This talent was put into your hands. And I shall recur to that which I said at the first: I came with very great joy and contentment and comfort, the first time I met you in this place. But we and these Nations are, for the present, under some disappointment!-If I had proposed to have played the Orator,-which I never did affect, nor do, nor I hope shall [Hear!],-I doubt not but upon easy suppositions, which I am persuaded every one among you will grant, we did meet upon such hopes as these. I met you a second time here: and I confess, at that meeting I had much abatement of my hopes; though not a total frustration. I confess that that which damped my hopes so soon was somewhat that did look like a parricide. It is obvious enough unto you that the 'then' management of affairs did savour of a Not owning,too-too much savour, I say, of a Not owning of the Authority that called you hither. But God left us not without an expedient that gave a second possibility— Shall I say possibility? It seemed to me a probability, -of recovering out of that dissatisfied condition we were all then in, towards some mutuality of satisfaction. And therefore by that Recognition [The Parchment we had to sign: Hum-m !], suiting with the Indenture that returned you hither; to which afterwards was also added your own Declaration, conformable to, and in acceptance of, that expedient:- thereby, 'I say,' you had, though with a little check, another opportunity renewed unto you to have made this Nation as happy as it could have been if every thing had smoothly run on from that 1 Commons Journals (vii. 368), 14 Sept. 1654. first hour of your meeting. And indeed,—you will give me liberty of my thoughts and hopes,-I did think, as I have formerly found in that way that I have been engaged in as a soldier, That some affronts put upon us, some disasters at the first, have made way for very great and happy successes; and I did not at all despond but the stop put upon you, in like manner, would have made way for a blessing from God. That Interruption being, as I thought, necessary to divert you from violent and destructive proceedings; to give time for better deliberations;-whereby leaving the Government as you found it, you might have proceeded to have made those good and wholesome Laws which the People expected from you, and might have answered the Grievances, and settled those other things proper to you as a Parliament: for which you would have had thanks from all that entrusted you. [Doubtful" Hum-m-m!" from the old Parliament.] What hath happened since that time I have not taken public notice of; as declining to intrench on Parliament privileges. For sure I am you will all bear me witness, That from your entering into the House upon the Recognition, to this very day, you have had no manner of interruption or hindrance of mine in proceeding to what blessed issue the heart of a good man could propose to himself,-to this very day none.' You see you have me very much locked up, as to what you have transacted among yourselves, from that time to this. ["None dare report us, or whisper what we do."] But some things I shall take liberty to speak of to you. As I may not take notice what you have been doing; so I think I have a very great liberty to tell you That I do not know what you have been doing! [With a certain tone; as one may hear!] I do not know whether you have been alive or dead. I have not once heard from you all this time; 'I have not: and that you all know. If that be a fault that I have not, surely it hath not been mine! If I have had any melancholy thoughts, and have sat down by them,-why might it not have been very lawful for me to think that I was a Person judged unconcerned in all these businesses? I can assure you I have not so reckoned myself! Nor did I reckon myself unconcerned in you. And so long as any just patience could support my expectation, I would have waited to the uttermost to have received from you the issue of your consultations and resolutions.—I have been careful of your safety, and the safety of those that you represented, to whom I reckon myself a servant. But what messages have I disturbed you withal? What injury or indignity hath been done, or offered, either to your persons or to any privileges of Parliament, since you sat? I looked at myself as strictly obliged by my Oath, since your recognising the Government in the authority of which you were called hither and sat, To give you all possible security, and to keep you from any unparliamentary interruption. Think you I could not say more upon this subject, if I listed to expatiate thereupon? But because my actions plead for me, I shall say no more of this. [Old Parliament dubiously rolls its eyes.]—I say, I have been caring for you, for your quiet sitting; caring for your privileges, as I said before, that they might not be inter rupted; have been seeking of God, from the great God a blessing upon you, and a blessing upon these Nations. I have been consulting if possibly I might, in anything, promote, in my place, the real good of this Parliament, of the hopefulness of which I have said so much unto you. And I did think it to be my business rather to see the utmost issue, and what God would produce by you, than unseasonably to intermeddle with you. But, as I said before, I have been caring for you, and for the peace and quiet of these Nations: indeed I have; and that I shall a little presently manifest unto you. And it leadeth me to let you know somewhat,which, I fear, I fear, will be, through some interpretation, a little too justly put upon you; whilst you have been employed as you have been, and,—in all that time expressed in the Government, in that Government, I say in that Government,—have brought forth nothing that you yourselves say can be taken notice of without infringement of your privileges! I will tell you somewhat, which, if it be not news to you, I wish you taken very serious consideration of. If it be news, I wish I had acquainted you with it sooner. And yet if any man will ask me why I did it not, the reason is given already: Because I did make it my business to give you no interruption. 66 had 1 An embarrassed sentence; characteristic of his Highness. “You ❝ have done nothing noticeable upon this Somewhat' that I am about “to speak of,—nor, indeed, it seems upon any Somewhat ;—and this was one you may, without much interpretation,' be blamed for doing “nothing upon.” Government' means Instrument of Government: 'the time expressed' therein is Five Months,-now, by my way of calculating it, expired! Which may account for the embarrassed iteration of the phrase, on his Highness's part. 6 There be some trees that will not grow under the shadow of other trees: There be some that choose,—a man may say so by way of allusion,-to thrive under the shadow of other trees. I will tell you what hath thriven, -I will not say what you have cherished, under your shadow; that were too hard. Instead of Peace and Settlement,-instead of mercy and truth being brought together, and righteousness and peace kissing each other, by your' reconciling the Honest People of these Nations, and settling the woful distempers that are amongst us; which had been glorious things and worthy of Christians to have proposed,-weeds and nettles, briers and thorns have thriven under your shadow! Dissettlement and division, discontent and dissatisfaction; together with real dangers to the whole,—have been more multiplied within these five months of your sitting, than in some years before! Foundations have also been laid for the future renewing of the Troubles of these Nations by all the enemies of them abroad and at home. Let not these words seem too sharp: for they are true as any mathematical demonstrations are, or can be. I say, the enemies of the peace of these Nations abroad and at home, the discontented humours throughout these Nations,which products' I think no man will grudge to call by that name, of briers and thorns,-they have nourished themselves under your shadow! [Old Parliament looks still more uneasy.] And that I may clearly be understood: They have taken their opportunities from your sitting, and from the hopes they had, which with easy conjecture they might take up and conclude that there would be no Set |