To the Right Honourable the Lord Mayor of the City of London
To the right honourable the Lord Mayor of the Cit[y]
of London, the right worshipfull the aldermen his brethren,
and the commons in Common Councell assembled.
1648
1. The humble Petition of many thousand well affected inhabita [...] in and about the said City.
THat your Petitioners understanding that divers worthy peacable and fa [...]full Christians in our Israel endevouring to prepare for Christ a godly, lea [...] and numerous Ministry; now in our great need have chosen certaine faithfull [...] which they call their Trustees for the propagation of the Gospell, especially [...] the sending to and maintaining at the Universities hopefull poore Schollers, [...] have promised under their hands unto the said Trustees, divers considerable [...] of mony to be paid upon demand, or by forbearing one meales meat in a week, and giving to them the valew thereof, or both, to be imployed as aforesaid, without any intent to reckon with them, because they judged that their said Trustees like those mentioned, 2 Kings 12.15. would deale faithfully, yet their said Trustees of their one accord, have requested one Common Councell man in every Ward of London, to come as often as they can, and to sit with them, and to be eye and eare witnesses of their actions, and once in a yeare out of the said Trustees owne bookes to audit their accompts, and to declare in Common Councell, how they shall finde the same.
And also that the said Trustees, in like manner have resolved to passe the said poore Schollers, through a probationary Colledge here in London.
And have requested one Minister in every Presbytery, or Classis of the province of London, to examine the said poore Schollers maturity or ripnesse, before they goe to the Universities, and to provide them good Tutors there.
And your petitioners having perused too little bookes, the one entituled, Motives, to perswade people to abstaine from one meales meat in a weeke &c. The other Motives grounded upon the Word of God, &c. As also a Paper entituled. A good Motion, all which are hereunto annexed.
And your Peritioners being convinced by the said Motives, or by their owne reasons, that it is their Duties to encourage the said Trustees, and to assist them in the excellent works mentioned in the said bookes, namely the replenishing of Cambridge and Oxford with Schollers, as full as they can hold, yea and laying the foundation of another University here in London, (if it may be also) because they perceive their is not sufficient Colledge roome in both our Universities to hold Schollers enough to furnish all our occasions.
Your Petitioners humbly pray your speedy and serious perusall of the said bookes, and paper, and if you shall also approve both the said workes perswaded unto in the same, your encouraging likewise of the said Trustees, and furthering of their endeavours herein, as shall seeme best unto your wisdomes.
2. A good Motion.
IF the rich will deale their Bread to the Hungry, as Isaiah 58.7. by forbearing one Meales Meat in a weeke, and giving the value of it but for one yeare to maintaine the Children of the poore: and the poore doe the like to maintaine their owne Children; the rich may be re-imbursed in one yeare (without any doubt of Sacriledge) the foure hundred thousand pounds lent upon the assurance of the Bishops Temporalities (which will bee six yeares sooner then all the rich are likely by a doubted course to get in their Monies) the Children of the poore may have the whole revenue of the Bishops Temporalities to breed them up in Learning. A glorious University may be founded in London, every Bishops House in the Countries be imployed as Eaton Colledge, Victuals become cheaper, spirituall and corporall Famine be avoided: And all these (in reason) be certainly effected without expence of one halfe penny.
For if the value of one Meale in a weeke in each Parish (one with another) amounteth but to twenty shillings) there being almost ten thousand Parishes in England) and ten thousand pound weekly amounteth to five hundred thousand pounds in one yeare; then in one yeare the foure hundred thousand pounds will be re-imbursed with an overplus. And God, the Rich, the Poore (yea all) be well pleased.