Imagens da página
PDF
ePub

fore nothing but a Parliamt can supply this defect, unless his Majesties other Affaires would permitt some of his English Frigates to be commanded upon this service. But besides this and other Arguments used by my Lord Conway for ye calling of a Parliamt, one other occurrs to me grounded upon ye proposall Sr William Petty has made, concerning concealed Lands in Ireland, wch I am confident (whatever he says) can never be brought to any good effect without an Act of Parliamt, for it will be found that few of these concealed Lands have bin pass'd, but some Clause or other in ye Act of Explanation does confirme them, and how to clear any Enquiry of this nature from a jealousie of infringing ye Acts of Settlemt & Explanation I cannot discerne. There may indeed, upon y suggestions of these litle Undertakers, be Commissions issued out for ye searching and raveling into mens estates but of how much vexation this will be to ye subject, and wth what generall discontent it will be attended, is not difficult to imagine; for I am confident whenever any thing of this kind is put in practice by particular men, scarce any estate wch is upon a New Title will escape without a composition; besides I am well assured, tho' 'tis only my owne opinion, that if his Majestie thinks fitt to advise wth his Councell at Law they will scarce find it legall to make such bargain as S William Petty proposes. All wch makes me conclude that ye safest way to attempt a discovery of those great wrongs wch ye Crowne has suffer'd would be with ye concurrence of a Parliam*, wch if his Majestie shall think fitt to call there are severall other bills of publick concernment wch may be thought on; as one for ye regulating of Fees in ye severall Courts, and another for ye vacating of Reversions on Offices, for want of redress in both wch cases, this nation groans under many inconveniencies. Having said nothing upon this subject to my Lord Arlington, you may please to communicate this Lře to him.

I am now upon ye distribution of ye Army into their severall quarters for this next year, wherein I would gladly have y' advice, for 'tis now neer time they should know their severall stations, where

they are like to be, in regard ye Grass will quickly come on, that they may provide for their winter subsistance; and therefore both for this and ye satisfaction of yr company I would be very glad of y' returne.

LX. THE EARL OF ESSEX TO LORD CLARE.

MY LORD,

to my

Dublin Castle, Aprill 29th, -73. I have lately recd 2 or 3 Lřes from you, ye last dated ye 24th Aprill, wherein you seem to excuse yr self in ye matter of Mr Yorke's ship; but let me tell yr Lop that I know ye world too well to be satisfied with a few faire words, & I understand ye respect due Place better then to suffer y slighting of it from any man in ye Kingdome. You dispatched indeed a Lre to give me notice of ye seisure of ye ship, but sent it in such a manner that it should not come to my hands till ye ship was conveied away, wch Practice I cannot but look upon as a very unhansome dealing, & such as is not suitable to ye behaviour that every subject of his Majesties ought to bear towards ye Governour in this Kingdome, & wch might justly have been expected from you by, &c.

LXI. THE EARL OF ESSEX TO CHARLES II.

MAY IT PLEASE YR MAJESTIE,

A Lre from my Lord of Arlington made known to me yr Majesties intention of disposing ye Phenix Parke to my Lady Dutchess of Cleaveland, as also ye consideration y' Majestie was

a Daniel O'Brien, 3rd Viscount O'Brien of Clare, d. 1691.

a

pleased to have of me, by respiting ye possession of it during my
stay here.
As I doe wth all humilitie acknowledge yr Majesties
extraordinary favor to me in this Particular, to wch I shall ever
pay a resentment due to so great an obligation, so I cannot thinke
of any means more proper to express my gratitude then truly to
inform yr Majestie of ye state of this matter. A great quantitie of
lands now enclosed in this Parke has for many Ages belonged to
ye Sword. These, I presume, yr Majestie never intended to sever
from it. Of ye new Lands enclosed by my Lord Duke of Ormond,
neer one third Part are ye possession of Sr Richard Parsons, a minor,
of 14 years of age, and therefore cannot be purchased these seven
years. Upon ye whole, I find all ye Nobility & Gentry in this
Country so disgusted a at yo probability of this Parke being given
away, being ye only Place of recreation for them when they come
to this Towne, that I cannot (wth humble submission to yr Majesties
better Judgment) advise ye doing of so unpopular a thing. Yet if
it be yr Majesties Pleasure to give ye Dutchess of Cleaveland a
proportion of Lands in this Country (for I look upon ye designe
of this Grant to be no other than Rents), I am very confident it
will not be difficult to find out concealed Lands of as good a value
as yr Majesties intended Grant; or if this should faile (so desirous
are all men of preserving this Parke y'), I make litle doubt, when-
ever y1 Majestie shall call a Parliamt., they would readily give a
small Tax through ye whole Kingdome to reprieve it, provided it
may then be entailed upon ye Sword. In order to some compen-
sation of this nature, I have transmitted to my Lord Chancell
Particulars of all ye Land enclosed, from wch an estimate may be
collected of ye value of yr Majesties intended Grant, &, if an
Exchange of Lands of equall worth wth those new purchased in ye
Parke shall be approved, I assure myselfe yt yr Majesties favor
will have an earlier effect then if ye very thing designed had bin
passed into a Patent.

This word, of course, hardly bore the aggressive meaning at present attached to it.
The list was forwarded to Shaftesbury on May 10.

CAMD. SOC.

M

VOL. I.

Some Particulars of concernment relating to Peter Talbott being now under examination here, I have given my Lord of Arlington a full & true Acct of them, & therefore, presuming that your Majestie will not faile of ye knowledge of that Affaire, I shall not repeat it, but should be glad to receive some orders by y1 Majesties directions how I should manage that business, wherein, as in all other y Majesties commands, you shall ever find a most ready, faithfull & exact obedience from, &c.

Dublin Castle, May 4th, 1673.

LXII. THE EARL OF ESSEX TO THE EARL OF SHAFTESBURY.a MY LORD, [Essex first repeats to Shaftesbury the arguments and suggestions which he has forwarded to the King. He proceeds :-]

*

Now that I have had occasion to mention to yr Lop ye concealed Lands of this Kingdome, I cannot omitt ye discoursing that matter wth you. We are told here that S William Petty and Sr Henry Ingoldsby have made a Proposall of giving ye King, as some say, twelve, but as others twenty thousand Pds a year for these Concealements. Tho' as, on ye one hand, I think these Gentlemen have not behaved themselves wth ye respect due to my Place, in making any Prosposalls of this nature without first acquainting me wth it, so I am confident they will never procure what they aime at, viz., a grant of all these concealements at a Rent, for in my opinion nothing can be more illegall & oppressing to ye subject then such a Patent, whereby opportunitie & warrt will be given to these Projectors to ravell into ye Settlement of all men's Estates whatever, who, tho' they had never so just & clear Titles, will much rather

a Printed in full in Christie.

come to a composition then endure ye charges and vexations that these men will put them to; besides, if we consider y men who undertake it, 'twill easily be foreseen wth what rigour & injustice a Grant of this nature will be prosecuted, for I am confident, in all his Majesties 3 Kingdomes, there lives not a more grating man than Sr Willm Petty. I dare say ye Practices of Empson & Dudley would be found nothing in comparison of ye vexations wch this poor Country would suffer if such a Patent should pass. The King may, indeed, give any lands that are found to be his; but if there be a Maxime in Law that ye King cannot be deceived in his Grant, then certainly no Grant can be Legall of concealments at a certain Rent, for no man can say but ye King may herein be highly deceived ; therefore, this Project being in it self soe notoriously illegall, & apparently such as will prove in its execution so very oppressive to ye Subject, makes me wth much confidence assure myself that it will not take effect. There are without doubt great quantities of concealed Lands to a very considerable value, wch doe of right belong to his Majestie, but then it must be considered that his Majestie is intitled to them by ye Acts of Setlemt & Explanation, & those statutes doe invest them in his Majestie as a Trustee to several particular uses therein mentioned; & if those ends are not yet answered, I offer it to yr Löps consideration, wth what conscience or honor those concealed Lands can be applied to other uses. I have only said this to shew yr Lop ye business will prove a good deale perplexed, & that ye whole ought to be maturely & deliberately considered before it be proceeded upon, & that some men of Knowledge in this Country, & who have well studied ye Acts of Setlem & Explanation, may be consulted with before any resolution be taken in a matter of so great moment, & of such a generall concerne. For my owne part, I am of opinion that ye matter of liscoverie of concealed Lands will never be solidely founded but by ye Authoritie & Countenance of an Act of Parliamt, wch when ever ye King shall thinke fitt to call, I believe it will be no lifficult Taske to procure such an Act, wch may method it in that

« AnteriorContinuar »