down their commands in the

army (which

was

part, the chief arguments alledged by the oppofite parties in the house, on this memorable occafion. 'Mr. Speaker, I am one of that number of your fervants, who have no office or employment, but fuch as you are now about to except out of this ordinance, nor have ambition for any, and therefore may the more freely and indifferently, yet with all fubmiffion, humbly offer my reafons against it; as that which, I apprehend, may prove prejudicial to your fervice. It hath been objected, that your house, and the house of lords, is thin and empty, and you the lefs efteemed, having fo few members here, many of them being employed in offices, that they cannot attend the houses; but that, by this ordinance, they will be at leifure and liberty to attend the fervice of the parlia⚫ment here, and the houses be much fuller than now they are. I confefs, Sir, this is fit to be remedied'; but, I apprehend, you have a fitter way, than by this ordinance, to do it; that is, by iffuing out new writs for electing new members in the places of those who are dead, or expelled, and this will fatisfy the objection, and engage divers of intereft and quality the • more immediately in your fervice; whereas this ordinance will difcontent many, and the houfes will be but little the fuller by the paffing of it. Another • objection is, that, if this ordinance do not pafs, the treaty for peace will not fo well proceed, and the particular interefts of members of parliament may retard the fame; but will be all taken away by this ordi6 nance. I am to feek how this can be materially objected, when I fuppofe, whether this ordinance pafs or not, yet you intend members of parliament only to be your commiffioners for that treaty; and, in cafe fome of them be officers, they will the better under• ftand your bufineffes, on which the treaty will be ⚫ grounded. Another objection is, that, unless this or dinance pafs, the great work intended of new modelling

6

I

་

·

was put under the direction of Sir Thomas Fair

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delling your armies, will not fo well be carried on; for that, by putting all out, there will remain no exception. I fhould rather have argued, that, by putting out all members out of their employment, the exception and difcontent would be the more general; and, by leaving them fill in their employments, there would be the lefs competition and folli⚫ citation for new officers in their rooms. Another objection or argument is, that the members of parliament, who are officers, being of equal power in parliament, will not be fo obedient to your commands as others who have smaller interefts, and would not fo much difpute one with another. Surely, Sir, those ⚫ whofe intereft is the fame with yours, have the more reason to obey your commands than others, and have more to hazard by difobedience than others can have ; and, in your commands, all your members are involved, and it were ftrange if they fhould be backward to obey their own orders. Nor will the contefts be fo frequent and high, between them and other officers, as it will be between thofe who will be of a more equal condition. But, Mr. Speaker, as you confider the inconveniencies if this ordinance do not pafs, fo you will be pleafed to confider the inconveniencies if it do país. You will lay afide as brave men, and who have ferved you with as much courage, wisdom, faithfulness and fuccefs, as ever men ferved their country. Our noble general, the Earls of Denbigh, Warwick, Manchester; the Lords Roberts, Willoughby, and other Lords in your armies, besides thofe in civil offices not excepted; and of your own members the Lord Grey, Lord Fairfax, Sir William Weller, lieutenant-general Comwell, Mr. Hollis, Sir Philip Stapylton, Sir William Brereton, Sir John Meyrick, and many others must be laid afide, if you pafs this ordinance. And I am to feek, and, I doubt, fo wil they be, to whom you fhall refer the new mo• delling

Fairfax) Cromwell feemed neceffitated to refign

delling of your armies, where to find officers that shall excel, if equal to thefe. If your judgments are, that, for the public fervice, it will be expedient to remove any of them from their commands, let the fame (if you please) be plainly made known to them from you. Let them have what they deserve, your thanks for their former good fervices, and they will not be offended, that you, having no more work for them, do lay them afide with honour. But to do a business of this nature (as hath been well faid) by a fide wind, is, in my humble opinion, not fo becoming your honour and wisdom, as plainnefs and gravity, which are ornaments to your actions. I fhall conclude with the example of the Grecians and Romans, amongst whom, Sir, you know, that the greatest offices, both of war and peace, were conferred upon their fenators; and their reafons were, because they having greater interefts than others, were the more capable to do them the greatest fervice. And, having the fame intereft with the fenate, and prefent at their debates, they understood their bufinefs the better, and were lefs apt to break that truft, which fo nearly concerned their private interefts, which was involved with the publick; and the better they underflood their business, the better service might be expected from them. Sir, I humbly fubmit the application to your judgment; your ancestors did the fame; they thought the mem⚫bers of parliament fitteft to be employed in the greatest offices; I hope you will be of the fame judgment, and not at this time pafs this ordinance, and thereby to dif courage your faithful fervants (n).’

This fpeech rials, p. (z) Memo had no effect in the house of commons. -In the 119. houfe of lords, however, the ordinance went on very heavily, which occafioned the commons to fend fe⚫veral meffages up to defire the lords to expedite this ordinance; which being read by them twice, a con⚫ference was defired with the commons about it.

I 2

And, • in

fign his commiffion alfo: but, by a for

tune

in this conference, January 7th, the Speaker of the lords was ordered to deliver their reasons against pasfing it. Among others, it was alledged, that the putting every member of either houfe of parliament into an incapacity of holding military or civil offices, during this war, may be of very dangerous confequence; becaufe, how emergent foever the occafion may be, it cannot be altered without deferting of a pofitive rule impofed upon themselves; yet, that the world, with their own confciences, may bear witness, that they are as willing as any others to facrifice, not · only their places and offices, but all that is deareft to them, for the good of religion and the kingdom; they are willing that all places, civil and military, fhall be difpofed of as both houfes of parliament sha ) judge may contribute moft for the good of the public, any crime or just exception being given against fuch as are · now intrufted with offices or commands: but that they can in no wife put an incapacity on themselves, and be made in a worfe condition than any free fubjec&t.” After this they obferved, "this ordinance deprived the peers of that honour, which, in all ages, hath ⚫ been given unto them, whofe part it was to be employed in military commands; that the cafe was not alike between the two houfes, in point of excluding the members of both houfes from military employment; that, by this ordinance, they are wholly dif abled from performing any military fervice, which is contrary to their proteftation and covenant; and that the paffing this ordinance, as to the military part, will produce fuch an alteration in all the armies, as, in apparent probability, must be of very dangerous confequence to the cau'e in hand at this juncture of time; and therefore, till a new model be propounded to fucceed, they cannot but think the prefent frame better than fuch a confufion which is like to fol

• low.

6

mentary

low (6) '——Thefe reafons operated fo ftrongly with () Parlia the lords, that, notwithflanding a reply from the com- Hiftory, mons. the ordinance was rejected, January 13. O. S. vol. xiii. though afterwards it was agreed to by them on the 3d P. 387. of April following: fo that Mr. Hume must be mistaken. much about this matter, when he fays, the peers, tho' the scheme was, in part, levelled against their order; tho' all of them were, at the bottom, extreamly averse to it; poffeff'd fo little authority, that they durft not oppose the resolution of the commons; and they • esteemed it better policy, by an unlimited compliance, (p) Hiftory to ward off that ruin which they faw approaching (p. of Great But 'tis no wonder this writer fhould commit many mif- Britain, vol. takes in his relation of this affair, when he profeffes p. 386. only to give a detail of the methods by which it was (9) Id. p. conducted, as they are delivered by Lord Clarendon (q)!

While thefe difputes lafted, another ordinance was prepared, and, after fundry debates and amendments, agreed to by both houfes, for new modelling the army, whereby Sir Thomas Fairfax was appointed general in chief of all the forces, with a power of nominating the officers under him, and execution of martial law. No mention is made of the King's authority, nor is any claufe for the preservation of his perfon here inferted *; but power is given the general to lead his armies • against all and fingular enemies, rebels, traitors, and

The reafons urged by the commons against the claufe of preserving his Majefty's Perfon, which had been infifted on in the houfe of lords, were thefe:

1. Inferting it here muft either fuppofe the King's coming in the head of an army, to fight against us, in the prefervation rnd defence of the true protestant religion, &c. and fo we mult preferve him: or, if we fuppofe he cometh not to preferve, but to fight to oppose thofe (as we know he doth) it seemeth rather a mockery than a reality.

384.

2. That the King fhould not think us obliged, by our covenant, to preferve his perfon, if he appear in the head of an army against the par- () Journal, liament; nor the foldier to forbear his duty by reafon of his pre- March 29,

1645

fence (r).