where read, and its principles universally received and propagated.

upon the fight of the then governing powers, who unjustly affumed the au thority of the people, gave him fuch an abhorrence of all popular government, and of the very notion of liberty itself; that to extinguish it for ever, he recommends the very extinguishing of letters, and exhorts Princes not to spare fo much as an antient Roman or Greek historian. Is not this in truth fomewhat Gothick? And has not our Philofopher, in appearance, fomething of the favage, that he should ufe Philofophy and Learning as the Scythians are faid to have used Anacharfis and others, for having vifited the Wife of Greece and learnt the manners of a polite People? And, in the notes, he adds, "By this reafoning of Mr. Hobbes it should follow, that there can never be any tumults or depofing of Sovereigns at Censtantinople or in Megol.”

OF

ALGERNON SYDNEY.

THE ARRAIGNMENT, TRIAL, AND CONDEMNATION OF ALGERNON SYDNEY, FOR HIGH TREASON FOR CONSPIRING THE DEATH OF THE KING, AND INTENDING TO RAISE A REBELLION IN THIS KINGDOM. BEFORE THE RIGHT HON. SIR GEORGE JEFFREYS, KNIGHT AND BARONET, LORD CHIEF JUSTICE OF ENGLAND; AT HIS MAJESTY'S COURT OF KING'S BENCH AT WESTMINSTER, ON THE SEVENTH, TWENTY FIRST, AND TWENTY SEVENTH OF NOVEMBER, MDCLXXXIII.

THE ARRAIGNMENT, NOV. 7.

ALGERNON SYDNEY, Efquire was by Habeas

Corpus brought up to the bar of the court of king's bench; and the clerk of the crown having read the return, Mr. Attorney-General informed the court, there was an indictment against the prifoner, and prayed he might be charged with it..

Clerk of the Crown. Algernon Sidney, hold hand [which he did.]

up thy

1

Midd. . The jurors for our lord the king upon oath do prefent, that Algernon Sydney, late of the parish of St. Martin in the Fields, in the county of Middlefex, Efquire, as a false traytor against the most illuftrious, moft excellent prince, our lord Charles the Second, by the grace of God king of England, Scotland, France, and Ireland, and his natural lord; not having the fear of God in his heart, nor weighing the duty of his allegiance, but moved and seduced by the instigation of the devil, utterly withdrawing the cordial love, and true, due, and natural obedience which a true and faithful fubject of our faid lord the king should bear towards him the faid lord the king, and of right is bound to bear; contriving, and with all his ftrength intending, to disturb the peace and common tranquillity of this kingdom of England, and to stir up and move war and rebellion against the faid lord the king, and to fubvert the government of the faid lord the king, in this kingdom of Engband, and to depofe and deprive the faid lord the king from the title, honour, and regal name, of the imperial crown of his kingdom of England, and to bring and put the faid lord the king to death and final deftruction, the thirtieth day of June, in the five and thirtieth year of the reign of our lord king Charles the Second, now king of England, &c. and divers other days and times, as well before, as after, at the parish of St. Giles in the Fields, in the county of Middlefex, malicioufly and trayteroufly, with divers other traytors to the jurors aforefaid unknown, did confpire, compafs, imagine, and intend to deprive and caft down the faid lord the king, his fupreme natural

lord;

lord; not only from the regal ftate, title, power, and rule of his kingdom of England, but also to kill, and bring and put to death, the fame lord the king, and to change, alter, and utterly fubvert, the ancient government of this his kingdom of England, and to cause and procure a miferable flaughter among the fubjects of the faid lord the king thorough his whole kingdom of England, and to move and ftir up an infurrection and rebellion against the faid lord the king, within this kingdom of England. And to fulfil and perfect thofe his most horrid, wicked, and diabolical treafons, and trayterous compaffings, imaginations, and purposes, the fame Algernon Sydney, as a falfe traytor, then and there, and divers other days and times as well before as after, maliciously, trayterously, and advisedly, did affemble himself, meet and confult with the aforefaid other traytors to the jurors aforefaid unknown, and with the fame traitors did treat of, and for, those his treafons and trayterous compaffings, imaginations, and purpofes, to be executed and fulfilled. And that the aforefaid Algernon Sydney, as a falfe traytor, maliciously, trayterously, and advisedly, then and there, and divers others daies and times as well before as after, upon himself did affume, and to the aforefaid other traytors did promife, that he would be aiding and affifting in the execution of their treafons and trayterous compaffings, imaginations, and purposes aforefaid. And to fulfil, perfect, and reduce to effect, those their most horrid treasons and trayterous compaffings, imaginations, and purposes aforefaid, the fame Algernon Sydney, as a falfe traitor, then and there, falfely, malicioufly, ad

visedly,

vifedly, and trayteroufly did fend one Aaron Smith into Scotland, to invite, procure, and incite divers evildifpofed fubjects of our faid lord the king, of his kingdom of Scotland, to come into this kingdom of England, to advise and confult with the aforefaid Algernon Sydney, and the aforefaid other unknown traytors in this kingdom of England, of aid and afliftance to be expected and supplied from the kingdom of Scotland to fulfil, perfect, and reduce to effect, thofe their most wicked, horrid, and traiterous treafons aforefaid. And that the aforefaid Algernon Sydney, to fulfil and perfect those most wicked, horrid, and devilish treafuns, and trayterous compaffings, imaginations and purposes aforefaid, and to perfuade the fubjects of the faid lord the king of this kingdom of England, that it is lawful to make and ftir up an infurrection and rebellion against the faid lord the king that now is, the faid thirtieth day of June, in the five and thirtieth year of the reign of the faid lord the king that now is, at the parish of St Giles in the Fields in the county of Middlefex, falfely, unlawfully, wickedly, feditioufly, and trayteroufly, did make, compofe, and write, and cause to be made, compofed, and written, a certain falfe, feditious and traiterous libel, in which faid false, seditious and trayterous libel among other things is contained as followeth in thefe English words, viz. "The power originally in the people of England is de"legated unto the parliament. He [the most serene "lord, Charles the Second now king of England, meaning] is fubject unto the law of God, as he is a man, "to the people that makes him a king, inafmuch as he