had told him of his sorrows and griefs, he told again to his servants, so that it got among the milklasses; and grieved him to have opened his mind to such an one; and he saw they were all miserable comforters. Then he heard of a priest living about Tamworth, who was accounted an experienced man, and therefore he went to him, but found him like an empty hollow cask.

Hearing afterwards of one Dr. Cradock of Coventry, he went to him also, and asked him whence temptations and despair did arise, and how troubles came to be wrought in man. The priest, instead of answering, asked him who was Christ's father and mother. George told him Mary was his mother, and he was supposed to be the son of Joseph; but he was the Son of God. Now as they were walking together in Dr. Cradock's garden, it happened that George, in turning, set his foot on the side of a bed, which so disturbed that teacher, as if his house had been on fire, and thus all their discourse was lost; and George went away in sorrow, worse than he was when he came, seeing he found none that could reach his condition. After this he went to one Macham, a priest of high account; and he, no more skilful than the others, was for giving George some physic, and for bleeding him; but they could not get one drop of blood from him, either in the arms or the head: his body being, as it were, dried up with sorrows, grief, and trouble, which were so great upon him, that he could have wished never to have been born, to behold the vanity and wickedness of men; or that he had been born blind, and so he might never have seen it; and deaf, that he might never have heard vain and wicked words, or the Lord's name blasphemed. And when the time called Christmas came, while others were feasting and sporting themselves, he went from house to house, looking for poor widows, and giving them some money. And when he was invited to marriages, (as sometimes he was,) he would go to none at all; but the next day, or soon after, he went and visited those that were newly married; and if they were poor, he gave them some money; for he had wherewith both to keep himself from being chargeable to others, and to administer something to the needful.

Whilst the mind of George Fox was thus in trouble, the state of England was also in a great stir; for the Parliament was for turning out of bishops, and introducing the Presbyterian Directory; which however as yet could not be well effected, although William Laud, Archbishop of Canterbury, had been made to stoop to the block; and the power of the king by this time was much weakened; for his army was this summer near Naseby, not far from Leicester, overcome by an army of untrained bands, and about six thousand men, among whom many great officers were taken prisoners, and his cabinet, with abundance of letters of great moment, was seized; insomuch, that though they had some skirmishes, yet no decisive battle was fought afterwards.

But since a circumstantial description of these state affairs is not within my design, I will return again to George Fox, who in the beginning of the year 1646, as he was going to Coventry, and entering towards the gate, a consideration arose in him how it was said that all Christians are believers, both Protestants and Papists: and it was opened to him, that if all were believers, then they were all born of God, and passed from death to life, and that none were true believers but such: and though others said they were believers, yet they were not. At another time as he was walking in a field on a First-day morning, it was discovered unto his understanding, that to be bred at Oxford or Cambridge was not enough to make a man to be a minister of Christ. At this he wondered, because it was the common belief of people; but for all that, he took this to be a divine revelation, and he admired the goodness of the Lord, believing now the ordinary ministers not to be such as they pretended to be. This made him unwilling to go any more to church, as it was called, to hear the priest Stevens, believing that he could not profit thereby and therefore instead of going thither, he would get into the orchard, or the fields, by himself, with his Bible, which he esteemed above all books, seeking thus to be edified in solitariness. At this his relations were much troubled; but he told them, did not John the Apostle say to the believers, "that they needed no

man to teach them, but as the anointing teacheth them;" and though they knew this to be Scripture, and that it was true, yet it grieved them, because he would not go to hear the priest with them, but separated himself from their way of worship: for he saw now that a true believer was another thing than they looked upon it to be; and that being bred at the universities did not qualify a man to be a minister of Christ. Thus he lived by himself, not joining with any, nay, not of the dissenting people, but became a stranger to all, relying wholly upon the Lord Jesus Christ.

Some time after, it was opened in him, that God, who made the world, did not dwell in temples made with hands. And though this seemed at first strange to him, because both priests and people used to call their churches dreadful places, holy ground, and temples of God; yet it was immediately showed him, that the Lord did not dwell in these temples which man had erected, but in peoples hearts, and that his people were the temple he dwelt in. This was discovered to him when he was walking in the fields to the house of one of his relations. And when he came there, it was told him, that Nathaniel Stevens the priest had been there, and told them he was afraid of Fox, for going after new lights. This made him smile, because now he saw the true state of the priests. But he said nothing of this to his relations, who, though they saw that something more was required than the vulgar way of worship, yet they continued therein, being grieved because he would not also go to hear the priests. Only he told them there was an anointing in man, to teach him ; and that the Lord would teach his people himself. He had great openings now concerning the things written in the Revelations; and when he spake of them, the priests and professors would say, that was a sealed up book.' But to this he said, Christ could open the seals, and that the things contained in that book, very nearly concerned us; since the Epistles of the Apostles were written to the saints of those times, but the Revelations point at things

to come.'

In England, in those days, were people of very odd

notions, and among the rest such as held, that women have no souls.' He lighting on some of these, could not forbear reproving them, since the Scripture, as he told them plainly, held forth the contrary; for the blessed Virgin Mary said, "My soul doth magnify the Lord; and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour." He also came among a people that relied much on dreams; but he told them, Except they could distinguish between dream and dream, their observations would be nothing but confusion, since there were three sorts of dreams; for multiplicity of business sometimes caused dreams; and there were whisperings of Satan in the night seasons; and there were also speakings of God to man in dreams.' But because these people were more in want of a clear discerning, than of good will, they at length came out of those imaginations, and at last became fellow-believers with him; who, though he had great openings in his understanding, yet great trouble and temptations many times came upon him; so that when it was day, he wished for night, and when it was night, he wished for day. Nevertheless among all those troubles, his understanding was so opened, that he could say with David, "Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge;" for even in these troubles he had great openings of many places in scripture.

As to state affairs, things continued in a distracted condition; for the King, who after his army had been beaten, was gone to the Scots, was by them delivered up to the English; to whom now he could no more prescribe laws, but was fain to receive them. And the Churchmen were also at variance; for the Independents, (several of which sat also in Parliament,) began to say, that between Episcopacy, (against which they had fought conjunctly,) and Presbytery, the difference was only in the name, and some few outward circumstances; since people of a tender conscience might apprehend no less oppression from the Presbyterians, than from the Episcopalians: and that this fear was not vain or idle, time afterwards hath shown abundantly. But let us return to George Fox, who in the beginning of the year 1647, feeling some drawings to go into Derby

shire, went thither, and meeting there with some friendly people, had many discourses with them. Then passing further into the Peak-Country, he met with more such people, and also some that were swayed by empty and high notions. And travelling into Nottinghamshire, there he met with a tender people, and among these one Elizabeth Hooton, of which woman more will be said in the sequel: with these he had some meetings and discourses. But his troubles and temptations still continued; and he fasted much, and walked often abroad in solitary places, taking his Bible with him; and then sat in hollow trees, and lonesome places till night came on; and frequently in the night he walked mournfully about, being surrounded with many sorrows in the times of these first workings of the Lord in him.

During all this time, he never joined in profession of religion with any, but gave up himself to the disposing of the Lord; having forsaken not only all evil company, but also taken leave of father and mother, and all other relations; and so he travelled up and down as a stranger on the earth, which way he felt his heart inclined: and when he came into a town, he took a chamber to himself there, and tarried sometimes a month, sometimes more, sometimes less, in a place; for he was afraid of staying long in any place, lest, being a tender young man, he should be hurt by too familiar a conversation with men.

Now, though it might seem not very agreeable with the gravity of my work, to mention what kind of clothes he wore in these first years of his peregrination; yet I do not count it absurd to say here, that it is indeed true what a certain author, viz. Gerard Croes, relates of him, that he was clothed with leather; but not, as the said author adds, because he could not, nor would not, forget his former leather work; but it was partly for the simplicity of that dress, and also because such a cloathing was strong, and needed but little mending or repairing; which was commodious for him who had no steady dwelling place, and every where in his travelling about sought to live in a lonely state for keeping himself thus as a stranger, he sought heavenly wisdom, and endeavoured to get know