August 20. A Remonstrance and DECLARATION Of the Lords and Commons Assembled in Parliament. Manifesting that all such Persons as shall upon any pretence whatsoever assist His Majesty in this war, with Horse, arms, Plate or Money, shall be held and accounted Traytors to His Majesty, the Parliament, and the kingdom. Likewise two Orders of the Lords and Commons assembled in Parliament, for the ordering of the Souldiers under the earl of Essex. Also a Letter sent to a Member of the House of Commons, concerning divers passages which hath lately happened in the County of Hamp-shire  

Ordered by the Lords and Commons, that these particulars be forthwith printed and plblished.  


jo. brown, clear. Parl.  
Hen, Elsing, clear. D. come.     
Printed for George Tomlingson. 1642.   

A Remonstrance, or Declaration of the Lords and Commons Assembled in PARLIAMENT.  
WHereas the King, seduced by wicked counsel, doth make war against His Parliament and people; And for the promoting of that War, divers Forces both of Horse and foot have been, and are levied and raised by several persons, and His Majesties good Subjects are most cruelly robbed, spoyled, and slain.  
To the end that no man may be misled through Ignorance, the Lords and Commons in Parliament declare, That all such persons as shall, upon any pretence whatsoever, assist his Majesty in this war, with Horse, Arms, Plate or Money, are Traytors to his Majesty, the Parliament and the kingdom, and shall be brought to condign punishment for so high an offence.  

Ordered by the Lords and Commons in Parliament, that this Declaration be forthwith printed and published.  
Hen Elsinge, ●ler. Parl. D. come.    

Orders of the Lords and Commons assembled in Parliament, For the Regulating of those Souldiers that are gone, and are to go, under the Command of his Excellency, Robert earl of Essex, Lord general for this Expedition.  

IT is this day Ordered by the Lords and Commons in Parliament assembled, that the several Lord Lieutenants appointed by Parliament, their Deputy Lieutenants, the Iustices of the Peace, and other His Majesties Officers within the kingdom of England and Dominion of Wales, shall take special care to prevent and suppress all riots, Tumults, breaking into or Robbing houses, breaking into Churches, taking away the Goods of any person, or taking of victuals, without due payment for the same, and to take and apprehended all such person or persons as shall do or commit any such Out-rages as aforesaid, and to proceed against them according to Law. And it is further Ordered, that the Commanders and several Officers, shall give their best assistance for the apprehension and punishment of all such persons which shall be found guilty of the misdemeanours aforesaid.   

Die jovis. August 18. 1642.  
WHereas there have been divers Complaints made unto us of many disorders committed by the Souldiers in their marching, and in such places wherein they have been quartered or Billitted, which disorders( as is informed) have been partly occasioned by the neglect of their Officers to go along with them and conduct them: It is therefore Ordered by the Lords and Commons Assembled in Parliament, that the Lord general be desired to give Command to all his Officers, that they take care to attend according to the Duty of their several places, that the Souldiers thereby may be hereafter kept from straggling up and down the Countries: And to that end to lay his Command upon the Officers of each Company, both in the Marching, Quartering, and billeting, to be in Person amongst the Souldiers themselves, to prevent any disorders whatsoever, and punish such as shall offend.  

Ordered by the Lords and Commons assembled in Parliament, that these Orders be forthwith printed and published.  
John brown Cleric. Parliamentorum.     

The copy of a Letter FROM portsmouth.  
SIR,  
I Sent you a letter by the foot-post, which I hope came to your hands on last saturday, wherein was contained all or most part of Portsmouth news, and now I herein sand you all or most of what hath happened since thereabouts. The colonel having caused the bridge called Portbridg 3 miles from Portsmouth entering into the Isle of Portsea,( in which Portsmouth stands) to be made secure with a frame of timber work very strong, to hinder all from pasing that way but whom he pleased, and having built a little fort or buswark of earth a little within that Bridge, and planted four pieces of Ordnance there to defend the Bridge, and having placed 10 or 12 horsemen to watch there day and night, did on Wednesday last carry back to Portsmouth 3 of his Ordnance, and the fourth also about a mile, but the wheels broken, so thhat he was fain to leave that piece in the high way, all which he did for fear the Troopers which came from London, would by force or some stratagem get them away, and then make use of them to offend the colonel: yet when the pieces were gone, he still kept horsemen day and night at the Fort and the timber work upon the Bridge, to secure it 〈…〉, and all Wednesday, Thursday and Friday 〈…〉 of cattle, sheep, and swine in the fruitful Isle of P●… to be brought to Portsmouth 〈◇〉, whether they were 〈◇〉 or loan, to bee all killed and salted up, and caused every house in that Isle to be preached and all manner of provisions to be taken away from the owners, as corn▪ meal, flower, beef, bacon, bread, bu●ter, cheese, egg●s, and all their Poultry and ducks not leaving half loaves of bread, nor pieces of bread, nor pieces of cheese, and driven away all cattle whatsoever, to the great terror of all the people, especially women and children, forcing poor and rich to come away, and beg about for bread to keep them alive, and he made such men as he could find, help to drive their own cattle and carry their own provisions into Portsmouth, and then kept many of them there by force; but the Kings ships as soon as they heard of these cruel intentions, landed some men at the East side of the iceland, and two pieces of Ordnance, and thereby kept off the horsemen, whilst the ship-men g●t ever many women and children into Hayling iceland, and about 100 cattle, and about 200 sheep, they got ropes over cattels heads, and made them swim over after boats: Upon Friday last in the afternoon, I went purposely to Portsdown, to see and hear what I could, at which place all this was credibly  told me, and I then went as near the Fort as I durst, which was dangerous to be fetched in by the horsemen which guarded it, in regard all the troopers were then in Havant Town & in Southwick, 4 miles distant where they lay, and came not abroad all that afternoon, by reason of the extraordinary rain which happened that afternoon: if the weather, had been faire, as I was  told in the presence of the counsel of 〈◇〉 in Southwick, the Troopers had attempted to have taken the Fort that afternoon, and then I had seen it; but in the night time, that night some Troopers went down to the Fort, and were troubled to get down the timber work, it being so strong, and whilst they were getting it down the horsemen road all away from the Fort, and the Troopers after them, but could take but one of the men, and two horses, so as now the Troopers have the 〈◇〉 and have 〈◇〉 there four pieces of Ordnance, and blocked up that passage, so as the colonel and his company are all within the walls of Portsmouth as it were in a pound, not daring to encounter the Troopers; Although they last Saturday went almost to the town Gates to try if any dared to come forth to them, the colonel sent our two piece of Ordnance charged with musket bullets, and two gunners to guard the piece with the broken wheel, that the Troopers might not get it away: But on Saturday in the afternoon, a valiant Trooper alone adventured to go near them, and cunningly got on the backside of the men, who could not suddenly turn about both or one of the pieces, so as the Trooper shot of● his Carbine at one of them with a brace of bullets, and spoiled his running away, for he fell down dead. I believe that this day they will attempt to take a Castle near Portsmouth called Southsea Castle, half a mile from Portsmouth, and make no question to take it, and then to make use of it to shoot into Portsmouth. Mr. Lukener, Mr. Bellingham, Christopher bide, and others of the County of suffolk, I believe wish they were at Chichester again, every night some of Portsmouth Souldiers and gunners get away down the walls and come to the Troopers, utterly drinking the Colonell's cause and usage of the inhabitants of Portsea iceland, by taking away their cattle and provisions, &c. And yet scorn to be thought cowards, for they offer to go in the forefront, & in most danger with the Troopers in any service whatsoever. Since Chichester men came to Portsmouth there hath been harder usage of people by the colonel and his company then before, & some think by their or some of their devices, a young woman in Portsmouth being great with child, who got leave to come last Friday to come to Portsmouth, and whom I met by the way, reports; that one of Chichester men, but not Mr. Recorder Lukener, nor Mr. Bellingham, said to her that he would not have her go, because if the Town should bee so put to it; as to want victuals, then that in her belly would eat as sweet as a young sucking big, by which we may gues that theey are inclinable to show as much mercy as the rebels in Ireland, but I hope that God will prevent all their wicked purposes. The Troopers I believe resolve to banish all fear of danger, and with in fewer dayes, though with loss of men, to adventure to scale the Walls, and take the Town, and prevent the doing of any more mischief by them in the Town to the poor Inhabitants, or any others there is no great strength in the Town of men, and but 80 or 90 horses, there being about 240 horses, Troopers, and 500 foot by the Parliaments directions; but the Town is extraordinarily well provided with powder, and shot, and diet, by reason of the fetching in so much from the Inhabitants, there was a horse and a man taken on Saturday last about five of the clock at Havant going to Portsmouth with a svit of clothes for one Mr. Bellingham in Portsmouth, but not Bellingham of Chichester, yet his kinsman, in which clothes between the outside and inside were sowed up 10. Letters; and about that time our Troopess took a man, and an horse, and several letters going out of Portsmouth from the Lord Wentworth there, & divers other Letters are taken, so as the bottom of their plotsare I hope discovered: This morning one of the Isle of Wight was with me, and  told me: All their people there stand right for the King and Parliament, except the Captains of their Castles, and some of the Gentry; one Sir Robert Dalington there would have sent over much corn to Portsmouth, but waprevented by M. Bunkley a Iustice of Peace there who stands very right for the King & Parliament; ther is in the iceland much fear of the Captains of the Castles, whether they will prove right or not; they are such men as colonel Goring is, the people are in great fear of them, and wish that the earl of pembroke were come, and that they might muster, &c.  

Ordered that this Letter shall be forthwith printed and published.  
H. Elsigne, clear. Parl. D come.   
FINIS.