THAT your Petitioner having la­boured under severall long and grievous sicknesses, in the time he hath continued your Prisoner, (by your honourable favours in [...] [...]odgings) for above three [...] and a halfe now last past here in [...] months in severall pla­ces in the Country, in [...]uch misery and danger of his life, a warrant being given by Sir Iohn Gell to Cap­taine Vermuden to hang him, of which he hath proofe here in Towne from Vermudens owne mouth, contra­ry to the Law of Armes, and to the agreement upon the surrender of the close in Litch-field, by which both himselfe & all his there were to have free quar­ter for themselves to passe away peaceably with bagg & baggage, though when by the same agreement they no sooner entered the place, but held all prisoners, rob­bed & spoiled your Petitioner and all the rest, (with in the agreement included) of very wearing, apparell horses, armes, monies, & what else they had to the ful [Page] [...] [Page] [...] [Page] value of at least five thousand pounds, besides in those sad distempers of the time being dispoyled of his houshold stuffe with his owne, his wife and childrens apparrel & other things to them belonging, as monies jewels, & plate in his two several houses, to the ful va­lue of at least eighteene thousand pounds, besides the monies and wearing apparrell of about fourescore ser­vants, very many of which were persons of such qua­litie as what they then lost amounted to above foure­teen hundred pounds besides your Petitioners stock of beasts, sheep, and horses in three severall places ta­ken from him to the value of nineteen or twenty thousand pounds more at least, his demeanes being all fully fraughted and furnished with his owne stock, besides also two of his three choice houses, the one whereof being his ancient sea [...]e & place of his Barrony being-plucked down fired, defaced & demolished, which cost above sixteen thousand pounds, not yet fifty yeares a­goe, his whole personall Estate within and without doores violently seized and carried away, his wood and timber in several counties waste fully felled, his Parks decayed, his whole reall Estate sequestred amounting in these foure yeares to fourteen thousand pounds his Tenants stocks violently driven away, themselves also imprisoned for not paying greater taxes then either their livings or estates were able to satisfie, some of them dying, the rest and those that live, their wives and children and selves so [...] impoverished, as to turne up their farmes and goe a begging, whereby much pre­judice is come to your Petitioner, their Lands lying wastand their houses for want of tenants fallen downe and burnt by other townsmen, and all the fences and bounds betwixt him & other Lords, so defaced as scarce [Page] againe to be known, whereby great suites and debates are like to arise hereafter; Your Petitioners debts which before these times were four thousand pounds, are now since these times, increased to above five thousand pounds; his friends, tenants and servants in­gaged for him, imprisoned, and he not able to relieve them, & that nothing of Iobs afflictions migh be want­ing his children slaine, one cruelly murthered after he had laid downe his armes, and diserted that service, a­nother also most barbarously killed and murdered in one of your Petitioners houses, and with him also a­bout seven score more then s [...]ine not sparing the killing of some children, slashing & wounding of one Gentlewoman, and other women that could not be in armes, with other unheard of barbarousnesse, both to the living and dead; yea, such, as were your Petitio­ner a Turk, Heathen, Iew, or Infidell, that had deser­ved much worse of any State, then he hopes hee hath done of this; yet is confident, more severity could not have been exercised, then hath beene upon him, but unknown, I am confident, to your Lordships: For all this time of his imprisonment, hee hath not beene al­lowed the value of six pence yearly, forth of his owne sequestred estate, but hath lived upon credit and bor­rowing, untill these two last yeares, that some of his Friends and Tenants in Derby shire, farmed divers Lands in those parts; from whence, by extraordinary husbandry in tillage for corn, they gained about eight­score pounds a yeare for his behoofe. But now upon certain votes by the house of Commons only, bearing date the tenth day of Novemb, last past, but never con­firmed by your Lordships can therefore, he thinkes be no absolute binding Ordinance: yet none of his Lands [Page] can be any more farmed by any to his use or behoofe: whereupon the Lady Hoghton, his Daughter, wrote a letter to the Derbyshire Committee, that those lands might still be farmed to your Petitioners benefit, and that those Votes of the house of Commons above spe­cified, were but only Votes and not an Ordinance, with­out your Lordships assent and joyning, which they took so heinously, as expressed much bitternesse and passion thereupon; saying, they should be obeyed as a good Ordinance, by any that had to do with them, with some other high and unfitting language, which he dares not expresse: So as now, your Petitioner is hopelesse of further subsistance, and having now lately suffered a great deale of misery and sicknesse, which kept him in his bed above nine weekes together: In which time, truly my Lords, he had like to have peri­shed for want of meanes to pay Physitians, Chyrur­gions, and Apothecaries, or to buy necessary meat and drink fit for a sick person; despairing therefore of re­covery, he caused his Chaplain to make his sad condi­tion known to the Congregation, and to entreat their prayers for him, which hee having done, most miracu­lously, by heavens hand, beyond expectation, he was a­gain restored and preserved, by one, whose name hee neither knowes, nor had formerly seen, or conversed with him, came to him as he was upon his sick bed, & delivered to him a good summe of money, whereby till now, he hath subsisted, with this further message, that they who sent the mony, so much pittied his pre­sent sad condition, as not to expect repayment, until he were restored again to his rights and estate. But now again, those monies being spent and gone, your Petiti­oner is so miserable poore, as to want money to buy [Page] him bread, not having clothes to his backe, more then what he dayly weares, besides, old Scores to Cookes, Woodmongers, Brewers, Bakers, and other Trades­men, being long and great, without his abilities to pay or satisfie, can therefore have no further credit, but must doubtlesse perish, unlesse your Lordships be fa­vourable and noble unto him.

To your Lordships therefore and to you only, as persons sensible of honour, and tender of the sufferings of men di­stressed, As also knowing the Lawes of the L [...]nd so well, as that theeves and robbers men of meaner quality, than him­self; and having committed more haynous offences, then hee hopes hi [...] will ever prove, when he may be admitted [...]o his apolog [...]e and defence, yet must be allowed a fitting subsist­ance forth of their own estates (if they have any) untill there be a conviction & not to be pined and star [...]ed, which is now this your present petitioners case; whose addresses only are & shall be to your [...]ordships not doubting but in abatement of your too ridged censure of his offence he shall make it ap­pear to you that he hath, both whilest he was with the King himself, & since also done eighteen several good offices for the Parliament; yea and preserved the lives and estates of some of the House of Commons who had else suffered much, He cannot therefore doubt of your noble inclinations to favour and commisterate his condition in the meane time he hum­bly intreats you favourable construction of any thing herein contained, he being so ashamed that any should take no­tice of his present, miserable condition, that he had not the confidence to advise with any about the better inditing this his Petition, but his sadnesse of beart with the sence of his owne sufferings were indeed the pressers & inditers of what is herein expressed and desired.

That your Petitioner in this his sad afflicted condition, if these his already sufferings may not suffice to expiate the offence conceaved against him, and move with your Lord­ships, to restore him againe to his liberty and ruined estate, which he humbly beseecheth, being vtterly disabled of all [Page] [...] [Page] [...] [Page] meanes to redeeme himselfe & Estate by the favour vouch­safed to others, in being admitted to their composition whilest they had something wherewith to doe the same, (which your Petitioner now hath not) being but bare ten­ant for life, makes therefore his humble adresse to your Lordships; that you will be honourably pleased in your noblenesse, so far to take into your consideration, your Peti­tioner, and his present sufferings, and want of livelyhood & subsistance, as that some present competencie, out of your Pe­titioners estate, may, by your honourable order be timely alotted and paid unto him out of his sequestred estate, in the Counties of Derby, Nottingham, and Lincoln.