To his Highness the Lord Protector, and the Parliament of England, &c.  
Mortal Gods,  
THe Eternal Being, without which nothing can be, hath made of one blood all nations of men Act. 17. 26. Men are the off spring of God, v. 29. and made in his own image, Gen. 1. 23. and therefore God said unto our fathers soon after the flood, Whoso sheddeth man● blood, by man shall his blood b● sh●d, Gen. 9 6. Yea, (except in some special cases) blood must be shed for the blood of a thief: for he should have lived to make full restitution, Exo. 22. 3. And therefore you ought to be more tender of a man's life, then of matter of estate: and all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to y●u, ye should do even so to them, Mat. 7. 1. And I have so much charity towards you, to hope that you are not void of all humanity, but have some natural aff●ction; so that if any of your children or near relations through poverty should fall to steal, and happen to be hanged for the value of 13 d. ob (or pressed to death for not ●peaking) it would touch you to the quick. And think you that other men's children and relations are not as dear and precious to them, as yours are to you? And this 〈◊〉 say, not that I allow of theft, nor do I know any of my relations guilty thereof; but only show unto you the unnatur●lness of the act and fact of putting men to death for simple Theft; that so you may be thoroughly sensible and sorrowful, and you hearts may be made better, Eccl. 7. ●. You know it's a common thing to arraign men for stealing Horses; a man is hanged ordinarily for a Mare: for your Law values not a man more than a horse: Is not this a brutish estimation, O ye Heads of Great Britain?  
You have sat now above these 40 days twice told, and passed some Acts for transporting Corn and cattle out of the Land, and against Charles Stuart's, &c. but (as I humbly conceive) have left undone matters of greater concernment▪ amongst which, the not curbing this overmuch justice in hanging men for Stealing, is one; the not supp●●ssing the Pressing of men to death for not a 〈…〉 ing against them●elves, is ano●her▪ And wh●t th●●k 〈◊〉 of tak●ng awa● man's life upon 〈◊〉 single testimo●●▪ (especi●lly be●●g for such small m●tte●s c●n you j●stfie the s●me before the great Law giver, who is a 〈…〉 e and to destroy? If you cannot, then be as ●ilig●●t to make a thorough Reformation as I have been 〈…〉 e Solli●i●●●ion.  
W●● ye 〈◊〉 also, that it is a general grievance and open di●grace to the Nation, that the public debts are yet unpaid, although you are deeply engaged by Art. 39 of this present Government? Ye know the Laws are executed with great seve●i●y against pickpockets, petty thieves, and silent malefactors, who are pressed to death for hol●ing their tongues, and are taken pro confesso: But judge in yourselves, Wh●t●●r are the greater sinners, those who steal for mere ●●●●ssity to supply their present wants, or such as defraud the old soldier of his Pay, & the labourer of his hire, and borrow money and not pay again but engage f●ith and promise upon it, give debentures, Bills and Bonds for it, and establish Securities to satisfy it, and afterwards by force or fraud take it, or suffer it to be taken away again; and yet again bind themselves by a solemn O●th, as in the presence of God, that the Securities given shall remain firm and good, and not be made void or invalid upon any pretence whatsoever▪ and afterwards neither regard debts nor debtors, but suffer many of them to perish, while justice is bought and sold, and cometh by a drop at a time, and doth not run down as it ought like a mighty stream: And by swearing and lying, and killing and stealing, and committing adultery, men break out, and blood toucheth blood. And for these things doth the land ●ourn, Hos. 4. ●. 3.  
In the land of Israel there was s●●●i●l provision made for the poor, the fatherless and the w●dow 〈…〉 y stranger was ●ot to be forgotten in that land: ●o 〈…〉 Theft was much more to be punished ●●●n now, 〈…〉 Thieves than were not driven to su●● straits and c●l●mities as many now have been and a●e ●●ill here in England, (under such rude Forms of Government) by ca●ualties, as impotency of body, loss of estates, bad deb●s, like the public faith and arrears of soldiers, so much undervalued, as if the High & Mighty States of England were broken. And God then gave free liberty amongst the Jews, for a man to eat his fill of his neighbour's field, vineyard, or oliveyard: but by the rustical law of England, men arrest men as trespassers for coming upon their ground, and obtain Judgements against them for Costs, although there is no damage. Such p●actices ●s these disq●iet the Land, create combust●o●s, bring confusions, and procure work for a sort of Villain 〈◊〉 Catchpoles, and employ a company of lascivio●●▪ Lubbers, I mean the lying Lawyers, whose h●ads are full of mischief, and their pens dipped in gall and wormwood▪ their tongues are as sharp arrows, their teeth as swords and spears, and their throats open 〈…〉 ●●vour and swallow up the poor and needy fro● 〈…〉: These are like a sweeping 〈…〉 leaving them a shilling to be a shield of de●ence▪ 〈…〉 in their pocket, to encou●●●r with 〈…〉 Hunger: and so the poor men's noses are h●ld ●o ●●e Grindstone, and their faces ground away, as may be seen by their countenances: and the poors' poverty comes to be their absolute destruction, and swarms of beggars and thieves engendered in the Common wealth by Pecunia 〈…〉 s▪ and the poor man's Suit cannot go on currently w●●●out money, though his Cause be never so just, but 〈…〉 e a Lawyer may easily be got to speak twenty 〈◊〉 ●●●●●st him for 10 s. and cloak his lies with pret●●●●s of clients informations. These things may e●sily be reformed by you, if ye will, O ye men of high degree.  
And because you are the Patrons of England's Statutes, and have power to redress the Grievances which by your Law cannot be redressed without you; I have presented you with these lines printed in red letters, because, though Tophet is p●epared of old for Kings, because of their crying crimes; yet Parliaments sins are sins red as scarlet, of a deep and double dye; and they must be accountable to him by whom their Legislative power is limited. Repent therefore, O Parliament of England, and be not as your predecessors the former Parliaments. Parliaments have been Pillars of Popery, Panders to the Whore of Babylon, abominable Idolators, propagators of Adultery and Covetousness in the clergy: Parliaments have been Murderers of Saints and sinners; Parliaments have done and undone their self-denying Ordinances, been puff●d up with pride, tyrannous towards their inferiors, slavish to their superiors, submi●ting to force against freedom; using public fraud and private fl●ttery, to the destruction of the people. Therefore whatsoever heavy bu●dens they bound, and grievous to be born, you must unbind, losing the b●nds of wickedness, undoing the heavy burdens, and let●ing the oppressed go free, and breaking every yoke, so much as the putting forth of the finger, or speaking vanity.