Chap. XII. The HISTORY of the PURYTANS. 8Yi to remove the queen and her cabal of papifts from the direetion of the 7. king's councils ; after all thefe things (fay they), we mull maintain the v grounds of ourfears tobe ofthat moment, that we cannot difcharge the trufi Rapin, and duty which lies upon us, unlefs we do- ripply ourfelves to the ufè of ¡bole P. 468. means, which God and the laws haveput in our hands, for the neceijary defence andfafety of the king dom. There were certainly flrong, and perhaps unreafonablejealoufies, andYenloufres on apprehenfions ofdanger on bothfides. The king complained, that he was both fader. driven from Whitehall by popular tumults, where neither his perfon or family could remain in fafety. He was jealous (as he Paid) for the laws and liberties of his people, and was apprehenfive that his parliament in- tended to change the conftitution, and wreft the fceptre and fword out of his royal hands. :On the other fide, the two houles had their fears and diftrufis of their own and the publicfafety ; they were apprehenfive, that if they put the forts and garrifons and all the ftrength of the kingdom into his majefly's power, as loon as they were diffolved, he, by the influence of his queen and his old counfellors, would return to his maxims of ar- bitrary government, and never call another parliament; that he would take a fevere revenge upon thofe members who had expofed his meafures, and difgaced his miniflers; and in aword, that he would break through the late laws, as havingbeen extorted from him by force and violence ; but it was very much in the king's power, even to the treaty of Uxbridge in the year 1644 -5. to have removed thefe diftrufts, and thereby have faved both himfelf, the church, and the nation ; for, as the noble hifto- rian obferves, " the parliament took none of the points of controverfy lets to Vol. II. heart, or were le/i unitedinany thing thaninwhat concerned the church." P. 58r, 594. And with regard to the Rate, that many of themwerefor peace, provi- ded they might have indemnity for what was paled, and fecurityfor time to come. Why then was not-this indemnityand fecurity offered ? Which mutt neceffarily have divided the parliamentarians, and obliged themß ri- gorous andviolent to receed from their high and exorbitant demands ; and by con(éqùence have reftored the king to the peaceable poffeflion of his throne. Upon the whole, if we believe with the noble hiftorian, and the The conclu- writers on his fide, that the king was driven by violence from his pàlacefou. at Whitehall, and could not return withfafety ; that all real and imagi- nary grievances of church and ¡late were redreled ; and that the kingdom was fuficientlyfecuredfromall future inroads ofpopery andarbitrarypow- er by the laws in being; then the juftice and equity of the war was molt certainly with the king. Whereas if we believe, that the king voluntarily deferted his parliament, and that it was owing alone to his majeßy's own pe- remptory 'rflution, that he would not return (as lord Clarendon admits.) 5 L 2 If
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