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THE

PARLIAMENTARY

OR

CONSTITUTIONAL

Hiftory of England;

BEING A

FAITHFUL ACCOUNT

Of all the

Moft remarkable TRANSACTIONS
In PARLIAMENT,

From the earliest TIMES,

TO THE

Restoration of King CHARLES II.

COLLECTED

From the RECORDS, the JOURNALS of both HOUSES, origi-
nal MANUSCRIPTS, fcarce SPEECHES, and TRACTS; all
compared with the feveral Cotemporary Writers, and con-
nected, throughout, with the Hiftory of the Times.

By SEVERAL

HAND S.

-Juvat integros accedere Fontes.

VOL. XII.

From the Call of the House of Commons, November 1, 1642, till the
Convention at Oxford, in January 1643.

LONDON,

Printed, and fold by WILLIAM SANDBY, against St. Dunstan's
Church, Fleet-ftreet. MDCCLIIL

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THE

Parliamentary Hiftory

O F

ENGLAND.

1642.

IN the firft of November the Com- An, 18. Car. I.
mons ordered, That all their Mem-
bers, living within fixty Miles of November.
London, and not employed in the

require the At

Service of that House, fhould attend The Commons within three Days; all at a farther tendance of their Distance, within eight Days; and that fuch as did Members. not appear within the Times limited, fhould be fent for by Meffengers, who were to bring them up.

This Order was occafioned by the Thinnefs of the House, for fome Months paft, which appears by the following Divifions extracted from their fournals. The moft material Points, which gave Occafion to thefe, have been taken Notice of in their proper Order of Time: The Numbers, only, will

be therefore fufficient for this Review.

June 27. 42 against 27.

30. 49 against 35.

July 9. 125 against 45. 19. 69 against 51. 23. 89 against 43. 26. 50 against 33. 28. 82 against 32. VOL. XII.

A

Aug. 15. 42 againft 33. The State of that 17. 43 against 16. Houfe at this 27. 69 against 26, Time.

Sept.

2. 40 against 29. 29. 53 against 36. In October not one Divifion enter'd.

It

An. 18. Car. I.

1642.

November.

It may very justly be inquired, What could occafion fuch an Abfence, at a Time when fo great a Number of Refolutions pafs'd, deeply affecting the Conftitution of this Kingdom?-A brief Recapitulation of fome Tranfactions in our laft Volume will fupply an Answer.

It may be remembered that there was a Call of the House on the 16th of June laft; and, on that Occafion, a Refolution pafs'd, by a Majority of 147 Voices againft 91, That none of the Abfentees fhould be admitted to take their Seats, till they had made their Excufe to a Committee appointed for that Purpose, and that Excuse reported and allowed of by the House. Moft of the Members then abfent (whofe Names are enter'd in the Commons Journals of that Day) were with the King at York; and as they could have little Reason to expect That Excufe for their Abfence would be accepted by the House, it is very probable few of them ever returned. Add to this, That

After the King had iffued his Commiffion of Array many more Members left the Houfe, and went into their feveral Counties to put the fame into Execution: And others were fent, at the fame Time, by the Parliament to execute their Ordinance for the Militia; most of the Deputy-Lieutenants being Members of the Lower House.

When the Commons, on the eleventh Day of Auguft laft, voted, That they would support the Earl of Effex with their Lives and Fortunes, they alfo refolved, That every Member then absent should declare himself at his next coming into the House; which undoubtedly kept away many who had not Courage enough to do fo; whilft fome others of a more refolute Difpofition loft their Lives, on both Sides of the Question, at the late Battle of Edge-Hill. Laftly,

1

During the Months of August and September laft, near fifty Members had been expelled the Houfe; and, though Writs were iffued out for fupplying their Places, it is hardly to be imagined that many new Elections could be made at a Time when

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