Corporations Vindicated, To the reader
To the Honourable, the Committee for Reformation of the Universities.
Right Worthy Senators,
THough by reason of a subrustick pudor and love of ease (the two Cardinal vices of my Constitution) I have been always averse from action, never but by strong enforcement of duty appearing in publike view. And though I was never so well pleased with ought I could ever yet say or do, as to think it worth a rehearsal, much less of publication, especially in these Pamphleting times, wherein the glut of Books hach rendred all mens Palats nauseous of what is not in its kind excellent and extraordinary: Yet have I been lately by a strong desire of removing those pressures our Colledge hath long groaned under, rouzed up out of my dearling rest, and native shamefastness, to appear a Petitioner before you in some causes of our commmon concernment; in all which, though wearyed with the discouragement of continual frustrations (which put both all those engaged with me, and others that would have otherwise appeared, into a resolutition of no more addresses) yet could not I sit still as despairing, till I had made this one essay more, and deliverd my self of this last parturience.
This masculine birth was no sooner exposed to the light in your presence, but it was as you may well remember, by Doctor Seaman, whose prerogative it was born to oppose, endeavoured to be stifled with a deluge of vulgar slanders, viz. Malignity to his person, ambitious desire of private promotion, enmity to the establisht Laws and Government of the Ʋniversity, from all which the Petition was I think before your selves sufficiently asserted; but those light aspersions being easilyer born away on the wings of common Fame, then that weight of reason I laid before you for its vindication, I held it convenient to send after them this particular memorial of that days proceedings, that so his Calumnies, and th… Narrative being both heard speak together, the Ʋniversity, which I know never yet esteemed me an enemy to its Government, may be the better enabled to give a true judgement.
But above all, being convinced by some present at that debate, that what I then delivered before you, if published, might possibly prove both a serviceable light and incentive to some generous spirits, to the contribution of their endeavors to that good reformation by you resolv'd upon, I could not, (being a most devoted servant to that publique end) but give way to their Counsels, though putting my slow Pen to the great pennance of extorting from my weak memory, and transcribing into a form fit for the Press, that rude draught of materials I had prepared for this work, together with an intersertion here and there of some few pertinencies in that tumultuary dispute, either omitted or fo…gotten.
I must confess I expected, that having the state of the Controversie, and great need then was of determining it, so clearly laid open before you, 1. In Doctor Seamans great unwillingness so much as to answer whether he laid claim to a negative voyce, 2. In his op…n discovery, when more pressly urged to it, of his avowance and claim to it. 3. In a full and satisfactory answer to all those Pleas he could produce in justification of this claim; That a Declaration of your, se…ses against his negative voice, with some certain provision against the use of it for the future, would have been the narrowest result of that dayes consultation.
And I further hoped that some Gentlemen of worth would so far have espoused a Commonwealth quarrel, as that, if the abolition of the Masters supremacy in calling of meetings, and proposing of questions at his own pleasure were not in the Committees power, the matter being of a high and publique concernment, should have been speedily reported to the house to provide a remedy.
But I will not make any foolish expectation of mine, a rule whereby to judge of the resolutions of wiser men.
That Order you were pleased to make that day, of having a view taken of the Statutes of the whole Ʋniversity, and every particular Colledge, was a noble and a generous Resolve; and to suffer your selves, from the representation of a particular places grievances to be awakened into a positive activity towards an universal reformation, was a thing becoming men of enlarged spirits, and that Archipoimenal power you are entrusted with. And in that subsequent Order of those Gent…emen of the Sub-Committee, Dated April 25. I cannot but with all due reverence applaud their wise admittance of an intermixture of the experience of men best knowing in Colledge affairs with their own particular wisdoms in this Reformation: you gaining by this means a threefold advantage.
First, The due praise of your Honourable Condescent in not asserting us to our lost freedoms by an absolute power, till there first appear in our selves a disl…ke of our former Metamorphosis, and willingness to be restored.
Secondly, A true knowledge of the condition and temper of the Ʋniversity in the Geni…s of its part…cul…r Members, and how it stands aff…cted to the principles of freedom.
And thirdly, Many considerable discoveries, which your selves out of the bare Theory could never have made, of great subserviency to the clearing of your understandings, not only in this point of freedom, but in all the other parts of your intended Reformation.
Yet give me leave in my rough Northern Dialect to present before you some grand obstructions, which as to our Colledge (for I desire not to intermeddle further) may possibly hinder such due concurrence as might justly be expected.
The first is the Master of the Colledges residing at London, who though at that distance from his Charge, he ought to be lookt at as a non-significant Cypher, yet hath he thereby opportunity, by his great interest and acquaintance with many of your Members, to cast the prejudices of a private and partial information against whatsoever we shall present, especially if intrenching upon his prerogative.
Secondly, Though himfelf should sit still and say nothing, yet his known Agent, that grave Seigniour, who stands alwaies at your elbow, and hath been permitted more then once to intermeddle in our Colledge affairs, even in the time of your private debates, when we of the Colledge, who are most concerned, were commanded to withdraw, and who, by the knowledge of your minds he thereupon pretends to, hath sometimes attempted to deprave your Orders from your sense, recorded by your publike Officer. This man still continuing in trust and respect with you, and I believe oft intruding his alloy into the penning of your Orders, cannot but administer us great ground of jealousie, that our best endeavous are in danger to prove abortive.
I speak not this without good ground; for when we had once at the beginning of these troubles a Petition to present to you; a prudent man of our Society, whose judgement we knew concurred with us, did refuse to appear above board upon this very ground; Our Petition he said was very just, and agreeable both to Reason, and the Colledge Statute, but the Tribe of Adoniram would be too strong for us.
A Gentleman being once to travel into France, took with him a raw Country-fellow to wait upon him; the Gentleman being arrived at Paris, and some dayes after, going to see the Court, his man was very inquisitive of him to know which was the King: but being shewn him, would not believe it was he, and gave this for his reason, That sure the French were not such fools, when they had among them as he knew well, a grave, able, and learned Councellour to make choyce of (he meant a tall grim Switzer, with a great head, and a long beard, which he had observed waiting at the Kings Gate) to reject this wise man, and make choice of a young youth of not thirty year old to be their K…ng.
All the Application I made of it is but this one sober aviso, that you beware of too much depretiating your selves, and your Authority; The being but thought to Philippise, was once a great dishonour to the famous Oracle.
This reverend Switzer is I assure you lookt at as a great man, is adored by many, and few I think appear before you but sacrifice to him, at lest ne noceat, and the old Proverb of our Chronicle begins to be again remembred;
He that will England win,
With Scotland must first begin.
I know not whether this plain language may displease some; but I hope some indulgence will be granted to a poor Northern man, who hath not yet learned to speak smooth English. And besides, it is more agreeable both to the rules of honesty and your interest, that these things should be declared to you, then whispered of you. But I forget my self.
That this mans finger (though your selves I am confident are not aware of it) hath not been wanting to the penning of this Order, I do a little suspect. Because first, Only those members of Colledges entrusted with the Government for the time being (which I think in most Colledges are only the Master & two Deans, and a Lecturer or two) are here called in to give their advice. Secondly, That masculine expression in your first Resolve of reducing the Statutes to such a state as may render them most conducing to the advancement of the interest of a Commonwealth, being in this latter Order left out, and instead thereof, they only commanded to consider what Statutes, &c are prejudicial to the present Government: whereupon most men declining your intended sense (of which your first Resolve is the best Exposito…) will probably confine their understandings solely to the Consideration of the Oaths of Alleg…ance and Supremacy, or something of that nature, as fit to be abolished.
Third…y, In our Colledge, though the Master and Deans, with the Lecturer (and Bursar in some cases,) are solely intrusted with the ex…cutive part of the governing power, yet is every member of the society by our Statute, equally intrusted with the Legislative.
Now there are lately five Fellows put in by Order of this Committee, who though none of them have yet attained the degree of Master of Arts, and so are not yet men in an Ʋniversity account, yet must they (being by your special Orders made compleat Fellows a year before their time) though utterly ignorat of our Statutes, unexperienced in Colledge affairs, and besides, all but one of them, by their several relations to the Master, most devoted to his interest, have equal Votes in this grand Transaction with us of ancientest standing and experience, which must needs produce vast obstructions, and perhaps returns of contradictory opinions before your Tribunal. And these young lads opinions, being in the most material points, sure to have the Masters, either private or publike abettance, according to whose private instructions they will assuredly act, 'tis not uneasie to judge by former successes what is like to be the event in this.
Fourthly, It being unlikely that you will finde in other Colledges, a number considerable to the major part to declare for any considerable mutation, where no oppressive miscarriage of their chief Officer hath awakened them into a distaste of their present absolute Monarchy; its improbable our Colledge lying under such discouragements will adventure to be singular.
Fifthly, That which is likely to prove the main obstruction of all, is mens jealousies of those hazzards they may incur by a fruitless Declaration of their senses in points tending to the advancement of a Commonwealth interest, your selves having not yet declared your own senses in favour of the cause of Liberty, which makes some fear, that their profession of some free principles may (though undoubtedly far from your honorable intentions) prove in the event, but an assembling themselves, though honest men, to the fate of Baals Priests, I mean the rage of that Samaritan, whose corrupt interest they oppose.
But if your selves, upon whose countenances all men will look as the magnetick Pole-stars of their motion, would but shew your selves so far propitious to the cause of Liberty, as to pass but by way of earnest, a previous Declaration of your senses against the prerogative of Peters Chair, whose root lies already bare and disfastened by reasons, axes and mattocks, and wants but one stroke of your authority to lay it level with the ground; this would indeed give some incouragement to our fainting resolutions.
But if the redress of our grievance must be deferr'd till a perfect new model of all those Statutes have waded through that infinitude of almost insuperable obstructions it will meet with: I cannot but look at our Cause as neer desperate, or at least shall of poor Peter-house take up my Proverb, and say, Dum consulitur Romae, capitur Saguntum; while help from our friends of the Roman Republick is delayed, our Liberties are left as a prey; and those that appear'd for it, as a scorn to the insulting enemy, who now having obtain'd his will in your ejection of one elected by the President and Fellows; of which you have an account annext to the latter end of this Relation, and his own Sizer a Londoner put by you into that Fellowship, though design'd by our Founder for a Northren man; and having lastly got this desired advantage of having this great c…ntroversie left in statu quo, and drown'd in that unfathomable Ocean of the universal view, and Reformation of the great body of our Colledge and Ʋniversitie Statutes (like that souldier, who being told he must answer for some-yards of cloth he had snatch't out of a Merchants-shop, at the day of Judgement, merrily retorted; that might he have so long a day given him, he would take the whole piece) puts the evil day afar off; and as I hear impotently boasts himself your onelyonly Favorite, and the Society as a despised handful, not otherwise look't at then as a heap of dead stones, except when it shall please himself to animate us into a Fabrick.
This I can attribute to nothing so much as those his Punick Ambusca'ds wherewith he hath hitherto prevail'd against our more apert Roman Militia; I mean those secret whisperings instill'd, I fear into their ears, whom he hath free access to, of his being the author of all their essences in Peter-house, who now lift up their heels against him, of a Faction, and I know not what plot, to make way for building up another mans promotion out of his ruins; which groundless scandals, lying perhaps as a preposs…ssion in many mens belief, cannot but prove a heavy obstruction in their way who have done, or shall further appear his adversaries.
But I hope you will in time consider how usual a stratagem it hath alwaies been of tyrants, to defile those that appeared for Reformation with such like slanders.
And when Truths Story comes to be told in to your other ear, which I hope is reserved empty for us the Fellows; these daughters of Falshood will hide their faces, and vanish into nothing. I could my self with a little more of your patience rectifie your judgements of those prejudices, were I sure there were need of it.
But I have detained you too long.
Be pleased to accept of these Remonstrances, which, lest the Publication might be misinterpreted an appeal to others; I crave the boldness to Dedicate in all humility to your selves, not doubting, but that that candid and favourable attention of yours, which honoured their first privater birth, will not deny its propitious influence upon this their more publike production.
And that you will every way approve your selves answerably to that honourable Stile you bear, The Committee for Reformation, is the confidence, And will alwaies be the Prayer of
Your meanest Servant, Ch. Hotham.