84 



NOTES AND QUEKIES. 



[2'><i S. X. Aug. 4. '60. 



plaints had reached England of the manner in 

 which the Dublin recusants had been treated, and 

 the Irish government was required to explain its 

 proceedings. The result was : — 



" A defence of the proceedings in, the Castle Chamber of 

 Ireland uppon the mandates.* 



" The mandate contayneth three partes: first toattende 

 the Maior to the church ; 2. To present himselfe before 

 the Lo. Deputie in the church ; 3. To abyde there duringe 

 divine service. The first is an ordinarie dntie of euery 

 Citizen towards the raagestrate, espetially of the Alder- 

 men and best sorte of Citizens, and hath byne tyme out 

 of mynde accustomed in that Cittie. The seacond is also 

 parte of the obedience of euery subiecte to the kinge and 

 hia deputie, both w«'' also the parties utterlie disobayd ; 

 for they neither attended the Maior, noe not so farr as to 

 the Church dore, nor presented themselves before the Lo. 

 Deputie, neither in the Chauncell, Church, nor Isles 

 thereof, •»<=•» they ought to have done, and might have 

 done w«>out preiudice to theire consciences, for -W^ two 

 said Causes they weare justly sentenced, And have noe 

 collor of obiect against the same ; the mandats being sent 

 to none but to such as weare Aldermen, or had borne 

 principall offices in the Cittie, or weare of the best sorte." 

 I' And yf the third parte of the mandate, w'='> is for 

 abiding in the Church during divine service, weare spiri- 

 tual! or not examinable in a Temporall Court, yet the 

 disobainge of the two first partes is noe wayes priuileged 

 therby, for beinge comaunded to performe three duties, 

 the exemption of punishment for thone cannot dispence 

 w"' the punishm' due for thother two. And yf it sl\ould 

 be admitted to be an Ecclesiastical 1 action, by reason that 

 the circumstances are Ecclesiasticall, yet the kinge being 

 supreame head in causes as well Ecclesiasticall as Civill, 

 his Regall powere and prerogative doe extend as large as 

 doth his supremacy. And the Statute giveth powere to 

 Civill magestrats to enquire and punish, soe the same is 

 become temporall, or at least mixte, and not meerlie 

 spirituall." 



_ After a long legal argument in favour of the 

 king's supremacy in ecclesiastical matters, the 

 "Defence" continues : — 



"All wot [precedents and authorities] doe bynde the 

 subiect tam in foro seculi quam in foro celi, when they 

 are either expr^asfe or Tacitfe, to the Glorie of God, or the 

 good of the Comon wealth. And yet this Comandm* of the 

 kings extendeth not to compell the harte and mynde, nor 

 the Religion of the p'ties, but only the eternalf action of 

 the bodie, w<=i» ought Lawfullie to be obayed except in 

 two cases." 



" The first, that the p'tie be not drawne therby into 

 the daunger of hipocrisie ; The seacond, yf the doinge 

 thereof be not prohibited by lawful and byndinge autho- 

 ritie. For the first, yf a Romist in Religion doe professe 

 his owne Religion and protest against ours, and yet 

 heare our sermons and see our service, per viam obedi- 

 entiae, and not per viam comprobationis, untyll he at- 

 tayne better satisfaction, he can not be justlie called 

 an Ipocrite. For the seacond, yf the preist have Inhi- 

 bited the repayre of them to o'' Church, That is Man- 

 datum Politicum, or as they say Mandatum Morale, 

 least they should be drawne in tyme to forsake theire Re- 

 ligion, wii morall and poHticall Inhibitions, or rather 

 Councella and advices, are not to be opposed against pub- 



Inclosed in a letter of the Lord Deputy Chichester. 

 Council to the English Privy Council, Dec. Ist, 1606, 

 S. P. 0. Ireland. •' . ' ' 



like positive Lawes and Constitutions. For as the Cano- 

 nists doe say, Consilium est voluntatis, prseceptum vero 

 necessitatis, prelatus non yult precipere sed potius Con- 

 sulere." 



" It may be obiected, that yf the refusinge to repayere 

 to Of Church be so penall as to be made fynable by the 

 prerogative; that then in such case there needes noe 

 statute against Recusants in England." 



"Wee answer first, that this obiection extendeth against 

 the greatest parte of the proceedings in the Star Cham- 

 ber m England ; for if periurj-, forgerv, Ryote, takinge 

 away of Maj^dens wthout theire parent's Consent, Depo- 

 pulation of Townes, decay of tillage, engrossinge of vic- 

 tualls and such like, be punishable bv Fyne by the king's 

 prerogative in the Starr Chamber, Then what needed the 

 seuerall statutes ordayned against those offences, whereas 

 It is manifest that the proceedings in Censuringe those 

 enormities alwayes were before the makinge of those sta- 

 tutes grounded upon the Cotnon Lawe; And since the 

 makinge of those statnts, the proceedings are grounded 

 some tymes upon thone, some times on thother, and 

 some tymes upon both." 



" Seacondlie we aunswer, that the Prerogative punish- 

 m<»,of the Starr Chamber are not to be extended to all 

 persons as the Comon Lawes are, but are to be used rather 

 as exemplarie then as penall, and to be exercised upon 

 p'sons most eminent, and in Causes most notorious, 

 wheras the Comon Lawe is to be executed upon all p'sons 

 in like sorte w*iiout anie manner of difference." 



" Thirdly wee aunswere, that the Cases in w^h the pre- 

 rogative Lawe is to be used amonge others are theis: 

 first, when the Comon Lawes and statutes doe inflight 

 such easie punishm«» as therby the people are not suffi- 

 cientlie terrefied from off"endinge, for redresse wherof the 

 prerogative course in the Starr Chamber is to be used to 

 stay the excessive Increase of those offences, untyll more 

 sevier Lawes be ordained. 



" Seacondlie, when the Lawes and penalties are or 

 seeme to be competent for repressinge of the offences, but 

 yet either by negligence of magistrates or Interruption 

 by warrs, or by some generall allienation of the peoples 

 hartes, there is a gen^all defection from all observation of 

 those Lawes, Then the p'rogative Lawe must take hould 

 of the Ringleaders of that defection, and neuer cease un- 

 tj'll by seueritie of punishment the Lawes be restored 

 unto theire power; both w«h reasons do concui»in this 

 cause of repayere to the church ; for although the statute 

 of 2^0 [Eliz.] doth inflight punishm' upon recusants, yet 

 the same is so meane, beinge but xii<i in the weeke, that 

 the Richer sorte doe rather despise then obav the same ; 

 And likwise by the negligence of the Clergle, and per- 

 mission w^ the warrs hath occasioned, And the universal 

 defection of the subiects in the cause of Religion, .there is 

 noe heipe but that the king's power and p'rogative must 

 begine and make way f ' his Lawes, w"'' being once placed 

 neede noe longer or other assistance, but yt selfe." 



" It may be obiected. That it is uniust to comaund a 

 man to come to the Church, or doe anie other thing 

 against his Conscience." 



"■_Wee aunswere first, yf the Cominge to o'' Church be 

 Comaunded by the Lawe of God, as we must not admitt 

 anie opposition to the Contrary in the gover"", for other- 

 wise iff o"^ Lawes should be against the woorde of God 

 they weare utterlie voyde, for acts of plarn' made against 

 the Lawe of God are voyde, wherefore that being resolved. 

 Then if anie man's Conscience doe declare unto him that 

 he ought not to goe to o'' Church, we say that though to 

 doe against his conscience is daungerous to him, yet he is 

 bound sub pena damnationis deponere Conscientiam illam 

 tanquam Erroneam. Soe that it is a Charitable thinge 



