A REMONSTRANCE FOR THE REPVBLIQVE.  
showing who are the lying lips of the PRINCE.  
BY Many knowing, godly, well affencted, and substantial Citizens of LONDON.  
Presented to the high and honourable Houses of PARLIAMENT for a Reformation.  Jerem. 8.11. 
They have healed the hurt of the Daughter of my people slightly; saying, peace, peace, when there is no peace.  
LONDON, Printed for John Johnson. 1643.   

A REMONSTRANCE FOR THE REPVBLIQVE.  
ALthough your zeal hath been to promote the common good, not by devising for yourselves and families( as is that false aspersion) but revising the issues of former Parliaments, for the good and happiness of this Nation. And although your vigilancy and pains, is gratified with suspicion, in stead of love, and thanks, with emulation, for reward, &c. Be pleased to know, that nothing ever savoured of newness or reformation, but received great opposition, and gainsaying; as Civility, wholesome laws, Learning, Eloquence, Synod, Church-government; These should have been as secure from suffering, as in a Sanctuary, or City of refuge; yet have found little welcome in the world. Yea, in other Commonwealths it hath been held a capital crime, once to motion the making a new Law for the abrogating of an old, though the same were most pernicious and hurtful. To instance, that the best things of the worthiest men have been callumniated; C. Caesar reformed the calendar of the year, according to the course of the Sun, a work most beneficial and rare; yet he was libeled with novelty and arrogancy.  
The most learned Emperour in former times, and greatest politician, what thanks got he for cutting off the superfluities of the laws, and digesting them into some order and method? this, branded with the name of an Epitomist; that is, one that extinguisheth whole worthy Volumes, to bring his abridgements into request.  
And what is cast upon your worthy selves?( who are indeed as a Physitians Storehouse of preservatives, to cure the state of the body politic, of all grievances) that ye assume to yourselves the name of a Parliament, who are the few factious schismatics and traytors to His Majesty, and that trust the State reposes in you; but it is the fault of His Majesties incredulity, to doubt of those things that are evident. And we hope your piety towards God, in the government of His Church, and reformation of this State, will be the weapons that will defend you and us, and offend your enemies and opposers.  
And surely men( yea our fellow Citizens) should not judge your actions by your persons; and therefore not to trample upon your credit the public Faith. We know Catiline was no honest Citizen of Rome in seeking to bring it into combustion; nor Nero a good Prince, which did indeed set it on fire. Here are too too many malignant traitorous Catilines that would undo the civill government of this City. And we would His Majesty had none of this to answer for. He useth strange expressions in words to this City, Is there any thing now left, but the liberty to rebel, and to destroy one another? And in divers Proclamations and Declarations, His Majesty invites us to an insurrection, and rebellion one against another, and notwithstanding His Majesty refuseth to come to His faithful and greatest council, therefore His Majesty sendeth these Fire-bals( and even as Nero did to Rome) to destroy it and you, by dissuading us from obeying your Ordinances. And indeed so we should, if we were sure His Majesty had all laws locked up in his breast, as Pope Paul 2. bragged, he was as free from error by special privilege, as the dictators of Rome, were made by law inviolable.  
True it is, if we consider His Majesty, as he is vir, a men a virtute, He is more Excellent then us all; 1. In His Person, for that is Sacred, He is Gods anointed. 2. In His Office, He is Gods Vicegerent. But if we consider him as he is Homo, a man, ab Hume, from the earth, He is but mere man, and therefore he is subject to errors, misapprehensions, evil counsel, &c.  
Now if we shall reason as the Apostle did, with Heb. 7.11. and 8.7. for if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for a second, so say we that if the constitution, government, and laws of this kingdom, had been good and sufficient, there had been no need of this Parliament to make other, or to alter.  
Yet we hope His Majesty doth not invite us to rebellion, and to destroy one another with this City. But we say that Secretary Nicholas doth in the name of the King, and doth likewise make imprecations and vows, and Proclamations for him. And those subtle Foxes swaddling and ston, that lye sculting in their holes, when these shall endeavour to prove by their ceremonial doctrine the lawfulness of Prince Ruperts taking up of arms in this Nation, and may prosecute to plunder and persecute, with fire and sword these our free born brethren of England.  
So when Doctor james, the physician( or rather bold face'd Mountabanke, with his deceits) shall wright Prince Ruperts Declaration and Vindication( a thing himself never thought of, nor saw till in print;) and so impudently to abuse so Noble a Lord, as the Lord Wharton, in his speech as Guildhall, and divulging them in all countries for truth, as from himself.  
Who, and what are these, but as the wise King calls them, Prov. 17.7. The lying lips of their Prince? And whiles these fools lips enter into contention, for an accommodation, their mouths calleth for stroke, Pro. 18.6.  
And the contrivers of the Kings Answer to our humble Petition; What known falsities was therein, That the Army that gave His majesty battle, endeavoured all possible means malice could suggest, to have taken away his life, and to destroy his royal issue. O horrible! why then did not that loyal subject and Noble Lord, the Lord Saint John, when he had his Majesty in his power, when he had his horse by the reigns? And how careful are your Honours, and tender of the two maiden Ladies, both of their maintenance, and attendance.  
And the same lying lips or writer, where he calleth Our pretended Lord Maior, When he had our free election, and was sworn by one of the Barons of the Exchequer, which is his Majesties authority, and in all other things as other Lord Maio● are. And although that Mason and fountain, the one a lying Lawyer, the other one of Baals Priests, did compile a complaint in the name of our fellow Citizens, and so to wrong your honours, and us, and other readers, that might give credit to it; we disclaim any such thing from the well-affected in this City.  
These lying lips are the reprobate silver, Jer. 6.30. because the Lord hath rejected them; no matter though they pretend they have a faire superscription, or stamp; yet when God shall ●●●ngh them in the balance of his impartial judgement, and find them such counterfeit dross, he will cast them in the furnace of his fiery indignation. For these are the adversaries of Juda and Jerusalem, and as Sanballat lye and mock and rhyme at goodness, Neh. 4.  
Nor, right honourable, are these all the liars, but there is another sort that doth much wrong your judgements, and abuse your clemency, that when these devisers of lies as players who are poets;( these are most invective because in your great wisdoms and piety you have put down stage-plaies) when these we say have complotted or hatched any mischief or abuse to the State or this City. They cause the printer to compose two titlepages both of one matter but different in form by flowers about the one of them, or the like; And there they set printed at Oxford by Leonard Lichfield, &c. And in the other title page. that they publish, they set as the other for matter and reprinted at London, so that when your Honours call them to question for these abominable lies and perjuries they produce that other title sheet as if it were printed at Oxford by his Majesties licence or- command and so make his majesty the father of their lies; and the people the creditors of them, when we know that the wife King telleth us. A divine sentence is in the lips of a King, his mouth transgresseth not in judgement. Prov. 16.10. And when they have been imprisoned by your wisdoms, they have took upon them for others the publishing books of the like nature, knowing they can be but imprisoned, these ways are not of God therefore they cannot stand. And we know his majesty hath complained divers times of his wrongs by pamphlets of the like nature, and that your Honourable assembly should redress it, but we know his Majesty taketh no course for the same, and by reason of his absence it is with your honours a● of the sealed book. Esay. 29.11. They could not red in it because it was sealed, neither can you enact without his Majesties assent. Therefore we would his Majesty who is Charles the first of England, were as Charles the fifth of France Surnamed the wise; Or as Constantine the first christened Emperour that he would imitate him in strengthening the kingdom and to provide so well for the Church and state, and not so ardently thirst for the destruction and dissolution, both of the Protestants here, and in Ireland. For as the case now stands with your worthy selves, it is with you, as it was with a Senate of Rome, for as one complaineth there was one or other called for an interpreter. Theophil. 2. Tom. Council. expedit. Petrus Crab.  
So in his Majesties Messages, Declarations, or Answers there is such strange expressions that no marvel ye cannot interpret it to any good meaning. The Lord defend you, that ye be not worse then the builders of Noahs ark, for those Builders made that preservative for him and his family but were themselves drowned in the waters, but when you shall counsel well to the establishing of good laws in the Church and State to Gods glory and to the building of us up to the body of his dear son; and the happy flourishing of our free born English Nation. That you and we with our Laws, lives, liberties, Religion, shall be overwhelmed with tyranny, Superstition, and Ignorance, and then, to have as in the Marian persecution and Bishops domination, fire, Excommunication, and idolatry, &c.  
But it will be said, have not we a good King?( not he is too good to be our King as it is in Prince Ruperts, I should say Dr. Iames's Declaration) hath not he passed many acts of his Grace and favour, &c. It is granted; and it seems his Majesty much repenteth the good he hath done us: But as he is a God upon Earth, so should be imitate the great God of Heaven in delighting to do us good. But the judgement of Aristotle is well worthy the remembering. If Timotheus( saith he) had not been, we had not had much sweet music, but if Phrynis( Timotheus his teacher or instructor) had not been we had not had Timotheus; so may we say, the King indeed hath consented to do us so much good; but if you who are the kingdoms trust and greatest hopes( under God) for the continuance of this goodness to us had not counselled his Majesty to this we had not received this good from his Majesty.  
Therefore we pray for his majesty honourable and flourishing prosperity with yours, and say not to his most Excellent Majesty as the Gergafites did to Christ depart out of our Coasts.  
FINIS.