A Speech spoken by Sir Simonds D'Ewes, (so near as it could be collected together) touching the privilege of Parliament in causes criminal and civil. At a Committee of the House of Commons in the Guild-Hall in London on the sixt day of January 1641.  
SIR;  
I Perceive that the main doubt upon the late questioning of some of the Members of the House of Commons as wither or no there be any privilege of Parliament in matter of 
* Vide Rot. ●ar. de An ●1. & 32. ●. 6. n. 27.  Treason or other capital offences, in which I cannot deny but that there is a common saying (and yet not more common than erroneous) That privilege of Parliament doth not extend to Felony and Treason; For there is a double privilege of Parliament, the one final, and the other temporary. Our final privilege extends to all civil causes and suits in Law, and that continues during the Parliament. The other privilege that is temporary extends to all capital causes, as Treason or the like, in which the persons and goods of the members of both Houses are freed from seizure till the said Houses be first satisfied of their crimes, and so do deliver their bodies up to be committed to safe custody; and the reason of it is evident because their crime must either be committed, within the same houses or without them; as for example if any member of the House of Commons be accused for treasonable actions or words committed or spoken within the walls of the same house then there is a necessity that not only the matter of fact, but the matter of crime also, must be adjudged by that house; for it can appear to no other Court what was there done in respect that it were the highest treachery and breach of privilege for any Member of that House, to witness or reveal what was there done or spoken without the leave and direction of the same House. And if it be for treason committed out of the House, yet still the House must be fi●st satisfied with the matter of fact; before they part with their members, for else all privilege of Parliament must of necessity be destroyed, and by the same reason that they accuse one of the said Members they may accuse forty, or fifty, upon imaginary and false Treasons, and so commit them to custody and deprive the house of their Members; whereas on the contra●y side the House of Commons hath ever been so just as to part with such Members when they have been discovered. As in the Parliament de Anno 27. of Queen Elizabeth. Doctor Parry being a Member of the House of Commons, had no Articles of Treason preferred against him till the House had discomposed him from being one of their members, and that the chief heads and branches of his said Treason had been made known unto the House partly by his own confession, and partly by other proofs; and yet if ever Treason required a speedy trial that did, for it concerned no less than the murder and assassination of the Queen herself, [See the origininall journal book of the House of Commons, de Anno 27. Regin. Eliz. pag. 85 & pag. 103.] And so likewise in Master Copleys' case in the Parliament in the last year of Queen Mary, who spoke very dangerous words against the said Queen; yet it was tried in the House of Commons as apeeares in the original journal book of the same House, and the said Queen at their entreaty did afterwards remit it. But for the case of these Gentlemen that are now in question it doth not yet appear to us whether it be for a crime done within the walls of the House of Commons or without, so as for aught we know the whole judicature thereof must first pass with us, for the LORDS did make an Act Declaratory in the Parliament, Roll de An. 4. E. 3. Num. 6. that the judgements of peers only did properly belong to them, so as I hold it somewhat clear, that these Gentlemen cannot be condemned but by such a judgement only as wherein the Lords may join with the Commons, and that must be by Bill; and the same privilege is to the members of the Lord's House, for we must not think that if a private person should come there and accuse any of them of Treason that they will at all part with that member, or commit him to safe custody till the matter of fact be first proved before them.  
'tis true indeed that upon the impeachment of the House of Commons for Treason or other capital crimes, they do Immediately commit their members to safe custody, because it is first admitted that we accuse not till we are satisfied in the matter of fact, and secondly, it is also supposed in Law that such an aggregate body as the House of Commons is will do nothing, ex livore, vel ex odio, seeing they are entrusted by the whole Commons of England with their estates and fortunes. So as upon the whole matter, I conclude that the proceedings against these five Gentlemen have been hitherto illegal and against the privilege of Parliament.  
FINIS.