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Juftice done to the Late Minijiry :

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Their Defigning to make the

^ItttXlXstX King of Great Witainy prov'd from their Cohdud to be Groundlefs.

AND

• *

The Reafons for a Tarliamentary Inquiry Confider'd.

With fomc Thoughts about Attainders.

^ C|)c %)Ztom emtion.

LONDON,

Printed for J. Baker at the Black-Boy in PAternopr-Row. ' M. DCC. XV.

(Price 6d.)

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H E Whigs, no doubt, upon read- ing the Title will cry. This muft be the Work of the St af or Mltre^ or fome of the Late Miniflry^^ for none elfe would have the Im- pudence, at this time of day, to argue from their Conduct, that they were not in the Pretender's Intereft. But if they will but a while fufpend their Cenfares, I do not doubt but they will eafily perceive, that what I ^rtis no indefenfible Paradox.

ShouM I argue from any thing but Matters of Fad, and cry, 'Tis not to be prefum'd that Men of their fteddy Principles wou'd facrifice their Honour, their Confcience, their Religion, their frequently-repeated Oaths, and their Coun- ^. try, to any Private Intereft whatever \ I fbou'd be laugh'd at by both fides, and told, that if any Cafe could pofllbly happen where Intereft wou'd A 2 not

( 4 r

not govern them, it wou'd be, when it re- quir'd the doing a downright honefl: Thing.

The Whigs fay, it was to be prefum'd from the whole Conduct of thefe Mens Lives, that they, being from mean Circumftances ad- vanc'd to the higheft Honours, wou'd (knowing how flippery Court-Favours are) be in migh* tyhafteto get wherewith to fupport their new Titles and Dignities *, and wou'd not fcruple even to fell their Country, cou'd they meet with a Chapman who wou'd come up to their Price, and fo do their bufinefs all at once, put this, fuppoling it true, wilt be far from proving them to be in the Pretender's Intereft ^ beca^ife an outlaw 'd Pecfon, who lives on Charity himfelf, has fcarce wherewith to bribe fo much as one of their Footmen.

It will, no doubt, be anfwer'd, That tho the Pretender himfelf had not wherewith to bribe them, yet his great Protedor was able to come up to their Demands.

But do we fo little know that Prince, as to imagine he will bellow his Mony, except to pro- mote his own Defigns? And do we want to be convinc'd, that the chief Care and Bufinefs of his vyhole Life has been to make himfelf Monarch of this Weilern World, and confequently wou'd not employ his Bribes to make any, but him- felf, King of Great Britain? And confidering the great Oppofition he has met mth from its Arms, he cou'd not think himfelf fecure of the Uuiverfal Monarchy he has been fo long aiming at, till he had fubdu'd it, and annex'd it as a Province to his own Enrpire : and confequent- ly cou'd have no other View in fupporting the Pretender, but to ufe him and his Title as a Handle to kindle a Civil War in Great Britain^

fo

.^ 5 )

fo that he might with the more eafe fubdue both the contending Parties.

Thus he pretended at one time to join with us againft the Dutch^ and at another with the Dutch againft the English \ he did it with no other Defign but to look on, and artfully encou- rage thefe two Proteftant Nations to deftroy one anothers's Kaval Force.

And if he had here deftroy'd the Whigs, he might, as foon as he pleas'd, have clapp*d the Pretender, as one incapable to govern, into a Monaftery: which we have no reafon to think he wou'd any more fcruple, than he did the banifhing the Royal Brethren, or owning the Title of the prefent and the late King, and Queen Anne, The Proteftant Jacobites (if there were any fuch) wou*d then be dipp'd too far to think of a Retreat \ and if they did, the Britijh and Irifh Papifts, who upon this occafion wou'd be all in Arms, and who are entirely at his de- votion, wou'd all join to cut them into pieces.

All thinking Men faw, that the Condud of

the late M was in every point agreeable

to the Deligns of France *, and that things, by their extraordinary Management, were brought to that fhort Ifluc, that we muft either have the Houfe of Hannover or the Houfe of Bourbon \ be Proteftants and Freemen under the former, or Slaves and Papifts under the latter.

The better to perceive what the late M

did for France^ let us firft fee what the former did againft it, and what Difficulties they ex- tricated us out of.

In the Beginning of the laft War, things had a moft difmal Profped : the Houfe of Bourbon pofTefs'd of all the Spanijh Dominions •, all Italy in efFedt in the power of France; the ftrong

Towns

( 6 )

Towns in Flanders deliver'd up to the French*^ and the Dutch^ who garifon'd them, made Prifoners of War ; King William in a lan- guidiing Condition, and in the hands of a Tory Miniftry and Parliament, which oblig'd him to own the new King of Sfain ; the Emperor in War with his own Subjedts j the Empire divi- ded, and two of its Eledors declaring for France^ and one of them ready to feize with a molt powerful Army the Emperor's Hereditary Coun- tries *, and the then Vidorious King of Sweden favouring the Deligns of France.

Tho Matters were then in this deplorable State, yet by the able Management of the for- mer Miniftry, and the good Underftanding they had' with their Allies, the Scene was quickly chang'd. Bavaria and Cologn were ftripp'd of all their Dominions i Fr<i«r^ beaten out oi Italy \ 2i great part of Sfain declar'd for the Houfe of Aufiria '-, and the French driven from the Gates of Nime^uen to the old Frontiers of France: and tho theFaftion that was here forming in fa- vour of France^ did what they cou'd to ftop our great Succefles, and hinder'd us from entring France the Year Bouchain was taken j yet the next Year, until the English Army feparated from the Allies, the Affairs of France were in a moft miferable Condition, their Treafures ex- haufted, their Credit loft, the Flower of their Troops kill'd, and the reft by their frequent Defeats intirely difpirited *, and encamping ia a barren Country, were ready to disband for want of KecefTaries : the Allies Matters of all ,;the Rivers, and in a very rich Soil, and with thd moft numerous and beft-appointed Troops they ever brought into the Field, penetrating into the open Country of France^ fo opprefs'd

then

( 7)

then with Famine, that they mull have join'd the Allies, to keep themfelves from ftarving. If the Confederates, without coming to a Cefla- tion of Arms, had ftiU pufliM on their Conquefts, the French King muft have comply'd with whatever Terms they demanded ; and to pre- ferve France, wou'd not only have given up Sfain^ but whatever elfe, either here or in Ame- rica, we fhou'd have thought fit to have in- lifted on ; and immediately have put what Cau- tionary Towns we wou'd into our hands.

If during the War, the Returns we made by Trade amounted (as is demonftrated by the Letter to a Member of the Odober-Club) to three Millions and a half, what vaft Additions of Wealth wou'd a Trade to Spain and the Spa- niflj Wefi-Indies, efpecially if exclufive of France. have got us ? And what Advantages muft we have gain'd, if we had oblig'd the French to quit only their Northern American Plantations and engrofs'd the whole Newfoundland Trade to ' our felves ?

^ Not aiming at Conqueft (our Trade eiv-v: ing us all the Wealth we cou'd defire) and being in the higheft Reputation with our Al- lies, efpecially for having fo inviolably main- tain d our Faith and Honour, and fo pundually obferv d all our Treaties ^ we Ihou'd not only have kept the Ballance of Power in our own hands, but foreign Nations wou'd have pay'd us a willing Homage, and made us the Arbiters ot all their Differences. And as we Ihou'd have been the moft happy and flourifhing Nation in the Univerfe, fo we might (France being reduc'd to a Condition never more to difturb us) have Poft" • '" ^" ^^^^^ Advantages to our lateft

But

( 8 )

But alas ^ bow is that Glorious Profpea chaneM, and we become the Reverfe of all this!

Thelate M were no fooner fettled in their

Pofts but they perfuaded their Sovereign molt humbly and moft clandeftinely, contrary to her folema Engagements, to beg a feparate Peace, and upon fuch bafe Terms, as none but a con- querM Nation wou'd have fubmitted to. Had they as^reed to pay the French Kivig a Tribute of three Millions yearly, it had not been fo ad- vantageousto him, and fatal to us, as the Peace and Treaty of Commerce, for which they la- bour'd with their utmoft force to have obtain d a Parliamentary Sanftion. And had it pafsd into an Ad, we Ihou'd have had but little Trade except with France, which a few Hands cou d have manag'di and that Trade too, fince it wou'd quickly have drain d us of our ready Monv, cou'd not have lafted long. And if onee ourTrade was gone, our Seamen of coftrfewou d • have left us : and an Ifland, if not Mafter at Sea is by its Situation in a worfe Condition to defend it felf, than a Place on the Continent.

The chief Defign of this Peace feems to have been no other, than to give France the Trade and confequently the Riches and Naval Force of this part of the World. What other Reafon can be affignM, why our Newfoundland Trade, which was the chief Kurfery of our Seamen, was given up to the French, by their bein?, contrary to an Ad of Parliament, put in . DoflTeflionof U^t Briton? by which too, all our ^other Northern Plantations are in the utmolt

^What other Reafon can be affign'd, why, tho Tortmal was the ftrft of the Allies that came into our CelTation of Arms, yet inftead of taking ^ care

(9)

care of it, we left it to the mercy of the Houfe of Bourbon •, and had not the Emperor and the Catalans unexpeftedly held out, both Portugal and Braz.il had no doubt before this time been in the power of France and Sfain-^ by which they wou'd have been Mafters of all the Gold and Silver that comes into Evrape. And tho that Scheme has hitherto not been executed, yet the French have gain'd their Point, by iiaving the liberty to fend as many Ships as they pleafe to Braz-ily which moft in a little time deprive us of that moft beneficial Trade.

By the giving up Spain to the Houfe of Bour* hon^ we not only lofe our Spani\h Trade (the Goods of our Merchants being lock'd up, and their Perfons infulted) but the private Trade from Jamaica^ which alone brought us in about 300000 Pounds yearly, is intirely cut off : and the French^ by engrolfing the Svini^ Wool, the Cochineel for dying Scarlets, &c. will out us of our Turky Trade.

That they might with the more eafe enflave us, we allow'd them to build an Harbour infi- nitely more commodious than old Dunkirk^ deep enough to hold the Firft-Rate Men of War, and wide enough to contain more than all the Royal Navy oi France,

To weaken and difable the Nation, befides running into great Debts, they not only rais'd more Mony during thefe Pacifick Years, than the former Miniftry for the fame number of Years did during the War •, but did every thing pof- fible to reduce Great Britain to the loweft Con- dition imaginable. Was it not for this reafon that our Wool was underhand encourag'd to be carryM to France? And cou'd it be for any other reafon, that our Ships, our. Seamen,

B and

( to)

and Soldiers were loft in the Cattada Expedi- tion, when the French Pilots who were taken on board ran the Fleet direftly on the con- trary Shore *, where it was a wonderful Provi- dence, that a great many more had not pe- rifh'd ? This is no uncharitable Suppofition, confidering how the Soldiers, who had done fo much againft France^ were ufed \ efpecial- ly thofe disbanded abroad in S^ain and For* tvgal.

Sweden^ which cou'd not have fubfifted with- out a Piratical War, yet (being an Ally to France^ and becaufe it ferv'd to deftroy our Trade ) was quietly fufFerM to difturb our Na- vigation, and to take our Ships in the BaU ticky without fo much as asking why they did fo j but inftead of that, we did every thing wc cou'd in favour of them.

But this was not all thefe Men did for France^ and againft their own Country. Every one knows hov/ they were modelling the Civil Pofts, the Fleet, the Army, the Militia, in favour of Trance j and under colour of the Pretender, both in Ireland and Great Britain^ Levies of Men were a long time made, by Connivance, if not Encouragement. And in Ireland things were brought to that pafs, had it not been for the Moderation (which they callM Cowardice) of the Lieutenant, the Proteftants were in the utmoft danger of being mafTacred.

In Scotland the Popifli High-Land Clans^ the faft Friends of France, were arm'd, and kept in Fay, and the Scots who cou'd not be brought to declare for the Pretender, were openly inful- ted, and threatened to be murderM. Kor was it ftrange the Proteftants fhou'd be fo treated there, when here the Examiner^ who wou'd be thought

to

( It )

to write by their Order, advis'd the Whigs to prepare to die with Decency.

In a word, to reckon up all things of this nature, wouM be to write a Hiftory of their Four Years Management. There feem'd nothing wanting to accomplifti their Defigns, but put- ting Port/mouth and the Ifle of Wight, as Places of Arms, in the hands of France : and I refer my felf to thofe who underftand the Condition of thofe Places, whether every thing was not removing out of the way, which cou'd make that Defign abortive.

And their whole Management, with relation to the Allies, tended to no other End, than to give France all the advantageous Terms they cou'd j and fo to fet the Allies one againft ano- ther, that they might be no hindrance to France fromenQaving us.

So impatient were they of giving up all im- mediately to France^ that tho they had got from the Parliament almoft feven Millions for carrying on a War, and at London and at the Hague had given repeated Promifes that they wou'd ad in concert with the Allies, and with Vigour ; who likewife after they had taken the Field (which they were ready to do fix Weeks be- fore the French) had fre(h Afllirances from the General to the fame purpofe, fo that the Ar- my march'd to attack the French as to a cer- tain Vidtory: yet when they were got in fight of 'em, and it was too late for either Army to retreat, then our Pacifick General produc'd his fatal Orders for a Cejfation of Arms, and to withdraw all the Troops in the Pay of Great Britain ', tho at that time there was no one Article concluded at Vtrecht, either for our Allies or our felves. And had thefe Orders B 2 been

{ II )

been obey'd, there can be no doubt that France wou'd not have mifsM fo favourable an Op- portunity of cutting the reft of the Allies in pieces ^ as they eafily might, confidering what a Confternation fuch an unexpeded Separation mult have produced : And if after that, they bad ferv'd our Britijh Forces in the fame man- ner, we fhovi'd have been told by their Crea- tures, That they had only deftroy'd a Whiggifh Antimonarchical Army, Enemies to the Church. And to make fure work, there were the fame Orders fent to the Commanding Officer in Spaif7.

This indeed was a Plot worthy thefe Ma- chiavellians, and which alone deferv'd ail the Re- wards France coxi^d give them: but this not fuc- ceeding (tho it had otherwife moft difmal ef- fects) the General did the next beft thing he cou'd for France'^ for tho he engag'd to take another Rout, yet he marchM diredly into Ghent and Bruges : Aid we kept 'em to the laft, tho Ghenty by Treaty, was to have been one of the Biirier-Towns for the X>m^c^. By which means

the M got it in their power to hinder

the Dutch from fupplying their Army and Fron- tier Garifons. And they not only threaten'd to deliver thefe two Towns to France^ but to come into a War againft them, if they wouM not make peace upon fuch Terms, as they and France fhou'd think fit to prefcribe.

It has been an allow'd Truth, That the Safety of England depends on the Prefervation of Flan- ders : and even the Penfionary Parliament under Charles \\. when the Power of the French King

»was not near fo great, were fo alarm'd at every Advantage he gain'd in Flanders^ that they made ^ See Bar- ^ Remonftrances, and Addrefles upon Addrefles ner-Treaty ^Q their King to enter into a War, in con- '"''^^'^- , junaion

janftioa with the other Powers of Europe^ in order to force the French King to part with the Flemish Towns he had taken. Yet when we had made a Treaty for fecuring fach a Barrier to the States, as wouM fufficiently have cover'd *em againft Fr4«rr, whilft they aded in fupport of the Proteftant SuccefTion, thefe Men forc'd the Dvtch to come into a new Treaty, differing from the old one in nothing material, except in giving back the greateft part of it to France^ and making ineffedual the Secaricy provided for the Hannover Succeflion. And they got that Able Mmifier who had made it (who wou*d have had the Thanks of any other Parliament, for fo great a Piece of Service to his Country) declared an Enemy to the Qiieen and Kingdom : And if They were Friends^ He no doubt was an Enemy^ fince He is the very Reverfe of them ^ which is not the lealt Ingredient of his great Character.

And it was the fame Management, which hindred the Confederates from being invited to be Guarantees to the Proteftant Succeftjoi^, too the Qiieen had promis'd it, in anfwer to the Addrefles of both Houfes. Iiiftead of that, thefe Men were forming an Alliance with France, Spain, Sicily, the Popifh Cantons, c^c which cou'd be no more in favour of the ProteO-ant Religion, than of the Proteftant Succefho;;.

If, after they had broke the Confederacy, the Emperor, left to ftiift for himfel'", ar^d no ways a Match for France, cou'd obtain Terms much better than what they thought fit to carve for him, whilft they afted at the Head of the Confederacy feemingly entire •, this alone is a glaring Proof whole Interelt they were ad- vancing.

But

( H )

Bat when we confider how they treated the Emperor, in the Perfon of his Minifters, par- ticularly Count Galloi \ how they allotted his Kingdom of Sardinia (aftually in his pofleflion) to one, and Sicily to another •, it had been but a very natural Refentment of fuch Ufage, if he had turn'd upon us, and enter'd into any Meafures with France for the Deftruaion of Great Britain.

To give the Ifland of Sardinia to the Elector of Bavaria, whofe Dominions are a Key into the Heart of Germany •, and that of Sicily to the Duke of Savoy^ whofe Dominions are the fame to Italy, both deftitute of Naval Force j was tying 'em down eternally to the Intereft of Trance.

The chief Aim of the late M , efpc-

cially after the Emperor and Empire wou'd ■not be contented with the Barrier we ofTer'd 'em, was to force the Dutch into fuch a fepa- rate Peace, as mult neceflarily imbroil them with the Emperor •, and give France a handle, when (he made Peace with the Empire, to agree that Towns and Places (hou'd be otherwife dif- pos'd of, than they were by the Treaty at Vtrechty in order to involve the Confederates in a new War. For this end they not only employ'd Threats, but if the ^ Manager him- felf is to be believ'd, the better part of Three Hundred Thoufand Pounds.

In a word, their whole Condud fhews, that they had no other regard to their Country, than to falve Appearances, till France, in purfuanceof their Scheme, became Mafter of it. And their great Boaflings of the Demolition of Dunkirk ; the gaining Millions by the j^Jfiento and South' Sea Trade j and the Renunciation which was to

execute

execute it felf^ &:c. were only to delude the Peo- ple in the mean time.

Tho they had brought things to that pafs, that the Pretender, had he got into the Throne, cou'd not have kept it, without making fuch Alliances as were not to be had while their Heads were on their Dioulders ^ yet the Jaco' bites were fo weak, as to think they had no other View but his Intereft.

They muft be fenfible it was impoflible for them, after they had done fo many things againft their Gauntry which at laft wou'd all break out, to efcape Punilhment as long as it con- tinu'd free, whoever was King : and therefore it was their bufinefs to make it a Province of France.

And they, no doubt, flatter'd themfelves that they had given fuch Earneft of their being fo attached to France^ that they fhou'd be intrufted v^ith the Government of this Ifland •, and that then there wou'd be nothing to hinder them from gratifying their implacable Revenge, un- meafurable Ambition, and infatiable Lufts.

I think I may now fay, without adding more.

That I have done Juftice to the Late M ;

and fhewn, notwithftanding all the Clamour that is raisM againft them upon the account of the Pretender, that they were no more for making him, than the Eledor of Hannover (whom they treated with the utmoft Contempt) Ring of Great Britain : but that the neceflary Confequence of this their traitercus Conduft (had not a timely Hop been put to it by the hand of Providence) muft have been an irre- trievable Subjedion of us and all Europe to the Pride of France.

NOW

( i<5)

NOW that we may the better fee what thefe Men deferve from the Nation, we ought to confider what had been our Condition^ had their carfed Defigns taken place. And certainly we cou'd not have expefted better Ufage from the French King than his Proteftant Subjeds had, who kept his tottering Crown on his Head. He, no doubt, wou'd have made fure work, and dif- abled the Nobility and Gentry from ever rebel- ling, by either putting them to death, as Lewif the Fret7chKi(\g^s Son defign'd to have done to the Nobks that aflifted him againft King John j or elfe by fecuring their Perfons in Prifons,Mines, or Gallies. There can be no doubt but that he wou'd, without regard to High or Low Ch'jrch, feize on all their Eftates, and put them into fuch Popi(h hands as he cou'd confide in, and who wou'd be glad to hold them on any Terms, even daring Pleafure. The ufeful Hands he wou'd tranfport to France, there to manu- fadure our Wool, and other EngUJh Commodi- ties ^ and after having burnt down the Metro- polis, as too big to be bridled, he wou'd have forc'd the miferable Inhabitants, at their own Expences, to build Forts and Citadels, for the better curbing of Hereticks and Rebels. This wou'd have been our Condition, thefe the Ad- vantages we fliou'd have been blefs'd with.

If National Crimes have National Judgments attending them, can we hope to efcape, but by {hewing our utmoft Deteftation of thefe al- moft numberlefs Ads of Perfidioufnefs, which

were committed by the Late M— in

the name of the Nation? And can this be done, if they are permitted to defcend in Peace

to

{ 17 ;

to the Grave, and tranfmit to their Poftcrity the Rewards of their Treachery?

The Gibeonites, by pretending to be what they were not, obtainM a Covenant for Pro- teftion from thtjerrs: and tho King Saul broke this Covenant, as Holy Writ, fays, out of Zeal to the Children of Ifrael and Judah-, yet the Lord wou'd not fuffer this fingle piece of Trea- chery to go unpunilh'd, but even after Saul^s Death (which was a very miferable one) in the Reign of holy David^ he brought a Famine on the Land for three Years together : nor wou'd he be intreated, till feven of King Saufs De- fcendants were deliver'd up to the GibeoniteSy and by them hang'd : fo great an Abhorrence "has the God of Truth for all Perfidioufiiefs ! Kor cou'd a Zeal for Judah and Jfrael^ the thea only true Church of God, in the leaft atone for this Breach of Faith.

But alas! what has been done among us is of a more crying Kature : Our Engagements were not haftily m.ade, nor with a Haudful cf Men that had been defign'd to Deftruaion ^ but it was to the molt confiderable Nations of Eu- rope that we had pledg'd our Faith, and that upon the matureft Deliberation, for our own as well as their Safety. And when we molt perfiJioufly broke thefe Contrads, it was not for the fake of Judah and Ifrael^ but to gratify theuncircumas'dPW;y?;«.''j, that they might be enabled to extirpate the true Church. G:od God ! what Vengeance may not this Kation juftly fear! what Judgments has it not rea- fon to apprehend! Punilhiag the Authors, is furely the leaft Atonement we can make^ and how far that may avail us, God only knows.

C Bat

C .8 ;

But had we nothing more to bewail than the Lofs of our Reputation (ever had in the highelt Regard by all brave Nations) yet furely thaty lavifli'd away as it has been, ought to raife the Indignation of every true Briton. We are now become the By-word of Nations ^ hated by fome, and laugh'd at by others : and this after we had attain'd to a Degree of Glory fcarce to be match'd in Hiftory. Can there be any found among us, who own themfelves EKgUfiimen^ and not join in calling for Vengeance on thofe who have plung'd us into this Sink of Infamy ?

The Nation, in the time of Rtchardll. thought they cou'd no otherwife retrieve their Honour, which had extremely fuffer'd by that King's add- ing a very perfidious Part (tho nothing to what has been pradis'd of late) but by making this an Article of his Depofition ^ " That he was fo " variable and diflembling in his Words and *' Writings, and fo contrary to himfelf j efpe- " cially in writing to the Pope, Kings, and " other Lords, out of the Kingdom, as well as *' within it, and alfo to his other Subjects ^ that " no Man living knowing what he was, cou'd *' confide in him : yea, he was reputed fo un- " faithful and inconftant, that he not only be- " came a Scandal to his own Perfon, but alfo *' to the whole Kingdom, aud to all Foreigners, " when once they came to know him.'' V If the beft part of Europe^ confederated againft 'Trance^ were hardly a Match for her ^ if fuch a Confederacy was barely enough for our Pre- fervation, when the (hare France had in Trade (the only Source of Wealth) was but incon- iiderable : have we not much greater need of Alliances, fince by the late Peace (he has got poireflion of it iaall its moft valuable Bran- ches?

( 19 )

ches? But can we wonder, if thofe who have been once betray'd, ask us what Security we can give, if they join their Arms with ours, that we (hall not defert 'em again in the very Article of Adion ^ and if we draw 'em into a War, that we fhall not leave them, as we did the Ca- talans^ to the Mercy of their Enemies? At lealt, let 'em not fay this was done, and that the Authors efcap'd unpunifh'd. Till then, I fear, it will be no eafy Matter to convince 'em that our Affairs are now in the hands of thofe that abhor fuch Praftices.

If at the Revolution, thofe Traitors, who for fo many Years together had been advancing the Power of trance^ and endeavouring to bring Po- pery and Slavery on the Nation, had met with their deferv'd Fate \ thefe Men wou'd not, with fuch eager hafte, have ftrove to give up all to France. And if they likewife efcape, what other Security can we have for our All, but either thau Trance will not think it worth his while to buy us, or that in the frequent Turns that happen, we Ihall always be fure of a Miniftry tiiat can refufe Millions ?

Having mention'd fome of thofe many Rea- fons, which feem to prove a Parliamentary

Enquiry into the Condud: of the late M to

be necelfary \ 'tis but juft to confider what is urg'd againft this Enquiry. And here 'tis faid. That if it be the undoubted Prerogative of the Crown to make Peace and War, then to call the

late M ~ to account for adingin purfuance of

the Queen's Commands, is Itriking at the Prero- eative ^ and if the Queen her felf cou'd do no wrong, how cou'd they do wrong, who only aded in her Name and by her Authority, in a thing, to which her Power undoubtedly extended?

C 2 But

( 20 )

But furely this is a new Doftrine with the Tories themfelves ^ fince they were unanimouf- ]y of the contrary Opinion in King Williams Reign, when the Houfe of Commons were for impeaching thofe that were concernM in making the Parritjr^n-Treaty ; and none more zealous in it, thin they who wou'd now skreen them- felves under the Prerogative : nay, the Party then wou'd not allow that the Prince had a Right to make cither Peace or War without Confent of Parliament.

The Prerogative is an extenfive Power that our Princes have of doing Good, but 'tis Ty- ranny, whenwrefted to ferve any Purpofe de- trimental to the Publick •, and Tyranny is cer- tainly a great Wrong. And if it be a Maxim, That the Prince can do no Wrong, it is be- caufe the Prince does nothing by himfelf, but by his Minillersi and that confequently'they are accountable for all the Wrong that is done by the Mifapplication of the Prerogative.

Will any fay. That becaufe the Prince has a Right to abate of the Rigour of the Law, and, where Mercy is feafonable, may unqueftionably pardon a Malefactor *, that therefore he may pardon all Malefadors, and fo put a total ftop to Juftice ? or that the Miuifters who advife the doing this, ought to be skreen'd from Juftice on account of the Prerogative, and becaufe the King can do no Wrong?

The King, no doubt, is the Fountain of Ho- nour, and may confer the Dignity of Peerage as the Reward of Merit ^ will any therefore fay he can make a whole Troop of Lords in the midft of a Debate, to turn a Qiieftion ? This, fare, is Prerogative unknown" to the Englijh Conftitution, and was never before prac- tised

( il )

tisM in the molt arbitrary Reigns : it was not becaufe the Minifters cou'd not think of fo happy an Expedient in time of need, but they knew it might colt them their Heads-, becaufe the Lords wou'd never fuffer themfelves, by fuch a Trick as this, to be putintirelv into the hands of the Court ^ nor wou'd the Commons be^r their impeaching Power to be thus turn'd into a Jeft. And this Abufe of the Preroga- tive makes that Law wholly infignificant, which now renders Perfons condemn'd by Parliament incapable of Pardon j fince no Minifters wou'd be condemn'd, if at any time they can make new Lords by Dozens.

If it was thought reafonable to degrade Nevil Duke of Bedford by Aft of Parliament, in the 17th Year of Edward IV. left his Poverty ftiou'd influence him, and fo the Honour of the Houfe fuffer J will not the Honour of the Houfe much more fuffer, if certain Lords, made all at a clap, and for what vile Purpofes every one knows, be permitted to enjoy their Seats in Parliament ?

Were this Precedent to be allow'd, it wou'd be an eafy thing for the Minifters to get a Sen- tence in the Supreme Court of Judicature, for raifing Mony without Parliaments ^ fince it wou'd be then in their power to get fo many new Lords made, as wou'd turn theQueftion, when the Legality of raifing Mony without Confent of Parliament came to be debated, in favour of the Court ^ and then there's an end of the Coaftitution.

As the Prerogative is moft likely to be abns'd in making Peace and V/ar, becaufe of the 'Intereft ill Minifters, brib'd by foreign Courts, have in it j fo it may be of moft faral

confe-

( 2Z )

confequence, becaufe an unfeafonable War may involve the Nation in infinite Troubles ^ and a Peace may be made upon fuch vile Terms, as amounts to felling the Nation : and confequent- ly 'tis the Duty of the Parliament, to take the utmoft care that thofe who pervert the Prero- gative in this point, be punifh'd with the ut- mofl- Severity.

If we punilh with Deatb the Commander of a Man of War, or of the moft inconfiderable Fort, and that defervedly, when even by Cow- ardice (in fome a natural Infirmity) he fails in bis Duty, becaufe of the Interelt the Publick has in his Actions: is there not much more rea- fon that Minifters of State, on whofe Conduct the Safety of the Whole depends, (hou'd account for their Actions ? And when by Ignorance, Kegligence, or Treachery, the Publick does in any inftance fuffer, ought not their Punilhment to be fo much greater, as the Charge they were intrufted with was fo? Male-Adminiftration can have no Plea to juftify it ^ and vain is the Pretence, when evil Minifters vouch the Autho- rity of the Prince for the 111 they have done. If that were allow'd to be a Bar to Parliamen- tary E .quiries, our Conftitution cou'd lafl no longer than while we have Princes void of Am- bition, or above the Influence of ill Men.

'Tls arga'd, that tho the late M are

liable to be profecutcd in Parliament, yet out of refpect to the Memory of the Queen, what has been aded within thefe laft four Years ought to be bary'd in Oblivion.

'Tis impolfible not to remember who was on the Throne when the late Peace was made, or that the Adions and Speeches of the Queen, for the four laffc Years of her R^ign, were

• diredly

( 2? )

dire£tly contrary to the former, when her Glo- ry was carryM to the greateft height. There- fore in juftice to her Memory, thofe Men ought not to be skreen'd, who made it their bufinefs not only to tarnifh the Luftre of her firlt eight glorious Years, but wou'd throw the blame of all that was done during their Adminiftration on the Queen her felf ^ who, but for their wicked Advice, might have main- tain'd to the laft the Charader of being always the fame. They firft abus'd her Goodnefs by their Counfels, and wou'd now perfuade the World, that what fhe did was contrary to their Advice, and that they barely fubmitted to her Commands.

But no Arguments of this nature are of any weight •, becaufe Truth fhou'd be impartially fpoken of dead Princes, to inftruft the living, that they may know how to avoid their Faults, and imitate their Virtues : But if it be not fafe to fpeak Truth of Princes neither when alive, nor when dead, Mankind are like to be admira- bly well gcvern'd.

The Chinefe^ the wifefl: Nation in the World, in every King's Reign take care that his Life be writ by mofl able Men, and with the utmolt Secrecy ^ and in the next Reign, when it is pub- lifh'd, if they appear to have been guilty of the leaft Flattery, they are punifh'd with the utmolt Severity.

It's faid, that were the late M ever fo

criminal, yet if they have aded fo cautioufly as that no Law can reach them, it wou'd be .un- juft to make a Law ex pofi faBo to punifh them j and therefore that all Ads of Attainder are in their own nature unjuft.

If

( 14 )

If the Law of Self-Prefervation gives a fingle Perfon, whilft in a State of Nature without Government, a Right to do every thing necef- fary for his Prefervation, fo as to punifh an unjaft AggrelTor, and to feck reparation for the Injury done him : certainly the fame Law gives a Government, on whofe Welfare the Safety of fuch Numbers depends, the fame Right ; •where every Member of the Body Politick en- gages to do all that he is able to fupport it, and fubmits his Perfon, and all he has, to the Supreme Legiflative Power. And 'tis Treafon, from the very Nature of the thing, for a Man to do any thing that tends to deftroy that Conftitution or Form of Government he isfub- ject to.

'Tis impolTible for any Legiflature, confider- ing the infinite Variety of Accidents, to pro- vide againit all Crimes, efpecially relating to the States and there may be Crimes fo mon- ftrous (as 'tis faid Parricide was for a longtime among the Romans) that a Government may not provide againft: them, becaufe it does not ima- gine Mankind fo wicked, as to commit them, nor think it advifable fo much as to mention them. And there may be Offences attended with fuch odious and aggravating Circumftances, as will require more than ufual Punifhment. In all thefe Cafes, the Supreme Law, Salm PcpuU^ will authorize the Legiflature to ad ^ and they are to take care ne quid detrimenti Refpublica ca,- fiat : the preventing of which, mult always be within their Coramiflion.

It is, no doubt, unjuft to make a Law ex pofi

facio^ to punilh a Man for a thing which was

indifferent till the Law forbad it : but if he

does what he knows to be highly detrimental

to

( ^5 )

to the Publick, and which in its own nature de- ferves the greatelt Punifhment \ then, no doubt, it is the Duty of the Legiflature, even ex pofi faElo^ to adapt a Punifhment to the Crime.

Suppofe the Gun-powder Plot had been de- iign'd againft the two Houfes of Parliament only, and that confpiring againft the Life of the King had been no part of their Crimea can any doubt but the Legiflature might juftly have punifh'd the Confpirators with Death, tho there was no antecedent Law which made it capital ?

If the burning the Royal Kavy was forbid by no Law, wou'd it not be highly reafonable that the Legiflature fliou'd punifh a Man with Death, that fhou'd but confpire in fuch a Dedgn ? And is not giving up the Trade of the Nation, which drives away the Seamen, and makes the Royal Jslavy ufelefs, a Crime that deferves the fame Fate?

Any private Good, when in oppofition to the publick, is look'd on fvh ratlone A^ali, And tho, no doubt, it wou'd be highly un- juft, when that is not concern'd, to expofe in- nocent Perfons to the utmoft Hardlhips j yet do not Governments pradtife this, when they compel People into the Wars, whereby they are not only expos'd to the greateft Hardlhips, but great numbers mult unavoidably lofe their Limbs and Lives ?

And 'tis for the fame reafon that Men have been put to death, tho no legal Crimes were objeded to them, and even fometim.es without any Tryal, merely upon fufpicion of having Defigns againfl: the Publick. And this is not only the praftice of Abfolute Monarchies, but of free Governments. In Fenice the Council D of

;«

C i6 )

of Ten are trufted with this Power ; and if one,

tho of the higheft Raak, is never heard of after

they fend for him, there's no murmuring about

it. In Rome they ufed to create a Dictator for

iv. 1. 4. this end ^ and the puni(hing of Sp, Malini^ was

; 3S^' a remarkable Inftance of this nature^ whofc

f' '• J. chief Crime was diftributing among the com-

''^"' ' 'mon People, in a time of Dearth, a Largefs of

Corn unfutable to the Condition of a private

Man. k is of fuch Cafes as thefe that the Ro-

:itiis. wan Hiftorian fays, Omne magnum Exemplar ha-

hit in fe aliquid ex tniquo^ quod publico Vtilitate

comptnfdtur.

At Rottcrd.tm, the Magiltrates not long fince put a Man to death for breaking fraudulently, then forbid by no Law •, and divided his Eftate among his Creditors, even tho he had com- pounded.

Tho in all Governments, both antient and modern, Men have been punifh'd for Crimes a- gainil which there v/ere no antecedent Laws : yet here in England To tender have we always been of Peoples Lives, that this Power was never trufted with a fingle Perfon or with a few, who might put any to death clandeftinely, and upon bare Sufpicion :^ but the Legiflature always kept it in their own hands. And there's no danger 'that the Lords and Commons Ihou'd be drawn into any unneccflary Severity, to gratify pri- vate Intereft or Revenge \ fince fuch Examples may be turn'd on themlelves or their Pofte- rity. *, and Courts are not ufually over-fond of making Precedents for the punifhing of Mini-

ilers. So that the late JV! muft appear to

bC; very rotten Members indeed, if the King, Lords, and Commons fliall all agree that 'tisne- ceiTary they fhou'd be cut off, to preferve the Body Politick. It

{ 17 )

It may be objeded, that we have now no other Standard for Treafon, but the 25th of Edw. 3. by which the Parliament, as well as other Judges, are to govern themfelves.

To come to a right Kotion of that Statute, it may be neceiTary to take a Survey of Trea- fon, antecedently to it.

Among the Saxons there was no other Treafon known, than that of Treachery to their Country, and deferting it in time of danger. And T^'l^^'^' citm fays, Proditores & Transfugas arborihw fuf- pendunt. Even plotting againft their King was no more than Felony, as appears by the Mirror ^|_'^^ ^- ■ of Juftice : an Indictment for an Offence of that "" '^^ nature againft King Edmund^ concludes only fe- lonice-^ whereas Indictments in the other cafe con- eluded felonice & proditoni. The Punifhment ofl^eg^^d the one, was Lofs of Life, and Forfeiture of theg^^^^^j,^ perfonal Eftate only ^ of the other, Lofs of^^^ai^ Life, with Forfeiture of the whole Eftate both 26. real and perfonal.

Treafon^ which thus antiently related to the Kingdom only, we find h^ GUnvill^ who wrote ^jfJ^^V in Henry li's Reign, to have been then extended ^^^l\\ to the Ferfon of the King: for that Author puts c' i. ' them both on the fame foot, and makes one as well as the other to be Crimen Uf£ Adajefta- tis. And the reafon of this, no doubt, was the Intereft the Kingdom had in the Safety of their Sovereigns.

Cifences againft the Safety and Honour of the King's Perfon being then become 1 reafon, made it fo^extenfive, and render'd it of fo uncertain a nature, that Perfons were often involv'd in Trea- fon before they thought of it : for as yet Treafon was under no other Regulation, than what the D 2 prefeat

( ^8 )

prefent Scfife of the Judges (not always above the Influence of angry or covetous Princes) fhou'd determine to be fo ^ of which thofe Times af- forded but too many fad Inftances. To obviate therefore this Mifchief, was the Statute of the 25 Edw. 3. made, as a Rule whereby the Judges wereintirely to govern themfelves, without ever defigning (athing impodible) to limit the Power of the LeglHature, which muft at all times be the fame. And this is plain from the Statute it fclf, which declares, " That becaufe many " other like Cafc« of Treafon may happen in '' time to come, .vhich a Man can't think or de- " clare at this prefent time, it is accorded, '' that if any other Cafe, fuppos'd Treafon, " which is not above fpecify'd, dcth happen " before any Juftices ^ the Juftices fhall tarry, " withrnt any going to Judgment of the Trea- *' fon, iiil the Caufe be fhew'd and dedar'd *' before the King and his Parliament, whether " it ought to be judg'd Treafon or other Fe- " lony."

By this Provifo it appears, that the Parlia- ment, which for good reafons thought it necefla- ry to confine inferior Jurifdidions to one Rule, referv'd to themfelves a Power of judging in particular Cafes, that were not exprefs'd in this Statute. Otherwife, why Ihou'd the judgesftay for the Refolution of Parliament, if their Re- folution was not to affect the Cafe before them, but was only a Rule to them for the future ?

The Praftice of Parliaments being the beft In- terpreter of their Rights, I fhall give fome In- ftances of Acts of ^ttainder^ both before and after the making of this Statute.

By

( 19 )

By the 33 EJtv. i. Nicholas de Segrave was at- ? Inft- 7- tainted by Parliament, for leaving the Army^-^^-^> then in Scotland. 22.*

As this was before the Statute, fo after it, ^ j^^ ^^ Comines and Weflon met with the fame Treat- n. 3*8, 3 y. ment by Parliament, in the Reign of Richard II. Pryns for furrendring Forts of which they were Go-^°o"^ of vernours \ not for Corruption, for that is i^o^di°^^^2. pretended, but out of mere Cowardice. And^^^^^y^ certainly 'neither of thefe are fo great Crimes 4? /^rg^. as a General's revealing to the Enemy the De- terminations of the Council of War, receiving Orders from them, and taking Meafures with them to divide the Army, that the greateft part, upon a Separation, might be cut off.

Goury and Oile were attainted of TreafonB^'?^* by Parliament, in the fourth of Edward 111.^-4. £»2« for the Murder of the King's Father, depos'd^*^* for Male-Adminiftration. And in the fame Year, Sir John Matrevers was attainted for the ^^^^' ^"<^« Murder of the Earl of Kent, Uncle to Edward III. |;, ^[^'^^ This was before the Statute, nor was it provided *

for by it, and yet Talbot, after the making it, was attainted by Parliament for confpiring the Deaths of the Dukes of Lancafier and Clovcefier,^^^<^' Jud. Uncles to Richard II. And certainly the con-|^-^'^-^7- fpiring the Ruin and Deftrudion of the King-'rj^^;^°^ dora, is infinitely a greater Crime : fuch mon- ftrous Traitors, whatever their Qi^ality was, j

our Anceftors, as has been already obferv'd, con- {

deran'd to be hang'd. !

In the 22d of Edw. 3. (three Years before the Statute) one John at Hill was attainted of Trea- 22 A(r.49^ fon, for killing Adrian de Walton the King's ,

AmbafTador. This Cafe likewife was left out of the Statute, and yet in the 3d of Rich- 2.

Kirby '

i

TJof

Kirhy and Algrove were attainted of Treafon by flnft. 8 R* Parliament, for the Murder of John Imperiall >. 3 R 2. AmbafTador from Genoa. In this cafe, the Di- 1. 18. redtion of the Statute was foUow'd ^ for they iiL3R.2.were firft indifted at the King's-Bench, but the 1.31. Judges wou'd not proceed upon it, but laid it

. before the Parliament. Linft. I" ^^^ 2.3d of Edw. 3. Juftice Thorpe was for

Bribery fentenc'd to death by Parliament ^ tho it was a Punifhment much feverer than prefcrib'd by Law. And the reafon of the Judgment was. That he had broke the King's Oath. And if this was a good reafon for the Parliament to put him to death, it will hold much more ftrongly for punifhing thofe who prevail on , their Sovereigns to violate their Faith, and to break their mofl; folemn Engagements with all their Allies. The Honour of the Kingdom and Crown is much more wounded by fuch Afts, than by a Judg's underhand taking of Bribes. 1 R. 2. In the nth of Rich. 2. the Duke of Gloucejler dd. Jud. and others brought an Appeal for Treafon a- 3. and gainft the Archbidiopof Tork^ Chief Juftice Tre- rVortef- fi^^^^-i ^^' ^^^ Common and Civil Lawyers, ae deLau- 'J po II a Reference from the Lords, declar'd their ibus, &:c. Opinion, That the Appeal cou'd not be fup- • 3^ ported by either Law. The Lords then re- folv'd, that in a Crime of this nature, which concerned the Perfon of the King, committed by fo Great Men, of whom the Parliament were the only Judges, they woa'd not be bound hy the Rules of inferior Courts., which are but the Exe- cutors of the amient Laws and Cufloms of the Realm., and of the Ordinances of Varliament : and fo adj'jdgM the Appeal to be good. Which

was

was in effeft faying, That the Parliament, which gives Rules to all inferiour Courts, was it felf under none but thofe of right Reafon and natu- ral Jultice. And do not both thefe cry aloud for inquiring into the late Condud of the Mi- niftry, their Tools and Inftruments? cut

In the I ith of Rich. 2. Trefilian Chief Juftice,^^^'^'^'-'"' Belknapy and other Judges, were attainted by Parliament, for giving Opinions, tho by the King's fpecial Command, contrary to Law : and upon this Attainder, Trefdian was hang'd at Tyburn. And if a late Minifter fee the Seals to a Treaty of Peace, which gave away, con- trary to an exprefs Aft of Parliament, Cape Breton'^ wiU the Prince's Command any more juflify him, than it did the Chief Juftice? And 'tis to be obferv'd, this Ad of Attainder is con- firmed by the ift of Hen. ^. by which, Trea- fons were reduc'd to the old Standard of the 25th of Edw. 3.

The calling ill Minifters to account, was in thofe times carry'd fo far, that the Sandion of one Parliament was not thought fufficient to skreen them from the Refentment of another: for the Lord Cobham was attainted by Parlia--, ,, ,

1 n. r T,- I r • S eld. J lb

ment, m the 21ft of Rich. 1. tor procurmg to ^2^ himfelf and others a Commiflion founded on a Statute made in the loth of that King. And if even an >4t? of Parliament was not by our An- ceftors thought fufficient to skreen evil Mini- fters, they wou'd never have imagin'd, that their mere P^otes were fo ^ efpecially if a IMajority in one Houfe was gain'd by a Pradice highly cri- minal*, and the other haftily voted Thanks for a Peace, before they knew upon what Terms it was made.

John

( ?2 )

John Mortimer had been committed to the J Tower on fafpicion of Treafon, but found means

! to make his efcape : This breaking of Prifon, tho

no Treafon at Common Law, or by any Statute, :3eld. jud. was in Parliament, in the id of Hen^ 6. adjudg'd ^59. ' ' Treafon. And if ill Minifters, confcious of their own Guilt, fly out of the Kingdom, to avoid a Parliamentary Inquiry, there's no way to reach them, but by an A&. of Attainder. Without that, untouch'd either in their Ho- nour or Eftate, they may fecurely laugh at the Juftice of the Nation. , „g In the Beginning of the Reign of Henry Vlll. Empfon and Dudley, chiefly for Profecutions foun- ded on Ads of Parliament which had been long difus'd, lolt their Lives j fo tender was the Par- liament to fecure People from Oppreflion on any pretence whatever. 12 H. 8. ^^ Henry Vlll's time, one Richard Coke^ for put- .$, ting Poifon into a Pot of Broth in the Bilhop of Rochefiers Kitchin, of which two died, was, by the 22d o^ Hen. 8. attainted of Treafon, and ] order'd to be boilM to death.

< H 8 ^" ^^^^ King's time, Elizabeth Barton, for 14. * pretending to Revelations from God, that he Jeib.H.8. was difpleas'd with the King for his Divorce •404. from QucQn Kathenne, and that he wou'd not live a Month longer if he proceeded in his Match with u4nne of Bolen, was attainted by Parlia- Inft. 14. J^ent : and her Crime, as Coke obferves, was not

within the 25 Edw.s. [eib.H.8. lo the fame Reign, the Lady Katherine Howard 537. ' was attainted by Ad of Parliament, for hav- ing been too free of her Favours before Ihe jnarry'd the King (which cou'd not be Trea- j Ton within the 25th of Edw. 3.) as were Der^

ham

ham and Colepeper for having to do with her.'

In Charles the Firfl's Reign was the famom Tryal of my Lord Strajford, which lafted above a Year j who was, after many Hearings, at- tainted of Treafon, for endeavouring to change the Limited Government into an Abfoljte one.

Two things objeded againft this Attainder, were, i. That the Parliament was fo confcious of having given a wrong Sentence, that they enafted their Judgment fhou'd not be drawn into a Precedent. 2. That tho no fingle Fa^: a- mounted to Treafon, yet that they made the fe- veral Fafts to be an accumulative Treafon.

The Claufe in the Aft of Attainder, on which the firft Objedion is founded, is, " That no *' Judg or Judges (hou'd adjudg, interpret, or " determine any Adt or Thing to be Treafon, *' otherwife than he or they Ihou'd, or ought ** to have done, before the making this Adt." This Claufe was neceffary to confine the Judges (not Parliaments) to the 25th of £^1^.3. be- caufe without it they wou'd have had a right to judg all fuch Cafes as were parallel to Straf- ford\ to be Treafon.

In anfwer to the other Objedion, 'tis faid. That the Crime charg'd on that Lord, was his defigning to change the Limited Government; and that this was certainly fuch Treafon as had always been cognizable by Parliament, tho not within the faid AH : and that this was to be prov'd by fuch Overt Ads as Ihew'd his Inten- tion.

Of late Years there have been three Ads of Attainder ; that of the Duke of Monmouth^ of Sir '^ohn Fmwick^ and of the Pretender : in all E which

ZrSi to thof Fo'rms and Rules that are

be of any weigSt, or urgM as Precedents for the ^°^r'ceS^ Wd be trne -^,^'„^;^

^XX^ pX-t h'd n':Sup\wer, Suf the Matter their Judgments were foun-

dedon, was not within tbe Statute ofthe ^Stlt of Edv>. 3. But whatever other Reaions wt affj^df^r reverG"S thefe Atta.^^^^^^^ find, in any one inftance, either or ine.c

"'in The"re°ve?finsthe Attainder of the Earl of In tne reverung i"^ " , pndeavouring

Strafford, it was not deny d, tl>« endeav 6 to change the Liinited into »« AM-olute M^^^^^^^

chy, was a Treafon ^nS'^^V'! Jf^le Rati but it was faid, that no o"? Ad that the Earl was charg'd with, amounted to a ProotoiK

Tho After-Ages have b«» ""f ^3' 'ndants Motives of Compaffion to eafe the DeUenoants ^f° ^h ashavefufFer'd under «"/°f ^ ^^^ 'tainders, by reverfinsthemYgjjI,«f^^^^^^^ upon me to fay. That 'J, P« ^;S"'a ^^ ^ jU^t^opro^ed in ^.^ =^- witt t^Xt little' reafon to ftew Jl-y fin 'tis to be fear'd that the Confequences oi Adminiftration m^y affeft oar lateB r .

tity.

The

^ <^ c n )

^ n^ noufe ot Lords formerly, even in their jadicial Capacity, have adjudg'd the making an ill Peace a capital Crime. And one of the Ar- ticles on which tliey condemned Roger Earl ofcaniel Mortimer to be hang'd (and accordingly his Body Kennet hung two Days and Nights at Tyburn) was for^'^^T procuring a Peace with Scotland difhonourable to^"^^'^^ the King and Kingdom. And tho this Judg-p°2il', ment was reversed, it was becaufe that Earl was not admitted to make his Defence in Perfon.

Had it not been for the 25th of Edw.3. the Common-Law Judges might have retainM to this day a Power to declare any thing to be Treafon, which they apprehended to be highly prejudicial to the Kingdom. And fure the Le- giflature, who cou'd firft give them this Power, and afterward take it away, muft have fuch a Power inherent in themfelves.

I think I need add no more on this Head, fince I hope *tis by this time evident, that the Legiflature, whenever they judg the Neceffity of Affairs requires it, have an unalienable Righc of proceeding by Afts of Attainder againft great Offenders, tho guilty of fuch Crimes as were not punilhable by any exprefs Law^ and. that this Power is abfolutely neceffary for the Prefer- vation of the Conftitution.

If what is here writ, gives a true Idea of that Part of the Conftitution relating to the Power of Parliaments, which every Britijh Gen- tleman ought at all times, but efpecially at this jundure, to underftand j I fhall think the Time and Pains I have fpent on this Subjed, well employ'd.

And

n<^ ) -- .. .

And fince the Guardians Jof the Brt'tijh Li- berties have declar'd. That the Meafures which for fome time palt have been talcen to ac- compUfli our Deftruftion, (hail be trac'd out, and the Authors of them -brought to condign punilhment •, we ought no': to be anxious about the Means they will employ : no doabt, they will take the moll proper for efFeding this fo highly neceflkry Work, if it were but to . Itrike at the Root of the French Fad^ioa, which everyday giows more and more infoleut: And without it, the Koife of the Danger of the Church (wb'.b was not fafe, but when all was giving up to France) will not ceafe, as long as there are any Remains of the Principles of the Reformation, or of the Britifli Liberties, or one Foot of Church-Lands in the hands of the Laity.

¥ J N J S.

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