else why did our Lord fay to his Difciples, Children, 1719. bave you any Meat? They answered, No; and he bid them caft their Nets into the Sea, and they drew to Land a Net full of great Fishes; and Fishing being their Trade, no doubt but they fold them, for it was not likely they could eat 'em all themfelves. Alfo the Apostle of Chrift fays, He that doth not take care of his Family, is worse than an Infidel: And the Apostle Paul (the great Apoftle of the Gentiles) wrought with his Hands, even while he was in his Travels, and in the Work of the Gofpel; and others tafted of the Benefit of his Labour naturally, as well as fpiritually. It is alfo written, That be that will not work, fhall not eat. By this, and much more, which might be noted, it appears that we not only have liberty to labour in Moderation, but we are given to understand, that it is our Duty fo to do. The Farmer, the Tradefman, and the Merchant, do not understand by our Lord's Doctrine, that they muft neglect their Calling, or grow idle in their Bufinefs, but muft certainly work, and be industrious in their Callings. We all ought to understand, that our Hearts and Minds ought to be out of the World, or above the Nature and Spirit of it. 'Tis good and profitable for both Soul and Body, rightly to diftinguish between earthly and heavenly Things, and to be careful how they mix the one with the other; for it is an eternal Truth, that God and Mammon cannot dwell together, or join together in the Heart. If our Love is more to God than the Creature, or to Heaven than Earth, then will he dwell in us and with us: But if our Love is more to the Creature than to Chrift, or to Earth than Heaven, then will he not dwell with us, but will leave us to ourselves; for the Lord Omnipotent will not admit of any Rival. On the 11th of the Fourth Month 1719, we left Antigua, ftood close to the Wind till we again croffed the Tropick, and got into thofe Latitudes where the 1719. Winds are variable. Sailing in the great Deeps we faw the Wonders of the Lord, particularly in divers Kinds of Fish, they living upon one another in the Sea, the great Fifhes on the fmall Ones; and Mankind too much resembles them in that Respect. About the Latitude of 33 North, our Mafter, Warner Holt, feeing a Scool of Porpoifes about the Ship, tho' he was not very well, and had not been for most of the Voyage, he took his Harpin-Iron, and ftruck one of them, and we took him into the Veffel, out of which we got eleven Quart Bottles of Oyl; and we most of us eat heartily of this Fifh, which agreed with our People very well. They fry'd his Liver for our Mefs, of which I eat a large Meal, which was well-tafted, and eat more like fresh Beef than Fish. I make this Memorandum of it, that if any fhould take them when their Provifions are fcarce, they may eat freely without Danger, according to our Experience. When we had been at Sea about three Weeks, being near the Latitude of 40 North, and about the Longitude of 42, tho' it was in the midft of Summer, we saw an Ifland of Ice, at which we all marvelled, and judged that there had been a fevere cold Winter in those Lacitudes on the Land of America. When we faw this Iland of Ice we judged ourselves not far from the Banks of Newfoundland. Hitherto we had eafy Gales of Wind, and many Calms, which made our Paffage feem long to us. We faw two Sail of Ships about thofe Latitudes, but fpoke with neither, being willing to fhun them as it was War-time. We had in this Voyage Weekly Meetings for worfhipping the Almighty, in which the great Lord both of Sea and Land, was pleafed greatly to manifeft his Name and Truth amongst us, for which my Soul often fecretly and openly bleffed and praised his divine and glorious Name and Truth; for he bore up my drooping Spirit, fo that I could truly fay with the Royal Pfalmift (not because he spoke it only, but also being an experimental Witness thereof) The Floods have 1719. About the 11th Day of the Fifth Month, we faw great Flocks of Birds, which we judged came from the Azores, or Western Islands, near which we reckoned ourselves to be. The 21ft Day we faw, and came up with a French Ship, which had been fishing on the Banks of Newfoundland, and was bound for Havre de Grace, in France, the Mafter of which came on board us, and our Captain went on board them. We exchanged fome Rums and Sugars (of our SeaStores) for their French Wine and Cyder, and fome of our Provisions for fome of their Fish. The Captain was a Proteftant, and very courteous to us: The Regent of France at this Time being kind to the Proteftants, fo that they increas'd much in that Kingdom. The Frenchman feeming defirous to know what Reli gion I was of, I told him, by an Interpreter, that I was one called a Quaker, or Trembler, and that our Principle was to do Good to all Men, and not to hurt any Man, according to Chrift's Doctrine, Not to render Evil for Evil, but to overcome Evil with Good. When they went away and took Leave of us, they defired 1719. defired me to pray for them, the which I remembred with Tenderness of Spirit, and having but little Wind, we kept Company for feveral Days; but the Wind fpringing fair, we wished them well, and went on our Way, our Veffel outfailing moft we met with; and a few Days after we met with a New-England Ship, who came out fix Days before us from Antigua. We were then in the Latitude of about 50 North, and 29 Degrees of Longitude from the Lands-End of Great-Britain. The 30th Day of the Fifth Month, we founded, and found Ground at 28 Fathom, and on the ft of the Sixth Month, we faw the LandsEnd of England, all our Company being in Health, and well; for which my Heart was truly thankful, to that great and infinite Being, whofe Providence is over us poor Mortals in all Parts of the World, and who reigns over Sea and Land, and is worthy of Adoration, Worship, Service, and living Praife for ever! In a few Days we came into the English Channel, and going up the Channel there came one of the King's Yatchs, and they preffed moft of our Men; the best Hands we had they took from us, and carried them on board a Man of War, after which we came to Anchor at Folkstone, where I left the Veffel, and got a Horse to Dover, and from Dover took Coach to London. In the Coach were divers Perfons who began to talk about the Quakers, and fpoke against their plain Way of Living and Cloathing, and faid, That they did not understand their unfashionble Way of Converfation; neither was it the Way to gain Profelytes. Upon which I afked them, Whether they understood Paul, the great Apoftle of the Gentiles? who faid, Be ye not conformable to the World (i. e. the Fashions of it) for this great Reafon, The World, and the Fashions thereof, paffeth away; which is a great Truth, and it is plainly feen how fickle and changeable the World is in its vain Fashions and Customs, which, to follow, in all its foolish Cuts Cuts and Turns, or Changes, must, of Corfequence, make 1719. a Man or Woman very foppifh and apifb. I told them, That our Religion was agreeable to the holy Scriptures, which, if they did not understand, neither could they understand us; for the Doctrine of Chrift and bis Apoftles, was generally therein very plain; and the Doctrine in Chrift's excellent Sermon on the Mount, is clear and plain' to very low or mean Capacities: So they difcourfed no more of Religion till we came to London, where once London, more I met with my loving and aged Father, a Man fearing God, and having a Gift of the Miniftry of the Gospel of Chrift, and well beloved of his Friends and Nighbours, who, with others of my near and dear Relations and Friends, received me gladly. After fome Months Stay among my Relations and Friends in London, we fold our Veffel the Snow Hope, and bought another Ship which we called the TrineHope (Warner Holt Master) and when I had done my Bufinefs I failed in the fame Ship for Penfylvania. We At Sea. had Meetings on board the Veffel twice a Week, in which the Almighty was pleafed to favour us with his good Prefence. Sobriety, and the Fear of God, and Faith in his beloved Son Chrift, was often recommended to the Youth then on board the Veffel with us, of whom there were divers, who tranfported themAt one felves to America, in order to fettle there. Meeting on board I was tenderly concerned to remind them of Jacob, who in his Youth, left his Country and Relations, to fojourn in a strange Land, and how in that Undertaking, he fought the Lord, and his/ Bleffing, more than any outward Thing; and that he was greatly bleffed with many Favours from Heaven above, and alfo from the Earth beneath, and they were advised to take him for their Example : And many other Things were tenderly opened to them in the Love of God, and in his Fear and Counfel they were exhorted from Time to Time |