THESE Articles against my Lord FINCH being read, I may be bold to apply that of the Poet, Nil refert tales versus qua voce legantur; and I doubt not but your Lordships must be of the same [Page 2] opinion, of which the House of Commons appeares to have bin, by the choyce they have made of me, that the Charge I have brought is such, as needs no Assistance from the bringer, leaving not so much as the colour of a colour for any defence, including all pos­sible Evidence, and all possible Aggravation (that addition alone excepted) which he alone could make, and hath made, I meane his Confession, included in his flight.

Here are many and mighty Crimes, Crimes of Supererogation, (So that High Treason is but a part of his Charge) pursuing him fer­vently in every severall condition, (being a silent Speaker, an unjust Judge, and an uncon­scionable Keeper.) That his Life appeares a perpetuall Warfare (by Mines, and by Battery, by Battell, and by Stratagem) against our fundamentall Laws, which (by his owne confession) severall Conquests had left un­toucht, against the excellent Constitution of this Kingdome, which hath made it appeare to Strangers rather an Idea, then a reall Com­mon-wealth, and produced the honour and happinesse of this to be a wonder of every other Nation, and this with unfortunate suc­cesse, that as he alwayes intended to make our Ruines a ground of his advancement; so his [Page 3] advancement the meanes of our further ruine.

After that, contrary to the further end of his place, and the end of that meeting in which he held his place, he had as it were, gagg'd the Common-wealth, taking away, (to his power) all power of speech from that body of which he ought to have bin the Mouth, and which alone can perfectly represent the condition of the people, whom that only represents, which if he had not done, in all probability, what so grave and judicious an Assembly might have offered to the conside­ration of so gracious and just a Prince, had occasioned the redresse of the grievances they then suffered, and prevented those which we have since endured, according to the ancient Maxime of Odisse quos laeseris: he pursued this offence towards the Parliament, by in­veighing against the Members, by Scan­dalizing their proceedings, by trampling upon their Acts and Declarations; by usurping and devolving the Right; by diminishing and abrogating the power, both of that and other Parliaments, and making them (as much as in him lay) both uselesse and odious to his Maje­stie, and pursued his hatred to this fountaine of Justice by corrupting the streames of it, the [Page 4] Laws; and perverting the Conduit pipes, the Judges.

He practized the annihilating of Ancient, and Notorious perambulations of particu­lar Forrests, the better to prepare himselfe to annihilate the Ancient, and Notorious per­ambulation of the whole Kingdome, the Meeres and bounders between the liberties of the Subject and Soveraigne power; he endea­voured to have all tenures in durante bene placi­to, to bring al Law from his Majesties Courts, into his Majesties brest: he gave our goods to the King, our Lands to the Deere, our Liberties to his Sheriffes; so that there was no way by which we had not been opprest, and destroyed, if the power of this person, had been equall with his will: Or that the will of his Majesty, had been equall to his power.

He not onely by this meanes, made us lyable to all the effect of an Invasion from within, (and by destruction of our Liber­ties, which Included the destruction of our propriety; which Included the destruction of our Industry) made us lyable to the terriblest of all Invasions: that of want, and povertie. So that if what he plotted, had [Page 5] taken Roote (and he made it, as sure as his Declaration could make it (what him­selfe was not) Parliament Proofe) in this wealthy, and happy Kingdome, there could have beene left, no abundance but of grievances, and discontentment, no satis­faction but amongst the guiltie. It is ge­nerally observed of the Plague, that the Infection of others, is an earnest, and con­stant desire of all that are seized by it: and as this designe resembles that disease, in the ruine, destruction, and desolation, it would have wrought, so it seemes noe lesse like it in this effect: He having so laboured to make others share in that guilt, that his sollicitation, was not only his Action, but his workes, making use both of his Authority, his Interesse, and Importunity, to perswade; and in his Majesties name (whose piety is knowne to give that Excellent Prerogative to his person, that The Law gives to his place, not to be able to do wrong) to threaten the rest of the Iudges, to signe opinions contrary to Law, to assigne answers con­trary to their opinions, to give Iudg­ment which they ought not to have given, and to recant Iudgment, when they had given as they ought, so that whosoever consi­ders [Page 6] his care of, and Concernment, both in the growth and the Immortality of this pro­ject, cannot but by the same way, by which the wisest Iudgment found the true Mo­ther of the Child, discover him not onely to have been the Fosterer, but the Father, of this most pernicious, and envious designe.

I shall not need to observe that this was plotted and pursued by an English man, against England, (which encreaseth the Crime in no lesse degree then parricide is beyond Murther) that this was done in the greatest matter joyned to the greatest Bond, being against the generall libertie, and publique propriety, by a sworne Iudge, (and if that salt it selfe, because unsavory, the Gospel it selfe, hath design'd whi­ther it must be cast) that he poysoned our very Antidotes, and turned our Guard into a destruction, making Law the ground of Illegality: that he used this Law not onely against us, but against it selfe, making it as I may say, Felo de se, making the pretence, (for I can scarse say, the ap­pearance of it) so to contribute the utter ruine of it selfe.

I shall not need to say, that either this (or none can be) of the highest kind, and in the highest degree of Parliamentary [Page 7] Treason, a Treason which need not a com­putation of many severall Actions, which alone were not Treason, to prove a Trea­son altogether, and by that demonstra­tion of the intention, to make that formality Treason which were materially but a misdemeanor, a Treason, aswell against the King, as against the Kingdome, for whatsoever is against the whole, is un­doubtedly against the head, which takes from his Majesty, the ground of his Rule, the Lawes, (for if foundations be destroy­ed, the Pinnacles are most endangered) which takes from his Majesty the princi­pall honour of his Rule, the Ruling over Free-men, (a power as much Nobler then over Villaynes, as that is that's over Beasts) which endeavored to take from his Majesty, the principall support of his Rule, their hearts and affections over whom he Rules (a better and surer strength and wall to the King, then the Sea is to the Kingdome) and by begetting a mutuall distrust, and by that a mutuall disaffection betweene them, to hazard the danger even of the destruction of both.

My Lords,
I shall the lesse need to presse this, because [Page 8] as it were unreasonable in any case to suspect your Iustice, so here especially, where your Interest so neerely unites you, your great share in Possessions, giving you an e­quall concernment in propriety, the care and paines used by your Noble Ancestors in the founding & asserting of our comon Liber­ties, rendring the just defence of them, your most proper and peculiar Inheritance, and both exciting to oppose and extirpate all such designes as did introduce, and would have settled an Arbitrary, that is, an Intol­lerable forme of Government, and have made even your Lordships and your posteri­tie but Right Honourable Slaves.

My Lords,
I will spend no more words, Luctando cum larva, in accusing the Ghost of a de­parted person, whom his crimes accuse more then I can doe; and his absence accu­seth no lesse then his Crime. Neither will I excuse the length of what I have sayd, because I cannot adde to an Excuse, with­out adding to the Fault, or my own Imper­fections, either in the matter or manner of it, which I know must appeare the greater, by being compared with that Learned Gen­tlemans great ability, who hath preceded [Page 9] me at this time: I will only desire by the Command, and in the behalfe of the House of Commons, that these proceedings against the Lord FINCH, may be put in so speedy a way of dispatch, as in such cases the course of Parliament will allow.