who to hide his own Deceit laboureth to represent an innocent Act as if it were deceit And so much in answer to his Falshoods and Misrepresentations contained in his Preface XIV page 1. In the beginning of his Book he telleth a great Falshood viz. That the publishing the Breach made in Pensilvania seems designed to gratifie the Adversaries of Truth For the design of its publishing was only to bear our faithful Testimony against the vile Anti-christian Errors boldly maintained by some there and cloaked by others and in Vindication of our Innocency which they of the other side had laboured to defame XV. page 2. He most falsly and injuriously chargeth me with a slight of the Spirits Teachings For I greatly honour and value the Spirits Teachings but the false and vain Pretensions of ignorant Persons to the Spirits Teachings I disown and witness against as the true Prophets did witness against the false Pretences of the false Prophets who said thus saith the Lord when the Lord had not spoke unto them XVI page 2. He falsly chargeth me That my charge against some Preachers in Pensilvania is couched in bare generals But in Contradiction to himself within a few Lines he acknowledgeth the Particulars wherewith I did charge them viz. That T. Fitswater had accused me For denying the Sufficiency of the Light because I said as was alledged by the four Evidences That the Light within was not sufficient without something else Now if this be matter of just Accusation against me it must to them be a false Assertion and the contradictory Assertion must be true viz. That the Light within is sufficient to Salvation without any thing else which most evidently excludes the Person of Christ viz. His Manhood Death and Sufferings and shedding of his precious Blood and Intercession for us in Heaven all which are something else than the Light within But whereas he saith may it not seem strange that I who had been among them Twenty Eight Years and most of the Time a Preacher and a Vindicator of them should not discover this viz. That some among them were guilty of vile Errors But to this it is easily answered I had but a very few Years or rather Months been among them in Pensilvania when I had discovered some among them guilty of vile Errors and laboured much among them in love to recover them which was not without Success to some though others were hardened And for the Time I was among the People called Quakers before I came into America mostly in Scotland my Native Country and sometimes in England and elsewhere it is well known to some now alive in this City that many years ago I had discovered some here in England guilty of some gross Errors such as of late I had discovered in Pensilvania and had also complained of them and diverse Meetings were had where my Complaint was heard and these Meetings giving due and impartial Judgment in the Case and standing up for the Truth and putting to silence these Men for that time this made things quiet and prevented a breach and had these to whom I complained in Pensilvania done the like Justice there they might have prevented the breach that happened therefore the guilt of it lyeth at their door and especially upon S. J. who has been a principal Defender and Upholder of the Persons guilty of those vile Errors But what if I did not discover the Errorâ— that I find too many guilty of now both in America and here also in Europe not having had the opportunity of intitimate Communication with them by verbal Conference perhaps not one of a hundred nor having read very many of Friends Books in those former days But since our Differences began in America this hath given me 〈◊〉 occasion both of verbal Conference with many and also of more frequent reading in Friends Books than formerly and upon the whole I can say I find the whole Doctrine asserted by me in all particulars well confirmed out of Friends Books even in those things wherein I have been contradicted by some both in America and here in England and am able to prove all the parts of Doctrine asserted by me out of the Holy Scripture and Friends Books though I must needs also acknowledge that by some others it is contradicted in some other Books for which cause I did judge and I still so do that diverse Books among us need Correction in diverse Places because they both contradict the Holy Scriptures in some Places and also they contradict the Books and printed Testimonies of other Friends and these palpable Contradictions have done and will do great hurt until corrected both to weak Friends and other friendly People tending to darken some and stumble others XVII page 2. His false Prophesie or Presumption concerning me which he saith he believes a very little time will try or discover as also his false Insinuation against me That I am not real in my professing my being in dear Vnity with all faithful Friends or that any thing of my Deportment hath discovered the contrary For I have differed with none here or elsewhere but so far as they have differed from Truth and if I remain in Unity with the Truth as I do and he nor any else cannot prove the contrary I remain in Unity with all the faithful Friends of it Nor do I judge that every small difference in Judgment doth break the Unity of faithful Friends when Sincerity and the Love of the Truth is kept to in the main XVIII page 3. His falsely asserting the sufficiency of W. Stockdales Evidence against me who was notoriously known to be a prejudiced Person by his falsly accusing me Of being guilty of Preaching two Christs which Sam. Jennings hath been forced to confess was proved against him and accordingly gave at last a Judgment against him though it was as an Abortive out of due Season XIX His perverting my words saying Divers present cleared him viz. G. K. that they heard him both then and at all occasions that he delivered his Mind on that Subject always bear his Testimony to the sufficiency of the Light to Salvation But this he makes so great a difficulty or impossibility viz. to prove a Negative most perversely arguing or rather quiâ—ling How could they hear him at all times when he delivered his Mind on that Subject But my words do plainly enough bare this sense That they heard me at all such times when W. Stockdale heard me to wit either in publick Meetings where some of them were always present at Philadelphia or at that Meeting at the House of S. Carp where and when he did falsâ—ly so accuse me And if a Negative Evidence be to S. J. such a difficulty or impossibility How is it that he is put to bring a negative Evidence to prove he was not drunk in East Jersey See page 69. May it not be replyed to him Was that Person always with him and had such a perfect knowledge
us to be is extreamly false and abusive It was but little I said in defence of my and our Christian Testimony much of our time was spent in silent waiting upon the Lord a thing little practised amongst them and when I or any other declared in our meetings it was generally in a Doctrinal way and sometimes in way of Exhortation without medling with personal Reflections 15. Their alledging that the several established meetings in the 3 Provinces have disowned me is a fallacy and perversion like the former for only their Faction in these 3 Provinces have so done but many Friends still own me in all the 3 Provinces and have their established meetings 16. Their saying I hurried all on a start for England is also false for I had made it known to many long before I went away and dâ—d it with great deliberation having intended for England before the separation began And Lastly their charging me with great Apostacy and persecuting Christ in his followers I reject as false and most properly belonging to them who have been active some of the chiefest of them and especially 〈◊〉 in persecuting us both with Tongue and Hands and the rest approving them in so doing And thus I have answered to most of the things contained in their said Paper and Postscript they call The present Case truly stated c. and which was teâ—d at the Yearly meeting at London 1694. But it doth not appear by that called A true account of the Proceedings of the Yearly Meeting that they gave any great credit to it nor do they pass any such sentence against me as to Judge me Apostate nor confirm the false Judgments given cut in Pensilvania and elsewhere against me but owned me in Fellowship with them and when I prayed at an appointed meeting in the upper Room in Grace-Church-street-Meeting-house when many or most of the Ministring Friends of the Yearly Meeting were present they generally Joined with me in being discovered when I prayed which if they had Judged me to be an Apostate to be sure they would not have done and at the Yearly meeting many of the Ministry declared they were refreshed and comforted in my Testimony I did bear among them and took me kindly by the hand after meeting all which sufficiently prove the Yearly Meeting did not Judge me worthy of that Character which this scurrilous Paper I have now answered doth seem to fix on me Yea and after that Friends at London had heard of the separation in their Letters to us writing particularly to George Hutcheson and me as well as to Thomas Lloid and Sam. Jennings they call us Dear Friends and Brethren and declare their dissatisfaction with our denying one another as the Letters I have to produce do sufficiently shew But that they insinuate it as a Reason of their not Printing against me page 24. about the middle of the page hoping say they to have somewhat thereby kept this unhappy difference from being made more publick by us as much as in us lay and as well aswe could This I proved to be a notorious Falshood at the yearly Meeting by producing a Letter of John Delawal one of their chief Persons that gave out that Paper called The present Case truly stated c. signed with his own Hand which was then read where he gives the reason of their not printing against me That they had not an impartial Printer which if they had they would have printed against me His words are expresly these If there had been an impartial Printer here thy scurrility and notorious Calumnies against us who never merited it from thee would long e're this have been detected the date of his Letter is Philadelphia 2d 11th Month 1692. Beside it is manifest Hypocrisie in them to say they hoped to have kept this unhappy difference from being made more publick by them as much as in them lay and as long as they could when on the contrary as much as in them lay they made it publick all ways imaginable Printing excepted and that because of their prejudice against the Printer by causing and in most Places forcing this false Judgment of theirs to be read and published against us in all the Meetings of the three Provinces and sending Copies of it far and near to remote Places and over to England which arrived before any of our printed Books and by causing a Proclamation to be read against me at the Market Plâ—ce and many other malicious and invective Papers and Letters in Manuscripts they sent out against me to Berbadoes Jamaica Virginia New England and Old England which I never saw and as I oft told them their manner of fighting against me was like the Indians that skulk behind Tâ—eâ—s and shoot at Men in the open Field for most of their work against me was by a clandestine way of back-biting me and calumniating me by false Stories Lyes and Forgeries a most shameful Libel and bundle of them being read against me at the yearly Meeting last at London without any Name to them at which some in the Meeting said it was a shame that such a shameless Libel should be read against me XLIII page 28. In his following Pages from 28 to 31 for want of Matter he but repeateth the same things formerly mentioned by him for most part and which I have so fully answered I need not spend time nor Paper to repeat my Answers to them But that he saith the two Friends appointed from the Meeting to visit me viz. himself and Griffith Owen desired me to be present at the next Meeting I utterly deny to be true and as he hath none to prove it to be true so I have some to prove it to be false who were present so far as a negative can be proved there having been three present who all declared they heard no such thing one of them being now in England the other two in America My taking occasion to be out of Town as alledged by him to slight the Meeting is another gross falshood for I went out of Town upon my necessary Occasion having no knowledge either of the particular time or place of their Meeting His Complaint against the Judgment concerning W.S. page 30. is invalid for he refused to come being sent for and in Town and beside the Judgment was very moderate concerning him they neither denying his Ministry nor Christiâ—nity but desiring him to desist from exercising his Gift till he did own his Error c. And his Complaint against the judgment of our yearly Meeting at Burlington is as invalid for they had sufficient notice by our printed Appeal and the Messengers that we sent to them from time to time which they rejected Beside that at that time they neither owned our Judicatory nor we theirs XLIV page 30. That he saith the yearly Meeting at London hath determined it viz. That the Separation lyeth at my door his meaning being that by their Judgment the only fault of it lyeth
A FURTHER DISCOVERY Of the SPIRIT of Falshood Persecution IN Sam. Jennings And his Party that joyned with him in Pensilvania and some Abettors that cloak and defend him here in England In Answer to his scandalous Book called The State of the Case IN Order to this further Discovery I think fit to follow this Method First to set down in order the grossest Falshoods and Untruths I find in his Book and for which he giveth no other Proof but his and their bare Affirmation who are his Confederates which ought to be of no Authority or Credit with them who know him and them to be our prejudiced Adversaries in the Case and whom I can and doubt not to prove both him and them guilty of affirming diverse gross falshoods in this following Treatise and for brevity sake to give little other Answer to many of the whole Summ Number or Tale of them but this That they are gross downright Falshoods Fictions and Forgeries of his and their devising hatch'd and invented by him and them whereby as with so many Fig-leaves to cover his and their Nakedness And as I go along to answer particularly to his seeming Reasons so far as they may seem to weak and unwary Readers to be some sort of covering to him and his Party and his particular Charges against me so far as they seem to contain any thing of Truth in them in matter of Fact briefly to reply unto For the first some of the grossest downright Falshoods and Untruths Fictions and Forgeries asserted by him are these in order following I. That he saith in his Title page The state of the Case impartially given c. he had said more truly The state of the Case partially falsly and perversly given c. II. That some few have been seduced by me into a separation c. but on the contrary I have not seduced any but have been made an Instrument of God for which I desire to praise him to preserve many and to recover some from being deceived III. That we are backsliders and have reproached and abused him This is his own Character and not ours IV. That he might have made his Innocency his Sanctuary But instead of that he maketh Falshoods and Fictions his Sanctuary V. That I said to him That it was not for any love I had to him that I had sought his Friendship c. This I solemnly declare is utterly false and I acknowledge I did love him and still love him as I ought to love my Enemies but the bond of brotherly love he himself broke it and not I. VI. That I flatter to gain him to my Party This is false VII That I consult the old Proverb Throw Dirt enough and some will stick This most truly belongs to himself VIII That it's matter of Malice and not Conscience that hath occasioned me to appear against him But my appearing against him was only in my just defence and what I have said or Printed against him respecting some former Passages of his Life before he appeared an unjust Adversary against me were such as I had not the full knowledge and certainty of them before and beside they were of that natâ—â—e or quality that had it not been for his intolerable Pride and Arrogancy as well as Injustice in charging me â—hen Innocent of what he was most guilty himself they might have been buried even with them that knew him to be guilty more than I did and it might have been hoped that he had repented of such things but he proceeding to shew himself worse then formerly not amending but more degenerating might give just occasion in our just defence to let him know what sort of Captain these twenty seven false Judges had chosen to follow in that unjust War they had undertaken His Argumentum ad hominem sheweth him as ignorant in fair Reasoning as he knoweth himself to be in the Latin Tongue which yet he would make some shew of as if he skilled it for his transferring my Complaint against Arthur Cook citing Reasons and Causes of the Separation page 18. to his Complaint against me is not paraâ—lel nor equal But so heedless he is in what he writes as in what he saith that he miscites the Book for that Complaint of mine against Arthur Cook is not in Reasons and Causes c. but in the Plea of the Innocent that was in Answer to his and his Brethrens Paper of false Judgment against me for my Complaint against A. C. was That he transgrest Gospel Order in concealing a matter so many years and then bringing it forth against me while I was in the same Profession of Church Membership with them when he so accused me and the matter it self was also false But what I blamed Sam. Jennings for with respect to some years past was only in way of my just defence and was most properly Argumentum ad hominem it being most unreasonable in him to require an absolute Submission from me in the greatest matters of Faith and Conscience when he refused to submit in some worldly matters and I made not this Complaint against him in my just defence until by his and his Parties false Judgment given out against me We were no more of one Society and it stands well consistent with Scripture That if a Man depart from his Righteousness not only his former Righteousness is to be forgotten but his former Vnrighteousness may be justly remembred against him IX That the noise we make of Persecution he doubts not but the Reader will find by what follows is a sham and abuse put upon the World And I refer it to the Impartial Reader whether this his Book be not a sham put upon the World and whether the Sufferings we did undergo for matters purely of Conscience were not really Persecution as much as what many Friends have suffered here in England in former times That he saith page 3. of his Preface How can any thing deserve to be called a Suffering or Persecution that is so much desired and sought for sheweth him extreamly ignorant what true Suffering is and that he is better acquainted with the Spirit of Persecution than with the Spirit of Suffering and also that he is little conversant either in Scripture or Church History for Christ the Prophets Apostles and Martyrs not only desired to suffer for Righteousness sake knowing the Blessedness that belonged to that State but rejoyced at their Suffering not simply for the Suffering but that God might be honoured and the Truth advanced nor did they desire Suffering in any evil will towards Persecutors but prayed for them as so I have done and have them for my Example X. That my and our greatest Suffering from the Government was That we could not provoke them to do more against us This is utterly false we neither gave them just Provocation nor desired to provoke them XI That our Crimes were so gross and enormous as no other Government would have been guilty of
particular he knoweth in his consience how Tho. Lloid hath defended and justified John Hemphrey from time to time in his Antichristian assertion that he was grieved to hear some say they expected to be justified by that blood that was shed at Jerusalem which most evidently proveth that neither J. Hâ—â—er Tho. Lloid did believe it was necessary for them to have that faith that we are Justified by that blood Yea S. Jennings his charging me with an inconsistency in my two Assertions the one being that the light within is sufficient to salvation the other being that the light within is not sufficient to salvation without something else I having always declared that by that something else I mean the Man Christ Jesus and his Death and Sufferings Blood Resurrection and Intercession c. doth sufficiently prove him guilty that he doth not believe it necessary to his salvation that Christ died for him for if the light within be sufficient to salvation without the Death of Christ â—hich is a part of that something else understood by me then it is not necessary to our salvation to believe that Christ died for us and the Death of Christ hath no part or share in our salvation by this his Antichristian assertion But now in reference to the question as stated by him he alledging that I have affirmed that this faith is indispensibly necessary to all viz. in order to eternal salvation to believe in Christ as he died for us and rose again I freely own it that I have so Affirmed and do still so affirm but however that was neither the only nor the principal question or matter of Debate betwixt Th. Lloid and me but a second branch of the question occasionally happening that at sometimes was also discoursed betwixt us But as concerning the indispensible necessity of Faith in Christ as he died for us and rose again as universally necessary to salvation how and in what sense I have affirmed I have fully explained in divers of my late printed books relating to our late differences where I have distinguished betwixt the express or explicite knowledg and faith of Christ's Death in order to eternal salvation and the implicite knowledge and faith of it asserting this last but not the first as universally and indispensibly necessary And in this my Christian Testimony as I agree with the Holy Scriptures and all my former books notwithstanding of the Insinuations of some ignorant prejudiced persons against me so with the Printed Books and Testimonies of divers friends of good Repute among the people called Quakers and with the General Doctrine of all moderate Christian VVriters throughout Christendom See my aforesaid Explication of my Assertion particularly in my Two late Printed Treatises the one called Truth and Innocency defended from page 10. to page 20. where I largely open the said distinction of faith in Christ explicit and implicit and also my other called Heresie and Hatred page 13. As for what he objecteth concerning the strange Notion of the Revolution of humane souls and his insinuation of my countenancing it having so fully answered to it in the Two aforementioned Treatises in Print to which I refer I need say nothing here further than to tell him and also to inform the Reader that his thinking or insinuation that my holding the faith of Christ's Death indispensibly necessary to all that shall be saved doth oblige me to held that all to whom that faith is not outwardly preached or who have not the outward means or outward opportunity of receiving it must needs live again by Revolution in order to have it preached unto them otherwise they cannot be saved doth sufficiently prove him extreamly ignorant and that he hath neither the true faith nor a true Notion of the sufficiency of the Light within And howbeit he laboureth in his Prejudice and Enmity to represent me as one undervaluing the sufficiency of the Light within it plainly appeareth Ioâ—n the sufficiency of the Light within more than he doth or any of his Party who thus do falsly accuse me for I say as I have oft formerly said the Light within in the highest sense being God and Christ the Eternal Word and the Spirit in every man is sufficient to reveal and give the Knowledge and Faith of Christ as he died for all men and rose again unto all men without all outward means of outward Preaching or Reading and consequently without the Revolutions of Humane Souls for even Such who favour the Revolution of Humane Souls as a probable Hypothesis do it not upon that supposition as if the Light within were insufficient to give the Knowledge and Faith of Christ without as well as within for the sufficiency of the Light within hath not a dependance upon the Revolutions nor upon any outward means of Preaching Hearing or Reading Insomuch therefore that Sam. Jennings doth suppose that to affirm the Faith of Christ's Death to be indispensibly necessary to salvation to all that shall be eternally saved is to infer the necessity of the Revolution of Humane Souls And also that he doth positively affirm that many have not the means opportunity or capacity to know or receive it which he saith will include a great part of Mankind From this it plainly followeth that he thinketh the Light within is not sufficient or able to reveal or give that Knowledge or Faith of Christ's Death which I affirm it is being God the Word and the Spirit and therefore I have a better belief of the sufficiency of the Light within than he hath or his Party that is joyned with him against my Christian Testimony and to say the Light within is not sufficient as fully to reveal and give the Knowledge and Faith of Christ's Death without as of his Life within is a degree of Blasphemy against God who is that Light within and soundeth as harsh and offensive to Christian Ears as to say God is not sufficient to reveal or give to all men the Knowledge and Faith of Christ's Death by Internal Revelation without all outward means of Instruction which yet I think no sound Christian will dare to affirm But as I have oft said it is one thing what God who is Light and is in all men is sufficient or able to do who is able of stones to raise up children to Abraham and who can work by his Spirit when where how and in whom he pleaseth even without outward means whether in Infants or deaf and dumb persons or in them that never heard the Fame of Christ with their outward Ears and it is another thing what he is pleased to do in his ordinary way of working But it ought well to be considered that our full and perfect salvation depends not wholly upon what God either can or pleaseth to reveal in us but also in great part upon what the Man Christ hath done and suffered for us on Earth especially in dying and shedding his precions Blood for us and his interced on
falsly he saith he will do candidly cautiously and truly the general cause of this unhappy breach and difference The General Cause saith he I take to be an unbounded Ambition in G. K. But he gives no proof of this his unchristian and uncharitable assertion and therefore I return it on him as false and fictitious XXXIV His perversion in making it a Crime in me to have some Religious Controversie with some called Preachers in New England and challenging some of them to dispute with me alledging that I managed it with great Heat and Rage and common Insâ—lts when I thought I had advantage designing Victory and Vain Glory rather than Edification And of this he brings no proof but his bare Authority he being then in New England with me But he should have brought either some of my Words or Actions to prove me guilty of his charge which he not doing proves him to be evidently guilty of deep Prejudice as well as gross Hypocrisie for he being with me and judging me so guilty as he alledgeth he was unfaithful in not admonishing me seasonably which he cannot justly say that he ever did all that time we were together but professed great Unity with me And for my book of Controversie against some Preachers at Boston in New England called The Presbyterian and Independent Visible Churches brought to the Test c. before it was printed the most of it if not all of it was read in his hearing and in nothing disapproved by him and was generally approved by all that heard it read being an appointed Number of them called Friends of the Ministry the which book was so well accepted by Friends at London and over England that it being Re-printed at London most of them were sold and many Friends bought of them and tho I have heard divers both in City and Country speak well of it I have not heard any shew the least dissatisfaction against it yea divers of the professing people in N. England spake well of it and tho I used some sharp Words towards some Preachers at Boston who did too much justifie the Persecution raised against Friends in N. E. yet as any that have a spiritual savour to judg who read my book will say I writ with great moderation and sincere expressions of Love and charity towards many of the people and I think I can say it without Vanity few have exceeded me in moderation in my way of writing Controversie among the people called Quakers But if seeking to dispute with persons of other Professions be an argument of Vain Glory by the same way of Arguing he maketh some of the best Account of the Speakers among the people called Quakers equally guilty And that he saith how little it redounded to Truth 's advantage he is a witness he being then in N. E. with me If it be enough to make a man guilty by the single Evidence of a prejudiced Adversary he hath hit the Mark but if otherwise he only sheweth his Enmity and Prejudice But that my Labour in N. E. was not without success there are at this day in N. E. who will bear witness to it as also the Certificate I had from the Meeting in Rhode Island declaring the Vnity they had with me and the great benefit they had by my labour of love among them which Certificate I can produce but the witness of God in my conscience hath always been unto me and ever shall be more than all witness of men and is a sufficient defence unto me against this prejudiced adversary and others of his Stamp XXXV page 13 14. His falsly accusing me of a Spirit of Wrath and Bitterness and hating my Brother c. But sharp Words of Reproof against them to whom they duely belong are no Argument of Hatred or that I had not then or now have not the true Love of God in my Heart For let my books in these late differences as well as any others be compared with most of the Friends books that have writ against Adversaries and it will be found they have generally exceeded me in sharp Words and how far Sam. Jennings and his Party have exceeded me in sharp Words the printed sheet called An Expostulation c. doth sufficiently prove And tho sharp words of Reproof be no infallible Argument of Hatred or of an unchristian Spirit yet to be sure Persecution in fining or imprisoning men for matters of conscience is whereof S. Jen. hath shewed Himself sufficiently guilty and who hath discovered Himself Esau-like not only by his threatning words but by his rough hands XXXIV His unjustly complaining against me for my just complaint of too great a laxiness of Church-Discipline among them and my presenting a Paper to Ministring Friends in order to have it amended But he mentions nothing wherein that Paper is reprovable and until He or some for Him can shew the default of it his blaming me for it is but another Instance and Evidence of his Prejudice and Enmity against me XXXVII His unjustly accusing me of impeaching as he terms it Friends Testimony and way of preaching publickly as well as privately And what could I do less hearing so frequently such false Doctrine preached and the Scriptures so grosly perverted to the publick Scandal of Strangers that were not of our Profession Nor was I forward to do any such thing but very sparingly and modestly did at times correct their false Doctrine and most of the Opposition that ever I shewed to them in publick was in defence of the Truth of the Christian Doctrine and Testimony I did bear which they did boldly contradict and I dealt orderly with them by private Admonition which they rejected And when after I made my complaint to them called Friends of the Ministry they did not regard it so as to pass any due censure upon the guilty as is sufficiently made apparent in my former printed books as well as from what is in this before-mentioned XXXVIII page 15. His accusing me of tedious dry and insipid Discourses in their Meetings at Philadelphia is as false as it is improper for him so to accuse me for how can it be expected that such a professed Adversary and open Persecutor will speak well of me But when the Jews accused our blessed Lord of Blasphemy I need not think strange that Sam. Jennings accuseth me But for dry and insipid disccurses he may take it home to himself for very many affirm it to be true of himself and how an open Persecutor that rather glorieth in his Wickedness than repents of it can have any other Ministry but dry insipid yea and burdening is easie to judge and which some have judged him for and some that have been too much prejudiced against me yet have disliked him that they have publickly disowned his Prayer But however I may be to him and some like him a favour of Death as the true Ministers of Christ were to some formerly yet to such as have Salt in
in S.J. to accuse me for calling one Rascal who was guilty of vile Blasphemy whereas he called an honest Friend viz. John Smith several times Rascal Rascally Fellow and worse than an Infidel without any Just Provocation as J.S. hath declared in print See page 21. of the Tryal As for the words they alledge I said Cut me in Collops fry me eat me he is most unfair and partial in not telling the occasion which was their extreme threatning me with their Magistratical Power and saying I deserved to be punished thinking to put me in fear but I feeling great boldness and courage given me uttered some such words remembring yea and mentioning at that very time the like words of the Martyr Laâ—rentius cited in Fox's Book of Martyrs and why should this be supposed a Crime in me which was judged a Vertue in him and G.F. in his Journal page 86. declareth That after some of the rude multitude had beat him on his Head Aims and Shoulders c. stretching out his Arms among them he said with a loud Voice Strike again here are my Arms my Head and my Cheeks But this according to S.J. his way of Reasoning could be no persecution that G. F. suffered because he so much desired it as to bid them strike again See page 3. of S.J. his book Sam. Jennings doth further bewray his great ignorance and perverseness in making it a Crime in me that after I had given some of them some hard words which were but their due I should say I was like our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ comparing my self to a Dove a Lamb while I thus appeared as he alledgeth in a great transport of heat and passion For are not all the Followers of the Lord Jesus like him whereof I am one And he hath not nor can prove the contrary that I am not and all his Followers are compared in Scripture to Doves and Lambs which may well consist with great warmth of Christian Zeal against vile Errors and wicked Practices whereof S. J. and his party were guilty and of which they have shewed no Repentance But suppose I had bewrayed at that time some sinful passion on great provocation doth that prove me that I did not belong to Christ or had nothing of the true Nature of a Christian alive in me Surely if every sinful passion unchristian men Sam. Jennings and his party have fully unchristianed themselves But let the Impartial judge whether Sam. Jennings or I be most unlike the true Christian I for giving him and his Party only some hard words or he for not only giving me hard words but for persecuting me and others with Fines and Imprisonments for matters of conscience It is a common observation that Woolves hunt the Sheep but never that the Sheep hunt the Woolves and he that was born after the flesh as saith the Scripture did persecute him that was born after the spirit 8. Their reproaching and falsly accusing the sober and true-hearted Friends of our meeting at Philadelphia which are known by many not only to equal but to exceed most of the other side in Christian Conversation calling them Apostates But that some of the more loose sort of other Professions come to our meetings can be no fault for they generally come to all Friends meetings every where and Friends neveâ— did forbid them but rather did allow them to come hoping they might be benefitted by their coming as many have been But their calling divers sober and friendly people that came to our meetings the Rabble is neither Christ an nor prudent for it drove them away from their meetings thus acting like unskillful I iâ—hers that drive away the Fish from the Net instead of gathering them 9. The Instances I gave mentioned by S. J. pag. 24. of their not having that infallible discerning they pretended to of ones being guilty of Drunkenness another of Adultery was in answer to their falsly boasting of such an high discerning that some of them at that time laid claim unto But that ever I charged the Light within as not being able to give an infallible discerning as is insinuated I altogether deny 10. That it is alledged by them I called Thomas Everdon Hypocrite c. and yet the day before said I had good Unity with him that I called him hypocrite I own it and have sufficiently proved it in that printed sheet called False Judgments reprehended and a just Reproof to Tho. Everdon But that the day before I said I had Good Vnity with him is false for I remember well that I said having heard him declare some words in the meeting that I owned the words or matter of his Declaration at that time to be true and had Unity with the said matter but that I had Unity with his Spirit or so said I altogether deny And I return this together with many other Untruths boldly affirmed but not at all proved by him and them against me 11. His and their alledging that I left the Gallery is a gross fallacy and perversion for they drove me out of it as many can witness so that I had not room nor conveniency to stand in it by their pressing me with the strength of their bodies from the place where I stood in it which some of our Friends observing that used not to sit in the Gallery went once or twice into the Gallery to keep them off from so pressing me 12. Their saying I laugh'd at the pulling down of their Gallery is another Perversion and Abuse The case was thus One of their side said to me They were come to break down my Idol divers of them having Axes and Saws in their hand to break down the New Gallery which one of them falsly called my Idol I replied with a smiling countenance it was not my Idol 13. Their alledging that losing ground by my extream passion and ill conduct in these meetings I left them and retired to our separate meeting which is also a gross perversion and misrepresentation For as they first drove me out of the Gallery and otherwise grosly abused me in it many of them speaking to me at once by way of interruption in my peaceable Testimony tho it was not my way to interrupt them in their Declaration as many can witness so at last while I stood on the stair on the other side of the house one of their Church-members punched me with his Feet which I acquainting them with gave such dissatisfaction to some strangers present that they were like to have cast him down the stairs some crying throw him down so for Peace-sake and to prevent these disorders for time to come we left the Meeting-house to which we had equal Right with them that we might enjoy our meetings peaceably 14. Their alledging That a great part of our meeting times was spent in my personal Vindication and in rendring Friends as odious and contemptible as the Malice and Lies of the worst of our Adversaries would have