The Protestant fightes as a Champion in the plaine feild in his dublet and hose, vsinge only the weapons of the Scri= ptures and the practice of the first Churches: The Roman= istes hathe his bulwarke and repayres, for beinge Convict= ted, by the first, he retyres to the Authoritie of the Churche, to the determinacion of Councelles, and opinions of doctors and there restes, as in an invincible forteresse./.

In particuler More difficult it is for the Husband to change the opinione of the Wyfe, then the Wife of the Husband./.

The Woman is Comonly vncapeable of the force of an Ar= gument, Weake in vnderstandinge such high Matters as questions of Faith, and by Meanes thereof Much More su= spitious and fearefull to be deceaued, by those that knowe more, beinge Not able to reache to a discussion of Cont= rouercie, they hould the implicit faith for surest, and rest in that which they haue receaued from their Cradle./.

From the tyme of Adame (who had the first tast of the force of a Womans perswasions) vntill this daye, Many More Wilbe founde, perswaded by their Wifes, then wives by theire Husbandes./.

Ad herevnto to that the Romane Religeon shall hereby recea= ve No litle honor and those that professe it in England No small benefit where (as very likelie it is) libertie of Consyence, and vse of Religeon wilbe graunted to the princes and all her Retinewe, and that yeilded to in Courte, and soe Neere to the kinges presence Must Nee= des proue of great Consequence to drawe on a More easie hand to be Carried ouer other his Subiectes that are of like proffessyon./.

All other Circomstances and Necessary adiunctes (as ex change of Townes within the limites of the inheritance to the issue only that shall succeed of the Prince and Infanta, and for defecte then to returne to Spaine, The League offencyve and defencyve and the lymited per= perpetuall assist perpetuall assistances to be given on either parte vpon occasions and to be advised vpon and agreed by suche as shall by both kinges be appointed to treat and Concl= ude the busines./.

By this Meanes shall the kinge of Spaine attaine an honour and in those thinges Warres Which by experi= ence hath given proofe to be otherwise likely to become imortall: Two Princes shall ioyne Who of all other the Monarke of the World haue Most aptnes to serve by entercourse and secure strength their Mutuall est= ates and dominions shall by that Meanes become in= assalteable by others, and hable to give lawe to all th= eire Neighboures. The kinge shall spare the Many Millions of Money and the Multetude of bodies that he Nowe Consumeth in those warres and Converte the same to his More honoure vtillitie and safetie aga= inst the Common Ennemy, his further discouerys in the Indies Wilbe Made safe the Nauegation of his Subiectes thither and vnto all other partes of Ch= ristendome secured, his Charge of the Most parte of his garrisons in all partes of his dominions either ended or Much abated, A great power temper broug= ht brought vpon discord in Matter of Religeon, Which When reasone of State shalbe seperated from that of op= inion, verie probable it is that either in tyme it May please God to worke some good agreement, or at least breed Charitie in the heartes of all Christians who con= fessing all one Substance doe only differ in the Circom= stance and Manner./.

Obiections and their answers./.

If it be obiected that it is Neither Honorable, profitable Nor safe for his Majestie of Spayne, to aparte so valuable, and important a parte of his dominions from his Cr= owne, and especially to Make the same an adiunct to a Prince al= a Prince alredy soe potent by Sea wherein those proui= nces Will bringe vnto him soe imeasurable an addicion, It is easelie, and invincibly to be answered by these Rea= sons followinge./.

First it is apparant that the Crowne of Spaine, app= artes Nothinge from it, but that whereof (with so infinite an effusion both of Treasure and bloudd) the Souera= yntie hath bene sought for the space of so many years and at this daye No Neerer the attayninge then att the first,/.

By the Emperor (this kinges grandfather) vpon the Marriage of kinge Phillipe with Mary Queene of En= gland, and by this kines father vpon that of the Ar= cheduke and the infanta the like was done of the Wholle .17. provinces, for the Emperors tyme when the same were in his quiet and peaceable possessyon: In the late Kinges wher was Muche More hope of re= couery then at this Instant./. To.

The kinge of great Brittaine Nothinge shalbe added but that which it is very likely (were he either soe Ambitious or desirous of acquiringe dominyons that appertayne Not to him) he Might obtaine withoute Contractinge With the kinge of Spaine, The like ha= vinge heretofore ben offered to his predecessor a Wo= man and without successyon and therefore Neither soe able to defend them, Nor soe likely if she had vndertook it to Continewe it./.

The strength encreased to the kinge of Great Brittany (so longe as the league and Condicons to be agreed on shall hould firme) shall accrue in as large a Measure to his perpetuall Confederat and allye the kinge of Spayne, who in regard thereof shalbe as well in Warre defency= ve as offencyve soe greatlie fortefyed./.

Yf the same shall breake hereafter by any Manyfest de= defaut of the defaut of the kinge of great Brittayn, then I Make No doubte but one Condicon will be that the Crowne of Sp= aine shalbe restored to the same right and titll that they Now pretende, Neither will it be more diffile to drawe it out of the handes of the kinge of great Brittaine: (vpon whome the envy and Ielousy of all his Neigh= bours wilbe cast vpon the accession of those Catryes to his other kingdoms) then from those that Nowe possesse it, sithence all other Confyninge Princes, in regard of Iellosie of Stat, that Neither, and vphouldinge a pe= ople that give Spaine Neither Meanes Nor leysure to thinke of any other attempt against their dominions and Not likely to growe greater in them selues then May be tollerated by theire Neighbores) are in all rea= son likelie Neuer to leaue either ouertly or Couertly to foment them, whereas in the other case the greatest of them, for diueres both generall and particular interestes would become of other affection: Moreouer it hath Ne= ver ben read, that the kinges of great brittayne haue bene breakers of Faith and league Made with other pr= inces or sought to vsurpe any thinge vpon their Neigh= bours, Now, with what lesse reason then euer, when suche should be the apte Coniunction, strength and Riches of theire domynions as they should Not Need to envy the greatest potentat vpon earth especially beinge Ioyned with soe Mightie and incomparable a Prince in Treasure and other power as the kinge of Spayne wo= uld be in fewe yeares be if such a coniunction and league were agreed: Besides the kinge of great Br= ittayne Must vpon a breach with him adventure Not only the losse of those proinces and of so mightie & assured an alye and freinde but also drawe vpon them a dangerouse and perpetuall warre from this Crowne, hauinge such an imortaletie of meanes by theire Indiane theire Indian Treasure./.

The honorablest ende of warre is the atayninge by Amy= tye and without bloodshed that which hath bene sought by by force and furye. The kinge of Spaine is to be said to haue attayned those Countryes, because in this Contr= acte he gives and disposeth them, and therein he Can= not but be said to receyue Much Honour and Strength incomparable: The first by endinge, by soe peacible a Meane, soe bloudy and longe continued a warre, the braunches and depondencies whereof infest all Christe= ndome. The Second by ioyninge vnto him soe potente a kinge and so apte to Supplie him with all thinges wh= erein soeuer his owne Countryes and forces are Most defectiue./.

This Discours is Continued prouing the Lawfulnes of Coniunction on both sides no= twithstandinge the differenc in Religeon./

In formore discourse had of this subiecte, I offered to pr= ooue that the allyance betweene the Prince of greate Brittaine and the Infanta of Spayne (though different in Religeon) is on Neither side contrary either to the law= es of god or practise of theire owne Church: This I will indevoure, conforminge My selfe to the Condicon of those I haue to deale with, who although in their accions too demonstrate to affecte Nothinge More then delaye and leng= th of tyme, yet in wordes and writinge vse Muche brevitie them selues and desire the like in others./.

Yt will not I assure my selfe be denyed, that a Roman positi= on it is, that Matrimony betweene a beleever and an vnbe= leever is by No lawe Made void or vneffectuall./.

Not by lawe of Nature, as that which takes Not away the ende of Matrymony; for Children May be borne vnto them, and by possibillitie also, brought vpp and instructed in true Religeon; there Religeon, there is also hope of inducinge the other partie to the faith in which Case in reason it is Manyfest, that the Marriage is Not only Not evill but good./.

If in the Lawe of Nature such Marriages had bine re puted vnlawfull, Iacob would Not haue ioyned him selfe in Marryage with the daughter of Laban an Idolatr= er: Ioseph with the daughter of Potipharr an egiptian; Nor Moses with Her of Iethro an ethiopian./.

If in the Lawe written, such coniunctions had Not bine held effectuall, Hester should Not by the especiall prouid= ence of God haue ben Marryed to Ahesuerus an Ethenike kinge of the Persians, Salomon to the daughter Pharae or david to her of the kinge of Geshur./.

Yf in the Lawe of grace Marryages of persons eyther diffe= ringe in faith or worshippe had bine disallowed, Monaca the Christian Mother of St Augostine should Not haue bine ioyned in Matrimony with his father beinge a pa= gan: Clolildis a Christian Princesse with Clodonevs kin= ge of Fraunce beinge then an infidell: Ema the daugh= ter of Charles kinge of Fraunce (surnamed the Simple) with Rolo prince of Normandie a bitter persecutor of Christians: Clotildis daughter of Clodonevs with Albar= icus then kinge of Spaine an Aryan Heretyque: Imia the daughter of fortunio kinge of Navarr, with Abduramon the second kinge of Cordoba a Moore: Teresa sister of don Alonso the first tosebdalable Kinge of Toledo, Nor the, Nor late Marriage in oure age, of the Lady Cath= erine daughter of the kinge of Polona, with Iohn kinge of Sweveland in Many of which the Pope either by playne dispensation, tacite Consent, or interpretiue Lycence is presumed to haue had his hand, as respecting Mo= re the publique good of Common wealth then the perill of particuler persons, especially where there is more hope of good then doubte of daunger: I omitt divers other Moderne other Moderne examples as well of princes as of privat per= sons, Neither recite I more proofes, because I haue promy= sed brevitie: This one Maye suffise to demonstrate plain= lie that euen in this Country of Spaine in tymes passed Marriages of such Condicion were frequent and Muche practized, Ells would Not that Nacionall Counsell of To= ledo haue by espetiall Sanctions Comaunded a seperacion betweene Christians Marryed to Iewes, which in publique as well as sperituall regardes was held inconvnie= nt: St Ierome also in his first booke against Iovinian And St Augustine in his of faith and workes witten= esse that in their tymes, those sortes of Tyme Marrya= ges were verie vsuall, the places and passages of Scripture, aswell in the Newe as olde Testament, that carry any apparance to contradicte and forbid suche Coniunctions were in those of the Newe rather Co= uncells then preceptes; and those that were of St Paule only, which (were they preceptes) accordinge to the Cardinall Bellarmyne are dispensable by the Pope, In the olde only preceptes of the Iudiciall Lawe which is Abrogated or peculiar to the Iewes Not to Ioyne them selues with some especiall prohibited pe= ople: And if in any thinge they towched or tasted of the Morrall, the same was only in regard of the pe= rrill of avertinge those of True faith to strange gods or erronyous Religeon, which in case where No perill is, (or soe litle as the same is ouerballanced eith= er by assurance or hope) of a greater good) risethe No question./.

In the Marriage of Iacobe, Ioseph, Moses, Esher & others devines hould, there was No danger, the Reason, there was singuler vnderstandinges, perfe= cte instructions in the truith, and firmnes in theire faythe./.