LETTERS FROM BIRCH. 307 



The one, to see if, upon so fair an occasion, he would 

 make any expiation of his former faults ; and also show 

 himself sensible of those things in his Reports which he 

 could not but know were the likest to be offensive to your 

 majesty. 



The other, to perform de vero this right to your crown 

 and succession, and your people also ; that those errors 

 and novelties might not run on and authorize by time, but 

 might be taken away, whether he consented to it or no. 



But we did not conceive your majesty would have had 

 him charged with those faults of his book, or those other 

 novelties, but only would have had them represented to you 

 for your better information. 



Now your majesty seeth what he hath done, you can 

 better judge of it than we can. If, upon this probation 

 added to former matters, your majesty think him not fit for 

 your service, we must, in all humbleness, subscribe to your 

 majesty, and acknowledge, that neither his displacing (con 

 sidering he holdeth his place but during your will and 

 pleasure) nor the choice of a fit man to be put in his 

 room are council-table matters, but are to proceed wholly 

 from your majesty s great wisdom and gracious pleasure. 

 So that, in this course, it is but the signification of your 

 pleasure, and the business is at an end as to him : only 

 there remaineth the actual expurgation or animadversions 

 of the books. 



But if your majesty understand it that he shall be 

 charged, then, as your majesty best knoweth, justice re- 

 quireth that he be heard and called to his answer; and 

 then your majesty will be pleased to consider before whom 

 he shall be charged, whether before the body of your council 

 (as formerly he was) or some selected commissioners ; for we 

 conceive your majesty will not think it convenient it should 

 be before us two only. Also the manner of his charge is 

 considerable; whether it shall be verbal by your learned 

 council, as it was last, or whether, in respect of the multi 

 plicity of matters, he shall not have the collections we have 

 made in writing delivered to him. Also the matter of his 

 charge is likewise considerable; whether any of those points 

 of novelty, which by your majesty s commandment we col 

 lected, shall be made part of his charge, or only the faults 

 of his books, and the prohibitions and habeas corpus, col 

 lected by my Lord of Canterbury. In all which course we 

 foresee length of time, not so much for your learned council, 

 to be prepared (for that is almost done already), but because 



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