HIs Majesty hath with great deli­beration considered and weigh­ed a Bill lately presented to Him by Sir Robert King Knight, and William Jephson, and Arthur Hill Esquires, from both Houses of Parliament, Entituled, An Act for the speedy payment of Monies subscribed towards the reducing of the Re­bels in Jreland, which yet remaines unpayd. And though in these miserable times of Distraction, when there are Armies (pretended to be levied by Order of both Houses) almost in every County [Page 2]of the Kingdom, and all the good old Lawes, the observation whereof would preserve the pub­lique Peace, violated and suppressed, when the Treaty hopefully begun towards a happy Peace is broken, and the Committee recalled by both Houses, as if they intended no further overture for laying downe Armes, but to decide all differences by the sword, The World will easily judge whe­ther His Majesty might not well deny to consent to any new Act of Parliament, the much major part of both Houses being by force and violence driven and kept from those Counsells, & His Ma­jesty Himselfe not suffered to be present, yet such is His Compassion of Soule towards His poore Protestant Subjects of that His Kingdome of Ire­land, that He would gladly entertaine any expedi­ent whereby it might be evident the Condition of that Kingdom might be relieved, and the distra­ctions of this in no danger of being encreased. And therefore His Majesty desires to be satisfied in these particulars.

1. How the great and vast summes of Monies al­ready raised by the severall Acts of Parliament for the relief of Ireland, and which by the Acts ought not to be employed to any other purpose then re­ducing the Rebells, untill they shall be declared [Page 3]to be subdued, have been expended, His Majesty having been informed, that no lesse then one hun­dred thousand pounds of that Mony was by one Order of one or both Houses issued for the main­tenance of the Army which hath given Him Battaile, under the Command of the Earle of Essex?

2. How His Majesty shall be secured that the mony, which by His Majesties consent shall be rai­sed for the support of His Army in Ireland, shall not for the future be diverted from that use, and employed against Him in this Kingdom?

3. Whether it be just to compell His good Subjects who have subscribed, to pay those sub­scriptions, when as at the time they did subscribe they conceived themselves absolved from their un­dertaking, if at any time they were content to for­feit the summe mentioned in that Act; for His Ma­jesty doth not conceive that by that Act they are lyable to pay the whole subscriptions, but to sub­mit to the penalty enjoyned, and then His Majesty is not satisfied that by a new Law it can be just to compell them to what at the first they undertook voluntarily, and it may be, would not have under­taken but upon the liberty they conceived to be then left them?

4. Whether the power given by this new Bill to Warner, Towse, and Andrewes (persons of whose Integrity and Affections to the publique Peace His Majesty is in no degree satisfied) be not too great, any certificate of theirs being ground e­nough to extend the Estate of any Subject in Eng­land, whether he ever underwrit or no?

5. Whether all Lands extended by virtue of this Act being to continue in Extent till all forfei­tures be satisfied, it may not be very Prejudiciall to Creditors to whom those Lands are lyable, and so the common Iustice may be disturbed?

6. Whether by this Act the Extents being not to be avoyded or delayed for omission of any Lands, the same may not be prejudiciall to all Purchasers, and whether it be not against the knowne course of the Law?

His Majesty desires to receive satisfaction from both Houses of Parliament in these particulars, with all possible expedition, and then He shall give all the World an accompt how sensible He is of the misery of Ireland, and how desirous He is to find or embrace any way for their releife, the best if not the only way to which His Majesty con­ceives would be by a good and blessed Accom­modation of the lamentable distractions of this [Page 5]Kingdome, which if the matter of His Majesties last Message were so entertained, as His Majesty hoped and expected, might, by the blessing of God, in a short time be effected.