r of money-raising, had been hurried through because of signs
that nothing less would avail, if even that would now suffice. Not
only had copies of the Army Petition of the 5th been circulated in
print, but there had been letters, with copies of the Petition, to
various important officers away from London, Monk in chief, urging
them to obtain subscriptions in their regiments, and forward the same
immediately to Wallingford House. One such letter, signed by
Lambert, Desborough, Berry, Kelsay, Ashfield, Cobbet, Packer,
Barrow, and Major Creed, had been misdelivered by chance to Colonel
Okey, now on the side of the Parliament; and Okey gave it to
Hasilrig. The letter itself was one on which action might be taken,
and an incident determined the House to very decisive action indeed.
Precisely on that 11th of October when the House had formulated their
answers to the Army Petition as far as to the fifth Article, and when
they also passed the Bill so comprehensively asserting and guarding
their own sole prerogative, Mr. Nicholas Monk arrived in London from
Scotland, with powers from his brother to Dr. Clarges to let the
Parliament know that he would stand by them against the
Wallingford-House party, and would, if necessary, march into England
for their support. Next morning, Oct. 12, this news was buzzed among
the Republican leaders of the House, and with prodigious effect. The
misdelivered letter was read and discussed; and, after a division, on
the previous question, of fifty (Mildmay and Lister tellers) against
fifteen (Colonel Rich and Alderman Pennington tellers), it was
resolved "That the several commissions of these several persons, viz.
Colonel John Lambert, Colonel John Desborough, Colonel James Berry,
Colonel Thomas Kelsay, Colonel Richard Ashfield, Colonel Ealph
Cobbet, Major Richard Creed, Colonel William Packer, and Colonel
William Barrow, who have subscribed the said Letter, shall be, and
are hereby, made null and void, and they and every of them be, and
are hereby, discharged from all military employment." The House then
vested the entire government of the Army in a commission of
seven,--to wit, Fleetwood, Ludlow, Monk, Hasilrig, Colonel Walton,
Colonel Morley, and Colonel Overton, any three to be a quorum; and,
having ordered the regiments of Morley and Okey, and a part of that
of Colonel Mosse, to be on guard in Westminster through the night,
they rose with the consciousness of a bold day's work.[1]

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