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Show A Propo(ztion, to1tcbing the Compiling; And Amendment, \ which I h~ve now gained , I take it, to be my duty; Not on ely to fp ed your CoJJJ~zndeme.nts, and the BufincJfe., of ~y pl,J_ue; But to mt:ditate, und to excogttate, of my felf, wherem I May ben, by my Travels, derive your Vertue.r,to the ,<Jood ofyour;lkop~c ; . And return, their Thanks, and Increafe 01 Love, to y_gq, ~am. And ~fter l! had thought, of many things ,-I could fi~cl,-~'in my J udg nent, none more proper, for your "'!ajcJfy , ·as a M?dtcr; Nor for me, as a Workman, then the R.edJ(cmg)and Rec tn tlmg, of the Lawes of E1Jgl1111d. · Your Majefty is a King, bld~ed with Poflerity; And thefe Kings, f0 rt belt with Afrs ofPerpetmty; Whtn they do not leave them, infi:ead ~fChildren; but tranfmit, both Line·, and Merit, toFuture Generations. You are a great Mdfler, in )1tjiice, and jttdic,tture: And it were pitty, that the fn:lit of t~at Venue, 1~ou ld dye with yow. Your 111djefiy, alfu Ratgneth~ tn Learned Ttrnes; . The more, in regard, Of your own ~erfechon~, and p,ltr?nage . .of Learning; And it hath beet~ the mtfhap, o fWorl:.,h ofthts Na .. turc, that the leffe Learned Ttme, hath wrought up01: the more Learned· Which now will not 19e fo . As for my fdf, t he Law is my p~~feffion, to whi~h I am~ debter •. . Some little helps I May have, of other Learnmg,_ wlnchm.:::y gtve Form to matte~; And your Maje.ftJ hath fet me, 1n an Emmen t place, whereby, m a Work which mufi: be the Worfto£ many, I may the better have Coadjzt;ors. Ther~fore, not ~o hold your M_ajejly, with any long preface, in that, whtch I conceive to. be,nothtng .lefs then Words; I will proceed to the Matter.= Which m~tter, It felf, ne':ert?eleffe, requir~th,fomewhat bnefly to b~ f:ud,both of.t~e DtgnHy, and likewife of the Safety, and Conventence, of thts Wor/z; And [hen to go to the main; That is to fay, to iliew~ how the worlds to be done: Which incidently, alfo, will befl: Demonfhate, th2t it is no vafr nor fpeculative, Thing; But a Reali, and feizabie. Calliflhenes: that foll?we~ Alexanderr Court, :md was grown, in fome difpleafure, wnh h1m; Becaufe he .could .not well brook , the Perjian Adoration; At a Supper=> (which, wtth the G'r£citms=> was ever a great part, Tt,~ll{,) was defired, becaufe he was an F lffque; t Ma~, to fpeak?ffome Theam; w~kh he ?id; An_d chofe,for his Theam, Th~ pra1fe,of the lldace~oman Nat1011? w.htch) though it were, but a filling Thing, to pratfe men, to then faces; yet hq, did it, with fuch Advantage of Truth; and avoy?ance of. Fl~~ttery and with fu~h life; As the Hearers were fora vtfhcd wnh tt) tha~ they plucked the !lofes off from their Garlands, and threw them upon him : As the Manner of Applaufe3, then, was: A· lexander was not pleafed with it, and, by way ofDifcountenan.ce, faid, It was eafie, to be a good Oratour, in a pleajing 1he11m. But, (faith he to C afli.fthenes ,) turn your flile, and tell us now of our C: trult.r, tbat we may, have the profit) andnotyouonely t~epraife. Wh1ch he prefently did, with fuch a force, and fo ptquantly, that Alexa1.1der faid; The Goodnejfe of his The am had m4de him Eloquent befere: B1tt 110W of the LaweJ of England. 273 now it was the Malic() of his het~rt~ that bad infpired him: I. Sir, I fhall no tlll, into either of thole two Extreames, Con~ cerningthe Lawes of England: They commtnd themfelves, bell to them, that underfiand them: And your Majcfiies) Chief JH.ftice of your Bench, hath, in his Writing._, magnified them) not with out Cau{e: Certainly, they are Wile, they are Jufr, and Moderate, Lan,•es; They give to God; They give to Ccefar; They give to the SubjetJs ;, that which appertaineth. It is true, Tht:y art as mixt, as our Lmtguage, compounded of Brit!ijb, Roma11, Saxon, Vanijh, Norman, Cuftomes. And as our Language, is fo much the Richer, fo the Lawes,are the more compleat; Neither doth this attribute ldfe to them=> then thofe, that would have them, to have fiood out the fame, in allM~etations; For no Tree, is fo good, fid1: fet, as by Tranfp!anting. 2. As for the Second Extream; I have nothing to do with 'itJ by way, of Taxing the Lawes. I fpeak, only, by way of I'erjitti11g them: Which is eafiefi: in the befi things ; For tha.t, which is farr ami.lfe, hardly receiveth Amendment; But that, which hath already ; To that, more tnay be Giver. Eefides, what I fhall propound, is not, to the ~fatter of the Lawe.r, but to che lUanner, of their Regiflry, Exprej}lon, and TrtJditiott: So t1nt, it giveth them rather Light, then any new N.ltHre. This being fo, for the Digniry,Qf th!! Wor~e, I know, fcarcely, where to find the like; For, fureJy, that Scale;, and thofe Degreer, of Soveraign Hon01sr, are true, and rig btl y maril1alled. Firfi, the Founders of£ ... ftates; Then the Law given; Then the Dr:liverers, . . and Savioltrs ~ after long Calamities j Then the Fathcr,r of thetr Countr1es; Which are Jufi) and Prudent, J roincer; And LJ(tly, Conquerors, which Honour, is not to be received, amongfl: the refr; Except it be', where there is an addition of more Country, and Territo· ry, to a better Government, then that was of the Conquered. Of thefe in my Judgement, your .lldajefty,may,with more truth,th en flattery,be intituled,to the firfr;becaufe of yourVnitingof Britai,, & p/,znting Ireland; Both which favour of the Founder. That) wch I now propound toyou,may adopt you,alfo,into the Second: Law- ' giveri,ha ve Been called, Principes Ferpetui; Becaufe, as Bifbop Card. ner faid,in a bad Senfe, that he would be Bijhop,an hundred years, after his death) in refpeCl: of the Long Leafes ?e made.: ~o La~givers, are ftill Kings, and R11lers ,, after thetr ];)eceaje, In their L11wes. But this w·ork._e, iliining fo io it felf, neede!> no Taper. For the fafety,and convenience thereof; lt is good to confider, and to anf wer thofe objetlious, o~· Scruples-J which may zrife,or be made:> againfr this Wor/ze. • obj. I. That it is a Thing needleffe; And that the Law, ai It now is, is in good Efiate; Comparable to any Forrain Law; And 'that, it is not poffible, for the Wit of Man :l in refpett of the Frailty thereof, 'to provide, againfi: the Incertainties, and Eva .. fions, or Omifiions, of Law. Nn Refp. |