Epist. 141. To Friends, to gather up their Sufferings and lay them before the Judges. 1657.

[Too long for insertion after the former: it advises, by implication, that Copies go to the king also.]

Epist. 148. An exhortation to fervent prayer and steadfast faith in time of the greatest troubles and exercises: 1657.

"O my dear Friends and brethren every where, Let all your cries and prayers be to the Lord in singleness of heart, in his Spirit and power, and in belief in God, through Christ, to receive what ye pray for! For the Lord's ears are open to the cries of his poor and afflicted ones: So, day and night let your cries be to him, who will keep you in all distresses. For in your afflictions Christ is afflicted; and in all your imprisonments, he is imprisoned, and in all your sufferings he suffereth, and in all your persecutions he is persecuted. Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me, said Christ. And be moderate and chaste in all your families; and in all your imprisonments keep in the Fast to the Lord, which breaks down the bond of iniquity; by which [abstinence from fleshly indulgence] every one's health groweth. And ye may also see how Christ Jesus encourages to pray [Mark xiii, 33: Luke xi, 5-13, and xviii, 1-8, recited]. Here mind the promise of Christ, that doth not change, but will be fulfilled.

:

"And Christ distinguishes, in a parable, of a Pharisee (who was a public-praying man) and of a Publican, that stood afar off and cried for mercy which, being in the fear, was more justified than the Pharisee who was in the public praying: So, pray in the Spirit and in the Faith, nothing wavering nor doubting. And seek and watch in the Spirit, every one in your measures that ye have received, and therein to be preserved and Christ the Life will open to you, and the Spirit will give you an understanding, and a distinction, of the state of asking and not receiving, and seeking and not finding; and the praying in the wavering and in the doubting, which is not in the Spirit of God. But such ask in that nature which doubts, and would consume it on their lusts. So, ask in faith, that gives the victory over the wavering, doubting nature: And whatsoever ye ask, believing, it will be given unto you. It is Christ's promise, John xiv, 13, 14, 15 [recited]. So, every one's prayers are assured unto them, and their requests effectual, in their obedience, and loving Christ, and keeping his commandments. G. F."

Epist. 153. To Friends beyond sea, that have blacks, and Indian Slaves. 1657.

[An appeal in behalf of the slaves to the doctrine of the Universality of God's love to mankind; and an exhortation to masters, to have the mind of Christ, and be merciful. His interest in the religious welfare of the blacks and other coloured people, appears in many parts of his Journal: he held Meetings, at different times, with such as he met with, and encouraged Friends to do the like: See his Journal (in an Epistle) p. 658.]

(To be continued.)

ELCOCK, PRINTER, PONTEFRACT.

ART. I.-A Chronological Summary of events and circumstances connected with the origin and progress of the doctrine and practices of the Quakers.

A. D.

Continued from p. 363.

John Richardson performs a Religious visit to Friends in 1700-1. America and the West Indies.

The Journal, or account of the Life, of this Friend (a Yorkshireman in the middle rank of life) exhibits no ordinary character, and is furnished with many instructive incidents and reflections. He was turned out of doors for his Religion by his step-father, a rigid Presbyterian; he choosing to adhere to quakerism, in which he had been born and bred. He was highly spiritual in his views, and quite a 'prophet: ' but industrious, upright and independent—and his ministry seems to have been attended with a large measure of power and effect. I have only room for an extract or two, of occurrences in this his first visit (for he made a second in 1731) to Friends in those parts. He embarked the 17th of the Ninth Month 1700, in company with several others. On going aboard a ship in the Thames with some Friends, to enquire and consider about a passage, he declared that he saw nothing but death and darkness there, and that he must not go in her. They selected another vessel-and the rejected one was lost, going out, and about seventy people drowned. The Friends arrived safe, after a tedious passage, in Patuxent river, Maryland.

"Now we left the ship and master, who was but a churlish, ill-natured man. I was very weak and low when I landed, both in body and mind, but the Lord

helped me, and made my journey and labours comfortable to many, as well as to my own soul. After the first or second Meeting we were at, John Estaugh being now my companion, as we came near a great house in Maryland, I espied a little white horse, the sight of which put me in mind of a dream I had on board the ship, before I landed, in which I thought I got a little white horse, which carried me well, and many miles; I said to Friends with me, Let us call here at this house, which we did, and upon enquiry about a horse, the man said, He had none but a little white young galloway, as he called it, which he was willing to sell, and withal told us, it carried him one day forty miles, and asked £8 sterling for it, and I bade him £5 sterling; the man's wife coming up the passage, heard what I had offered, and she said to her husband, It is enough: So I had him, and a good horse he proved, and carried me, by a moderate computation, 4000 miles. I took this, according to the nature of it, to be a singular favour from that great hand which led me forth; and hitherto hath preserved me in the land of the living to praise his ever worthy name.

"Now we set forward towards Virginia and North-Carolina, and found great openness in these two provinces amongst the people, and a tender-hearted remnant of Friends scattered abroad in these wilderness countries: Although as I said before, 1 was brought very low, yet the Lord, in whom I did, and yet do believe and put my trust, raised me, and filled many times my heart with his word and testimony; so that sometimes it went forth as a flame of fire amongst the loose libertines, who were proud and unfaithful, yet professors of the Truth; and we had many large and good Meetings. One thing is worthy of notice; as I was speaking in a Meeting in Virginia, a sudden stop came upon me, and occasioned me to say, I cannot go forward, whatsoever the matter may be, I know not; but giving over immediately, a Friend, whose name was Edward Thomas, began to preach, who was but young in the ministry, although an elderly man, and apt to be attended with reasonings; but as he said after the Meeting, he had sought to the Lord with prayers, that he would condescend so far to his request, as to give me a sense of him, and in so doing he would take that as a great strength and confirmation to his ministry, in this the day of his many exercises and great fears; or much to the same effect. Thus we see the Lord in his great mercy condescends to the low, weak, and, as it were, infant states of his children, like a tender Father; and being our heavenly High-priest, is touched with the feeling of the infirmities of his people; thanksgiving and honour be given to his most excellent name, now and for ever.

"During our stay in Virginia, one remarkable passage occurred, which it may not be amiss to insert here, and the case was thus: I being at a Friend's house, an ancient widow, in order to go to the Meeting, observed as I sate in the house, several Persons of note come into the yard (a store-house being near) to make, as appeared afterwards, a seizure for rates for the Government and Priest; they not being distinctly charged, but a mixed Rate, occasions Friends in those parts to be straitened about the payment of them: I observing the Priest to be there, and appear very busy, asked, What he was come about? The Friend replied, They were come to make Distress for the 40lb. per Poll, as they phrase it, which is 40 Pounds of Tobacco, payable for every taxable Head, (i. e. all above sixteen years old.) There were along with the Priest the Sheriff and Constable, for the Government, and divers Merchants of note as spectators; I understanding the reason of their coming, stept out to the Priest, who seemed a topping brisk man, his temper in this case not unsuitable to his name, which was Sharp; and being come to him, I desired him to be careful how he devoured widows' houses; he briskly replied, He did not; to which I as closely returned, That I found he did. He denied my assertion, and said, The Government gave him what he demanded and took; to which I gave the following answer: Inasmuch as he did not any thing for the widow, for which he reasonably might require a reward, I believed the Government would not insist upon it for him, if he would be willing to drop

it, which in common equity I thought he should. The Priest, displeased with this modest reply, tartly answered, You are no Christians. I told him, The charge was high, and false, and he might more easily affirm than prove it; wherefore I put the question and asked him, Why we were so charged by him? To which he returned this insignificant answer, That we denied part of the divinity of Christ! I told him, He was a novice, and receded in his opinion from most of his brethren; seeing it was a general reflection cast on us by most of his fraternity, That we owned the divinity of Christ, but denied his manhood, which was false also; therefore I demanded of him, to prove what part of the divinity of Christ we denied; in which if he failed, I should look upon him as a false accuser, and those present would, I hoped, be my witnesses: But he shuffled, and declined answering, though I urged him as much as possible; and to cut the matter off, he asked, Whence I came? (The Sheriff bid him give me a verse in Greek ; told him, I mattered not meddling in that, for as the English tongue was best understood by those present, therefore I thought it would be best to keep to it.) I told him, I was of Old England; but still reminded him of proving his assertion, which I looked for from him; but instead of that, he asked, What part of Old England I came from? I told him from Yorkshire; and bid him produce his proofs, as before urged, but he still evading the matter, desired to know from what place? I told him I was born at North Cave; And, said he, I was born at South Cave, and my father was Minister there many years, his name was Sharp, and there is but a mile difference betwixt those places: I said, It was a long one. No sooner was this over, but the Priest, transported with my being his countryman, began hugging me to such a degree, that I was quite ashamed of him: When I had, not without some difficulty, got clear of his embraces, I asked him, If he esteemed himself a Minister of Christ? He answered, yea, and lawfully called thereto; I told him, If he was a gospel-minister, as the gospel was free, so should his ministry be free; and turning to the people there present, I told them, I would not have them deceived, for they might understand he only possessed his place by virtue of a law in that case provided; and his call and ordination was only such as had been transferred upon him for a fee, which made him require pay for what he did, and indeed where he did nothing, which was highly unfair; wherefore they might upon consideration find he was but a minister of the letter, which was dead, and not a minister of the spirit and Divine power: From which he offered not to clear himself, though I urged him thereto. Then I asked him, Which of those odious characteristicks the false ministers were branded with, and deciphered by in the New Testament, he could clear himself of? which I then enumerated to him. The Sheriff said, It was so; and withal said, 'Mr. Sharp, answer the man, for the question is very rational, and you ought to answer him; and for honour-sake clear yourself of those odiums if you can.' But he would not offer to meddle with it; wherefore I told him, To mind for the future, not to charge any man or people with more than he could be sure to prove; for it was highly scandalous. It being now Meeting-time, I asked him to go thither; but he refusing, said, he durst not; so we parted."

Although I have done with Keith's case, it may not be amiss here to shew, further, how our Ministers in America were treated by him in his Church-mission thither; and how they sometimes replied: but I will first shew what place John Richardson had with his Friends at home, and what he thought of the gift he had, and exercised.

"After a large Yearly-meeting, where were many able Ministers, worthy William Penn, who was one of them, taking me aside, said, 'The main part of the service of this day's work went on thy side, and we saw it, and were willing and easy to give way to the truth, though it was through thee, who appears but like a shrub; and it is but reasonable the Lord should make use of whom he pleases: Now, methinks, thou mayst be cheerful.' From which I gathered, that he thought

I was too much inclinable to be cast down; therefore I gave him this true answer, I endeavour to keep in a medium, out of all extremes, as believing it to be most agreeable to my station; with this remark, the worst of my times rather imbitter the best to me: William shook his head, and said with much respect, There are many who steer this course besides thee, and it is the safest path for us to walk in; with several other expressions which bespoke affection.

"This worthy man, and minister of the gospel, notwithstanding his great endowments and excellent qualifications, yet thought it his place to stoop to and give way to the truth, and let the holy testimony go through whom it might please the Lord to empower and employ in his work; although it might be through contemptible instruments. I sincerely desire this may prove profitable to those whom it may concern, and into whose hands it may come, that the Lord's work may be truly minded, and given way unto, when it is opened; for seeing no man can open it, let not any strive on the man's part to shut the same. I have at times seen something of this nature, which hath not been altogether to my satisfaction; a word to the wise may serve, I would hope, and may be sufficient for a caution: for what I have written is in the love of God, and under a concern that hath been upon my mind at times, for some years, to leave behind me a gentle caution to my tender Friends of both sexes, to have an especial care in all things to recommend not only their gifts, but their demeanour in them, as also their conversations after them, to every man's conscience in the sight of God; so that you may build up the Lord's house (like the wise woman.) And always have a great care, that nothing you say or do may any way tend to the hinderance of the Lord's work, or discourage the weakest in the flock of Christ; but labour to fasten every stake, and strengthen every cord of Sion, and as much as you are capable, build up the Tabernacle in Jerusalem; for as God is a spirit, and the soul of man is a spiritual existence, and as the the soul and body of man become sanctified and prepared, as a temple for the Lord by his holy spirit to tabernacle in, the Lord is to such as a sanctuary to fly to, and rest in, from heats and from storms: here is the true church's rock, and place of defence (to wit) the name and power of the mighty God. Oh! that all the inhabitants of the earth were acquainted with this name, and rock of defence, they would not then be so much overcome, as they are, with the power of the enemy of the soul; but would live above his region, which is in the earth, or rather in the earthly hearts of men. All you who have escaped the pollutions of the world, keep in your tents, until the Lord moves and leads forward, and opens the way; sometimes as in a wilderness.

"Read, and understand from whence these things have their rise and original; for there is the Church's safety, and its comeliness too in abiding in the truth; this is your place of safety, where the enemy has no power, where the wiles of Satan and inventions of man cannot reach. No inchantment hath power over these, renowned be the great name of the Lord now and for ever!

"How comfortable, how easy and pleasant are even all the books and testimonies, and exhortations, that are given forth in the spirit, love and life of Christ! Yea, the very company and conversation of such who are preserved in the life, becomes a sweet savour of divine life to the living. There is edification, comfort and consolation, a strengthening and building up one of another in the most holy and precious faith! So that I find the truly quickened soul taketh great delight to resort to, and as much as may be, converse with the awakened and truly quickened souls; who take up the cross of Christ daily, and follow him in the way of selfdenial, although it be a way that is much spoken against, by such who know not the nature and discipline of the holy cross, and despise such who are the true followers of Christ. To feel this essential virtue, seed or leaven of the kingdom, or salt of the covenant (Christ) to work so effectually to the restoring of the powers and faculties of the soul, into the first rectitude and purity, that all the malignity may be thoroughly purged out, with all the dross or tin, which defileth the man, and makes him unfit for the kingdom and service of God, is a great work.