eight burgesses. By this means our kings did upon 1661. the matter choose all the lords of the articles. So entirely had they got the liberties of that parliament into their hands. During the late troubles they had still kept up a distinction of three estates, the lesser barons making one: and then every estate might meet apart, and name their own committee: but still all things were brought in, and debated in full parliament. So now the first thing proposed was, the returning to the old custom of naming lords of the articles. The earl of Tweedale opposed it, but was seconded only by one person. So it passed with that small opposition. Only, to make it go easier, it was pro'mised, that there should be frequent sessions of parliament, and that the acts should not be brought in in a hurry, and carried with the haste that had been practised in former times. The acts The parliament granted the king an additional 116 revenue for life of 40,000l. a year, to be raised by passed in an excise on beer and ale, for maintaining a small this session. force upon which two troops and a regiment of foot guards were to be raised. They ordered the marquis of Montrose's quarters to be brought together and they were buried with great state. They fell next upon the acts of the former times that had limited the prerogative: they repealed them, and asserted it with a full extent in a most extraordinary manner. Primerose had the drawing of these acts. He often confessed to me, that he thought he was as one bewitched while he drew them: for, not considering the ill use might be made of them afterwards, he drew them with preambles full of extravagant rhetoric, reflecting severely on the pro 1661. ceedings of the late times, and swelled them up with the highest phrases and fullest clauses that he could invent. In the act which asserted the king's power of the militia, the power of arming and levying the subjects was carried so far, that it would have ruined the kingdom, if Gilmore, (an eminent lawyer, and a man of great integrity, who had now the more credit, for he had always favoured the king's side,) had not observed that, as the act was worded, the king might require all the subjects to serve at their own charge, and might oblige them, in order to the redeeming themselves from serving, to pay whatever might be set on them. So he made such an opposition to this, that it could not pass till a proviso was added to it, that the kingdom should not be obliged to maintain any force levied by the king, otherwise than as it should be agreed to in parliament, or in a convention of estates. This was the only thing that was then looked to: for all the other acts passed in the articles as Primerose had penned them. They were brought into parliament: and upon one hasty reading them they were put to the vote, and were always carried. One act troubled the presbyterians extremely. In the act asserting the king's power in treaties of peace and war, all leagues with any other nation, not made by the king's authority, were declared treasonable and in consequence of this, the league and covenant made with England in the year 1643 was condemned, and declared of no force for the future. This was the idol of all the presbyterians: so they were much alarmed at it. But Sharp restrained all those with whom he had credit: he told them, the only way to preserve their government was, to let all that related to the king's authority 1661. be separated from it, and be condemned, that so they might be no more accused as enemies to monarchy, or as leavened with the principles of rebellion. He told them, they must be contented to let 117 that pass, that the jealousy which the king had of them, as enemies to his prerogative, might be extinguished in the most effectual manner. This restrained many. But some hotter zealots could not be governed. One Macquair, a hot man, and considerably learned, did in his church at Glasgow openly protest against this act, as contrary to the oath of God, and so void of itself. To protest against an act of parliament was treason by their law. And Midletoun was resolved to make an example of him for the terrifying others. But Macquair was as stiff as he was severe, and would come to no submission. Yet he was only condemned to perpetual banishment. Upon which he, and some others, who were afterwards banished, went and settled at Rotterdam, where they formed themselves into a presbytery, and writ many seditious books, and kept a correspondence over all Scotland, that being the chief seat of the Scotish trade: and by that means they did much more mischief to the government, than they could have done had they continued still in Scotland. scinding all held since 1633. The lords of the articles grew weary of preparing An act reso many acts as the practices of the former times parliaments gave occasion for; but did not know how to meddle the year with those acts that the late king had passed in the year forty-one, or the present king had passed while he was in Scotland. They saw, that, if they should proceed to repeal those by which presbyterian go 1661. vernment was ratified, that would raise much opposition, and bring petitions from all that were for that government over the whole kingdom; which Midletoun and Sharp endeavoured to prevent, that the king might be confirmed in what they had affirmed, that the general bent of the nation was now turned against presbytery and for bishops. So Primerose proposed, but half in jest, as he assured me, that the better and shorter way would be to pass a general act rescissory, (as it was called,) annulling all the parliaments that had been held since the year 1633, during the whole time of the war, as faulty and defective in their constitution. But it was not so easy to know upon what point that defect was to be fixed. The only colourable pretence in law was, that, since the ecclesiastical state was not represented in those parliaments, they were not a full representative of the kingdom, and so not true parliaments. But this could not be alleged by this present parliament, which had no bishops in it: if that inferred a nullity, this was no parliament. Therefore they could only fix the nullity upon the pretence of force and violence. Yet it was a great strain to insist on that, since it was visible that neither the late king nor the present were under any 118 force when they passed them: they came of their own accord, and passed those acts'. If it was insisted on, that the ill state of their affairs was in the nature of a force, the ill consequences of this were visible; since no prince by this means could be bound to any treaty, or be concluded by any law that limited his power, these being always drawn Both kings were under a force. S. from them by the necessity of their affairs, which 1661. can never be called a force, as long as their persons are free. So, upon some debate about it on those grounds, at a private juncto, the proposition, though well liked, was let fall, as not capable to have good colours put upon it: nor had the earl of Midletoun any instruction to warrant his passing any such act. Yet within a day or two, when they had drunk higher, they resolved to venture on it. Primerose was then ill. So one was sent to him to desire him to prepare a bill to that effect. He set about it: but perceived it was so ill grounded, and so wild in all the frame of it, that he thought, when it came to be better considered, it must certainly be laid aside. But it fell out otherwise: his draught was copied out next morning, without altering a word in it, and carried to the articles, and from thence to the parliament, where it met indeed with great opposition. The earl of Crawford and the duke of Hamilton argued much against it. The parliament in the year forty-one was legally summoned: the late king came thither in person with his ordinary attendance, and without the appearance of any force: if any acts then passed needed to be reviewed, that might be well done: but to annul a parliament was a terrible precedent, which destroyed the whole security of government: another parliament might annul the present parliament, as well as that which was now proposed to be done: so no stop could be made, nor any security laid down for fixing things for the future: the parliament in the year fortyeight proceeded upon instructions under the king's |