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Show The A u T R o R's L 1 F E.· VoL. I. toncealing the Charter, but they muft necefl'arily !ntend the Extirpation. of the Eng!tfh Governmtnt ; for where the Caufe ts taken away, the Efte8: muft confequendy ceafc: And ::l.S the Reftoration of our Ancient Englijh Laws bv the Great Charter, was the Sovereign Balfam which Cured our former Breaches fo doubtlefs will the Continuation of it pro\•e an e:zcel~ lent Prevemion ~o any future Difturbances. . But fome are ready to objea, Tbat the Great .Charttr con/iflm.c dl well of Re/igio11J a1 Civii Riglu.r, the former having r~utved an .Aiurallon, there 1$ tbc {a me Reafon why the latter may have the hke. . To which we anfwer That the Reafon of Alterauon cannot be the fame, therefore the Confequ;nce is falfe. The one being Matter of Opinion, about Faith and Religious WorJhip, which is as various, as the unconftant Apprehenfions of Men; but t~e other is ~att~r o.f fo iJ!lmut~~le Ri&h~~ andjuftice that all Generations (however dtffenng tn thetr Rellgtom Opznzons) have 'concemercd and agreed to the Certainty, Equity, and indifpenf: tble Neceffity of preferving thefe Fundamental Laws; fo that Ma,gna Cbnrra hath not rifen and f:tllen with the differing Religious Opinions that have been in this Land, but hath ever remained as the Stable Right of every individual Englifoman, purely as an Englijhmon. Otherwife, if the Civil Priviledges of the People, had fallen with the pretended Religious Priviledges of the Popijh Tyranny, at the firft Reformation (as muft needs be fuggefted by this Objetlion) our Cafe had ended here, That we had obtained a Spiritual Freedom, at the Coft of a Civil Bondage; which certainly was far from the Intention of the firft Reformers, and probably, an unfeen Coufequence by the Objeaors to their idle Opinion. of \b~o:~· ;~~~~.is a~~sT~~~it 1in~~;~~~n~~~~e,m;hii~C:: :l::n ~~~~~iZ ably be Guilty of, That doth deface or cancel that Law by which the Juftice of Liberty and Property U confirmed and maintained to the People. And con· if:quenrly, no Perfon may Lcg:1lly attempt the Subverfion, or Extenuation of the Force of the Grear Charter. We {hall proceed to prove them Inftances, out of both. Firit, Jtn.r Judgment given contrary to tlJe faid ClJorter, is to be undone and holdenjor 1\0ught, 25 Edw. r. chap. 2. Secondly, .dny byWord, Deed, orCounfe!,rhot go contrary to tbefaid Charter~ are to be Excommunicarcd by the Bifoopr: 4nd the Jlrcbbifoops of Canterbury and York, are bound 11 compel the other Bijhops to denounce Sentenct accordingly, in Gtfefl/their Remifspefs, or Neg/eO; which certainly hath Relati· on to the State, rather fhan the Church; jince there wat never nny NeceJ~ jity of com,pelli»g the Bijhops to denounce Sentence in their own Cafe, tbougl/ frequently m the People's, 25 Edw. t. chap. 4· Thirdly, That rbe Great Charter, and Charter of tbe Foreft, be holden and lcept in aU Points; and if any Statute be made to the contrary, that it foall ·be bold.cn for Nought, 43 Ed.w. 3· 1. U.POI) which Cook, that Famous EngliftJ Lawyer, faid, That albeit, ]udgmenu in the King's Courts are of bigb Re· · · gard in Law, a~d Judicia ar~ accounted tU Juris di8:a ; yet it it provided by the Jl{j of Parliament, Tbot if ony Judgment be given contrary to any oft be Points of the Great Charter, it jhall be holden Jor Nought. · He further faith, upon the Stature of 25 Edw. 1. chap. 1. That tbh Great Ch:1ner1 and the Charter of Foreft, ore property the f:ommon Law of the Land, or the Law Common to all tbe People thereof. Four~hly, ·Another Statute runs thus: If any Force come to J.ijlurh tbe Execll/10!' of.tbe Common Laro, ye fhall couft their Bodies to he J!rrefled, and put m Pri.(on: Te fo~/1 deny no Man Right by t he King's Letters, nor Counfel rlu 1\mg mry Thmg that may turn ro his Damage or Dijheri{on, 18 E~w. 3· chap. ~· . Ncitber to deny Right by any Command under the c:Jreat or Lurie Seal. Thts~s the Judges Charge and Oath, 2 Edw. l· ch. 8. 14 Ed. 3· '~· II Rtch. 2 . ch:1p. to. . F1fthly, Such Care hath been taken for the Prefervation of this Great Charter, that- in the 25th of Edw. t, it was Ena8:ed, Tbat Commi!fionen jboMid VoL. I. The AuTHoR's LILE. foould i!Jue forth, tb.1t tber~ fhould he chofen i'! every Sbire·Courr, by t1Je J6]o.' ComNionalty. of the fame ~bzre, Three Jubfl(tniJal ft1en, Knights, or ather Larcful, Wife, and, W~ll·difpofcd PerfO>ts, to be ]njliw, robicb j/nll be af- ~ jignc4 by rh.e Kmg s Letters Pate(ltJ, under the Great Seal, to ~ear ott:l de-rermmc (waboNt any orber Writ bu~ ottly their Commijjicn) Juch Plaints 111 fonU be 11111de upon alJ tbifc that comma, or offettd againjl tmy foint contained ill the n{orcjlfJd Charters, 2 1 Edw. t. ch. t. · · Si~thly, The Nc~effity of preferving thefe Cborrerr, hath .appe:ued in nothtng tnore, than m the Care rhey have taken to confirm rhem . which as Cookobferves, have been by Thirty Two Parliaments ConfirmeJ kffahlijh: ed, and C~Nifll_ttnded to be put in Execution, with the condign P~nHhment the~ had ~nfit8:ed upon the Offenders. Cook's Proem. to the fecond Book ot lus lnihtutes. ~~ventbly, That in the Notable Pe~ition. of Right, many of thefe Great Pmrtledges, and Free Cuftoms, contamed m the aforefaid Charrcrs and (}o ther.Good Laws, are Re_cited_ an~ Confirmed, 3 Car. 1. ' EJgbtbly, The late Ktng, In hts Declaration at New· Market, 164r, ack~ '!lowledged the Law to be rbe Ru/~ of His Power: By which he douhrlefs 1n!ended Fu'!dame71Jal Laws; Iince tt m:1y be the great Advl"tage of Coon.:. tnes, [omet1mes .to fufpen~ the Execution of Temporary Lawt. Havmg fo mamfefily evtdenced that Venerahl~ E;/lcem our Anceftors had , of_thatGo!den RULE, (the GREAT. CJIA RTER,) with their deep Sohcaude, to prefe~\'e 1t from the defacmg of Ufurpation and FafHon; We fhall proce.ed: ro gtve an Account of their Juft Refenrment, and earneft Profe~ unon :lgamft. feme of th~fe, who. in any Age have adventured to under:~: m~:~.t Anctcnt Foundatton, by Introducing an Arbitrary TVay .of Go- Firfl, As Judicious Lambard reports, in his Saxon Tranfiation That the King.s in tbofe Days, uere by their €oronarion O,rzhs obliged to keeP tbe .Ancient Ftmddmental Lrzwr and Ctifloms of this Land (of which this Great Chart~r is but Declaratory) fo did Krng Alfred (reputed the moft famous Comp1ler of Laws amon_gfi them) give this Difcovery of his Indignation againjl bis own ]1ufges, J.or a[/ing contrary to tbofe Fundamental Laws, that b1 comm,mJed the Executzon of. Forty of them; which may be a Seafon,1bfe Caveat to the Judges of our T1mes. Se~ondly, Hube~r de .Burgo, once Chief Juftice of Engf,md, h:1ving ad vi~ fed Edward the Fuft, 1n the Ele\'enth Year of his Reign (in his Council ~olden.ar Oxfard) toCa.nceltbis Grtat Charter, and that of the Forejl, w3S JUftly Sentenced 3ccordmg to Law, by his Peers, in open P:trliJmenr, when the Statute, called CONF!RMAT!ONIS CHARTARUM, was made; tn the firft Chapter thereof, .Magna Charta is peculiarly cJlled rhf: Common Laro, 25 Edw. I. chap. 2. ~birdly, The Spencers, (both F3~her ln..d. Son) for their Arhitrary Domination, and Rafh, and Evtl Coun1el to Edward rhe Second, (by which be was feduced to break the Great Charter) were banifbed for their l)ains aS Cook relate!!. ' Fourr~ly, The fame Fare attended Trejilliao and Be/l:.'nap, for their illegal Proceed 1 ngs. Fifthly, T~e Breach of this Gretl/ Charter, was the Ground of thlt Ex· empla.ry Ju~bce ~one upon .Empfon and D1~dley, whofe CJfe is very memorable m thts Potnt; For ttJo~Jgb they gratified Henry the Seventh in n'b,Jt t bey.did •. and bod on .A (I ofP~rliament for their W<trranr, made the Elevemh of bu ~erg,, )'et nJet ~IJrtb t!mr due Reuutrd fra~n the H.mds of Jujlice, tbtlt .A[l hemg attunfl Equay and common Rea}On~ and fo no · jJJjf,fit~ble Gro11nJ, or .Apology, for thofe frequent .Abtifes, and the Opprrj/iom o( rhe Pcf1ple, tbey were Jo11nd Guilty of Hear what the Lord Cook further Uirh concerning the Matter, ' There was an A8: of PJrliamenr, m:Jde in rbe Eleventh ' Year of King Henry the Se\'enth, which had-a fair fiarrer ing Preamble~ ' pretending to avoid divers Mifchiefs, which were (1ft) Tbe Htgb Difp!cll• Jure of Almigbty G 0 D. (2dly) T!Je Great Let of th< Commo11 Law. And ' (;dly,) |