ber 20, that the officers of his regiments were deeply sensible of the miseries of the kingdom, and had a great zeal for impartial justice to be done on offenders, with whom hẹ concurred. December 6 he came to London, and next day had the thanks of the house thus garbled for his faithful services to the public.* December 11, a paper called the Agreement of the People was presented to the general and council of officers, as a rule for future government. It was supposed to be drawn up by Ireton, and proposed a dissolution of the present parliament, and a new one to be chosen, consisting of three hundred members,f who were to elect a council of state from among themselves, for the manage→ ment of all public affairs, under certain restrictions; one of which is, that they do not lay any restraints on the consciences of men for religious differences (as has been mentioned), but no proceedings were had upon it, nor did it ever take place. In the meantime the house of commons (if they now de served that name) voted his majesty's concessions at the Isle of Wight not satisfactory, and "that no member who had been absent when that vote was passed should sit again in the house till he had subscribed it;§ that no more addresses be made to the king for the future; that no malignant, who had assisted against the parliament in the first or second civil war, or that had abetted the late tumults, should be capable of being chosen lord-mayor or alderman of the city of London, or be capable of any place of profit or trust, or so much as of giving his vote for choosing persons into such offices, for the space of one year." The secluded members published a protestation** against all these proceedings as Dugdale, p. 363. † According to the authority, Williams's MS. Collections, on which Dr. Grey relies, it was proposed, that the representatives should be four hundred; and the ground of the motion was, that the people of England (being very unequally distri buted by boroughs for election of their representatives) were indifferently proportioned. How has this disproportion increased since that time!-ED. They also reversed the vote of the 5th of December, viz. "that the king answer was a ground on which to proceed upon for the settlement of the peace of the kingdom," as dishonourable to parliament, destructive to the peace of the kingdom, and tending to the breach of the public faith of the kingdom. Dr. Grey, p. 357. -ED. Rushworth, p. 1300. || Ibid. 1365. Clarendon, p. 240. **Bishop Warburton observes, that these very secluded members had voted the bishops guilty of high-treasou, for protesting in the same manner, when under the like force." The reader will turn back to vol. 2. p. 451-458, compare the two null and void till they were restored to their places; but the The army, having vanquished all opposition, went on Though some few petitions had been procured from divers The prelatical clergy lay still, either because they could cases, and decide whether they were entirely similar. Not but it is too common for *Rushworth, p. 1363. + Rapin, vol. 2. p. 567. others, about trying and destroying our sovereign lord the king," dated January 5, and sent it to a colonel to be presented to lord Fairfax at the council of war. Dr. Hammond sent an humble address to the general and council of war, to prevent the horrid design of putting the king to death, dated January 15. Both these papers insisted on the divine right of kingly government, and that to call the king before the tribunal of the people was contrary to the laws of the land. The famous Mr. Prynne, one of the secluded members, published "A brief memento to the present unparliamentary junto, touching their present intentions and proceedings to depose and execute Charles Stuart, their lawful king of England," dated from the King's-head in the Strand, January 1, 1648. The officers of the army attempted by their creatures to gain over the London ministers to their measures, or at least to persuade them to a neutrality. Hugh Peters, one of their chaplains, was sent to the remains of the assembly of divines at Westminster, for this purpose, but they declared unanimously for the release of the king. He then invited several of the London ministers, as, Mr. Marshal, Calamy, Whitaker, Sedgwick, Ash, &c. to a conference with some officers of the army, upon the subject of the coercive power of the magistrate in matters of religion, which was foreign to the present purpose; but instead of meeting them, these divines assembled with their brethren at Sion-college, and published a paper, entitled, "A serious and faithful representation of the judgment of the ministers of the gospel within the province of London, whose names are subscribed, contained in a letter to the general, and his council of war, delivered to his excellency by some of the subscribers,” January 18, 1648. In this address, after assigning reasons why they would not consult with the officers upon matters of religion, they complain of their imprisoning the members of parliament; "We remember (say they*) that when the king with a multitude of armed men demanded but a small number of the members of parliament, it was deemed an unparalleled breach of the privilege of parliament, and was one reason that an army was raised by their authority, and for their preservation; but that this very army should so far exceed * Vol. Pamph. no. 52. that act, which was then esteemed without parallel, is what we could not believe, had not our eyes been witnesses of it! "And though both houses of parliament saw reason to take up arms in their own defence, and in defence of the Protestant religion, and the fundamental laws of their country, yet this cannot be pleaded in justification of your usurp ing an authority over king and parliament, who are but so many private persons and no part of the legislature. "Moreover, though the parliament took up arms in defence of the laws, it was never their intention to do violence to the person of the king, or divest him of his royal autho'rity, much less to overthrow the whole constitution. "We therefore think ourselves bound by our protestation, and by our solemn league and covenant, to appear for our excellent constitution against arbitrary and tyrannical power in the king, on the one hand, and against the illegal proceedings of private persons, tending to subvert the constitution and introduce anarchy and confusion on the other. "Instead therefore of consulting with you, we earnestly entreat you, as the ambassadors of Christ, that you would consider of the evil of your present ways, and turn from them. You cannot but know, that the word of God commands obedience to magistrates, and consonant to Scripture this has been the judgment of Protestant divines at home and abroad, with whom we concur; disclaiming, detesting, and abhorring, the practices of Jesuits, concerning the opposing of lawful magistrates by any private persons, and the murdering of kings by any, though under the most specious and colourable pretences. Examine your consciences, if any number of persons of different principles from yourselves had invaded the rights of parliament, imprisoned the king, and carried him about from place to place, and attempted the dissolution of the whole government, whether you would not have charged them with the highest crimes. "We desire you not to infer the justice of your proceed. ings from the success, but to distinguish between God's permission and approbation, and that God's suffering men to prosper in their evil courses is one of the severest judg ments; the providence of God therefore, which is so often pleaded in justification of your actions, is no safe rule to walk by, in such actions which the word of God condemns, "Nor is it safe to be guided by the impulses of the spirit, "when they are contrary to the written word of God; we are to try the spirits, and to have recourse to the law and the testimony; if they speak not according to them, there is no light in them. "If you plead necessity for doing that which yourselves confess to be irregular, we answer, no necessity can oblige men to sin; besides, it is apparent, you were under no necessity, the parliament (till forced by you) being full and free; besides, your have engaged by oath to preserve his majesty's person, and the privileges of parliament, and no necessity can justify perjury, or dispense with lawful oaths. "We therefore beseech you to recede from this your evil way, and learn John Baptist's lesson to soldiers, Do violence to no man, neither accuse any man falsely, and be content with your wages. But if you persist in this way, be sure your sin will find you out. If our exhortation prevail not, we have discharged our duty, and we hope delivered our own souls. If it be our portion to suffer, as we are told, we trust we shall suffer as Christians; but we hope better things of you, and subscribe ourselves your servants in the Lord; James Nalton, pastor, Foster-lane Thomas Cawton, St. Bartholomew-Exchange John Fuller, Bishopsgate Francis Roberts, St. Austin Elidad Blackwell, Alhallows-Undershaft George Smalwood, Poultry Stanly Gower, Ludgate Andrew Janeway, Alhallows on the Wall Thomas Clenden, Alhallows-Barking John Wale, St. M. Cornhill James Crawford, St. Christopher William Blackmore, St. Peter, Cornhill Jonathan Lloyd, Garlickhithe Arthur Barham, St. Helen's Benjamin Needler, St. Margaret-Moses Robert Matthew, St. Andrew-Ward- Notwithstanding this seasonable and explicit remonstrance, the episcopal divines, in order to throw off the guilt of the king's misfortunes from themselves, who by |