"live (though the Lord is all-fufficient) remember "what I fay to thee, when I am dead and gone: "Poor child! The Lord blefs thee! Come and kifs "me!" Which melted us all into great tenderness, ⚫ but his brother more particularly.

Many good exhortations he gave to fome of the fervants, and others that came to fee him, that were not of our communion, as well as those that were, which drew tears from their eyes.

The day but one before he died, he went to take the air in a coach; but faid at his return, "Really, "father, I am exceeding weak, thou canst not think "how weak I am :" My dear child, I replied, thou art weak, but God is ftrong, who is the ftrength of thy life: "Ay, THAT is it," said he, "which up"holdeth me." And the day before he departed, < being alone with him, he defired me to faften the door; and looking earnestly upon me, "Dear father, "thou art a dear father, and I know THY Father: "come, let us two have a little meeting, a private

ejaculation together, now no body elfe is here. O ་་ my foul is fenfible of the love of God!" • And indeed a sweet time we had, like to precious ointment for his burial.

He defired to go home, if not to live, to die there; and we made preparation for it, being twenty miles from my houfe; and fo much stronger was his fpirit than his body, that he spoke of going next • day, which was the morning he departed; and a fymptom it was of his greater journey to his longer home. That morning he left us, growing more and x more fenfible of his extreme weakness, he asked me, C as doubtful of himself, "How fhall I go home?" < I told him in a coach; he anfwered, "I am beft in "a coach." But obferving his decay, I faid, Why, child? Thou art at home every where. "Ay," faid <he, "So I am, in the Lord." I took that opportunity to ask him if I should remember his love to his friends at Bristol, London, &c. "Yes, yes," faid he, "my love in the Lord, my love to all

"friends

"friends in the Lord:" and relations too? he said, "Ay, to be fure." 'Being asked if he would have his afs's milk, or eat any thing; he answered, "No "more outward food, but heavenly food is provided " for me."

His time drawing on apace, he faid to me, "My "dear father, kifs me: thou art a dear father; I de"fire to prize it: how can I make thee amends ?” 'He also called his fifter, and faid to her, "Poor child! come and kifs me;" between whom seemed a tender and long farewell. I fent for his brother, 'that he might kifs him too, which he did: all were in tears about him. Turning his head to me, he faid foftly, "Dear father, haft no hope for me?" I anfwered, My dear child, I am afraid to hope, and 'I dare not despair; but am, and have been, refigned, though one of the hardest lessons I ever learned. He paused a while; and with a compofed frame of mind he said, "Come life, come death, I am RESIGNED. "O the love of God overcomes my foul !" • Feeling ' himself decline apace, and feeing him not able to bring up the matter that was in his throat, fome body fetched the doctor; but fo foon as he came in, he faid, "Let my father fpeak to the doctor, " and I will go to fleep," which he did, and waked 'no more; breathing his laft on my breaft, the 10th ' day of the 2d month, between the hours of nine ' and ten in the morning, 1696, in his one and twentieth year.

So ended the life of my dear child, and eldest fon; much of my comfort and hope, and one of the ' most tender and dutiful, as well as ingenuous and • virtuous youths, I knew, if I may fay fo of my ' own dear child in whom I loft all that any father < can lofe in a child, fince he was capable of any thing that became a fober young man; my friend and companion, as well as most affectionate and dutiful • child.

May this lofs and end have its due weight and impreffion upon all his dear relations and friends, I 4 ‹ and

and thofe to whofe hands this account may come, for their remembrance, and preparation for their great and laft change; and I have мY end in making my dear child's thus far publick.

‹ W. PENN.'

This year' he published a treatise, entitled, "Primi"tive Chriftianity revived, in the Faith and Practice "of the People called Quakers:" a book which rightly reprefented that people's principles, and hath been ferviceable to the information of many⚫

At this time George Keith, having been difowned by the Quakers for his contentious and diforderly fpirit, kept up a meeting, with fome adherents, at Turner's-hall, London; where, under the name of religion, he fostered ftrife and debate; fending out peremptory challenges and fummonfes to the Quakers to difpute with them; and mustering up against them quotations out of their books, fuch as himself formerly could candidly interpret, and had fuccefsfully vindicated against other oppofers. To put a check to his confidence, by employing him to beat down the batteries himself had raised, W. P. fets before him his own vindications of the Quakers from thofe very lies, when told by others, which himself had now licked up afresh. This book our author entitled, "More Work "for George Keith." It has a fuitable preface, wherein he aptly defcribes the man, and his self-contradictious methods of procedure.

m

There being about this time a bill depending in the House of Lords against blafphemy, he prefented to that House, "A Caution requifite in the confidera"tion of that bill," wherein he advises that the word BLASPHEMY be fo explained, as that no ambiguous interpretation might minifter occafion to malicious or envious perfons to profecute under that name whatsoever

they should be pleafed to call fo: after which the House thought fit to drop the bill.

In the 2d month 1698, he fet out, together with John Everott and Thomas Story, from Bristol, where he then dwelt, for Ireland. Some time after his arrival there, John Plympton, the tenacious Baptist difputant mentioned before, being at Dublin, published a paper, entitled, "A Quaker no Chriftian," to which W. P. replied under the title of, "The Quaker a "Christian," and the more effectually to wipe away that adversary's afperfions, he also writ and dispersed a paper entitled, " Gospel Truths held by the People "called Quakers," fubfcribed by himself and three others of his friends; and likewife reprinted the 8th and 9th chapters of his "Primitive Chriftianity re"vived;" which gave the people a general fatisfaction that Plympton's charges were groundless.

After this, he travelled to other parts of that nation in the work of the miniftry to the edification of the churches, of which himfelf gave fome account, in an" Epiftle fent to the yearly-meeting at London," which is as follows:

An EPISTLE to the YEARLY-MEETING, at LONDON.

'Lamb's-Town in Ireland, the 2d of the 4th month, 1698.

• Dear FRIENDS and BRETHREN,

IT

T is not the leaft of our exercises that we are thus far outwardly feparated from you at this time of your holy and bleffed folemnity; but because we have great reafon to believe it is the will of God, ' we humbly fubmit to his ordering hand, and with open arms of deep and tender love embrace you, our living and our loving brethren, who are given up to ferve the Lord in your generation, and that have long preferred Jerufalem, and the peace and profperity

profperity of her borders, above your chiefeft joy. The falutation of our endeared brotherly love, in CHRIST JESUS, is unto you, defiring that he may richly appear among you in power, wifdom and love, to guide your judgments, and influence your spirits, in this weighty and anniversary affembly, that fo nothing may appear, or have place among you, but • what fingly feeks the honour of the Lord, the exalt⚫ation of his truth, and the peace and establishment of his heritage. For this, brethren, you and we know, has been the aim, end, and practice of those whom the Lord hath made willing to forfake and give up all for his name's fake; and through various exercifes and tribulations, yea, in the way of the • daily cross, and through the fight and baptism of • manifold afflictions, to have their converfation, and fojourning here below upon the earth, in fear and love, looking for their reward in the heavens that fhall never pafs away; who have not been lifted up by good report, nor caft down by evil report, from their love to the Lord and his precious TRUTH, but hold on their way, and whofe hands, being clean ⚫ of evil things towards all men, have waxed ftronger and stronger in the Lord. Wherefore, dear brethren, let us all be found in the fame fteps, and walking the fame way, not being high-minded, but fearing to the end, that we may ferve up our generation in diligence and faithfulness, and fo enter into the reft that God has referved for his true travellers ⚫ and labourers in his vineyard.

And now, dear brethren, know that the Lord hath brought us well into this kingdom of Ireland, and given us many large and bleffed opportunities in feveral parts; meetings being crowded by people of all ranks and perfuafions, especially at Dublin, who, for aught we have heard, have given the truth a good report: and indeed the Lord has mightily appeared for his own name, and owned us with a more than ordinary prefence, suitable to the occafions, and made very heavy and hard things eafy

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