ple thro' the City towards Weftminfier. And the Deputy- Annor Will. Lieutenants, and Juftices of the Peace of the County of III. 1689. Middlefex, to provide for the Security of the City, and Liberties of Westminster. The Weavers feeing these Preparations, remained quiet in their Houses: Whereupon the Lords difcharged the Trained-Bands which had been posted in the Palace Yard, Westminster. However, upon the fecond The Woollen reading of the Bill for the enjoining the wearing the Woollen Bill rejected. Manufactures, their Lordships unanimously rejected the fame. The Conference on The House of Commons having paft the Bill, for attainting feveral Perfons in Rebellion against their Majefties, and fent it up to the Lords for their Concurrence, the Committee whom their Lordships appointed to examine the fame, prayed, That the Commons might be defired by a Conference to give a Lift to the House of Lords of the Perfons that gave Evidence to the Commons, against the feveral Perfons defigned in the Bill to be attainted; that the Lords might be fully fatisfied by Evidence, vivâ voce, (to attaint the feveral Perfons, as they fuppofed the Commons were ;) for that if the Lords should by themselves enquire of fuch Evidence, they might fail of hear ing all the Evidence the Houfe of Commons had bad. Lords having agreed to this Motion, a Conference was de a Bill to attaint fired and managed betwixt both Houses, at which the Com- feveral Perfons. mons gave a Lilt of the Witneffes that depofed at their Bar, against the Perfons mentioned in the Bill of Attainder. These Witneffes were William Watts, Matthew Gun, Bafil Purefoy, and William Dalton; whofe Evidence not fatisfying the Lords, the Bill lay neglected for fome Days; but the Com. mons having preffed their Lordships by two Meffages to give Expedition to it, the Houfe agreed with the Committee in leaving out Thomas Lord Howard, the Earl of Dover, the Lord Hunfdon, Sir Roger Strickland, Sir Edward Herbert, Colonel Hugh Southerland, and Sir William Jennings, because there did not appear fufficient Evidence against them. The Prorogation of the Parliament, which happened foon after, put a final Stop to this Bill. Motion occafi oned by the Bill Pursuant to the King's repeated Inftances in favour of the Dutch, the Commons put at laft the finishing Hand to a Bill for appropriating certain Duties for paying the StatesGeneral of the United Provinces the Charges for his Majesty's Expedition into this Kingdom; which being read in the House of Lords, it was moved, That feveral Members of the House, for Payment of and divers Servants of King Charles II. had Securities appro- the Dutch. priated out of feveral Duties which paft away from them by this Bill; and therefore they defired they might be heard by their Council. This Motion being received, and Coun 2 cil Anno & Will. cil heard, their Lordships gave their Confent to the Bill III. 1689. without any Amendment; but at the fame time they ordered their Speaker to prefent the following Addrefs to his Ma Addrefs there on. jefty. TH HE Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament affembled, upon their Concurrence with the House of Commons, in a Bill entitled, An A&t for appropriating certain Duties for paying the States General, &c. and for other Ufes, think it incumbent on them, in Honour and Justice, to lay before your Majefty, how feveral of their own Body found themselves aggrieved thereby, in relation to fome Debts owing to them on the Account of having ⚫ been Servants to King Charles II. and that their Claim to their Arrears on that Score was weaken'd and prejudiced by this Bill, which cuts them off from all Pretences whatfoever, except fuch as can be comprehended within the Sum of fixty thousand Pounds, which is very far fhort of an'fwering their juft Demands, and which they conceive to have been better and more amply provided for, in an A& paffed in the first Year of the Reign of the late King James, entitled, An A&t for granting to his Majefty an Impofition on all Tobacco and Sugar imported between the 24th Day of June, 1685, and the 24th of June, 1693. Yet being more con'cern'd for the Welfare of your Majefty's Affairs than their own particular Benefit, and being fenfible of the Importance it may be to your Majefty, as well as to the Good of Chriftendon in this Conjuncture, that the Debt owing to the States General of the United Provinces, upon account ' of affifting your Majefty at your coming into this Nation, for your Deliverance from Popery and Arbitrary Power, 'fhould be provided for to their Satisfaction; they have willingly defifted from giving any Obftruction to the paffing of the faid Bill, and have entirely fubmitted their long and faithful Services to their deceased Royal Mafter, to the • Conveniency of your Majesty's prefent Circumstances. Whereupon this Houfe hath thought fit to represent to your Majefty this most respectful and dutiful Acquiefcence of the Peers herein concerned in your Majefty's Juftice and Goodness, and to befeech your Majefty, that you would be pleased to take their Condition, and the Manner of their • present Refignation of it, into your gracious Confideration and Royal Protection, where in this Houfe doth promise themselves, that the particular Peers concerned will find ⚫ an entire Security. And whereas there is a Claufe in this Bill which pro⚫vides that 60000 7. therein mentioned for the late King "Charles's • Charles's Servants, should be applied to fuch only as were his Servants at the Time of his Deceafe; it is the humble Defire and Recommendation of this Houfe to your Majefty, that this Reftraint may bring no Prejudice to the juft and equitable Pretenfions of fuch of the Servants of his faid late Majefty, as are Members of this House, or of others in their Circumftances; but that your Majefty • will be graciously pleased to look upon them, as entitled ⚫ to an equal Share of your Favour and Confideration, which • others their Fellow Servants have generally had, or may pretend to by virtue of this or the former Act of Parlia⚫ment before mention'd.' Anno 1 Will. The Marquis of Hallifax, Speaker of the Lords, having waited on the King with the Address, his Majefty receiv'd the fame kindly; and as for those particular Peers that were concerned in the Bill, he faid, He was fenfible of their Be- King's Answer? haviour towards him upon this Occafion, and would not for get it. Two Days after, the King went to the House of Lords in Parliament adorder to pass this Bill, and put an End to the Seffion, which journed. was done by Adjournment to Sept the 20th, and afterwards to October the 19th. In this Interval his Majefty thought fit to fill up the va- Vacant Bishop cant Sees of Worcester, Chichester, and Bristol, which were ricks filled. bestowed, the first on Dr. Edward Stilling fleet, Dean of St. Paul's; the feeond on Dr. Simon Patrick, Dean of Peterborough; and the third on Dr. Gilbert Ironfide, Warden of Wadham College in Oxford. The King likewife finding his Affairs went ill in the Marquis of Hallifax's Hands, granted a Commiffion to Sir Robert Atkins, Chief Baron of the Court of Exchequer, to fupply the Place of Lord Chancellor, or Lord Keeper, and as fuch to be Speaker to the House of Lords. Things being thus prepared, on the Day appointed by the laft Adjournment, both Houses met, and the King made a Speech from the Throne, which fee in CHANDLER's Hiftory, Anno W. and M. 1689, Page 353. However, the Bufinefs of Oates, and fome other Matters, which had raised fuch dangerous Heats and Animofities between both Houses, being only fuperfeded by the repeated Adjournment of the Parliament, it was moved in Council to put a final End to them by a Prorogation: But the King thought fit to do nothing in fo nice an Affair without the Advice of both Houses. The Lords readily confented to his Majesty's Defire, and as for the Commons, though fome of their Members pretended, that fuch a Prorogation was irregular, after his Majefty had made a Speech, wherein he had propofed new Matters to their Con Anno a Will. Confideration, yet the contrary Opinion carried it by a great III. 1689. Majority; fo that his Majefty being come to the House of Lords on Monday the 21ft of October, Sir Robert Atkins, their new Speaker, acquainted both Houses, that it was his Majefty's Pleafure that the Parliament fhould be prorogued to the Wednesday following. The SECOND SESSION of the Convention S, therefore, to be dated from October the 23d, when it was open'd by his Majesty, only with a few Words by way of Reference to the Speech he had made four Days before. The Lord Griffin having been often requir'd by Letters and otherwise to attend the Houfe of Lords, and ftill refusing to appear, their Lordships defir'd the King by an Address to fummon him by his Royal Proclamation to render himself, (at fuch a Day as his Majesty fhould appoint) to their House, if then actually fitting, or to one of the Secretaries of State. His Lordship being accordingly fummon'd, furrendered himfelf to the Lord Nottingham, and on the 19th of October, having made his Appearance before the House of Lords, the Speaker told him, That he knew what he had to do Lord Griffin de- before his fitting in that Houfe; whereupon his Lordship declines taking the fired Time to confider of taking the Oaths, he not being Oaths. prepar'd for it: Which was readily granted. : The fame Day the Parliament was prorogu'd, a Packet was intercepted, which plainly difcover'd how little the Lord Griffin was inclin'd to own the prefent Government. This Difcovery happen'd in the following Manner. His Lordfhip having caufed a large Tin Bottle to be made with a double Bottom, order'd his Cook to go to a Pewterer's at an unfeasonable Hour of the Night, to get the falfe Bottom folder'd The Pewterer finding a Packet between the two Bottoms of the Bottle, began to fufpect fomething; and the Cook not giving him a fatisfactory Answer about its Contents, he made bold to open it. The Superfcription of several Letters directed to King James, the Duke of Berwick, &c. juftified the Pewterer's Sufpicion, who immediately feiz'd the He is taken into Lord Griffin's Cook, and carried him to one of the SecreCuftody. taries of State; but he being gone to Bed, and his Servants refufing to admit the Pewterer to their Mafter's Prefence, the Lord Griffin, who by this time began to apprehend what had befallen his Meffenger, took this Opportunity to make Anno 2 Wili. his Efcape. Befides the Letters, there was found an Account of fome private Refolutions of the Council, and an exact Lift of all the Land and Sea Forces of England; whereupon the Lord Griffin's House and Papers were fearched, his Lady committed to the Tower, feveral fufpected Persons arrefted, and the Cuftom-Houfe Officers order'd to ftop all unknown Perfons, that offer'd to cross the Seas without Paffes. Upon which his Lordship having abfconded himself fome few Days, and finding it difficult to go out of the Kingdom, futrender'd himself to the Earl of Shrewsbury, Secretary of State, who having examin'd him, committed him to the Custody of a Meffenger, from whence he was fent into the Tower. Thereupon the Commons appointed a Committee to enquire how the Lord Griffin came to know a Refolution, which the King had communicated to four Perfons only; and the Lords addrefs'd his Majefty to let him understand that the faid Lord being one of their Members, they were confequently his proper Judges. The King having left the Cog- Debate concern nizance of this Affair to the Peers, they began to examine ing him. the Papers intercepted in the Pewter-Bottle, which were the only Evidence against the Lord Griffin; and because some few Days before it had been refolv'd in that Houfe, that Colonel Algernon Sidney was unjustly condemn'd, nothing but Writings, found in his Closet, having been produced against him, the Earl of Rochester argued, from a Parity of Reason, in Favour of the Lord Griffin; who after feveral He is admitted warm Debates was fet at Liberty upon fufficient Bail. to Bail. While the Lord Griffin's Affair was depending, the Lord Petition of the Prefton, Viscount of Scotland, having prefented to the Houfe Lord Viscount of Lords a Patent from King James, dated from Verfailles Preston. the 21st of January, whereby he was created Baron of England, their Lordfhips voted him guilty of High Treason; but however, they thought fit to refer the Examination of that Matter to the Judges, their Affiftants. My Lord Prefton pretended, that the Patent being dated one Day before the meeting of the Convocation, which had voted the Throne vacant, it ought therefore to be valid; to which it was anfwer'd, That the Vacancy was fuppos'd to begin from the Moment King James left the Kingdom, whereby he abdicated the Government. The next Day the Judges brought He is fent to in the Lord Preston guilty of a high Mifdemeanour, for the Tower. which he was committed to the Tower. Not long after, his Lordship acknowledg'd, and begg'd Pardon for his Fault, by a Petition to the Lords, which was rejected upon his subscribing himself, Viscount Prefton, without expreffing of what Kingdom; the next Day he prefented another, wherein he ftiled himself Viscount of Scotland; and moreover, it 1689. being Ddd |