THE SWEARERS. OR, INNOCENCE Opprest and Sacrific'd, In Consequence of INDULGENCE To Perjurious Prostitutes.

LONDON, Printed in the Year, 1681.

THE SWEARERS. OR, INNOCENCE Oppress'd and Sacrific'd, &c.

IT shall be as little my Bus'ness, as it seems Necessary, or Practicable, to draw a Pa­negyrick upon the Perfections of those Match­less Worthies, Religious Spyes of Jerico; who, in Confidence that a Good Intention Hallows and Justifyes a Dubious Action, to the Eminent [Page 4]Jeopardy of their All in Present and Future, have Generously descended to Become, Say, and Do All Things to All Men, (according to the very Let­ter) that by All Means they might Gain Something: And Thus, under the Double Capacity of Secret Friends, and (Once) Open Enemies and Traytors to the Establish'd Protestant Religion, and the Laws of the Kingdom, equally to their proper Glory, and the Benefit of their Country, have wrought about a Great and Mighty Deliverance, a New Reformation, or rather Salvation, in This our Brittish Israel; render'd a Single Puff of Breath the Absolute Disposer of the Lives and For­tunes of all the Wicked in the Land; with the Strong-Feeble Chosen Ones in the Psalmist, Bound Princes in Chains, and Nobles in Links of Iron; and Ad­vanc'd themselves to the most Just and Statutable Pitch of Terror, & Complyance, that can be imagin'd. As to This Topick, let it then suffice to say; That tho the Late House of Commons at Oxford, in Token of the Esteem they had for the Person and Services of the Reverend Chief of the Evidence Royal, and to enable him to Purchase, (of Col. D. or any Other) Lay up, and Take his Ease with the Rich Man in the Parable, were only hinder'd ('tis (said by their Suddain (and in This Respect Unhappy) [Page 5]Dissolution, from Voting him, persuant to Frank Promise and Engagement, Forty Thousand Pounds: Yet will not I beat it out of my Thought, that any thing less than a Still-higher Elevation, in This World, or the Abundances of Another, can be suf­ficient to Ballance the Bulk of such Unpresidented Deserts, as are Conspicuous in the Web and Woof of That Illustrious Fraternity; whose Former Lit­tleness, and Human Frailties, ought not to be Ob­jected to their Disadvantage, for Fear of invol­ving the (after a Sort) Parrallel Circumstances even of the Blessed Apostles themselves in the Drift of the Reflection.

BUT now, on the Other side, upon casting back our Eye to Past Ages, and particularly to the Reign of the Roman Emperour Tiberius; we shall scarce meet with any thing else then the Ago­nyes, Cryes, Shreeks, Tortures, Scatter'd Limbs, and Mangled Bodyes of Fathers, Brothers, Masters, Nea­rest Relations; Princes, Nobles, Gentlemen &c. Who, through the Trecherous and Perjurious Practises of a Mercenary and Miscreant Brood of Delatores, Enformers or Swearers (Glanc'd at in the Title-Page) [that utterly Ruin'd Trust and Confidence among Men, Poyson'd the Fountains of Earthly Comfort, [Page 6]Violated the Bonds and Dictates of Society, and Good Nature, Placed the People in a worse con­dition then the very Beasts that Perish, Ran them into a State of War by advancing in every body a common Diffidence of his Neighbour, turn'd the City of Rome into one General Shambles; and were encourag'd and supported in all This Vil­lany by that Jealous, Politick and Bloudy Ty­rant,] breath'd out their Last, under the hand of the Executioner, and in the utmost Extremities of Cruelty and Torment.

Nay, upon a View of Later Doings, and nea­rer Home too, we may find even the very Swagg-Belly'd Dutch exercising unspeakable Villanyes, Mas­sacres, and Barbarityes, against the Poor English in Amboyna, (in the Indies) and, by the Affidavits of a Pack of Leathern-Conscienc'd Prostitutes, labouring to wash their Hands of the Innocent Blood, when they had done.

WHEREFORE, Effectually to Brand these Hellish Enormities, of Old, and to Complement our Pre­sent Condition, which, (tho' indeed Property at least, has no reason to commend the Knights Errant in the Temple-Walks, yet) through Mercy, Faints not (I hope) under any such Insupportable Oppres­sions, [Page 7]nor is fairly liable to the Infamy of the like Odious Imputations; I have ventur'd, (because Virtue never shines Brighter, then while Opposed to its Contrary, Vice,) with much good Will, and and Meaning, to submit to the Modest and Prudent use of my Country-Men, Honest Aesop's Eighty-First Fable, Of the Dog and the Sheep; the Mat­ter entirely his Own, only, for better Content, long since, by Mr. John Ogilby, English'd, and Meeter'd, in the Stanza's Following.

ROUGH, with a Trundle-Tayl, a Prick-Ear'd Cur,
That had Nine Warrens of sterv'd Fleas in's Fur,
On whom was Manginess entail'd, and Itch,
From his Syre Isgrim, and a Cat-Ey'd Bitch;
With These Endowments Rich,
And some Bold Vices Now we Virmes call,
He brought to th' Judgment-Hall
His Accusation 'gainst a Guiltless-Sheep,
That he the Staff of Life from him did keep,
A Loaf he Lent him of the purest Wheat:
At the High Tribunal-Seat
At once he Charg'd, and at once Claim'd the Debt.
THE Sheep denyes that e're he had to do
With This strange Dog, whom no Good Shepherd knew;
Since he no Bond could Prove, defires Release.
Then, bawls the Cur, Behold my Witnesses,
Let Them the Truth Confess.
The Vulture, Fox, and Squint-Ey'd Kite appear,
Who God nor Conscience fear,
To whom he promis'd Equal Shares before,
For which (as They Enstructed were) they Swore
They saw when He deliver'd him the Bread,
Refusing Bond, and Kindly said,
Without such Things, Brethren should Brethren Aid.
THE Beasts had Salvage Laws; Who could not Pay,
Convicted, at the Cred'tor's Mercy Lay:
Such was the Poor Sheep's Case; None could exhort
The Dog to save the Honour of the Court,
Since Cruelty was his Sport;
But at the Sheep with open Mouth he flew,
And, in th' whole Benche's View,
Sucks his Warm Blood, and Eats his Panting Heart,
And to each Witness Quarters out Their Part.
When One did say, Thus Innocence (we see)
Was never yet from Danger Free;
As th' Evidence, so must the Sentence be.
MORAL.
WHILE Oaths & Evidence shall sway the Cause,
Men of small Conscience little Fear the Laws.
What Trade are You? A Witness, Sir. Draw near;
There's Coyn, go Swear what I would have you Swear.
THE END.

An ADVERTISEMENT.

THere have been Newly Published by James Vade, at the Cock and Sugar-Loaf, near St. Dun­stans Church in Fleet-street, several small Treati­ses, Relating to the Times, that are generally pronoun­ced worthy the Perusal of all True English-men, Good Protestants, and Loyal Subjects; and bear the Titles fol­lowing.

The Field of Blood: Or, Rebellion Blazoned in all its Colours, in a Lively Representation (grounded upon Fact) of Inhability in a Prince, Exorbitant Ambition in the Nobility, and Licentious Insolence in the Commons.

The Keepers of the English Libertyes drawn to the Life, in the Qualifications of Persons by Them declar'd capable to Serve in Parliament.

An Answer to a Popish Libel, Entitled, A Vindication of the Eng­lish Catholicks, discovering the Chief Falsities and Contradi­ctions in the Narrative of Titus Oats.

A Paradox against Liberty. An Heroick Poem. By the Lords in the Tower.

A Seasonable Memento both to King, and People, upon This Critical Juncture of Affairs.

The Nations Interest, with Relation to the Pretensions of his R. H. the Duke of York. Discuss'd and Asserted.

A Paradox against Life. An Heroick Poem. By the Lords in the Tower.

The Imp [...]stor Expos'd, in a Dissection of a Villanous Libel, entitled, A Letter to a Person of Honour, concerning the Black Box.

The Mystery and Method of His Majesty's Happy Restauration, laid Open to Publick View; by John Price, D. D.

He has also now in the Press, (and just ready) an Excellent Ode, (by a Barrister at Law) under the Title of

A Vote for Moderate Counsels; as the Readiest way to Heal our Breaches, and bring Happyness to King and People.

This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Text Creation Partnership. Searching, reading, printing, or downloading EEBO-TCP texts is reserved for the authorized users of these project partner institutions. Permission must be granted for subsequent distribution, in print or electronically, of this EEBO-TCP Phase II text, in whole or in part.