IN the way we are, we have gone as farre as words can carry us: We have voted our own Rights, and the Kings Duty: No doubt there is a Relative Duty between a King and Subjects; Obe­dience from a Subject to a King, Protection from a King to His People. The present un­happie distance between His Majestie and the Parliament, makes the whole Kingdome [Page 2] stand amazed, in a fearfull expectation of dis­mall Calamities to fall upon it: It deeply and conscionably concerns this House to compose and settle these threatening ruining distracti­ons. M. Speaker, I am touch'd, I am pier'd with an apprehension of the Honour of the House, and successe of this Parliament. The best way to give a stop to these desperate, im­minent mischiefs is, To make a fair way for the Kings return hither; It will likewise give best satisfaction to the people, and will be our best Justification. M. Speaker, That we may the better consider the condition we are now in, let us set our selves three Yeers back: If any man then, could have credibly told us, That within three Yeers the Queen shall be gone out of England into the Low-Coun­tries, for any cause whatsoever, The King shal remove from his Parliament, from London to York, declaring himself not to be safe here, That there shall be a totall Rebellion in Ire­land, Such discords and distempers both in Church and State here, as now we finde; cer­tainly we should have trembled at the thought of it: Wherefore it is fit we should be sensible now we are in it.

[Page 3] On the other side, If any man then, could have crediblie told us, That within three Yeers ye shall have a Parliament, it would have been good News; That Ship-monie shall be taken away by an Act of Parliament, the Reasons and Grounds of it so rooted out, as that neither it, nor any thing like it, can ever grow up again; That Monopolie [...], The high-Commission Court, The Starre-Cham­ber, The Bishops Votes shall be taken away, The Councell Table regulated and restrain­ed, The Forrests bounded and limitted; That ye shall have a Trienniall Parliament; and more then that, A Perpetuall Parliament, which none shall have power to dissolve without your selves, we should have thought this a dream of happinesse; yet now we are in the reall possession of it, we do not enjoy it, although His Majestie hath promised and published he will make all this good to us: We stand chiefly upon further security; where­as, the very having of these things, is a con­venient, fair securitie, mutually securing one another: there is more securitie offered, even in this last answer of the Kings, By removing [Page 4] the personall Votes of Popish Lords, By the Better Education of Papists children, By sup­plying the defects of Laws against Recusants, besides what else may be enlarged and impro­ved by a select Committee of both Houses, named for that purpose. Wherefore, Sir, let us beware we do not contend for such a ha­zardous unsafe securitie, as may endanger the losse of what we have already; let us not think we have nothing, because we have not all we desire; and though we had, yet we cannot make a Mathematicall securitie; All humane Caution is Susceptible of corruption and failing; Gods providence will not be bound, successe must be his: He that observes the wind and rain, shall neither sow nor reap; if he do nothing till he can secure the wea­ther, he will have but an ill harvest.

M. Speaker, It now behoves us to call up all the wisedome we have about us, for we are at the very brink of Combustion and con­fusion: If blood once begin to touch blood, we shall presentlie fall into a certain miserie, and must attend an uncertain successe. God knows when, and God knows what. Every [Page 5] man here is bound in conscience to employ his uttermost endeavours to prevent the effusi­on of blood; blood is a crying sin, it pollutes a Land; let us save our Liberties and our Estates, a [...] we may save our Souls too. Now I have clearly delivered mine own coscience, I leave every man freely to his.