I. THAT I Captaine Henry Bell was imployed beyond the ſeas foure yeares together by your Majeſties Royall Father King James, about the pretended loving Letter which the Empreſſe wrote to her Highneſſe the Lady Elizabeth your Majeſties Siſter, Anno 1618. under the colour of which Letter that horrible plot ſhould have taken effect at Ratisbone, which was contrived at Vienna, againſt the Lady Elizabeth, and the young Prince her then only Sonne, and alſo againſt King James and your then Princely perſon, certified more at large unto your Majeſty by Secretary Morton, as is before related.

II. That in the ſaid imployment (as alſo in another imployment here in this Kingdome) I disburſed out of purſe for the uſe and ſervice of King James, of your Majeſtie, and of this State the Summe of 5 • 38 l, in moneyes.

III. That in ſatisfaction of the ſaid Summe disburſed, his Majeſty Anno 1619. (with the full conſent of the whole Councell-board) did grant unto me under the great Seale of England the yearly Pention of 500 l, for the Terme of 31. yeares to endure.

IV. That after the death of King James (in regard my Pention could not be duly paid unto mee) your Majeſty (upon the foreſaid Mr. Secretary Mortons Certificate) did graciouſly grant two Privy Seales for the payment of 900 l in part of the foreſaid ſumme disburſed, therewith to relieve me in my then preſent wants.

V. That Anno 1630. your Majeſty was graciouſly pleaſed to give order to the Lord Treaſurer Weſton to cauſe another Privy Seale to be drawne up and paſſed unto me for the payment of 5000 l more in liew of my foreſaid Pention, and in ſatisfaction of the moneyes by me disburſed as aforeſaid.

VI. That I attended the ſaid Lord Treaſurer two yeares for the paſſing of the ſaid Privy Seale, in which time I had nothing from him, but only fayre promiſes (without any performance) for the paſſing of the ſame, inſomuch as I was forced to make my griev • us caſe knowne unto him, and tell him that my ſelfe, my wife and children were like to periſh for want of my moneyes and meanes, and therfore I humbly prayed his Lordſhip to give directions for the drawing up of the ſaid Privy Seale according to your Majeſties order in that behalfe, otherwiſe (I told him) I ſhould be forced to complaine of him to your Majeſty, and to the State.

VII. That his Lordſhip thereupon grew very angry, and ſaid thus unto me, Captain Bell, ſeeing you are ſo peremptory, you ſhall ſtay yet longer for your Privy Seale, and becauſe you ſay you will complaine of me, therefore I will goe to the Councell Table and complaine of you to the Lords; which he did forthwith according, and told the Lords that I threatned to complaine of him.

VIII. That within a few dayes after the late Archbiſhop of Canterbury, the Lord Treaſurer the Lord Cottington, and others of the Auſtrian and Spaniſh faction, who conceived, and did beare an inward hate toward me ever ſince I performed the foreſaid ſervice, did procure a warrant from the whole Councell-board to commit me to priſon in the Gatehouſe Weſtminſter without ſhewing any cauſe why they committed me.

IX. That upon the ſaid Warrant I ſuffered nine yeares impriſonment moſt wrongfully, and innocently by apparent oppreſſion, injuſtice, and tyranny.

X. That after I had been two yeares in Priſon, and without intermiſſion did daily petition their Lordſhips to know the cauſe why they kept me in priſon, then (becauſe for ſhame of the world they muſt ſhew ſome colour of cauſe for keeping mee in Priſon) there was moſt wickedly contrived ſuch a Bill againſt me, as that the like thereunto was never heard of nor known ſo long as this Kingdome hath ſtood, for from the beginning of the firſt word in the ſaid Bill, to the end of the laſt, there was nothing true in the whole Bill, neither was the ſaid Bill drawne upon any information at all, but it was only deviſed by and upon their Lorſhips meere conceits, and pretended cogitations and weenings.

XI. That I forthwith did put in my anſwer to the ſaid Bill, and thereupon I ſent continually one petition after another to the Councell board humbly deſiring their Lordſhips to give order that the ſaid Bill and anſwer might be brought to a ſpeedy tryall.

XII. That when the Lords underſtood that I would not ceaſe from petitioning to have that Bill and anſwer brought to a tryall, then their Lordſhips directed Sir John Bankes Attorney Generall to ſend for me, who ſaid unto me as followeth; Captaine Bell, the Lords of the Councell have commanded me to ſend for you, and to tell you that the Bill was not drawne againſt you with any intent to bring it to a tryall, but only to ſee what anſwer you would make thereunto, and the Lords are now ſatisfied with your anſwer to the ſame, and they have ordered the Bill to be diſmiſſed, and that the reaſon they committed you to Priſon was, becauſe you kept ſuch a continuall clamouring for your mony which the King oweth you, whereas my Lord Treaſurer many times told you, that there was not yet money to pay you, and the Lords have commanded me to tell you further, that if you will be bound with good ſecurity in a Bond of 2000 l that you will be quiet, and not make a clamouring for your money, but with patience will forbeare yet one yeare to trouble their Lordſhips untill money comes in to pay you, then the Lords will ſet you at liberty, and for your maintenance their Lordſhips will continue your allowance, which you have had in Priſon, (viz.) a Noble per diem, untill you receive your money due unto you from the King; whereupon I told Sir John Bankes, that I would be bound with good Security to performe the ſame.

XIII. That two dayes after I ſent word to Sir John Bankes that I had my Security ready, and I ſent him their names, and gave him notice where they dwelt, then he ſent for us to come unto him to his chamber in Grayes-Inne, where we entred into Bond of 2000l for the performing of the particulars above related; whereupon Sir John Bankes tooke the ſaid bond and told us he would ſhew it unto the Lords, and that the next morning he would ſend a Warrant to the keeper of the Gatehouſe to ſet me at liberty.

XIV. That I was not only kept ſtill in Priſon five yeares after we had given Bond as aforſaid (without any warrant for my enlargement) but alſo Sir John Bankes kept our Bond ſtill in his hand, and would neither deliver it up unto us, nor would he give Warrant for my enlargement, whereby my Security were forced to neglect all their owne affayres in Trading, and to attend continually in Petitioning, either to have the ſaid Bond delivered up unto us, or els that a Warrant might be given for my enlargement out of Priſon; But all petitioning was in vaine, inſomuch as thereby I forfeited my Counterbond of two thouſand pounds which I gave my Security to ſave them harmeleſſe.

XV That during the time of my impriſonment I ſent 214 Petitions to the Councell-board, in all which my Petitions, I made humble ſute unto their Lordſhips only for Juſtice, that I might know why they kept me in Priſon, ſeeing no man could juſtly charge me that I had offended the King either in word or in deed, or that I had tranſgreſſed the Lawes of this Land, but that on the contrary I had done good and exceptable ſervice to and for the King and this State, all which I offered to prove apparantly if their Lordſhips would be but pleaſed once to heare me, but all my Petitioning was in vaine, I could never obtain ſo much Iuſtice at their Lordſhips hands, as once to be called before them, nor to be heard to ſpeake ſomuch as one word, nor could I ever know any cauſe why they kept me in priſon, but only they ſent me word many and oftentimes (eſpecially the Lord Privy Seale) that they were aſſured if I were ſet at Liberty, I would keepe a Clamouring for my money, and there was not yet, money for to pay me, inſomuch that thereupon I ſent a Petition to the late Archbiſhop of Canterbury, and another to the Lord Priuy Seale, wherein I told their Lordſhips that if ever it pleaſed God to ſend us a Parliament, their Lordſhips would 〈◊〉 theſe courſes they took againſt me; The Lord Privy Seale ſhewed my ſaid Petition to the Lords at the Councell-board; And ſaid; By this petition we may eaſily gather, that Captain Bell would be a very troubleſome man unto us if we ſhould ſet him at liberty, therefore (he ſaid) by my conſent he ſhall ſtill remaine where he is, untill his money can be paid him.

XVI. That theſe tyranicall unjuſt and oppreſſive courſes taken againſt me at the Councell-board, did cauſe and worke the untimely deathes of my wife and of my young children, who lamentably periſhed and were ſtarved to death, in the time of my nine yeares unjuſt, and wrongfull impriſonment, whoſe innocent bloods and untimely deathes God will reveng, and will require the ſame at the hands of the authors and cauſers thereof.

Thus and hereby your Majeſty may be graciouſly pleaſed plainly to find and ſee, that this Land is even now ripe for puniſhment, and it is much to be feared that Gods Anger is already kindled againſt us, by reaſon of the heavy ſinnes of injuſtice which fearfully have taken the upper hand, doe ſway and floriſh heere amongſt us, and that Gods Judgement will ere long be powered downe upon this Kingdome.