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
sat Judge at Law of the Court as Deputy Recorder And E. Burroughs was presently called by Name to the Bar with about eight persons more of them called Anabaptists and being set at the Bar the Jury men were called and Sworn the same who had served the day before and at the second person laying his hand upon the Book E. B. moved the Court in these words Desiring to know what priviledge the Law of the Land allowed the Prisoners in making exceptions against the Jury men this he desired to know of the Bench he said because he did not know the particular points of the Law in that case To which the Deputy Recorder answered they might make exceptions if they had good reasons for it but the Persons being strangers to all the Prisoners they made no exceptions having no knowledge of the men and so could not well except against any of them The Jury been sworn the several Indictments were read in the Court E. Burroughs the first of all according as the Prisoners stood Indicted at the Sessions about five weeks before a Relation of which Proceedings with the Indictment Verbatim ye have in our Second part of the Cry of the Innocent for Justice lately published though for our more orderly manifesting the Truth to the perfect knowledge of all men t is necessary that we insert again in this place the said Indictment which is as followeth viz. LONDON ss THE Jurors for our Lord the King 〈…〉 sent upon their oath that Edward Burroughs late of London together with divers other persons to the said Jurors unknown to the number of a hundred persons the first day of June in the fourteenth year of the Reign of our Lord King Charles the second of England Scotland and Ireland Defender of the Faith c. With Force and Arms c. in London c. To wit in the Parish of Saint Ann and Agnes in the Ward of Aldersgate London aforesaid Vnder pretence of performing Religious Worship otherwise then by the Laws of this Kingdom of England in this Kingdom is established Vnlawfully and Tumultuously did Gather and Assemble themselves together to the great Terrour of his Majesties People and to the disturbance of the Peace of our now Lord the King in contempt of our said Lord the King and his Laws to the evil Example of all others in the like Case offending and against the Peace of our Lord the King his Crown and Dignity c. This being read by the Clerk he proceeded to give the Jury their Charge on this wise That whereas the Prisoner at the Bar stood Indicted for an Vnlawful and Tumultuous Meeting under pretence of Worship contrary to the Law of the Land as in the Form of the Indictment they had heard and had pleaded not guilty of the said Indictment Therefore according to their Oaths they were to make true inquiry between our Lord the King the Prisoner at the Bar in the case for which he stood Indicted and without favour or affection to try the matter and give their verdict according to their evidence whether the Prisoner were guilty in Form and Matter as he stood Indicted This was the sum of the Charge given to the Jury This being done E. Burroughs in particular was set to the Bar and three men called by Name for to give evidence to wit William Branch Thomas Glover and Henry Walker all of them of the Parish of Mary Maudlyn's Old Fishstreet all of whom took their Oath according to form That they should speak the Truth and nothing but the Truth concerning the matter inquired of them as God should help them And having taken their Oaths they were bid to look upon the Prisoner and speak what they could say concerning him as to the matter for which he stood there Indicted Accordingly the first began to speak on this wise That whereas he being an Officer in Captain Coulchester's Company was commanded by his Captain on a certain day being the Sabbath day as he said to go with three files of Musqueteers to the Bull and Mouth where the Quakers were met in Order to break their Meeting as he was commanded and then and there he found the said people met together to the number of about three or four hundred as he might suppose but justly he could not tell how many and amongst them this same Mr. Burroughs said he now at the Bar this same person was standing upon a place and speaking amongst them speaking yes Preaching to them in their way said he and further he commanded his party to martch up the Meeting to the place where this Person now at the Bar stood and he bad him come down and cease speaking but he would not but made some resistance whereupon he commanded his men to pull him down by force which accordingly they did and then took him out of the Meeting and he and his men guarded him to Pauls where their main guard was and he delivered him this same person now at the Bar to his Captain and this I testifie upon my Oath said he c. This done the second person was called to speak what he could say in that case concerning the Prisoner at the Bar to which he said he could say to the same purpose that the person before had testified That whereas he was one of that partie commanded to go to the Bull and Mouth where the Quakers were met together and there they found this same Edward Burroughs now at the Bar Preaching amongst the People and according to command they pulled him down and took him away to their Captain and this was all he could say Then the third evidence was called and he was asked by the Court what he could say in the Case concerning the Prisoner his answer was That he had onely to say what the other two before him had said That whereas he was one of the party of Souldiers commanded to go to the Quakers Meeting and there was this man now at the Bar standing up and Preaching amongst them and they pulled him down and took him away to their Captain and he had no more to say Thus the evidences gave witness and this was the sum of what was said by them all Then the Deputy Recorder asked of them if they were certain this Prisoner was the self same man and how many people they thought were at the Meeting to which they all answered yes they were sure this same person was the man and there might be some hundreds at the Meeting but how many they could not justly tell Then the Court spoke to E. Burroughs and asked him What he had to say for himself in this matter he stood there Indicted and had pleaded not guilty and he had heard the Witnesses against him and if he had ought to say he might now speak To which he began to speak on this wise That he was glad he was permitted to speak in defence of his Cause and he hoped they would fully hear