dently to appear, that thy desire was to cause us to suffer, not to deliver us, who, being innocent, suffered; to have us aspersed and reproached before the country, not to have our innocency cleared and vindicated? Doth not thy taking away our books as aforesaid, and the perusing of them in such haste before our trial, and the accusing us with something, which thou saidest was contained in them, make it to appear, that matter was sought out of them, where-withal to charge us, when the et cetera warrant would not stand in law, by which we stood committed, and were then upon our delivery, according to due course of law? Doth it not further appear, by thy refusing to take from our hands a copy of the strange et cetera warrant, by which we were committed, and of the paper for which we were apprehended, to read it or cause it to be read, that so our long sufferings by reason of both might be looked into, and weighed in the law, whether just or righteous, and the country might as well see our innocency and sufferings without a cause, and the manner of dealing with us as to hear such reports as went of us, as great offenders, when we called upon thee often so to do, and which thou oughtest to have done, and saidst, thou wouldst de, but did it not, nor so much as took notice before the country that we had been falsely imprisoned, and had wrongfully suffered ? But what might asperse and charge us, thou broughtest in thyself, contrary to law, and didst call to have us charged therewith. Is not this further manifest, in that thou didst cause us on a sudden to be withdrawn, and the petty jury to be called in with their verdict, whereupon Peter Ceely's falsely accusing George Fox with telling him privately of a design, and persuading him to join therein, it was by G. Fox made so clear to be a manifest falsehood, and so plainly to be perceived, that the cause of our sufferings was not any evil we had done, or law that we had transgressed, but malice and wickedness? And is it not abundantly clear from thy not permitting us to answer, and clear ourselves of the many foul slanders charged upon us in the new found indictment, of which no proof was made? but when we were answering thereunto, and clearing ourselves thereof, thou didst stop us, saying, thou mindedst not those things, but only the putting off the hat; when as, before the country, the new found indictment charged us with those things, and the petty jury brought in their verdict, guilty of the trespasses and contempts mentioned therein; of which (except as to the hat) not one witness or evidence was produced; and as to the hat, not any law, or judicial precedent, upon the

transgression of which all legal indictments are only to be grounded? Now the law seeks not for causes whereby to make the innocent to suffer, but helpeth him to right who suffers wrong, and relieveth the oppressed, and searcheth out the matter, whether that, of which a man stands accused, be so or no, seeking judgment, and hastening righteousness; and it saith, the innocent and the righteous slay thou not. But whether thou hast done so to us, or the contrary, let the witness of God in thee search and judge, as these thy fruits do also make manifest.

And friend, consider, how abominably wicked, and how highly to be abhorred, denied, and witnessed against, and how contrary to the laws such a proceeding is, as to charge a man with many offences in an indictment, which they who draw the indictment, they who prosecute, and they who find the bill, know to be false, and to be set in purposely to reproach and wound his good name, whom with some small matter which they can prove, they charge and indict; as is the common practice at this day. Prove but one particular charge in the indictment, and it must stand (say they) for a true bill, though there be never so many falsehoods and lies therein, on set purpose to wrong him, who is maliciously prosecuted: this is known to the judges, and almost to every man who hath to do with, and attends, their courts. How contrary is this to the end and righteousness of the law, which clears the innocent, and condemns the guilty, and condemneth not the righteous with the wicked! Much it is cried out of; but what reformation is there thereof? How else shall clerks of assize, and other clerks of courts, fill up their bags (out of which perhaps their master must have a secret consideration) and be heightened in pride and impudence; that even in open court they take upon them to check and revile men; men without reproof, when a few lines might serve instead of an hundred? How else shall the spirit that is in men, that lusteth unto envy, malice, strife, and contention, be cherished and nourished to feed the lawyers, and dependents on courts, with the bread of mens' children, and the ruin of their families, to maintain their long suits and malicious. contentions. For a judge to say, I mind not these things; I will not hear you clear yourselves of what you are falsely accused of: one thing I mind in your charge, the rest are but matter of form, set there to render you such wicked men before the country, as the thing that is to be proved against you is not sufficient to make out.' Oh, abominable wickedness, and perverting of the righteous end of the law, which is so careful and tender of every

man's peace and innocency. How is the law in the administration thereof adulterated by the lawyers, as the scriptures are mangled by the priests. And that which was made to preserve the righteous, and to punish the wicked, perverted to the punishing of the righteous, and the preserving of the wicked! An eye for an eye; a tooth for a tooth; life for life; burning for burning; wound for wound; a stripe for a stripe; he that accuseth a man falsely to suffer the same as he should have suffered, who was falsely accused, if he had been guilty; this saith the righteous law of God, which is agreeable to that of God in every man's conscience. Are not such forms of iniquity to be denied, which are so contrary to the law of God and man? which serve for the gendering of strife, and the kindling of contention? and of this nature was not that with which thou didst cause us to be indicted? and this form didst thou not uphold, in not permitting us to answer to the many foul slanders therein; saying, Those things thou mindedst not.' Will not the wrath of God be revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; who are so far from the power of godliness, that they have not the form, but the form of iniquity, which is set up and held up, instead of, and as a law, to overthrow and destroy the righteousness of the righteous, and so to shut him up, as by the law he can never get out? Is not the cry, thinkest thou, gone up? It is time for thee to set to thine hand, O Lord, for thine enemies have made void thy law! Draws not the hour nigh? Fills not up the measure of iniquity apace? Surely the day is coming, and hasteneth. Warned ye have been from the presence, and by the mouth of the Lord; and clear will he be when he cometh to judgment, and upright when he giveth sentence. That of God in every one of your consciences shall so to him bear witness and confess, and your mouths shall be stopped, and before your judge shall ye be silent, when he shall divide you your portion, and render unto you according to your deeds. Therefore, whilst thou hast time, prize it, and repent for verily "Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence; a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him. He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people; and the heavens shall declare his righteousness: for God is judge himself. Consider this, ye that forget God, lest he tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver."

'And friend, shouldest thou have given judgment against

us (wherein thou didst fine us twenty marks a piece, and imprisonment till payment) without causing us, being prisoners, to be brought before thee, to hear the judgment, and to move what we had to say in arrest of judgment? Is not this contrary to the law, as is manifest to those who understand the proceedings thereof? Is not the prisoner to be called before judgment be given? and is not the indictment to be read; and the verdict thereupon? And is not liberty to be given him to move in arrest of judgment? And if it be a just exception in the law, ought not there to be an arrest of judgment? For the indictment may not be drawn up according to law, and may be wrong placed, and the offence charged therein may not be a crime in law; or the jury may have been corrupted, or menaced, or set on by some of the justices; with other particulars, which are known to be legal and just exceptions. And the judgment ought to be in the prisoner's hearing, not behind his back, as if the judge were so conscious of the error thereof, that he dares not give it to the face of the prisoner. But these privileges of the law, this justice, we (who had so long and so greatly suffered contrary to law) received not, nor could have at thy hands; no, not so much as a copy or sight of that long and new-found indictment (which in England was never heard of before, nor that the matter contained therein was an offence in law, nor ever was there any law, or judicial precedent, that made it so); though two friends of ours in our names and behalfs that night, and the next day, and the day following, often desired it of the clerk of the assize, and his assistant, and servants; but it they could not have, nor so much liberty as to see it. And it is like it was not unknown, or unperceived by thee, that, had we been called, as we ought to have been, or had known when it was to be given, three or four words might have been a sufficient, legal arrest, of the judgment given on that new-found indictment, and the verdict thereupon. Therefore, as our liberties, who are innocent, have not (in thy accompt) been worth the minding, and esteemed fit for nothing but to be trampled under foot and destroyed, so, if we find fault with what thou hast done, thou hast taken care that no door be left open to us in the law, but a writ of error; the consideration whereof, and the judgment to be given thereon, is to be had only where thyself is chief; of whom such complaint is to be made, and the error assigned for the reverse of thy judg ment. And what the fruit of that may be well expected to be, by what we have already mentioned, as having received at thy hands, thou hast given us to understand.

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And here thou mayest think thou hast made thyself secure, and sufficiently barred up our way of relief, against whom (though thou knewest we had done nothing contrary to the law, or worthy of bonds, much less of the bonds and sufferings we had sustained :) thou hast proceeded as hath been rehearsed; notwithstanding that thou art (as are all the judges of the nation) entrusted, not with a legislative power, but to administer justice, and to do even law and execution of right to all, high and low, rich and poor, without having regard to any man's person; and art sworn so to do, as hath been said: and wherein thou dost contrary art liable to punishment, as ceasing from being a judge, and becoming a wrong-doer and an oppressor; which what it is to be, many of thy predecessors have understood, some by death, others by fine and imprisonment. And of this thou mayest not be ignorant, that to deny a prisoner any of the privileges the law allows him, is to deny him justice, to try him in an arbitrary way, to rob him of that liberty which the law gives him, which is his inheritance as a free man; and which to do, is in effect to subvert the fundamental laws and government of England, and to introduce an arbitrary and tyranical government against law; which is treason by the common law; and treasons by the common law are not taken away by the statutes of 25 Edw. III. 1 Hen. IV. 1, 2 m. See Ŏ. St. Johns, now chief justice of the common pleas, his argument against Strafford, fol. 65, in the case.

These things, friend, we have laid before thee in all plainness, to the end that (with the light of Jesus Christ, who lighteth every one that cometh into the world, a measure of which thou hast, which sheweth thee evil, and reproveth thee for sin, for which thou must be accountable) thou, being still and cool, mayest consider and see what thou hast done against the innocent; and shame may overtake thee, and thou mayest turn unto the Lord, who now calleth thee to repentance by his servants, whom, for witnessing his living truth in them, thou hast cast into, and yet continuest under, cruel bonds and sufferings.'

Edw. Pyot.

From the Gaol in Launceston, the 14th

day of the 5th month, 1656.

By the foregoing letter the reader may observe how contrary to law we were made to suffer: but the Lord, who saw the integrity of our hearts to him, and knew the innocency of our cause, was with us in our sufferings, and bore