CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY PR3404.D2Tl716r™"'""'"^ ^MimlS"" °' *'^^ "■ee-holders of G 3 1924 013 175 470 'S^^ ^/ Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924013175470 eo CO o z UJ o o 5 o u. UJ z < a o z o^ ^ PQ Eh O ft: Q O a I &. w EC O o M < ft: •< O a ■r-l t- < ^ 5 DECmRATION FREEHOLDERS GREAT BRITAIN, In Anfwer to that of the Pretender. E by the Mercy of GOE^ Fitc-lroldcn of Gre*t Britain, to the Popifh Pretender; who ftilcs himfclf Kliig of SeotUad aiid EngUnJ, and Defender of our Faith, DEFIANCE, Havii^c lecn a Libel which you have lately publiQwd apinft the King and People of thefe Realms under thcTitleof a DECLARATION, we, in ''jn/liee t$ tbt Siuimtats tf cur oven Hturti, \avt thought fit to retjirn yon die Ibllowing Anftrcr ; wherein we Ihill endeavour to reduce to Mahod the federal Paniculars, Mitch you hive contrived to throw togetber with much Malice, and no lefs Confafion. c • c a.- Wc believe you fmcere in the fiiit Pait of your Declaration, where you own it wou'd be a great Satisfadion to you to be placed upon the Throne by our Endeavoon : But you dilcourage us from making Ufe of theiDi by declarinpit to be your Ri^t both by tbt Lt»i (/ GOD md Man. As for the Laws of GOD, we itou'd think our lelves great Tranfgrrffors of theni, ihou'd we for yoia Sake rebel againit a Prince,, whc^ under GOD, isthemoft powerful Dcfendft: of that Relition which we think the mott pleafing to Hiirn And as for the Laws of Man, we conceive thofe to^be of that Kind, which have been enacted from Time tct Time for near Thirty Years pafi ^inft you and your Pretcnfions, by the Legillaturc of this Kingdoatii .You afterwards proceed ro InvciHives againtt the Royal Family: Which we do affure you is a very unpopular Topick, except to your few deluded Friends-aiHons the Rabble. You call them jilitns to *nr Cumtry, not oonfidcring that King George has lived above a Year Ipngcr ip EttgUni than ever you did. Yoo lay they are Di/»x im Blsod ; whereas no Body eva doubted that King George is Great Grandfon to King jAtntt the Fitft, tb(^ many bdicve that you are not Son to King "james the .Second. Befides all the World admowledges be is tbencaieft to our Crown of the ProteiiawBIoodj^of whidi •you'caiBot have o^ Diop In your Veins, tUUels you derive it farom luch Parents as you donttarc foe owning. Your next Argument againft the Royal Family, is, That they are Strangers to our Ldngiugt : But they muft be Strangers to the Britijh Court who have told you fa However you muft know, that we plain Men lliou'd prefer a King who was a Stranger to our Language, bciine one who is a Stranger to our Laws and Religion : For we cou'd never endure French Sentiments, tho' dcliTerd in our native Dialecl ; and fliou'd ablwr an arbitrary Prince, tho' he tyranniz'd over us in the finefl £w/i/fe that eva was fpoken. For tbefc Reafbns, Sir, we cannot bear the Thought of hearing a Man that has been bred up in the Politicks of LaitU the Fourtecntbj talk intelligibly from the Britijh Throne : cfperally when we confider, however he may boaft of his fpeaking Englt{h, he fays his Prayers in an unknown Tongue. Wc come now to the Grievances for which m your Opmon we ought to take up Arms againft our prefcnt Soverdgn. The gteateft you feem to infill upon, and which is moil in the Mouths of your Party, is the Union of the Two Kingdoms ; for which His MajiHy ought molt certainly to be depolcJ, bccaufe it Was made under the Reign of Her, whom you call your Bttr Sifier tjGtoriom Mtmtrj. Other Grievaiuw which you hint at under His Ma jefty's Achniniftration, are, the Murder ot Kiaz Coar/f^ tl)e Firtt, who was beheaded before King 6«»i« was bom" j-aiid tht Sufferings of King Oitrla the Second, which perhaps His prefcnt Majdly cinnoc JI^Mltt ri"r HcafelC o^becaufe. He came mto the Woild a Day before His Refttnrfittoni ^^BTMlr^iFiSStSffiCeytiti'anaign Hisjrefenr Majefiy by thi? mofl extraordinary Retrofpeift, on the otha Hand 50U condenin His Government by what we may cjJl the Spiiit of Second Sight. You are iwt content to draw into Tiis Reign thofe Mifchiefs that were done a hundred Yciis i^o, unlets you anticipate thofe that may happen a himdied Years hence. So that the keeneft of your Atrrows eithtr fall ihan of Him, or fly over His Head. VVc take it for a cdtain Sign that you are at a Lofs far prtfcnt Grieva»ice« when you are thtis fenced to havcRecourie CD your /wnnsfi'o/J*^, Mifntwrt MJeriet. Now, Sir, yui mull kix)w, That we Frce-hoIderS have a natural Averfion to Hanging, and don't know how to anfwa it to our Wives arid Families, if we fhou'd venture our Necks upon the Truth of your Prophecies. In our brdimry Way of Judging, we guefs at the King's future Condu^ by what we have fecn already ; and therefore beg you will ezcufe us if for the prefcnt we defer entring into a Rebellion, to which you fo graciouHy invite us. Whm wc have as bad a Profped of King GeorrA Reign, as we ftwu'd have of yours, then will be yourTime to date another Declaration from your Court at Qmmtrci : Which, if we may be allowed to proplielic in our Turn, cannot polTibly happen before tfic himdred and fiftieth Year of your Reigh. Havbg coafidered the p^ and future Gucvancrs mentioned in your Declaration, we come now to the pteient j all ot v^hich are fiannded upon this Snppofwion, That whatcva is done by His Majdfy or His Miniffcrt tokeq) you oi^.qf the Britijh Throng is a Grisvanpe> Theie, Sit, may be. Grievances to you, .but th^ «tg , none to us. Oathe contrary, welook^poivthemjas the laeattii InLfaoeo o£ H«.Miyft/« /'L^tw * -i ^^-^ig v^^^^ ' rery tightly, biit-of thd Wbrft, and not the Bdf of J^r Subjeass Now, Sir, can you in Confcience think ua to be fiKh Fools as to rebel againlt the King^ for haripg anpioyed tholi: who are His raoft eminent Friends, and - were thegreateft Sufferers in His Caulc before He came to the Crown ; and for having removed a GinenJvfhd' '••*.. isoowa^liyia ArmsagunliHim, and twoScaeoncsofScuc, bodiof whom tuvc lifted UfmiJclTes in yaa^~rv fcrneei - Setncc ; a beeaaft lie choFe to fuWHtUle in their P 4 Men who had diftineiu(h'd tbemfelrts by their Zea^agMnft you, in the moft lamfcus Battels, Nej5ociaidfe, and Debates. The fefiand Grievance you mentioh, is, That the Glory of the late (^icen his fufler'd, who, you iofinuate^ Minted UjtM tBe Ei^rytuttu vf tb^it LibmttMt m ^mlathjm bad brtnjo long int. Tins may indeed be a Reaibn T*hy Her Memory (hould be precious with yoa\; But you may be furc we rfiall think never, the better of Her, for Her having your good Word. For the fofte Reafon it maixs us (iarc, when we hear it objtfled to His [nefent Majefty, Thtt He is not Hud ti Htr f*lthfyl Scrmout ; fince, if we can believe what you your lel£ fayjit i»,impo(™c rtity fhould be Hit ftdtbful Servdntuy AiM by the Way, many of your private Friends here wi&you would forbear blaWrite at this Rate : For to ttJl you a Secret, we are very apt to fufpect that any trida Man who deferves |our Praife^ defcrves to be HiW. The nm Grievance" which you have a mighty Mini to redrefs among tis, isthcParliamentof (jrM(5rrfVe cannot indeed blame you for being an- gry at jtboe, who hire (etfucb a round Price upon yom; Head. ' Your Accufation of our High Court of Parlia- axotjpufs us m Mind of a Story, ohcn tdd among ui fr(eHb«Un-f,conceming a rattle-bcain'd young Fellow, who Nog iniSfted for two or three Franks upon'the Higb-way, told the Judge be would fwear the Feacs againil tdm. for putting him in Fear of hb Life. Ine next Grimnce is fuch a otk, that weare amazed tow it could come into your Head . Yoin Words arc as fellow, ."fl^/yf thtfritiei^l Pmtrs taragial in tbe U^p^arj Ji titjty tht Bleftngt of Fttce, *nd trt Mtttmivt /» ^htrgt tbeir Debt/, tnJL lafe thtir Peope, Great Brie^ m the midfi «f Puce, feels *ll the Lo«i of W^r. New Dfbts m-t e$iur4Std, new Armies gre rmled tt Home, Dutch Ftrcet are kvMght into theje Kmgdms. What in the Name of Wonder do you mean ? Art you in earne^ or do you dcGgn to banter us ? Whom is the Nation obliged to fer all this Load of War that it feels.' Had ye been wife enough to have flept at Btr-U-due in a whole Skin, wcfhouMnot have contraded new Debts, railed new Armies, or brought over Dntch Forces to make an Example of you. The moft pleafant Grievance is ftill behind, and indeed* moft proper one to dofe up this Article. King George hds tsiken Pofftffion ofthet>iucbj of Bremen, wberebj * Docris open'd to let imn InunlttiM of Foreigners from Abroad, '■loidtt rtdnce thefe JVatiwu titbe StAie of* Province to one dijeSs:Z M as it will ; we are no moreairaid of bemg aPro; -JnTiif iSr jTr— i a- ^\if * ' ^f^ii-—*^^' aicaotirehaiGiytJ^ddnj a Province (o Bremen. Wenavenow taxen Notice of thofe great tvilswHich you are coine ro icftuc « i. wa « v%tr »t^J«y are fadt as we neither feel nor fee, wedefirc you will put your felf^to no funher Trouble for our SaJrt?: ' Ytfa afterwards tegm a kind of Tf Dewn, before the Time, in that remarkable Sentence, We adore the Wijdoo, tf tbi Divine Providence, which has opened a Way to our ReSlaratien, by tbe S^cefs of thofe very Meajures that were laid ■ M dijMDoint us for ever. We are at a Lois what you mean by this devout] vgon .-But by what goes before and fellows, we fuppofe it to be this : That thecoming of King George to the Crown, has made rnany MaJecontents, and by that Means opened a Way to your Rcftoration, v^ereas you Ihould coiilidcr that if h: had notcome to Che Crown, the Way had been open of it felf. In the Ikme pious Paragraph, Toit mofl earnefilj conjure >» jop«r. fue thtje Methods firyonr Re/ftration, which the Finger of God feems to point m to us. Now the only Methods which we can make lie of tor that End, are. Civil War, Rapine, BloodlM, Treafon and Perjury ; Methods, Which we Proteftants do humbly conceive, can never be pointed out to us by the hineer ot Uod, Tbe reft ofyour Declaration contains the Encouragements you give us to rebel, Firfi, you promife to (hare with us *// Dangers and Difficulties which we ftull meet with in this worthy Enterprize. Youare vay much m the Righton't : Youhavenothingtolofe, and hope to get a Crown. Wedont hope for any new Free^holds, and onfydefireto keep what we have. As therefore you are in the Right ro undergo Dangen ard Difficukies to make your felf our Matter, we fhall think ourfelvesas much m the Right to undergo Dangers and Difhouitics to binder you from being fo. ,. , . , ./ i .j .„ ti _ SecondlJ. you promife to refer yo>er and ossr hterefl to a Scots Parliament, which yoi^ are refolved to call imme- ■diately. Ifuppofeyou mean if the Froft holds.' ButSir, we are certainly mfonnd there is a Parliament now fKting at vSSnfil that are bufy at prefent in taking Care both of the ^"'^"1 H^f /wT ' ''" tually done every Thng which you would let be done by our Reprefentatives m the Htgh-lands rZr^i.r^e.an.ile that if we will rebel for you, again/l our prejent Sovereign, yon will remit and dtfchargeaU me «r commuted against Otherwife we befeecb up Hothurn, withvout fS a tolliew Sat you are very cautious left your good Nature (hould carry you too hr You exclude rW< Benefit oT It, I thofe who^do not from th\ Tin^ of your Landing lay Md on Mercy, and return to their D^^ZAlSance. By this Means all Neuters and Lookers on are to be executed of Courfe : And by the Juried Si^ity Kich vou couch the Terms ofyour gracious Pardon, you Hill leave Roo« to granfy your felf m aU it VKuZre'f fatUfy'd, there are few Free-holders on' this Side the f*"^ whc,will engage in it: And wvSlv Sthatyou wiUfuddenly take a Refolution in your Cabinet of W'ifft^^f; " ^^' ^^^''^ JSiS Crown wS we an toldtheL.diesoftbofcPartUavefo gen«ouflyClttbb'd for. Andyoumaf JS^IcJf 7lS't U S the onironc you are like to get by thii notable Expedmoa, And lb Vrc bui you hcanily FiTcweJ. Dated ]zn: ip.iio tbe Second Tcm^ tf mptMitkHitstituft.