found in those his declarations to the people, the contrariety of his own actions will bear eternal witnefs, how little careful or folicitous he was, what he promited or what he uttered there.

XII. Upon the Rebellion in Ireland.

THE rebellion and horrid maffacre of English proteftants in Ireland, to the number of 154000 in the province of Ulfter only, by their own computation; which added to the other three, makes up the total fum of that flaughter in all likelihood four times as great; although fo fudden and fo violent, as at firft to amaze all men that were not acceffary; yet from whom, and from what counfels it firft fprung, neither was, nor could be poffibly fo fecret, as the contrivers thereof, blinded with vain hope, or the despair that other plots would fucceed, fuppofed. For it cannot be imaginable, that the Irish, guided by fo many fubtle and Italian heads of the Romish party, fhould fo far have loft the use of reason, and indeed of common fenfe, as not fupported with other strength than their own, to begin a war fo defperate and irreconcilable againft both England and Scotland at once, All other nations, from whom they could expect aid, were bufied to the utmost in their own moft neceffary concernments. It remains then that either fome authority, or fome great affiftance promifed them from England, was that whereon they chiefly trufted. And as it is not difficult to difcern from what inducing caufe this infurrection first arofe, so neither was it hard at firft to have applied fome effectual remedy, though not prevention. And yet prevention was not hopeless, when Strafford either believed not, or did not care to believe the feveral warnings and difcoveries thereof, which more than once by papifts and by friars themfelves were brought him; besides what was brought by depofition, divers months before that rebellion, to the archbishop of Canterbury and others of the king's council; as the declaration of "no addreffes" declares. But the affurance which they had in private, that no remedy fhould be ap

plied, was, it feems, one of the chief reafons that drew on their undertaking. And long it was before that af furance failed them; until the bishops and popish lords, who while they fat and voted, ftill oppofed the fending aid to Ireland, were expelled the house.

Seeing then the main incitement and authority for this rebellion must be needs derived from England, it will be next inquired, who was the prime author. The king here denounces a malediction temporal and eternal, not fimply to the author, but to the "malicious author" of this bloodshed: and by that limitation may exempt, not himfelf only, but perhaps the Irish rebels themfelves, who never will confefs to God or man that any blood was fhed by them malicioufly; but either in the catholic caufe, or common liberty, or fome other fpecious plea, which the confcience from grounds both good and evil ufually fuggefts to itfelf: thereby thinking to elude the direct force of that imputation, which lies upon them.

Yet he acknowledges, "it fell out as a most unhappy advantage of fome men's malice againft him:" but indeed of moft men's juft fufpicion, by finding in it no fuch wide departure or difagreement from the fcope of his former counfels and proceedings. And that he himself was the author of that rebellion, he denies both here and elsewhere, with many imprecations, but no folid evidence: What on the other fide against his denial hath ́been affirmed in three kingdoms, being here briefly set in view, the reader may fo judge as he finds caufe.

This is moft certain, that the king was ever friendly to the Irish papifts, and in his, third year, against the plain advice of parliament, like a kind of pope, fold them many indulgences for money; and upon all occafions advancing the popith party, and negotiating underhand by priefts, who were made his agents, engaged the Irish papifts in a war against the Scots proteftants. To that end he furnifhed them, and had them trained in arms, and kept them up, either openly or underhand, the only army in his three kingdoms, till the very burft of that rebellion. The fummer before that difinal October, a committee of most active papifts, all fince in the head of that rebellion, were in great favour at Whitehall; and

admitted

admitted to many private confultations with the king and queen. And to make it evident that no mean matters were the fubject of those conferences, at their request he gave away his peculiar right to more than five Irith counties, for the payment of an inconfiderable rent. They departed not home till within two months before the rebellion; and were either from the firft breaking out, or foon after, found to be the chief rebels themselves. But what fhould move the king befides his own inclination to popery, and the prevalence of his queen over him, to hold fuch frequent and clofe meetings with a committee of Irish papifts in his own house, while the parliament of England fat unadvised with, is declared by a Scots author, and of itfelf is clear enough. The parliament at the beginning of that fummer, having put Strafford to death, imprifoned others his chief favourites, and driven the reft to fly; the king, who had in vain. tempted both the Scots and the English army to come up againft the parliament and city, finding no compliance anfwerable to his hope from the proteftant armies, betakes himself laft to the Irifh; who had in readiness an army of eight thoufand papifts, which he had refused fo often to disband, and a committee here of the fame religion. With them, who thought the time now come, (which to bring about they had been many years before not wifhing only, but with much induftry complotting, to do fome eminent fervice for the church of Rome and their own perfidious natures, against a puritan parliament and the hated Englith their mafters) he agrees and concludes, that fo foon as both armies in England were difbanded, the Irifh fhould appear in arms, mafter all the proteftants, and help the king against his parliament. And we need not doubt, that thofe five counties were given to the Irifh for other reafon than the four northern counties had been a little before offered to the Scots. The king, in Auguft, takes a journey into Scotland; and overtaking the Scots army then on their way home, attempts the fecond time to pervert them, but without fuccefs. No fooner come into Scotland, but he lays a plot, fo faith the Scots author, to remove out of the way fuch of the nobility there as were moft likely to withstand,

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withstand, or not to further his defigns. This being difcovered, he fends from his fide one Dillon, a papist lord, foon after a chief rebel, with letters into Ireland; and dispatches a commiffion under the great feal of Scotland, at that time in his own cuftody, commanding that they fhould forthwith, as had been formerly agreed, cause all the Irith to rife in arms. Who no fooner had received fuch command, but obeyed, and began in maffacre; for they knew no other way to make fure the proteftants, which was commanded them exprefsly; and the way, it feems, left to their difcretion. He who hath a mind to read the commiffion itfelf, and found reafon added why it was not likely to be forged, befides the atteftation of so many Irish themselves, may have recourfe to a book, entitled, "The Myftery of Iniquity." Befides what the parliament itself in the declaration of "no more addreffes" hath affirmed, that they have one copy of that commiffion in their own hands, attefted by the oaths of some that were eye-witneffes, and had feen it under the feal; others of the principal rebels have confeffed, that this commiffion was the fummer before promised at London to the Irish commiffioners; to whom the king then discovered in plain words his great defire to be revenged on the parliament of England.

After the rebellion broke out, which in words only he detefted, but underhand favoured and promoted by all the offices of friendship, correfpondence, and what poffible aid he could afford them, the particulars whereof are too many to be inferted here; I fuppofe no underftanding man could longer doubt who was "author or inftigator" of that rebellion. If there be who yet doubt, I refer them efpecially to that declaration of July 1643, with that of "no addrefles" 1647, and another full volume of examinations to be fet out fpeedily concerning this matter. Againft all which teftimonies, likelihoods, evidences, and apparent actions of his own, being fo abundant, his bare denial, though with imprecation, can no way countervail; and least of all in his own cause.

As for the commiffion granted them, he thinks to evade that by retorting, that "fome in England fight

against

against him, and yet "pretend his authority." But, though a parliament by the known laws may affirm juftly to have the king's authority, infeparable from that court, though divided from his perfon, it is not credible that the Irish rebels, who fo much tendered his perfon above his authority, and were by him fo well received at Oxford, would be fo far from all humanity, as to flander him with a particular commiffion, figned and fent them by his own hand.

And of his good affection to the rebels this chapter itself is not without witnefs. He holds them lefs in fault than the Scots, as from whom they might allege to have fetched "their imitation;" making no difference between men that rofe negeñarily to defend themfelves, which no proteftant doctrine ever difallowed, againft them who threatened war, and thofe who began a voluntary and caufelets rebellion, with the maffacre of fo many thoufands, who never meant them harm.

He falls next to flathes, and a multitude of words, in all which is contained no more than what might be the plea of any guiltieft offender: He was not the author, because "he hath the greateft fhare of lofs and dishonour by what is committed." Who is there that offends God, or his neighbour, on whom the greateft fhare of lofs and difhonour lights not in the end? But in the act of doing evil, men ufe not to confider the event of thefe evil doings; or if they do, have then no power to curb the fway of their own wickednefs: fo that the greateft fhare of lofs and difhonour to happen upon themfelves, is no argument that they were not guilty. This other is as weak, that "a King's intereft, above that of any other man, lies chiefly in the common welfare of his fubjects;" therefore no king will do aught -againft the common welfare. For by this evation any tyrant might as well purge himself from the guilt of -railing troubles or commotions among the people, becaufe undoubtedly his chief intereft lies in their fitting ftill.

I faid but now, that even this chapter, if nothing elfe, might fuffice to difcover his good affection to the rebels, which in this that follows too notoriously ap

pears;