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 The Clerk [reading on, in a louder voice. Fifth.

Whereas, 'tis custom immemorial That all discussions on domestic themes Shall by a king be closed; and whereas God himself, When to his chosen people he had giv'n The tables of the law, the pulpit changed Into a throne, the judges he made kings;— Now, having heard the arguments put forth On either side, the Parliament doth shew Unto the Lord Protector that 'tis meet The people for their consecrated head Should have a single person, upon whom The title of the kings of former times Should be bestowed; and humbly doth implore Oliver, the Lord Protector, to receive The English crown by right hereditary. The Speaker [to. My lord, I crave your leave to speak. Cromwell. Say on. The Speaker. My lord, in all times, recent or remote, Kings have held sway o'er the nations of the earth. The first of books, which greatly doth abound In wisdom, saith again and yet again, In plain words: Reges gentium. We see, If we consider Gibeon and Actium, That when a deadly conflict doth arise Within a nation, 'tis a Gordian knot That can be severed only by a sword. The sword becomes a sceptre, and so proves That by a king all questions must be solved.