The Humble petition of the inhabitants of the county of Oxford to His Majesty, with His Maiesties answer thereunto

TO THE KING'S MOST EXCELLENT MAJESTY.

The humble Petition of Your MAJESTIES most Loyall and Obedient Subjects, the Inhabitants of the County of OXON.

Most humbly sheweth,

THat Your Petitioners (out of their desire to manifest their Loyall and hearty affection and duty to Your Majesty) having undertaken to supply Your Majesty with the weekly loane of 1176. pounds for the provision of seven and twenty Troopes of Your Ma∣jesties Horses, and one company of Dragooners, bil∣lited in this County; according to an agreement made

betwixt Your Majesty and Your Petitioners, the twenty first of December last, and according to an Explanation thereof made the 11. of January fol∣lowing; Which agreement Your Petitioners (though the burthen be very great) are willing on their part to performe; the true intention thereof being (as Your Petitioners doe humbly conceive) that no more Horses or Dragoones should be billited in this Coun∣ty, then were specified in the said agreement; And to that end, by an Explanation of the said Agreement made the eleaventh of Ianuary, there are diverse Receivers nominated for the severall hundreds of this County, with directions given them, to what of∣ficers, and for what Regiments, the said Receivors should pay the monyes within their severall Colle∣ctions.

Now, Forasmuch as diverse Troopes of Horse & Dragooners, before that time were, & still are billited in this County, more then the number contracted for (whereunto Your Petitioners, contrary to the Expla∣nation of the 11^th of Ianuary, are compelled without any pay at all) insomuch as the provisions of the Country are already so farre spent, that Your Peti∣tioners can neither be able to performe their Agree∣ment with Your Majesty, nor provide for such cattell of their owne, as are necessarily required for their

husbandry and tillage (the losse whereof is the un∣doing of the Country,) unlesse they be presently ea∣sed.

And forasmuch as there is no Receivor-generall appointed, from whom, such persons (and many there are) who billet more souldiers, or send in more provisions then their Contribution & Loane amount∣eth unto, may expect satisfaction, according to the rates and prises agreed on in Print.

Your Petitioners doe therefore most humbly beseech Your Majesty, that all the supernumera∣ry Troopes of Horse and Dragoones may be speedily removed, and Quartered in some other Counties. And that the now High-Sheriffe of this County, or some other Person of Quality and E∣state amongst us, may be by Your Majesty ap∣poynted Receivor-generall of the said Weekly loane; And that the particular Receivors, nomi∣nated in the Printed book, may forthwith pay all such monies as they have already received, and may once every Week, (or Fortnight at the far∣thest) pay what more they shall receive, and therewith deliver in all Tickets, and perfect their accompt thereof to the High-Sheriffe, or such o∣ther as Your Majesty shall appoynt; In whose

power it shall alwayes be to detaine in His hands so much mony as shall satisfy the Country for the surplusage of those monyes disbursed by them, ei∣ther in Billet or Provisions, which they can make appeare by Tickets to be more then their Contri∣bution and Loane amounts unto. And that the Sheriffe, or such other as Your Majesty shall ap∣poynt, may pay the residue of the said Loane-mony to such Commanders or Officers of Your Majesties Army, for Your Majesties service, as Your Majesty shall please to assigne for that purpose.

And your Petitioners shall dayly pray, &c.

His Majesties Answer to the foresaid Petition.

WEE, having received ample te∣stimony of the Loyalty and good Affection of the Inhabi∣tants of this Our County of Oxford, and willing to give them all the ease and satisfacti∣on they can desire, for the better enabling them to make good the weekly Loane agreed upon betweene Us, and the said County, for the maintenance of part of Our Army, are grati∣ously pleased to declare, That according to their desires expressed in this Petition, We doe ap∣prove of and appoint Our trusty & well-beloved Sir Thomas Chamberlaine Baronet, high Sheriffe of that Our County, to be Receiver-Generall of the said Loane, and to doe and execute all such Acts, both for the ease of the Inhabitants of Our said County, and for the full performance of the Agreement, as is desired in the said Peti∣tion.

And to the end it may appeare what, and how many Troopes are quartered within Our said County, the Quarter-master-Generall of the Horse is hereby required to give a speedy ac∣compt to the Lords, and other Our Commissio∣ners, how many and whose Troopes of Horse are therein quartered, That if it shall appeare there are more then twenty eight Troopes, speedy order may be taken for their removall, and likewise for satisfying the Country for such time as they have been Billetted therein, so soon as the Country have made good, and paid in all the Contribution and Loane now behind and unpaid.

Given under Our Sign Manuall at Our Court at OXFORD, this sixteenth of FEBRUARY. 1642.

FINIS.