A Plea for PREROGATIVE: OR, Give Caesar his due. Being the Wheel of Fortune turned round: Or, The World turned topsie-turvie. Wherein is described the true Subjects loyalty to maintain his Majesty's Prerogative and privileges of Parliament.  
By Thorny Ail: alias, john Tayler.  

Malice, Disloyalty, War and Sects aspire,  
Religion, Peace, Obedience are i'th' mire.   
MALICE. PEACE.RELIGION.OBEDIENCE.LOVE.WAR.SECTS.DISLOYATY.  

Religion, Peace, Obedience, Love, no doubt,  
Though they be l●t, the Wheel will turn about.   
London, printed for T. Banks. 1642.   

A Plea for PREROGATIVE: OR, Give Caesar his due.  
THE Devil's horn-mad, Religion here should flourish,  
Or England constantly the Truth should nourish:  
And He (contriving with the Romish Sect)  
They soon a hellish stratagem project,  
That with a strange blast of a Powder-blow,  
Into the Air the Parliament to throw,  
And with a whirlwind terror to appall  
God's Word professed, the Court, the State and all  
Records, Laws, Statutes, Grants, Decrees and Charters,  
Men, women, children (piecemeal torn in quarters;)  
Magnific Buildings, pompous Monuments;  
Illustrious guildings, sumptuous ornaments;  
King, Prince, Peers, Commons, with one puff should caper,  
And (in a moment) turned to air and vapour.  
The Devil and Rome are all stark mad at this,  
That they, their great desired aim should miss,  
Devised more mischiefs from th'infernal pit,  
To make us this deliverance to forget,  
And be ingrateful to that power above,  
Who this great danger from us did remove,  
For Satan knows, that base ingratitude  
Doth all, and every damned vice include;  
And therefore 'tis the total of transgressions  
To be unthankful for Gods gracious blessings:  
There's nothing else draws down th'Almighties hate,  
It hath dismembered wretched England's state;  
Pride, avarice, lust, hath broke our happy peace,  
And daily do our sins, and shames increase.  
He's a wise man (that without danger) can  
Serve God his King, and be an honest man;  
For (in these days) to speak truth and do right,  
Is paid with scandal, danger and despite.  
Thus vice is entered, virtue is thrust out,  
And Fortune's Wheel is madly turned about;  
Peace, Love, Religion and Obedience  
Are virtues of exceeding excellence;  
Yet as the Picture in the Wheel doth show,  
They are turned downwards in the spokes below,  
Whilst Malice, War, Sects and Disloyalty  
Are in the upper spokes, exalted high,  
And true Obedience never did refuse,  
To give to God and Caesar both their deuce;  
Though she be humble, free from arrogance,  
Yet her humility doth her advance:  
And though she be trod down, I make no doubt  
But Fortune's Wheel will shortly turn about:  
Disloyalty doth proudly over-top her,  
And makes a glistning guilded show of copper,  
Full of corruption, baseness and deceit,  
Deluding and most feigned counterfeit.  
Some do complain of Fortune and blind chance,  
And do their hands and eyes towards heaven advance;  
And cry, O God (which mad'st the glorious Sun,)  
What hath poor England against Religion done,  
That all her goodness topsie turvie lies,  
Derided, jeered at, wronged by contraries.  
Religion was the sacred bond and tye,  
The rule and square how men should live and die;  
The ground and sole foundation of the Law;  
The good man's sword and shield; the bad man's awe;  
'twas one entire in Majesty high stated,  
Now broken, fractured, rend and dislocated;  
Divided into Sects, in pieces shattered;  
And (like a Beggar's cloak) all patched and tottered.  
And what hath England done to work all this?  
Nothing at all, but doing all amiss;  
Esteeming earths corrupted fa●ing dross,  
And slighting heaven, and true Religion's loss.  
These are the causes, these for vengeance calls;  
This makes high climbers to have loest falls,  
When men seek Honour with ambitious guile,  
My little wit doth at their follies smile;  
That though they seem most glorious, great and stout;  
Yet Fortune's Wheel will quickly turn about.  
The potent Pope and Conclave of that Sect,  
Did (and do) daily stratagems project.  
The mongrel Papist, the Arminian,  
The consubstantial misled Lutheran;  
The Anabaptists, Brownists, Arians,  
schismatical Disciplinarians.  
These, and more Sects of Separatists beside,  
Do from Religion to opinion slide;  
And as they from each other disagree,  
In various fashions God is served we see.  
Th'eternal Word's high Majesty in such  
(That man can never honour it too much,)  
Is turned unto the lowest spoke o'th' Wheel,  
And too too few the overthrow doth feel.  
The King, who is the Lords anointed known,  
Whose Crowns and Kingdoms (under God's 〈◊〉  
I will not say't t'oppress, but true and just  
To guide all under his great charge and trust  
Though he (next Christ) immediate power hath;  
And his resisters merit heavens hot 〈◊〉  
Yet this is not remembered, very few  
Will render Caesar what is Caesar's due;  
Which is obedience, loyalty and love  
(Because his power is from the power above;)  
But Church and State, are by the rabble rout  
Abused; thus Fortune's wheel is turned about.  
Religion (true) that aught to be the ●ye  
From God to man, that man should 〈…〉  
Is made a stable, a very stalking horse  
Wherein each beast doth 〈◊〉 a beastly course.  
Religion now each ignoramus whirls  
Into the fancies of fools, boys and girls,  
Who dare talk of Mysterious 〈◊〉  
(Better than Bishops can) in 〈…〉  
They can find out daniel's prophetic meaning,  
And from the Bible they have so much gleaning,  
That they dare venture with their quirks and quips  
To expound Saint john and his Apocalypses.  
Thus they think we, and we think they are out;  
But Fortune's wheel I hope will turn about.  
Sects up are mounted, and their impudence  
And ignorance hath driven Religion hence;  
As once the Papists, in Queen Mary's reign,  
The Protestant profession did disdain;  
When swords and halters, and tormenting flames,  
Exiles, imprisonments, and all th'extremes  
That hell or Roman 〈…〉,  
The Gospel to suppress by tyrannize;  
And now the Almighty hath this Kingdom graced,  
That Popish superstition is defaced:  
A crew of new Sects are sprung up of late,  
As bad as Papists were to Church and State;  
Whose barren knowledge seems all things to know,  
Who would all rule, and learning overthrow;  
Whose wisdoms still are in the wane, most dull;  
Whose ignorance is always at the full;  
Whose good works are invisible, so good  
Not to be seen, felt, heard, or understood:  
Of these mad Sects, there's too too many a widgeon,  
That doth despise the Protestant Religion;  
And worse then Papists they deride and flout,  
But Fortune's wheel, I guess, will turn about.  
Peace (the same day that Christ rose from the grave)  
Was the first gift He his Disciples gave;  
And that his Peace should still with them remain 
joh. 20.19 26.   
He (eight days after, gave them Peace again;  
That Peace which passeth understanding all; 
Phil. 4.7.   
Is racketed and bandied like a ball:  
War, strife, contention, mischief and debate  
Opposeth Peace, and seeks to ruinate  
Fair England, by the means of men accursed,  
Who wrong her most whom she hath bred and nursed.  
And now against her Peace th' have madly fought,  
But Fortune's wheel I know will turn about.  
Love is the Livery, cognizance, and Crest  
Christ gives his servants, who are ever blest, 
joh, 13.35   
Th'immortal God, left glorious heaven above,  
And was made mortal (O transcendent Dove!)  
Nay more, he for his enemies did die,  
And rise, that they might live eternally.  
He called them brethren (so their lo●es to win) 
Heb. 2. 1●.   
And made himself like them, in all but sin,  
He calls each true believing soul his brother  
And loved us so, cause we should love each other  
But all this love which he bestowed so free,  
Is back repaid with Malice, as we see:  
The Wheel doth show us how the case doth stand,  
Malice and hatred hath the upper hand;  
Our words and works do show we love him not;  
Our love to one another is forgot;  
We say and do the most part to this end  
(He that so loved us) how we may offend;  
And stead of loving one another, as  
Our blessed Saviour's last Commandment was,  
With malice we would cut each others throats;  
Which shows we do not wear Christ's livery coats:  
And as Himself hath long ago foretold,  
Th'increase of sin makes many men's love cold.  
Thus man his malice against man doth spout,  
God grant the Wheel may quickly turn about.  
Nor shall my Muse in this task further run;  
I wish the King and Parliament had done;  
That as his Majesty is known to be,  
God's chief vicegerent in his sovereignty;  
So He with them may All as one combine  
To settle things, both Human and Divine;  
That we may be held free from all offence,  
And gain him hither, and not drive him hence  
With Libels, tumults, and a wretched rout,  
For which I'll hope the Wheel will turn about.  
FINIS.