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three-penny loaf served me three weeks, and sometimes longer, and most of my drink was water that had wormwood steeped or bruised in it. But one time when the weather was very sharp, and I had taken great cold, I got a little elicampane beer, and I heard one of the soldiers say to the other, that they would play me a trick, for they would send for me up to the deputy governor, and in the mean time they would drink my strong beer out, and so they did when I came back one of the soldiers came to me in a jeer, and asked me for some strong beer; I told him they had played their pretty trick, and so I took no further notice of it. But inasmuch as they kept me so very strait, not giving liberty for friends to come to me, I spake to the keepers of the castle to this effect; I did not know till 1 was removed from Lancaster castle, and brought prisoner to this castle of Scarborough, that I was convicted of a premunire, for the judge did not give sentence upon me at the assizes in open court. But seeing I am now a prisoner here, if, may not have my liberty and enlargement, let my friends and acquaintance have their liberty to come and visit me, as Paul's friends had among the Romans, who were not Christians but heathens. For Paul's friends had their liberty, and all that would might come to him, and he had his liberty to preach to them in his hired house, but I cannot have liberty to go into the town, nor for my friends to come to me here. So you that go under the name of Christians, are worse in this respect than those heathens

were.

But though they would not let friends come to me, they would often bring others either to gaze upon me or to contend with me. One time there was a great company of papists to discourse with me, and they affirmed the pope was infallible, and had stood infallible ever since Peter's time. But I shewed them the contrary by history, for one of the bishops of Rome (Marcellinus by name) denied the faith and sacrificed to idols, and therefore he was not infallible. And I told them, if they were in the infallible spirit they need not have jails, swords, and staves, racks and tortures, fires and faggots, whips and gallows, to hold up their religion by, and to destroy men's lives about religion, for if they were in the infallible spirit they would preserve men's lives, and use none but spiritual weapons about religion. I told them also what one that had been of their society told me: it was a woman who lived in Kent, and had not only been a papist herself, but had brought over several to that religion; but she coming to be convinced of God's truth, and turned by it to Christ her

Saviour, exhorted the papists to the same. And one time having one of them, a tailor, at work at her house, while she opened to him the falseness of the popish religion, and endeavoured to draw him from it to the truth, he drew his knife at her, and got between her and the door, but she spake boldly to him, and bid him put up his knife, for she knew his principle. I asked the woman what she thought he would have done with his knife; and she said he would have stabbed her. Stab thee, said I, what would he have stabbed thee for, thy religion? Yes, said she, it is the principle of the papists, if any turn from their religion to kill them if they can. This story I told those papists, and told them I had it from one that had been one of them, but had forsook their principles and had discovered their practices. They did not deny this to be their principle, but said, what, would I declare this abroad? I told them yes, such things ought to be declared abroad; that it might be known how contrary their religion was to true Christianity. Whereupon they went away in a great rage.

Another papist came to discourse with me, and he said all the patriarchs were in hell, from the creation till Christ came, and that when Christ suffered he went into hell, and the devil said to him, What comest thou hither for, to break open our strong holds? And Christ said, to fetch them all out. And so he said Christ was three nights and three days in hell, to bring them out. I told him that was false, for Christ said to the thief, "This day thou shalt be with me in paradise." And Enoch and Elijah were translated into heaven; and Abraham was in heaven, for the scripture saith, Lazarus was in his bosom : and Moses and Elias were with Christ upon the Mount before he suffered. These instances stopped the priest's mouth, and put him to a stand.

Another time there came one called doctor Witty, who was esteemed a great doctor of physic. He came with him that was called the lord Falconbridge, with whom came also the governor of Tynemouth castle, and several knights. And I being called to them, this Witty undertook to discourse with me, and asked me what I was in prison for. I told him, because I would not disobey the command of Christ, and swear. He said I ought to swear my allegiance to the king. Now he being a great presbyterian, Į asked him whether he had not sworn against the king and house of lords, and taken the Scotch covenant?, and had he not since sworn to the king? and what then was his swearing good for? But my allegiance, I told him, did not consist in swearing, but in truth and faithfulness. So after some further discourse I was had away to my prison agaių.

And afterwards this Dr. Witty boasted in the town amongst his patients that he had conquered me. When I heard of his boasting I told the governor it was a small boast in him to say he had conquered a bondsman; and I desired to bid him come to me again when he came to the castle. He came again awhile after, with a matter of sixteen or seventeen great persons; and then he ran himself worse on ground than before. For in discourse he affirmed before them all, that Christ had not enlightened every man that cometh into the world; and that the grace of God, that brought salvation, had not appeared unto all men; and that Christ had not died for all men. I asked him what sort of men those were which Christ had not eulightened? and whom his grace had not appeared to? and whom he had not died for? He said, Christ did not die for adulterers, and idolaters, and wicked men. Then I asked him whether adulterers and wicked men were not sinners, and he said yes. And did not Christ die for sinners, said I; did he not come to call sinners to repentance? Yes, said he. Then said I, thou hast stopped thy own mouth. So I proved that the grace of God had appeared unto all men, though some turned it into wantonness and walked despitefully against it; and that Christ had enlightened all men, though some hated the light. Several of the people that were present confessed it was true, but he went away in a great rage, and came no more at me.

Another time the governor brought a priest, but his mouth was soon stopped. Not long after he brought two or three parliament men, and they asked me whether I did own ministers and bishops? I told them, yes, such as Christ sent forth, such as had freely received and would freely give, and such as were qualified, and were in the same power and spirit that they were in in the apostles' days. But such bishops and teachers as theirs were, that would go no further than they had a great benefice, I did not own, for they were not like the apostles. For Christ saith to his ministers, "Go ye into all nations, and preach the gos pel;" but ye parliament men, that keep your priests and bishops in such great fat benefices, ye have spoiled them all, for do ye think they will go into all nations to preach? or will go any further than they have a great fat benefice? Judge yourselves whether they will or no.

There came another time the widow of him who was called the Old Lord Fairfax, and with her a great company, and one of the company was a priest. I was moved to declare the truth to them, and the priest asked me why we said thou and thee to people; for he counted us but

fools and idiots for speaking so. I asked him, whether they that translated the scriptures, and that made the grammar and accidence, were fools and idiots, seeing they translated the scriptures so, and made the grammar so, thou to one, and you to more than one, and left it so to us. And if they were fools and idiots, then why had not he, and such as he, that looked upon themselves as wise men, and that could not bear thou and thee to a singular, altered the grammar, accidence, and bible, and put the plural instead of the singular. But if they were wise men that had so translated the bible, and had made the grammar and accidence so, then I wished him to consider whether they were not fools and idiots themselves that did not speak as their grammars and bibles taught them, but were offended with us, and called us fools and idiots for speaking

Thus the priest's mouth was stopped, and many of the company did acknowledge the truth, and were pretty loving and tender; and some of them would have given me money, but I would not receive it.

After this came one called doctor Cradock, with three priests more, and the governor and his lady (so called) and another that was called a lady, and a great company with them. Dr. Cradock asked me what I was in prison for; I told him, for obeying the command of Christ and the apostle in not swearing. But if he, being both a doctor and a justice of peace, could convince me that after Christ and the apostle had forbidden swearing, they commanded Christians to swear, then I would swear. Here was the bible, I told him, he might, if he would, shew me any such command. He said, it is written, "Ye shall swear in truth and righteousness." Ay, said I, it was written so in Jeremiah's time, but that was many ages before Christ commanded not to swear at all; but where is it written so since Christ forbad all swearing? I could bring as many instances out of the Old Testament for swearing as thou, and it may be more too, but of what force are they to prove swearing lawful in the New Testament, since Christ and the apostle forbad it? Besides, said I, in that text where it is written, ye shall swear, what [ye] was this? Was it ye Gentiles, or ye Jews? To this he would not answer. But one of the priests that were with him answered, and said, it was to the Jews that this was spoken; and then Dr. Cradock confessed it was so. Very well, said I, but where did God ever give a command to the Gentiles to swear? For thou knowest that we are Gentiles by nature. Indeed, said he, in the gospel-times every thing was to be VOL. II.

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established out of the mouths of two or three witnesses; but there was to be no swearing then. Why then, said I, dost thou force oaths upon Christians contrary to thy own knowledge in the gospel times. And why, said I, dost thou excommunicate my friends? (for he had excommunicated abundance, both in Yorkshire and Lancashire.) He said, for not coming to church. Why, said I, ye left us above twenty years ago (when we were but young lads and lasses) to the presbyterians, independents, and baptists, many whereof made spoil of our goods, and persecuted us, because we would not follow them. Now we being but young, knew little then of your principles; and the old men that did know them, if ye had intended to have kept them to you, and have kept your principles alive that we might have known them, ye should either not have fled from us as ye did, or ye should have sent us your epistles, and collects, and homilies, and evening-songs, (for Paul writ epistles to the saints, though he was in prison); but they and we might have turned Turks or Jews for any collects, homilies, or epistles, we had from you all this while. And now thou hast excommunicated us, both young and old, and so have others of you done, that is, ye have put us out of your church before ye have got us into it, and before ye have brought us to know your principles. And is not this madness in you, to put us out before we were brought in. Indeed, if ye had brought us into your church, and when we had been in if we had done some bad thing, that had been something like a ground for excommunication or putting out again. But, said I, what dost thou call the church? Why, said he, that which you call the steeple-house. Then I asked him, whether Christ shed his blood for the steeple-house; and purchased and sanctified the steeple-house with his blood? And seeing the church is Christ's bride and wife, and that he is the head of the church, dost thou think the steeple-house is Christ's wife and bride, and that he is the head of that old house or of his people? No, said he, Christ is the head of the people and they are the church. Then said I, but you have given that title, church, which belongs to the people, to an old house, and you have taught people to believe so. I asked him also, why he persecuted friends for not paying tithes. And whether God did ever give a command to the Gentiles that they should pay tithes. And whether Christ had not ended tithes when he ended the Levitical priesthood that took tithes. And whether Christ, when he sent forth his disciples to preach, had not commanded them

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