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persons themselves. Commissions for regiments of horse and foot, and command of castles, have been likewise given from Charles Stuart, since your sitting. And what the general insolences of that party have been, the honest people have been sensible of, and can very well testify.

It has not only been thus. But as in a quinsy or pleurisy, where the humor fixeth in one part, give it scope, all " disease will gather to that place, to the hazarding of the whole: and it is natural to do so till it destroy life in that person on whomsoever this befalls. So likewise will these diseases take accidental causes of aggravation of their distemper. And this was that which I did assert, that they have taken accidental causes for the growing and increasing of those distempers-as much as would have been in the natural body if timely remedy were not applied. And indeed things were come to that pass—in respect of which I shall give you a particular account-that no mortal physician, if the Great Physician had not stepped in, could have cured the distemper. Shall I lay this upon your account, or my own? I am sure I can lay it upon God's account: That if He had not stepped in, the disease had been mortal and destructive!

And what is all this? "What are these new diseases that have gathered to this point?" Truly I must needs still say: "A company of men like briers and thorns;" and worse, if worse can be. Of another sort than those before mentioned to you. These also have been and yet are endeavoring to put us into blood and into confusion; more desperate and dangerous confusion than England ever yet saw. And I must say, as when Gideon commanded his son to fall upon Zeba and Zalmunna, and slay them, they thought it more noble to die by the hand of a man than of a stripling-which shows there is some contentment in the hand by which a man falls: so it is some satisfaction if a commonwealth must perish, that it perish by men, and not by the hands of persons differing little from beasts! That if it must needs suffer, it should rather suffer from rich men than from poor men, who, as Solomon says, "when they oppress, leave nothing behind them, but are as a sweeping rain." Now such as these also are grown up under your shadow. But it will be asked, What have they done? I hope, though they pretend "commonwealth's interest," they have had

no encouragement from you; but have, as in the former case, rather taken it than that you have administered any cause unto them for so doing. "Any cause " from delays, from hopes that this Parliament would not settle, from pamphlets mentioning strange votes and resolves of yours; which I hope did abuse you! But thus you see that, whatever the grounds were, these have been the effects. And thus I have laid these things before you; and you and others will be easily able to judge how far you are concerned.

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What these men have done?" They also have labored to pervert, where they could, and as they could, the honest-meaning people of the nation. They have labored to engage some in the army :-and I doubt not that not only they, but some others also, very well known to you, have helped to this work of debauching and dividing the army. They have, they have! I would be loth to say who, where, and how? much more loth to say they were any of your own number. But I can say: Endeavors have been made to put the army into a distemper, and to feed that which is the worst humor in the army. Which, though it was not as mastering humor, yet these took advantage from delay of the settlement, and the practices before mentioned, and the stopping of the pay of the army, to run us into freequarter, and to bring us into the inconveniences most to be feared and avoided. What if I am able to make it appear, in fact, that some amongst you have run into the city of London, to persuade to petitions and addresses to you for reversing your own votes that you have passed? Whether these practices were in favor of your liberties, or tended to beget hopes of peace and settlement from you; and whether debauching the army in England, as is before expressed, and starving it, and putting it upon free-quarter, and occasioning and necessitating the greatest part thereof in Scotland to march into England, leaving the remainder thereof to have their throats cut there; and kindling by the rest a fire in our own bosoms, were for the advantage of affairs here, let the world judge!

This I tell you also: That the correspondence held with the interest of the Cavaliers, by that party of men called Levellers, who call themselves commonwealth's-men, is in our hands. Whose declarations were framed to that purpose, and ready to be published at the time of their projected common rising;

whereof, "I say," we are possessed; and for which we have the confession of themselves now in custody; who confess also they built their hopes upon the assurance they had of the Parliament's not agreeing to a settlement:-whether these humors have not nourished themselves under your boughs, is the subject of my present discourse; and I think I shall say not amiss, if I affirm it to be so. And I must say it again, that that which hath been their advantage, thus to raise disturbance, hath been by the loss of those golden opportunities which God had put into your hands for settlement. Judge you whether these things were thus, or not, when you first sat down. I am sure things were not thus! There was a very great peace and sedateness throughout these nations; and great expectations of a happy settlement. Which I remembered to you at the beginning in my speech; and hoped that you would have entered on your business as you found it.

There was a government already in the possession of the people-I say a government in the possession of the people, for many months. It hath now been exercised near fifteen months and if it were needful that I should tell you how it came into their possession, and how willingly they received it; how all law and justice were distributed from it, in every respect, as to life, liberty and estate; how it was owned by God, as being the dispensation of His providence after twelve years' war; and sealed and witnessed unto by the people-I should but repeat what I said in my last speech unto you in this place: and therefore I forbear. When you were entered upon this government; ravelling into it-You know I took no notice what you were doing-If you had gone upon that foot of account, to have made such good and wholesome provisions for the good of the people of these nations as were wanted; for the settling of such matters in things of religion as would have upheld and given countenance to a godly ministry, and yet as would have given a just liberty to godly men of different judgments-" to "men of the same faith with them that you call the orthodox ministry in England, as it is well known the Independents are, and many under the form of baptism, who are sound in the faith, and though they may perhaps be different in judgment in some lesser matters, yet as true Christians both looking for salvation only by faith in the blood of Christ, men pro

fessing the fear of God, and having recourse to the name of God as to a strong tower-I say you might have had opportunity to have settled peace and quietness amongst all professing godliness; and might have been instrumental, if not to have healed the breaches, yet to have kept the godly of all judgments from running one upon another; and by keeping them from being overrun by a common enemy, "have" rendered them and these nations both secure, happy and well satisfied.

Are these things done; or any things towards them? Is there not yet upon the spirits of men a strange itch? Nothing will satisfy them unless they can press their finger upon their brethren's consciences, to pinch them there. To do this was no part of the contest we had with the common adversary. For "indeed" religion was not the thing at first contested for "at all" but God brought it to that issue at last; and gave it unto us by way of redundancy; and at last it proved to be that which was most dear to us. And wherein consisted this more than in obtaining that liberty from the tyranny of the bishops to all species of Protestants to worship God according to their own light and consciences? For want of which many of our brethren forsook their native countries to seek their bread from strangers, and to live in howling wildernesses; and for which also many that remained here were imprisoned, and otherwise abused and made the scorn of the nation. Those that were sound in the faith, how proper was it for them to labor for liberty, for a just liberty, that men might not be trampled upon for their consciences! Had not they themselves labored, but lately, under the weight of persecution? And was it fit for them to sit heavy upon others? Is it ingenuous to ask liberty, and not to give it? What greater hypocrisy than for those who were oppressed by the bishops to become the greatest oppressors themselves, so soon as their yoke was removed? I could wish that they who call for liberty now also had not too much of that spirit, if the power were in their hands!—As for profane persons, blasphemers, such as preach sedition; the contentious railers, evil-speakers, who seek by evil words to corrupt good manners; persons of loose conversation-punishment from the civil magistrate ought to meet with these. Because, if they pre

• Power of the militia was the point upon not false; yet truer in form than it is in which the actual war began. A statement essence. [Carlyle.]

tend conscience; yet walking disorderly and not according but contrary to the Gospel, and even to natural lights-they are judged of all. And their sins, being open, make them subjects of the magistrate's sword, who ought not to bear it in vain. The discipline of the army was such, that a man would not be suffered to remain there of whom we could take notice he was guilty of such practices as these.

And therefore how happy would England have been, and you and I, if the Lord had led you on to have settled upon such good accounts as these are, and to have discountenanced such practices as the other, and left men in disputable things free to their own consciences! Which was well provided for by the "instrument of" government; and liberty left to provide against what was apparently evil. Judge you, whether the contesting for things that were provided for by this government hath been profitable expense of time, for the good of these nations! By means whereof you may see you have wholly elapsed your time, and done just nothing!-I will say this to you, in behalf of the Long Parliament: That, had such an expedient as this government been proposed to them; and could they have seen the cause of God thus provided for; and been, by debates, enlightened in the grounds "of it," whereby the difficulties might have been cleared "to them," and the reason of the whole enforced, and the circumstances of time and persons, with the temper and disposition of the people, and affairs both abroad and at home when it was undertaken might have been well weighed "by them": I think in my consciencewell as they were thought to love their seats-they would have proceeded in another manner than you have done! and not have exposed things to these difficulties and hazards they now are at; nor given occasion to leave the people so dissettled as they now are. Who, I dare say, in the soberest and most judicious part of them, did expect, not a question, but a doing of things in pursuance of the "instrument of " government. And if I be not misinformed, very many of you came up with this satisfaction; having had time enough to weigh and consider the same.

And when I say "such an expedient as this Government "— wherein I dare assert there is a just liberty to the people of God, and the just rights of the people in these nations provided

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