yourselves; but, my Ls, we only affifted you with our Councils and Countenance, we made you the immediate Inftruments of your own Prefervation, and refigned entirely up to you the Honour, as well as the Advantage, of fo glorious an Action. I hope, my L-s, it will not be denyed that this was a high Piece of Generofity, and well becoming the best of your Friends; and that you will not reproach us henceforward fo grievously as you formerly have done, with the odious Crimes of Sedition, Rebellion, or fighting againft, or depofing our lawful Kings, if we believe them guilty of Male Adminiftration, and efpecially if we will think our Religion is in Danger.

We remember indeed, and were not a little furprized, to find fome among yourselves declaring, and publishing, that you had given the most fatal Blow to your Church, that ever had fallen upon it fince the Reformation, and your Establishment; (fome have made much the fame Reflections upon your late juft Proceedings, in rejecting the Bill of occafional Conformity; but let that pafs for the prefent) and that this was done by your backfliding and relinquishing your moft glorious and diftinguishing Principle of Loyalty, and indifpenfable Adherence to the next Heir in the right Line, whether Proteftant or Papift, Jew or Pagan; you had declared that the Government of fuch a King was de Jure Divino fupported by the Laws of God and Man; that his Perfon and Character, or Office, were not to be feparated; that neither of them was to be violated, nor Violence committed againft them, upon any Pretence or Caufe whatfoever; you had confirmed this by publick Acts in the Cafe of King Charles I. upon the Restoration of his Son, and in Pursuance of this infallible and found Doctrine, your Pulpits, almost all over the Nation, beat up the Doctrines of Paffive Obedience and Non-Refiftance; the Preffes of London were almoft totally employed upon the fame Subject; your Thebaan Legion was fet up, as a Light upon a Mountain, to guide and direct us in the true Way of Loyalty, they were well nigh ador'd as Martyrs and Confeffors, in that they made no Refiftance, tho' they had it in their Power, when themselves and their Religion also were both unjustly perfecuted by Heathen Emperors; yet, my L-s, it must be confeft, that immediately upon the Revolution, your Doctrine of Paffive Obedience was turned into ridicule, your Thebaan Legion was kicked down Hill with Indignation and Contempt, and themfelves look'd upon as Sots and Fools for not refifting the Violence of their lawful Emperors.

My L-s, we fhould not have touch'd upon this Sort, if we had not fome Reason to believe that (by a kind of Inuendo) thefe Reflections are like to fall upon us, and our Party, as if we had given our Affiftance and Countenance with no better Intent, than to make yourselves the Instruments of your own Destruction, and to bring fo great a Scandal upon that very Church which we had so often endeavoured to preferve; and in short (to use a courfe Expreffion, but common Cant) that in Effect we had bubbled your good L-p's. God knows our Hearts, how any fuch Design was remote from our good Intentions.

But, my L-s, to clear this Point, and free ourselves from fuch an odious Afperfion, we could bring many parallel Cafes and Examples, which

would

would more than abfolve us; but we fhall fix upon one, because it is an adjudg ing Cafe. The Monkey, my L-s, took by Force the Cat's Claw to pull a Chefnut out of the Fire, which, when done, was of no Benefit to Grimalkin, or the Pufs; the Cat brings her Action against the Monkey. The Question was, whether the Action was well laid? And it was judged by the whole Body of the Law for the Plaintiff; and that the Action was well laid, inafmuch as the Monkey entred vi & armis upon the Body of the Cat, by which the was mutilated in her Members, without any Profpect of Advantage; but, my Ls, it was alfo then and there declared for Law, that if the Monkey by Perfuafions, or any good Reafons, or Counfels, had prevailed upon the Cat voluntarily to have done the fame Act, in order to oblige the Monkey, the Action had not been well laid; and notwithstanding any Mischief suffered by the Plaintiff, the Defendant had been acquitted, and the Cat must have paid Cofts and Charges; we fhall only mention one Cafe more, and the rather, because it was folemnly debated by the Doctors of both Faculties, I mean of the Canon and Civil Law. It was the Cafe poor Ophelia. The Queftion was, fhe being found dead in a River, whether he was felo de fe, and by Confequence ought to have a Christian Burial; but the Cafe being, we fuppofe, as well known to your L-—ps as to ourselves, we fhall trouble you no farther with it.

of

Thus, my L--s, you fee that we ftand fully acquitted in the Judgment of the Law from that foul Afperfion, at least as far as parallel Cafes can clear us.

And now, my L-s, give us leave to proceed to the glorious Reign of that invincible Monarch and Hero, K-W▬▬▬, in which we shall give two fuch notable Inftances of our Zeal and earneft Endeavours to preferve the Church of England from Popery, that the moft malicious Tongues muft withdraw themselves into their foul Mouths, except to publish our eternal Glory, and fincere Affections to your Church, established by Law.

Soon after our great K-W was crowned, his first publick Action, in relation to Ecclefiaftical Affairs, was to establish our Brethren, the Kirk in Scotland, which now became the Church of Scotland eftablished by Law, (a fure Mark that it is the true Church) as yours had been before of England. After this (well knowing our great Merits, both as to our Loyalty and the true Principles of our Religion) his late Majefty, KW- , made it his Bufinefs to introduce us into his Court, into his Councils, and into his Parliament, till in a fhort Time we filled Court, Council, and Parliament.

About that Time it was, that the late K- James, not believing that he was legally abdicated, but had ftill a Right to recover his three Kingdoms, he made a Defcent into Ireland, which he left much as he had done England. Scotland was foon up in Arms, and his Party began to look dangerous; the dreadful Defign of La Hogue came violently upon us. All which put the C of E into fo great an Affright for fear of Popery, and

an

an injured King entering upon us, that in order to fecure themfelves against fo near and visible a Danger, they once more made their Application to us, now in great Efteem and Power. We received them, my L-s, with a tender and brotherly Affection, and being informed by themfelves what was to be done for their Service, they all agreed, that nothing could prove more effectual for their Security, than to get an Act paffed to exclude the faid King James, and all his Popish Succeffors, and to fettle the Crown upon the next, Proteftant Heir by Name, that the Danger of Popery might be removed quite out of their Sight. My Ls, we did not fo much as boggle at it, but obtained an Act of Settlement verbatim, according to their Defires, and they now enjoy the Bleffing of it.

The next great Inftance of our Security for your Prefervation (which indeed may be called the Crown of all the reft, being accompanied with extraordinary Circumstances) happened to fall out foon after the Death of the late Kings; your Lps knew very well (and the Nation was highly fenfible of the Affront) how the French King, almoft as foon as King 7- s expired, took upon him, very arrogantly, to declare that young Gentleman King of Ed, whom he had acknowledged to have been the true P. of Ws during his Father's Life; and by Confequence the rightful H— and Kafter his Decease. This, my L—s, gave occafion to so many Addreffes, and, in fhort, brought in a great Measure this just War upon us, to revenge the Affront done to the whole Nation, and particularly to his late Majefty King W

This Accident, my Ls, alarmed the Church of England to the last Degree; for when they had confidered that the F-b M-h was very powerful, and had now drawn the Succeffion of that vaft Monarchy cf Spain into the House of Bourbon, in the Perfon of his Grandson the Duke of Anjou, and that most probably they would both unite, to the Support of a Prince whom they had both owned and declared, and had actually made their Compliments accordingly; then it was, my L--s, that your Church was under no lefs Apprehenfions of the Return of Popery, both as to the Nearness of the Approach, as its terrible Effects, than the dreadful pretended Irish Maffacre, about the Time of the Revolution.

Well, My Ls, What did the Church of England do in this Extremity? Why truly fhe did as fhe oftentimes had done before; fhe made her Applications to us, her fteady Friends, and in few Words fhe let us know, that nothing now could fecure her, or at least prevent her Fears, but an Act of Abjuration; that is to fay, that we should pass an Act to renounce and abjure. the pretended Prince of Wales by Name, that God himself might now be brought in as a Witness, as well as a Judge, of our juft Endeavours to preserve the true Catholick and Apoftolick Church of England from the Invasion of Superftition and Idolatry. We must confefs, my L-s, that this was a great Trial, and our Stomachs began a little to grumble upon the Point, for hitherto we had had little to do with G- Aly: But however, that nothing, might be wanting on our Parts to oblige you, and affist you in your greatest

H

Diftrefs,

Distress, a Bill was brought in according to your Defires, and it paft both Houses with as much Expedition as most had ever paft before. But it fo happened, that our invincible M-h lay at that very Inftant upon his Deathbed, and could not poffibly come to your Houfe to give the Royal Affent. Your L-ps feem'd then to be in a very deplorable and defperate Condition, not knowing, or rather much fearing what might happen in the next S―on, upon the irreparable Lofs of our Protector and Saviour.

Now, my L-s, who was it but ourselves that relieved you in this your last Extremity? It was we ourselves that prevailed with the expiring Mh, who (according to the Judgments of his Phyficians) had fcarce Time to look after his own e-nal S-tion, yet nevertheless we obtained of him, for your Sakes, to grant a Commiffion, and appoint Delegates to pass that very Bill into an Act, which accordingly was done; foon after which, that great Mh gave up the Ghost.

We should now finifh, with his never too much lamented Death, this long Account, which, with Modefty and Truth, we have laid before your Lps, of thofe fignal Actions committed by us in Favour of the Church of England, and which we hope we may well call meritorious; but we beg your L- ps Patience for one Moment longer, that we may mind you of a very friendly and endearing Office which we performed from Time to Time, during the whole Reign of KWin which we scarce mifs'd any Opportunity of ferving you.

We found, my Ls, that the many Occafions which you had to confult with us, and afk our Affiftance, began to be not only troublesome to you, but alfo fufpected, and fome of your weaker Brethren began to be jealous, and not a little fc-zed at the intimate Correfpondence which they per ceived had been carried on between you and us; to prevent therefore all Manner of Difficulties and Reproach which might have fallen upon you, and yet put ourselves in a better Pofture to ferve you, it is evident, my L—s, that out of pure Friendship to you, we promoted from Time to Time, during the whole Reign of K—W. -, the most addicted and devoted to our Intereft and Religion, to all Places and Employments, both in Church and State, even from the highest to the lowest Degree, as far as it was in his My's Power to prefer them; and all this we did to the very Intent and Purpose, that they being intimately near and dear unto your L-ps in all Places, they might, as it were, by certain Pipes and Channels, convey your Lps Commands to us, as the great Receptacles of Favour and Power, and after fuch a Manner, that few did, or could take Notice, much lefs Offence, at the strict Correfpondence between us. This, my L Ls, is a high Strain of Courtefy and Goodness, which can hardly be paralleled; and we appeal to your L- -ps, whether, upon her Majesty's Acceffion to the Throne, you did not obferve Men of our Princi ples very numerous in your Houfe, as well as in many other great Employments, generally throughout the whole Kingdom.

We

We need not mind your L- -ps after what Manner we have acted fince her prefent M-y's happy Acon to the Th-ne, her own great Goodness towards us is a fufficient Evidence of the good Opinion he is pleased to conceive of us, and our fincere Affection towards the Church of England. We might offer many Inftances to prove this Truth; but, my L-s, let this laft Mark of our Integrity, and special Care for the Prefervation of the Church of England, be Inftar Omnium. Your Lps are very fenfible of the great Divifions and Schifm in the Church of England, and their Animofities are grown to that Heighth, that they are in a fair Way to endanger the whole. Now, my Ls, what can be the Reafon of our great Diligence and Practifes, (for which fome of us may be called to Account) but to procure a Majority of worthy Members to ferve in this next Parliament, except it be to ftrike in, and join with that found Part of the Church of England, according to her prefent Establishment, in Oppofition to your high Fliers, your Non-Jurors, Jacobites and Papifts? This is fo evident, that we think it needs no Proof.

We shall not question your Opinions concerning the Purity of our Doctrine, fince you have folemnly admitted us, or at least qualified us to enjoy any Manner of Employments whatfoever, among you; we fhall therefore end our Enquiry into the firft Confideration, which might serve alfo as a fufficient Answer to the second; yet, my L-s, we must once more crave Leave to speak one Word or two as to that Point, and we have done.

The Question is, Whether your Lps flung out the aforesaid Bills upon any worldly or temporal Defign, in order to ferve a prefent Turn, &c. My Ls, we think ourselves obliged to purge you from any fuch mean Thoughts, either of yourfelves or us. It is not that we make any great Doubt, whether your L -ps, for the publick Good, might not think fit to caft fome fine fpecious Lures before us, in Hopes to bring us down, and then take us upon your Fift, and hood-wink us at Pleasure; but, my Ls, we have not accustomed ourselves to ftoop to any imaginary Prey inftead of the real one. Your Lps know very well, or at least we have given you fufficient Reason to be perfuaded, that we are ever true to our own Intereft, and, of all other Societies, the leaft capable of being made a Property, or (in the vulgar Cant) to be made Bubbles to any one. From whence it muft follow, in order to juftify the Sincerity of your L -ps Proceedings, that if we had thought it our Intereft to fupport the pt Gment in this prefent Juncture of Affairs, it is certain, my Ls, that if you had paffed a hundred Bills against us, we fhould have stood by and fupported the Government, from the immutable Reafon of believing it our Interest fo to do. On the other Side, if your Lps had paffed as many more Bills in our Favour, yet, if we fhould think it our Intereft to decline our Affittance at any Time, we fhould no more bite at your Annuities, though you had enlarged them from three Lives to three hundred Lives, than we fhould voluntarily dash upon a Rock, or run our Veffel upon a Quickfand, in Hopes to have faved a poor miserable Life; and all this, my Ls, from H 2

the