THE CITY LITANY.  
To the CITY:  

Was't not enough you raised a War  
Against your gracious King?  
And so did the whole Kingdom mar,  
Who suffer for your sin.   

Or that God's Worship you pulled down,  
And Error did advance,  
That so King NOL might wear the Crown,  
And HARRY MARTIN dance.   

Were not these Crimes sufficiently  
Able to damn you all?  
But like base Grooms, submissively  
You 'fore your Slaves must fall.   

May you be therefore all horn-mad,  
And in the open places,  
May Snap-sack Boys your pied Hens tread,  
And that before your faces.   — Nemo me impuné lacessit. 
Printed in the Year, 1648.   

THE City Litany.  

WE have been blinded (God he knows)  
And led away with specious shows,  
Taking those for our Friends, were Foes  
Therefore, to our infinite woes.   

From being Schismatically inclined  
'Gainst Bishops, officials, or any of that kind,  
From walking to Westminster to put the Sophies in mind,  
Libera nos.   

From driving the King away from White-ball,  
From sending our servants for Justice to call,  
As when great Strafford we caused to fall,  
Libera nos.   

From persecuting our Sovereign with Fire and Sword,  
From murdering Bishops, and such Acts abhorred,  
From Grand Committees, and their Counsel board,  
Libera nos.   

From fight a Battle at Edge-hill again,  
Where many Reverend Cuckolds were slain,  
From hunting after the King in vain,  
Libera nos.   

From being beaten and stripped to the skin,  
The case that we once in Cor●wall were in,  
Which we confess was a scourge for our sin,  
Libera nos.   

From pulling down Crossus, and pictures of Men,  
From tearing Books of Common-Prayer again,  
From entering a Con-ven-ticle, and then—  
Libera nos.   

From being noosed by the Westminsterians, 
The Lyurnall, and the witty walking Occurrences.   
From giving credit to our wise Pamph●eterians,  
From being this day Independents, & the next Presbyterians,  
Libera nos.   

From being Reform out of our Lands,  
And being wounded by 
* Informers.  invisible hands,  
From that Religion on blood which stands,  
Libera nos.   

From eating our God, and killing our KING,  
The damnable Ditty the Jesuits sing,  
Though Peter and del believe no such thing,  
Libera nos.   

From Rainsborough, and his Levelling 
* The late Adjutators, five whereof were taken away, and five hundred left behind.  Crew,  
That hate the old way, yet can't find a new,  
From Hewsons' Boys that our bags would view,  
Libera nos.   

From Parliament-men that will drink on the score,  
From Mildmay and his painted Whore,  
From begging our own at the Parliament door,  
Libera nos.   

From being 
* As the Parl. did the Citizens at the first, using them only as men use Post-Horses, tire them out, and then leave them to recover and now they have made the most of those Traitorous fools, they leave them to the mercy of a merciless Army.  drawn in, and then left in the lurch,  
When we are robbed of our freedom, our K. & our Church,  
From the Devil i'th' Temple, and God in the Porch,  
Libera nos.   

From a particoloured Synod, that for four shillings aday,  
Will as their Paymasters bids them say,  
And their Mother the Church of England betray,  
Libera nos.   

From an heard of Hinch-boyes, or an Independent Priest,  
Such as Symson, Peter, del, and the rest,  
Knoles, Saltmarsh, Goodwin, and the boys most blest,  
Libera nos.   

From the Council of War that intent to scour us,  
From the hugy Army that so over-pow'r us,  
From the Men at Westminster that intent to devour us,  
Libera nos.   

From John of London, that 
* John Lilburn, who was in his minority an Apprentice to a Clothworker in Reading, and now by his Factious undertake is become as famous as Jack Cade.  Sheare-man of Reading,  
Who for his famed Pamphlets is worthy the heading,  
From his gainsaying, and Overton's bidding,  
Libera nos.   

But seeing we are like to lose all we have,  
And nothing but our sins to save,  
'Tis therefore time that now we crave,  
Libera nos.   

The Citizens having found their Error, and how grossly they have been abused by this pretended Parliament, return to their first principles: (And say)  

THat it may please thee, we once more  
May have the Trading we had before,  
And to that end our King restore,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, to Assent,  
Our everlasting Parliament  
May with forepast 
* Which would they b● were a great happiness, since then w● were in some hope to recover our selve● but for aught I see, despairing of their own safety they are resolved to bury themselves the ruin of this Nation  mischiefs be content,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, to disperse  
Them all about the Universe,  
With their fellow Jews for to converse,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, in any wise  
To rid us of the damned Excise,  
Free Quarter, or any such Dutch device,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, back to call  
Our Epistles, and our Gospels all,  
And give our Government Episcopal,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, by thy power Divine,  
To confound those Traitors, who had a design  
The English Monarchy to undermine,  
Quesumus te.   

And for that purpose, to send to Hell  
The two vile Traitors, Peter and del,  
With Faux and Catesby for to dwell,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, to seat thine own  
Anointed once more on His Throne,  
And confound base Rebels every one,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, to Illuminate  
The people's eyes to see their state,  
And to right themselves  it be 
* ●or should ●y delay, & 〈◊〉 take hold the present ●●portunitie, 〈◊〉 suffer the ●●nding for●●● to settle ●●mselves in constant 〈◊〉 their Ty●●ts instate themselves in 〈◊〉 infringea●● power, ●y may for ●r bid fare●● all free●●e & hap●esse, and ●ever ex●●t to be ●●den and ●pised as ●●es and ●ailes.  too late,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, it may be seen  
How greatly we have deluded been,  
What wrongs hath been offered to King and Queen,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, to ring out the knell,  
And to silence the Parliaments passing-bell,  
For 'tis time they went now to Gehenna to dwell,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, to make known the silly  
Undertake of (the State-Quack) William Lily,  
With the tricks of Syballs, and his Shoe-lane Filly,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, K. Noll, and his 
* Ireton.  Son,  
May into so many Errors run,  
That their heads may fall off when our troubles are done,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, to give Hammon an heart  
To play a Loyal Subjects part,  
To guard his King from those would him subvert,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, to lay  to view  
The Serpentine wind of the Traitorous Crew,  
Who have merely deluded us with a fair show,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, to stop the Coin  
Which from the poor they do purloin,  
From passing over the Salt brine,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, their Ship to crack,  
When as they blow on Neptune's back,  
And let themselves behold their own wrack,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, those that land  
On the Dutch shore, or Virginia's strand,  
May be robbed and slain by some Salvadge hand,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, to send with them  
Our Essexian Parliament, Club-men,  
With our Citie-Sectaries, and Tub-men,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, send also away  
Cornelius Burges, who t'other day  
Gave thanks in Paul's that his wife scap't a 
* At a Christling, where ●he women ●●trove so far ●or the precedency, that in ●he end they ●ent to cuffs, cornelius his ●ife being the ●hiofe stickler, was sorely ●eaten.  fray,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, to restore  
Those noble Gentlemen, that heretofore  
Have fought (for their King) to the knees in gore,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, the King may return  
While the Trump doth sound, and the Faggots burn,  
While true Subjects rejoice and false Rebels do mourn,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, his Queen and Son  
May behold him glorious, as once they have done,  
Before these cursed Times begun;  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, those that say,  
They will not have our Charles to sway,  
Like Dighton may rot, piece meal away,  
Quesumus te.   

That it may please thee, for the time that we  
Have tasted dire adversity,  
We may have true Tranquillity,  
Quesumus.   

That it may please thee, give us hearts to see  
How much we have smarted, and how worthily,  
For disobeying our King and thee,  
Quesumus.   

That for the future, we yielding God his own,  
And giving Caesar what in his Word is shown,  
Wars, dire Calamities, may no more be known,  
So shall we sing this Song each one,  
Benedicamus Domine.   
FINIS.