wherein much blood hath been shed. I will not dispute the justice of it when it was done; nor need I tell you what my opinion is in the case were it de novo to be done. [Somewhat grim expression of face, your Highness!] But if it be at all disputable; and a man comes and finds that God in His severity hath not only eradicated a whole Family, and thrust them out of the land, for reasons best known to Himself, but also hath made the issue and close of that to be the very eradication of a Name or Title -! Which de facto is 'the case.' It was not done by me, nor by them that tendered me the Government I now act in: it was done by the Long Parliament, that was it. And God hath seemed Providential, "seemed to appear as a Povidence,' not only in striking at the Family but at the Name. And, as I said before, it is blotted out: it is a thing cast out by an Act of Parliament; it hath been kept out to this day. And as Jude saith, in another case, speaking of abominable sins that should be in the Latter Times, ** he doth farther say, when he comes to exhort the Saints, he tells them, they should "hate even the garments spotted with the flesh."*** I beseech you think not that I bring this as an argument to prove anything. God hath seemed so to deal with the Person and the Family that He blasted the very Title. And you know when a man comes, a parte post, to reflect, and see this done, this Title laid Oliverian reduplication of the phrase: accent on was. **Very familiar with this passage of Jude; see Speech II. antea, pp. 216, 7. *** Grammar a little imperfect. Really one begins to find Oliver would, as it were, have needed a new Grammar. Had all men been Olivers, what a different set of rules would Lindley Murray and the Governesses now have gone upon! -- in the dust, I confess I can come to no other conclusion. ["But that God seems to have blasted the very Title;"this, however, is felt to need some qualifying.] The like of this may make a strong impression upon such weak men as I am; and perhaps upon weaker men (if there be any such) it will make a stronger. I will not seek to set up that which Providence hath destroyed, and laid in the dust; I would not build Jericho again! And this is somewhat to me, and to my judgment and my conscience. This, in truth, it is this that hath an awe upon my spirit. [Hear] And I must confess, as the times are, they are very fickle, very uncertain, nay God knows you had need have a great deal of faith to strengthen you in your work, you had need look at Settlement! I would rather I were in my grave than hinder you in anything that may be for Settlement of the Nation. For the Nation needs it, never needed it more! And therefore, out of the love and honour I bear you, I am forever bound, whatever becomes of me, to do what is best for that;' 'and' I am forever bound to acknowledge you have dealt most honourably and worthily with me, and lovingly, and have had respect for one who deserves nothing. Indeed, out of the love and faithfulness I bear you, and out of the sense I have of the difficulty of your work, I would not have you lose any help [Help of the Name "King;" help of the scrupulous Anti-King people: it is a dark case] that may serve you, that may stand in stead to you. I would willingly be a sacrifice [King, Protector, Constable, or what you like], that there might be so long as God shall please to let this Parliament sit, a harmony, and better and good under - standing between all of you. And, whatever any man may think, it equally concerns one of us as another to go on to Settlement: and where I meet with any that is of another mind, indeed I could almost curse him in my heart. And therefore, to deal heartily and freely, I would have you lose nothing [Not even the Scrupulous] that may stand you in stead in this way. I would advise, if there be 'found' any of a froward, unmannerly or womanish spirit, I would not that you should lose them! I would not that you should lose any servant or friend who might help in this Work; that any such should be offended by a thing that signifies no more to me than I have told you it does. That is to say: I do not think the thing necessary; I do not. I would not that you should lose a friend for it. If I could help you to many 'friends,' and multiply myself into many, that would be to serve you in regard to Settlement! And therefore I would not that any, especially any of these who indeed perhaps are men that do think themselves engaged to continue with you, and to serve you, should be anywise disobliged from you. 'I have now no more to say.' The truth is, I did indicate this as my conclusion to you at the first, when I told you what method I would speak to you in.* I may say that I cannot, with conveniency to myself, nor good to this service which I wish so well to, speak out all my arguments as to the safety of your Proposal, as to its tendency to the effectual carrying-on of this Work. [There are many angry suspicious persons "This was my second head of method; all this about myself and my "own feelings in regard to the Kingship, after I had proved to you in my first head that it was not necessary, that it was only expedient or not "expedient. I am now therefore got to the end of my second head, to my conclusion." listening to me, and every word is liable to different misunderstandings in every different narrow head!] I say, I do not think it fit to use all the thoughts I have in my mind as to that point of safety. But I shall pray to God Almighty that He would direct you to do what is according to His will. And this is that poor account I am able to give of myself in this thing.§ And so enough for Monday, which is now far spent: "till to-morrow at three o'clock" ** let us adjourn; and diligently consider in the interim. His Highness is evidently very far yet from having made up his mind as to this thing; the undeveloped Yes still balancing itself against the undeveloped No, in a huge dark intricate manner, with him. Unable to "declare" himself; there being in fact nothing to declare hitherto, nothing but what he does here declare, namely, darkness visible. An abstruse time his Highness has had of it, since the end of February, six or seven weeks now; 'all England sounding round him, waiting for his Answer. And he is yet a good way off the Answer. For it is a considerabe question this of the Kingship: important to the Nation and the Cause he presides over; to himself not unimportant, and yet to himself of very minor importance, my erudite friend! A Soul of a Man in right earnest about its own awful Life and Work in this world; much superior to "feathers in the hat," of one sort or the other, my erudite friend! Of all which he gives here a candid and honest account; and indeed his attitude towards this matter is throughout, what towards other matters it has been, very manful and natural. However, on the morrow, which is Tuesday, at three o'clock, the Committee cannot see his Highness; attenting at Whitehall, as stipulated, they find his Highness indisposed in health; - are to come again tomorrow, Wednesday, at the same hour. Wednesday they come again; "wait for above an hour in the Council-Chamber;" Highness still indis § Somers Tracts, vi. 365-371, * Burton, ii. 2. posed, 'has got a cold:' Come again tomorrow, Thursday! "Which," says the writer of the thing called Burton's Diary, who was there, "did strongly build up the faith of the Contrariants," — He will not dare to accept, think the Contrariants. The Honourable House in the mean while has little to do but denounce that Shoreditch Fifth-Monarchy Pamphlet, the Standard set up, which seems to be a most incendiary piece; and painfully adjourn and re-adjourn, till its Committee do get answer. A most slow business; and the hopes of the Contrariants are rising. Thursday, 16th April 1657, Committee attending for the third time, the Interview does take effect; Six of the Grandees, Glynn, Lenthall, Colonel Jones, Sir Richard Onslow, Fiennes, Broghil, Whitlocke, take up in their order the various objections of his Highness's former Speech, of Monday last, and learnedly rebut the same, in a learned and to us insupportably wearisome manner; fit only to be entirely omitted. Whitlocke urges on his Highness That, in refusing this Kingship, he will do what never any that were actual Kings of England did, reject the advice of his Parliament.* Another says, It is his duty; let him by no means shrink from his duty! — Their discoursings, if any creature is curious on the subject, can be read at great length in the distressing pages of Somers,** and shall be matter of imagination here. His Highness said, There were weighty arguments; give him till tomorrow to think of them.*** "Tomorrow at three: spero!" says the writer of the thing called Burton's Diary, who is not one of the Contrariants. SPEECH XII. ALAS, tomorrow at three his Highness proves again indisposed; which doth a little damp our hopes, I fancy! Let us appoint Monday morning: Monday ten o'clock, "at the old place," Chamber of the Council-of-State in Whitehall. Accordingly, on Monday 20th April 1657, at the set place and hour, the Committee of Ninety-nine is once more in attendance, *** Burton, ii. 5. Somers, p. 386. ** Ibid. vi. 371-387. |