2. The knavish, designing, or idle, extravagant debtor, who fails
because either he has run out his estate in excesses, or on purpose
to cheat and abuse his creditors.

3. There is the moderate creditor, who seeks but his own, but will
omit no lawful means to gain it, and yet will hear reasonable and
just arguments and proposals.

4. There is the rigorous severe creditor, that values not whether
the debtor be honest man or knave, able or unable, but will have his
debt, whether it be to be had or no, without mercy, without
compassion, full of ill language, passion, and revenge.

How to make a law to suit to all these is the case. That a
necessary favour might be shown to the first, in pity and compassion
to the unfortunate, in commiseration of casualty and poverty, which
no man is exempt from the danger of. That a due rigour and
restraint be laid upon the second, that villainy and knavery might
not be encouraged by a law. That a due care be taken of the third,
that men's estates may as far as can be secured to them. And due
limits set to the last, that no man may have an unlimited power over
his fellow-subjects, to the ruin of both life and estate.

All which I humbly conceive might be brought to pass by the
following method, to which I give the title of


A COURT OF INQUIRIES.