A Letter from a Christian Friend in the Country to another in the City.  
WE had lately sent down into the Country Declarations from the Protector (so called) and his Council, holding forth the grounds and reasons of their proceed (as they pretend) for securing the peace of the Common wealth, a thing very plausible to palliate their assumed Power over us and our Posterity.  
We may wonder in the first place, at their Nick-naming us a Commonwealth, we being as under the yoke of an Arbitrary power, no better than ear board Russian Slaves, they having by a seeming necessity absolutely overthrown the honour, interest, and Freedom of the people of England, by the abolishing of Parliaments; frustrating our Fundamental laws, Usurping a Law-making power, levying of money and Forces, Commanding War and Peace by Land and Sea, and making themselves the only determiners of guilt or innocence, of life or death, of law or liberty; as in the Case of the Caveleers Sequestration, to a Tenth and Fifteenth part of Rents and Goods, their Hellish rule of proceeding doth very much dissatisfy the Country, notwithstanding all their small Reasons urged; in order to a pretended securing the peace of the Common wealth (as they most miserably miscall us) upon occusion of the late Insurrection and Rebellion against themselves, the greatest Rebels, and most lawless Usurpers, that as yet any History, ancient or modern, ever made mention of; whereby they are become odious to us, notable and abominable all Europe over, and I wish it were as affectually convincing as accusing in their own Consciences; that they have crucified the Cause of God and their Country, bet wixt these two State Thiefs, Usurpation and Oppression.  
But our Lot (dear Sir) is fallen into that Age and part of the world, wherein the mystery of Iniquity is working spiritually, 2 Thess. 28, 9, 10 He is now revealed, whose coming is after the working of Satan, with all powers and signs and lying wonders, and withal deceivableness of unrightenesse, etc. If we do but take a serious view of Antichrist, either as he is the whole body, or as he is this or that part, we shall find him in no other garb than the form of a glorious Saint, not only deceiving the blind and ignorant world, but as far as is possible even many of the very Elect themselves, that which is the fore runner, or rather occasion, as I may so say, (respecting the concurrences of Gods permissive providence) is mens not receiving the love of the Truth (not the profession) for how many have professed fairly upon a civil and Gospel account. How many like Jehu have marched furiously, that are now fallen off, and have with Demas embraced the world? How many have declared for Liberty, against Tyranny, who are now become as great Usurpers and oppressors as any? How many seeming self deniers, are become incomparable self-seekers? How have they in a Saintlike simplicity seemed to slight the glory and greatness of the world, who cannot now be contented with less than Principalities and Powers: Nay even with the very Attributes of God himself? what specious pretenders were they for the kingdom of Christ, who are now become the Imprsoners and Persecutors of the Professors of it, and divers other true and faithful Patriots, I mean, Mr. Feak, Mr. Rogers, Lt. Gen. Ludlow, M. G. Harrison, M. G. Overton, Col. Rich, Mr. Cary, Quart. M. Gen. Courtney, Coll. Alured, etc. and others, who by their means have been laid, or laid themselves aside, as Colonel Okey, Coll. Sanders, Major Wiggam, etc. Do they not in their Declaration declare, one a designer, the other designed; indeed the Moderation of the words was designed is remarkable, it being disproportionable to the policy they steer by, so tenderly to touch their reputations, whose ruins they reach at, their malice being sufficient to have proved them such offenders, if they could; but the service and sufferings of these men, are Arguments invincible of their innocence, until by a fair and legal Trial, we be convinced of the contrary; in the interim, words will not make the world believe what was not, neither will their reputation by such means be so soon blasted; especially, when they confess in their Declaration, they only think them offenders.  
But suppose those Englishmen had designed some endeavours for the making good their engagements, and calling off the yoke of Tyranny, suppose they had invoked or invited the Army (backslidden from the Cause of God and their Country) to return to their obedience, for the confirmation of our just Fundamental laws and Liberties, for the right placing of the Sovereign power of the People, in a lawful Representative, for relieving the oppressed and imprisoned, who groan for deliverance, from the bondage of these most merciless Taskmasters, had they not hereby approved themselves brave and public spirited Patriots; will not such one day be received, with a well done, good and faithful servants, where their and our, Oppressors shall stand with pale-faces, and accusing Consciences, before that God, who will render to every man according to his works, who will appear as witness against the swearer and forswearer, who will make Inquisition for blood; who will call the Apostates and Hypocrites to account for all their perjuries and oppressions, hath not this Ell shaddy the most high God ever signally appeared against the proud and tyrannical Nebuchadnezars of the world, with all their projectors and Parasites.  
In the interim, dear Friend, we may behold as in a glass our present deplorable condition under a Government (as they call it) where the Will and interest of a State Junto is both law and evidence. At this rate, who may not be a designer and offender, and accordingly declared and punished; who would have believed about eight or ten years since, we should have seen such lawless and imparralleled Impious proceed? who would have imagined that such public spirits as the persons prementioned, should so causelessly be kept prisoners, by their fellow-servants, who pretended themselves promoters, but have proved perverters of piety and public liberty, persons of the same spirit with Strafford, Canterbury, etc. Nay, far worse, who would have imagined, that our Assertors of Law and Liberty would without Baise or Mainprize, not only incarserate the Bodies of our aforesaid Friends, but also deny some of them the comfort of their nearest and dearest relations; a sad requital for their several faithful services and sufferings, they may in policy pretend what they please; but are not these things most abominable in the eyes of a righteous God, who although he hath an absolute sovereignty over the world, punisheth none before they have sinned, contrary to the laws of the Land, and the very practice of Heathens, who allowed Paul (whom they accounted more dangerous and seditious, than our Friends enemies can say they are) the enjoyment of his friends, 24 Act. 23. And he commanded a Centurion to keep Paul and to let him have liberty, and that he should forbid none of his acquaintance (much less wise and children) to minister or come unto him; yea, further saith Festus, the 25. chap. 27. v. For it seemeth to me unreasonable to send a prisoner, and not withal to signify the crime laid against him. If we must after this manner exchange our just fundamental laws for their fundamental reason, I believe when it is too late we may take up the Lamentation of the Prophet Isai. 59 14, 15. And judgement is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: For truth is fallen in the street; etc. yea, truth faileth, and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey. But let us comfort ourselves in this, that our God will cause the pride of the arrogant to cease, lay low the haughtiness of the terrible, and cut off all that watch for iniquity, that make a man an offender for a word, and lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate, and turn aside the just for a thing of nought but say our friends adversaries. These men are seditious, fastious fellows, Railers, and Levellers, etc. so are all who will not sell and sacrifice themselves to work wickedness: Let a man be of what principle or opinion he please, he is too high or too low, if he cannot play the parasite; if he be sincere, he is a Sectary, if a lover of liberty upon a public account, he is a Leveller. But was not the (Protector (so called) and many honest men more in the Army and Nation such, when the Army refused to disband at New Market: I cannot I profess, but admire that the Protector (so called) his Council or Officers can without blushing make the least mention of levelling, when they themselves are the most monstrous levellers, that ever yet bore the name of Englishmen: Have they not leveled Church and State, King and Parliament, Proprietics, Laws, Liberties, nay, what not? Do they not level and lay low whatsoever stands in the way of their Arbitary interest, have they not made the most honourable Army in Europe, a crew of mercenary Cut-throsts, or Janizarics, have they not under pretence of preserving the public Peace, cantonized the Countries, appointing so many Major Generals (as they call them) to play Empson and Dudleys' part, to run in the same path of Opprestion, until perhaps they arrive at their reward. Now for those men to call Levelling a crime, brings them under the condemnation of Paul, Rom. 2. 1. & 3. verses: Therefore thou art inexcusable o man, whosover thou art that judgest, for wherein thou judgest another thou condemnest thyself, for thou that judgest dost the same things: And thinkest thou o man that judgest them which do such things, and dost the same; that thou shalt escape the judgement of God. Thou hypocrite, first cast the Beam out of thine own eye, and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the Moat out of thy Brother's eye. Mat. 7. 5. But the Protectors (so called) great Plea for all his nefarious practices is Necessity, but I suppose this Cloak is worn so threadbare upon all procedures, that even those who are but half-sighted may see through it, how virtual their necessity hath been since the purging of the old Parliament: let us a little consider, First for dissolving of that Parliament they derive their necessity, as they say, from the Parliaments designing to perpetuate themselves, whereas the truth is, they dissolved them, because they were passing a Bill for a New Representative; as some Members our Countrymen do to this day affirm. The Necessity for dissolving the Little Parliament was, because they would have regulated the Law, or framed a new Model, more proportionable to the genius of a Commonwealth, and consistent with the interest of Christ, and done many other good things, for which the Officers of the Army had both Petitioned the former Parliament, and railed against them all the Nation over, because they neglected the doing of them, how truly have they hereby manifested their necessity to be but hypocrisy: Nay is it not plain from the consequence, that these changes were only designed to ushel in a greater; did they not by the reproaches they cast upon the old Parliament, and by their electing men of contrary principles in the other, endeavour to insinuate a necessity for discarding that form of Government.  
But suppose we should grant a necessity for dissolving the Parliament, yet what necessity is there upon the Nations account to perpetuate an Arbitrary, unlimited power in a Protector, to enslave three Nations by a standing Army of above 60000. men and an ignoble Militia of 10000 Horse in England; doth not true necessity arise from the people's safety; but how is that made good, when they have no other security for their Lives, Liberties and Properties, than the will of single Person, flanked and fortified with a mercenary Army, and who either is or may be a Tyrant.  
Again, what other necessity have they to keep down all Parliaments, but to keep up their boundless ambition, what necessity was there when the Nation was almost exhausted by Taxations, to spend 18 or 19 hundred thousand pounds in a fruitless expedition to Hispaniola, which they are again attempting notwithstanding the Arm of the Lord hath of late been apparently made bare against them in that business? Or what necessity is there to imprison and continue imprisoned without trial (contrary to the Laws of God and this Nation their own voluntary Oaths and engagements) the faithful servants of God and their Country? May we not hence plainly perceive they make their necessity as boundless as their Ambition, as destractive as their desire of Domination? What necessity is there to multiply unparaleld Taxes and Impositions, save in pursuance of their private plots and projects, to pick our pockets and purses, that they may the more easily oppress us? we are constrained say some, by oppression and poverty to bind the people unto peace and union, but is not poverty too poor a plant for such fair fruit, as love and union to grow upon; doth not war rather than peace spring from want, which like an armed man is the Herald or Forerunner of Innovations, surely they that will keep a people peaceable must not make them poor by oppression; we are apt with others wounds to salve our own; plenty stuns men in secure reposes, but oppression makes a wise man mad: Catiline would never have contrived his Countries ruin, but to prevent his own; oh that there were no such Catelines in our new Court, or rather that we had neither Court nor Catiline, nor any of that spirit, for which the last Parliament so called was pretendedly dissolved, viz. For that they had an aching 100th against the godly party.  
The Cries and complaints of the oppressed in this Nation I perceive grown great according to that of the wiseman, Prov. 29. 2. When the righteous are in Authority the people rejoice, but when the wicked beareth rule the people mourn, men of all ranks and capacities (Army Officers and Courtiers excepted) make this addition to their prayers. How long Lord, holy and true will it be ere thou aveng, etc. Amongst other causes of this complaint, to speak in the words of Solomon 30. Prov. 22. it is because of a servant when he reigntch.  
Your trading I hear in the City is become and likely to continue so dead, that men who have not good stocks are ready to shut up shop. But your Condition in the City I believe is made better than ours in the Country, in respect both of Landlord and Tenent, the one can scarcely get any rent because the other cannot raise it, Farmers profess they must give up their Farms, because the profit will not ballast the charge of tillage and Taxes: It was the vain brag of Cajus Marius that he sat in the ruins of Carthage, and is it not the disgrace of our grandees that they are grown great by the ruins of their Country, he was a Heathen and died mad, they are either Christians or hypocrites, and may be more miserable. How doth that heathen Roman Cato shame and outstrip our pretended Christian Patriots? he was as Anxious for the safety and freedom of Rome as they are solicitous for themselves; he was as real a refuge for afflicted virtue as they are oppressors of it. They engaged their lives and souls to get gain, but he laid down his life for liberty, choosing rather to be his Country's Sacrifice then Caesar's Slave.  
Dear Friend, were all our Courtiers either Christians or Cato's, they would rather Conquer for their Country then for themselves; but oh, for what he died to preserve, they live to spoil, and prey upon the blood of a whole War; the price of Widows prayers, and Orphant's tears proclaims their game to be their godliness; oh, these are sad fruits of our fourteen years fight! poverty and oppression are very uncomfortable fruits of Reformation, but dominion impiously got, must be impiously kept; one sin must maintain another; yet let us with comfort, consider, that Jehovah is greater than the king of fierce countenance and understanding dark sentences, although he may for a time (which we hope is near an end) by policy cause craft to prosper in his hand, and think to change Times and Laws, yet his Dominion shall be taken away, etc. Did not our Lord in mercy cast the late King's yoke from off our necks. After that darkness was dispelled did not the light of liberty dawn, until tempestuous clouds arising from the filthy fogs of falsehood and treachery, impostumated in the Brains and Bosoms of some few instruments, in the work of Liberty? we were environed with a more Egyptian darkness then ever, hath not their treachery and our ingratitude urged God to repent of his favours? he sent us light, but we loving darkness rather than light, shut our eyes against the Sunbeams that we might with more modesty sin in secret; He began to restore liberty, but we rather chose servitude: why should we then complain, that we are enslaved in unlimited Monarchy, whilst by a shameful kind of villainage, we bow our servile necks under the basest yoke, and pay our Homage to the most matchlosse monsters of mankind, that ever any noble Nation truckled under? Yet dear friend, fear not, freedom will yet fall upon its sect, in the interim pious and public spirits may be foiled, but not defeated; great and good designs are carried on by orderly additions, but sudden elevations soon decline like aboutive Embryos; believe it our Lord will blast their base enslaving designs, and nipped their Mushroom honours in the bud, Hypocrisy may a little longer act vices part in virtue's apparel, but shall at last fall head long from its greatest height: A tyrant's Conscience knows no night of rest, blood in despite of Poppy breaks his sleep, the fears and fury of his fantacy fix death's unerring symptoms in his face; despair not, a Tyrant's death is the people Antidote, in his own good time, our God will cure the Courtier's itch and avarice, let greatness held by force fear a fall; height and preciptance stand tottering, and know no Mediums in their Declinations. Whosoever observes the Orthodoxal maxims of our days need not marvel, that our Marshalists have ravished Astrea and pulled justice down; but Christ Jesus will come quickly, and bring his reward with him; the Saints shall sit and see his righteous judgements: Nay, Mr. Feak, Mr. Rogers, etc. shall judge their Oppressors and Persecutors; but I doubt our State professors, who have set themselves over us, do no more believe this truth than Pilate when he was judging Christ did believe he was Condemning his judge, or the Jews when they were whipping, persecuting and imprisoning the Apostles, did think to see them sit on twelve Throns', judging the twelve Tribes of Israel: do you not know saith Paul, That the Saints shall judge the world: 1 Cor. 6. 2, 3. Oh that our careless Courtiers and Army men (who with wings imped with the plumes of Oppression and Perjury, soar over us like Eagles of a true Airy, whilst indeed they are Birds of prey not of Paradise) would be now of the same mind, as they will be when they shall see the heavens pass away with a noise, and the Elements melt with fervent heat etc. But when all is said, The wicked will do wickedly, but the wise shall understand and the prudent shall keep silence: Dear Friend farewell, and let us hold fast till our Lord come, Amen.  
Yours, co-expectant in the deliverance of Zion, Ro. Bl. Novemb. 24. 1655.