If any man shall pervert this good meaning and motion of yours, and inform his Majesty, _’Tis a Derogation from his Honour to yield to his subjects upon Conditions_, his Majesty shall have good cause to prove such men’s eyes malicious and unthankful, and thereby to disprove them in all their outer actions; for what can it lessen the reputation of a Prince whom the subject only and wholly obeyeth, that a _Parliament_ which his Majesty doth acknowledge to be his highest Council, should advise him, and he follow the advice of such a Council? What dishonour rather were it to be advised and ruled by one Councillor alone, against whom there is just one exception taken of the whole Commonwealth? Marcus Portio saith, that that Commonwealth is everlasting, where the Prince seeks to get obedience and love, and the subjects to gain the affection of the Prince; and that Kingdom is unhappy where their Prince is served out of ends and hope of reward, and hath no other assurance of them but their service.” The substitution of Oxford, “the hot-bed of Toryism,” for Westminster as the place of assembly for what proved Charles II.’s last parliament, was violently opposed by the members, who naturally resented this royal manœuvre of cutting off the representatives from the protection of the citizens. A petition remonstrating against the change was presented by Essex and sixteen other Peers; this darkly set forth dangers to the Crown, and reminded the king of the disasters which had always followed similar departures from the rule of London parliaments. Charles frowned, but took no heed. The parliament, forced into submission, attended at Oxford, Shaftesbury and other adherents taking with them a body-guard of armed retainers, citizens of London, wearing the Association green ribbons, with the legend, “No Popery: no Slavery!” “Who was ’t gave out, that a thousand Watermen Had all conspir’d to Petition, when The parliament to Oxford were conven’d, That they might sit at Westminster for them; But ne’er were heard of more than Smith and Ben?[25] Who was ’t endeavour’d all that preparations To guard the City Members in their stations To Oxford; which look’d far more Arbitrary Than _Forty-One_, or absolute Old Harry.” The doctors were dispossessed from their seats to make way for the legislators:-- “The safety of the King and ’s Royal Throne Depends on those five hundred Kings alone.”