THey tax me with swearing; Damme, 'tis a scurvy trick that I learnt in King Iameses time, 'zbloud I cannot leave it if I should be hang'd; If I have not striv'd as much to leave this sin as any Member in the House, I am a Traytor; Refuse me I have not only sworn, but forsworn my self over and over a­gain, and yet they say I am a coustant swearer, confound me if I love Oaths, or to keep Oaths, let them keep them that make Conscience of them: A pox of Conscience for me, I know not what it is, large Conscience, and little Conscience is all one to me; 'zbloud my Lord Capel us'd Conscience, and the late King suffer'd for His Conscience: No, no, 'tis just they should suf­fer that are so Malignant as to keep any scruple of it: i'le have a care of that i'le warrant you: though I am a Fool, I am not a [Page 4]Conscientious fool, if I am let me suffer: 'bloud I think I have suffered as much as any man living for my time: I have suffer'd switching, Caining, jearing, and now sickness, and yet am thought by the people to be never a whitt the better for my suf­ferings; Damme I may be the better in time, for worser I think I cannot be, and therefore I desire all people to pray for me; yet I thank God I am amended over I was: these rogues are able to jear a horse to death, and you know a horse hath a bigger head, and is a bigger beast every way then I am, and hath more brains and strength to bear it: Damme if I suffer them any longer, let them briddle me, and saddle me, and ride me for a fool: I have had too much patience, and I think that caused sickness, for I was damnable impatient in my sickness, and so I purpose to be unto my dying day: can any man be patient to suffer himself to be so abused, and cannot tell how to help him­self? If the State will suffer it, let them, the wrong is theirs as well as mine; I am the ancientest Earl in the Parliament, and should be their Head: and if they will suffer every fool to make a Foot-ball of their Head, 'tis pitty but they should be a Body without a Head: Damme 'tis a monsterous thing to be with­out a head, or a head-piece either; a head-piece will keep off a blow, I am sure I found the miss of it; a pox take the Scot, he bruised my head and my bones too: and said moreover, he would crown it with a Piss-pot; but his head doth not ake for that now.

They say he that is called the Prince of WALES is pro­viding head-pieces in Holland, and if they suffer me to be still jeared and derided, I know nothing to the contrary, but they may be knock'd o'th' head themselves before next yeer yet: I am an Old man, and 'tis time for me to give over fighting: Dam me, I never drew a sword in anger in my life, and should be loath to begin now in my Old dayes: but if they will fight let them; I never knew any good come by fighting, I am sure it hath done hurt on either side, and yet we love it so well with a pox, that we must fight agaist our own Party too; 'z bloud, are we mad to kill our selves? 'tis Murder by the Law; and in my judgement he that kills himself deserves to be hang'd, and not shot to death as they are: Dam me, I know Death is ter­rible, [Page 5]but yet not so terrible as to fright us into WAR that brings Death; and War one with another too, like two Dogs to fight for a Bone, till a third comes and runs away with it: I am bound in Conscience to speak my mind, and yet it had been better for me to have been born dumb, then ever to have spoke at all: for let me speak but two words, presently it begets a SPEECH, and then there is laughing work for the whole City for a month: Nay, my own Tenants get my Speeches by rote, and report them on their Ale-benches, and swear with as great a grace as my self.

My Lord Mulgrave, you are a man that I dare open my self too: Dam me, would I could open as loud as Thunder—My Lord the Parliament is become Common, and that makes it Common, and every thing they do is made Common; and all their Speeches, Acts, Declarations, and Protestations, are but as so many Lasts for the Cavaliers to make Shooes on: we must have Diurnals, Scouts, Occurrences, and the Devil and all, for them to make jears on; 'zbloud I am not such a fool, but I can tell from whence all this proceeds—A Member cannot let a Fart in the House, but presently he finds it wrapt up in two sheets of a Diurnal: I pitty other men as well as my self; My Lord, here is the Worshipful Alderman Atkins is sensible my Lord, and hath formerly made Complaint to me in the Lords House, but (Lord help us) to little purpose: for an unmanner­ly fellow cannot so much as let a Fart, but presently he cryes Atkins.

My Lord Mulgrave, it is a stinking shame that our Members should be thus abused; I hope my Lord you will move the House for a speedy Redress in this—Had I dy'd my Lord, sink me, I am Mortal, flesh and bloud, gra [...]s and hay, as another man is, and so subject to dye; A pox take 'um, they made my Will and Testament, and my Epitaph too, thinking I had been Mortus est (as my Chaplain saith) and then I had had a sweet Fame, had I not? for ever and ever to be sung up and down in Ballads, to the tune of the Great Boobee: My Lord, 'tis all your cases as well as mine— But (blessed be God) I am alive, and may live to see them all hanged that are the occasioners of this—Dam me, I never gave them occasion to be thus a­bused: [Page 6]but I am such a fool, as I can forget an injury presently; nay, and forgive too; but I can neither forget nor forgive this: My Lord, we must look after the occasioners of this, for take away the occasions, and the effects will cease of themselves: if the Diurnals had occasioned my death, 'zbloud I have reason to kill them if I can: and yet I was never much guilty of shed­ding Bloud in my life; I had rather swear bloud a thousand times then shed bloud once my Lord: innocent bloud would trouble a Parliament mans Conscience, if he had any; but this is no time for a Parliament man to have Conscience: 'zbloud I swore away mine above 40 yeers ago, and I hope there is not a Member in the House but hath sworn away his too, or else he is forsworn: Besides, we being the Supream Authority in th [...] Nation, and invested with Power and Authority from the peoeple, to be questioned upon Cas [...]s of Consci [...]nce, or rules of Reason for what we doe? My Lord, the State needs not to render a rea­son to any one, either to Li [...]burne or any body else; and if they will not be rul'd without reason, the State must rule them by force; D [...]mme (my Lord) force is above reason, for doth not our power lie in our force [...]: had it not been for our forces, would reason have sav'd us from hanging thinke ye? This Nation must be rul'd by force, and not reason, Damme, reason has brought the Land to that passe that it is, for can a mischief happen without there be some reason for it? Damme, I know no difference between reason and treason; if the State please to make any thing treason, then Sinke me 'tis treason, and let him dispute against it that dares; No, reason is one of the Levellers Principles, and not to be allow'd of in a free State, if the rest were of my minde, we would Vote any man a Traytor that could but render half a reason; for I take it to be a contempt of a high nature against out Authority, and so a crime unpardonable: Damme, I bannish'd it out of the Universi­ty of Oxford, and my Lord Generall hath since taken Degrees there, with the Lieftenant Generall, and divers other Gentlemen that understand as little reason as my self: Damme, it reviveth my drooping sick soul to heare that they are become Members of All-soules, and be God, for ought I know, it may prove a means of saving their soules: Damme, I am their Chancellor, and would have Visited them there, but that (a Pox on't) I was Vi­sited [Page 7]my self; Judge me, they have honored me, and (i [...] I had been well) I would have honored them again with my presence; but I hope Mr. Button did it for me, he is the better Orator of the two, or else he is not worth a Button: Had I not been ill, all the men in the world could not have kept me from a Banquet, I lov'd sweet-meats from a childe, and now I am almost become a Child again, for old men be twice children, and Chi [...]dren are loving, and love sweet things; and be God I thinke it is a sweet thing for Brethren to agree, and Banquet together in unity.

The University I hope gave them good content, and Mr. Mandit and Mr. Wil [...]ison made them two good Sermons to save their souls; they were souldiers, and souldiers have souls to save as well as others, and if they will loose their souls they may; and yet 'tis their owne fault if they doe, because they are members of All-souls, can fight for souls, and preach to save souls too; and now (being University-men,) they may doe it lawfully too, with­out the mocks and flouts of the Reprobate Cavees, who profane­ly terme them Tub-men, Anabaptists, Iesuites, &c. Damme I was never much Book-learn'd, because I took Hunting to be a more Noble exercize then learning; is it not better musick to hear a Pack of Doggs mouth it, then a company of Schollars gabling the language of the Beast in an unknown tongue; No, I am no Schollar, but a Statesman; and good Statesmen cannot make good Schollars, you my see by Canterbery and Strafford, both good Schollars, but ill Statesemen, and you may see what their learn­ing brought them too? Refuse me, 'tis a dangerous thing to be a Schollar, Philip had rather be a Scullar, and get his living back­wards, as he gets his Honor, then take out such lessons; my head would look scurvily on London-bridge without a Perriwigge, and therefore God send me Ignorance: A Pox a learning for me, 'tis the worst enemy the State has, for there is no mischief commit­ted, but it is first learnt; therefore is not learning the cause of it? Do's not Lilburne learn the Levellers, and the Levellers learne the People, and the Devill learn them all to disobey their Supe­riours, and set us together by the ears; 'Zblood, could I get but a lusty hunts-man, or a Falconer, that could man my wife, the Roague Ouldisworth should not stay a day in my House; for I am sure I have learnt no goodnesse on him, his learning is the cause of [Page 8]my sicknesse; for had not he learnt me to make Speeches, to speak witty Sentences and the like, I had not been so jeered, that I am asham'd to take my Coach, the very children pointing, and ma­king horns at me, saying, There goes my l [...]a [...]ned Lord of Pembroke, and my wise Lord of Pembroke; but I thank God I have so much wisedom [...], as to bid my Coachman drive away; Damme I hate re­venge, 'tis base in a Nob [...]eman to seek revenge: No, I had rather fall sick againe, then seek r [...]venge, because 'tis dangerous: But J am now recovered of my si [...]knesse, and therefore I hope all men will rejoyce, and give thanks; and J shall desire the Supreame Authority to set apart a day of Thanksgiving, and Order the same; Damme they shall loose nothing by't, for J will bestow a Thanks­giving Dinner on them, for 'tis a signe of health that J begin to be hungry, and hunger had need of a good dinner; No man hath given more Thankes for the Parliaments Victories then my selfe, Mistris May can witnesse it, Judgeme (in my judgement) one thanksgiving deserves another; the Levellers are now levell'd, and destroy'd, and as God shall judge me, J had like to have been levell'd into my grave, and then J had been destroy'd too; and therefore one Thanksgiving may serve both; And so J take my leave of you for the present, not noubting but you will re­member me in your Prayers,