The False TEST Set in a TRUE LIGHT.
Being a full Confutation of Two Scandalous and Villainous Papers, [One entituled, A TEST offer'd to the Consideration of the Electors of
Great-Britain; the Other entituled, A LIST of the Honourable House of Commons that voted for and against the Clause of the
Hanover Succession in the Year 1702.]
by Extracts
made from the Journals
of the Honourable House of Commons, (
attested by Paul Jodrell,
Esq)
and from the London-Gazette
of Thursday, March 18. 1702.
THE false and scandalous Papers above-mention'd, having, with great Industry and Malice been spread throughout this Kingdom, in order to asperse the Characters of the several Honourable and Worthy Gentlemen therein represented as Enemies to the Illustrious House of Hanover, and to hinder their being elected Members of the ensuing Parliament: Therefore, for the right Information of the Electors, for vindicating the Reputation of the Candidates, and for giving a full, authentick, and satisfactory Answer to the said False, Scandalous and Seditious Pamphlets, These Abstracts from the Gazette's are made publick.
Extract from the Gazette of Saturday, Sept. 30. 1710.
WHereas Two printed Papers, one entituled, A Test offer'd to the Consideration of the Electors of Great Britain; and the other entituled, A List of the Honourable House of Commons that voted for and against the Clause for the Hanover Succession, in the Year 1702. are lately dispers'd Abroad; wherein are mention'd Amendments made by the Lords to the Bill entituled, An Act for enlarging the Time for taking the Oath of Abjuration, and also for recapacitating and indemnifying such Persons as have not taken the same by the Time appointed: And that the House of Commons, the 13th of February, 1702, took those Amendments into Consideration.
(Price One Penny.)
And whereas, after setting forth, verbatim, the Clause following, viz.
‘And for the further Security of Her Majesty's Person, and the Succession of the Crown in the Protestant Line, and for extinguishing the Hopes of the Pretended Prince of Wales, and all other Pretenders, and their open and secret Abettors; Be it further Enacted by the Authority aforesaid, That if any Person or Persons, at any time after the first day of March, 1702. shall endeavour to deprive or hinder any Person, who shall be the next in Succession [...] the Crown for the time being, according to the Limitations in an Act entitul'd, An Act declaring the Rights and Liberties of the Subject, and settling the Succession of the Crown, And according to the other Act, entitul'd, An Act for the further Limitation of the Crown, and better securing the Rights and Liberties of the Subject, from succeeding after the Decease of Her Majesty (whom God long preserve) to the Imperial Crown of this Realm, and the Dominions and Territories thereunto belon [...]ng, according to the Limitations in the beforemention'd Acts; that is to say, such Issue of Her Majesty's Body, as shall from time to time be next in Succession to the Crown, if it shall please God Almighty to bless Her Majesty with Issue; and during the time Her Majesty shall have no Issue, the Princess Sophia, Electress and Duchess Dowager of Hanover; and after the Decease of the said Princess Sophia, the next in Succession to the Crown for the time being, according to the Limitations of the said Acts; and the same maliciously, advisedly and directly shall attempt, by any Overt Act or Deed: Every such Offence shall be adjudged High-Treason, and the Offender or Offenders therein their Abettors, Procurers and Comforters, knowing the said Offence to be done, being thereof convicted or attainted, according to the Laws and Statutes of this Realm, shall be deemed and adjudged Traytors, and shall suffer Pains of Death, and all Losses and Forfeitures, as in Cases of High-Treason.’
And also, after setting forth the Substance of other Clauses, (other of the said Amendments) it is said in the said Printed Papers thus; After Debate, the Question being put for agreeing with the Lords in these Amendments, the House divided.
And at the end of the said Printed Papers it is said: To this happy Majority, tho' but of one Vote, we owe so excellent a Law, so great a Strengthening to the Protestant Succession in the Illustrious House of Hanover, upon the supporting of which our Religion and Liberties, and all that's dear to any true British Protestant, does entirely depend.
Now I (being requir'd to certify the Truth of the Fact, as it appears by the Journal of the House of Commons) do humbly certify as followeth, viz.
That it does appear by the Journal of the House of Commons, of the Session of Parliament begun in October, 1702 as also by the Original Minute Books thereof, That the said Clause set forth at large as aforesaid, (and which was mark'd B) was agreed to by the House of Commons, without any Division thereupon: And that the Division that was in the House upon the 13th Day of February, ( upon which the Number of the Yea's were 118, and No's 117) was upon a precedent Amendment, viz. upon a Clause mark'd A, which is as followeth:
‘Provided always, that no Person or Persons, who, by reason of any such Mistake, Neglect or Omission, hath or have left or forfeited and Office, Benefice; Place, Dignity or Imployment whatsoever, to which any other Person or Persons hath or have been preferr'd or promoted, shall be restor'd to such Office, Benefice, Place, Dignity or Imployment; Any thing herein contain'd to the contrary notwithstanding.’
And the other Amendments made by the Lords to the said Bill were agreed to by the House of Commons, without and Division.
It appears by this Certificate of Mr. Jodrell, upon what Clause the Division was not, and upon what Clause it was; and that the Clause, upon which the House divided, had not the least relation to the Security of the Protestant Succession. And it is evident, that had the Clause, upon which the Division was, been rejected, the Protestant Succession had been equally secur'd by the Clause upon which there was no Division, and which pass'd without any Contradiction. All the Difference between those who disagreed, and those who agreed to the Clause, was, that the Former would have the Benefit of the Act for Enlarging the Time for taking the Oath of Abjuration, &c. extend to All who had not taken that Oath within the Time limited, whether their Places were fill'd, or not; whereas the Latter were for excluding all such from the same Benefit, whose Places were fill'd: The Former were for granting the same Favour to all Persons who had an Equal Pretension to it; the Latter for denying it to those, whose Misfortune it was, but not their Fault, to have their Places not only forfeited, but fill'd; that is, they were for denying Now (after this Amendment was sent down from the Lords) that Favour to Some, which they Themselves, as well as Others, had granted to All, before the Bill was sent up to the Lords.
This is a plain and full Answer to all the Cavils and Artifices which have been made use of, in order to evade a Charge of Malicious Forgery in framing a List, whereby many Gentlemen of the greatest Families and Fortunes have been basely traduc'd as Enemies to the Protestant Succession, and the Illustrious House of Hanover.
This Attempt is the more scandalous and inexcusable, because when Mr. Dyer had, in his News-Letters, affirm'd, That the Commons had divided about the Clause relating to the Succession, a Prosecution of him was order'd by the House of Commons, as appears from this following
Extract from the Gazette of Thursday, March 18. 1702.
JOhn Dyer, a Writer of News, having in his Papers of the 18th of the last Month, inserted the following Words, viz. The Commons to-day agreed to the Amendments made by the Lords to the Abjuration Bill, but divided upon that which relates to the Succession, but carry'd it. Yeas 118. Noes 117. whereas there was no Division upon any part of the Bill which relates to the Succession, or that makes it High-Treason to alter the Succession, as it is now establish'd by Law; but the same pass'd WITHOUT ANY CONTRADICTION: The House of Commons taking Notice of this false and scandalous Report, order'd the said Dyer to appear at the Bar of the House; but he not appearing, and the Sessions being near an End, they farther order'd he should be found out and prosecuted for the same; and he being taken into Custody, is to make his Appearance at the Court of Queen's-Bench, the first Day of next Term: And Her Majesty hath been pleas'd to give Directions to the Attorney-General, to prosecute him according to Law, for publishing the said false, scandalous, and seditions News.
Upon the whole; The Only Matter now in debate, is, Whether the Gentlemen accus'd did Vote against the Clause for Securing the Protestant Succession, or not? and by Consequence, Whether they are rightly represented as Enemies to the Illustrious House of Hanover, or not? To this Question, the Authors, Spreaders, and Abettors of this new Black List, have, in the Face of all the World, said, Yea; they did Vote against the Clause, they are Enemies to the House of Hanover: To the same Question, every British-Subject, to whom this Paper shall reach, will be able, from Unquestionable Authority, to say, No; they did not Vote against that Clause; they are not Enemies, but hearty Friends, to the Illustrious House of Hanover: And, to do them Right, and to give them an Opportunity of doing themselves Right, I will heartily espouse and vigorously promote their Interest in the ensuing Elections.
Printed for Jonah Bowyer, at the Rose in Ludgate-street. 1710.