Leicester be coming to Vifit us; and it might be hard for him 1662to bear our having Meetings in his Houfe: and be- N fides, we had many Friends in the Prifon already; and we had rather be with them. So we let the Man know, that we were fenfible of his Kindness: and to Prison we went; the Poor Man that brought us thi ther, delivering both the Mittimus and us to the Jailer. This Jailer had been a very wicked, cruel Man: and there being Six or Seven Friends in Prifon, before we came, he had taken fome occafion to quarrel with them, and had thrust them into the Dungeon amongst the Fellons; where was hardly room for them to lie down, they were fo thronged. We ftay'd all that day in the Prifon-Yard, and defired the Jailer to let us have fome Straw: He furlily anfwered, Tou do not look like Men that would lie on Straw. After a while William Smith, a Friend, came to me; and he being acquainted in the Houfe, I asked him, What Rooms there were in the Houfe, and what Rooms Friends uTually had been put into, before they were put into the Dungeon? I asked him alfo, Whether the Jailer or his Wife was Mafter? He faid, The Wife was Mafter; and that though fhe was Lame, and fate moftly in her Chair, not being able to go but on Crutches; yet fhe would beat her Husband, when he came within her reach, if he did not do as she would have him do. Now I confidered, that probably many Friends might come to Vifit us: and that, if we had a Room to our felves, it would be better for them to fpeak to me, and for me to speak to them, as there fhould be occafion. Wherefore I defired William Smith to go fpeak with the Woman, and let her know, if the would let us have a Room, and let our Friends come up out of the Dungeon, and leave it to us and them to give her what we would, it might be better for her. He went: and after some reasoning with her, the confented; and we were had into a Room. Then we were told, That the Jailer would not fuffer us to fetch any Drink out of the Town into the Prifon; but that what Beer we drank, we must take of him. I told them, I would remedy 1662. remedy that, if they would: for we would get a Pale of Water, and a little Wormwood once a day; and Leieeter that might ferve us : So we should have none of his Beer; and the Water he could not deny us." Prisen. Leicefter Before we came there, when thofe few Friends, that were Prifoners there, did Meet together on the FirstDays, if any of them was moved to pray to the Lord, the Jayler would come up with his great Quarter-ftaff in his Hand, and his Maftiff-Dog at his Heels, and would pluck them down by the Hair of the Head, and ftrike them with his Staff: but when he ftruck Friends, the Maftiff Dog, inftead of falling upon Friends, would take the Staff out of his Hand. Now when the First-Day came, after we came in, I fpake to one of my Fellow-Prifoners to carry down a Stool and fet it in the Yard, and give notice to the Debtors and Fellons, that there would be a Meeting in the Yard and they that would hear the Word of the Lord declared, might come thither. So the Debtors and Prifoners went into the Yard, and we went down and had a very precious Meeting, the Jailer not med. ling. Thus every Firft-Day we had a Meeting there as long as we ftaid in Prifon and feveral came in out of the City and Country, and many were Convinced and fome received the Lord's Truth there, who ftood faithful Witneffes for it ever fince. 1 When the Seffions came, we were had up before the Se ions. Juftices; with many more Friends, that were fent to Prifon whilft we were there, to the number of about Twenty. Being brought into the Court, the Jailer put us into the Place where the Thieves were put; and then fome of the Juftices began to tender the Oaths of Allegiance and Supremacy to us. I told them, I ne ver took any Oath in my Life; and they knew, we could not Swear, becaufe Chrift and his Apoftle forbad it: and therefore they put it but as a Snare to us. But we told them, if they could prove, that after Chrift and the Apoftle had forbid Swearing, they did ever command Christians to Swear, then we would take these Oaths; otherwife we were refolved to obey Chrift's Chrift's Command, and the Apostle's Exhortation. 1662. They faid, We must take the Oath, that we might ma nifeft our Allegiance to the King. I told them, I had Leicefter been formerly fent up a Prifoner by Col. Hacker, from that Town to London, under pretence, that I held Meetings to Plot to bring in King Charles. I alfe defired them to read our Mittimus, which fet forth the Cause of our Commitment to be, that we were To have a Meeting, and I faid, he that was called Lord Beaumont, could not by that Act fend us to Jail, unlefs we had been taken at a Meeting, and found to be fuch Perfons, as the Act speaks of: therefore we defired, they would read the Mittimus, and fee how wrongfully we were Imprifoned. They would not take notice of the Mittimus, but called a Jury, and Indicted us for Refusing to take the Oaths of Allegiance and Supremacy. When the Jury was Sworn and Inftructed, as they were going out, One, that had been an Alderman of the City, fpake to them, and bid them Have a good Confcience and one of the Jury, being a peevish Man, told the Juftices, There was One affronted the Fury: Whereupon they called him up, and tendred him the Oath allo; and he took it,' While we were ftanding in the Place where the Thieves used to stand, there was a Cut-Purfe had his Hand in feveral Friends Pockets, and Friends declared it to the Juftices, and fhewed them the Man: They called him up before them; and upon Examination he could not deny it yet they fet him at Liberty. It was not long before the Jury Returned and brought us in Guilty: and then, after fome Words, the Juftices whispered together, and bid the Jailer take us down to Prifon again: But the Lord's Power was over them, and his Everlasting Truth, which we declared boldly amongst them. And there being a great Concourfe of People, moft of them followed us; fo that the Cryer and Bailiffs were fain to call the People back again to the Court: We declared the Truth, 1662. Truth, as we went down the Streets all along, till we came to the Jail, the Streets being full of People. Leicester When we were in our Chamber again, after fome time the Jailer came to us, and defired all to go forth that Thus were we all fet at Liberty on a fudden. And being thus fet at Liberty, the reft paffed every one into their Services; only Leonard Fell (being come thither) ftay'd with me, and we two went again to Swaning Swanington. I had a Letter from him they called the Lord Haftings who hearing of my Imprifonment, had written from London to the Juftices at the Seffions, to fet me at Liberty. Now I had not deli vered this Letter to the Juftices; but whether they had any knowledge of his Mind from any other hand, which made them difcharge us fo fuddenly, I know not. But this Letter I carried to him called the Lord Beaumont, who had fent us to Prifon; and when he had broken it open, and read it, he seemed much troubled: but at laft came a little lower; yet threatned us, if we had any more Meetings at Swanington, he would break them up and fend us to Prifon again. But notwithstanding his Threats, we went to Swanington, and had a Meeting with Friends there; and he came not, nor fent not to break it up. Twy: From Swanington we paffed tlirough the Country, and came to a Place called Twy-Crofs; where that Great Man formerly mentioned, whom the Lord God had raifed up from his Sicknefs in the Year 1649,(and whofe Serving-man came at me with a Drawn Sword to have done me a Mischief) He and his Wife came to fee me. From thence we travelled through WarNor- wickshire, where we had brave Meetings; and fo in. shamp confh to Northamptonshire and Bedfordshire,vifiting Friends, Bedford- till we came to London. Shire. Effez. Sutton. I-ftay'd not long at this time in London, but went 1662. into Efex, and fo into the Eaft, and to Norfolk; having great Meetings. At Norwich, when I came to London. Captain Lawrence's, there was great Threatning of Norfolk: Difturbance; but the Meeting was quiet. Palling Norwich from thence to Sutton, and fo into Cambridgeshire, Cam there I heard of Edward Burrough's Deceafe. And bridgf being fenfible, how great a Grief and Exercife it would be to Friends to part with him, I writ the following Lines to Friends, for the staying and fettling of their Minds. Friends, BE E ftill and quiet in your own Conditions, and fettled in the Seed of God, that doth not Change; that in that ye may feel Dear E. B. among you in 'the Seed, in which and by which he begat you to "God, with whom he is: and that in the Seed ye 'may all fee and feel him, in which is the Unity with him in the Life. And fo Enjoy him in the Life, that doth not Change, which is Invisible. G. F. Little Shire. Fen From thence I paffed to Little-Port, and the Isle of ne of Ely, where he, that had been the Mayor, with his Ely. Wife, and the Wife of the then prefent Mayor of Port. Cambridge came to the Meeting. So Travelling on into Lincolnshire and Huntingtonshire, I came to Tho- Lincoln mas Parnel's, where the Mayor of Huntington came Huntings to fee me, and was very loving. From thence paf- tonfire. fing on, I came into the Fen-Country, where we had Country large and quiet Meetings. While I was in that Country, there came fo great a Flood, that it was dangerous to get out; yet we did get out, and went to Lyn, where we had a bleffed Meeting. Next Morn- Lyn, ing I went to vifit fome Prifoners there; and then went back to the Inn, and took Horfe: And as I was riding out of the Yard, the Officers (it feems) came to fearch the Inn for me. I knew nothing of it then; only I felt a great Burden come upon me, as I rid out of |