the Spirits of men and was of savour and sound judgment though in weaknesse of the man-hood expressed for he answered not mens Wisdom in excellent stile of words but the witnesse of God in sincerity of speech he was a Person of sound judgment in divine Mysteries and of good experience in the operations of the power of God and knew the passing through divers conditions of the inward man and was able to speak to many estates of man passing under the dispensations of the Grace of God he could well inform the mind of a person in an afflicted and tossed state of terrour and judgment and his Ministry was often savoury and seasonable and felt in the pure life though his words were plain and homely and no beauty in them to mans Wisdom and God made him and his service a blessing to many who shall speak for him in their own Consciences He was of a loving gentle and good disposition and acceptable was his Company to them that knew him and were like-minded a good Companion in all Conditions not soon moved into passion of either grief in Adversity or of joy in Prosperity nor had he a Spirit taking offences upon light occasions against any but watched for Good over all and not for Evil He was a man of peace and loved it and walked peaceably among his brethren in honest kind familiarity And I am perswaded in my Soul according to the experience I had of him for many years he abhorred dissention and strife among Friends and was never the real occasion intendedly by himself of any difference and dissention among brethren and what further is Truth of him I leave it to the just God whose testimony is true and never fails Among many others that were taken from Meetings and sent to Newgate according as ye have heard This same Person of whom I am now treating was in like manner rudely and violently taken on the 22th day of the 4th Month last out of a Meeting in the Bull at Aldersgate and carried before Rich. Brown who used violence to him with his own hands in pulling his Hat down upon his head so that he brought his head near the ground and then he Committed him to Newgate where he remained till the Sessions and was then Indicted among the rest for being at an unlawful Meeting c. as it is said and he being throng'd up in Prison among the rest of us it pleased the Lord to visite him with sicknesse of body and in 10 dayes space alwayes growing weaker and weaker in that time he disceased and laid down his body in peace About two dayes before his departure some of his dearest Friends went to visite him and sat by him a space and spoke somewhat to him and asked him if any thing was upon his Spirit he might now speak it to his Friends His answer was That there was no need to dispute matters for he knew the ground of his Salvation and was satisfied for ever in his peace with the Lord God and we know said he one another well and what each of us can say about those things and spoke no further And the 17th day of the 6th Month he departed this life and was gathered up to his Fathers the Generation of the Just and though he be gone in that bodily appearance and his person removed from us yet is his new-Name written among us and his Memory can never die for his Spirit still lives to praise the Lord and the life which breathed forth through that vessel cannot be removed far away for it is the Infinite Immortal Eternal Life which dwells in Sons and Daughters now upon the Earth and though his outward man be put off yet he lives alwayes in Spirit for he was a Servant of the living God upon Earth in his day In about six Weeks time there died of the Prisoners that suffered for Conscience sake in Newgate these Persons named as follows who were honest sincere men of truth that loved the Lord and served him with their upright hearts and gave up their lives for the Testimony of Jesus as faithful Martyrs and Witnesses for him And 't is verily believed their close and throng'd Imprisonment in the Summer Season was the occasion of their sicknesse and violent distemper and so consequently of their Death which amounts to innocent blood being men whose lives were destroyed causelesly by reason of the wickednesse and Persecution of ungodly men and their Death will be inquired into by the Lord when he comes to judge all men according to their deeds and gives unto them after the fruit of their own doings John Stanton Thomas Kirby Richard Hubberthorne Anthony Skellington John Giles William Watson John Shutt William Eldredge Richard Bradley And Humphrey Bache and Humphery Brewster died in a short time after their Release These men laid down their lives for the Testimony of Jesus Christ and suffered for Conscience sake till death and left good Testimonies behind them spoken on their death-beds One of them said This body of mine must go for the Truth this body must be laid down for the Testimony of Jesus Christ as a Witnesse against this persecuting Generation and he rejoyced in the same at the point of death Another of them said The terrible day of vengeance is at hand upon the wicked Wo unto the persecuting Rulers of this City the Lord is nigh unto them in the stroak of his Judgements c. Another on his death-bed Exhorted earnestly all Friends to be faithful to be bold and valiant for the Truth of God and to suffer patiently to the end till deliverance come which the Lord will bring unto his people in dispight of all their enemies c. These and such like Testimonies were given by these Servants of God on their death-beds which will be fulfilled in the Lords season for the words of dying men are serious and certain Oh! that this City would take notice of the same That the Rulers and People thereof would Repent and turn unto the Lord ere his wrath break forth against them for their wickednesse which is great this day in the fight of the Lord and before him for which his wrath is kindled to burn as a flame and it will reach unto the high and lofty and all flesh shall feel the indignation of the most high Oh! that men would remember the long-suffering of the Lord and Repent and return before it be too late for nothing can save this City and her People from the Wrath of the Lord except speedy and true Repentance and returning with all the Heart and with all the Soul wherefore let the people become Meek and Humble Lowly and Poor Holy and Just before the Lord let them break off their sins by Repentance The day of the Lords sore Judgements are at hand and Breaking and Destruction and Misery will surprize the Workers of Iniquity Concerning the Imprisonment and proceedings of the Court and release of above fifty of our
The Third Part OF THE CRY OF THE INNOCENT FOR JUSTICE Briefly rela 〈…〉 Proceedings of the Court of Se 〈…〉 Baley the 11 12 and 13. dayes of 〈…〉 th towards the People of God 〈…〉 d particularly concerning the Tryal and 〈◊〉 of Edward Burroughs with about thirty P 〈…〉 more Also relating the Proceedings of the Court of Sessions at Hickeses Hall in the Moneth aforesaid towards about fifty of the said People who were taken and Imprisoned in the County of Middlesex in New Prison With divers other things of concernment about the People aforesaid Published for satisfaction to all LONDON Printed in the Year 1662. A Brief Relation of the Proceedings c. THE First day of the Sessions being the 11th of the sixth Moneth eleven of the People called Quakers were fetched out of Prison and led before the Judgement Seat at Old Baley and immediately were called by Name and set to the Bar and the Indictment was read against them on this wise viz. For being at an unlawful Tumultuous meeting with force and Arms to the Disturbance of the Peace of the King and in contempt to him and to the terrour of the People and to the evil example of all others in the li 〈…〉 ffending c. And then it was demanded of them 〈…〉 ly to Answer Guilty or not guilty and one 〈…〉 that he was taken up in the Street and not g 〈…〉 any part of the Indictment and another person be 〈…〉 to Answer demanded a Copy of his Indictment which was denyed him except so much money were given for it And D. Baker answered that he was both innocent and guiltless of the Manner or Tennor of the Indictment and his innocent Soul and Life did witnesse against the same and furthermore he said That they expected Justice and Equity and for them to give Righteous Judgement they being Innocent People But Alderman Brown upon the Bench mocked with a whining voice as if it were the sound of a Dog or Cat and not like a man especially one that is set to Rule over men who should be as men of God and D. B. said It becomes not a Magistrate to scoff or mock at the Prisoners and R. B. denyed and said he did not mock but surely he did so for thereby the Multitude were provoked to lift up their voices in laughter at his Lightness and Folly in which he sported himself as his manner is and he said D. Baker did Cant and such like scoffing words But he answered saying I spake in the Fear of the Lord and I would that the same were set up not onely in the Hearts of the Magistrates but also in the hearts of all here present this day And it was demanded of him whether he were ready to receive his Tryal and he said he was ready to receive Justice and Judgement and they seemed to be displeased at his Reply and it was put to him by the Court whether he would be Tryed by a Jury and he said on this wise He supposed there were men upon the Bench that might be sufficient to hear and determine the matter without a Jury as to the Particulars in the Indictment and they therefore turned him by and others of the Prisoners did give their answer accordingly and one said That he was guilty of what was Truth and not guilty of the contrary in the Indictment And the Court said That if the Prisoners were guilty of one part they were guilty of the whole To which was replyed Not so for as it was Matter of Conscience to them to bear witness for the Truth so it was Matter of Conscience to bear witness against the contrary and it was said p 〈…〉 ure there might be some words in the Indictment 〈…〉 themselves might be true and others of the 〈…〉 eas to the Indictment they accepted of for not 〈…〉 and others because they did not plead so in their Form and manner of Tearms they would not allow of their pleas for not guilty Albeit one was nothing at all concerned in the matter being taken up as an innocent man in the street without the breach of any Law either of God or Man and had then suffered more then thirty dayes Imprisonment and been before the Judgement Seat twice at two several Sessions and not tryed nor his Innocent cause pleaded nor he set at Liberty but with many more have been thus taken too and fro and hurried to Prison and from Prison to the Judgement Seat and from Judgement to Prison again but the Lord God of Judgement will be eased of his Adversaries plead the Cause of Innocency and Recompence Vengeance in his sore displeasure upon the Head of his Enemies in one day Behold behold it hasteneth and cometh to pass And so because they could not try them all they said they would try none of them till next Sessions and so sent them all to Prison again but as the Jaylors was hurrying of them away D. Baker spake the words of Christ saying If ye had known what this meaneth I will have mercy and not sacrifice ye would not have condemned the guiltless And the next Morning he wrote a few Lines to Alderman Adams to the end he might move it to the rest of the Magistrates upon the Bench that they might be called to a Tryal seeing they had dealt so with them the day before and forthwith the Marshal of the City was sent to demand of them or move them to it viz. If that they wovld confesse to him that they were at a Meeting and at such a Meeting as was mentioned in the Indictment they should go and be Tryed and favoured it may be with a small Fine he said But in the Fear and Name of the Living God he was withstood and the Prisoners kept out of the snare and they let him know that his Message did tend to so much as if he should come to perswade innocent men that they were thieves and confess it to him when they were guiltless And he said What Answer shall I return the Court After we had debated the Matter we said again and again That if we should confess that we were not at all at a Meeting then we should not confess to but deny the Truth for its true we were at a Meeting and it was a Meeting of the Innocent Harmless People of God to Worship Him But we denyed and witnessed against such a Meeting spoken of in the Indictment of which we were wholly Innocent and Guiltless after this manner we spoke to him and he went his way saying It s in vain then all would be to no purpose and such like words and nothing further was done in that matter The twelfth day of the Moneth being the third day of the week first about twenty of the Prisoners were fetched out of New-gate by their Keepers and led to the Sessions House where were sitting on the Bench the Mayor of the City Alderman Adams Alderman Brown and Counsellor Howel who
the use of carnal Weapons c. To which I answer 1. If all the People in the Land were of this Principle and Practise to deny to fight or rise up with Carnal Weapons at all this would prevent all Insurrections at home in our own Land and all the Fears thereof would be wholly removed and without doubt we should be in Peace and no occasion of Fears of Wars among our selves in our Country and if all the People of the Land were of this Principle and Practise this good Consequence would naturally follow we should be in perfect Peace in our own Nation and without all Doubts or Fears of the contrary But 2. And if this same Spirit and Principle and Practise were in all things believed and obeyed by all People such would be the vertue of the effect of it in the peace and love and comfortable union and fellowship that would flow forth among all people in our Land by such Spirit and Principle and also to other Peoples through the World that occasion would not be administred to any other Nations to invade or destroy us by rising up against us but such would be the vertue of such a Government wherein perfect peace were among the People in obedience to that Principle and Spirit that all the Earth would be engaged towards such a Government in love and obedience and would fear and tremble before the Lord to offend it yea such would be the Majesty and Power of the Lord God for such his People and would so appear for them against their enemies his People onely trusting in his power and arm of strength renouncing all the Confidence in the arm of Flesh the God of Heaven would appear for them in his Salvation round about them spiritual and temporal If I say men were all come to the Principle and Practise of Righteousnesse and Truth of Justice and Mercy and to renounce all the contrary and could deny all carnal Weapons and would trust the Lord onely to defend them and would in all things rely upon him such a People would be happy and blessed among themselves and also a happinesse to all the World and a joy and yet a terror to all Nations and the God of Heaven would defend them in all their wayes from the Fury and Wrath of the Wicked and if the Lord were wholly trusted to and depended upon by all people his eternal power would be seen alwayes in preserving of them for no man nor People ever yet trusted to the Lord and was failed in their hope and confidence 3. But to come into the belief and practise of that spirit and principle which cleaves onely to the Lord and trusts in him and altogether depends upon him for defence and preservation and renounceth carnal Weapons this is onely the work of the Lord in mans heart to beget People into the belief and obedience of the same it is God only by his Power and Spirit that must bring all men to this estate It cannot be taken upon a Person or a People if they will or who may be of this Principle and Practise that will this is not the way it is not thus come by no man can mould himself into such a frame as to believe and obey God in all things and so to trust the Lord as to renounce carnal Weapons but it is he alone that perswades the Heart and Conscience into the Faith and Practise of this So we enjoyn no man nor People unto it we may not perswade any man to lay aside all Carnal Weapons upon the penalty of damnation nor bind any such thing upon him with a Curse till God perswade his Heart And as it was God that wrought the same in us even to deny all carnal Weapons and never to fight more with them but to trust the Lord altogether and that upon the penalty of damnation so we leave it to him to work the same in others according to the Counsel of his own Will Lastly In full Answer to the Objection thus We are convinced in our Consciences by the Spirit of Christ of the unlawfulnesse to our selves of going out to War with carnal Weapons against any man in any case and we cannot do it but we sin against God yet we leave all People to do or not to do in that Case as they are moved and perswaded by the Spirit of Christ Jesus in their own hearts and may not perswade any man to or against this thing contrary to their own Consciences but as for us we being Convinced that we ought not to go out to War with carnal Weapons we must be obedient to the Lord in this matter and must follow the Lord in his leadings according to the light of Faith which we have received from him without respect to what may be the Consequence of the same we must not follow the Lord with respect to what effects may follow as of Peace or Trouble Joy or Heavinesse to our outward man but we must be obedient to the Lord absolute and not measure our love and faithfulnesse and obedience to him by either objected or real Consequences which may follow for we must and do trust the Lord in whatsoever may follow upon our outward man for our obedience to him so we are not further careful in any thing what the Lord may do or suffer to be done in any Case only t is our duty to stand in his Counsel and to walk in his Fear and to follow his Teachings and then we are certain nothing will come to passe as any Consequence thereof but what will be for our good and the glory of the Lord in the end for he hath given us hearts to trust in him and we do rely upon him for defence and preservation in all cases and are made of him to trust our souls and bodies with him in our obedience to his Will commending our selves into his hand of power to live or to die in our subjection to him according to his Heavenly Will and our Souls do desire that the same mind and heart were found in all People that they would obey him in all things and trust in him only and commit the Consequence thereof to him Oh! then should the day be blessed and the whole Earth made happy and the People rejoyce in the Salvation of the Eternal God Then should the Heavens sing for joy and the Saints and Angels rejoyce together when God alone is exalted in the midst of his People and all Faith and Obedience given to him by all the Sons of Men. THE CONCLUSION WE are and have been a Suffering and persecuted People by the powers of this World who have all risen up against us from time to time to destroy us and have taken many occasions against us and used many wayes and means for that end but the Lord God everlasting hath hitherto preserved us and kept us alive in his Name and by his Power and not only so but he hath enlarged us and increased us and made us to grow in strength in courage in boldnesse and in number also through all our Afflictions Sufferings and Persecutions and this is the Lords doings and it is marvelous in our eyes that even the same way which our enemies have taken and thereby thought to destroy us by that very way and means hath the Lord advanced us and promoted us raised us up and strengthened us and encreased us and this is to his Praise and Glory that all Flesh and the Wisdom thereof may be confounded and its purposes turned backward which is intended against the Lord and his Heritage we have seen the power of the Lord God often appearing in us and for us and we are evident Witnesses of his deliverances which he hath wrought and we cannot but sit down astonished in the remembrance of the things which our God hath done for his People in our age And though multitudes should rise up against us either in open actual furious Opposition or in more secret Contention by Arguments or what way else soever to overthrow us yet we have one Witnesse against them all to withstand them we have one Testimony wherewith to oppose them if multitudes should come against us in one day which Witnesse and Testimony in which our Strength and Confidence lyes is that of the Spirit of Christ Jesus in our own hearts which bears witnesse to us that we are the People of the Lord and he hath chosen us and he will defend us and preserve us and be with us unto the end for ever And this Witnesse is sufficient for us against multitudes of Enemies and we cannot fear