After I had cleared myself of those services for the Lord, which lay upon me in the city of London, I passed down through the countries into Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire. And at Wellingborough in Northamptonshire I had a great meeting, in which the Lord's everlasting power and truth was over all; and many in that country were turned to the Lord. A great rage was amongst the professors, for the wicked priests, presbyterians and independents, raised lies upon us, as that we carried bottles about with us, which we gave people to drink of, which made them to follow us: but the power and spirit, and truth of God kept friends over the rage of the people. Great spoiling also there was of friends' goods for tithes, by the independent and presbyterian priests, and some baptist-priests, that had gotten into the steeple-houses; as books of friends' sufferings do at large declare.

From Wellingborough I went into Leicestershire, where colonel Hacker had threatened that if I came there he would imprison me again, although the Protector bad set me at liberty but when I was come to Whetston (the meeting from which he took me before) all was quiet there. And thither came colonel Hacker's wife, and his marshal to the meeting, and were convinced: for the glorious, powerful day of the Lord was exalted over all, and many were convinced that day at that meeting. There were at that meeting two, that came out of Wales, who were justices of peace, their names were Peter Price and Walter Jenkin, who came both to be ministers of Christ.

I went from thence to Sileby, to William Smith's, where was a great meeting, to which several baptists came, and one of them, a baptist teacher, was convinced, and came to sit under the Lord's teaching by his spirit and power. This baptist said he had baptized thirty in a day.

From thence I went to Drayton, my native town, where so many priests and professors had formerly gathered together against me, but now never a priest nor professor did appear. I asked some of my relations where were all the priests and professors now. They said, the priest of Non-Eaton was dead, and there were eight or nine of them seeking to get into his benefice. They will let you alone now, said they, for they are like a company of crows, when a rotten sheep is dead, they all gather together to pull out the puddings, and so do the priests for a fallen benefice. These were some of their own hearers that said so of them; but they had spent their venom against me, and the Lord delivered me by his power out of their

snares.

Then I went to Badgley, where there was a great meeting from many parts; many came far to it, and many were convinced and turned to the Lord; and they that were convinced, came under Christ's teaching, and were settled upon him, their foundation and their rock.

From thence I passed into Nottinghamshire, and had large meetings there, and so into Derbyshire, where the Lord's power came over all; and many were turned from the darkness to the light, and from the power of Satan unto God, and came to receive the Holy Ghost. And great miracles were wrought in many places by the power of the Lord through several.

In Derbyshire James Nailer met me, and told me seven or eight priests had challenged him to a dispute. I had a travel in my spirit for him, and the Lord answered me, and I was moved to bid him go on, and God Almighty would be with him, and give him the victory in his power. And the Lord did so, insomuch that the people saw the priests were foiled, and they cried, a Nailer, a Nailer hath confuted them all. After the dispute was over, he came to me again, praising the Lord. Thus was the Lord's day proclaimed and set over all their heads, and people began to see the apostacy and slavery they had been under to their hireling teachers for means; and they came to know their teacher, the Lord Jesus, who had bought them and purchased them, and made their peace between God and them. While we were here, friends came out of Yorkshire to sce us, and were glad of the prosperity of truth.

After this I passed into Warwickshire, through friends, visiting their meetings, and so into Worcestershire, and had a meeting at Birmingham, as I went where several were convinced and turned to the Lord. At length I came to one Cole's house in Worcestershire, near Chattan. This Cole had given an independent preacher a meetingplace, and the independent came to be convinced, and after he was convinced he laid aside his preaching; whereupon the old man Cole gave him an hundred pounds a year. I had a meeting at that meeting-place, and a very great meeting it was, insomuch that the meeting-place would not hold the people, and many were turned to the Lord that day. Afterwards, when the time of trials came, this independent did not stand to that which had convinced him, but turned back, whereupon the old man took away' his 1001. a year from him again. But this old man Cole himself died in God's truth.

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Now I heard that at Eversham the magistrates had cast several friends into prison, in several prisons, and that,

hearing of my coming, they made a pair of high stocks. So I sent for Edward Pittaway, a friend that lived near Eversham, and asked him the truth of the thing, and he said it was so. Then I went that night with him to Eversham, and in the evening we had a large precious meeting, wherein friends and people were refreshed with the word of life and with the power of the Lord. Next morning I got up and rode to one of the prisons, and visited friends there, and encouraged them. Then I rode to the other prison, where there were several prisoners, and amongst them one friend, that had been a priest, but was now become a free minister of Christ; his name was Humphrey Smith. So when I had visited the friends at both prisons, and was turned away from the prison to go out of town, I espied the magistrates coming up the town to have seized me in prison. But the Lord frustrated their intents, that the innocent escaped their snare, and the Lord God's blessed power came over them all. But exceeding rude and envious were the priests and professors about this time in those parts.

I went from Eversham to Worcester and had a precious meeting there, and quiet. But after the meeting, as we came down the street towards our inn, some of the professors fell to discourse with friends, and were like to have made a tumult in the city; and as we went into the inn, they all cluttered into the yard, but I went among them, and got them quieted. The next day I walked forth into the town, and had a great deal of discourse with some of the professors, concerning Christ and the way of truth. One of them denied that Christ was of Abraham, according to the flesh, and that he was declared to be the Son of God, according to the Spirit; but I proved from Rom. 1. that he was of the seed of Abraham, being made of the seed of David according to the flesh, and that according to the Spirit he was declared to be the Son of God. Afterwards I writ a paper concerning it.

From Worcester we went to Tewkesbury, where in the evening we had a great meeting; and there came in the priest of the town with a great rabble of rude people, and the priest boasted that he would see whether he or I should have the victory. I turned the people to the divine light, which Christ, the heavenly and spiritual man, had enlightened them withal; that with that light they might see their sins, and that they were in death and darkness, and without God in the world; and with the same light they might see Christ from whom it came, their Saviour and Redeemer, who had shed his blood for them, and died

for them, and who was the way to God, the truth, and the life. Here the priest began to rage against the light, and denied it; for neither priest nor professor could endure to hear the light spoken of. So the priest having railed at the light went away, and left his rude company amongst us; but the Lord's power came over them, though mischief was in their hearts.

Leaving Tewkesbury, we passed back through the country and came to Warwick, where in the evening we had a meeting at a widow-woman's house, whither many sober people came together, and a precious meeting we had in the Lord's power, and several were convinced and turned to the Lord. After the meeting was done and I was walking out, a baptist in the company began to jangle, and the bailiff of the town with his officers came in, and said what do these people here at this time of the night? so he secured John Crook and Amor Stoddart, and Gerrard Roberts, and me, but we had leave to go to our inn (all that were strangers) and to be forth-coming in the morning. The next morning there came many rude people into the inn and into our chambers, desperate fellows; but the Lord's power gave us dominion over them. Gerrard Roberts and John Crook went up to the bailiff to speak with him, and to know what he had to say to us. He said we might go our ways, for he had little to say to us. Then as we rode out of town, it lay upon me to ride to his house to speak to him, and to let him know, that the Protector having given forth an instrument of government, in which liberty of conscience was granted, it was very much, that contrary to that instrument of government, he would trouble peaceable people that feared God. The friends went with me, but the rude people gathered about us with stones; and one of them took hold of my horse's bridle and broke it, but the horse drawiug back threw him under bim. Though the bailiff saw this, yet did he not stop, nor so much as rebuke the rude multitude, so that it was much we had not been slain or hurt in the streets amongst them, for the people threw stones, and struck at us, as we rode along the town.

When we were come quite out of the town, I told friends it was upon me from the Lord, that I must go back into the town again, and if any one of them felt any thing upon him from the Lord, he might follow me, and the rest that did not, might go on to Dun-cow. So I passed up through the market in the dreadful power of God, declaring the word of life to them, and John Crook followed me. Some struck at me, but the Lord's power was over

them, and gave me dominion over all; and I shewed them their unworthiness of the name of Christians, and the unworthiness of their teachers that had not brought them into more sobriety, and what a shame they were to Christianity!

Having cleared myself, I turned back out of the town again, and passed to Coventry; but when we came thither we found the people closed up with darkness. 1 went to a professor's house that I had formerly been at, and he was drunk, which grieved my soul so, that I did not go into any house in the town, but rode into some of the streets of the town, and into the market-place, and I felt the power of the Lord God was over the town.

Then I went on to Dun-cow, and had a meeting there in the evening, and some were turned to the Lord by his Spirit, as some also were at Warwick and Tewkesbury before-mentioned. We lay at the Dun-cow that night, and there we met with John Cham, a faithful minister of the everlasting gospel. In the morning there was gathered together a rude company of priests and people, who behaved themselves more like beasts than men, for some of them came riding on horseback into the 100m where we were; but the Lord gave us dominion over them.

From thence we passed into Leicestershire, where we had a great meeting again at the place where I had been taken formerly; and after that we came back into Warwickshire to Badgley. Here William Edmundson, a friend that lived in Ireland, having some drawings upon his spirit to come over into England to see me, met with me, and by him I writ a few lines to those few friends that were then convinced in the north of Ireland, as followeth :

Friends,

In that which convinced you wait, that you may have that removed you are convinced of. And all my dear friends, dwell in the life and love, and power and wisdom of God, in unity one with another, and with God; and the peace and wisdom of God fill all your hearts, that nothing may rule in you but the life, which stands in the Lord God.'

G. F.

When these few lines were read amongst the friends in Ireland at their meeting, the power of the Lord seized upon them all that were in the room.

From Badgley we passed to Swannington and Higham, and so through the countries into Northamptonshire and