CHAPTER XX.

1685-1690. Death of Charles II.-Petition of the Quakers to James II. -The king's proclamation and general liberation of the Quakers— Several of G. Fox's papers-Death and character.

What

"Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and hath not works? can faith save them ?-James i. 11.

"Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his !"— Numb. xxiii. 10. "And I heard a voice from heaven, saying, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth."-Rev. xiv. 13.

The year 1685 teemed with events of the utmost importance to the nation at large, which even threatened a severe blow to the cause of the Reformation, by a new overthrow of the protestant church of England. In the month of Feburary, the king was suddenly seized with convulsive fits, and, after an illness of a few days, expired; and the throne, to the great dismay of the nation, was now to be filled by his papist brother, James the Second. As this event came upon the nation most unexpectedly, the late king being in the prime of life, all parties were in a state of painful excitement, naturally looking for great changes, without being able to calculate either upon their nature or extent.

The persecutions against the dissenters had been carried on with unremitting virulence by the high-church party, up to the period of the late king's decease, and upon the accession of his brother James to the throne, petitions were poured in from all the aggrieved parties, praying for a toleration of their religious tenets, and that they might unmolestedly worship God in the way most agreeable to their opinions. The petition from the Quakers is as follows:

"To KING JAMES THE SECOND.

"The Humble APPLICATION OF THE PEOPLE CALLED QUAKERS. "Whereas it hath pleased Almighty God, by whom kings reign, to take hence the late King Charles the Second, and to

preserve thee peaceably to succeed; we thy subjects heartily desire, that the Giver of all good and perfect gifts, may please to endue thee with wisdom and mercy in the use of thy great power, to his glory, the king's honour, and the kingdom's good; and it being our sincere resolution, according to our peaceable principles and conversation, by the assistance of Almighty God, to live peaceably and honestly, as becomes true and faithful subjects under the king's government, and a conscientious people, that truly fear and serve God; we do humbly hope, that the king's tenderness will appear, and extend with his power to express the same; recommending to his princely clemency, the case of our present suffering friends hereunto annexed:

"TO THE KING.

"THE DISTRESSED CASE AND REQUEST OF THE suffering peoPLE COMMONLY CALLED QUAKERS, HUMBLY PRESENted.

"SHEWING,

"That according to accounts lately given, about fourteen hundred of the said people, both men and women, are continued prisoners in England and Wales, only for tender conscience towards Almighty God, that made them; many under sentence of premunire, and many near it, not for refusing duty or substance of allegiance itself, but only because they dare not swear; others under fines upon the act of banishment; many on writs of excommunication; besides some hundreds have died prisoners; many by means of this long imprisonment since the year 1680, as it is judged, thereby making widows and fatherless, and leaving poor innocent families in distress and sorrow. These two hard winters' confinement, have tended also to the destruction of many in cold holes and gaols, their health being greatly impaired thereby; besides the violence and woful spoil made by merciless informers on the Conventicle Act, upon many, convicted, unsummoned, and unheard in their own defence, both in city and country; as also on 'qui tam' writs, and other processes, on twenty pounds a month fines, and two-thirds of estates seized for the king, all tending to the ruin of trade and husbandry, and of industrious families; to some not a bed left, to others no cattle

to till the ground, or give them milk; nor corn for bread or seed, nor tools to work withal. And also these and other severities done under pretence of serving the king and church, thereby to force us to violate our consciences, and consequently to destroy our souls, of which we are very tender, as we are of our peace with God, and our own consciences, though accounted as sheep for the slaughter; and notwithstanding all these long sustained extremities, we the said people, do solemnly profess and declare, in the sight of the Teacher of hearts, that we have nothing but goodwill and true affection to the king, praying for his safety, and the kingdom's peace. We have never been found in any seditious or treasonable designs, as being wholly contrary to our christian principles and holy profession.

"And knowing, that where the word of a king is, there is peace,' we in christian humility, and for Christ's sake, entreat, that the king will please to find out some expedient for our relief in these cases, from prison, spoil, and ruin, and we shall, as in christian duty bound, pray God for the king's welfare in this world, and his eternal happiness in that which is to come."

Then followed a particular list or statement of the number of Quakers, at that time lying in prison in the different counties of England and Wales, amounting altogether to one thousand four hundred and sixty. And soon after the presentation of the above petition and statement, the king was graciously pleased to exercise his prerogative in favour of his peaceable and innocent subjects, the Quakers, by issuing the following proclamation, in which he ordered their release by way of pardon:

"JAMES REX.

"Whereas our most entirely beloved brother, the late king deceased, had signified his intentions to his attorneys-general, for the pardoning such of his subjects who had been sufferers in the late rebellion for their loyalty, or whose parents or near relations had been sufferers in the late rebellion for that cause, or who had themselves testified their loyalty and affection to the government, and were persecuted, indicted, or convicted, for not taking, or refusing to take, the oaths of allegiance and supremacy, or one of

them, or had been prosecuted upon any writ, or any penalty, or otherwise, in any of the courts of Westminster Hall, or in any of the ecclesiastical courts, for not coming to church, or not receiving the sacrament.

"And whereas the several persons whose names are mentioned in the schedule annexed to this our warrant, have produced unto us certificates for the loyalty and sufferings of them and their families.

"Now, in pursuance of the said will of our said most dear brother, and in consideration of the sufferings of the said persons, our will and pleasure is, that you cause all process and proceedings, ex officio, as well against the said persons mentioned in the said schedule hereunto annexed, as against all other persons as shall hereafter be produced unto you, to be wholly superseded and stayed; and if any of the said persons be decreed or pronounced excommunicated, or have been so certified, or are in prison upon the writ 'de excommunicatio capiendi,' for any of the causes aforesaid, our pleasure is, that you absolve, and cause such persons to be absolved, discharged, or set at liberty, and that no process or proceedings whatsoever be hereafter made in any court against any of the said persons, for any cause beforementioned, until our pleasure therein shall be farther signified.

"Given at our court at Whitehall, this 18th day of April,

1685, in the first year of our reign.

"To all archbishops and bishops, to their chancellors and commissioners, and to all such deacons and their officials, and all other ordinaries and persons executing ecclesiastical jurisdiction. "By his Majesty's command.

"SUNDERLAND."

James, when Duke of York, had always treated Admiral Penn with marks of sincere friendship, and, at the birth of his son, William, he stood sponsor to the child. His godson, the celebrated William Penn, at this time ranked so high in the estimation of James, that he had access to him at all times, and it may be, in some measure, attributed to his influence with the king, that this document, so unreservedly favourable towards the Quakers, was granted. Its address clearly points out the

quarter from whence all their persecutions had proceeded, and if we had no other proof, would afford evidence of the mistaken, persecuting spirit, which then prevailed with the high-church party. It is a curious fact, that the protestant dissenters should have received from a catholic prince a free toleration of their religious opinions; an indulgence which had been denied to them, in the smallest particular, by the reformed protestant church of England, and which all the religious parties of the day, with the exception of the Quakers, had been extremely tenacious of conceding to each other. When we consider the motive of this apparently liberal act, but little merit, alas! can be ascribed to the granter, who, it is clear, from his subsequent acts, only considered it as a first step towards the re-establishment of popery, by attempting the subversion of the national church, and in the furtherance of which measure, he was finally expelled from the throne of his forefathers.

This gracious proclamation of James, which threw open the prison doors throughout the nation to the Quakers, and restored several hundreds of them from cruel imprisonment, to the bosoms of their families, was a source of heartfelt thankfulness to them; and in consequence thereof, their ensuing "Yearly Meeting," which took place in the spring of this year, was very largely attended. George Fox says, "many of those who had been restrained in bonds for years, came up to this Yearly Meeting, and caused great joy to Friends, to see our ancient faithful brethren again at liberty in the Lord's work, after their long imprisonment. And, indeed, a precious meeting we had; the refreshing presence of the Lord appearing plentifully with us and among us." A great concern, however, arose in his mind, lest in the joy and fulness of their hearts, "any should look too much to man, and not eye the Lord therein, from whence all deliverance comes ;" he, therefore, wrote two epistles, to caution Friends to be watchful over themselves in this particular; stating therein, "My desires are, that all may be preserved in humility and thankfulness, in the sense of all the mercies of the Lord; and live in the peaceable truth that is over all that ye may answer God's grace, and his light and Spirit in all; in a righteous, godly life, and conversation. Let none be lifted up by their outward liberty, neither