ary 1629. People might flatter themselves that
after the death of Buckingham, who had been the object of the
principal hostility of that body, an agreement would be more easily
effected.

The plan drawn up by the Privy Council was in the first instance of a
conciliatory nature. The right of granting money in general was to be
acknowledged, even in the case of tonnage and poundage: the levying of
this tax up to the present time, however, was to be justified, on the
ground that other kings had collected it before it had been granted.
If Parliament, after this general acknowledgement of its right, should
still persist in refusing the present King what former kings had
enjoyed, he would be exculpated: not the government, but Parliament
would in that case have to bear the blame of the breach which would
arise in consequence.[490]

This was the tenor of the King's speech at the opening of the
discussion on January 23, 1629. He asked for tonnage and poundage,
less on the strength of his hereditary right to it, than on the plea
of custom and necessity. He would always consider it as a gift of his
people; but after their scruples had been removed by this declaration,
he expected that an end would be put to all difficulties by a grant
such as had been made to his ancestors. It was offensive to him that
any one contested his title to a tax, without which his state could
not be kept up. In the assembled Privy Council he declared that a
temporary grant was derogatory to his honour. He said that he would no
longer live from hand to mouth: he had as little disposition to suffer
from want, or to allow the privileges of his crown to be wrested from
him, as he had had thought of infringing the liberties of his
people.[491] Secretary Coke, a member of the House, brought in the
requisite bill without delay, and proposed the first reading.

The assembly, however, consisted of the very men who had thought that
through the Petition of Right they had set up a fundamental law for
ever, but had since then become conscious how little they had effected
by that means.

An unpleasant impression had already been made on them by the printing
of the Petition of Right without the expression of simple approval,
but with the restrictive declarations which the King had at first
made.[492] But besides this it was seen how little the King intended
to be bound to the literal meaning of his words, for arrests without
definite assignment of the reason had