pay, what provision had he to arm, nay, means to levy, an army able to resist the army of the Parliament, maintained by the great purse of the city of London, and contributions of almost all the towns corporate in England, and furnished with arms, as fully as they could require?
A. ’Tis true, the King had great disadvantages, and yet by little and little he got a considerable army, with which he so prospered, as to grow stronger every day, and the Parliament weaker; till they had gotten the Scots, with an army of 21,000 men, to come into England to their assistance. But to enter into the particular narration of what was done in the war, I have not now time.
B. Well then; we will talk of that at next meeting.
DIALOGUE III.
B. We left at the preparations on both sides for war; which, when I considered by myself, I was mightily puzzled to find out what possibility there was for the King to equal the Parliament in such a course, and what hopes he had of money, men, arms, fortified places, shipping, counsel, and military officers, sufficient for such an enterprise against the Parliament, that had men and money as much at command, as the city of London, and other corporation towns, were able to furnish, which was more than they needed. And for the men they should set forth for soldiers, they were almost all of them spitefully bent against the King and his whole party, whom they took to be either papists, or flatterers of the King, or that had designed to raise their fortunes by the plunder of the city and other corporation towns. And though I believe not that they were more valiant than other men, nor that they had so much experience in the war, as to be accounted good soldiers; yet they had that in them, which in time of battle is more conducing to victory than valour and experience both together; and that was spite.
