ent, the queen went to the house
of peers on the nineteenth day of March, where, having thanked both
houses for the repeated instances of their affection which she had
received, she prorogued the parliament to the twenty-first day of May
following.*

* Among other bills passed during this session, was an act
for abridging and reforming some proceedings in the common
law and in chancery.

The new convocation, instead of imitating the union and harmony of
the parliament, revived the divisions by which the former had been
distracted, and the two houses seemed to act with more determined
rancour against each other. The upper house having drawn tip a warm
address of thanks to the queen for her affectionate care of the church,
the lower house refused to concur, nor would they give any reason for
their dissent. They prepared another in a different strain, which was
rejected by the archbishop. Then they agreed to divers resolutions,
asserting their right of having what they offered to the upper house
received by his grace and their lordships. In consequence of this
dissension the address was dropped, and a stop put to all further
communication between the two houses. The dean of Peterborough protested
against the irregularities of the lower house. The queen, in a letter to
the archbishop, signified her resolution to maintain her supremacy, and
the due subordination of presbyters to bishops. She expressed her hope
that he and his suffragans would act conformably to her resolution, in
which case they might be assured of the continuance of her favour and
protection: she required him to impart this declaration to the bishops
and clergy, and to prorogue the convocation to such time as should
appear most convenient. When he communicated this letter to the lower
house, the members were not a little confounded: nevertheless, they
would not comply with the prorogation, but continued to sit in defiance
of her majesty's pleasure.

CONFERENCES OPENED FOR A TREATY OF UNION WITH SCOTLAND.

The eyes of Great Britain were now turned upon a transaction of the
utmost consequence to the whole island; namely, the treaty for an union
of the two kingdoms of England and Scotland. The queen having appointed
the commissioners [139] _[See note 2 A, at the end of this Vol.]_ on
both sides, they met on the sixteenth day of April, in the council
chamber of the Cockpit near Whitehall, which was the place appointed
for the conferenc