eftate and honour of the commonwealth, which he had embezzled. Yet fo far doth felf-opinion or falfe principles delude and tranfport him, as to think "the concurrence of his reafon" to the votes of parliament, not only political, but natural, "and as neceffary to the begetting," or bringing forth of any one "complete act of public wif dom as the fun's influence is neceffary to all nature's productions." So that the parliament, it feems, is but a female, and without his procreative reason, the laws which they can produce are but wind-eggs: wifdom, it seems, to a king is natural, to a parliament not natural, but by conjunction with the king: yet he profeffes to hold his kingly right by law; and if no law could be made but by the great council of a nation, which we now term a parliament, then certainly it was a parliament that first created kings; and not only made laws before a king was in being, but thofe laws efpecially whereby he holds his crown. He ought then to have fo thought of a parliament, if he count it not male, as of his mother, which to civil being created both him and the royalty he wore, And if it hath been anciently interpreted the prefaging fign of a future tyrant, but to dream of copulation with his mother, what can it be lefs than actual tyranny to affirm waking, that the parliament, which is his mother, can neither conceive or bring forth" any authoritative act" without his mafculine coition? Nay, that his reafon is as celeftial and life-giving to the parliament, as the fun's influence is to the earth: what other notions but thefe, or fuch like, could fwell up Caligula to think himfelf a God? But to be rid of thefe mortifying propofitions, he leaves no tyrannical evafion uneffayed; firft," that they are not the joint and free defires of both houfes, or the major part;" next, "that the choice of many members was carried on by faction." The former of these is already difcovered to be an old device put firft in practice by Charles the Fifth, fince the reformation: who when the proteftants of Germany for their own defence joined themfelves in league, in his declarations and remonftrances ftrances laid the fault only upon fome few (for it was dangerous to take notice of too many enemies) and accused them, that under colour of religion they had a purpose to invade his and the church's right; by which policy he deceived many of the German cities, and kept them divided from that league, until they faw themselves brought into a fnare. That other cavil against the people's choice puts us in mind rather what the court was wont to do, and how to tamper with elections: neither was there at that time any faction more potent, or more likely to do fuch a bufineis, than they themselves who complain moft. But "he muft chew fuch morfels as propofitions, ere he let them down." So let him; but if the kingdom shall tafte nothing but after his chewing, what does he make of the kingdom but a great baby? "The ftraitness of his confcience will not give him leave to fwallow down fuch camels of facrilege and injuftice as others do." This is the pharifee up and down, "I am not as other men are." But what camels of injuftice he could devour, all his three realms were witnefs, which was the cause that they almoft perifhed for want of parliaments. And he that will be unjust to man, will be facrilegious to God; and to bereave a chriftian confcience of liberty for no other reason than the narrownels of his own confcience, is the most unjust measure to man, and the worst facrilege to God. That other, which he calls facrilege, of taking from the clergy that fuperfluous wealth, which antiquity as old as Conftantine, from the credit of a divine vision, counted "poifon in the church," hath been ever most oppofed by men, whofe righteoufnefs in other matters hath been leaft obferved. He concludes, as his manner is, with high commendation of his own "unbiaffed rectitude," and believes nothing to be in them that diffent from him, but faction, innovation, and particular designs. Of thefe repetitions I find no end, no not in his prayer; which being founded upon deceitful principles, and a fond hope that God will blefs him in thofe his errours, which he calls "honeft," finds a fit answer of St. James, "Ye afk and receive not, becaufe ye afk amifs." As for the truth and fincerity, which he prays may be always found found in those his declarations to the people, the contrariety of his own actions will bear eternal witnefs, how little careful or folicitous he was, what he promised or what he uttered there. XII. Upon the Rebellion in Ireland. THE rebellion and horrid maffacre of English proteftants in Ireland, to the number of 154000 in the province of Ulfter only, by their own computation; which added to the other three, makes up the total fum of that flaughter in all likelihood four times as great; although fo fudden and fo violent, as at firft to amaze all men that were not acceffary; yet from whom, and from what counfels it firft fprung, neither was, nor could be poffibly fo fecret, as the contrivers thereof, blinded with vain hope, or the despair that other plots would fucceed, fuppofed. For it cannot be imaginable, that the Irish, guided by fo many fubtle and Italian heads of the Romish party, fhould fo far have loft the ufe of reafon, and indeed of common fenfe, as not fupported with other ftrength than their own, to begin a war fo defperate and irreconcilable againft both England and Scotland at once. All other nations, from whom they could expect aid, were bufied to the utmost in their own moft neceffary concernments. It remains then that either fome authority, or fome great affiftance promifed them from England, was that whereon they chiefly trufted. And as it is not difficult to difcern from what inducing cause this infurrection firft arofe, fo neither was it hard at firft to have applied fome effectual remedy, though not prevention. And yet prevention was not hopeless, when Strafford either believed not, or did not care to believe the feveral warnings and difcoveries thereof, which more than once by papifts and by friars themselves were brought him; befides what was brought by depofition, divers months before that rebellion, to the archbishop of Canterbury and others of the king's council; as the declaration of "no addrefles" declares. But the affurance which they had in private, that no remedy should be ap plied, was, it feems, one of the chief reafons that drew on their undertaking. And long it was before that af furance failed them; until the bishops and popifh lords, who while they fat and voted, fill oppofed the fending aid to Ireland, were expelled the house. Seeing then the main incitement and authority for this rebellion must be needs derived from England, it will be next inquired, who was the prime author. The king here denounces a malediction temporal and eternal, not fimply to the author, but to the "malicious author" of this bloodfhed: and by that limitation may exempt, not himself only, but perhaps the Irith rebels themfelves, who never will confets to God or man that any blood was fhed by them malicioufly; but either in the catholic caufe, or common liberty, or fome other fpecious plea,, which the confcience from grounds both good and evil ufually fuggefts to itfelf: thereby thinking to elude the direct force of that imputation, which lies upon them. Yet he acknowledges, "it fell out as a moft unhappy advantage of fome men's malice againft him:" but indeed of moft men's juft fufpicion, by finding in it no fuch wide departure or difagreement from the fcope of his former counfels and proceedings. And that he himself was the author of that rebellion, he denies both here and elsewhere, with many imprecations, but no folid evidence: What on the other fide againft his denial hath been affirmed in three kingdoms, being here briefly fet in view, the reader may fo judge as he finds caufe. This is moft certain, that the king was ever friendly to + the Irish papifts, and in his third year, againft the plain advice of parliament, like a kind of pope, fold them many indulgences for money; and upon all occafions advancing the popith party, and negotiating underhand by priests, who were made his agents, engaged the Irish papifts in a war against the Scots protefiants. To that end he furnished them, and had them trained in arms, and kept them up, either openly or underhand, the only army in his three kingdoms, till the very burst of that rebellion. The fummer before that difinal October, a committee of moft active papifts, all fince in the head of that rebellion, were in great favour at Whitehall; and adinitted admitted to many private confultations with the king and queen. And to make it evident that no mean matters were the fubject of those conferences, at their request he gave away his peculiar right to more than five Irish counties, for the payment of an inconfiderable rent. They departed not home till within two months before the rebellion; and were either from the first breaking out, or foon after, found to be the chief rebels themselves. But what should move the king befides his own inclination to popery, and the prevalence of his queen over him, to hold fuch frequent and clofe meetings with a committee of Irish papifts in his own houfe, while the parliament of England fat unadvised with, is declared by a + Scots author, and of itself is clear enough. The parliament at the beginning of that fummer, having put Strafford to death, imprifoned others his chief favourites, and driven the reft to fly; the king, who had in vain tempted both the Scots and the English army to come up against the parliament and city, finding no compliance anfwerable to his hope from the proteftant armies, betakes himself laft to the Irifh; who had in readiness an army of eight thoufand papifts, which he had refused fo often to difband, and a committee here of the fame religion. With them, who thought the time now come, (which to bring about they had been many years before not wifhing only, but with much industry complotting, to do fome eminent fervice for the church of Rome and their own perfidious natures, against a puritan parliament and the hated English their mafters) he agrees and concludes, that fo foon as both armies in England were difbanded, the Irifh fhould appear in arms, mafter all the proteftants, and help the king against his parliament. And we need not doubt, that thofe five counties were given to the Irifh for other reafon than the four northern counties had been a little before offered to the Scots. The king, in Auguft, takes a journey into Scotland; and overtaking the Scots army then on their way home, attempts the fecond time to pervert them, but without fuccefs. No fooner come into Scotland, but he lays a plot, fo faith the Scots author, to remove out of the way fuch of the nobility there as were moft likely to withstand, 11 |