ought to govern. Then began the meetings of the People
successively in their suprem Assemblies to make Laws; whereby
Kings in such places as continued under the Kingly form
were [unr]ited and restrained, so that they could doe nothing
in government but what was agreeable to Law; for which they
were accountable, as well as other officers were in other
formes of government, to those suprem Councells and Assemblies
witnes all the old stories of Athens and Sparta, and
other Countries of Greece, where you shall find, that the
Law making and Law-executing Powers, were placed in
distinct hands under every form of Government; for, so much
of Freedom they retained still under every form, till they were
both swallowed up (as they were severall times) by an
absolute domination.
In old Rome, we finde Romulus their first King cut to pieces
by the Senate, for taking upon him to make and execute Laws
at his own pleasure. And Liuy tells us, that the reason why
they expels'd Tarquin their last King, was, because he took
the Legislative power and executive, both into his own
hands, making himself both Legislator and officer, inconsulto
Senatu, without aduice and in defiance of the Senate. This
was the main Caus, for, the Rape of Lucrece did but quicken
them to lay hold of an oportunity. Kings being cashired, then
their Standing senate came in Play, who making and executing
Laws by decrees of their own, soon grew intolerable, and
put the People upon divers desperat Adventures to get the
Legislatiue power out of their hands, and place it in their
own, that is, in a Succession of their suprem Assemblies; but
the executive power they left, part in the hands of Officers of
their own, and part in the senate; in which State it continued
some hundreds of years, to the great happines and content of
all, till the Senate by sleights and subtilties got both Powers into
their own possession again, and turned all into confusion.
Afterwards, their Emperors (though Vsurpers) durst not at
first turn both those powers into the Channel of their own
unbounded will, but did it by degrees, that they might the
more insensibly deprive the people of their Liberty; till at