THe Knights, Citizens, and Burgesses of the Commons House of Parliament, in obedi­enc [...] to Your Majesties Writ of Adjournment, came chearfully to this City of Oxford, to receive Your Royal Commands: And when Your Ma­jesty [Page 4] was pleased to speak to them, and acquaint them with Your great Expences this Summer, and the continuing Insolencies of the Dutch, They were so inflamed with an Affection and Zeal for Your Majesties Service, that they could not suffer the least Puncto of time to pass, before they had made a Return suitable to their Engagements, That they would assist Your Majesty with their Lives and Fortunes, against the Dutch, or any others that should assist them, in opposition of Your Majesty: —Tibi nos, tibi nostra suppellex— ruraque servierint.

The English Man useth to speak, as he writes; and the English Parliament, to speak as they think: No Security upon Earth can be greater then the Engagement of your Two Houses of Parliament. Sed quid verba audiam, dum facta videam? As a Demonstration of their Fi­delity, I am commanded to present unto Your Majesty this Bill, whereby they have given You for a present Supply, Twelve hundred and fifty thousand pounds, to be levied in two years; to begin from Christmas next, by Quarterly Pay­ments, added to the former Royal Aid.

And to the end Your Majesties Occasions may be supplied with ready Money, before this additional Aid can be raised, We have by this Bill prepared an undoubted Security, for all such Persons as shall bring their Money into the Publick Bank of Your Exchequer. As the Ri­vers do naturally empty themselves into the Sea, so We hope the Veins of Gold and Silver in this [Page 5] Nation, will plentifully run into this Ocean, for the Maintenance of Your Majesties just So­veraignty on the Seas.

Great Sir! When first We besought Your Ma­jesty to correct the Insolencies, and to repair Your Subjects against the Rapines of the Dutch; We did reasonably suppose, That the Justice of Your Majesties Demands, would, at least, have had a fair and ingenious Reception: But the Dutch resolved, with Machiavil, to keep by Force what they had got by Wrong, and to return their Answer by the Thundring voice of their Canon. The Great GOD of Hosts, to whom Vengeance belongs, hath eminently appeared in Your Majesties Quarrel, and sharply re­buked the insolence of that proud People, whose heart is hardened even to destruction.

'Tis true, our sins do cry aloud, as well as theirs; but God is pleased in mercy to correct us himself, whilst by our hands he doth punish them, and make them fly before us. I hope this mercy will invite us to a National Repentance: And if God be with us, who then can be against us?

We cannot but take notice of the Sordid de­fection of some English Fugitives, who have trai­terously joyned wi [...] the Dutch, both in their Counsels and Actions, against your Majesty, and this their native Countrey: We therefore have prepared a Bill, whereby they are injoyned to [Page 6] return by a day, and answer to the Law, or else they shall be attainted, and be subject to the Paines and Penalties of Condemned Traitours.

It hath been an old observation, that Scanda­lous Livings make Scandalous Ministers; and this most frequently fals out in Cities and Cor­porate Towns, where are little or no praedial Tythes, and therefore the Preachers for meer want are forced to chaunt such tunes as may best please the Rich men in their Parishes: For prevention of this for the future, there is a Bill prepared for the uniting of small Church­es and Chappels in Cities and Towns Corpo­rate, by the consent of the Patron, reserving all other Parochial rites distinct as they were before.

This being a time wherein Your Majesty needs great Supplies, We held it our duty to ease the People in some unnecessary Expences; and therefore we have prepared a Bill for the more effectual proceeding upon Distresses and Avowryes for Rents; another to avoid Cir­cuity of Actions; and a third, to lessen the charge of necessary Suits in Law. There is an ancient fee received in [...]our Majesties Courts of Law, called Damage [...]leere, or Damna Cleri­corum, which is the tenth [...]eny of such Dama­ges as are there recovered in many actions: This was first introduced for the encouragement of Clerks, to employ themselves, to the study of [Page 7] drawing special Pleadings, which are grown so familiar by the dis-use of Real actions, that the Fee now is looked upon as a grievance: especially when the Plaintiff is forced to pay it upon the signing of his Judgement, and per­haps the Defendant is not able to answer any part of the Execution: therefore we have pre­pared a Bill for the regulating of this for the present, and after seven years to take it quite away.

Tacitus hath a saying, Such as are false in their love, are true in their hate; And this Rule we find verified in our Nonconformists. Whilst they were in the Bosom of the Church of En­gland, they were like inward Vapours; and in­ward Bleedings, always oppressing and strang­ling the Body of the Church; and now they are Ejected and Excluded from their Mini­sterial Function, they have more malice, and no less opportunity to propagate their Princi­ples, then they had before. Some of them are objects of pity, they submitted their Rea­son to their Leaders, of a higher Classis, who failed them in their hopes, and left them to the rigour of the Law: These poor crea­tures have seen their errour, and feel the smart, and would live peaceably; but their Jesuitical Leader keep up their spirits, and Herd with [...] in Cities and Corpo­rate Towns, where, by pretence of Perse­cution and Self-denial, they move the pity of good natur'd people, and with their Charity [Page 8] keep up their Party, lessen the Maintenance of Conforming Ministers, and spread their Contagion amongst the Youth of the Nati­on: For the prevention of this growing mis­chief, we have prepared a Shiboreth, a Test to distinguish amongst them who will be peace­able, and give hopes of future Conformity, and who of malice and evil disposition re­main obdurate. The one we shall keep amongst us with all Love and Charity; the other we shall exclude from Cities and Cor­porate Towns, like those that have an in­fectious Disease upon them.

It is not unusual for the Commons, at the close of a Session of Parliament, by their Speaker to present a Petition to their Soveraign: and with Your Majesties leave, I am now com­manded that Service.

We do with all humble thankfulness to God, acknowledge our great happiness, that we are govern'd by a Prince, whose Prudence in Counsel, whole Valour in Action, and whose Fatherly Care in Protection of his People, is eminent through all the world: and it is no [...] the least mercy, both to Your Majesty and Your People, that God [...]h blessed You with a Brother so like Your self.

The name of His Royal Highness is already Inrol'd amongst the Heroes of other Nations; but this His Native Countrey had not so great experience of Him, till Your Majesty was pleased in this Summers Expedition to trust Him with the Conduct of the most Royal Fleet that ever sailed upon the British Seas; wherein He shewed that Prowess, and that Prudence, and by the blessing of Almighty God, was Crowned with that Success against the Dutch, that we cannot pass it by in si­lence, and yet we are at a loss how to ex­press our Thanks both to Your Majesty, and to Him: I am commanded therefore to be­seech Your Majesty, that You will vouch­safe to let us make a Present to You, of a Moneths Tax, to come in the Rear, after the Four and twenty Moneths of Your Ma­jesties Royal Aid, and that Your Majesty will be pleased to bestow it upon His Royal High­ness.

And now, Great Sir, I have no more, but to beseech Almighty God, who hath so mi­raculously preserved Your Royal Person, and Your two Houses of Parliament from all Sickness, and Contagion, during this Ses­sion, that he w [...]ll be pleased to send Health [Page 8] [...] [Page 9] [...] [Page 8] [...] [Page 9] [...] [Page 10] throughout the Nation, that he will Crown all Your Designs against your Enemies with Victory and Success, and give Your Majesty a long and Happy Reign over us.