In the mean time the parliament by the kings orders is prorogued to the 2d of June 1640, and matters continued so till Jan. 1641, that the committee of parliament having obtained leave to send up commissioners to represent their grievances, did again commission the two foresaid earls, to whom they added Sir William Douglas of Cavers, and Mr. Barclay provost of Irvine. On their arrival they were allowed to kiss the king's hand, and some time after were appointed to attend at the council chamber, but understanding they were not to have a hearing of the king himself, they craved a copy of Traquair's information to the council of England, which was denied. At last the king gave them audience himself upon the third of March, when the lord Loudon, after having addressed his majesty, shewed that his ancient and native kingdom is independent upon any other judicatory whatever, and craved his majesty's protection in defence of religion, liberty, and the cause of the church and kingdom, and then speaking concerning those who have or may misrepresent or traduce these his most loyal Scots subjects, he says, "If it please God, for our sins to make our condition so deplorable as they may get the shadow of your majesty's authority, (as we hope in God they will not) to palliate their ends, then as those who are sworn to defend our religion, our recourse must be only to the God of Jacob for our refuge, who is the Lord of lords, and king of kings, and by whom kings do reign and princes decree justice. And if, in speaking thus out of zeal to religion, and the duty we owe to our country, and that charge which is laid upon us, any thing hath escaped us, sith it is spoken from the sincerity of our hearts, we fall down at your majesty's feet, craving pardon for our freedom." Again having eloquently expatiated upon the desires of his subjects, and the laws of the kingdom, he speaks of the laws of God and power of the church, and says, "Next, we must distinguish betwixt the church and the state, betwixt the ecclesiastical and civil power; both which are materially one, yet formally they are contradistinct in power, in jurisdiction, in laws, in bodies, in ends, in offices and officers, and although the church and ecclesiastic assemblies thereof be formally different and distinct from the parliament and civil judicatories, yet there is so strict and necessary a conjunction betwixt the ecclesiastic and civil jurisdiction, betwixt religion and justice; as the one cannot firmly subsist and be preserved without the other, and therefore they must stand and fall, live and die together, &c." He enlarged further upon the privileges of both church and state, and then concluded with mentioning the sum of their desires, which----"is that your majesty (saith he) may be graciously pleased to command that the parliament may proceed freely to determine all these articles given in to them, and whatsoever exceptions, objections, or