The Asserter of the Peoples Liberty, Appendix

The Asserter of the Peoples Liberty · Appendix

p. 47An Appendix to the Premises

IT hath been the antient Pl…t, and long agitated design of Robert Parsons, and other Iesuites and their Instruments, under pretext of reforming the Common Laws and Statutes of England, to alter, subvert abolish the Great Charter, Common fundamental Laws of the Land, and principles of Government, whereon the Iustice of the Kingdom, and Liberty and Property of the Subjects are established; as I have irrefragably proved at large, by R…bert Parsons his Memorial for Reformation of England, written at Sevil in Spain, An. 1590. by William Watson (a seminary Priest) his Quodlibets, printed 1601. p. 92, 94, 95, 286, 330, 332. A Dialogue between a secular Priest and a Lay-Gentleman, printed at Rhemes 1601. p. 95. William Clark (a Roman Priest) his Answer to the manifestation of Father Parsons, p. 74, 75. Robert Parsons own manifestation of the folly, and bad …pirit of certain in England, calling themselves Secular Priests, f. 55. to 63. Mr. Thomas Smith his Preface to Mr. Iohn Daillae, his Apology for the Reformed Churches: Cambridge, 1653. p. 12, 13, &c. The Declaration of the whole House of Commons, 15. Decemb. 1641. Exact. Collection, p. 3, 4. Ludovicus Lucius, Historia …, p. 318, 319, 535. and other Evidences in my Epistle to A seasonable, Legal, and Hist…rical… p. 48Vindication of the good old fundamental Liberties, Rights, Laws of all English Freemen; and to A New Discovery of Free-State Tyranny, to which for Brevity I refer the Reader. That it hath been the Souldiers and Anabaptists design, endeavour, to put this their Iesuitical Plot against our Laws in execution, under pretext of reforming the corruptions in the Law, and Lawyers, by the Tutorship of the disguised Iesuites (swarming amongst us, and having a Consistory and Councel abroad, that Rules all the affairs of the things of England; as their own General, O. Cromwell himself avers in positive terms to all our three Nations, and the world, in his printed Speech in the painted Chamber, September 4. 1654. p. 16, 17.) I have there likewise demonstrated, and is so experimentally visible to all men by their frequent Consultations, Committees, Treatises, Discourses, Votes, and Instruments set on work, to regulate our Laws, that it needs do further proof.

The excellently connatural…ess, conveniency of the Laws of England to Englishmens tempers, is so fully expressed, demonstrated by Fortescue, in his Book De laudibus Legum Angliae, Glanvill, Britton, and others of antient, and by Sir Iohn Davies in his Epistle to his Irish Reports, Sir Edward Cook in his Epistles to his Reports, Institutes, with others of later times: by the very New Modellers of our old hereditary Kingdom, into a puny Free-State, in their Remonstrance of March 17. 1648. and by Mr. Iohn Pym, and Mr. Oliver Saint-John, in their late Parliamentary Speeches, printed by the Commons House special Orders; that I shall not spend waste-paper to commend them, being the most excellent Laws of all others in the world, as they all unanimously resolve. I shall only adde to their Encomiums of them: That the extraordinary care, diligence of our Ancestors, and all our Parliamentary Councels in former ages, to maintain,… p. 49preserve, defend and transmit to posterity those good old Laws we now do or should enjoy, with the last long Parliaments impeaching, beheading Strafford and Canterbury for Arch-traytors for endeavouring to subvert them with their innovations on the one side, and the late King and his Partisans on the other side, in above **In the Coll…ctions of …, printed by both Houses orders.500 printed Declarations, Orders, Ordinances, Proclamations, Remonstrances; that the principal end of all their consultations, arms, wars, taxes, Impositions, expences of infinite Treasure and Bloud, in all the unhappy contests against each other; was inviolably to defend, maintain our Laws and the Subjects Liberties, secured by them as their best Patrimony, Birthright, and Inheritance; the inserting thereof into all their Generals and Military Officers Commissions, and all Ordinances, to raise monies for the Armies pay; is an unswerable evidence of their transcendent excellency, utilility, preciousnesse, value, esteem, in the eyes of our Parliament and whole Nation: And a convincing Discovery of the Iesuitical Infatuation, folly, frenzy, treachery of those Swordmen and their Confederates, who now revile, traduce, and endeavour all they may, to reform, alter, subvert those very Laws, and Liberties which they were purposely commissioned, waged, engaged inviolably to defend, both by the Parliament, and People, and for which end they formerly professed, declared in many printed**Printed 1647. Romonstrances of their own, they fought and hazarded their lives in the field; yet now would conquer, and trample under feet, as if they had only fought against them and our hereditary L…berties confirmed by them.

I must confess, there are some few Grievances, Abuses, not in the Theory, but Practice of our Laws (introduced by dishonest Attorneys and Sollicitors for the most part) fit to be redressed by the Iudges of the Law, (as some of them have been upon complaint)… p. 50which I my self had many years since reformed (as I told M…. Shepheard upon his fore mentioned motion to me) had not those Army-men violently pulled me with other Members out of the …; and interrupted the settlement, peace, liberty, ease from taxes, excise…, and good Government of the Kingdome, by a happy close with the late King, upon more safe and honourable terms of Freedom and happiness to the whole Nation and our Parliaments, than ever we can hope for from our New Governours or Sword-men; to usurp the Soveraign Power of King and Parliament into their own hands, and perpetuate our Wars, Taxes, Excises, Armies, and Military Government upon us, from generation to generation, as experience now manifests beyond contradiction, not for the peoples safety, ease, wealth, tranquillity, as they then pretended: which people though they then cried up, **January 1648.voted for the only Supreme Authority; their free elections for the only Basis of all lawfull Magistracy, Power, in and over the Nation, and their safity as the Supreme Law; yet now they imperiously trample upon as their conquered slaves, and both by their publike speeches, actions, proclaim to all the world, They now no more value th… than they doe the very Acornt of the Swine, or dust of their feet, no further than they are subservient to their own aspiring designs, and selfish ends.

For those few remaining Abuses in our Laws execution yet unredressed by former Laws, as they no waies concern the army, or army-Officers as Souldiers, being out of their calling, Commission, and fit only for Iudges, or Parliaments in their defaults, to redresse: So they concern not the generality of the People (many thousands of them having no sute at Law in all their lives, and the most of them very rarely) but fo… the most part only some Litigious, contentious persons, who out of their pride and animosity, occasion these abuses, and prolongations of sutes in Law, which they… p. 51and others complain against, and therefore are justly punished and rewarded by them; the expensivenesse and …ediousnesse of their Law sutes, being the best means to correct, cure their contentious malicious spirits: other sutes between peaceable persons being soon determined without any great expence, or length of time, if diligently prosecuted by honest Lawyers, Attorneys, and Sollicitors.

But the Grievances these Martial Reformers of our Laws have introduced, under pretext of reforming some petty Abuses in the practice of the Law and Lawyers, are of a far more grievous, generall, and transcendent nature, subverting the very F…damental Laws and Liberties of the whole Nation; and burthening them with two or three Millions of extraordinary Taxes, Expences every year, whereas all the abuses in the Law if rectified, amount not to above 5 or 6 thousand pounds a year at the most, and those voluntarily expended by litigious persons, not exacted from, or imposed upon any against their Wills, as Taxes, Excises, Imposts, Tunnage and Poundage now are by the Souldiers, without Act of Parliament against our Laws. Which if redressed by the Swordmen now, is not ou… of any affection towards, or design to ease the People, but out of spleen to the Profession and Professors of the Law, and to increase the Peoples monthly Taxes to the Souldiers, and maintenance of their new war, to tenfold the value every year at least, to what they now expend in Law-sutes by reason of these abuses they would now redresse; which will be nothing so grievous, expensive to the People, as those alterations they intend to make in our Laws and legal conveyances, which will but multiply Sutes, and draw all mens estates into future seque …ration in few years space.

There are four thing; specially provided for by our … Laws, and the original constitution of… p. 52our Government, which principally concern all the Freemen of England in General, above all things else.

1. The Privileges and Fredome of their Parliaments and their Members.

2. The safety and liberty of their Persons.

3. The propriety of their Estates.

4. The Free course of Common Law, Right, Juslice.

All which our Army Reformers have lately violated in the highest degree, beyond the Presidents of the worst of former ages, against all Laws of God and the Land, their own Commissions, Trusts, Declarations, Pro…estations, Vowes, Leagues, Covenants, Engagements, without any colour of lawful Authority; to the whole Nations intollerable Grievance, Injury, Oppression, Impoverishing, enslaving, and yet would be reputed the only just, upright, faithful, righteous, conscientious Protectors, Reformers of our Laws, Grievances, government, and Gods most precious Saints; and all others mee… Malignants or Disaffected persons to Liberty and Reformation, who oppose or dislike their proceedings, secluding them out of their New Parliaments as such, when elected most freely by the People.

1. For the Privileges, Freedom of Parliaments, and their Members, formerly held most sacred and invio lable,(c)(c)See the Epistle and …ppendix to my Speech in Parliament, and the History of Ind…pendency. They have in their own and the Armies name, impeached, imprisoned, suspended from sitting, many Members of both Houses; marched up professedly against them; contrary to their Trusts, Commands, and the expresse Statutes of 5 R. 2. c. 4. 5 H. 4. c. 6. 8 H. 6. c. 1. 4 H. 8. c. 8. forced them to retract their own Orders, Votes, Ordinances; eject, imprison their own Members, and Vote what they prescribed them. Since which they imprisoned, close imprisoned my self, wlth sundry other Members, in remote Castles, sundry years, without any cause, hearing, or recompence… p. 53for this transcendent injustice; And not content herewith, they contrary to both Houses Votes seised, impeached, abused, condemned, beheaded the late King,(d)(d)Cook 4 …. c. 1. & modus … Parliam. The head of the Parliament; suppressed, abolished the whole House of Lords, the antientest, chiefest Members of it; secured, secluded the greatest part of the Commons House; and forcibly dissolved the Parliament it self by the Sword, without any writ, contrary to an expresse act of Parliament. And how they have disturbed, secluded, abused, dissipated, dishoused their own mock-Parliament, and their Members even in the like manner; How they and their new Instruments have New-modelled that they now call our Parliaments; how they have deprived many antient Burroughs, Cities, of their right of electing Burgesses, or of so many Burgesses as they ought, contrary to their Charters, and the expresse Statutes of 5 R. 2. c. 4. 1 H 5. c. 1. 32 H. 6. c. 15. 9 H. 8. c. 18; disabled many thousands of their Votes in Elections, who have Voices, and enabled others to be Electors who have no Votes by our Laws; incorporated Scotish, and Irish Knights, Burgesses as Members into their late Parliaments, and interrupted the Freedom of Elections, by Letters, Menaces, armed Troops, Soldiers, and other indirect means, against the Statute of 3 E. 1. c. 5. the great Charter, and Constitutions, Laws, Rights, Privileges of our Parliaments; (to make what Persons and Number of their own creatures they please, a pretended Parliament, to bind our three Nations (by colour of a void, illegal Instrument, made sodenly by a few Privadoes of their own in a corner; having no more legal force to bind our three Nations or Parliaments, than a Fiddle-string, or the new Cords wherewith the uncircumcised Philistines by their treacherous Dalilah bound Sampson of old; which he brake from off his arms like a threed, Judg. 16. 12.) All which is so well known to themselves, and others, that I shall not insist any further… p. 54thereon. And are not all and every of these far greater abuses, & of more general important concernment to the whole Nation, than any they would now reform, or declaim against in our Laws, or Lawyers? fit now to be redressed? being adjudged no lesse than High Treason in others; not only by the**See the … to my Speech in Parliament, p. 15, 16. Parliaments of 4 E. 3. n. 1. 21 R. 2. cap. 12. 1 H. 4. rot. Parl. n. 21, 22. 31 H. 6. c. 1. 3 Jac. c. 1, 2. and in Chaloners and Tomkins case June 14. 1647. in the last Parliament of King Charles, A Collection of Ordinances, p. 200. to 206. but likewise by the Army Officers (e)(e)Their Remonstra…ce and Re…resentation, Aug. 2. & 18. … & 7 …. 1647. Th…ir Charge, June 14. 1647.themselves; yea the very ground-work of all the uncapabilities, penalties, sequestrations, decimations, forseitures, they have imposed on others for levying warre, and adhering unto the late King against the Parliament; which they but mediately and indirectly opposed and warred against, but themselves immediately, actually directly warred upon, seised, secured, dissolved, destroyed, against their Trusts, Commissions to defend both the Parliament and the Members of it from force and violence: and therefore are the**Their … of …, art. 14. 16. far greater Delinquents, and uncapable to give any voice to elect any Members, or to be elected or sit in the three next Parliaments, by their own self-condem…ing Censures, Declarations, (f)(f)Article 14. 16.New instruments, and Verdicts passed against others; and by St Pauls own Verdict, Rom. 2… 1, 2, 3. are inexcusable, and shall not escape the judgement of God: though they escape the sentence of all humane Tribunals, for their offences of this nature.

2. For the safety and liberty of their Persons, these Army-Reformers have contrary to the Great Charter, all other F…ndamental Laws, Statutes, the Petition of Right it self, and premised Votes in the Parliament of 3 Carol…, in New-created Military Courts of Iustice, impeached, condemned, executed not only the late King and sundry Nobles, but likewise… p. 55Knights, Gentlemen, and other Freemen of all ran…ks, callings, without any lawfull Inditement or Tryal by their Peers, for offences not capital by our known Laws; Forcibly apprehended by armed Troopers, the Persons of Parliament-men, Noblemen, and others of all sorts; imprisoned, close-imprisoned them in remote Castles, under armed Guards, and translated them from one Castle to another, and my self amongst others, without any legall examination, accusation, hearing, or cause expressed; banished some, and imprisoned others, (yea some of their own MilitaryOfficers, and greatest Friends) in those forein I…les, Castles, (whither the Prelates and Old Council-Table Lords, banished me and my fellow-brethren heretofore) without any legal Sentence; imprisoned, close imprisoned thousands at a time upon sudden carnal fears and jealousies (unbeseeming Saints, Christians, or men professing so much faith, confidence in God, and such signal ownings both of their Persons and present Powers by God himself, as they have done in publick or private from time to time, and having an whole Army to guard them) and dragging them out of their Houses, beds, in the night by Souldiers, and shutting them up in inconvenient places; banished multitudes from time to time, from London and other parts, for sundry months together; confined others to certain pl…ces; impressed thousands for Land and Sea-services, and forein imployment (as well Apprentices as others) against their wills, and carried them away perforce to, and others from forein Plantations, to the Indies, where they have lost their limbs, lives, to the ruine of their families and Masters. Degraded all our Nobles without any lawfull cause or hearing, of all their personal, hereditary Powers, Trusts, Commands: Disfranchised, disofficed Judges, Justices, Recorders, Maiors, Aldermen, Common-council- men, Freemen, Servants, and many such very lately even by Major Generals, and their Deputies p. 56at their pleasures, taking far more Authority upon them now in all places in this and other kinds, than ever any Kings of England did, in late or former ages. And that which transcends all Presidents, imprisoning Lawyers themselves, as grand Traytors, and Delinquents in the Tower of London, only for arguing their Clients Cases, according to their Oaths, Duties, in defence of their Common Fundamental personal Liberty and property, when illegally committed for refusing to pay unjust Excises and Imposts, without Act of Parliament, in the la…e case of Mr. Cony, and threatning to imprison others for prosecuting lawfull sutes: when as the late King they beheaded for a Tyrant, freely permitted my self, and other Lawyers, to argue the cases of Knighthood, Loans, Shipmony, Imposts, Tonnage and Poundage, which so …uch concerned him, without imprisonment or restraint. And are not these, with the denying Habeas Corporaes to some, stoping the returning, or benefit of them when returned, to others, far greater Grievances, Abuses (which concern every Subject alike, and strike at the Foundation of all our Liberties) than any these Sword-men dislike or declame against in our Laws or Lawyers? fit now to be redressed. If any private person injure any Freeman in any of these kinds forementioned, he may be remedied and recover dammages by an Action of the Case, Trespass, or false Imprisonment; but being thus injured by our New Whitehall Grandecs, Swordmen, Souldiers, Committees, Excisemen, Major-Generals, their Deputies, or Deputy Deputies, who all imprison, dissranchise, oppresse men at their pleasures, (which[f][f]Fo…ue c. 8. 1 H. 7. 46. 16 H. 6. Fitz. Mons…n. d' Faits 182. none of our Kings could do) he is now left destitute of all relief or recompence by Law, or ordinary course of Justice, and imprisoned by Committees of Indemnity, if he sue, and forced to desist, or release his action, having no Lawyer who durst to plead his cause, for fear of imprifonment, nor Judge to release him, for fear of displacing; such is our present,… p. 57worse than Turkish Thraldom, under these Grand Reformers of our Laws, and New-found Guardians of our Liberties, crying out aloud to Heaven and Earth for present redresse.

3. For the Propriety of their Estates; so fenced, vindicated, secured by the forecited Parliamentary Votes, Acts, and Petition of Right; alas! what is become of it? Have not these Sword-Reformers forcibly disseised, dis-inherited not only our Kings, Nobles, and other Officers of their Hereditary Honors, Dignities, Offices, Franchises, but likewise them, and thousands more, their Heirs, Successors, Wives, Children, Kinred, of their Palaces, Mannors, Houses, Lands, Possessions, Rents, Revenues, real and personal Estates, without any other Law or Title but (that of Theeves and Pirates, Turks and**See Purch… pilgrimage …o. 6. c. 6. & H…yns …. Mamalukes) the longest Sword? Against not only all Laws of the Land, but the very eighth and tenth Moral Command…nts of God himself, now practically quite expunged out of their Decalogue? And do not all else hold their Lands and Estates as Tenants at will, to these supream new LandLords, who …pon any N…w coined Delinquency, or pretended plots, really sequester, or confiscate them at their pleasures by the self-same Law and Title? Yea where …s all our Kings in former ages took Aids and Subsidies from our Ancestors only as(1)(1)See Bast…s … and … … … … … … Subs…, Tunage and …. as their free Gifts and Grants in Parliament, and that in moderate proportions, to wit, one Fifteen, Tenth or Subsidy, and no more in antient times, and but two or three Subsidies and Fi…s of later daies, payable at sundry times, in divers years, for which our Kings returned them hearty thanks in their Answers to those Grants, and granted them New (2)(2)… … c. 37 & 52 H. 3. …5. 25 E. 3. c. 1, 2. c. 28 H. 8. c. 1. …. Pa…is Hist. Angli…. 311. 355. 36… 421. 576. 624. 688. 838. 833. 338. 940, 941. 960.Confirmations of their Laws, Liber …ies and the Gr…t Charter, when violated, together with beneficial General Pardons in recompence of these their Aids and Subsidies (though for publick uses and defence) which they never claimed nor imposed in the Clergy or …, but by their several free Grants p. 58in full and free Parliaments, and Convocations of the Clergy, (as all our Parliament Rolls, our imprinted Acts, Histories, and(3)(3)4 … c. 1. p. … 25 to 35. Sir Edward Co…k at large inform us) Do not these our New Military Reforming Soveraigns (as if they were more than Kings) without any free gift, grant, or Act of Parliament in a full and free Parliamentary Assembly, by their own New usurped Power, (without any thanks at all to the People, or confirmation of their violated Laws, Liberties, Privilges, or general Pardons) against all former Acts, and Parliamentary Votes, impose both on the Clergy and Laity, against their Wills, (beyond all Presidents of former ages) what excessive heavy monthly Taxe,s Excises, impo…s, tunnage, poundage, and other payments they please upon the whole N…tion, without intermission (which their new-modelled Parliaments themselves must, nor alter nor controll by the 27, 28, 29 Articles of their Instrument) and levy them by armed Souldiers, Violence, imprisonments, quartering, and other great penalties, fines inflicted on the Refusers of them, and dispose of them at their pleasùres when levied, without giving any account thereof to the Nation? yea force them to pay their contributions some months before they grow due; when no L…nd lord can receive his Rents, nor Creditor his debts to pay these Taxes, till at, or after the time they become due? And all to enslave, impoverish the Nation, to carry on new Wars, without consent of Parliament, and gain new Conquests abroad, whiles in the mean time our Merchants are robbed, undone, our trading decayed by these taxe…, war…, and for want of well-guarding the Seas at home. And not content with these ordin…ry Monthly co…tributions, excises, imports, have not these Refarmers, without any leg…l Trial, hearing conviction of New Delinquency (g)(g)See my Gospel plea for the Ministers of the Gospel.(oft endeavouring to take away all Ministers Tithes, though due unto them Jure divino, as well a… by the Laws of the Land) exacted the … of all formerly sequestred persons, their heirs and Widows… p. 59estates, improv'd according to the best improv'd value, by a late Decimation, (for which there is no divine nor …uman Law or Right) notwithstanding all former compositions, Pardons under Seal, Articles of War, their own Act of Oblivion, their late instrument of Government, and oath for … observance; besides all our an…ient Laws, exempting them there from, yea notwithstanding this sacred Canon Ezech. 18. 20. The Son shall not b…ar the iniquity of the Father; with this Maxim in our Law, Transgressio personalis moritur cum persona; when as yet many Sons, yea some Infants are merely decimated … their Fathers, and Wives …, Dowers charged for their Husbands …; Nay which is yet more barbarous, illegal, hundreds of Orthodox, able, godly, learned, Protestant Ministers of our Church, without any hearing or crime at all, for their former expiated pardoned mistake, in being addicted to the late Kings party, are not only turned out of all their livings, lectures, fellowships, schools at once; but likewise prohibited to preach, teach School, in publike or private, or to be entertained as Chaplains in private Houses, to support themselves, wives, children; or to administer the Sacrament, or mary any, under pain of imprisonment, banishment: And may not all our other Protestant Orthodox Ministers, School Mast…rs, Scholars be thus … down, and suppressed at once, by the like club-law and justice, of which this President is a very sad presage? Moreover do not these Reformers seise mens Horses, Arms, Swords, fouling, birding pieces, (yea the very Armorets, Chandl…rs, Arms and Ammuntion, though their stock, wares, trade, livelihood) at their pleasures, upon every pretended plot, fear, jealousie? Yea do not Souldie…s, Excise-men and their agents break open, search, ransack mens Hous…s Studies, Trunks, Chests, both by day and night, an… take away their Goods, Chattels, yea their Writ…ngs' Records, Papers, (as they (h)(h)See my N…w Discovery of … ….did mine,) …t th…ir pleasures, against all Law, and many late Parliament… p. 60Votes, Nay have not they forced thousands of all sorts to enter into great penal Bonds of late, with sureties, both for themselves and all their Serv…nts, containing strange, unheard-of (i)(i)Adjudged illegal 1 … 3. c. 15. and 1 E. 3. …. 2, 3 4.illegall Conditions, and forced them to pay, some 10…. others 5 …. others 2 …. 6 d. for every Bond, (an unparalleld oppression) though many of them not worth so much, under pain of Imprisonment, sequestration, and banishment in case of refusal: to … mit all other extorted fees by Marshals, Lieutenants, Officers of the Tower, and others, …rom Prisoners; by Souldiers for levying pretended arrears of Taxes, and of Ex…ise-men, and their Instruments? And are not these more grievous abuses, fit to be redressed, than any coruptions, excesses, fees in Lawyers, or our Laws? No private Person or Lawyers can take one farthing from another against his will, nor do the least prejudice to his reall or personal estate against Law, but he may have present remedy for it. But these New Reformers, by Excises, Imposts, Contributions, Decimations, Sequestrations, and new-invented forfeitures, can forcibly extort, and levy some Millions of pounds from the whole Nation, every year, against their wills, all our Laws, yea strip whole families of their Inheritances, without any remedy by Law or otherwise: yet this must be no grievance or injnstice at all in them, though the Highest Treason, and unpardonable crying offences, in Strafford, Canterbury, the old Council-Table, and beheaded King; but a most righteous proceeding, necessary to be still pursued if not now established by a New Law, inabling them still to tax and pollus at their pleasures, without any future Parliaments, or redresse.

4. For the free course of the Common Law, Right, and Justice, according to Magna Charta. c. 29. We will deny, nor deferre to no man Iustice or Right. It was never so much obstructed in any age by any persons, as by these new Reformadoes of our Laws. Witness their unparalleld late Whitehall Ordinances, touching their illegal Excises: which not only indempnifie… p. 61all Excisem…, and their Assistants against all actious (4) 4 … & 17 March, 1653. May 4. 1654, &c.to be brought against the…, or other molestations by all parties griewed; but expresly requiring, …njoyning all Courts of Iustice of this Commonwealth, and all Judges and Iustices of the same, Sheriffs, Counsellors, Attornies; Sollicitors, and all other persons to conform themselves accordingly, Without any opposition or dispute whatsoever; So that now no Court of Justice, or Judge must or can right; nor any Lawyer, Attorney, Sollicitor, or other person, plead, argue or prosecute any sute at Law against any illegal Excise, Tax or Imposition, though never so unjust and oppressive; nor against any Leyier of them, or imprisoner of refusers of them, under pain os being dis-…udged, (like Thorp, Nudigate, and Rolls of late) or being committed to the Tower, as Mr. Maynard, Twisden, and Wadham Windham were, for arguing Con…s case against these Whitehall Ordinances. A slavery worse than that of the(l)(l)See my s… cond … to th… Jews … into England. English lews of old; To omit all former inforcements of well affected plundered persons and others, to release their Actions, I…dgements, Executions against Cavaliers, Souldiers, and others, and to pay them dammages, and costs of …ute besides, to their undoings, by their Councils of War, and Committees of Indemnity, of which there are hundreds of sad Presidents; I shall only touch their new Major Generals, Captains, Lieutenants, and others late Abuses of this kind, in sending for Lawyers, Attornies, Sollicitors, Parties, by Souldiers and other Messengers, and forcing them by menaces, terror, and threatned imprisonments to release their Actions, Iudgements, Executions, and to referre all sutes depending in Courts of Equity or Iustice, to their own hearing and determination. Their examining, controlling, reversing Orders, Iudgements, Decrees, made not only by Iudges, Iustices, and others, in Courts of Law and Equity, but even by Committees of Parliament, and the Commons House it self: their sending for some persons in Custody who refused to attend them, upon references, and others sundry miles, and making them dance… p. 63attendance on them fro… day to day upon bare Petitions and false suggestiou… of clamorou… persons, after several Iudgements, Decr… es in Courts of Iustice, Equity, Parliaments, and former references by the late King, seconded with …any years quiet enjoyment, for lands reeovered against them, to their intollerable expence and vexation. A preparative to ingrosse all Law and Iustice for the future into their own hands alone, and suppresse all Courts of Iustice, Iudges, as dull and uselesse tools, as some of late have stiled them. And are not these far heavier, sadder Grievances, abuses worthy redresse, than any these Reformers complain of in our Laws or Lawyers?

If our Sword-men imagin, their Victorious Successes will still bear them out in all these their illegal extravagances, against all Laws, Tribunals both of God and Men; let them remember, that**T…og …s Pom …, & Justin. His…. l. 1. H…o do…us, l. 1. 2. … …iculus, lib 2. Cyrus King of Persia, after his victorious conquests of Astyages, Croesus, all Asia, and the East, with a great part of Scythia, and 30 years reign, with c…utinual and admirable Successe; was at last (after a great victory over the Scythians) sodenly surprised and slain by Thomyris Queen of Scythia, and his whole old victorious Army of two hundred thousand Persians put every man to the sword, not one of them escaping to bring back tydings of this their admirable universal …verthrow and slaughter. After which his head was cut off by the Queens command, and thrown into a Vessel filled with mans bloud, with this exprobation of his cruelty, Satia te sanguine quem sitisti, cujusque insatiabilis semper fuisti. That**Pat…rculus Hist. l. 2. & 3. Plut…rch. in his Li…e. P…mpey the Great, that glorious and famous Roman, aster his Conquests of, … 3… publike Triumphs (decreed him by the Roman Senate) over Europe, Asia and Africa, (the whole known World in that age) which he had subdued, …as yet at last conquered by Iulius Caesar his Corrival, …nd forced to fly into Egypt; there taken and beheaded by a slav…, and his cark…ss lef unburied o… the sands, as a prey to the birds and beasts; so that he who formerly wanted earth for him to conquer, now wanted earth to… p. 62bury him; such was the vicissitude of his fortune (as Pa…erculus observes.) And not long after this Great Conquerour**Suctonius, P…utarch, …, G …imston, and o …s i… his L…. Caesar, was sodenly stabbed to d…th in the Senate House by his own Friends in whom he most confided, for his ambitious Tyrannical usurpations over the Senate and people; Enough to make all other usurping oppressing Swordmen tremble (not half so great Conquerors as either of these three) notwithstanding all their former successes; which should rather …nmble and make them more just, righteo… towards the people, for whose Lawes and Liberties they pretended they only fought against arbitrary Tyranny, Impositions and Rapine, than more arbitrary, insolent, exorbitant, oppressive than those they fought against, and suppressed; and that upon the consideration of 2 Chron. cap. 10. 2 Kings 14. 8. to 15. Mich. 2. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10. Ierem. 34. 8. to 22. and Rom. 11. 17. to 22. which I desire them seriously to peruse and meditate upon at their leisures.

To these forenamed 4. Generals, I might add their New Voluminous Whitehall folio Edicts, O…dinances, repealing, altering our former Laws and Statutes in many particulars, imposing new Taxes, payments, forfeitures, imprisonments, fines, penalties on the people, aad such as shall infringe them; Their converting all Prizes taken by their Men of War, to private Vses, and their publike Treasury, without repairing or satisfying our Merchants Losses by Pyracies and Wars in the first place, by whose Customs and for whose Safety they are principally maintained, and whose damages should be therefore in justice, conscience, first repaired; Major Generals and their Deputies suppressing of Innes, Taverns, Alehouses (like absolute Justices) without any legal Authority, and then setting them up again soon after, through the mediation of Friends or mony: Their riding in circuit with those who are their Iudges to overawe and controll them; their open abetting and countenancing of causes; their great destruction of the timber of the Nation, against s…ndry… p. 64Statutes, their building of new stately Houses, Gardens, &c. upon the peoples and the publick stock; the sharing of the publike Lands and Revenues of the kingdom amongst themselves, which should defray publike expences, now fit to be r…formed, as in former ages; Their making Sectaries and illiterate Swordmen, and other persons of mean quality, who understand neither Law nor Iustice, their Iustices of Peace, and Committee men in sundry places, agai… former Statutes: Their imposing, administ…ing Oaths to men without any Legal Commissión or Law (as every Swordman now presumes) a Praemunire and grand Offence in former ages: With sundry more generals, which I pretermit, the particulars whereof would amount to many Baronian Tom…s, if at large recorded, being worthy the consideration of the approaching Asse… bly, if not of reformation. Which Assembly being purposely called, as these Army Officers, and Major Generals report, and some Whitehall Letters import, for the reformation of our Laws, and for the healing and closing up of the wounds, breaches of our distracted, discontent…d Nations; which my skill in Chirurgery and Politicks, and the method of all former Pa…liaments allu…es me can never perfectly be healed and closed up, without danger of …pse & breaking out again with great…r pain, danger, violence, unless they be first sea…ched, lanced, and laid open to the bot…om, & then perfectly cleansed, and incarnated; without leaving any … Corruption underneath. I have thereupon (to gratifie Mr. S… heard, and discharge my bounden duty to my Profession and Country) thus … anatomized and …d them open to pu… like view, to the end they may (th…ough Gods blessing) r…ceive a speedy, sound and persect, not superficial palliative C…, without any other si…ster design. Now the grand … bo… of Souls and States g…ve so … a blessing and successe to these few leaves, that they may prove like the leaves of the … of life, Rev. 22. 2. for the …aling of the Nations; That God may not now say of England, as he did once of Israel, …. 30. 13, 14, 15. Thy bruise is incurable, and thy wound is gri…vous, The…e is none to plead thy cause that thou maist be bound up; tho… … no heal…ng medicins: All thy lovers have forgotten …; they seek … …ot; for I have wounded thee with the wound of on Enemy, with the chastisement of a cruel one, for the multitude of thine iniquities, because thy sins are encreased.

FINIS.

End of the text · William Prynne, The Asserter of the Peoples Liberty (1658)