THe cause of this Convention of the Saints, is to condole and lament our great and mani­fold Losses and Crosses have beset us, and compassed us round about, to the utter over­throw of our great and glorious Cause, and our selves and Honours like wise. This day not to be ob­served as hitherto have been, for Victories and Triumphs over our Enemies, but to be kept as a solemn day of Expostula­tion, wherein we must with grief, and sighs, and sobs, and bitterness of spirit, round up our Master for his perfidious leaving of us, and dealings toward us. Why should he thus reward his Saints with evil for good? We that have sought the advancement of his Kingdom both night and day, by Plots, Devices, Stratagems, Fire, Ruines, Blood, all that ei­ther we, or he himself to help us, could invent; and that yet he should forsakes us, cuts our very hearts, so that scarcely for anguish of spirit shall we be able to look him in the face.

Let us see and examine our selves, what we think may be the reasons of his late withdrawing from us, and his cancel­ling of our Commissions in such strange and unexpected man­ner; [Page 4] Was it because we proceeded too rashly in the Rule and Governing of his Kingdoms, and flocked too thronging­ly to the Throne of Dignity, thereby to shorten, not prolong his Reign on Earth? or for that we have been too mindful of private Interest? or what should be the reasons of his thus, sclipsing our Grandeur, think ye, my Brethren? Oh Lucifer! Lucifer! why hast thou forsaken us, and left thine own people in the day of Adversity? Why wilt thou not continue thy wonted goodness to thy chosen ones? but suffer them thus to be trodden under, and insulted over by the Ene­mies of both thy, Cause and ours, by both thy Enemies and our Enemies? Thou canst not say thou hast ever found us un­faithful to thee in our Calling and Imployments; and where­fore then hast not thou protected us, and taken away that black vail which hath covered our eyes, but suffered us thus to be besotted and beguiled? Well, seeing it is thus, we are re­solved to be angry with thee; and if we were but certain of making our escapes out of that Gin, Net and Trap thou hast caught us in, we could almost abandon thy Banners, under which we have thus long fought. Why hast thou thus painted and bespotted the immaculate Garments and White Robes of thine Elect with the dust of the earth?

Oh Brethren! that we had but had the policy of the Monks, then should not we have been reduced to that low ebbe which now we are. Friends, seeing we have begun, let us search our selves to the bottom, and recount what we were in the dayes of old: Were not we the despised of the Na­tion? Were not we contented with the meanest Cottages to cover our heads, the like Food to sustain our selves, and the poorest Weeds to clothe our selves? In those dayes we took no thought, neither were our heads busied with National Oc­currances, the Secrets of Kingdoms, Kings and Princes, the acquaintance of Powers, and Exercise of Powers, Ruling and Dominion, Governments in Church and State? Our chiefest cover and business then were to get bread to seed our selves, and Clothes to cover our nakedness, and to become [Page 5] the best Workmen in the several Trades and Occupations our Fathers gave us education in, as Thimble-makers, Razor­makers, Taylors, Coblers, Carpenters, Weavers, Brewers Pedlers, and such like Vocations: Then were we happy, m friends, and lived in peace, sucking Consolation and Nourish­ment from the Pottage-pot, Beef and Bag-pudding. O that we had never known or been instructed in the Rudiments of Ambition, but had delighted in the Precepts of Content! O that our Master had never charmed us into an aspiring vain, unless withall he had given us more sober and politick heads, for the management of our Affairs of such a vast Circumfe­rence! O what fools were we, that when we had mounted two or three steps, and with the fatning Coniolation of a sute­able portion of Kings Lands, Queens, Bishops, Deans and Chapters, and other Sequestred Lands and Estates, as were al­lotted unto us, we could not rest contented there, but must still be fluttering with our ambitious Wings at the Helm, and nothing will satisfie Coblers and Brewers, but Crowns and Scepters. We might have taken our Brother the Neapolitane Massionello's Chance into our consideration, which (it may be) if our ambitious eyes had not been dazled with the glit­tering hopes of Gold and Honour, but that we could have had a serious reflexion on the same, would have given some check to our haughtiness, and a Rein to our furious current. But we (like Icarus) must mount, and stand in competition with the Sun, till that he melts the Wings of our Ambition like wax, and plunges our brazen faces into the deeps: Nothing but Phaetons request will give satisfaction unto us, and I think we have seconded him indifferent wel, to our own sorrow and destruction.

O that we had trodden the path that our good Master Oli­ver lest behinde him! and that the Fleetwoods had not dealt so rashly with his successor in disinthronizing him, and in time questionless we might have charmed him by the Spiritual con­versations of Goodwyn, Sterrey and Peters, into a fit compo­sure, and tempered constitution to have preserved us in our [Page 6] several mounted Stations, as his father had done before him. O that the Hopes of the Flee woods had not been so mighty, and the Ambition of the Lamberts so great! then, even in this day, might we have been wallowing in our far Livings, as the Sow walloweth in the mine; but now we cannot, with the Dog, return to his vomit. O that we had had b [...] so much wit as to have avoided the long Treaties, tedious Meetings and Prolongations in the terrible season which the politick Monck put upon us. Had we well noted that State-Aphorism (viz.) Delayes breed Danger, then had we not been in this drooping and low estate we are reduced unto. But we were confident in the arm of our strength, and did not dread or fear the Ene­mies that were risen up against us and our Cause: All the care we took was to provide bags to part the spoil of another Se­questration, but now our bags are rent from us.

How much would we now give, to have had then a spirit of fore-seeing and fore-knowing; then surely we should, if not with victory, have come off with a complying Plaudite, and not with such a hissing Reproach as is attributed unto us. Friends, to see how we have been fooled, is doleful and soul­cutting to rehearse; for whilst we stand scussling, fighting, strugling, snarling and contemning for the Bone, the Owner watches his opportunity, and comes and snatcheth away the Meat from us. and leaves us to eat each other for hunger, and in a far worse estate than at the beginning. Truly, friends, we are in a very sad condition, and have brought our Hogs to a very fair Market, but have made but a soul price of them I'll assure you. Now the people have found out what we are, and what way all our actions bent their course, now that our Cause is quite split, and our Honour laid in the dust, our acts of Injustice laid open before them, they will stone us if we pass along the streets. We have received the Mark of the Beast in our foreheads, and the very Children will smell us out, even as the Cat doth the Mouse, and hunt us up and down more than ever they did Marriot: So that to stay here, we dare not, for fear of the Judge who is at the door, and will [Page 7] reward every one according to their several deeds, whether good or evil, for him or against him. And to fly into Foreign Nations, will be far worse than to abide here; for there the verystones in the street will rise up against, and accuse such vile Traytors as we, anp we shall be murthered like so many Dogs. Men and Brethren, what shall we do?—In my judgement, our onely way is to march under the several Ban­ners of our Professions, and several Occupations, Trades and Vocations, to meet our Landlord, and cry Pecavimus with Halters inriching our Necks. O beloved, that in this our day of Adversity, we were become, as once, honest Thimble­makers, Cutlers, Coblers, Beewers, Taylors, Carpenters, Wea­vers, Tinkers! then should we take quiet sleeps, then would not fears and dangers in the nights alarm us, and rowse us from our pillows: Now we shall be subject unto continual fears, ever expecting and looking for a Messenger to be sent unto us, to call us to an accompt, by our Landlords order: We have broken the Covenants in our Leases, and have suf­fered his Lands and Tenements to be run over with ruine; we have forfeited for non-payment of Rent, Service, Ho­mage and Fealty, against Law and Equity, and a strong Co­venant in our Leases to that purpose: We have prohibited his entrance to view the state of the reparations of his Mes­suages, Lands and Tenements: We have persecuted and kil­led his Servants and Friends, whom for that purpose he has so often sent unto us: And what can ye name that we have not done? Finally, Brethren what accompt shall we give of our Stewardship? and which of us shall have that impudent bold­ness as to look him in the face? Whether shall wesly for re­suge, or unto whom for protection? The fight of the King will cut us like a two-edged Sword; who shall abide his pre­sence? We have digged a pit, and are fallen into it our selves: how shall we then escape? we have invented and prepared mischief for others, and it is returned upon our own pates: Who shall pity us? who shall save us? who shall de­liver us?