"that Meffage was framed. But when they remember'd, that they had Voted as much a week before, and had examined the Gentlemen who brought it, and had receiv'd it from the King's own hand, they proceeded no further in that inquifition; but fatisfied themselves with a new Vote, "That those "Perfons, who advised his Majefty to, abfent himfelf from "the Parliament, and those that advised him to that Meffage, "were Enemies to the Peace of the Kingdom, and justly to " be fufpected to be favourers of the Rebellion in Ireland. And for the matter it felf they refolv'd to infift upon their former Votes; and withal declared, "That when the Lords "and Commons in Parliament, which is the fupreme Court "of Judicature in the Kingdom, fhould declare what the Law "of the Lands, to have that not only queftioned, and con"troverted, but contradicted, and a Command that it should "not be obeyed, was a high breach of the Privilege of Par<<liament.

AND this likewise they caused to be fpeedily Printed; left the King fhould be able to perfwade the Subjects, that an Order of theirs, without His confent, was no Law to compel their Obedience. And from this laft Refolution, by which the Law of the Land, and confequently the Liberty of the Subject, was refolved into a Vote of the two Houses, which paffed without any difpute or hesitation, all Sober Men difcerned the fatal period of both, and faw a Foundation laid for all the Anarchy and Confufion, that hath followed.

Hull.

IT was now known, that the King was gone to York, which Their Order made them apprehend their Principality of Hull might be in concerning danger; and therefore they immediately Refoive, "That no "Forces whatfoever fhall be admitted in that Town, without "the immediate confent of both Houfes: which Order was «fent thither by an exprefs. And having prepared the People to be ready for the Militia, by publishing "That, in cafe "of extreme danger, they were to obey that Ordinance; "they were, in the next place, to find the danger to be ex"treme; and, to that purpofe, they produced Letters without any name, pretended to be written from Amfterdam, fignifying "That they had intelligence there, that there was an "Army ready in Denmark to be Transported into England, "and was to be Landed at Hull; which, they faid, had been "confirmed to them, by a Person of Reputation, from New"Market, who confirmed the intelligence of Denmark: and "added, that there were likewife Forces ready in France to "be Landed at Hull.

Of this, how grofs and ridiculous foever it appeared to Wife Men, they made a double ufe (befides the general impreffion in the People ) the one to colour and countenance their

Ff4

Orders

Orders to their Governour there; the other, to make the King's Refidence in those parts fufpected and grievous, as if he came thither only to bring in Forreign Forces upon them. With these Alarms of Forreign Forces, they mingled other Intelligence of the Papifts in England, "That they had a purpose "of making an Infurrection; and therefore they proceeded in preparing a Bill to secure the Perfons of thofe of the best Quality, and greatest Intereft, and injoyning the Oath of Supremacy to be taken with great rigour; and, amongst other stratagems they had to humble the Papifts, I remember, upon an information that they used their Protestants Tenants worse in the railing their Rents, than they did those of their own Religion, there was an Order, "That they fhould not raise the "Rents of their Tenants, above the rates that the Protestant "Landlords adjoyning receiv'd from their Tenants: by virtue of which, in fome places, they undertook to determine what Rents their Tenants fhould pay to them. But, in this zeal against the Papifts, they could not endure that the King fhould have any fhare, and therefore, when they found, that his Majefty had published a Proclamation in his Journey towards York, "Commanding all the Judges,and Juftices of Peace, " and other Officers, to put in due execution all the Laws, and "Statutes of the Kingdom, against Popith Recufants, without "favour or connivance, they prefently fent for the Sheriffs of London to the House of Commons, and examined them, "Why "feven Priests, who were in Newgate, and had been long "Condemned, were not Executed? the reafon whereof they well knew; and when the Sheriffs faid, "That they had re"ceived a Reprieve for them under the King's hand, they publifhed that with great care in their Prints to take off the Credit of the new Proclamation; and appointed their Messengers, whom they were then fending to the King with a new Declaration, to move his Majefty, That he would take off "his Reprieve, and fuffer those seven Condemn'd Priests to be "Executed, according to the Judgements they had received.

THEY proceeded now to provide all neceffary means for the railing great fums of Money, by the diligent collection of what was granted by former Acts, and by a new Bill for the railing of four hundred thousand pounds, for the payment of the great Debts of the Kingdom (by which they meant the remainder of the three hundred thousand pounds, they had bountifully given to their Brethren of Scotland) and the fupport of the War of Ireland: All which Monies were to be received, and difpofed as the two Houfes fhould direct; of which. though the King faw the danger, that might, and did after enfue thereupon, yet he thought that probable inconvenience and mischief to be lefs, than that, which the scandal of deny

ing

ing any thing, upon which the recovery of Ireland feem'd to depend, would inevitably bring upon him; and fo ratified whatsoever they brought to him of that kind.

turers in

AMONGST other Expedients for raifing of Money for the They make War of Ireland, about this time, they made certain Propo- Propofitions fitions to incourage Men to be Adventurers in that Traffick, for Adven Thus: They concluded "That, in fo general a Rebellion, ve- Ireland. "ry much Land must Escheat to the Crown by the forfeiture "of Treason, and that, out of fuch forfeitures, fatisfaction "might be given to thofe, who fhould disburfe Money to"wards the fuppreffion of the Rebels; fo many Acres of Land "to be allowed for fo much Money, according to the value of "the Lands in the feveral Provinces, which was specified in "the Propofitions; which, having paffed both Houses, were prefented to the King, who (it being about the beginning of February, when the breach of their Privileges rung in all Mens Ears) Answered, "That as he had offer'd, and was still ready "to venture, his own Perfon for the recovery of that King"dom, if his Parliament fhould advise him thereunto; fo he "would not deny to contribute any other affistance he could "to that Service, by parting with any profit or advantage of "his own there; and therefore, relying upon the Wisdom of "his Parliament, he did confent to every Propofition, now The King "made to him, without taking time to confider, and exa- confents to "mine, whether that courfe might not retard the reducing "that Kingdom, by exafperating the Rebels, and rendering "them defperate of being receiv'd into Grace, if they should "return to their Obedience. And, he faid, he would be ready "to give his Royal Affent to fuch Bills, as thould be tender'd "to him by his Parliament for the confirmation of those Pro"pofitions..

WHICH Answer, together with their Propofitions, they caused forthwith to be Printed; made their Committees, in all places, to follicite Subfcriptions, and to receive the Monies, the Principal and most active Perfons Subfcribing first, for the example of others; and delayed the framing, and prefenting the Bill to the King, till they had received great fums of Money, and procured very many Perfons of all Conditions to Subfcribe, many coming in out of pure Covetousness to raise great Fortunes; five hundred Acres of Land being af fign'd for one hundred pound in fome Counties, and not much under that proportion in others: fome out of pure fear, and to win Credit with the Powerful Party, which made this new project a measure of Mens Affections, and a tryal how far they might be trufted, and rely'd on.

THEN they fent thofe Propofitions digested into a Bill to the King, with fuch Clauses of Power to them, and Diminu

them.

The King passes a Bill

to that purpofe.

tion of his own, that upon the matter, he put the making a
Peace with the Rebels there out of his Power, though upon
fitated to país.
the most advantageous terms; which he was likewife necef-

BUT notwithstanding all these preparations on this fide the Sea, the relief, and provifion was very flowly fupplied to the other fide; where the Rebels ftill increased in strength, and by the fame of these Propofitions, inlarged their Power, very many Perfons of Honour, and Fortune, who till then had fate ftill, and either were, or feem'd to be averfe to the Rebellion, joyning with them, as being defperate, and conceiving the utter fuppreffing their Religion, and the very extirpation of their Nation,to be decreed against them. And without doubt, the great Reformers here were willing enough to drive them to any extremity, both out of revenge and contempt, as a People easy to be rooted out, and that the War might be kept up ftill; fince they feared an Union in that Kingdom might much prejudice their designs in this, both as it might fupply the King with Power, and take away much of theirs; whereas now they had opportunity, with reference to Ireland, to raise both Men and Money, which they might be able to imploy upon more preffing occafions, as they will be found afterwards to have done. Neither was it out of their expectation and view, that, by the King's confenting to that fevere Decree, he might very probably discourage his Catholick Subjects, in his other Dominions, from any extraordinary Acts of duty, and affection: at leaft, that it would render him lefs confidered by moft Catholick Princes. And they knew well what use to make of any Diminution of his Interest, or Reputation. These matters thus fettled, for the ease of the two Houses, who were now like to have much to do, they appointed the whole business of Ireland to be managed by Commiffion under the great Seal of England, by four Lords, and eight Commoners, whom they recommended to the King, and who were always to receive inftructions from Themselves. And in this ftate, and difpofition, were the Affairs of Ireland, when the King went to York, where let us now refort to him.

THE END OF THE FOURTH BOOK.

THE

Hiftory of the Rebellion, c.

BOOK V.

Ifa. III. 12.

As for my People, Children are their Oppreffours, and
Women rule over them: O my People, they which
lead thee, caufe thee to err, and destroy the
of thy paths.

way

SSOON as the King came to York, which was about the end of the Year 1641, and found his Reception there to be equal to his expectation, the Gentry, and Men of Ability of that great and Populous County (fome very few excepted) expreffing great alacrity for his Majefty's being with them, and no less sense of the infolent proceedings of the Parliament; thereupon, he refolv'd to treat with the two Houses in another manner than he had done, and to let them clearly know, "That as he would deny them "nothing that was fit for Them to ask, fo he would yield to no"thing that was unreasonable for Him to grant; and that he "would have nothing extorted from him, that he was not very well înclined to confent to. So, within few days after his coming thither, he fent them a Declaration (which he caused to be Printed, and, in the Frontispiece, recommended to the confideration of all his loving Subjects) in Answer to that presented to him at New-Market fome days before: He told them,

"THAT, though that Declaration, prefented to him at His Majefty's "New-Market from 'both Houfes of Parliament, was of fo Declaration "ftrange a Nature,in refpect of what he expected (after fo many March 9. from York, "Acts of Grace and Favour to his People) and fome expref- 1641. "fions in it fo different from the ufual Language to Princes, "that he might well take a very long time to confider it; "yet the clearness and uprightness of his Confcience to God,

"and