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Mafler SPEAKVER,

'   S it had} ‘octane ever my fiaihion (and’i:atr12th, it is
r .. i A __  my dxfpofiftonj to1ndea»'our,at the 16:21}, to give
»    fatisfaftioti to every man, even to the meaneflc,
‘” that hath hati any finiftetconceptions of me ; be
A  .   , e itfl»'dnd.dlflm damm, or ¢~It'c:pM.*.r¢, I0 hath it been
. ‘ A my ambition, and I have1'oughtit with affeéti-~
on, (as to all men) fo mttch more to this lmnourabie Aifembly,
efpeciallyetmcerningg the late Petition and Pr<;»teG:ation exhibi-
ted unto his fizcted “Majeflzie; and the ‘Lords and Ptzeres in Parlia»
mcnt, But in the firft place N1;-t.fiCCI' Spea1<et",1 am, as it becomes
.” ;me,to give mofl: heartieand condign thaxexks to the 13tdo1e~K1uig11ts,
Citizens, and Burgefes, ofthis honotlfable Haul}: of eC”ommons,
for that they have becnc pleated bypil generall vote, and ‘:1 hope, u~~
nanimous, to give tne leave ta fpaakt for my felfe, and to lay open
the ‘truth of my canfe,tco11c£rhing the iaid Petition and Protefi: 4.1-

tion before them.

* 1 ~

And now M. Spcaltsr . to addrcffe my felte to the buF~nclTc, . '
whereof I {hall not fpeakt: as a Lawyer, for I have no: head fut
Lawmeither {hall I need to touch upon any paim: thereof, notcasta
flourifhing Oratcnr . as dtzfitcms to hea.'re lximielfetpcake,  vhrwet
1011 g fince laid afide m ybookes of Rhethorick _:. my defirc ts, Ma» »
Pter Spctalqgr, tottreadjn the {keeps of an eld Divine , of who m Sa-- A
2.0mm writes in his .Ecc1cfia,iCtic£t11Hi{totie%, who groaning mtdet f
the like heavic butthcn andeaecufatioti as I doc,,ch0(§‘.: tamer to vem:
his own: fenle , and axprem: the truth of his caufe in p1ain_elan_—
g.gt1ag¢,than to colout‘ or clgaiei falfhood, and to exztttluate hxe otw e

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fence, by Forced, trapped,_ and new varnifhed eloquence: And
to that purpofe my conceptions and narration {hall Hand only up«
on two Feet, Negation, and Aflirmation. There are fome things
that I moi’: deny , and yet juitly, fomewhat I muff affirme, and

that I (hall doe ingenuoufly and fully. ‘Pirft For the Negative _., I 

never framed, made, not contrived , compiled, or preferred any
inch Petition or Proteftation, I never was at any meeting, con.
fultation, or conference, about agy fuch bufineffe; nay, .I never
heard of any intention , much Ie e execution of any fuch thing,
untiil ‘itwas the Wednefday in Chriltmas, being the 2 9, of De-
cember, at which time it was brought unto my houfe in Coven-—
garden, being betwixt 6. or 7. at night (fubfcribed by eleven oi’?
my-Brethreng with a requelt, that I would fubfcribe iixddcnly 31..
fo. And for the aflirmation , prefuming that it: many learned,
grave, and wife men, well verft in matters of that nature, would
not have attempted any fuch thing, without good counfell to the
endangering of'thernfelves,and their Brethren, and to the diltafte
:oF‘t_he Lords, and that all the tell of‘ the Bifhopsi in or about the
Citie of London, Weliminlier, {hould fubfcribe thereunto , and
that it {hould not be preFerx'cd, without the approbation, and ma-
turevdcliberation of good icounfell, and of us all: I made thc
twelfth and fet to my hand, which I doe now acknowledge, and
never denyed ; nay, the firfi time that I came to the Barre in the
Lords Houie, I acknowledged that my hand was to it, and divers
of this honourable Prefencc h ; ard it to read unto them, out of the
jornall of the lords houfe. '
Now Mailer Spmkgr , if thefe my deceived and deceiving

I thoughts (to ufe S. Tcmardl phrafe) have led mee into an errour, ,

the errour is either Ex ignaraxfiajurir, an unskilfulneffe in the

Law, or Deéilitate judicii, a weakneiie of my apprehenfon, or ,

clfe, Ex nimia crcdulimte , out of the to much confidence in 0..
thers, not of ny prepenfed malice, or out of a fpirit of contradi.
étion, as the Lard knoweth. r “I heSchoo1enIcn teil me, that Dam
jam! in amni pi-cczzto , there is afiia , ('55- nulitia gflionix , I ownc

I the arftion, the fubfcription is mine ; but, that there was any ma...

lice in the aélion ( to erotic any Vote, at which I was not prefent,
not never heard of) Iutterly dilavow. 7 i . i  
And therefore, Mafter Speaker, I {hall become an humble
“inter , that I may recommend three moi’: ‘humble Requefts ,
» ~ i I - or

    f   ( 33  
or motiions to thie Honourable I Houfe. ~ I ‘
The firft Motion is; -That youwould. be pleafed totread in
the ‘Reps-of Conjlantine the Chriflian Emperour , who had ever

  this re{olution,,that if hefhould-fee Saccrdbrempecmntem, an of...

fendin Divine, hee would rather call his purple garment upon
him, t an to reveale the offence, for the Gofpels like of Chrillz.
My lecond Motion is, That if my fixbfcription {hall make mee
a delinquent, and worthy of any cenfure, that then the Cenfure
may not exceed ( but at the highefl; ) bee proportionable tothe
o“fl'encc. e I I
I, ~ The third and lait motion is, ‘That, that of Plmmax ( after my
fifty eight yeares paineihll, conflant, and fucceffefull preaching
ofthe" Gofpell of Chrill, in the kingdome of England , and in
Forraigne parts, may not be verrified of me, ’ Si quid éem ficerir
iwior plamagrdtia eff; fl gxlidmali fevers’: plmézéma ims germrt.
And now (Mailer Speaker) I might here tender divers motions
to the conlideration of this honourable Houfe, for favourable cou-
llciruficionof my rail: fubfcription, I may fay commiferatipon , but

all without oftentation, that is farre from me, I but rather for the

veonfolation of my perplexed foule,for the great afilifiion, reflraint
and dilgrace, which I have long fiaflained ( which is fiarre greater
than ever I endured before.-. and tranfcends the dangers and jeo-
pardiesof the fees, , and the miferies of the warres, whereof I
have had my {hare)and partly For the vindication of my former re-
putation, calling, and profeflion, which is now fo clouded, ecli-»
pfed, and blackt in theeyes of the world , and fcandalized in

. the mouths of the vulgar multitude,that without reparation, and

1'ePtauration to my former efteeme , I {hall never have heart to

{how my face in Pulpit any more, wherein I have wifhed to
end my dayes. But I wavethetn a1l,,beeaufe I yvill not‘ detainc
you from other occafions of greater importance, and delire my ‘

wayes may be made knowne unto you, rather by inquilition, than
my own: Relation, ‘only I {hall appeal: to the Noble Knights,
Citizens, and Bnrgefles of the Diocefle wherel now live . and
of the other wherein formerly I did live, as namely the honoura-

ble City of Briflow, which I can never name without that title, ‘ A‘
not only in relp_eé’c oftheirpietie, unitie, and conformity, but alto

in refpeét otitheirplpove, kindnelle, and extraordinarie bountie um:

to me,‘ I appcale to them for tl1¢Il.‘ telhmomes, and lane Wleclgeof

~ A 3 I 4 . my
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rnyicourfcso amongflithcm, n'ayiIy apgcale to thy yrccofrds of the" it

honourable-houfc, where I am con dcI1taf'terIixtccnc moncthsy

fitting, thcro is nothing found that can trench upon mcaneitlier I A L‘

hope will, or may bee.    
And therefore my humble fuitc is» For cxpcdition (if you in...

tend accufation, or rather For your meditation ,. that Ianay’ (pm.

dily rcturnc to my own: home and Cure ,, to; rcdccxno the timc
‘occaufc thetlayes are cvill, as the Apoltlc fpeakcs, and to again;
the cltccm and reputation which I was long in getting, and [mg
#1 joycd, but loft in a moment, for if I Ihould out-live  I fay not
my Bi1‘hoprick,)_but my credit, my gray-haircs, and many ycares,
would ioonc be brought with fcirrow to the grave.

I have done Mafcer Spaalq-r, and that: rcmaincs nothing new
but that I become a petitioner unto almighty God 3 that M, win
he plcafcdtt to bellow upon you all the Patriarkcs blqfllngmvm am

dew of Heaven, and fatncflo of the earth a: and I end/with that of V

V on 5. Ifldc, Mercy, peace, and love be multiplycd unto you ;_I
A fay againe with arcligious and aflcétionatc hcart,, ”
Mercy, pcagc, andlovc,’ be mu1ti«.-
plycd Enio you, it
4*-

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