe the Maſter or his Preſident, or Senior Fellow then preſent, ſhall refuſe upon ſuch deſire of two of the Seniors, as above-ſaid, to call a meeting, then they themſelves to be authoriſed to call a meeting; and ſuch of the Fellows as ſhal meet upon their ſummons, if there be above ſeven then at home, to be impowred to chuſe a Preſident for that time, and to be a Colledge Aſſembly to all intents and purpoſes; And what ſhall paſs in ſuch Aſſembly ſo Convocated by the Senior Fellow of thoſe preſent at home, or the two Seniors above-ſaid, to be reputed an Act of the Colledge, as valid as if the ſame meeting had been convocated by the Maſter or his Preſident: And becauſe great inconvenience may oft inſue by the Maſter and his Preſident, being both abſent together, our Statutes having in ſuch caſe provided the Colledge of no Governor in chief. Your Petitioner doth further pray. That it may be ordained,
That in caſe the Maſter and his Preſident, ſhall be both abſent, That then the Senior-Fellow of thoſe preſent at home, may, till the Maſters, or his Preſidents return, be impowred as Preſident, to all intents and purpoſes, as if he were by the Maſter nominated, and appointed to that Office.
And your Petitioner, with the whole Colledge, delivered from the oppreſſions and uſurpations of an Arbitrary power, by the wiſdom and juſtice of this Honorable Committee, Shall ever pray, &c.
This Petition was firſt preſented and read before the Committee March 27. at which time Doctor Seaman urg'd that this controverſie would concern the whole Univerſity, and therfore was unfit to be ſingled out alone, but rather ſhould fall in with the conſideration of the whole bulk of the Colledge and Univerſity Statutes now under conſideration of the Committee of Viſitors at Cambridge; but the Committee then looking at this as a dilatory ſubterfuge accepted of the Petition, aſſign'd a day for taking it into further conſideration, granting me ſummons for ſuch of the Society as I deſir'd for Witneſſes in caſe of need. The Maſter having the like liberty to nominate whom he pleas'd, but pitch'd upon none. This was the Order.
March 29. 1651. At the Committee for Reformation of the Ʋniverſities.
ORdered, that the Petition of M. Charles Hotham Fellow of Peter-Houſe in the Ʋniverſity of Cambridge, this day preſented to this Committee, be taken into conſideration on this day fortnight, & that Dr. Francius, M. Clerk, M. Brock, and M. Sams ſenior, Fellowes of the ſaid Houſe, do in perſon attend this Committee, to inform this Committee of what they know concerning the matter of the ſaid Petition, and that in the mean time the Maſter and Fellowes of the ſaid Houſe have a copie of the ſaid Petition if they think ſit.
James Chaloner.
On the day appointed, being April 10. being deſirous to have the cauſe heard at as full a Committee as might be, I attended ſometime in the Hall with this following Petition for a revivall of the buſineſſe.
To the honourable Committee for Reformation of the Ʋniverſities, The humble Petition of Charles Hotham Fellow of Peter-Houſe,
Sheweth,
THat whereas your Petitioner on the 27. of March laſt paſt having repreſented to this honourable Committee the great inonveniencies redounding to that Colledge, of which he is a member, from the too exorbitant power exerciſed by the Mr of the ſaid Colledge, for want of our Founders ſufficient declaration of his mind in a Statute, wherein he willeth that the Maſter ſhall in arduis Collegii, conſult the Fellows in common, and ſtand to the judgment of the major and ſounder part: For the more full and certain execution of which Statutes, your Petitioner did humbly pray, That ſuch remedies as were in that Petition ſpecified, might be ordained by the wiſdom of this Honourable Committee.
Upon which deſire of your Petitioner, it was then ordered, that the ſaid Petition ſhould be taken into conſideration on that day fornight, and that Dr. Franſticus, Mr. Clerk, Mr. Brock, and Mr. Sams, Fellowes of the ſaid Colledge, ſhould be required to attend here in perſon, to inform this Honourable Committee what ſhould be thought requiſite concerning the matter of the ſaid Petition.
Now therefore your Petitioner doth humbly pray, that this being the day appointed for the ſaid hearing (and the Fellows of the Colledge which were ſummon'd being here in perſon, ready to attend the pleaſure of this Honourable Committee) that the ſaid Petition may be again read, and your Petitioner may be heard to make good his Petition, by ſuch proofs of reaſon, or witneſs, as the nature of the thing ſhall require; and your Petitioner, as in duty bound, ſhall in all humility await ſuch ſentence, as ſhall upon full hearing of all parties concerned be awarded by the wiſdom and juſtice of this Honourable Committee.
And ſhall ever pray, &c.
But this ſhort Petition prov'd uſeleſs; for my former large Petition was reſum'd without any motion of mine, and much ſooner then my expectation.
But after the firſt clauſe of the Petition was ſcarce read, Doctor Seaman interpos'd a motion, that the further reading of it might be ſuſpended, till a private buſineſs, which he ſaid was the true original of all theſe commotions, were firſt heard. So the Petition was at his motion laid aſide, and the private buſineſs firſt brought upon the ſtage: the iſſue of which, falling out ſtrangely to his content, the Committee was made believe this was the ſubſtance of the whole controverſie, there needed now no farther hearing of the publick Petition.
Now as for that private buſineſs, ſeeing he hath chriſtened it with the name of publick, I have at the latter end of this Narrative made it publick for his ſake.
But nothing diſcourag'd with this unexpected event of that diſpute, I went in again to the Committee, inform'd a noble Gentleman there preſent, I had a Petition there of great concernment, which I deſired might be read, and my ſelf heard ſpeak to it. So at his motion the Petition was reſum'd.
After 'twas read, Dr. Seaman, I think, firſt ſpake ſomething to it; but to what effect, I have utterly forgotten, and ſhall be glad to be remembred of it by himſelf.
When he had done ſpeaking, I mov'd the Committee that for laying a clear foundation, whereupon to ground the debate, he might be askt the queſtion, Whether he laid claim to a negative voyce, or not.
His anſwer was, firſt, that he did not deſire to anſwer to any queſtion, till commanded to it by the Committee; but pawſing a while, and perceiving by a general ſilence of all the members, that a more full anſwer was expected, He ſtill ſubtilly declining an anſwer to the queſtion, tells them we had many ſorts of Colledge-meetings; that the Maſter was ſometimes to conſult with the Deans onelyonly, ſometimes with 5 or 6 of the Seniors; but in the arduous affairs of the Colledge, he was to conſult with the Fellows in common, and to ſtand to the judgment of the major part. This now ſeem'd, at firſt view, a clear acknowledgment of his being bound up in the major part, in meetings of the whole Society preſent.
And any man, not acquainted with his methods, would have thought the controverſie had been at an end, and that the Doctor was ſcandal'd in my ſo much as intimating that he had laid claim to a negative voyce.
But as 'twill appear he meant nothing leſs For firſt, though he acknowledged himſelf bound in arduis to conſult the Fellows in common, yet nothing appear'd, but that he ſtill reſerv'd the judgment of that arduity as a prerogative within his own breaſt; ſo that the Society for meetings, though never ſo much needed, muſt depend upon his royall pleaſure, which was one of the chief grievances, againſt which a remedy was petition'd for.
Secondly, notwithſtanding his ſeeming acknowledgment of being tied by the major part; yet being further urg'd to declare whether he did not from that additional expreſſion in our Statute of the ſounder part, challenge to himſelf a deciſive judgment which was the ſounder part, ſo as that he might judge the leſſer part the ſounder, and be thereupon abſolv'd from ſtanding to the judgment of the major part, he could then keep himſelf in the darkneſs no longer, but produc't two Statutes for his negative voyce. The one, extending onelyonly to the proof of his negative voyce over the two Deans, was an interpretation made a hundred and fifty years, or more, after the firſt compiling of our Statutes. In theſe words, Item ſi aliquid ex Statuto ſit determinandum per Magiſtrum, & Decanos concernens eorum officia, ſi Magiſter Collegii, & unus Decanorum aliquid decreverint, ſtabit pro rato, & ſi duo Decani decreverint, & Magiſter Collegii non conceſſerit, pro nullo habeatur.
But this prov'd not at all a negative voyce over the major part of the Fellows aſſembled in a meeting.
The other (being the main pillar of his cauſe) was the Univerſity Statute, which he read to the Committee in theſe words.
In omnibus & ſingulis electionibus tam Sociorum, Diſcipulorum, Schola…ium, Officiariorum, Lectorum, reliquorúm que membrorum cujuſ que Collegii, quàm in omnibus & ſingulis locationibus, & conceſſionibus quibuſcun que , neceſſariò requirendus eſt Magiſtri ſive Praepoſiti illius Collegii aſſenſus & conſenſus. Et quod bene licebit Magistris ſive Praepoſitis Collegiorum, in ſuis Collegiis, ſi quando illis neceſſarium videbitur, omnes illas poenas exercere in delinquentes, qua… aliquis Officiariorum illius Collegii per Statuta ejuſdem Collegii imponere poſſit.
Theſe Statutes he ſaid (but proved it not) were confirm'd by Act of Parliament: To which 'twas anſwer'd, That it's true, the Univerſity Charters were confirm'd by Act of Parliament, but as I believ'd, not the Statutes; no further confirmation that I know of appearing, more then by the ſame Commiſſioners, who review'd our Colledg-Statutes; which as far as I knew, there was as good ground to believe were confirm'd by Parliament, as thoſe of the Univerſity.
He further added, that that which I charg'd as a fault upon him, viz. the relying upon his own wiſdom, I was chiefly guilty of it my ſelf, in preferring a Petition of my own head, without firſt asking the advice and conſent of the Fellows, who did not appear any way to own it: to all which allegations of his, my anſwer, directed to the Chairman of the Committee, was as followes.