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Thairefter the Erles of Roxburghe and Lauderdaill and thesaurer deput, haveing removeit thamselffis out of the house, Maister Archbald Johnestone, in name of the thrie estatis, red in publict audience the declaratione falloweing: We noblemen, barones and burgeses, commissioneris of shyris and burrowes conveind in this supreme court of parliament by his majesties solemne indictione, and haldine by Johne, erle of Traquair, his majesties hie commissioner, doe with all duetifull and loyall respect unto the kingis most excellent majestie and with our best affectione to the preservatione of the bodie of this kingdome which wee now represent, make knowne that whair contrarie to the malignant oppositione and the wicked devyses and practeises of some of our disnatured cuntreymen and thair complices, his majesties face did not onlie begine to shyne upon ws to the calmeing of all these tempestis and troubles which war at first raised by their owne inventiones and innovationes of religione, bot his majestie did also, with the advyse of the counselloris of both kingdomes, declair and assur that it vas his royall will and pleasoure for afterward that all materis ecclesiasticall should be determined by the assemblies of the kirke and materis civill by parliamentis and wther inferiour judicatories estableished by law, which was and is the sume of our whole desyris, and thairfor wes pleased to indict a frie generall assemblie to be conveind at Edinburghe, the tuelt of August, for setling the peace of the kirke, and a parliament to be haldine, the tuentie sext of August, for ratifieing the constitutiones of the assemblie and for setling such other thingis as may conduce for the peace and good of the kingdome. And because his majestie could not be present in his owne royall persone (which was our earnest desyre and had beine our greatest delyte), it pleased his majestie so farr to tender the mindis of his weale meaneing subjectis as to promeis unto thame a commissionar instructed with full power to bring materis to a finall conclusione, both in assemblie and parliament, againest all fearis of frustratione and jelousies of prorogatione or delay; and forsameikle as Johne, erle of Traquair, his majesties commissionar, honored with a most ample commissione according to his majesties royall word, haveing closed the assemblie and haveing sittine with ws in parliament a verie long tyme for debating and prepairing such articles as war to be presented in face of parliament doeth now take wpon him, and that without the consent of the estats, and without any offence one thair pairt, who have endevored in all thair proceiding to witnes thair loyaltie to the king and dewetie to his grace as representing his majesties sacred persone, to prorogat the parliament upon ane privat warrand procured by sinister informatione against his majesties publict patent wnder the great seall, and that upon pretence of ane clause in the commissione wnder the quarter seall, which was onlie for fenceing and continoweing of the court at the dounsiting and that evine be representatione of the estatis, who now being present thamselffis can not be represented by commissioners bot doeth directlie disassent, quhilke warrant is now expyrit in the selfe and is not renewed wnder the quarter seall, quhairby he heavilie offendis all his majesties good subjectis and endanger the peace of the whole kingdome, for which he must be lyable to his majesties royall animadversione and to the censure of the parliament, this being a new and wnusuall way without precedent in this kingdome, contrairie to his majesties honour so farr engadged for present ratifieing of the actis of the kirke, contrair to the lawes, liberties and perpetuall practeise of the kingdome by which all continowatione of parliament once callit, conveind and begune to sit have evir beine mad with exprese consent of the estatis, as may be seene in the rigne of King James 6, Queen Mari, King James 5, King James 3, King James 2, King James 1 and so forth wpward in all the prented and writtine recordis of parliament, contrair to the publict peace both of the kirke and kingdome, which, by reason of the present condition thairof and the great confusione lyke to ensue, cannot endure so long delay and which is to the advantage of our malitiouse adversaries who, for their owne endis, are wncessantlie seiking all occasiones by devyding betuixt the king and the kingdome to bring both to utter ruine and dissolatione. Thairfor, we, the estates of parliament, out of our zeale to acquyt our selffis according to our place both to the kingis majestie, whose honour at all tymes, but especiallie conveined in parliament, aucht to have in heighe estimatione, and to the kingdome which wee doe represent and whose liberties shall never be prostitute nor vilified by ws, are constrained in this extremitie to manifest and declair to all men who shall heir of our proceidingis that as wee have not givine the least cause or smallest occasione of this wnexpected and wnexemplified prorogatione, so we judge and knowe the same to be contrair to the constitutioun and practeises of all preciding parliamentis, contrair to the liberties of this frie and ancient kingdome and verie repugnant to his majesties royall intentiones, promeises and gratiouse expressionis in the articles of the late pacificatione, which we trust will be no soner presented to his majesties equitable consideratione, bot the adversaries who have informed against ws shall be drivine from his majesties presence and receave thair deserved reward. And doe further declair that any prorogatione mad be the commissionaris grace alone without consent of the parliament, be himselfe or any commissioner in his name, or wnder the quarter seall, or be the lordis of the counsell who have no power at all in materis of the parliament during the siting thairof, shall be ineffectuall and of no force at all to hinder the laufull proceidingis of the subjectis, and the doeris thairof to be censurable in parliament. And further, wee declair that the commissioner, his nominatione of the articles be himselffe, his calling togidder these articles and commanding theme to sit continowallie and proceid, notwithstanding thair daylie protestationes to the contraire, his keiping frequent sessiones of counsell and determining causes in counsall dureing the tyme of the sessione in parliament, his calling doune and calling up of money indureing the session of the parliament without consent of the estatis of parliament, notwithstanding that the parliament had tane the money to thair consideratione and had purpoise to have givine thair advyce for ane determinatione thairanent, his frequent prorogating the ryding of the parliament without consent of the estatis or mentioneing in the actis of prorogatione the consent of the articles, altho it was done by thair advyse, are contrarie to the liberties of this kingdome, friedome and custome of parliament, and that they bee no preparatives, pratiques nor prejudices in tyme comeing againest ws or our successouris. Bot because we know that the eyes of the world are upon ws, that declarationes have bene made and published againste ws and malice is prompted for hir obloquies and waiteth one with opine mouth to snatch at the smallest shaddow of disobedience, disservice or disrespect to his majesties commandementis, that our proceidingis may be mad odious to such as know not the way how these commandementis are procuired from his majestie, nor how they are mad knowne and intimat to ws, and doe alse litle consider that we are not now privat subjectis bot a siting parliament, what nationall prejudices we have sustenit in tyme past by misinformatione and what is the present caise of this kingdome, we thairfoir declair that whatsoevir by the example of our predicessouris in the lyke caices of necessitie, by his majesties indictione mad by the articles of pacificatione, wee in that doe laufullie in siting still, and which in this extreime necessitie war justifiable not onlie befoir so just a king bot to the faces of our adversaries. Yit, out of our most reverend regaird and humble desyre to render not onlie all reall demonstrationis of civill obedience but to put far from ws all shaw or appeirance what may give his majestie the leist discontent, wee have resolved for the present onlie to make remonstrances to his majestie of the reasones of our propositionis and proceidingis in this parliament, and how necessarie it is that, without delay, a speidie course be takine for the preservatione of the kirke and kingdome from the evillis which the enymies of our religion, the kingis honnour and of our honnour doe project and long for; and in expectatione of his majesties graciouse ansuer to these our humble remonstrances, that some of each esteate, haveing power from the whole bodie of the parliament, remaine still heir at Edinburgh to attend the returne of his majesties gratious ansuer to our humble and just demandis, and farder, to remonstrat our humble desyris to his majestie upoun all occasiones, that heirby it may be mad manifeste againes all contradictione that it was nevir our intentione to deny his majestie any pairt of that civill and temporall obedience which is dewe to all kingis from thair subjectis and from ws to our dread soverane after a speciall maner, bot meirlie to preserve our religione and the liberties of the kingdome without which religione cannot continoue long in saiftie. And if it shall happine (which God forbid) that after we have made our remonstrances and to the uttermost of our power and duetie usit all laufull meanes for his majesties informatioune, that our malitious enymies who ar not considerable shall by thair suggestiones and leis prevaill against the informationis and generall declarationis of ane whole kingdome, we take God and men to witnes that we are frie of the outrages and insolencies that may be committit in the meane tyme, and that it shall be to ws no imputatione that we are constrained to take suche course as may best secure the kirke and kingdome fra the extremitie of confusione and miserie. Quhilke declaratione abowewrittin, wee, the estatis of parliament, requyris the clerke to insert in the recordis thairof and grant extractis thairof wnder his hand and subscriptione. Wpon the quhilke declaration, the Erle of Rothes, in name of the nobilitie, the Laird of Cragivare†, in name of the barrones, Maister James Gray, burges of Hadington, in name of the burrowes, and Maister Alexander Hendersone, in name of the commissioneris from the generall assemblie and ministeris, askit instrumentis.
According to the whilke declaratione the nobilitie nominat and appoyntit the Erles of Lothiane and Dalhoussie, the Lordis Yester, Ballmerinoch, Cranstone and Naper; lykeas the barones nominat and appoynted the commissionaris of Edinburghe principall, Hadingtoun, Linlithgow, Fyffe and Peibles; and the burrowes nominat the commissionaris of the burghes of Edinburghe, Linlithgow, Stirveling, Haddingtoun and Dumbar, to attend heir at Edinburghe the returne of his majesties answer to thair humble remonstrances.
The said Sir Thomas Hope, his majesties advocat, protestit againes the foirsaid declaratione in swa far as the samene is derogatorie to his majesties power and authoritie, or to his majesties sole power of prorogatione of parliamentis, or againes the laufulnes of this present prorogatione.
Quhairwnto the Erle of Argyle answered that the nobilitie and remanent estates acknowledges it to be thair bund dewtie never to derogat from his majesties power and authoritie, but to menteine the same to thair wttermost; and sieing thair was nothing contenit in the said declaratione quilke was prejudiciell thairto nor anie thing emitted thairin quhilke conteanes any protestatioune, thairfor desyred that the advocat would desist from the said protestatione.