XCVI. Solemnities of Corpus Christi Day illustrated XCVII. Origin of the Offices of Lord High Constable and XCVIII. The word CERCELLA, in old Deeds, explained C. Particulars respecting the first Coffee House in RESEARCHES HISTORICAL AND ANTIQUARIAN. I. A Debate between the Committee of the House of Commons in 1657, and O. Cromwell, upon the humble petition and advice of the Parliament, by which he was desired to assume the title of King. THE following Debate will, doubtless, engage the attention of our readers, not only by the importance of the question, but by the reputation of those who were deputed to discuss it, and the strength of the arguments employed by them, which, we hope, is not impaired by our method or expression. The difficulty of procuring this Debate, which was published in 1660, and we believe never afterwards re-printed, inclined us to insert it in our Magazine without alteration; but we found it, upon a closer examination, by no means adapted to the taste of those who expect entertainment and instruction at the same time; or require, at least, to be improved without unnecessary labour; for the speeches being taken, probably, in short-hand, with omissions of passages less important, and of such words as the writer imagined himself able to supply from the general contexture of the sentence and drift of the discourse, which is frequently practised by short-hand writers, are either for want of memory, or care in the copier, so ungrammatical, intricate, and obscure; so full of broken hints, imperfect sentences, and uncouth expressions, that very few would have resolution, or curiosity, sufficient to labour in search of knowledge through so many obstructions. Nor should we have attempted it, had we not been encouraged by the hopes of preserving others from so disgusting a task. The various arguments made use of by the several members of the committee, we have reduced, to avoid repetition, into one series or discourse, and annexed to each argument, in the margin, the names of those by whom it was produced. VOL. I. |