Daily national era. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1854, 1854-03-23

instead of the actual wants and temper OF
the age in which they lived. James was
not aware that q revolution IN society mao
been operating which was soon to manifest
itself by overt acts He never realized IN MS
mind the idea Of progress--neyer took INTO
aceount the diffusion Of intelligence, and the
moral Independence produced by the accumu-
! lation of property. So convinced was this
monarch that he stood to his subjects IN the
relation Of master to his slaves, that in 1921,
he told Parliament that he wished them TO
understand that their privileges were derived
from the grace and permission Of him ana ms
ancestors; ~ and when the same Pariiament
protested, that the liberties, franchises, prvi-
leges, and Jurisdictions Of Parliament are the
ancient and undoubtcd birthright and inherit
ance Of the subjects OF England" the King
was so enraged that he sent for the journals,
and, IN presence Of his Council, tore out their
protest with his own hands, and commanded
his own private views to be recorded in the
counei-book. On all occasions he treated the
House Of Commons with the most marked con-
tempt and even wrote letter to tho Speaker,
in which he severely reprimanded the mem
bers for debating matters far beyond their ca
pacity: and when they ventured to demonstrate,
he sternly said that their proceedings more re-
sembled denunciation Of war, than the con-
Duct Of dutiful subjects.
Under the tuition of such father, 1t IS not
wonderful that Charles should have imbibed
the most extravagant notions OF kingly power,
believing it to rest on divine right When ne
ascended the throne, he found an exhausted
exchequer, and had to solicit an adequate rev
enne from scrupulonsly parsimonions Parlia-
ment The Commons were determined to bring
the contest with the prerogative to an issue,
and saw plainly that their success depended on
a battle Of finance. The King, crippled in his
resources, levied his feudal dues with excessive
rigor, and even attempted to revive the ancient
forest laws Az no prescription could be plead
ed against the royal title, Charles resumed pos
session of many of the royal forests, and by that
act reused the opposition OF the landowners to
his Government At tho same time, religious
zeal reared itself against the Crown, while
merchants and traders, fearful of the extent to
which ship.money and tonnage and ponndage
might be pushed joined in hostility against the
prerogative
In the session of $685. the King, highly in
censed at the small sums of money granted him
by Parliament declared, That il they did not
do their duty in contributing to the necessities
Of the State he must, in discharge Of his con-
science, use those other means which God had
put into his hands, in order to save that which
the follies of some particular men might other
wise put in danger
The Commons, nothing daunted, passed a
law, called the PETITION OF RIGHT, in which
they enumerated all the arbitrary exactions OF
the prerogative, among which the principal
grievances were forced loans, benevolences, tax
es without consent of Parliament, arbitrary inn
prisonments, bileting Of soldiers and martial
law; and, disclaiming any intention of attack
ing the Just rights Of the prerogatiye, insisted
that those rights should be strictly defined.
Against this bill the King struggled hard but,
after open resistance and covert evasion had
been exhausted he was compelled to yield his
assent
Iro BE CONCLUDED TO MORROW