convenience of each other, we living some miles distant one from another. There we met in silence, to the wonder of the country. When the rain and weather beat upon us on one side of the hill, we went to the other side. We were not free to go into any neighbour's enclosures, for they were so blind, dark, and ignorant, that they looked upon us as witches, and would go away from us, some crossing themselves with their hands about their foreheads and faces.

Thus we continued for some time till two of them left me; one of them was put apprentice by Friends to William Shewen, of London. The other young man was a soldier in Oliver Cromwell's days, and he got, as soon as he could, to be disbanded, so he went to Gloucestershire, and lived among Friends. The third was one William Davies, that lived hard by me, and we met together for some time; but one time he stayed longer than usual, and a foul dark spirit possessed him, so that the little time we were together, was not comfortable to me, and when we had broke up the meeting, by way of discourse, he asked me, "How did I think we should stand in the face of the whole country." I answered him with great zeal; The serpent, the serpent, the same that beguiled the woman in Paradise, hath beguiled thee, thou wilt not be able to stand. And while we were yet discoursing, I saw my master coming, who was also convinced, but was not faithful to that good Spirit that convinced him of the truth, and shewed him what he ought to do, but did it not, yet he continued loving to Friends, and frequented their meetings to his latter end. As I looked back, I saw him coming towards us, with two women following him, the one was his wife, my cruel mistress, the other was his sister; they both had staves in their hands, and when they came unto us, the sister began to beat her brother, my master, and my mistress set a-beating of W. Davies. So his trial came very quickly, and W. Davies came no more to meet with me, nor any other Friends, for many years; yet he afterwards came among Friends, and continued with them to the

end of his days, and was buried among them. It so happened that I had never a blow among them, and if I had received any, I had learned of Christ Jesus my Lord and Master, to suffer patiently for his name's sake, and not to depart from him, though my trials, temptations, and afflictions were not a few; so that I may say with the apostle; "But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy," Acts xx. 24; 2 Cor. iv. 17; Matt. x. 37–39.

These young men going away thus, I was left alone again, but still I kept waiting upon the Lord, to know his will and good pleasure concerning me: and when the time of my apprenticeship was over, I found freedom to go to London, to visit Friends there, which was in the year 1658-59; and finding many good and living Friends there, I settled to my trade, being a felt-maker, and very well satisfied I was that I could go to meetings, and follow my business. When anything would come to my mind of this, my native country, barren and uninhabited with Friends and Truth, I endeavoured to shut it out, and to keep where I was, and I did what I could; but all my fair pretences and reasonings would not do, disobedient to the Lord I was, and trouble and sorrow, and judgment from the Lord came upon me, for not obeying his command, to go to my own country to stand a witness for him there. In this, my disobedience, I continued till I lost his presence, and he smote me with trouble within, and pain in my bones, that I could not work nor labour. In this time Friends of London were very kind and careful of me, and would freely have administered unto me, but I was not willing to accept of anything from them, so long as I had of my own. My pain of body and spirit increased upon me, till at last I was forced to bow to the will of the great God, who was too strong for me; and reasoning with him one night, upon the bed of my sorrows, he shewed me clearly, that I was to go to my own country, and I was made willing to give up to go, if

C

he would be pleased to let me know his will and pleasure by this sign and token, that he would remove my pain. I also reasoned with him thus; that I was alone, like a pelican in the wilderness, or a sparrow on a house-top. The Lord still commanded me to go, shewing that he would provide an help-meet for me. And when I had made a covenant with the Lord to go, immediately my pain was removed, and I had peace and quietness of mind and spirit. I arose next morning, and went to my work; and when those tender Friends, that had a regard for me in my sickness, came to see me that morning, I was gone to work, which was to their admiration.

So the Lord gave me a little time, and he alone provided an help-meet for me; for I prayed unto him that she might be of his own providing, for it was not yet manifest to me where she was, or who she was. But one time as I was at Horselydown meeting in Southwark, I heard a woman Friend open her mouth, by way of testimony, against an evil ranting spirit, that did oppose Friends much in those days. It came to me from the Lord, that that woman was to be my wife, and to go with me to the country, and to be an help-meet for me. After meeting, I drew somewhat near to her, but spoke nothing, nor took any acquaintance with her, nor did I know when, or where I should see her again. I was very willing to let the Lord order it as it seemed best to himself, and therein I was easy; and in time the Lord brought us acquainted one with another, and she confessed that she had some sight of the same thing that I had seen concerning her. So after some time we parted, and I was freely resigned to the will of God; and when we came together again, I told her, if the Lord did order her to be my wife, she must come with me to a strange country, where there were no Friends but what God in time might call and gather to himself. Upon a little consideration, she said, if the Lord should order it so, she must go with her husband, though it were to the wilderness ;

and being somewhat sensible of the workings of God upon her spirit in this matter, she was willing to condescend in her mind to what he wrought in her; but by hearkening to one who had not well weighed the matter, she became disobedient to what God had revealed to her, which brought great sorrow and trouble upon her. I went to see her in this poor condition, and I rested satisfied with the will of God in this concern, being freely resigned, if the Lord had wrought the same thing in her, as was in me, to receive her as his gift to me; and after some time, we waiting upon the Lord together, she arose, and declared before me, and the other Friend who had begotten doubts and reasonings in her mind, that in the name and power of God, she consented to be, my wife, and to go along with me, whither the Lord should order us; and I said, "In the fear of the Lord, I receive thee as the gift of God to me." So I rested satisfied in the will of God, for a further accomplishment of it.

Under a weighty consideration, which way to take each other in marriage, we concluded to lay our proceedings before our elders, and especially our ancient friend George Fox; (people in those days were married by a priest, or before a justice,) and I told G. Fox, we thought to take each other in a public meeting; so he desired the Lord to be with us. And when we saw our clearness in the Lord, we went to the Snail meeting in Tower Street, London, in the morning, and in the afternoon, to Horselydown, Southwark and in that meeting, being the 26th of the Fourth Month, 1659, in the presence of God, and that assembly, we took each other to be man and wife.

God alone knew our innocency and integrity in going. together. It was not for gold nor silver, nor any outward thing; but to be serviceable to him in our age and generation, and to stand witnesses for him and his blessed Truth, where he should send us. I might say with Tobias, "Thou madest Adam, and gavest him Eve his wife, for a helper

and a stay; of them came mankind. Thou hast said, It is good that man should be alone, let us make him an aid like himself," Tobit viii. 6.

Soon after, in the Lord's time, we made what haste we could to come to the country, where we believed the Lord would have us to be, and we said, "O Lord, if thou wilt go with us in our way, and give us bread to eat, and raiment to put on, then, O Lord, thou shalt be our God;" and the Lord was with us in all our journey, and gave unto us his sweet and comfortable presence.

But

Soon after we came to Welch-Pool, those professors, who had been and were in great power, began to be faint-hearted, because of the report of bringing in King Charles the Second; which in a little time was accomplished, and those that were in great pomp, were brought to prison themselves. And I was had before the first justices that were made in these parts by the authority of King Charles the Second, in the year 1660, notwithstanding I was a prisoner to the magistrate of the town. When I went up before them, many of the people of the town followed me, to see what would become of me, and to what prison they would send me, or what punishment they would inflict upon me. the Lord was with me, and I feared not man, whose breath is in his nostrils, but the living God whom I desired to obey in all things. When I was come into the room, it being in the night, the high sheriff, Colonel Mostyn, and the justices stood as people in amaze, to see me come with my hat on my head amongst them, and spoke not one word to me for some time. In a little while, I asked them, whether they sent for me there; they said, they did. One of the justices asked me, where I had that new way and strange religion; I answered him, "It was the good old way that the prophets and servants of God lived and walked in; and that way I had found, and desired to walk in it all my days." That justice was peevish, and said, "I think the man is mad; I think we must have him whipped;" though