The Oath of Allegiance and National Covenant Non-Obliging, Title page – To the reader
The OATH of ALLEGIANCE AND THE NATIONAL COVENANT PROVED To be NON-OBLIGING: OR, THREE SEVERAL PAPERS ON THAT SUBJECT; VIZ.
1. Two POSITIONS, with ſeveral REASONS of them, and CONSEQƲENCES flowing from thence.
2. An ANSWER to the ſaid POSITIONS.
A REPLY to the ſaid ANSWER, wherein the Truth of the Poſitions is Vindicated, and the Oath of Allegiance, and the National Covenant are made Non-Obliging.
By SAMUEL EATON, Teacher of the Church of Chriſt at DARKENFIELD in CHESSHIRE.
LONDON: Printed by Peter Cole, at the ſign of the Printing-Preſs in Cornhil, near the Royal Exchange, 1650.
To the READER.
Good READER,
IT is not many daies ſin… I was informed, that ſome Poſitions of mine, reſpecting the Oath of Allegiance, were made publick to the world, and that an Anſwer thereto was annexed, and together with the Poſitions was printed, which at firſt I could hardly receive for truth: but for further ſatisfaction, the book was ſent me, and in the Title Leaf, I read, An Anſwer to ſome Poſitions of Mr. Samuel Eaton (diſperſed by him.) I am neceſſitated for the Vindication of my ſelf, to publiſh the bad dealings that I have met with in this buſineſs from Brethren, I will not call them falſebrethren, though their proceedings do hold forth too much falſeneſs and baſeneſs.
I had occaſion in the latter end of the laſt yeer, to be often times at a Gentlemans houſe of honorable note in Lancaſhire; he declared himſelf unſatisfied how the Oath of Allegiance could be Non-Obliging, which was ſo abſolutely taken by many of the Subjects, and by himſelf: I gave him ſuch Anſwers as were ſuitable to my preſent apprehenſions: his requeſt was, That I would put down in writings what I had preſented in words, or any other conceptions of the like nature, about that ſubject, and ſend them to him: I condeſcended, and in a free friendly way preſented him with my ſudden thoughts, and incloſed them in a letter to him, having had his promiſe not to communicate the ſame to any, ſave to one friend of his, whoſe private conceptions of th…m he would entreat, and would ſhew them to me. But thus it fell out, there waas a piece of diſhoneſtly (I might put a worſe term upon it) acted by ſome, that would be better thought of. The letter ſent to this Gentleman was opened, a Copy was taken of the Poſitions conteined therein, and many Copies written out of that Copy and diſperſed abroad, all …ver two Counties, before ever the Gentleman (to whom I writ, and ſent the ſaid Poſitions) received his Letter. I wondred much at it, knowing that I had not given any Copy to any Creature, and had not ſo much as ſhewed it to any at that time, ſave to three perſons. The Gentleman diſcerning that the Letter had been opened, and hearing that Copies were got abroad, thought himſelf bound to ſearch it out, ſome pains was taken to diſcover it, at laſt it came to light. I could both name the place where, and the perſon by whom it was done, but for ſome ſpecial reaſons I forbear. The Gentleman when he had peruſed the Writing ſent it to his friend, and his friend inſtead of Anſwering it himſelf, (as I expected) procures an elaborate Anſwer unto it; which after the ſpace of ſix weeks or two months was ſent unto me, and therein my two Poſitions were ſpoken to, but nothing elſe that was contained in my Paper was medled with. And the Author of this Anſwer, at that time, thought to have proceeded no further in his Anſwer, but about ſix weeks after the receipt of the other, the ſecond part of his Anſwer was given to me, both which are now printed to the view of the world by means of ſome Brethren about Mancheſter, to whom a Copy of the Anſwer was ſent, without the knowledg, and unto the offence of the Author thereof, as I am credibly informed. I had ſent my Reply to that part of the Anſwer which firſt came to my hands, to be peruſed in a private way, before I knew that any thing was extent in print, but am now forced to expoſe it to Publick view. By all this it may appear that I intended not to engage in this Controverſie, but could not decline the giving of an Anſwer to a Queſtion propounded. If any ſatisfaction ſhall ariſe to any by any thing which I repreſent, I ſhall be thankful to God. However I ſhall not repine, becauſe it was Gods Will, that my private conceptions muſt thus come to light. Notwithſtanding, wrong doers muſt give an account. I remain,
Thy friend in the Truth, SAM. EATON.