Since, at a pinch, one good man gains a vote, and faves a kingdom: and what does any county, or burgefs-town in England know, but all may depend upon their making a good choice? But then to fell the Providence of God, and the dear-bought purchase of your painful ancestors for a little money, (that after you have got it, you know not how little a while you may be fuffered to keep it) is the mark of a wretched mind. Truly, fuch ought not to have the power of a freeman, that would fo abuse his own, and hazard other mens freedom by it: he deferves to be caft over-board, that would fink the vessel, and thereby drown the company embarked with him.

Honeft gentlemen will think they give enough for the choice, that pay their electors in a conftant, painful, and chargeable attendance: but fuch as give money to be chofen, would get money by being chosen they defign not to ferve you, but themselves of you; and then fare you well. As you will answer it to Almighty God, I intreat you to fhew your abhorrence of this infamous practice: it renders the very conftitution contemptible, that any fhould fay, I can be chofen, if I will spend money, or give them drink enough:' and this is faid not without reafon; elections, that ought to be serious things, and gravely and reasonably performed, being generally made the occafions of more rudeness and drunkenness, than any of the wild May-games in ufe among us.

Thus by making men law-breakers, they are, it feems, made fit to chufe law-makers, their choice being the purchase of excess. But muft we always owe our parliaments to rioting and drunkennefs? And must men be made uncapable of all choice before they chufe their legislators? I would know of any of you all, if in a difference about a private property, an horfe or a cow, or any other thing, you would be as easy, indifferent, and careless in chufing your arbitrators? Certainly you would not with what reafon then can you be unconcerned in the qualifications of men, upon whose fitness

and

and integrity depends all you and your pofterity may enjoy? Which leads me to the other particulars.

II. Chufe no man that has been a reputed penfioner; it is not only against your intereft, but it is difgraceful to you, and the parliament you chufe. The representatives of a nation ought to confift of the most wife, fober, and valiant of the people; not men of mean spirits, or fordid paffions, that would fell the intereft of the people that chufe them, to advance their own, or be at the beck of fome great man, in hopes of a lift to a good employ: pray beware of these. You need not be ftraitened; the country is wide, and the gentry numerous.

III. By no means chufe a man that is an officer at court, or whofe employment is durante bene plaoito, that is, at will and pleasure. Nor is this any reflection upon the king; who being one part of the government, should leave the other free, and without the least awe or influence, to bar or hinder its proceedings. Befides, an officer is under a temptation to be biaffed; and, to fay true, an office in a parliament man, is but a fofter and fafer word for a penfion: the pretence it has above the other, is the danger of it.

IV. In the next place, chufe no indigent perfon; for those may be under a temptation of abufing their truft, to gain their own ends: for fuch do not prefer you, which should be the end of their choice, but raise themfelves by you.

V. Have a care of ambitious men and non-refidents, fuch as live about town, and not with their eftates; who feek honours and preferments above, and little, or never, embetter the country with their expenses or hofpitality, for they intend themselves, and not the advantage of the country.

VI. Chufe no prodigal or voluptuous perfons; for befides that they are not regular enough to be law-makers, they are commonly idle; and though they may wish well to your intereft, yet they will lofe it, rather than their pleasures; they will scarcely give their at

tendance,

tendance, they must not be relied on. So that fuch perfons are only to be preferred before thofe that are fober, to do mifchief; whofe debauchery is of the mind; men of unjust, mercenary, and finifter principles; who, the foberer they be to themselves, the worse they are to you.

VII. Review the members of the last parliaments, and their inclinations and votes, as near as you can learn them, and the conversation of the gentlemen of your own country, that were not members, and take your measures by both, by that which is your true and just intereft, at this critical time of the day, and you need not be divided or distracted in your choice.

VIII. Rather take a firanger, if recommended by an unquestionable hand, than a neighbour ill-affected to your intereft. It is not pleafing a neighbour, because rich and powerful, but faving England, that you are to eye: neither pay or return private obligations at the coft of the nation; let not fuch engagements put you upon dangerous elections, as you love your country.

IX. Be fure to have your eye upon men of industry and improvement. For thofe that are ingenious, and laborious to propagate the growth of the country, will be very tender of weakening or impoverishing it: you may truft fuch.

X. Let not your choice be flung upon men of fearful difpofitions, that will let good-fenfe, truth, and your real intereft in any point fink, rather than difplease some one or other great man. If you are but fenfible of your own real great power, you will wifely chuse those, that will, by all just and legal ways, firmly keep, and zealously promote it.

XI. Pray fee that you chufe fincere Proteftants; men that do not play the Proteftant in defign, and are indeed difguifed Papists, ready to pull off their mafk, when time ferves: you will know fuch by their laughing at the plot, difgracing the evidence, admiring the traitors conftancy, that were forced to it, or their religion and party were gone beyond an excufe or an equivoca

equivocation. The contrary, are men that thank God for this discovery, and in their converfation zealously direct themselves in an oppofition to the Papal intereff, which indeed is a combination against good sense, reason, and conscience, and to introduce a blind obedience without (if not againft) conviction. And that principle which introduces implicit faith and blind obedience in religion, will alfo introduce implicit faith and blind obedience in government. So that it is no more the law in the one than in the other, but the will and power of the fuperior, that fhall be the rule and bond of our fubjection. This is that fatal mifchief Popery brings with it to civil fociety, and for which fuch focieties ought to beware of it, and all those that are friends to it.

XII. Lastly, Among these, be fure to find out, and caft your favour upon, men of large principles, fuch as will not facrifice their neighbour's property to the frowardness of their own party in religion: pick out fuch men, as will inviolably maintain civil rights, for all that will live foberly and civilly under the govern

ment.

Christ did not revile thofe that reviled him, much lefs did he perfecute those that did not revile him. He rebuked his difciples, that would have destroyed thofe that did not follow and conform to them, faying, "Ye know not what spirit ye are of: I came not

to destroy men's lives, but to fave them." Which made the apostle to fay, "That the weapons of their "warfare were not carnal, but fpiritual." This was the ancient Proteftant principle, and where Proteftants perfecute for religion, they are falfe to their own profeffion, and turn Papifts even in the worft fenfe, against whom their ancestors did fo ftoutly exclaim. Read the book of martyrs of all countries in Europe, and you will find I fay true: therefore beware alfo of that. Popery. Confider, that fuch partial men do not love England, but a fect; and prefer impofed uniformity, before virtuous and neighbourly unity. This is that

disturber

difturber of kingdoms and states; and until the good man, and not the opinionative man, be the Chriftian in the eye of the government, to be fure, while force is used to propagate or deftroy faith, and the outward comforts of the widow and fatherlefs are made a forfeit for the peaceable exercise of their confciences to God, He that fits in heaven, and judgeth righteously, whofe eye pities the oppreffed and poor of the earth, will with-hold his bleffings from us.

O lay to heart the grievous fpoils and ruins that have been made upon your harmless neighbours, for near these twenty years, who have only defired to enjoy their confciences to God, according to the best of their understandings, and to eat the bread of honeft labour, and to have but a penny for a penny's-worth among you. Whofe ox or afs have they taken? Whom have they wronged? Or when did any of them offer you violence? Yet fixty pounds have been diftrained for twelve; two hundred pounds for fixty pounds. The flocks have been taken out of the fold, the herd from the ftall; not a cow left to give milk to the orphan, nor a bed for the widow to lie on; whole barns of corn fwept away, and not a penny returned; and thus bitterly profecuted even by laws made against Papifts. And what is all this for, unless their worshipping of God according to their confcience? For they injure no man, nor have they offered the leaft moleftation to the government.

Truly, I must take the liberty to tell you, if you will not endeavour to redress these evils in your choice, I fear God will fuffer you to fall into great calamity by those you hate. You are afraid of Popery, and yet many of you practise it; for why do you fear it, but for its compulfion and perfecution? And will you compel or perfecute yourselves, or chufe fuch as do? If you will, pray let me fay, you hate the Papifts, but not Popery. But God defend you from fo doing, and direct you to do as you would be done by; that chufing fuch as love England, her people, and the