A Coppy of a LETTER Sent by the Burga-Masters and Councel OF AMSTERDAM, To the rest of the CITY's that have their Session IN THE ASSEMBLY of the STATES OF Holland and West-Frezland.

GENTLEMEN,

WE have Understood by the Report of Our DEPƲTIES that Assisted in Our States-Provincial, the 10th Ditto, with great amazement, How that the same Day, by Order only of the Pentionaries of Holland, without the usual putting it to the Question, that the doors of the said Assembly were comand­ed to be shut, as also the anti-Chamber belonging to the States-Provincial, with an Injunction that no Man might be suffered to go out; and that at the desire of the Prince of Orange, Two of our Depu­ties, the Heer Gerrard Hoofe one of the Councel of this City, and the Hier Hop our Pentionary, left their Seats and went into the said ante-Chamber, for that it was pretended that this Affair did con­cern them in particular as well as others: After which, the Prince of Orange laid before the States-Provincial, That the Marquess D' Grana haveing intercepted several Letters from the French Am­bassador at the Hague to the King his Master, bear­ing date the 9th of January last, which he had sent to him, containing (as 'tis said) a circumstantial relation of some private correspondency betwixt the said Ambassadour and us; of which the said Prince of Orange thought himself oblieged to give them the said States an accompt thereof, and that accordingly the said Letters were read in the As­sembly of the States by the said Pentionaries of Hol­land; and that the said Prince of Orange did sup­pose that the Two before-named, our Deputies, were much concerned in this Correspondency, and did not know whether they had Orders so to do, or not. This matter being under debate, our Two Deputies, which before had quitted their places, came in and took possession thereof again, and en­deavours were used to cause them to depart into the ante-Chamber again; but our aforesaid Depu­ties did not look upon themselves as oblieged to do what they required, especially for that they had done nothing but by Vertue of Order; However the States-Provincial thought good that Coppies of the said Letters should be sent to the Knights, Gentlemen, Burghermasters and Common-Coun­cels of the respective Cities, to have their Advice what was most convenient to be done concerning this Affair, which fills us with no small amazement that a beginning should be made of a Criminal Pro­cess against so just and upright Members of the States, notwithstanding their earnest opposition, and they proffered to purge themselves against all that could be laid to their charge, drawn from the aforesaid Letters by erronious constructions. Notwithstanding all which, our Papers, and those of our Pentionaries, were Sealed up by Two of the Members of the States, as also by the Secre­tary Beamount, and laid aside till after a Commu­nication of the aforesaid Letters to their Princi­ples, it should be concluded whether the said Pa­per should be Examined or no. When We begin to reflect on the one side, That the Charge of an Unlawful Correspondency betwixt the French-Ambassador and us, comes simply, and only to ap­pear out of the aforesaid intercepted Letters to the King his Master, and so falling into the hands of a Forreign Minister, and only as it agrees with his apprehensions and constructions, the Letters being in Cyphers, which we know not whether they be truly uncyphered and have their true sence or no: and reflecting on the other side, that this is the Foundation of all these severe Proceedings; as first, In the locking of the Doors of the Assembly of the States Provincial in an unusual manner, and that by the Order only of the Pentionary of Holland, and then in their severe handling of our a­foresaid two Deputies, who are not so much as mentioned in the Letters intercepted by the Mar­quiss D' Grana; and who not only immediately proffered to move, as the truth is, not so much as [Page] to have spoken with the said French Ambassador, but by our Order; but also to disprove what was most abusively laid to their Charge by the Penti­onaries of Holland, as that they the same day that the said Letters were sent away for France by the French Ambassador, had not been at his house, ma­king it plainly appear, the one that he was indis­posed, and the other, that, that day he had not been out of his Lodgings at the Hague.

We do exceedingly wonder, that notwithstand­ing all this, it should be thought good to seal up our Papers, and to proceed with such Extravagan­cies; precipitating such Reports both within and without this Country, as tends to the diminishing and dishonouring of this City, against the illitera­ted Sollicitations of our Deputies: That the said Letters might be read again in their hearing, they being in the Anti-chamber while they were read before the States Provintial, promising to make a Cathegorick Answer to the same, which then with­out question, they would have forborn sealing up our Papers, and their innocency appearing, they would have desisted from those so strange proceed­ings; or at least would have shewed so much Wis­dom and Discretion, as not to have sent away a Charge to all the Councels and Cities, until they had heard what could be said in our Defence.

We desire also your Honors to consider how much we are concerned for the security of our Deputies in Respect to their Persons; as also of their Papers, according to the Justice of this Coun­try, and the Resolutions relating to that Affair; for which Reasons we cannot forbear but be high­ly concerned, and be heartily sorry, and the more when we consider that those Proceedings against such Upright and Faithful Members of the State, are not only against all Forms of Justice and Pru­dence, but also against the Honor, Freedom, and Security, that belongs to the Members Composing that Assembly. And then considering what ill Con­sequences may be the Effects, that the aforesaid Charge is only drawn out of Intercepted Letters from the Ambassador of France to the King his Master. And we cannot Apprehend but with great sorrow and trouble of mind, the great Mis­chiefs and Difficulties that might fall upon this State, by those Commotions that may be raised within us by such Scandals as these are, and at a time wherein all the Members ought to be equally Zealous by the Extending and Uniting of their Understandings with all the care imaginable, to conclude what may be good for Christendome in general, and for this State in particular, and for the preventing of a dangerous War; concerning which, we can Call God for our Witness, that all our Conducts and Advices have tended to the same purpose. There is nothing troubles us less, as the making our Innocency appear to the aforesaid Charge, and we shall make the same plainly appear to your Honors, when the said Letters of the said French Ambassador shall come to our hands; And in the mean time we de­sire your Honors for your own advantage to consi­der those mischievous Consequences that may at­tend the Assembly of your Honors and every Mem­ber thereof, if any Resolution should be taken not founded upon good Reason, Order, and Polity. And therefore that you would be pleased for to stay for our Information after we have received the Letters from the said Ambassador, before that you would come to any Resolution to our preju­dice, or to the prejudice of the Rights of this Coun­try, and of every Member thereof in particular; we assuring you that we will not be wanting on our parts in any thing relating to this Affair.—But, b f re we conclude this Matter, we cannot pass by without great admiration, that it appears to us by the Advices from several Members of the States, that the Sealing of the Papers of the Heer Hopour Pentionary in particular ought not to have been done, for that the said Pentionary from time to time, received Letters from the Heer Pan Bu­ningham, present Burgermaster of this City, for it cannot be imagined, neither is there any reason of Suspition of any Crime or Misdemeanour, that a present Burgermaster should Write to a Minister in the Hague, And that in all Justice a Man ought to be lookt upon a very Criminal, before that at a Corro­spondency with him should be the Cause of sieizing of Papers in the Possession of any Man; especially in the Hands of Deputies at their places Assigned. This Letter being ended, there is come to our Hands a Coppy of the aforesaid Intercepted Let­ters from the French Ambassador, which we cannot pass over without some suddain Remarks.

As first, That it seems to be but an Extract of a Letter and not the whole, in regard there is not only Words left out, but Words put in, which could not be well omitted to make up the Sence; As also in the said Extract, there was left a great many Varancies, which plainly shews, That the Marquiss d'Grana hath not sent the full Contents of the said Letter. And therefore, before a true Judgment be Conformed of this Affair, or that we should give a thorow satisfaction in the Thing de­manded; it must be known, That the Principal Contents of the said Letters were, That we have done our Endeavours to make known to the States, and to bring before them as a Matter of Delibera­tion, what the said Ambassador of France made known to us in particular, and what we made as the first overture in December, which was Com­municated to our Deputies, and immediately also to the Pentionary of Holland, and several other of the Members. And in regard it tended to no other End, then to move the Spaniards to a speedy Ac­commodation of their Differences with France, for the security of the Spanish Neitherlands, and for the squenching that Fire of War which was already broken into a Flame, which never appeared to us to be otherwise then serviceable and acceptable in­to the Members of the States, that it had given them Occasion to Deliberate on that Affair. O­ther Matters contained in the Letter, are Affairs without our Knowledge.

As for our selves, we have been so far from holding any particular Correspondency in making any Engagements or Promises to the said Ambassa­dor of France, that our Care and Circumspection will appear to be such, that it were heartily to be wished, that the like were observed by all those that bare a part in our Government.

Printed at Rotterdam, Feb. 19. 1684. New Stile, by P [...]ter Martin, and Reprinted in London by J. Millet.

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