The second part of The nonconformists plea for peace being an account of their…

IV. And in another Column the judgement of many English Bishops, Doctors and Historians.

But the plain truth is, that I fear should I recite their words they would be misinterpreted and do hurt: He that would see what the first sort of old Greek and Latin Authors say, may find much in their sentences collected by Alstedius in his Encyclop. Horileg. Polit. where you have enough to make a Volume out of Herodotus, Thucydides, Zenophon, Polybius, Sallustius, Livy, Tacitus, Comminaeus, &c. of Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch, Isocrates, Agapetus, Cicero, Pliny: And indeed so many of the […]amousest Greek and Latin Philosophers, Historians and Orators, were so much for Liberty and spake so dangerously of Tyrants, and praised the Killing of them, and had so mean or bad thoughts of Kings that were not eminently good, that it is enough that their books are in the hands of Scholars.

But the plain truth is, that I fear should I recite their words they would be misinterpreted and do hurt: He that would see what the first sort of old Greek and Latine Authors say, may find much in their sentences collected by Alstedius in his Encyclop. Horileg. Polit. where you have enough to make a Volume out of Herodotus, Thucydides, Zenophon, Polybius, Sallustius, Livy, Tacitus, Comminaeus, &c. of Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch, Isocrates, Agapetus, Cicero, Pliny: And indeed so many of the 〈…〉amousest Greek and Latine Philosophers, Historians and Orators, were so much for Liberty and spake so dangerously of Tyrants, and praised the Killing of them, and had so mean or bad thoughts of Kings that were not eminently good, that it is enough that their books are in the hands of Scholars.

II. And the Authors of Politics and Laws, (especially Suarez de Legibus and Azorius) I find are commonly read by Lawyers: And indeed I cannot see how any man can understand his Countries Laws, who doth not understand the doctrine of Government and Laws in genere, which is the doctrine of Politics. III. And Historians usually write as their interest and the state of their proper Country leads them, some flattering Princes, some wisely describing them, and some speaking hardly of them, (as Math. Paris yet accounted credible, did of Henry 3. and Gild[…]s of the British Princes,) And some (as Hollingsh[…]ad that speaks of the power of Parliaments to depose or take down mighty Kings, being a Clergy-man and out of his callings way) do not well understand the Governments which they describe.