⚫ that paper was directed. The King faid, "it is my Anfwer; "I give it to you; it is your duty to take it; you may deliver. "it to them that sent you." The Earl of Denbigh preffing it

6

a fecond time, the King replied, "You must take it, if it "were a ballad, or a song of Robin Hood:" and faid further, "You told me twice you had no power to treat, my memory "is as good as yours, you were only to deliver the Propofitions; 66 a poftilion might have done as much as you." The Earl of • Denbigh replied, "That was not our condition, though we "would be glad, in thefe diftracted times, to do his Majefty " and the kingdom fervice in any condition.' • His Majesty replied, "I mean it not to your perfons." Then Mr. Holles faid to the King, "Sir, we had in charge to bring the Propo"fitions to you, and to defire your Anfwer in writing, which "we have, with all humility, done: The reason why the Earl " of Denbigh defired we might withdraw, was, that we might "confult with our inftructions; because the paper delivered un"to us hath no direction, and therefore we beseech your Mar jefty, to let us know to whom it must be delivered;" to which the King faid, "I am not bound to answer that quef❝tion." Mr. Holles replied, "If we can have no other an"fwer, we muft carry this." Then Mr. Pierpoint faid, "Our Inftructions are only to deliver the Propofitions unto your "Majefty, to defire your Answer in writing, and to return "with it; but in this paper delivered by your Majesty, there " is a meffage." His Majefty to this faid, "That is all one, "this is my Anfwer; if it were a fong of Robin Hood you "muft carry it:" And after a paufe he added, "I defire you "to further the procuring of the Safe-conduct, than which you << cannot do better service to the kingdom. I, and these honest 66 men about me, are most desirous of Peace: There are three "things I will not part with, the Church, my Crown, and my "Friends, and you will have much ado to get any of these from "me. I will not prefs you to go prefently, you may, if you " will, ftay fome time; but the fooner you fend me a Safe-conduct the better." So we kiffed his Majefty's hand, and ⚫ came away to our lodgings.

''The next morning Mr. Afhburnham came to the Members of both Houfes, and faid he was fent from the King to every ⚫ one of them severally, to deliver a meffage, which was to this effect, "That his Majefty was fenfible fome words might "have fallen from him in his paffion, that might give difcon 66 tent; that it was not fo intended by him: and he defired that "the best conftruction might be made of it." ⚫ answered severally, and, afterwards, all together, "That they To this they "took this message for a very great honour, and defired him to

"express

"express their humble thanks to his Majefty in the best language he could:"Afterwards, being ready to take coach, another meffage was brought us from his Majefty, "That we "would tarry a little till a Trumpeter might be ready to go a"long with us, who was fent by him to bring the Safe-con"duct;" which we did, and accordingly he is come with us. ⚫ for that purpose.'

We cannot forbear remarking on this conference, that the King's difcourfe looks like an attempt towards archness, and betrays an air of levity, inconfiftent with the dignity of a Monarch; and we cannot help adding, that a due fenfe of feeling for the calamities in which he had involved his miferable subjects, might have difpofed him to more seriousness.

The King being defeated at the famous battle of Nafeby, all his letters fell into the hands of the Parliament; and a Report was made from the Committe appointed to inspect them, on which the following animadverfions were grounded.

1. That the King endeavours to overthrow the Act of Parliament, and his public Declarations of acknowleging this • Parliament at the Treaty, by an Act of Council at Oxford, ' and an entry upon the council-book.

2. That his owning of the Parliament was only to draw on the Treaty, by which he hoped for advantage, without any ⚫ intention to acknowlege it indeed.

3. That the King would never have acknowleged the Parliament, if he had had but two men to have stuck to him in denying it; himfelf being more ready to deftroy the Parlia'ment, and more violently bent against it, than his very Ox⚫ford Council.

4. That the kingdoms and Parliaments could hardly expect but with great difficulty, to have affurance to rest upon any thing that the King declares, when his public Declarations are thus undermined by private Acts and Registers,

Our Authors obferve, That within twelve months after the • battle of Nafeby, in June 1645, near an hundred and fifty • writs were iffued out by the Houfe of Commons, for fupply⚫ing the places of fuch Members as were dead, and of others who had been difabled from fitting there in 1642 and 1643, for taking part with the King.-Thefe vacancies, which amounted to full one third part of the Houfe, (many writs being iflued for two Members) were filled up moftly by those that were of the Independent Party: a circumftance which will help to account for the divifions upon contefted questions be

ing larger than ufual, and alfo for the much greater changes ⚫ that enfued.

< This affair took its rife from a petition presented by the Burgeffes of Southwark, in Auguft 1645, defiring a new election; Mr. White, one of their Members being dead, and Mr. Bagfhaw, the other, difabled by vote. The account of the debate thereof, which happened on the 14th, is thus given by Mr. Whitlocke; "Some were of opinion a new election < might prove inconvenient and of danger: others preffed it as the right of the fubject to have Burgeffes: upon the question, to defer it for a month longer, it was carried in the negative, • and the House refolved into a grand Committee to confider of it. Accordingly, on the 21ft, this matter was resumed, and it was carried, by three voices, to have new elections; and the Speaker was ordered to iffue out his warrants to that purpofe; but with this reftriction, "That no perfon elected fhould fit in the House till he took the Covenant." 'And on the firft of September it was refolved, "That no person "fhould be chofen who had borne arms against the Parlia "ment."

• General Ludlow's account of this matter runs thus: "The • House of Commons finding their business to increase, and their ⚫ numbers to diminish, by the death of fome, and desertion of others to the King at Oxford, ordered the Commiffioners of the Great Seal to iflue out writs to fuch counties, cities, and < boroughs, as the House, by their particular order, should direct, for the election of Members to ferve in Parliament: • but their best friends were not without fears what the issue of their new elections might be; for though the people durft not chufe fuch as were open enemies to them, yet probably they ⚫ would fuch as were most likely to be for a peace upon any terms, corruptly preferring the fruition of their eftates, and • fenfual enjoyments, before the public intereft; which fort of * men were no lefs dangerous than the other: and therefore honeft men, in all parts, did what they could to promote the • election of fuch as were moft hearty for the accomplishment of our deliverance; judging it to be of the highest import❝ance fo to wind up things, that we might not be over-reached • by our enemies in a treaty, that had not been able to contend ⚫ with us in open war.”

The Journals confirm this circumftance of three voices, the numbers being fixty-five againft fixty-two: but it appears by thofe authorities, That the divifion was upon the first question, August 14th, and not on the 21st.

t Memoirs, Vol. I. p. 165, and 168.

• The

The Diaries, or printed News-papers, of thefe times afford us fome very wholesome instructions to the country on this occafion, too remarkable to be paffed over:

<< Chufe men of able parts, knowlege, courage, and expref"fion; profeffors of religion, exact in all duties, holy towards "God, and juft towards all men; free from covetousness, op"preffion, and partiality: chufe none that have any depend"ance upon another, for fuch cannot be yours further than an"other will permit; chufe thofe as have eftates in your coun"ties, and not fuch as want to get eftates by their country's << ruin: chufe fuch as have been oppofers of illegal taxes, loans, "ship-money, and monopolies. Take heed not to chufe any "man that has been a receiver of the people's money, without

his firft making a clear account to the kingdom. Lastly, "Judge of your Candidates by their lives and practices, not by their words, profeffions, or proteftations; for though a man's faith fhall justify him before God, yet the faith of the "men you elect ought to be manifefted to you by their ac❝tions."

< But how ineffectual all these admonitions were, appears by the many unconftitutional methods made ufe of to carry elections, at this crisis, in Warwickshire, Berkshire, Cambridg fhire, Staffordshire, Somerfetfhire, and other parts of the kingdom; all which are related at large by these Intelligencers, but are far too tedious for our purpofe; and the more unneceffary, as they are thus very briefly, and very juftly, recapitulated by Lord Holles in his Memoirs.

"In the long fummer vacation of the year 1645, when very many of the Members were gone into their feveral countries, they [the Independent party] fall upon that point of recruiting the House; and notwithstanding the thinness thereof, and its being furprized with that debate, their creatures, moft of them there, (as they were always fure of fome fifty voices, perfons whofe only employment was there to drudge and carry on their mafter's work, having thereby a greatnefs far above the fphere they had formerly moved in: whereas the others were Gentlemen who had eftates which required their looking after, and all of them fome vocations, either for their particular bufinefs or pleasure, which made them lefs diligent, and many of them, as at other times, fo then away) fyet they carried it but by three voices.

"Then to work they go to canvafs for elections in all places, for the bringing in of fuch as fhould be wholly theirs. First they did all they could to ftop writs from going any whither but where they were fure to have fit men chofen for their turns,

and

• and many an unjust thing was done by them in that kind: * Sometimes denying writs, fometimes delaying till they had • prepared all things, and made it, as they thought, cock-fure: Many times Committee-men in the country, fuch as were their creatures, appearing grofsly, and bandying to carry elec⚫tions for them; fometimes they did it fairly by the power of the army, caufing foldiers to be fent and quartered in the towns ⚫ where elections were to be, awing and terrifying, sometimes abufing, and offering violence to, the electors. And when ⚫ these undue elections were complained of, and questioned at the Committee of Privileges, there appeared fuch palpable partiality, fo much injuftice, fuch delays and tricks to vex parties grieved and their witneffes, fuch countenancing and defending those who had done the wrong, as it difheartned every body, and made many even fit down, and give over profe'cution."

39

This is a fubject of fo tender a nature, that though we long to throw in some reflections of our own, yet we must be content with leaving the Reader to compare paft times with the prefent, and to purfue his own comment.

The King being routed in all parts, left Oxford in difguife, and threw himself into the power of the Scotch army. The two Houses then paffed a vote, "That the perfon of the King "fhall be difpofed of as both Houses of the Parliament of Eng"land should think fit." This produced many learned and ingenious conferences between the Scotch and English; the former infifting upon a concurring right in the difpofal of the King, and the latter claiming it folely to themselves.

The Lord Chancellor of Scotland, at a conference in the painted chamber with a committee of both Houses, spoke to the following effect.

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"After having recommended unity of counfels and refolutions, he fays, I fhall, in the next place, humbly defire and proteft, That whatever may be our propofitions or ⚫ debates concerning the King, it be not mif-conftrued, as if one of the kingdoms were impofing conditions upon the other, · or that we were abfolutely wedded to any one defire more than to another; but that (all feveral ways being amicably debated ⚫ and rightly pondered,) that which may ferve moft for the fafety, fecurity, and happiness of the King, and both kingdoms, may be gravely refolved upon. And now I come to the queftion itself, concerning the difpofing of his Majesty's perfon; firft negatively, and then pofitively: Negatively, the queftion is not of the power and authority of the Houfes of Parliament in difpofing of any perfon, or judging of any cafe which is of fingle concernment to England; nor is the queftion how the