but will do justice towards God and man, which the' enemies of my Cross never would do; neither will the enemies of my Crown do it now: for where Satan hath the advantage over men, to fill them up with unbelief, he will have the advantage to work in them deceit. Now let the world see from Pomeroy, and thy friends, where the art and deceit lie; who is ready to come forward with every truth but the believers? and who is ready to keep back the truth and deny it but an unbeliever? This was done at my first coming, and this is done at my second coming. Now let all men judge for themselves; for I shall go on to make every thing clear to men of reason and to men of sense. "Now I shall answer thee: Pomeroy hath done like the Jews of old; he hath concealed the truth, and will not appear to own the truth; then go out into the highways and hedges and compel them to come in Let the witnesses' words be taken; and let any opposers come that will come, that have not returned the letters; or, let the halting Jacobs appear, that are now halting between two opinions; let them come forward to the number that is mentioned. "Now I shall come to Pomeroy's words: he saith let the truth be tried, but leave him out of the question. Now let Pomeroy answer Me, which way the truth is to be tried to leave him out of the question? Is not that a thing impossible? In thy heart thou sayest, Yes, it is a thing impossible; then I answer, he will find it in the end as much impossible for him to regain his lost honour: for his name must ever stand with the naire of the keepers that were bribed to conceal the truth. So whether he will hear, or whether he will forbear, write thou the words unto him this day, and tell him to call to his remembrance, "The eleven days are still in store. To stay my heavy hand; Then he may still sleep on, Till all my threatened judgments come upon him. Now tell him, for his sake I have deferred thy Trial to the last day; for seven days before November is out, by the Old Stile, thy Trial must begin; and if he is not present then, or sends no fiiends to appear in his behalf, he must trust to the judgment of them that are present; but as to his conduct, from first to last, it will all go in print with the witnesses' names; and let him know what an impossibility he hath required; and the letter thou sendest him must go in print." Here follows a copy of the Letter:' REV. SlR, London, Nov. 23, 1804. In your letter to the Rev« Mr. Foley, you write desiring to have the truth of my writings cleared up, and tried by the test of Scripture, but leaving your name out of the question; then what truth can be cleared up? What an impossibility do you require? What sense and nonsense have you blended together? Doth not your own handwriting prove your senses more deranged than mine? You say, it must be tried by the test of Scripture truth, and by that let it stand or fall. Now, Sir, if we leave out the truth of the Scriptures they must fall, and if I leave out the truths that were put in your hands I must fall; for what use was it of my putting events in your hands, from 1796 to the 1801, if all these things were to die and never to be named? Then you might judge I was led by a knave or a fool; but you will find in the end, I am not led by either; but that the Devil hath completely drowned your senses. Yet still the Lord is waiting to be gracious, if you appear to clear up the truth at the eleventh hour; therefore I must call to your remembrance the words I read to you in 1798, that by the dates being different wi$ £od and man, it was said— "Eleven clays are still in store, "To slay my heavy hand; •' Then you may still sleep'on" Till heavier storms come upon the nation, which followed in the 1799 and the 1800. Now these eleven clays have been kept in store for you, that for your sake my Trial \s put off, to the last seven days of November, by tile Old Stile, so the mercies of God endure to the end; but not one day longer will it be defeired. My witnesses from Exeter are now in London, and every truth concerning you, and me, will be given in to the attorney, and'all put in public print. Now T must call to your remembrance the letter I sent you— , ••Will you, like the Jews of old, In the highways I'll go; 1 bid thee hasty shew." , And now your words, without delay, I shall put; hastily in execution, to have every truth tried and proved; but you shall no longer make me an offering for a word, to sigri to subtilty, arts, and deceits; the naked truth shall now appear. I am sorry to tell you, that your conscience hath been bribed like the keepers, that when they Saw the angels appeared, and the stone rolled away, and they fled for fear, they were bribed to say the disciples stole him away while they were asleep. Here, like you, they contradict themselves, for what man could tell what was done when they were asleep? and what man can tell which is right, you or me, if I leave your name out of the question, and do not call my witnesses to clear jevery truth? In this, your senses appear no more acute than mine; for I am sorry t;p tell you, that there is such sense and nonsense blended together in your letters, that my senses are not so much deranged but I can discern the depth of the whole. I do not, like yoii, boast of good sense, that the polite world boast of, to drown common sense; but common sense teaches me reason and religion, that in an affair like mine, justice, equity, and truth, must take place, and none of the truth kept back. And now I shall come to the purport of my letter: your hiding yourself sheweth yourself guiltyj and you are your own murderer. My Trial is prolonged on your account, that you may have no excuse to plead; but as I know conscious guilt keeps you back from appearing yourself, you are at liberty to send any friend you think proper, to appear in your behalf. You know the last day is mentioned; my Trial cannot be deferred longer than the last seven days in November , by Old Stile; and if you appear you may claim my promise in the letter that was sent you in print, by the command of the Lord; but if you do not appear, you prove yourself guilty, and must say as Adonibezek did, as I have done to others, so the Lord hath requited me. Now, Sir, I shall conclude with,saying, this letter with all the others that have been sent you, will be put in print, if you are absent; and you must say, the judgments of God have now overtaken you; but I wish you to call reason to your assistance, before reason come too late. If I do not receive an answer by the return of post, your silence proves you would sooner have your character lost for ever, by your ill conduct, than acknowledge your fault towards God and me, and clear your conscience, that wherein you had done wrong to acknowledge you would do so no more. One thing I must observe, in your letter to .Mr. Foley, you say, after a full and patient investigation into my writings, you are of opinion they proceed from a deceived imagination or spiritual delusion; then I must ask you, why, Sir, after having the writings, a fortnight in your hands, to pass your judgment thereon, before they were put in print, that you delivered them into my hands to put them in print, and said, you could not blame me? then why did you deceive me, and not tell me your judgment then *? So out of your own mouth, you have tried every way to deceive me, and now in the end you are deceived- yourself. So, I am, your much injured, • - - , JoannaSouthcott. -• P. S. Please to direct to Mr. Sharp, No. 50, Titchfield Street, Oxford Street, London. , When tile Rev. Gentleman paid no attention to this offer, the following directions were given: • , ,i " Go into the highways and hedges and compel them to come in. Now they are at liberty to invite any twenty-four they choose, to stand in their stead, that the house may be filled with the appointed nftmber that is mentioned; therefore, I ordered my friends to come before the time, that the witnesses might be examined, their evidence taken, and all laid before the public. So opposers that wish to be present let them be present, for the complete number must be made up. I choose no man; but let them, be invited and come by their own choice; and whether Pomeroy come or send, there shall not be one turned back that Cometh by invitation to make up the twent.y.four. If they had not been warned, by letters, had not been invited, had not been threatened, they would have said, all was unjust, to call forward all the witnesses to appear against them, - if they had not notice to answer for themselves; and the world would: have said, as toas said at Stockton, that all was indented lies. Everv truth shall be cleared up by evidence and by witnesses, before thou goest hence to be no more seen then - where is; the man who'ean contend-with believers, when every truth is proved and tried? where are the clergy who can con •* "For-a ^'at^icular accouat of this' see page 2 of Joseph Southcott s 'book, printed in 1804. ' ii « |
