A word of counsel, in the love of God, to the persecuting magistrates and clergy, for them to read and consider. But chiefly to those of the city and county of Gloucester ...

A Word of Counsel, IN THE Love of God, To the Persecuting Magistrates & Clergy, For them to Read and Consider.

But chiefly to those of the City and County of Glou∣cester, that have been active to carry on that unchristian work of Persecution, against their honest Neighbours, for the exercise of their tender Consciences towards God in mat∣ters of Religion, by whom many have been great Sufferers.

OH that you would be Warned, and take Counsel in time, whom God hath spared alive to see this Day, wherein Liberty of Conscience is granted to all to Worship God as they are preswaded in their own Minds; and now consider, I entreat you, and repent and return to the Lord, and humble your selves before the most high God, that he may pass by your Transgressions, and blot out your Sins, and shew Mercy unto your Souls before you come to a Dying-Bed; and for time to come do

Justly, love Mercy, hate Oppression, and walk humbly before the Lord, and with us prize the Mercy of the Lord, who has put a stop to your Heats and Passions, and inclined the King to grant free Liberty of Conscience to all, and hath declared, That Conscience ought not to be forced in matters of meer Religion, and this none that live in the Doctrine of Christ (which is, to do as they would be done by) can be against; therefore it is good for all to prize this Mercy, and to receive it from the Hand of the Lord with thank∣ful Hearts, and pray unto the Lord to continue this Favour unto us unto the end.

And although you have in time of Persecution drove on the Work very furiously against us, with a design to Ruin us (as some have been heard to say) because we could not Conform, and come to your Church, and at that time you would not hearken to Coun∣sel when it was given you, yet the Lord hath put it into my Heart once more to warn you, to mind the things that belongs to your Peace, before they are hid from your Eyes; for there is yet a Door of Mercy open for you, if you Repent with speed, and meet the Lord by amendment of Life, before the Door of Mercy be shut against you; therefore shut not your Ear against the Counsel of the Lord; for I can truly say, that I seek the Peace and Wel∣fare of your Souls, and that you should consider and lay it to Heart, how you went on without Gods Fear, as thô you did not consider that you were but Mortal Men, and that the Immortal God did see your Cruelty and Hard-heartedness against his People, how you made a Prey upon the Widdow and Fatherless, and pulled the Sheaf from the Hungry, and the Fatherless from the Breast; such are they that rebel against the Light, Job 24. Chap. and such was your Fury, that you regarded neither Age nor Sex; but now you have an opportunity to look back and take a view of your evil Works, and cease to do Evil, and learn to do Well, that you may find Favour with God, which is that I desire to see, althô I have been a great Suffer by you, who denied me Justice; but I with many more cryed unto the Lord in the time of Tribulation, whose Ear was open unto our Cry, and he found a way, which was un∣expected for our deliverence, praise forever to his worthy Name.

And this day of Liberty, if you prize it, may prove a great Blessing to you, which prevents you from acting more Cruelty

against the Lords People. I write not this to upbraid you, but in Love to warn you, to do as you would be done by

You Magistrates of the City and County of Gloucester, who have been active in this unchristian work of Persecution against an In∣nocent People, if this should come to your Hands, I entreat you to read it with Moderation, and take Counsel in time, for as I have sometime said to some of you, Good Counsel will not hurt you, or any Man. Oh, that I may prevail with you to take Counsel of the Lord, and obey the Light of his Son Christ Jesus in your own Hearts, that will teach you to do as you would be done by, and not to continue in such an unchristian frame of Mind, still to Oppress the Poor. I was grieved to hear that you keep the Poor Man Wil∣liam Bowley out of his Money, and denied him a Tryal at the last Sessions, gave Vote against him in the Court at Cirencester, the 8th Month 1687. he was fined Twenty Pound for Preaching, when he did not Preach; and he was a great Sufferer before, as you know, and as several that were there will testifie upon Oath, if called thereunto

Oh! how industrious have you been all along to drive on this unchristian Work; for a poor Widdow that had got a little Corn to make her Bread, viz. Sarah Simons, which she had gleaned in the Harvest; and another poor Widdow that had bought half a Bacon Pig, to feed her Fatherless Children, and your scurvy Or∣der frighted Men, so that they took it all away, and you threatned to Ruin us all, and did your endeavour to effect it, and bring it to pass, and think you the Lord will not visit for these things; but what saith the Prophet Isaiah, Wo unto them that decree unrighteous Decrees, and that write Grievousness, which they have prescribed to turn away the Needy from Judgment, and to take away the Right from the Poor of my People, that Widdows may be their prey, and that they may rob the Fatherless. Consider this I entreat you, now you have time, whether you have not purchased this Wo to your selves by your Orders and Decrees, that you have made against the Lords People— Read your Portion Isa. 17.14. And behold at Evening tide Trouble, and before the Morning he is not; this is the Portion of them that Spoyl us, and the Lot of them that Rob us.

Many of our Persecutors hath the Lord removed by Death, since Persecution first began in this Town, and them that have

been active and furious against us within these Thirty Years last past, hath the Lord taken away, so that there is not one of them left, till this last Storm, and Three of them hath been taken away also; this one would think would make others fear to go on in the same Work. Give me leave to make mention a little of your Dealings towards me, how in the Year 1682. by War∣rant Signed by Sr Thomas Cuttler and James George, to the High Constable of Cirencester, I was taken up in the Street, and carryed before the said James George, and sent to Gloucester Castle, whom I told when I was before him, The Lord would plead my Cause with him, and the same measure he meeted would be measured to him from the hand of the Lord; and so it came to pass, for before I was discharged, the Lord took his Wife from him, who had taken me from my Husband, and the said James George, after I was discharged, came to our peaceable Meeting with several Officers, and the Bishop of Glucester with him; and when they came in, I was making Supplication to the Lord; and the Bishop said, Is this the Woman you were speaking of, he said Yes my Lord, then he laid his hands upon me, and shoo••k me, and pulled me by the Arm so hard, that he had almost pulled me backward, saying, Woman you should give over, and obey the Kings Officers. But I chose rather to obey God then Man, and the Lord was with us, blessed be his name, and his Power was over all, and he did preserve me out of the fear of Man at that time. And the Bishop said to the Justice, Take their Names; but I took no notice of him, but continued until I had eased my Spirit before the Lord, who is worthy of all Praise and Glory for his Good∣ness to his Poor Dispised People. The Justice set fines upon Friends, and Twenty Pounds upon Richard Bowley for Praying in the said Meeting. Thus People may see how the Magistrates and Clergy joyn together to Persecute us, and by these fruits Peo∣ple may see that he is not a true Christian Bishop (not like Christ the Shepherd and Bishop of the Soul) as the Apostle speaks of in Timothy and Titus: who said, A Bishop should be Blameless, not soon Angry, of good behaviour, given to Hospitality, apt to Teach, no Striker, but Patient, not a Brawler, but a lover of good Men, Sober, Just, Holy, Temperate, whether this Bishop was so qualified, I shall leave the Understanding Reader to judge.

And in the Tenth Month 168••. James George sent a Warrant to the Constable of Cirencester, who saw me going to a Neighbours House, they run after me, and took me into Costody, and had me to the petty Sessions at Barnsley, three miles from Cirencester; in the Cold Winter Season, not considering my Age and Weakness, but hurried me up and down at their pleasure, tho they knew me a weakly Woman, and it was Frost and Snow, yet they had no Regard nor Pity, and from the Petty Sessions, they sent a Mitti∣mus to send me to Gloucester Goal, where I lay three Years and four Months, and James George gave the Goaler a charge not to let me go without the Gate, so great was their Fury and Rage against me. Oh! but the Lord was with me, and by his Power did preserve me.

Oh! consider you must all give an account to God, and ap∣pear at the great Tribunal Seat of Christ, in the great Day, and receive a Reward for the deeds done in the Body, whether Good or Evil; then how can ye Judges and Justices stand before the Lord in that Day, if you do not repent of your Cruelty (against his People) in joyning Hand in Hand to oppress the Poor. I warn you all that have had a Hand in this Work, from him that sits upon the Seat of Judgment; to your most Inferiour Officers, and all People every where whom this may concern, to repent of what is past, that the Lord may pass it by, for the time that is past cannot be recalled, and the time that is to come you have no assurance of; therefore the present time is your time: Oh! prize the long suffering of the Lord, which to you-ward hath been exceeding large, sparing your Lives, when he hath cut off so many on the Right Hand, and on the Left, and hath given you time to return unto him, before his long suffering comes to an end; and his Fury breaks forth against you, from which none cân deliver— Remember your casting us into Prisons, spoyling Goods, Riffling Houses, taking Money-Boxes, and putting Mo∣ney in your own Pockets, breaking Doors, with your own Hands as Richard Persons, Chanceller of Gloucester, did, and endeavoured to do, making use of an Iron-Bar, to break open the Door of Na∣thaniel and Daniel Roberts, then of Cirencester; because they could not easily do it, called for Gun-powder to blow it open, and when they got in, Seized the Goods, tendered the Oath to the

young Men, as a snare, and they refusing, were both committed to Prison, having none left to Mannage their Trade, which to outward things might have Ruined them, had not the good Hand of the Lord appeared for their help, whose mercies never fails them that fear him.

And when sat together to wait upon God, to Worship him in the Prison, Richard Persons came in, and laid violent hands on a Friend, Henry Perton, that was speaking, pulling him by the Gray-Hairs of his Head, and held up his Staff at him, and Reviled him, with many Reproachful Words, and said, it was a Conventicle, and laid fines upon us, Twenty Pound for the Preacher, and Five, and Ten Shillings apiece upon the rest, and fined some that were not in the Meeting, seeing their names in the Goalers List, as the un∣der Keeper said; I would have the Clergy consider, whether these Arguments were like to Convince us; these things were not done in a corner, therefore I hope none will be offended for Pub∣lishing of them, and I see no Reason why any can blame us, for Non-conformity, since such Fruits are brought forth by you, we have been forty, some times Sixty Prisoners in the County Prison, besides near Twenty more belonging to the City Prison, Men and their Wives, and some Women big with Child, Men and Women together in a close Prison, where other sort of Prisoners came a∣mongst them, and such was their cruelty, both unchristian and un∣human, that they would not suffer Ann the Wife of Richard Grive, being near her time, to go to her own House to Ly-in, she promi∣sed, and some offered to Engage she should return to the Prison again after she was Delivered, as soon as she was able, but the Cruelty of Alderman Shingleton, and Dr Fowler Magistrates for the City of Gloucester was such, that they withstood it; althô some sober Women, that were no Quakers, sought to them on her behalf, and had prevailed with the rest, if Docter Fowler and Alderman Shingleton would consent, but they were so far from consenting, that Alderman Shingleton, said, That if his Mother was alive, & come upon her Knees to him, he would not grant it, as an Aldermans Wife, that did solcite him, told me; but it pleased God to find out a way for her, the time of the Assizes was near, and Judge Levens gave or∣der to the Keeper of the Prison to let her go Home, so she was brought forth over their Heads, who were tryed to the full, & made

manifest by their Fruits, and the great God takes notice of the Oppressors of his people, and he cut them both off, and stopt their Fury; but if they had lived and come to Repentance, it would have been more Joy and Comfort to us; and ye Persecutors, how can you excuse your selves, who have Imprisoned many of our Friends to Death? several died Prisoners while I was Prisoner in the Castle. An aged Blind-man, Thomas Holborne, he was thrust into Prison, and not brought before any Magistrate, and Ralph Langley Prisoner several Years, till he died also, and several others; this kind of Ki•…•…ing we have had from your Hands, and sometimes our Friends have been Beaten and Bruised, by knocking and throw∣ing hither and thither till they Died, this I have seen; and not∣withstanding so many Died, that was stronger then I, yet it pleased God to preserve me alive, to speak well of his name, and tell of his wonderous Works, and once more to put you Persecutors in mind of the things that belong to your Peace; and Blessed be the Lord, he is now risen for his Sion sake, that you have been Ploughing as a Field, and when her Enemies, have done the worst they can, the Lord will make his Sion an Eter∣nal Excellency, and his Jerusalem the Praise of the whole Earth: And as you can see Persecution to be evil in others, look upon it so in your selves, and repent in Dust and Ashes, and remember who said, The Wise-Mans Eye is in his Head, but the Fools Eye is abroad to see and spy faults in others, and blame others for doing that they themselves are guilty of. Me-thinks the Eye-lids of the Morning of this day of Liberty, that is dawned and lifted up be∣fore you, might bring you to a sight of your state in this matter, but if this will not prevail upon you, turn in, to the Light of Christ Jesus, in your own Hearts, that is al-sufficient to shew you your inward State, and how these evil Works hath brought Death over you; that we may say, Darkness hath covered the Earth, and gross Darkness the People; therefore it is time to rise from the Dead, that Christ may give you Life, and receive his Light, that will lead you into the way of Peace.

Its well known that we have been a suffering People all along, ever since we were gathered by the Lord out of the Evils of the World, and have suffered under every Power that hath been up∣permost, for above Thirty Years to my knowledge, some in one

kind, and many under that cruel Oppression of Tythes, by the Priests, which is still continued upon us, under which many of the Inhabitants of this Land groans for deliverance, and the Lord God is able to remove it; but knows best in what season further to appear in his Power to effect it; but the Lord may suffer it to continue for the farther manifesting such hireling Priests, whose Practices towards us have manifested some of them to be as bad as the wicked Informers, by their Spoyling, Riffling Houses, and driving Cattle away by droves, as hath been common for them to do, and these Practices of theirs discovered them to be in the steps of the false Prophets, and in the same Spirit that the wicked Informers were in, that desire to Live by other Mens Labour, and to enrich themselves by the Spoyl of their Neighbour; this shews them to be of the stock of them mentioned in Scripture, that Feed of the Fat, and Cloath with the Wool, and make a Prey of the Flock; so by these Fruits People may see they are no Ministers of Christ, for he said to his Disciples when he sent them forth, Freely have you received, freely give. But their Fruits of Covetuousness makes them ill presidents to their Hearers, and such Work of the Teach∣ers, makes their Hearers, that are of an evil Inclination, to fol∣low their Footsteps, as the Scriptures saith, The Leaders of the People cause them to Err, and they that are led by them are destroyed.

The Persecutor I. G. the Priest of this Town, he set his hand to a Petition with Justice George, and others of this Town, to send to the late King to beg our Meeting-House, under pretence to make a Work-House for the Poor, Judas like, who when the Wo∣man with the Box of Sp••kenard came to anoint Jesus's Head, said, What need all this waste, it might have been sold and given to the Poor; but the Scriptures saith, He said it not, because he loved the Poor, but because he was a Thief and carried the Bag. So say I concerning this Priest, he did not this because he loved the Poor, but because he had the mind of a Thief, and coveted his Neighbours House, this discovers him to be no true Minister of the Gospel, because he falls short of doing the Works for the Law, which saith, Thou shalt not covet thy Neighbours House, nor any thing that is his: and Christ commands Men To do as they would be done by. So this Work of his is contrary to both Law and Gospel; but if People are willing to have such Blind Guides, and Sleepy Watchmen, to be their

Teachers, let them take them and pay them, and not force others to pay them, that know they are Blind, because they cannot see their own Works of what sort they are; for when a Friend went to enquire of him about the Petition aforesaid, he confessed his Hand was to it, and that he thought it would be a kindness to us to take the Meeting-House from us, would he take it as a kind∣ness to be so served? I leave it to Gods Witness in his own and others Consciences to judge; for the same God that hath helpt us, will help us again, if we keep our Integrity to him; He that hath brought us out of the fiery Furnace of Affliction, and was Afflicted with us, will do the same again and again for them that suffer for him; that said to Saul, Why Persecutest thou me? It is hard for thee to kick against the Pricks. He it is that pricks the Persecutors in their Consciences, it is He our Enemies have been Persecuting in his People, and he is able to deliver, and will, he that hath an Ear to hear let him hear, and that can receive it let him; for the Breath of all Living are in the hands of our God, then who shall we fear besides him, the God of all our Mercies and Blessings, to whom be Glory forever, Amen.