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And the apostles by faith travelled up and down the world, and were preserved from all the religions of the world, and held forth the pure religion to the dark world, which they had received from above, from God (for the way they walked in, and the worship they performed and taught, was received from above, from God and from Christ Jesus), and likewise their fellowship was received from above, which is in the gospel that is everlasting. And in this neither powers, principalities, nor thrones, dominions nor angels, nor things present, nor things to come, nor heights, nor depths, nor death, mockings, nor spoiling of goods, nor prisons, nor fetters, were able to separate them from the love of God, which they had in Christ Jesus. And friends, quench not the Spirit, nor despise prophesying where it moves; neither hinder the babes and sucklings from crying Hosannah; for out of their mouths will God ordain strength. There were some in Christ's day that were against such, whom he reproved; and there were some in Moses his day, who would have stopped the prophets in the camp, whom Moses reproved, and said in way of encouragement to them, Would God, that all the Lord's people were prophets! So I say now to you. Therefore ye, that stop it in yourselves, do not quench it in others, neither in babe nor suckling; for the Lord hears the cries of the needy, and the sighs and groans of the poor. Judge not that, nor the sighs and groans of the Spirit, which cannot be uttered, lest ye judge prayer; for prayer as well lies in sighs and groans to the Lord as otherwise. So let not the sons and daughters, nor the hand-maidens be stopped in their prophesyings, nor the young men in their visions, nor the old men in their dreams; but let the Lord be glorified in and through all, who is over all, God blessed for ever! So that every one may improve their talents, and every one exercise their gifts; and every one speak as the Spirit gives them utterance. Thus every one may minister as he hath received the grace, as a good steward to him that hath given it him; so that all plants may bud and bring forth fruit to the glory of God; for the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every one to profit withal. So see, that every one hath profited in heavenly things: male and female, look into your own vineyards, and see what fruit ye bear to God; look into your own houses, see how they are decked and trimmed, and see what odours, myrrh and frankincense ye have therein, and what a smell and savour ye have to ascend to God, that he may be glorified. So bring your deeds all to the light, which ye are taught to believe

in by Christ, your Head, the heavenly Man, and see how they are wrought in God. And every male and female, let Christ dwell in your hearts by faith, (Christ in the male and in the female); and let your mouths be opened to the glory of God the Father, that he may rule and reign in you. We must not have Christ Jesus, the Lord of life, put any more in a stable, amongst the horses and asses; but he must now have the best chamber, the heart, and the rude debauched spirit must be turned out. Therefore let him reign, whose right it is, who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, by which Holy Ghost ye call him Lord, in which Holy Ghost ye pray, and by which Holy Ghost ye have comfort and fellowship with the Son and with the Father. Therefore know the triumph in it, and in God and his power (which the devil is out of) and in the seed, which is first and last, the beginning and ending, the top and corner-stone; in which is my love to you, and in which I rest

"Your friend, G. F.

• Postscript-And friends, be careful how ye set your feet among the tender plants, that are springing up out of God's earth; lest ye do tread upon them, and hurt them, and bruise them, or crush them in God's vineyard.'

Now after I had tarried two first-days at Swarthmore, and had visited friends in their meetings thereabouts, I passed from thence into Westmoreland, visiting friends' meetings there, till I came to John Audland's, where there was a general meeting. The night before I had a vision of a desperate creature, that was coming to destroy me, but I got victory over it. And the next day in the meeting time there came one Otway, with some rude fellows with him; and he rode round about the meeting with his sword or rapier, and would fain have gotten in through the friends to me; but the meeting being great, the friends stood thick, so that he could not easily come at me. Then when he had rid about several times raging, and found he could not get in, being limited by the Lord's power, he at length went away. It was a glorious meeting, and ended peaceably; and the Lord's everlasting power came over all. But this wild man went home and became distracted, and not long after died. I sent a paper to John Blaykling to read to him, while he lay ill, shewing him his wickedness; and he did acknowledge something of it.

Going from hence, I went through Kendal, where a warrant had long lain to apprehend me; and the constables

seeing me, ran to fetch their warrant, as I was riding through the town; but before they could come with it, I was gone past the town, and so escaped their hands.

I travelled on northwards, visiting friends' meetings as I went, till I came to Strickland-head, where I had a great meeting and most of the gentry of that country being gathered to an horse-race, not far off from the meeting, I was moved to go and declare the truth unto them; and a chief-constable, that was there, did also admonish them. Our meeting was quiet, and the Lord was with us; and by his word and power friends were settled in the eternal truth.

From hence we passed into Cumberland, where we had many precious living meetings: and after we had travelled through to Gillsland, and had a meeting there, we came to Carlisle, where they had used to put friends out of the town; but there came a great flood while we were there, that they could not put us out of the town, so we had a meeting there on the first-day. After which we passed through the country to Abby-holm, and had a little meeting there. This is a place, where I told friends long before, there would a great people come forth to the Lord; which hath since come to pass, and a large meeting there is gathered to the Lord in those parts.

I passed from hence to a general meeting at Langlands in Cumberland, which was very large; for most of the people had so forsaken the priests, that the steeple-houses in some places stood empty. And John Wilkinson, a preacher, that I have often named before, who had three steeplehouses, had so few hearers left, that giving over preaching in the steeple-houses, he first set up a meeting in his house, and preached there to them that were left. Afterwards he set up a silent meeting (like friends), to which came a few; for most of his hearers were come off to friends thus he held on till he had not past half a dozen left, the rest still forsaking him, and coming away to friends. At last, when he had so very few left, he would come to Pardsey Crag (where friends had a meeting of several hundreds of people, who were all come to sit under the Lord Jesus Christ's teaching,) and he would walk about the meeting on the first-days, like a man that went about the commons to look for sheep. Now during this time I came to this Pardsey Crag meeting, and he with three or four of his followers, that were yet left to him, came to the meeting that day, and they were all thoroughly convinced. After the meeting was done, priest Wilkinson asked me two or three questions, which I answered him to

his satisfaction: and from that time he came amongst friends to their meetings, and became an able minister, and preached the gospel freely, and turned many to Christ's free teaching. And after he had continued many years in the free ministry of Christ Jesus, he died in the truth.

I had for some time felt drawings on my spirit to go into Scotland, and had sent to one colonel William Osborn of Scotland, desiring him to come and meet me; and he, with some others with him, were come out of Scotland to this meeting. So after the meeting was over (which, he said, was the most glorious meeting that ever he saw in his life), I passed with him, and those others that were with him, into Scotland; having Robert Widders with me, who was a thundering man against hypocrisy and deceit, and the rottenness of the priests.

The first night we came into Scotland we lodged at an inn; and the innkeeper told us, there was an earl lived about a quarter of a mile off, who had a desire to see me, and had left word at his house, that if ever I came into Scotland he should send him word. He told us there were three draw-bridges to his house, and that it would be nine o'clock before the third bridge was drawn. So finding we had time in the evening, we walked down to his house. He received us very loving; and said he would have gone with us on our journey, but he was before engaged to go to a funeral. After we had spent some time with him, we parted very friendly, and returned to our inn. Next morning we travelled on, and passing through Dumfries we came to Douglas, where we met with some friends; and from thence we passed to the Heads, where we had a blessed meeting in the name of Jesus, and felt him in the midst.

Leaving Heads we went to Badcow, and had a meeting there, to which abundance of people came, and many were convinced; amongst whom there was one that was called a lady, convinced. From thence we passed towards the Highlands to William Osburn's house, where we gathered up the sufferings of friends, and the principles of the Scotch priests, which may be seen in a book called The Scotch Priests' Principles.'

Afterwards we came back again to Heads and Badcow, and Garshore, where the said lady Margaret Hambleton was convinced, who afterwards went to warn Oliver Cromwell and Charles Fleetwood of the day of the Lord that was coming upon them.

On the first-day we had a great meeting, and several professors came to it. Now, the priests had frightened the VOL. I.

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people with the doctrine of election and reprobation, telling them that God had ordained the greatest part of men and women for hell, and that let them pray, or preach, or sing, and do what they could, it was all to no purpose, if they were ordained for hell. And that God had a certain number which were elected for heaven, and let them do what they would, as David an adulterer, and Paul a persecutor, yet elected vessels for heaven. So the fault was not at all in the creature, less or more, but God had ordained it so. Now I was led to open to the people the falseness and folly of their priests' doctrines, and shewed them how the priests had abused those scriptures, which they had brought and quoted to them, as in Jude and other places. For whereas they said, there was no fault at all in the creature, I shewed them that they whom Jude speaks of, to wit, Cain, Core and Balaam, who, he says, were ordained of old to condemnation, the fault was in them. For did not God warn Cain and Balaam, and gave a promise to Cain, if he did well he should be accepted? And did not the Lord bring Core out of Egypt and his company? And yet did not he gainsay both God and his law, and his prophet Moses? So here people might see that there was a fault in Cain, Corah, and Balaam, and so there is in all them that go in their ways. For if they who are called Christians, resist the gospel, as Core did the law, and err from the Spirit of God, as Balaam did, and if they do evil, as Cain did, is not here a fault? Which fault is in themselves, and is the cause of their reprobation, and not God. Doth not Christ say, 'Go, preach the gospel to all nations?' Which is the gospel of salvation. He would not have sent them out into all nations to preach the doctrine of salvation, if the greatest part of men had been ordained for hell. Was not Christ a propitiation for the sins of the whole world, for those that become reprobates, as well as for the saints? He died for all men, the ungodly as well as the godly, as the apostle bears witness, (2 Cor. v. 15. Rom. v. 6.) And he enlightens every man, that cometh into the world, that through him they might all believe. And Christ bids them believe in the light; but all they that hate the light, which Christ bids all believe in, they are reprobated. Again, the manifestation of the Spirit of God is given to every man to profit withal; but they that vex, quench, and grieve it, are in the reprobation, and the fault is in them, as it is also in them that hate his light. The apostle saith, "The grace of God which brings salvation, hath appeared unto all men, teaching us (saith he) that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we