Part of a treatise: vvritten by a Scotch gentleman, in the year 1645. Truly declaring (notwithstanding the lyings of wicked men) how graciously his Majesty hath governed the kingdoms of England Scotland and Ireland.

Part of a Scotch Treatise, written by a Scotch Gentleman, in the Year 1645.

THE incomming of the Scots gave occasion and li∣berty to divers of the Nobles of England (of whom some since have betrayed the Cause of God, and of his people, what by open warfare, and what by Clandestine undermining) to desire of the King a Parliament, for the good of the Kingdom: The King then durst not refuse their demand, by reason of the Scots, more then the continuance of it, which he granted likewise thereafter for the same cause.

Then the King finding that the Parliament did not only crosse, but quite spoil his designs, he plots with his Army which he had raised a∣gainst the Scots, to come and destroy the said Parliament, and to take the spoil of London for their reward, but the businesse being discovered, failed; besides, they durst not undertake, howsoever they had promi∣sed, for fear of the Scots, who were then so near.

The King continuing in his wonted courses, after a little pause, tryes the Scots, if they will do the deed, and offers them for recompence not only the spoil of London, but also the four Counties next adjacent unto their Country, to be adjoyned hereafter to it, with Jewels of great va∣lue in pawn for performance, if only they would be engaged in the bu∣sinesse.

All these great offers could not make the Scots willing to give their

consent in any kinde to this wickednesse; for they not only rejected the Kings offers, but also giveth notice of the plot to the Parliament, and to the City of London, that they might make their best use of it.

So you may see how that the Scots, under God, are the cause of the assembling of the Parliament, of the continuance of it, being assembled, and of the preservation of it from totall destruction and ruine.

The King seeing that he was stopped by the Scots, first in their own Country, next in England, to carry on his great design, takes the Irish Papists by the hand, rather then be alwayes disappointed, and they wil∣lingly undertake to levy Arms for his service, that is, for the Romish Cause, the Kings design being subservient to the Romish Cause, although he abused, thinkes otherwise, and believes that Rome serveth to his pur∣pose; but to begin the work, they must make sure all the Protestants, and if they cannot otherwaies, by murthering and massacring them, for they know them according to the principles of Religion and State, to be forward, either for the Covenanters of Scotland, or for the trouble∣some Parliament of England, if not for both.

But the Irish neither would, nor durst enter into any open action so long as the Scotch Army in England was on foot, therefore by all means it must be sent home, and cashiered; and to facilitate the businesse, the Court Parasites, instruments of iniquity, with their Emissaries, must raile, and spread abroad jealousies of the Scots among the people of the Country and City, namely, in and about the Houses of Parliament, who having not before their eyes the reall honesty and integrity of the Scots, known by so many faithfull and loyall expressions, and not kee∣ping in their minds the many good Offices done to them by the Scots, giveth, in sillinesse of minde, ear and place to the crafty tales and ap∣prehensions invented by the Agents of the common enemy, to bring them to confusion and trouble.

So the plot taketh by the silly ones, and is set forward by the hid Malignants; yea, in a word, it is mannaged with such addresse and successe, that the Scots must go home, and till they had done it, there could be no quiet, but increase of jealousies.

The Scots, although they were not acquainted with the height of mis∣chief that was intended against the Church and State in these Domini∣ons, by the common enemy, nor with the wayes of it, yet albeit they thought it very dangerous, after so many attempts of evill doing by the enemy, to retire them from England, nor as yet well settled, and to

cashier their Army, remitting the event of things to God, resolved to return home, and to dismisse their Army, and so make known unto all the world their candor and integrity, and to take away all jealousies both from the King, and from England, not failing in the least circum∣stance, yea not of the day.

Well, the King having gained this point, to send home the Scots, and to make them lay down their Arms, resolveth to follow them in∣to Scotland, and to try once more to draw them to his design, no per¦swasion being able to stay or stop his voyage, he goeth in haste from London, and overtaketh the Scots as they were upon their removall from Newcastle for Scotland; he vieweth their Army by the way, and talketh with the prime Officers thereof: he giveth order to some of the good Physitians about him to feele the pulse of the Scots softly, but they found the Scots pulse did not beat as they could have wished: He goeth on in his journey to Scotland, whither he is no sooner arrived, but he puts another design on foot, premeditated with many more be∣fore, for it is the custom of the wise Court to have at one and the same time divers undertakings in design, of which it is a very hard matter if one or other do not take effect, yea they have found it but too true, to our wofull experience, that many have taken effect, and that not of the lesser ones; wherefore the Court will never cease to devise and invent enterprises.

The plot then set on foot by the King in Scotland, was to make a con∣siderable party there for his ends, and to make the businesse there more facile, he resolveth to make sure the chief men of Scotland, who were like either to stop the design, or not farther it: But this plot is also dis∣covered, and so it failed. The next recourse was to the Irish Papists his good friends, unto whom from Scotland a Commission is dispatched under the great Seal (which Seal was at that instant time in the Kings own custody) of that Kingdom, to hasten according to the former A∣greement the raising of the Irish in Arms; who no sooner receive this new Order, but they break out, and at the first beginning of their Re∣bellion, declare that they have no ill will against any Scots in Ireland, for they were afraid of the Scots going over to the help of their Coun∣try men, and so they would be stopped to go on with their work; but their spleen was against the English Protestants, who were friends to that wicked Parliament in England, so untoward to the good King, and so adverse to their Catholique Cause.

This Declaration of the Irish did not (although in favour of their countrey men) hinder the Scots to offer their present service for the repressing of the Rebellion, before things grew worse: The King fair∣ly refuseth the offer, and answering with Verball thanks said. That he neither could, nor would do any thing in the businesse without the ad∣vice, and assistance from the Parliament now on foot in England, whereunto he was to repair in all haste; so he leaveth Scotland, saying, That every day he stayed there, was the losse of a County to him; he commeth to London a little before Christmas, the Rebellion having begun in Ireland in October before, but he goes very seldom to the Par∣liament, and when he goeth thither, he saith nothing concerning the I∣rish Rebellion, till by importunity he was constrained to it, and then what he saith, was little, cold, and ambiguous; and when the Scots by their Commissioners, who had followed him from Scotland hither, did offer him again a considerable help of ten thousand men; things were so carryed both in Councel and Parliament by the corrupt and igno∣rant party then; that the Scots were delayed from day to day by one shift or other, for a long space, before conditions could be agreed upon with them for the sending of their help into Ireland: and it was a lon∣ger time after the agreement, before things could be furnished unto them for their voyage.

By those means the Rebels had to do with lesse opposition, and con∣sequently, with lesse difficulty carried on their barbarous work of burning, spoyling, and massacring innocent people of all ranks and condition, without regard to sex▪ or age.

The Scots are no sooner gone for Ireland, but they assist their friends with such affection; and successe, that after some skirmishes, and en∣counters with the Rebels, the North countrey of Ireland, whereunto their help was particularly assigned, became pretty well cleared of the Rebels, although much wasted and spoiled by them.

In this course hath the Scots continued to this day, constantly oppo∣sing these bloody wretches, notwithstanding the change that hath fallen in the South part of that Kingdom by the Treachery of those whom the Parliament imployed and trusted to; then when the King made a Ces∣sation with these barberous Canabals, the Scots resolutely declared against it, & have manfully opposed it to this day, without which oppo∣sition of the Scots, it had been received every where in Ireland, and the Rebels then having nothing to do at home had come hither with Bands and Troops into this Island.

Thus did, and still do the Scots pursue their point, notwithstanding all the hardship they have suffered, and yet suffer in the service; partly by reason of the great troubles here, of the Parliaments not being able to supply their friends as they would, and as they need; partly, by the negligence and unfaithfulnesse of those who have been imployed by the Parliament, and intrusted to have a care of supplying this need, which hath been so great, that the Scots Army in Ireland had absolutely star∣ved for cold and hunger, if they had not been helped from Scotland in a high measure.

To return into England, the missed King having left the Parliament, accompanied, or at least followed by numbers of men of divers degrees, Traytors to God, and their countrey, namely by those double Traytors, who were Members of the Houses of Parliament; for they not only have been dishonest to the Church and State, whereof they are both Mem∣bers and children, but they have betrayed the trust, wherewith they were intrusted in both, by the assistance of which, he sets his design on foot to make open war against the Parliament (although under a hid noti∣on) to destroy it, all other devises and plots contrived by him and his having failed, as we have seen.

Upon this, the Scots in their respect to the King, love to their Bre∣thren in England, and above all, in their affection to the Cause of the Church of God, send Commissioners to the King, and from him, to the Parliament, as occasion should serve; they found the King at Yorke, where he was pulling his sword out of his sheath with all his might, and sharpening it in all haste, which God in his judgement hath suffered him to thrust in the Bowels of so many thousands of his people here, so unnaturally, and barbarously, not only afar off, by not stopping it by connivance, or by Commission to his Agents and Instruments, as in Ireland and Scotland, but being present in person, and taking pleasure in doing of it in his own sight, and seeing it done.

In this place I do affirm, that there hath been more Christian blood shed in these latter years, under the end of King James, and King Charles his reign, by their Commissions, Approbations, Connivances, and not forbidding, what at home, and what abroad, (all which upon the matter they might have stopped if it had been their pleasure) then were in the time of the ten Roman persecutions. God turn the Kings heart towards him first, other wayes he will never turn it towards his people.

The Scots, as we were saying, seed to him, to desire him to leave off

the design of imbroyling himself and the people in a civill war in this kingdom of England; withall, to offer him their utmost service of Medi∣ation and Intercession, for the taking away of all mistakes, and smooth∣ing of things in a faire way betwixt him and the Par. The misled King resolved to go on in evil courses, not only neglects the respective and hearty offer of the Scots, but sends them home, not suffering them to come unto the Parliament, according to their Order and desire, which was, to try all fair means for preventing a war in England, and to stop the massacres in Ireland.

The King having thus dismissed the Scots, goes to his work, which having overcome some rubs at the first, he carryeth on apace; for having gathered together considerable forces at Shrewsbury, from thence with his Army marcheth towards London, notwithstanding the Parliaments Army lay as it were in his way, who met with him at Edgehill, and (contrary to his expectation) fights with him; he after the battell ha∣ving recollected the remnant of his men, although he had the worse, continues his design to London, and drew very neer unto it, but being by strong hand constrained to retire, he goeth to Oxford.

FINIS.