The English-Man's Happiness under a PROTESTANT-PRINCE; And the present Condition of the Kingdom Considered.  O Fortunati bona si sua norint. 
AMongst so many Pamphlets which have been vented of late, some I am very confident there have been; of good use if read, which have been thrown by, because they were not crowded into the narrow compass of a Penny Sheet, as if a greater Charge with an Hours serious Reading, were too much to inform men's Judgements, and Reform their Principles, and though it be very hard to keep within those bounds, I shall endeavour, if not altogether within, to come as near them as is possible, the end of this Paper is to convince some Malcontents who are uneasy under the Government, and who reproach the King with want of Affection for his People; only because he has some for his Brother; That we are most happy in many great things which the King has done for us, and that he hath done them freely and consequently for the love and good will he bore us; in doing of which I shall as much as in me lies, avoid Notions & Arguments, which seldom or never reconcile contrary opinions, and insist chief on matter of Fact, which being of late time, and in every Man's memory, admits no Contradiction. And here I shall not run back into the late times, and step between them and the Act of Oblivion to increase the Obligation; which I do but just name, though it may well be placed in the very Head of all Subsequent Benefits; and perhaps had never more cause to be spoken of then now, when most Men seem to have forgot that there has been such a thing; I do hearty wish, the Principles of those Times were as truly forgotten on our side, as the practices that resulted from them are forgiven of his, 'tis from the Restauration, the New Epocha of this Kingdom, from whence we may much more truly date Annum Restauratae Libertatis, that I shall begin.  
After the Act of Oblivion, the people were very sensible what vast Demands and Pretensions some Eighteen Years of such Killing and Slaying had given the King upon all Tenors in Capite and by Knight's Service, what Sums would be coming to him by the Court of Wards and Liveries, how he had a kind of Command over every person, and an immediate and very considerable Interest in every Estate by the Wardship of Minors, Marriages, Primerseisins, and Fines, etc. so that unless this were remitted too, the Act of Oblivion, was in effect no pardon to them that hold in Capite since with their Lives it gave not their Estates, but his Majesty prevents their fears, and by Act of Parliament, 12 Car. Ch. 24. deprives himself of the Richest Jewel of the Crown, a Prerogative so truly Royal, and of so vast Advantage, that in England the people, in the Judgement of the Learned in the Law, were never truly free till then, so strict an Hand of Power could the King keep over us by those Tenors, that not the least Disrespect or Disobedience was to be feared, and to the vast Advantages of this part of Prerogative, must all the great Actions of our former Kings be imputed, when the Gentry were bound to serve the King, and the People the Gentry.  
And because good and wholesome Laws are the best Security and greatest Happiness of a Nation, I desire the Reader to observe, that no one Useful Bill has been tendered to his Majesty, which he has Refused, till within this Year, and that but once, of which hereafter, if innumerable and continued Affronts, Calumnies, and Injuries (which every private Man of Honour would resent and punish) compelled him for his own Honour and that of all Kings, to make War with a Neighbour; no sooner was he informed that the same was Prejudicial to his People, but he shuffles up a peace upon terms very hard for himself, and sacrifices his own just Resentments to the gainful desires of a part of his people, and that in a time when (such was the state of his Enemies) he might by standing off a while have made his own Conditions: But when a War has been entered into for Injuries offered to his People, no Consideration, no not Plague nor Fire, which in the compass of Twenty Months impoverished the Land by the loss of so much Money and People, could persuade him to end the War, till ample offers of Satisfaction were made, and they for whose sakes he began that War, either weary of it, or believing themselves sufficiently revenged, desired it; see the Articles of Peace with Holland, in 1674, and those in Aug. 1667. If once upon Advice he granted a Toleration of Religion, did he not so soon as he was satisfied by his great Council of the pernicious and Dangerous Consequences of such a Liberty, recall it; when after that the Nation began to apprehend itself not sufficiently secured by the Laws then in Esse against Popery, and that in their general opinion a Law was judged necessary to qualify and distinguish all Persons in Office and place of Trust, did not his Majesty Consent to all such Laws as they offered him, and particularly to that great and memorable Act, for preventing of Dangers which may happen from Popish Recusants, 25 Car. Ch. 2d, thereby disabling a Papist from holding any Office or Employment tho' but of a Noble a Year, and that without reservation of any one person on his side, tho' he had then several by him, of whose Truth and sincere Affection to his Person and Government, he had unquestionable proofs; Was not this one thing alone sufficient to belie those Villains, who let fall Words as tho' the King himself leaned a little that way, for it is not to be imagined by a Man of Sense, that a Prince who had power to refuse a Law, would ever pass one to the utter defeating all designs and measures of a party whose Interests he secretly favoured and meant to Advance.  
When afterwards that party, restless in contriving Mischief, contrived or rather continued and carried on the most Hellish Design that was ever inspired from thence into the very worst Order of Men, and that Design was happily discovered, how did his Majesty behave himself in that matter, he Summons his Parliament, and till that can come, proceeds by all imaginable means to search into the Plot, and after the Plotters, to seize their Persons and Papers, then lays the whole before the Parliament, assuring them, That he would be always ready to aid them in the Inquiry into the Plot, in any thing where his concurrence was necessary, and accordingly, as they desired, by several Proclamations assisting them, by some commanding the Absence of Papists, by others enquiring after Blood, with most bountiful promises of pardon and recompense; Searching all Counties, securing the Ports to prevent any flight from, and looking into the very Prisons to bring all Malefactors to Justice. For such as laid hold of mercy and came in upon his Proclamation, he not only pardoned them, but that no Encouragement might be wanting to bring in others for the further Discovery of the very depths of that Design, provided largely for them, assigning them Guards for their persons, till they themselves thought they were safe enough without them; making them at all times large Allowances, which if they did not prove equally great, yet were the least more than sufficient, and that at a time when the emptiness of his Coffers might well have excused him, and when his own faithful Servants went unpaid; As many as the Law Condemned were Executed, his Prerogative never interposing betwixt the Attainder and the Execution; such as were imprisoned, and after long restraint they might reasonably expect a Trial, and to that purpose applied themselves in all humble manner to him, received no other satisfaction, than the assurance of having Justice in Parliament; nay, he was even deaf to the prayer of the Man he loved, (who desired but to recover his Health in the Country with a strong Guard,) tho' he were well satisfied by the Testimony of learned Physicians, that the continuing in the Tower would in all likelihood be his Death, and this because his people had accused him.  
A War against the French was judged necessary by the Parliament, and to that end Money, was given by a Poll, by which Bill, 30 Car. (an undeniable proof of the sincerity of the King's Intention therein) All Trade and Commerce is forbidden for Three Years, thereby depriving himself of a very considerable part of his Revenue, whilst the subtle Hollander, for whose sake that War was intended, and consequently that Trade forbidden, forbidden but for one Year, whereby the French Commodities did not (as was intended by as they should) lie on their Hands, but still vented by the means of our Neighbours, from whom we received them with the advantage of paying dearer for them, and the King of England received those great disadvantages which by the Intent of the Act were meant for the French.  
An Army they desired to have, and had one to serve against the French, when see on a sudden that very Army must be disbanded,  it could be well Shipped in order to perform the Service it was raised for, this Army raised, and but just mustered in the Spring, is by act of Parliament in July following Disbanded, in which the King complied with them, and as far as the Money given to Disband them, would go, they were Disbanded, with which he acquaints the Parliament at the opening of the Sessions on the 6th. of March, 1679, and told them, He waited but for further Supplies from them to Disband the rest; a very great kindness so soon to return them to their Wives and children, lest by too long a Discontinuance they should have been either unable or unwilling to return to their first lawful Vocation, a greater compliance than this cannot be found, will they have an Army, he raises one to please them; will they have none, he Disbands it to gratify them.  
There is yet one thing untouched, which evil-minded Men have always in their mouths, How have we been squeezed (say they) by that long Parliament, more Money has been given by them, than by all the Parliaments since the Conqueror, and yet the King wants more: Men sufficiently ill natured (not to say worse) to grudge at their own Gifts, and reproach the King with what they indeed are glad of, that of so vast sums, so little remains unspent; and surely the King has most reason to be angry, now he sees how hard it is to have more, that so many sure Friends to, and supporters of Empire, so many English pounds have been no better Husbanded against an evil day; and yet to do him justice in this point, I must say, that whatever has been given him, if absolutely he was sole Master of, and might spend it as he listed, and what has been raised for any special use or purpose has been constantly applied to the use it was designed and appropriated to; now as for any sums before the 17th. of April, 1667, there will be no question, for to that time we may rest satisfied, that the Earl of Bridgewater and several others, whereof some were of the House of Commons, by Virtue of a Commission to them directed under the great Seal, (which the King upon intimation from his Parliament, that several great sums raised for special uses, had been misemployed, had promise to grant) did then according to the directions of the Commission inquire into all sums raised till then, and what they found perverted to wrong uses, by the power they had by that Commission, did oblige all Treasurers, Paymasters, Receivers, and other Agents to restore; and this was done, says that Commission, that the King's people might be satisfied, that what sums had been given to the supporting that great War with France and Holland, which had lasted some years, and was ended but in August after, were expended as they had been designed, the principal sums then under consideration of the Commissioners, were the sum of 1250000 l. 17. Car. Ch. 1st. and that great and famous Royal aid being of 2477500 l. since which time then of April, 1667. they that will take the pains to examine the several Money-Bills, will find how the Money was designed, and how it has been spent is in every Man's remembrance; but yet to instance in some of latest date: for instance, the 584978 l. given to build Thirty Ships of War, has been laid out accordingly, and more with it: the Poll-Bill was to enable him to raise an Army against the French, and it did so, notwithstanding that it fell exceedingly short of what was expected by the King, and Intended by the Parliament: there is indeed one instance of Money misapplyed, if I may give that name to the laying out of Money (tho' to the best purpose imaginable) intended for a contrary use: for I find the sum of 619380 l. given 30 Car. to disband the Army, was employed in keeping part on foot, but it was upon so extraordinary occasion, and to so good a purpose, that the Commons themselves remained satisfied with the Account his Majesty vouchsafed to give them of the important accidents that occasioned the continuing of it, and the good service that accrued by it; so that upon the whole, he has been a most faithful Treasurer of such sums as were given to any special Use, and for what at any time was given otherwise, it were the height of Insolence and Ill Manners to inquire into the spending of it.  
When the growing danger of Popery required some further Laws than those then in force against it, and it was thought as Dangerous for a Papist to Sat in either House, as to hold Offices or Employs; how willingly did he pass a Bill to disable all of that Religion upon the very account of their Faith, to the Disinheriting of many great Peers, for sure, till then, a Seat in Parliament was their Birthright and Inheritance, and this he did that nothing might be wanting on his part to secure his People, that he meant for to leave them in as good a Condition as to their Religion and Liberties (and in a much better indeed) than he found them; but for further satisfaction we will turn to his own Speech to the Parliament, 6 March. 1679. I have done, says he, many great things already, as the Exclusion of the Popish Lords from their Seats in Parliament, the Execution of several Men, both upon the score of the Plot, and the Murder of Sir Edmund-Bury-Godfrey; and it is apparent that I have not been idle in prosecuting the Discovery of both as much further as has been possible for me in so short a time; and above all, I have commanded my Brother to absent himself from me, because I would not leave the most Malicious Men room to say, I had not removed all causes which could be pretended to influence me towards Popish Councils: From these Words of the King, we may very reasonably infer, (what is true in the judgement of as great a Man as this, and I believe any other Nation can show) that he who for our sakes could part with such a Brother, has now to be sure no Favourite but his people; and truly 'tis to be believed, that he who in so many Years has denied nothing to his People, (that one thing excepted, so often desired, and as often denied the Duke's Exclusion) were he really as well satisfied that he might as rightfully (for no Man questions but he may legally) and in good Conscience put him by the Crown for ever, as he may remove him from his person for a time, without all doubt he would do it, if then so many Denials to departed from his Resolution of Preserving the Descent be, as sure they are, the effect of his Judgement; It is not perhaps a matter of such Wonder that a Conscientious Prince should refuse to do what he really believes would be a wrongful Act, how profitable and expedient soever it might be. Nay further, it is perhaps the very worst Condition of a people to have a Prince, who in acting takes not his measures by what is Right and Honest, but Profitable and Convenient, yet notwithstanding all this, the Effects of Judgement are mistaken, and I fear by some wilfully misconstrued for Inclination, and the King in some men's judgements believes not the Plot, an opinion (however much more tolerable than that which concludes him Disaffected to Religion) severe and impertinent, for without all doubt a Prince in all Respects so merciful, would never have given way to the Execution of so many Men, if he had not believed them guilty; they no doubt guests better who conclude he believes not his Brother in the Plot; now that execution of so many Men, does as clearly convince me that the King believes the Plot, as the design in that Plot against his person does assure me that he is not a Man for their turn, but a firm adherer to the most excellent Church of England and its pure and primitive Doctrine. Hitherto I have run over some few of the King's Actions, I have but Two Words as to his Inclinations, which as they much contribute to our Happiness, can no wise be omitted: 'Tis allowed by all Men that Two Vices there are above all others dangerous in a Prince, Cruelty and Covetousness, for they alone strike at all, Men hold most dear, Lives and Fortunes, and if this be so, the contrary of those Vices, Mercy and Liberality may justly be reckoned the Cardinal Virtues of Majesty, which are no where more remarkably united then in the person of our King, so that he may well say, Whose Ox, or whose Ass has he taken, and it shall be restored; May, their Ox's and Ass', their Estates, Liberties, and Lives, when the Law has adjudged them his, how often has he remitted: how unreasonable then are some persons, who to prevent a possibility (and that a remote one too) of Troubles hereafter, would brake the present peace and happiness of the Nation, under so excellent a Ruler.  
FINIS.   

London, Printed for T. B. in Green's-Rents, near Fleet-Bridge, 1681.