CHAPTER VI

CHAPTER VI.

1652-1653.—George Fox is branded by the priests as a witch—writes to Justice Sawrey, prophesying of the judgments impending over him—warning to priest Lampitt—exhortation to the people of Ulverstone—to the followers of Lampitt, against a hireling ministry, &c.—a rebuke to Adam Sands for his wickedness—to priest Tatham, against his hireling ministry and his suing for tithes—foretells the dissolution of the Long Parliament—fasts ten days—James Milner and Richard Myer create a schism, which is soon healed—the latter is miraculously healed of his lameness, but afterwards disobeys the Lord, and dies not long after—Anthony Pearson, an opposer, is convinced—the priests are shown to be antichrist—George Fox preaches at John Wilkinson’s steeple-house three hours—admonishes a professor for praising him—reproves Wilkinson for speaking against his conscience—many hundreds are convinced—discerns an unclean spirit in a woman, and speaks sharply to her—the like of some other women—speaks sharply to an envious Baptist—preaches in the steeple-house at Carlisle, where the Lord’s power was such that the people trembled—committed to Carlisle prison as a blasphemer, heretic, and seducer—the priests who come to see him are exceedingly rude—Anthony Pearson’s remonstrance to the Judges of assize against the unjust imprisonment and detention of George Fox—he is put in the dungeon, a filthy place, where a woman is found eaten to death with vermin—here James Parnell visits him—a challenge to professors to declare their objections to George Fox’s ministry—it being reported that George Fox was to die for religion, the Little Parliament write to the sheriff respecting him—he himself expostulates with Justices Craston and Studholm on their imprisoning him—A. Pearson and the governor visit the prison, blame the magistrates, require sureties of the jailer, and put the under-jailer in the dungeon for his cruelty to George Fox, who is soon after liberated—George Fox has great meetings, and thousands are convinced—visits Gilsland, a noted country for thieving—has a glorious meeting of many thousands, near Langlands, on the top of a hill—great convincement in the six northern counties.

From Lancaster I returned to Robert Widders’s, and from thence I went to Thomas Leper’s to a meeting in the evening; and a very blessed meeting we had there: after which I walked in the evening to Robert Widders’s again. No sooner was I gone, than there came a company of disguised men to Thomas Leper’s, with swords and pistols; who, suddenly entering the house, put out the candles, and swung their swords about amongst the people of the house, who held up the chairs before them to save themselves from being cut and wounded. At length they drove all the people out of the house, and then searched it for me; who, it seems, was the only person they looked for: for they had laid wait before on the highway, by which I should have gone had I rode to Robert Widders’s. And not meeting with me on the way, they thought to find me in the house, but the Lord prevented them. Soon after I was come to Robert Widders’s, some Friends came from the town where Thomas Leper lived, and gave us a relation of this wicked attempt: and they were afraid lest they should come and search Robert Widders’s house also for me, and do me a mischief; but the Lord restrained them that they came not. Though these men were in disguise, the Friends perceived some of them to be Frenchmen, and supposed them to be servants belonging to one called Sir Robert Bindlas; for some of them had said, that in their nation they used to tie the Protestants to trees, and whip and destroy them. His servants used often to abuse Friends, both in their meetings, and going to and from them. They once took Richard Hubberthorn and several others out of one, and carried them a good way off into the fields; and there bound them, and left them bound in the Winter season. At another time, one of his servants came to Francis Fleming’s house, and thrust his naked rapier in at the door and windows; but there being at the house a kinsman of Francis Fleming’s, one who was not a Friend, he came with a cudgel in his hand, and bid the serving-man put up his rapier; which, when the other would not, but vapoured at him with it, and was rude, he knocked him down with his cudgel, and took his rapier from him; and had it not been for Friends, he would have run him through with it. So the Friends preserved the life of him that would have destroyed theirs.

From Robert Widders’s I went to visit Justice West, Richard Hubberthorn accompanying me. Not knowing the way, or the danger of the sands, we rode where, as we were afterwards told, no man ever rode before, swimming our horses over a very dangerous place. When we were come in, Justice West asked us if we did not see two men riding over the sands: “I shall have their clothes anon,” said he, “for they cannot escape drowning, and I am the coroner.” But when we told him that we were the men, he was astonished, and wondered how we escaped drowning. Upon this the envious priests and professors raised a slanderous report concerning me, that neither water could drown me, nor could they draw blood of me; and that therefore surely I was a witch; indeed, sometimes when they beat me with great staves, they did not much draw my blood, though they bruised my body oftimes very sorely. But all these slanders were nothing to me with respect to myself, though I was concerned on the truth’s behalf, which I saw, they endeavoured by these means to prejudice people against; for I considered that their forefathers, the apostate Jews, called the master of the house Beelzebub; and these apostate Christians from the life and power of God, could do no less to his seed. But the Lord’s power carried me over their slanderous tongues, and their bloody murderous spirits; who had the ground of witchcraft in themselves, which kept them from coming to God, and to Christ.

Having visited Justice West, I went to Swarthmore, visiting Friends; and the Lord’s power was over all the persecutors there. I was moved to write several letters to the magistrates, priests, and professors, thereabouts, who had raised persecutionpersecution before; that which I sent to Justice Sawrey was after this manner:—

“Friend,

“Thou wast the first beginner of all the persecution in the North; thou wast the beginner and the maker of the people tumultuous. Thou wast the first stirrer of them up against the righteous seed, and against the truth of God; the first strengthener of the hands of evil-doers against the innocent and harmless; and thou shalt not prosper. Thou wast the first stirrer up of strikers, stoners, persecutors, stockers, mockers, and imprisoners in the North, and of revilers, slanderers, railers, and false accusers. This was thy work, and this thou stirredst up! so thy fruits declare thy spirit. Instead of stirring up the pure mind in people, thou hast stirred up the wicked, malicious, and envious, and taken hand with the wicked. Thou hast made the people’s minds envious up and down the country; this was thy work. But God hath shortened thy days, and limited thee; hath set thy bounds, and broken thy jaws; discovered thy religion to the simple and babes, and brought thy deeds to light. How is thy habitation fallen, and become the habitation of devils! How is thy beauty lost, and thy glory withered! How hast thou showed thy end that thou hast served God but with thy lips, thy heart being far from him, and thou in hypocrisy! How hath the form of thy teaching declared itself to be the mark of the false prophets, whose fruit declares itself! for by their fruits they are known. How are the wise men turned backward! View thy ways, and take notice with whom thou hast taken part. That of God in thy conscience will tell thee; the Ancient of days will reprove thee. How hath thy zeal appeared to be the blind zeal of a persecutor, which Christ and his apostles forbade Christians to follow! How hast thou strengthened the hands of evil-doers, and been a praise to them, and not to them that do well! How like a madman and blind man, didst thou turn thy sword backward against the saints, against whom there is no law! How wilt thou be gnawed and burned one day, when thou shalt feel the flame and have the plagues of God poured upon thee, and thou begin to gnaw thy tongue for pain, because of the plagues! Thou shalt have thy reward according to thy works. Thou canst not escape; the Lord’s righteous judgment will find thee out, and the witness of God in thy conscience shall answer it. How hast thou caused the heathen to blaspheme, gone on with the multitude to do evil, and joined hand and hand with the wicked! How is thy latter end worse than thy beginning, who art come with the dog to bite, and art turned as a wolf, to devour the lambs! How hast thou discovered thyself to be a man more fit to be kept in a place to be nurtured, than to be set in a place to nurture! How wast thou exalted and puffed up with pride! and now art thou fallen down with shame, that thou comest to be covered with that which thou stirredst up and broughtest forth. Let not John Sawrey take the words of God into his mouth till he be reformed; let him not take his name into his mouth till he depart from iniquity; let not him and his teacher make a profession of the saints’ words, except they intend to proclaim themselves hypocrites, whose lives are so contrary to the lives of the saints; whose church hath made itself manifest to be a cage of unclean birds. You, having a form of godliness, but not the power, have made them that are in the power your derision, your by-word, and talk at your feasts. Thy ill savour, John Sawrey, the country about have smelled, and of thy unchristian carriage all that fear God have been ashamed; and to them thou hast been a grief; in the day of account thou shalt know it, even in the day of thy condemnation. Thou wast mounted up, and hadst set thy nest on high, but never gottest higher than the fowls of the air. Now thou art run amongst the beast of prey, and art fallen into the earth; so that earthliness and covetousness have swallowed thee up. Thy conceitedness would not carry thee through, in whom was found the selfish principle, which hath blinded thy eye. Thy back must be bowed down always; for thy table is already become thy snare.”

This Justice Sawrey, who was the first persecutor in that country, was afterwards drowned.

I wrote also to William Lampitt, the priest of Ulverstone, thus:—

“The word of the Lord to thee, O Lampitt! who art a deceiver, surfeited and drunk with the earthly spirit, rambling up and down in the Scriptures, and blending thy spirit amongst the saints’ conditions; who hadst a prophecy, as thy father Balaam had, but art erred from it, as thy father did; one whose fruit hath withered (of which I am a witness,) and many who have known thy fruit, have seen the end of it, that it is withered, and do see where thou art in the blind world, a blind leader of the blind; as a beast wallowing and tumbling in the earth, and in the lust; one that is erred from the Spirit of the Lord, of old ordained for condemnation. Thou art in the seat of the Pharisees, art called of men master, standest praying in the synagogues, and hast the chief seat in the assemblies; a right hypocrite in the steps of the Pharisees, and in the way of thy fathers, the hypocrites, which our Lord Jesus Christ cried woe against. Such with the light thou art seen to be, and by the light art comprehended; which is thy condemnation, who hatest it, and will be so eternally, except thou repent. To thee this is the word of God; for in Christ’s way thou art not, but in the Pharisees’, as thou mayest read, Matt, xxiii., and all that own Christ’s words may see thee there. Christ, who died at Jerusalem, cried woe against such as thou art; and Christ is the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever. The woe remains upon thee, and from under it thou canst never come, but through judgment, condemnation, and true repentance. To thee this is the word of God; to that of God in thy conscience do I speak, which will witness the truth of what I write, and will condemn thee. And when thou art in thy torment (though now thou swellest in thy vanity, and livest in wickedness,) remember thou wast warned in thy lifetime. When the eternal condemnation is stretched over thee, thou shalt witness this to be the word of the Lord God unto thee; and if ever thy eye shall see repentance, thou wilt witness me to have been a friend of thy soul.”