Basiliká the works of King Charles the martyr : with a collection of declarations, treaties, and other papers concerning the differences betwixt His said Majesty and his two houses of Parliament : with the history of his life : as also of his tryal and martyrdome.

The King's Commissioners Answer. 17. February.

[ CXXX] IF your Lordships had punctually, or in any degree, satisfied us in what we desired to know concerning the Powers of the Commissioners of both Kingdoms, and the other particulars mentioned by us, we had not troubled your Lordships with so many Questions, to most of which we could receive no other Answers, than the referring us to the Propositions themselves upon which we grounded our Questions. And we con∣ceive that your Lordships Propositions upon the Militia, upon which you still insist, have in truth appeared upon Debate to be most unreasonable in many particulars: As that the Persons to be entrusted with the Militia should be nominated only by the two Houses, and that His Majesty, who is equally to be secured that the Peace should not be broken, should name none; that the Power given to the Commissioners shall be framed and altered as occasion serves by the two Houses only, and that His Majesty, who is so much concerned therein, shall have no Negative Voice as to such Powers, but is abso∣lutely excluded; and that the Time should be unlimited, so that His Majesty for Him∣self and His Posterity should for ever part with their peculiar Regal Power of being able to resist their Enemies, or protect their good Subjects, and with that undoubted and never-denied Right of the Crown, to make War and Peace, and in no time to come, His Majesty or His Posterity should have power to assist their Allies with any supplies of Men, though Voluntiers, or ever more to have any Jurisdiction over Their own Navy or Fleet at Sea, and so consequently must lose all estimation and confidence with Foreign Princes. And many other expressions in the said Propositions do either signifie what we find your Lordships do not expect or intend, or at least are so doubtful, that the clear sense thereof is not evident to all understandings: As by the literal sense of your Propositions, neither the Sheriffs of Counties nor Justices of Peace and other Legal Ministers may raise Forces by the Posse Comitatus or otherwise to suppress Riots, and remove forcible Entries, or to perform the other necessary Duties of their places, with∣out

out being liable to the interpretation of the Commissioners for the Militia, that such Forces are raised or Actions done for the disturbance of the publick Peace; as likewise all Civil Actions and Differences may be comprehended within those Propositions to be tryed before the said Commissioners: neither of which we believe your Lordships in∣tend should be.

And therefore we have in our Answers proposed what we thought would be agree∣able to the matter and end of those Propositions, that is, a reasonable and full Security for the observation of the Articles of the Treaty, which, according to what we have offered, cannot be broken on either part, without evident prejudice and danger to that part which shall endeavour the breaking thereof; and that the memory of these un∣happy Distractions may be forgotten as soon as may be, that the time of this settlement may be limited to three years, which, by the blessing of God, will be sufficient to beget a good understanding between His Majesty and all His People; and that the Fifteenth Proposition, and all the other parts of your Lordships Propositions, being not at all necessary to the present Union and Reconciliation, may be deferred till after the Peace established, to be settled by His Majesty and the two Houses of Parliament in England, and His Majesty and the Estates of the Parliament in Scotland, respectively. But if your Lordships shall not think this way of nomination of Persons to be Commissioners, or the other proposed likewise by us in our Paper of the sixth of February, for the agree∣ment of the Commissioners between your Lordships and us, to be equal; we shall glad∣ly receive any more equal way from your Lordships, since it is apparent that that al∣ready proposed by your Lordships, and which you insist upon in terminis, is not fit to be consented to for the Quiet and Peace of the Kingdom, presuming that you will think the Security ought to be mutual, as the Fears and Jealousies are mutual. And we are most confident that His Majesty so much desires to give all reasonable and fit security on His part, that the Agreement and Peace to be now made shall be inviolably observed: That as He will name no Man for this great Trust against whom there can be just Ex∣ception, (if the Persons are named equally between Him and you;) so if the whole nomination were left to Him, He would pitch only upon such as both Kingdoms might have great cause to confide in, and we believe might give full satisfaction to your Lord∣ships. And therefore we hope your Lordships will believe that the Reason we consent not to your Propositions, is, because we conceive them destructive to the End for which they are proposed, Justice, Peace and Unity; and not that we deny to consent to any reasonable Security for observance of the Agreement to be made, of which we will al∣ways be most tender, with regard to all persons concerned.

This was the last Paper delivered in the last of the six Days touching the Militia; but that being taken up again in some part of the two last days of the Treaty, as those of Reli∣gion and Ireland also were, their Commissioners upon the breaking up of the Treaty, about two of the clock in the Morning after the 22. of February, gave in a Paper intended for an Answer to this Paper, which nevertheless relates to the Paper here next fol∣lowing, delivered by them the 21st. of February, mentioning a limitation of time for seven years, and for that cause is herein set down after that Paper, and as their last of that Subject: And the Papers upon that Subject delivered in the mean time, in the two last days, are these following.