brought neither money nor goods, so much as to the value of five pounds, except my wearing apparel; so much the reverse, that I borrowed money at London to pay for my accommodations home, the which I faithfully remitted back again to my friend that lent it to me, to whom I was much obliged for the same: and if I might have gained a hundred pounds per annum, it would not have tempted me to undertake that, or such another journey. Soon after my return home again, I visited a few neighbouring meetings, which were large and edifying, friends being glad to see me again returned home from that long journey. And I did, as I had reason to do, bless the holy name of the Lord, for his many preservations and deliverances by sea and land. After some stay at Philadelphia, I went down with my wife and family into Maryland, to a corn-mill and saw-mill, which I had there, in order to live there some time, and settle my affairs: and after being there some time, my dear wife was taken ill of a sore disease, which some thought to be an ulcer in the bladder, and I had her up to Philadelphia, she being carried as far as Chester in a horse-litter, where she continued for some months, in much misery, and extreme pain, at the house of our very kind friends, David and Grace Lloyd, whose kindness to us, in that sore, trying, and exercising time, was great, and is not to be forgotten by me, while I live in this world. From Chester we removed her again in a litter, being accompanied by our friends, to Philadelphia, where she continued very ill all that winter, often thinking that death tarried long, and crying mightily to the Lord, "Oh! Come away, come away!" This was her cry day and night, till at last she could speak no more. As we lived together in great love and unity, being very affectionate one to another; so, being now left alone, I was very solitary, and sometimes sorrowful, and broken into many tears, in the sense of my loss and lonesomeness. This, my dear wife, was a virtuous young woman, and one that truly feared God, and loved his dear Son; from whom she had received a good gift of the ministry, and was serviceable to many therein. I had five children by 1 her, four sons and one daughter, all whom I buried before her, under three years old. At the yearly meeting before she died, she was so wonderfully carried forth in her ministry, by the divine grace, that divers of her friends believed she was near her end, she signifying something to that effect in her testimony, and that she should not live to see another yearly meeting: and so it came to pass; for she died before another yearly meeting, being aged about thirty-five years, and a married woman about thirteen years. Her body was carried to friends' meeting-house, in Philadelphia, and buried in friends' burying-ground, being accompanied by many hundreds of our friends, in a solemn manner: and my heart was greatly broken in consideration of my great loss; and being left alone, as to wife and children, I many times deeply mourned, though I well knew my loss was her's and their gain ! Here I shall end the first part of the journal of some part of my life and travels, omitting many meetings, and lesser journies, which I performed: and the accounts here given have been mostly general, not descending into many particulars; though the adding some things might have been instructive and agreeable: the whole being intended as a motive to stir up others to serve, love, and faithfully follow, and believe in Christ, A JOURNAL OF THE LIFE, LABOURS, TRAVELS, &c. OF THOMAS CHALKLEY. PART II. I now gave up my time mostly to travelling, for about the space of two years, in which I visited the meetings of friends in the provinces of Pennsylvania, East and WestJersey, Maryland, Virginia, and North-Carolina, and back again to Philadelphia, and then to New-Jersey again: also to Long-Island, Rhode-Island, Conanicut-Island, Nantucket-Island, and New-England, and through those parts on my return to Philadelphia. In these provinces, &c. I travelled some thousands of miles, and had many large meetings, some in places where there had not been any before, and some were convinced, and many would acknowledge to the testimony of truth, which was declared by the help and grace of Christ; and many times my heart was, by the assistance of that grace, wonderfully opened to the people. If I should be particular in the account of these journies, it would enlarge this part of my journal more than I am willing. In Virginia I had a meeting at James' river, where a priest of the church of England, with some of his hearers, made some opposition, after our meeting was over, and were for disputing about religion; and he openly de clared, "The spirit was not his guide, nor rule; and he hoped, never should be. But, he said, the scriptures were his rule, and that there was no need of any other; and that they were as plain as Gunter's line, or as 1, 2, 3." I told him, the scriptures were a good secondary rule, and that it were well if men would square their lives according to their directions; which we, as a people, exhorted all to: but that the holy spirit, from which the holy scriptures came, must needs be preferable to the letter, that came from it; and without which holy spirit, " the letter kills," as saith the apostle. I also asked him, how he, or any else, without the light, or influence of the holy spirit, could understand the scriptures, which were parabolically and allegorically expressed, in many places? And further, to use his own expression, how could any understand Gunter's line, without Gunter's knowledge? or without they were taught by Gunter, or some other? Neither can we be the sons of God, without the spirit of God. Which he answered not, but went away. In New-England, one Joseph Metcalf, a Presbyterian teacher, at Falmouth, wrote a book, entitled, "Legal forcing a maintenance for a minister of the gospel, warrantable from scripture, &c." Which book a friend, of Sandwich, gave me, and desired I would answer it; which, after finding some exercise on my mind, for the cause of truth, I was willing to undertake; and accordingly wrote an answer thereto, which I called, "Forcing a maintenance, not warrantable from the holy scriptures, for a minister of the gospel." In which I endeavoured to set the texts of scripture in a true light, which he had darkened and misrepresented by his chimerical doctrines. In this year, 1713, I went from Philadelphia, in the Hope Galley, John Richmond, master, to South Carolina. We were about a month at sea; and when it pleased God that we arrived at Charleston, in South-Carolina, we had a meeting there, and divers others afterwards. There are but few friends in this province, yet I had several meetings in the country. The people were generally loving, and received me kindly. What I had to declare to them, I always desired to speak to the witness of God in the soul, and according to the pure doctrine of truth in the holy scriptures; and there was openness in the people in several places. I was several times to visit the governor, who was courteous and civil to me. He said I " deserved encouragement," and spoke to several to be generous, and contribute to my assistance. He meant an outward maintenance; for he would have me encouraged to stay among them. But I told him, that though it might be a practice with them, to maintain their ministers, and pay them money for preaching, it was contrary to our principles to be paid for preaching, agreeably to the command of our great master, Christ Jesus, who said to his ministers, "Freely you have received, freely give:" so that we are limited by his words, whatever others are: and those who take a liberty contrary to his doctrine and command, I think, must be antichrist's, according to holy scripture. The longer I stayed there, the larger our meetings were; and when I found myself free and clear of those parts, I took my passage for Virginia, in a sloop, Henry Tucker, master. I had a comfortable and quick passage to James' river, it being about two hundred leagues. The master of the vessel told me, "That he believed he was blessed for my sake." I wished him to live so as that he might be blessed for Christ's sake. And some reformation was begun on him in our voyage; which was the goodness of God, through Christ, to him, and not to be attributed to me, any farther than an instrument in the divine hand; for of ourselves we cannot do any thing that is good, it being by grace, through faith, that we are saved, which is God's gift to the soul. After I had been sometime in Virginia, I got a passage up the bay of Chesapeak, and had several meetings in Maryland, friends being glad to see me; and we were comforted in Christ our Lord. I made some little stay at a place I had in that province, called Longbridge, and then returned to Philadelphia, where I lodged at the |