NO FOOL, TO THE OLD FOOL:

HEark ye my Maſters; — for one half quarter of an hour now, let's be as Wiſe as Woodcocks; and talk a little Treaſon. Why ſhould not we thrive in the world as well as our Neighbours? had not other people Heads, and Souls to loſe as well as we? If men will be Damn'd, they had better Damn Rich than Poor: — as Bradſhaw; and th' Attorney Ge­neral Damn'd; and as they Damn at Weſtminſter; — as Biſhop Arthur does Intend to Damn: and there's another Fellow — what d' ye call him? — Piſh — I'm the worſt at names — he had a writing office, I remember; — he that ſold a Parcel of Priſoners to a Scrivener: — he ſerved a Lawyer once, and afterwards a Brewer, Both of a name — That fellow, will Damn, Damn'dly Rich. His Maſter too, is in a fair way to th' Devil. I could name you a Hundred of theſe thriving Lads, whom; though the honeſt world deſpiſes; — believe me, — Two or three hundred-Thouſand pound, is a Convenient Plaſter for a Broken Head; there's ſomething to bear Charges yet. There's Power and Plenty. — They couſen, whom they pleaſe: — Hang, and Draw, at will; — they keep their Lacquies, and their Whores: and at the last, they go to Hell in Triumph. They have their Blacks, and Elegies, and leave the State to pay the Draper, and the Poet. Twould make a man bepiſſe himſelf, to ſee the ſoft, and tender-hearted Needham, weeping (like Niobe, till he turn's t'a ſtone) over the Tomb of Bradſhaw, — to ſee him cry with one eye, and Laugh with th' other, and yet, the Tragicomical puppy, keeps his Countenance. The Teares of ſuch a Saint, cannot but Fall, like drops of Lam­beth-Ale, upon the Tongue of Dives, — how great a Conſolation was it (think ye) to the late Protector, to find himſelf placed at the Right hand of God? by Sterry (that Blaſphemous, bold Phanatique) of whoſe Condition, Charity it ſelf can ſcarce admit a comfortable thought. For, after a long Courſe, of Treaſon, Murther, Sacrilege, Perjury, Rapine, &c. he finiſh'd his accurſed Life, in Agony, and Fury; and without any mark of true Repentance. You'll ſay he was the Braver Villain for't. — Crimes of this large Extent, have indeed ſomething that's Maſouline to allay them. But to be Damn'd for Sneaking, To purchaſe Hell at the price of all that's pleaſant here: — to contract ſin, and Beggery, in the ſame act and Moment; This is the moſt Impudent, and Ridiculous wickedneſs that may be. He that In­dents with the Devil, has a merry Bargain, compar'd with us; There's Time, and Pleaſure. Here, the Vengeance treads upon the Heels of the offence; and the Puniſhment of our Miſdoings, is the neceſſary and next immediate effect of them. — In Paying Taxes, to an Ʋſurped Power; There, a Defection from the Right, and a Complyance with the Wrong, renders us Doubly Criminal — and in this Caſe, we doe but buy our Chaynes, and the very next effect of our Diſobedience, is Slavery. It comes all to a Point, in what concerns ſubjection to unlaw­full Powers. Vnder a Force, — is a Brutiſh Argument. Vice is the Obliquity of the Will: That's Free. The ſame Plea lies in the Caſe of Mar­tyrdom: and by the ſame Rule we may renounce our Maker.

If wicked, we're reſolv'd to be, — Let's go a nobler way to work — let's get a matter of Half a dozen crafty Knaves toge­ther; take in ſome thirty or forty ſlye Raſcals into the Gang, and call our ſelves a Parliament. Why Gentlemen? this is no impoſſible thing, Our〈◊〉is as good••theirs, that ha•done the ſame thing before us, but then be ſure of the Proportion. Seven parts of eight muſt have neither Wit nor Honeſty: yet doe look as wiſe as Judges, and in the middle of their, Pater-noſters pick their neighbours pockets. Theſe are to be directed by the Rooks, and by them both, the Nation, which would be over-ſtock'd with Cheats, were any more admitted into the Grand Conſpiracy againſt the people, To Perſonal abuſes, the reſt are likewiſe qualified. They may impriſon when, where, and whom they pleaſe, without cauſe ſhewed, their Will is a ſufficient warrant for the well-affected. In Fine, they are the Peoples voice, and that's the voice of Heaven.

Why now ſhould we deſpair of the ſame events, from the ſame means, conſidering, what a drowſie Patient, and phlegmatick People we have to deal with? Shall's Fool a little? Let us vote down Magna Charta, and the Petition of Right: — Settle a Preaching Mili­tia, and a fighting Miniſtry? — out with our whinyards, and off with the names, inſtead of the Heads of the Kings Tryers; as Okey did upon the Change. Take away Monk's Commiſsion; Petition the Souldiery to petition us, to declare our ſelves perpetual; — Bind up the Nation under Limitation for the next Seſsion, and exclude all but our own party from the Choice. No matter for the Law or Con­ſcience of the buſineſs — ARTICLES OF SURRENDER; and Publick ACTS of INDEMNITY, amount to nothing. — OATHS, and COVENANTS, are but occaſional Submiſsons to conveniency: not binding any man, that in the very act of taking them, reſolves to break them. Let things come to the worſt; when we have overturned the Government; — Polluted the very altar, with our MASTERS BLOOD — Cheated the Publique, &c. — It is but to whine, and ſnivel to the People; tell them we were miſled, by Carnal Appetites; — cloath all our Rogueryes, in Scripture-Phraſe — Humble our ſelves before the Lord; (but not a Syllable concerning Reſtitution) and they'll forgive us; Nay, perhaps, Truſt us too: Think us their Friends for doing them no more than All the Harm we could. — 'Tis a good natu'rd ſort of Beaſt, — the Common-people, if it be Pleaſed; and 'tis the Eaſieſt thing in Na­ture, for Fools and Knaves to Pleaſe it. They have not been gull'd half long enough yet, — what will you ſay now, to a New-Parliament made of an Old one? as There's no Fool, to the Old one, ſo there's no Knave to the Old one.

What do ye think of your Epiſcopal Cole-marchant Sir Arthur, for Durham: and let him bring in his Fellow-Labourer Sir Harry Vane for Newcaſtle? In the City of London, you cannot chooſe amiſe, provided, that Ireton or Titchburn, be One; and that he chuſe his Fel­lows. — For Kent, no man like Sir Michael Liveſy, (a Knave, a Fool, and a Coward. ) — For Norfolk, let Miles Corbet be one, and if the Houſe does not like him, let 'um recommend him to the Red Bull, for he perſonates a Fool or a Devil, without the charge either of a Habit or a Vizor. If the Nation be ſo charitably diſpoſed, as to erect an Hoſpital in favour of the Lame, the Rotten, and the Blind, let 'um take in Limping Luke Robinſon; Rheumatique Mounſon (this poor Gentlemen has the mourning of the Chine;) Bobtayl'd Scot; and the Blinking Cobler. — But why do I pretend to direct in particular? — Among the Kings Tryers; Exciſe men, Se­queſtratours, Cloſe Committee-men, Major-Generals, Buyers and Sellers of Crown, and Church-lands, &c. — they may wink and chuſe. Alas, they're all converted. I'm ſure he's Right, cryes one; he Told me ſo. Dull Sotts that we are! let us be Right our Selves; and then, what need we care who's wrong? I'll put a Caſe to you: ſuppoſe, upon the Diſſolution of this Seſſion, ſix or ſeven thouſand of the Phana­tique Souldjery, that knows, a Settlement destroys their Trade; ſhould Try a Blow for't yet; and by the help of ſome of their Confede­derates, yet in appearance of Authority, ſhould put a Force upon the Honest Party: ('Tis but to ſuppoſe, what many of that Gang are bold enough in Publique to declare) I have a Phanſy you'll look on ſtill, and betake your ſelves to your Old ſenſeleſs Plea, — They have the Power. — Which, if you do — No no; you cannot be ſo tame, and witleſſe. Be carefull whom you Truſt, either in your Militia, or Counſels; Chuſe Perſons of Eſtates Honeſtly gotten; Such, whom the Law preſerves, will preſerve the Law.

Whereas, If you chuſe ſuch as have an Intereſt of their Own, that th'warts the Publique; you're very Charitable, to Believe that thoſe very People, who all this while, have cheated you to benefit them ſelves, ſhould, at the laſt, adventure all to preſerve you.