warrant to distrain the goods; and when he came riding with them in the evening, he fell from his horse, and brake his neck, thereby getting his death instead of his prey, which he hunted after.

Now, although persecution was not so hot in London, as in other places in the country, yet sometimes even there it was very severe, as may be seen by the instance of William Penn and William Mead, who were taken from a meeting and imprisoned, and tried for the same in the month of September.

The indictment contained, "That William Penn, and William Mead, with divers other persons, to the number of three hundred, at Gracechurch-street, in London, on the 15th of August, with force and arms, and tumultuously assembled together, and that William Penn, by agreement between him and William Mead, had preached there in the public street, whereby was caused a great concourse and tumult of people," &c. That there was a public meeting in the street, proceeded from necessity: because a guard was placed in the passage to hinder friends from going into their meeting house; but it was a great untruth, that they met with force and arms, which was never used by the Quakers. This indictment being read before the court, the prisoners were demanded, according to custom, whether they were guilty

it would make a very large treatise. At this time there were many prisoners at Cork, among whom was Samuel Thornton, with whom I was well acquainted, who being met with his friends in a chamber one first day, the officer Quinnal came and shut the door of the room, and locked them in, to the number of eighty persons, and carried the key to the mayor, Matthew Dean, who gave order that there should neither victuals nor drink be carried to them, and they could only get what was pulled up with ropes through the grate, or thrown in through a hole: under this chamber the soldiers were ordered to keep guard, that none might get away, and they made so great a smoke, that many of the prisoners were sick, among whom were some weakly old people, and some women with child, and nurses, who were almost stifled; and complaint thereof being made to the mayor, he answered in a scoffing manner, they are all brethren and sisters, let them lie upon one another; and if they are stifled it is their own fault. Thus they were kept twenty four hours, and afterwards some of them made prisoners.

Solomon Eccles, whom I also knew very well, was this year in prison at Galloway in Ireland, where he was put, by a strange accident. He was an extraordinary zealous man, and what he judged evil he warmly opposed, even to the hazard of his life. This zeal led him to shewed no respect to the court, and condemned them for it, in a fine of forty marks each, because they had not taken off their hats. Thereupon W. Penn said, that he desired it might be observed, that they came into court with their hats off, (that is, taken off) and if they have been put on since, it is by order from the bench, and therefore not the prisoners, but the bench should be fined. The jury then being sworn, and the indictment read again, the witnesses were called who declared, that they saw W. Penn speaking to the people, who were assembled in a great number in Gracechurch-street, but they could not hear what he

said.

The recorder then asked William Mead, whether he was there? Who answered, that it is a maxim in your own law, nemo tenetur accusare seipsum, which if it be not true Latin, I am sure it is good English. That no man is bound to accuse himself; why then dost thou offer to ensnare me with such a question? Hereupon the recorder shewed himself so displeased, that he said, "Sir, hold your tongue, I did not go about to ensnare you." Then William Penn said, "We confess ourselves to be so far from recanting, or declining to vindicate the assembling of ourselves, to preach, pray, or worship the Eternal, Holy, Just God, that we declare to all the world, that we do believe it Το

man, and before this action in the chapel, as above, he did something of a like nature in London at the fair time, amongst the plays, where he suffered much by the coachmen's whipping him grievously on his naked back; but that could not lay his fervent zeal, which was kindled not only against the immodest and ungodly carriage of the pretended fools, but also against other vanities there used. what height his zeal carried him, the following instance will shew: he who had been a member of the church of England, and then went to the Presbyterians, and afterwards among the Independents, and after that was a Baptist, had been an eminent musician, so that by his art he could get near 1501. a year; but at last being a Quaker, he could not follow for consciencesake, what he now called his Babylonish trade of music; wherefore he learned to make clothes to get his living by, and sold his musical books and instruments: but (as he declared) he had no peace in his conscience: for observing them to be instruments of vanity, he judged they ought to be destroyed, and therefore bought them again, although they were worth above 201. and carried them, viz. virginals, fiddles, &c. to Tower hill, where laying them together, he set fire to them: but when some who were by endeavoured to hinder him, and to get one of the virginals away, he stamped upon it with

his foot, and would not rest until he had destroyed it; and after that he said, he found peace in his conscience, having made an offering of that which he once entirely loved, and in the use of which he was educated; for not only his father and grandfather, but his grandfather's father had been musicians, and he himself had the name of an eminent music master.

Another account we have of his strange zeal : when he saw how the Quakers were belied by William Burnet, Jeremy Ives, and Matthew Kiffin, teachers amongst the Papists, as if they believed not in Christ nor the resurrection, he challenged all the teachers, and priests, and jesuits, openly in a book which he printed, to come to a proof with him who were the true worshippers; first, to fast seven days and seven nights, and neither to eat nor drink; and then the next seven days not to sleep day nor night; but we may well think that none were to be found to enter the lists with him, nor to put themselves on such a test; and although some reckoned him out of his wits, yet he was not, for I remember the time very well, and had many an opportunity both to see and to hear him speak.

I now return to G. Fox at Cork in Ireland, where they intended to take him, nevertheless they let him go unmolested, although he rode through the market, by the mayor's door, who