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Show Eriglahd's Prefent lntereft Con}ider'd: Vot. I. J6?S'· In Erbelbert's Time, after the Monk Auflm's Infinuations had made his. ~ Followers a Part of rbe Government, the to"!mu'!e ConCJbum ~a~ t11.11J Ckn Chap. 1 quam Popult, a1 weU Clergy a1 People. In l'!a s T1me, Su4fu 0 tnjllt_uro E~ conc1J, Bnt. p; r. oporum omnrum Senatorum f!J natu 111f!lorMm Saptentum popuh; Bt!hops, 6 LI.JC ds and W1fe Men of the People. .Alfred after him reform'd the former U:Sn:.t.am. L~~s,' Omfulto faptentum, by the Advice of the. Sages of the Kmgdom. Likewife Matters of Publick and General Charge, In Cafe of War, f:lc .. we have eranred in rhe Afremhly, Rege, BtJrombur et Populo. ~y the Kmg, lhrons aad People. And though the Saxon Word. properly 1mpo~rs the Meeting of Wife Men, yet All that would come m1g~t be prefenr, and ln .. t ofe rheir Like or D1fltke of the prefent Propofinon : . As that of Ina, l...t. su::.t.am. ,!r~ngna fervor lim Dcz j1 cquenria. Again, Comtnune Uncdtum femorum f5 'P· 1. populor11111 totnu regm, ' The Common Council o~ the Elders, or Nobles, Cone•!. Bnt. ' and People of the whole Kingdom. The Council of Wmton, Ann. 8s;. J9.1ngulph. is fJid to be in the Prefence of the Great Men, a!ton;mq; fide hum mfor!t& multttud~ne; ' And an Infinite Multitude of other Fauhful People; which was nigh Four Hundred Years before the Great Charter was made. My lalllnflance of the Saxcn Ages !hall be out o~ the Gloj[ory of the S[JC:lm. Glors. learned Englijh Knight, lf. Sptlm•n! t:he Saxon Wn~ngemote or P~rha· LTi~-~. mote ment (fairh he) u a Convtlition of tbt Pnnces, ar weO Btili?PS a~ Magtftra ... i6 tcs, and tbc Fre·e People of tbe Kingdom: And that the f:ud Wlltangem~te cwnfulted of the common Saf(ty in Peact and TVar, and for the Promouon of the common Good. , William of Xormandy chofe rather to rely '!pon the People 1 Ct:nfe.nt, tb~n his ODtn Powu to oburin the Kingdom. He Swore to them. to matntam. tbe!f old Laws 4nd Priviledger; they to him Obedience fo~ hts fo Govermng of . Ll. Gulielm. them · For as a certain Author hath it, He bound h11nfolf to be J~fl, tbllt c. U· be mi.fht b; Great\ and the People to fubmit to Jufiic~, that they migh~ be Free. In his Laws, C. 55. ' We by the Common ~oun'tl ?f the whole ~mg· c dam, bave granted the Peopllt Landt to them m lnbentance, aocordtng to ' their .Ancient Lt~wt. Mmers of general ~xpe_nce upo~ the_whole Body of the P_eople, were . fettled hy this Great CounCil, efpec1al1y 1n the Charge of .Armt 1mpofed up-- Ll. Ouhelm. on the Subjea. The Law faith it to have been done by the Commu~:e Con- Cap. ~8• tilium of the Kingdom. Spiciteg. SoW. Rufur and Henry the Firff, were received by the com.mon Cf'nfent of W.Malms C. the People. And Supben's Words were Ego StephJnus, De, gralla, JJ.IfenHift. P· 10 1" fu Cieri €;;' Populi in Regno Jlnglitt Eleaus, &c. • I Stephen~ by the Grace ' of God. and ConfCm of rhe Clergy and ~eople, Chofen K1~g. of Englant!J &c. So King ]obit WJS chofen, Tam C/eriquan Popu!t unantmt conftnfu f.!i_ f 11vore, • Bv tl!e Fa\•our and Unanimous C?nfent of the.Cleyy and People· cart. moder. And his Queen is faM to have been ~rown d de commu111 c~ :,nfu f.!/ .con~~;~ f~er. ma&. d1 volunttlte Arcbiepifcoporum, Comaum, Ba~onum, Cler1 . Pop11b to I b· figit. Anno 1. Regni, L e. ' by the common A !rent and unammous Good~w11l of th~ Arc Jolt. C:" Vet. ' !Jijhopr, Bifhops. ()111nu, Barons, Ckrgy anJ. Peoplt of ~fte whole K!ngJDm. ~~~~~:.~~.' King Edw. 1. alfo defired M?ney of the commune Conllhu_m or Pa~hame~~· ettiepifi:op. • JS vou h1ve given in my T1me, and that of my Progemtors, Kings, B • Rot. Carr. All which fhows, that it was Antecedent to the ~nnr C!Jarur, not the Ann. s, Juh. Riglus therein repeated and confirmed, but the Aft It felf. . 11. 'd l.lemb. 'i· And King John's Refignation of the Crown to the Pope, bemg que ton n. 29' upon fome Occafion in Edtuard III. Time, it was agreed upon, that he Rot. Par. 4c: bad no H~er to do it, wirbout the Confmt of tbe Duker, Prelt~ter, E11ront, U. 3• 11• 71i. and Commons : f1 f Aild :ts Paradoxa! as any m1y pleafe to think it, 'tis the great Inte.re 0 a Prince .thlt the People .fhould h1ve a Share in the JhJking of the1r own Laws; ~here 'ds orherwife, they are no Kings of Free·m;n, . bm Sl~ve!i, and thofe their Enemies for making them fo. Legu nulla air~ caufa .nor renenr, quatn q11od judicio populi r~ccpr.t funr; ' The Laws (faah f!leuJn~ ( do therefore oblige the People, bccaufe they are allowed of by their judg bl¢nt• And Grati1tn, in Dec. diftin& 4· TNm demum buman~t lel tt bab::;:. VoL. I. Eoglao~'s Prefent Intereft Confider'd, vim fuam, ~11m [uer~nt non mod~ inflittlttt, ftd eriam jirmattt Approbation! Commumt11111: It IS then ( fallh be) that Humane Laws have rhcir due ' Force, when they fhall nor only be de\•ifed, but confirm'd by the Appro' badon of the People. · I. It makes Men Diligent, and incre1ferh Trade, which advances the Re .. venue: For where Men are not Free, they will never feek to improve, becaufe they are oot fure of what they have, and leiS of what they get. II. It free& the Prince from the ]ealo11jie and Hate of his People; and con· ~~~e:~i>'faf!~e Troubles and Danger that foHow; and makes his Province Ill. If any Inconvenience attends the Execution of any Law, the Prince is not to be blam'd: It is their own Fault that made it. I (ball now proceed ro the Third Fundament'"' and by phin Evidence pro'f'e it to have been a Material Pan of the· Government, before the GrettJ Charter was Enacted. III. The .People have an lnj/uence upon, and a Great Share in the , judicator1 Power, &c. , 67~ 16]1. ~ Chap. 1. That it was a Brittifh Cuftom, I wilJ not :1ffirm, but have fame Rcafon to fupp.ofe: For if the Saxonr had brought it with them. they would, alfo have left it behind them, and in all Likelihood there would bJve been fOme Footfteps in SaxDny of fuch a Law or Cultom, which we find nor. 1 will not enter the Lifts with any about this: This tl1:11l fuffice me, that we find it early among the Sa.xom in this Country, :wd if they, a Free Pc9ple in their own Country, fettling themfehes here as a New l'l;Jmed Cofony, did ...~:.:J':! fupply what wa.s defe8:ive in their own Government, or add fome New Fre.edom to themfelvea, as all Planters arc wont to do; which are as tho(~ firft and Corner Stones, their Pofierity, with all Care and Skill, are to build upon, Tbat, it felf, will ferve my Turn to prove it a Fundomemtrl: That ist fuch a Firfl Principle in our [:.Ttglljh Government, b, the Agreement of the People, as ought not to be Violated. I would not be underfiood of the Number, but of the w·ay of Tryal: I mean, Tbat Mtn were not to bt Condemned but by the Voter oft be Freeme". N. Bacon thinks that in ruder Times the Multitude tryed all among them· felves; and fancies it came from the Grecians, who detern1in'd Controver-fies by the Suffrage of 34, or the major Pare of them. . Be it as it will, ]urier the Saxom had; for in the LJws of Kmg Erbel· dreJ, about Three Hundred Y cars before the EntrJnce of the Norman Quke, we find Enaaed, in fingulis Cenrurih, &c. thus Englifh'd, In every H11n· Lt. s~w:. tam. JreJ./er there be nCo~trt, and let Tu1e/ve Ancient Freeme.n, together witb the Ann. 67~· Lord of the Hundred, be Sf»orn, that ·tbry wiO not Condemn the Innocent, or Acquit tbe Guilty. And fo ftri8: were they of thofe Ages, in ohfervlng this Fundamental Way of Judicature, that A/fred put one of his Judges to Delltb, for p1ffing Sentence upon a Verdi.ct (corruptly obtain'd) upon the Votes of the Jurors, Three of Twelve being in. the Negative. Jf the J\r11111· ber wa~ fo Sacred, What 1.0a1 Jhe Omjlinaion it Jelf? The very fo:me KinP Execuud another of his Judger, for paffing SentenC¢ of Death upon an lgn:ram1n recurn'd by the Jury; and a third, fo~ Conqem:" ning a Man upon an Inqu.efr ~ken ex officio ~hen ~s th~ Delinquent. h~d not put himfelf upon thell Tnal. More of hts J u(hce m1ghc be men non d even in this very Cafe. . There w1s alfo a Law made io the Time of .lF.tlJeldreJ,, when the Bnttaim and Saxonr began to grow tame to each other, and inter~om.mop am}cably, that fairh, l.et there be Twelve A1en of. Underjla!ldmg, &_~ ·-:S1x Englifh, and Srx Welfh, tl/ld let rbem deal ']ujlru, /mh ro Englun and Welfh.' .~ . . Alro in thofe fimple Times, if a Crime extended but to fom~ Shan:t;lll 11. Etheld. Bmifome1tr, m Pillory or WJ.ipping (the laft whereof, lS uftJal as- 1l h~s bebg ~:il~.Lai:~ with us, was infiift~d only upon their Bondmen) the Penance m~~~c·d c.[lur. |