vember, being his birthday; and not long after returned to Holland with his spouse.

About the beginning of the year 1678, G Fox came to London, and the parliament sitting at that time, he and G. Whitehead presented to them an account of the grievous sufferings of their friends, by laws made against the Papists; and they were not without hopes of obtaining some ease, because several of the members of that august assembly seemed to favour them; but the parliament was suddenly prorogued, whereby a stop was put to their endeavours.

G. F. then travelling through many places, came home to Swarthmore in the latter part of the year; and since many of his friends at this time were under great persecution, and in prison, he wrote the following epistle to them:

"My dear friends,

"Who are sufferers for the Lord Jesus sake, and for the testimony of his truth, the Lord God Almighty with his power uphold you and support you in all your trials and sufferings; and give you patience, and content in his will, that ye may stand valiant for Christ and his truth upon the earth, over the persecuting and destroying spirit, which makes to suffer, in Christ (who bruises his head) in whom ye have both election and salvation. And for God's elect sake the Lord hath done much from the foundation of

the world; as may be seen throughout the Scriptures of Truth; and they that touch them, touch the apple of God's eye, they are so tender to him. And therefore it is good for all God's suffering children to trust in the Lord, and to wait upon him; for they shall be as mount Sion, that cannot be removed from Christ their rock and salvation, who is the foundation of all the elect of God, of the prophets and the apostles, and of God's people now, and to the end: glory to the Lord and the Lamb over all. Remember my dear love to all friends; and do not think the time long, for all time is in the Father's hand, his power. And therefore keep the word of patience, and exercise that gift; and the Lord strengthen you in your sufferings, in his holy Spirit of faith. Amen.

Swarthmore the 5th of the 12th month 1678.

66

'George Fox."

Persecution was now very hot in many places. At Bawnasse, in Westmoreland, it happened that those of the society called Quakers being religiously met together, were much abused by the rude people: and besides other insolencies that were committed, a dog being thrown among them, one John Thompson said to this wicked crew, that they ought to behave themselves civil and moderate; and for saying

so he was informed against as a preacher, and on that account was fined twenty pounds. Mary Tod, a poor ancient widow in Yorkshire, having had a meeting at her house, was also fined twenty pounds by justice Francis Driffield; and when the informers told him that her goods were not worth so much, he ordered them to take all that they could find: this they did, and did not leave her a bed to lie on; nay they took away all her clothes.

This year the ambassadors of the king of France, and those of the united Netherlands, with those of several other, potentates, were met in Nimeguen, to treat about a general peace; and therefore Robert Barclay wrote an epistle to them in Latin, to exhort them to this good work the epistle, together with his Apology, for the true Christian Divinity, in Latin, was delivered to each of the said ambassadors, viz. a b ok for every one of them, and one for their principals. George Fox also wrote an exhortatory epistle to them, which being translated and printed in Latin, was also sent to them. And before this year came to an end, the peace was concluded.

In the meanwhile persecution went on in England, and those that were envious did not want a specious pretence to gild their malice; for about this time a plot of the Papists being discovered, there seemed a necessity to watch

to

against seditious assemblies; insomuch, that those who had no mind to persecute, were in a manner constrained to it; of which an instance was seen in the year 1679, at Castle Dumington in Leicestershire: for John Evat having been fined for a meeting at his house, and goods enough to answer not being found, the constable, and three other officers were fined each five pounds, because they had been backward take away the said Evat's goods. But the ecclesiastics shewed themselves more covetous, to get what they pretended to be their due; and one Michael Reynolds, at Farringdon in Berkshire, was this year despoiled of cattle, barley, and beans for tithes, to the value of more than ninety seven pounds, and all this only for one year.

Thus honest men were oppressed, which gave occasion to a certain writer of that time, (who in print gave many instances of that nature) to say, truly the Papists may laugh because of their victory, now they have got a law where one Protestant fights against another. This was chiefly levelled against conventicles; for thereby many families were impoverished, because often they were robbed of thrice as much as the fine amounted to; and the basest means that could be thought of were used to enrich the persecutors with the spoil of the innocent: for it happened that four of those called Quakers

travelling on the way, this was deemed a transgressin, by adding a fifth to their number who was not of their society. And thus the informers (some of whom were often whores, or wives of informers) made a meeting of it, and this passed; so great was the power of these profligates; and on this account the goods of the said four persons were distrained. More abominable actions of that kind I could mention, if I did not think it might seem tedious. despoiling was permitted now to any naughty fellow, and this made them so insolent, that one John Hill, constable at Walsingham in Norfolk, when he was shewed the injustice of the warrant he had, said, Justice or no, I will take it for all that.

Such

At Norwich lived one William Wat, who for several years had carried on the trade of informing, but whatever he got by it turned to no account; and often he was seized with such fits of weakness, that he could not stand on his legs; but this year, in October, the hand of God fell so heavy upon him, that it put a period to his life. He had supped at night, and was as well, according to his wife's relation, as ever; but on a sudden he sunk down to the ground, and his daughter crying aloud, he seemed to look at her, and so died without more ado: but what was looked upon as a very strange thing, his corpse stunk so grievously, that none were wil