SEVERAL PROPOSALS, &c.
1. THat those that did lend Moneys, Horse or Arms, or ought else, upon the Propositions in or about the year 1642. and have continued to assist the Parliament and Army upon the account of truth and peace, may now be freed from further charge; and if possible, that they may be paid, especially those that are not able to forbear it.
2. That those that have not lent, may be invited to lend the fifth and twentieth part; and that a sufficient number be appointed to receive it; and that it may be for the payment of the souldiers, that hereby, all may be equal in lending.
3. That those that are much encreased in their outward Estates since they first did lend, may be invited to make some reasonable addition.
4. That those that have been satisfied their monies lent, by Lands or otherwise, be now again invited to lend the 8th & 20th part.
5. That all those Lands that have been purchased or given from, or by the Commonwealth or Parliament, may be double in the Assesments, that thereby the Lands of all well-affected men under 40 l. a year, may not be assessed any longer; yet that all men may be assessed for their stock of money, beside the stock they use in their Trades or farming. And that all their Lands that have not assisted the Parliament, but in any thing acted to the contrary, that their Lands be double in the Assesment, to those that did assist the Parliament and Army.
6. That all Houses and Lands that are the Commonwealths, and can be spared from needful uses, as namely White hall, and divers others, may be sold to pay the Souldiers, and publike faith money, lent in 1642. and 43. or about that time.
7. That the Officers in the Army may be reduced to as small a number as may be, and that they be contented (especially in times of peace) with less pay: for the people and private souldiers are much offended at the pomp and pride of some Officers.
8. That the private souldiers may be duely payed every month.
9. That there may be Registers, one or more in every County, that by them all Wills, Sales, (of any considerable value) and all Bills and Bonds, Conveyances and Morgages, &c. may be registred at a reasonable price, so that every man may see what is his, and what is anothers; and to prevent suits at Law, which now are and have been very vexatious, hazardous, and chargeable.
10. That there may be peace-makers appointed in every County, that may have power given them to hear and determine all matters in variance, and to give Judgement &c. that there be no going to Law one with another.
11. That those peace-makers may give and send our Summons instead of Writs, & that there be no Arests but after those Summons: that no Conveyance of any Lands or Goods, made by the parties, be good, but null, except it be with the peace-makers consent, for the satisfaction of the party complaining: provided that the Tryal may not hold above one month after the Summons.
12. That all Laws that are Tyrannical, or that thereby the people may and have been snared and oppressed, in conscience or otherwise, may be taken away; all Deodands, &c.
13. That care be taken that all Monies or Lands given for Charitable Uses, be disposed of to Gods glory; and not be imbezzel'd, nor continued to any superstitious or idolatrous use or uses.
14. That all Copy-holders may be at a reasonable rent by the Acre, for their Lands, without Fine or Bond-services, &c.
15. That the people be left free to chuse and maintain their own Ministers respectively, to preach to them; provided they be not professed Enemies to the Commonwealth, and that they meddle not with State-matters to disturb others.
16. That all impositions by way of Tythes, be taken away and abolished; and if any be dissatisfied therewith, let them read the Husband-mans Plea, and Hartfordshire Petition, exhibited many years since to the Parliament, and Anthony Person, and other late Writers.
17. That none that do live in the fear of God, and are sent as by his immediate power into the Ministery, may in the least be interrupted, or outwardly disturbed, nor others in the time of their speaking; and that none be faulted for speaking one to another.
18. That there may be no observation of dayes or places imposed upon tender Consciences, nor nothing forced from them to maintain those meeting places they make no use of, but rather, that Parishes [Page 3]may be united, that such meeting places and Churches (falsly so called) as may be spared, may be work-houses, for the better setting the poor on work, and relieving those that are not able to work: and that there may be special care taken for the better relief of the poor and impotent.
19. That all swearing, whoring, Theft, Murther, and all other wickedness and ideleness, and Pride, as much as may be, may be punished and suppressed in whomsoever, without partiality.
20. That there may be a Model of Civil Government and Laws in short, set out and declared to the People, that all may set their hands to it; and those that cannot for the present, let them have three or six months time given them, to give in their Reasons to the contrary to the Parliament, that so there may be a general and particular Agreement among the people, of all Civil Laws and Government in outward things; and that no Laws be in force, but what shall from time to time, be made and agreed upon, by the Keepers of the Liberties of the People, and the people by subscribing their Names as aforesaid: and that a [...]l those Laws, and Civil Government be, with the names of the subscriber [...], registered in a County book. And that there be present care taken by this Parliament to make an Addition to their number of men to sit in Parliament, such as do fear GOD; hating covetousness, and of known faithfulness to the Come monwealth. An Agreement of the People would be the first thing done; for a house, (and so a nation) divided in it self, cannot stand: we have over and over seen it by experience.
The NARRATIVE of the Proposer, as followeth.
1. The said Samuel was, for refusing to pay the Ship-money about the year 2640. strayed three times, and at last forced to go in his own Arms against the Scots, when the late King intended to force a new Book of Common Prayer upon them: but with much ado, the said Samuel prevailed with the Leaders or Commanders to accept of a man in his room, which he was forced to hire at a great rate.
2. By Bishop Wren's Innovations, for refusing to kneel at the rails, the Table being set up Altar-wise at the east end, he was kept a long time in the Commissaries Court, & Arches, at great expences, & Journies from Ipswich to London, vexations troubles & charges; & there a Significavit and Excommunica ion came out against me, &c. whereby I was damnified about 300 l. whereupon my self, and two Men more in Ipswich, did Petition the Parliament against Bishop Wren, Sir John Lambe, and his Commissary, his innovations; and for Reparations, and as I have heard, the Committee of that Parliament whereto [Page 4]Sir Thomas Witherington was then Chair-man, had drawn up a Report to be made to the House for 300 l. apiece Reparations; but presently the King did challenge the five or six Members, and thereupon the disturbance did grow so great, that we could have no proceedings. Our Petition and attendance with Witnesses, and several Journies of our selves and Witnesses, from about Ipswich to London, was a very great trouble and charge to us.
3. About that time, the King went from the Parliament to Newmarket; and whilst he was there, we had an Assizes at Bury S. Edmunds (so called) in Suffolk, at which Assizes my self, and one man more in Ipswich (who since dyed in the Parliaments service, a Captain) did draw a Petition to the King, shewing that the great grievance of the Country was, his not returning to the Parliament; and said in it, That if there were any in the Parliament that had offended any known Law of this Nation, that they might be brought to a fair tryal, according to Law, &c. And with our diligence about that Petition, it was signed by the Grand Jury, and most of the Justices: as I remember, by all upon the Bench except one, as also by a numberless number of the hands of the whole County, it being a very great Assizes: and three, a Knight, and two other Justices for the County were appointed to carry that Petition to the King, to New-market, and were just ready with their coaches to go to New market; and then the King hearing of it, he did send a Messenger or Message, That no Petition should be brought to him, at the peril of the Bringers. But then my self and some others did go to Judge Crook his chamber, and desired him to deliver our Petition to the King: he did read it, and receive it, and promised that if it were possible, he would deliver it to him; but soon after, we did hear that the King went to Nottingham, and refused all Petitions and Invitations from the Parliament and People; and in a short time, as we did hear, he set up his Standard at Nottingham, and raised an Army against his Parliament, and well-affected people: Whereupon the Parliament did in their just defence raise an Army against the Seducers of the King, &c. And upon this account from time to time I have acted, & have been imployed in the service in brief, as follows.
1. My self, my own Father, and Wives Father did lend upon the propositions and publike Faith, about 300 l. most of all which was at last my loss.
2. My self continued a dayly Actor in sending out Hors-men and Arms; and after a short time, my self and three more had a Commission sent us from the then Lord Gray of Wark, to secure and dis-arm all that had not associated and lent upon the publike Faith: by vertue [Page 5]of which Commission, I my self, without the assistance of the other two, the fourth man being passed or passing away into the Army, a Captain with a Foot-company raised by us at a great charge; my self alone did raise and procure to be raised from those that had not lent nor [...], a Troop of 74 horse compleatly manned and armed, with about 300 l. in money. And at the earnest Request of the la [...]e Commissary General Whaley, I did pass with him, and those Horse-men and monies, [...]o Huntingdon; and at that time the late Protector Oliver was at Huntingdon, waiting to raise those horses li [...]led, &c. but had got few or none: then he, the said Protector, desired me to stay a while, and make use of my Commission there: which I did, and in a short time we raised a considerable number of horse, arms and money: But because I did know that the County of Suffolk was left in a dangerous condition, I returned back, and refused no service for the good of the Commonwealth and County, and continued sending Horse and Arms to the late Protector & Parliaments Army: and upon Letters from the late Protector Oliver directed and sent to me, I did from time to time send him also honest able men; some by his Letter, to Ely, to Col. Walton there: and those men were sent out at my own cost and charge. If I mistake not, I did send from Ipswich among divers other men, the late deceased General Blake, and others that are dead, and many of them alive, that have been very serviceable; and from time to time, I did entertain souldiers, Commanders and divers others, related to, and members of the Parliament and Army, at my own cost and charge. And I was made high Collector for the very first Assesment, when no man durst do it, and was forced to go to several places with a party of Horse, at my own cost and charge, to force some ill-affected to pay their Assesments. And I was continued high Collector in all the most troublesome times, until the year 1651. and in those dayes it was a very hazardable, dangerous and troublesome office, and so much the more, because most part of the time, there was no treasurer that did act in that County: whereby, and by reason of the unruliness and necessities of the souldiers at some time, I was exposed to very great troubles and losses; To instance but in two or three, namely, Not long before the great Army went into Scotland, Captain Chillenden, Captain Disher and Lt. Sheres did get by force, and by cunning and deceit from me several sums, as followeth; which of right, do belong to the Commonwealth.
1. First, Captain Chillenden from time to time, by his cunning and flattering words, would have what monies he did come for, with [Page 6]Warrants for Col. Whaley's Regiment; and a little before their going into Scotland, after he had received his money upon a Warrant for that Regiment, he told me that he had one Warrant more, to receive as I remember about 2200 l. as he said it was for the Committee for the Army. Alderm Allen, and others with him earnestly desired me to let him have what I could possibly upon that Warrant, and used many arguments to perswade me, and said that what monies I did let him have upon that warrant, was almost as good as given him: for he was buying of Fee-farme-rents, and could make use of that money a long time. Whereupon I did at that time let him have, and appointed him to receive; which he had, or did accept of great part; and at several times after, upon that Warrant, at his earnest request, I did pay him, and order him to receive upon that Warrant, in all, the sum of about 1700 l. and but 1000 l. of that is entred in my account; so that there is about 700 l. of that at money in his hands, for ought I know to this day. One other time when he brought a Warrant for about 3000 l. for that Regiment, at the same time there was at my house a party of Horse which came for the like sum upon warrant, as I remember belonging to the late Protectors Regiment; and they did earnestly desire to have that money which I had, which in all was at that time, as neer as I could estimate, about 3000 l. And whilst my self, the Agent for the Army, and both parties were in a lower room of my house, parling which party should have it, or whether my money should be divided between the two Regiments, this Chillenden went out of the room with some or all his party, and went to a Lock-Smith, and borrowed iron instruments, and then with his party got privately up into my chamber where the money was in a great chest with three locks, and broke it open, and took & carried away all the money, unknown to me; which, as neer as I could estimate, was as aforesaid about 3000 l. & I heard presently that he was gon to an Inne in town with all the money. Whereupon I sent for him to bring back the money, which he did not, but came himself with one or two more, and told me, as I remember, that there was but about 2100 l. which I was forced to accept of a Receipt or Discharge for no more: so that at that time in all likelihood, I lost about 900 l. he did also at his coming out of Scotland, to blind the Committee for the Army, attach 500 l. of my money in the treasury at Guild-hall, whereupon I put in Bayl to answer the suit, and in time had Judgement against him, and demanded my mony of all the treasurers: but by reason there was money due to Alderman Allen, and others, which Capt. Chillenden had in his hands, Alderman Allen and Chillenden were then so powerful, that though I put in Bail, and had Judgement against Chillenden, yet I could not get my 500 l.
2 Capt. Disher by cunning deceit and lies got into his hands, and hath it to this day, the sum of 600 l. which doth belong to the Commonwealth, and neer or about 100 l. due from him to my self. Lt. Sheres by telling an untruth got into his hands, and for ought I know keeps it to this day, about 170 l.
3. There is a Warrant in Capt. Blackwel's hands for the payment of 264 l. 8 s due to me for Biseet, which I have been and am much damnified for want of.
Many other things might be related and inserted, but too large, &c. Let us no longer jangle, nor force one another about Religion or Worship, for it is the power of GOD onely and his Spirit, that brings and leads into all truth, and makes us of one faith, &c. And let us all in that power and spirit wait to be taught by him, and let us not quench the Spirit in our selves nor others; and doubt ye not but the LORD will send Labourers enough into his harvest: The Kingdom is His, the Power is His, and let all Glory and Praise be given to Him. AMEN, AMEN.