ing nothing so much as your Majesties personal
presence: With which had we been honoured and made happie, we were
confident to have gained your Majesties Royall approbation to our
ecclesiastick constitutions, and conclusions, knowing that a truly
Christian minde and royall heart inclined from above, to religion and
piety, will at the first discern, and discerning be deeply possessed with
the love of the ravishing beautie, and heavenly order of the house of God;
they both proceeding from the same Spirit. But as the joy was unspeakable,
and the hopes lively, which from the fountaines of your Majesties favour
did fill our hearts, so were we not a little troubled, when wee did
perceive that your Majesties Commissioner, as before our meeting, he did
endevour a prelimitation of the Assembly in the necessarie Members
thereof, and the matters to bee treated therein, contrarie to the
intention of your Majesties Proclamation indicting a free Assembly
according to the order of this Kirk, and laws of the Kingdome: So from the
first beginnings of our sitting (as if his Lordship had come rather to
crosse, nor to countenance our lawful proceedings, or as we had intended
any prejudice to the good of Religion), or to your Majesties honour (which
GOD knoweth was far from our thoughts) did suffer nothing, although most
necessarie, most ordinarie, and most undenyable, to passe without some
censure, contradiction, or protestation: And after some dayes debating of
this kinde, farre against our expectation, and to our great griefe, did
arise himself, commanded us, who had laboured in every thing to approve
our selves to GOD, and to his Lordship, as representing your Majesties
Person, to arise also, and prohibited our further meeting by such a
proclamation, as will be found to have proceeded, rather from an
unwillingnesse that we should any longer sit, then from any ground or
reason, which may endure the tryal either of your Majesties Parliament, or
of your own royall Judgement, unto which if (being conveened by indiction
from your Majestie, and sitting now in a constitute Assembly) we should
have given place, This Kirk and Kingdome, contrare to your Majesties most
laudable intentions manifested in former proclamations, and contrarie to
the desires and expectation of all your Majesties good people, had been in
an instant precipitate in such a world of confusions, and such depths of
miserie, as afterward could not easily have been cured. In this