midst of the confusion, Presbyterian, Independent,
Royalist, and Leveller strove each according to his
principles to bring about an orderly settlement of
the kingdom; to escape from the confessedly extra-
legal situation to one better warranted by recorded
law or principles of reason.

The breaking of the old-time political alliances
began when the radicals quarreled with the House
of Commons. A disinterested observer might have
predicted much earlier that the radicals would do
so. The House hesitated to act decisively even on
a point so plausible as Lilburne's denial of the Lords'
jurisdiction over him and let Lilburne languish in
prison month after month, only taking notice of
him when his writings became so outspoken as to
provoke the censure of its committees. ¹ As a result
of the shifting of parties, the House in 1647 was even
more hostile to radical ideas than it had been in
1646. Then it had been Independent in complexion
only from distrust of the Scottish army and of the
Presbyterianism advocated by the Assembly Once
the one and the other had been disposed of, the bal-
ance of parties shifted, and the Presbyterian leaders,
Holles and Stapleton, found no difficulty in muster-
ing majorities for their measures. If the radicals
had ever really believed that the House of Commons
would assume the duties they had prescribed for it,
its attitude of 1647 was sufficient to disillusion all
save those who wilfully shut their eyes to condi-
tions actually existing.

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