fant and feeble minds fhould be poifoned thereby, and a foundation laid for the greatest evils. And it is earnestly recommended to every member of our religious fociety, that they discourage and suppress the reading of plays, pernicious novels, or other bad books. And printers and booksellers in profeffion with us, are cautioned against printing, felling or lending fuch books, as it is a practice inconfiftent with the purity of the Christian religion. And friends are defired to be careful in the choice of all books in which their children and families read, seeing there are many under the fpecious titles of promoting religion and morality, which contain fentiments repugnant to the truth in Chrift Jesus.

And monthly-meetings are defired to provide the families of poor friends, with friends' books, and fuch as are adapted to the inftruction and edification of their children.

It is recommended, that the meeting for fufferings, do distribute friends' books in fuch manner, and fuch places, as they may think proper.

BURIALS.

ALTHOUGH we do not feel difpofed to enjoin any particular mode, with respect to burials, yet we recommend the attention of friends to the practice of the society, as antiently defcribed, viz.

"If the corpfe of the deceased be near any public meeting-house, it is ufually carried thither, for the more convenient reception of those that accompany it to the grave-yard; and it fo falls out fometimes, that while the meeting is gathering for the burial, fome or other have a word of exhortation, for the fake of the people there met together; after which the body is borne away by the young men, or those that are of their neighbourhood, or that were moft of the intimacy of the deceased party; the corpfe being in a plain coffin, without any covering or furniture upon it. At the ground, they pause fometime before they put the body into its grave, that if any one there should have any thing upon them to exhort the people, they may not be difappointed, and that the relations may the more retiredly and folemnly take their last leave of the corpfe of their departed kindred, and the spectators have a sense of mortality, by the occafion then given them to reflect upon their own latter end."

And in order that burials be commendably and decently accomplished, as well as for the affiftance of thofe immediately concerned, monthly-meetings are advised to appoint fome folid friends to attend thereat.

And whereas friends in fome places have gone into the vain and empty custom of erecting monuments over the dead bodies of friends, for diftinction, by tomb-ftones, infcriptions, &c. and we being very defirous friends should keep a commendable plainness and fimplicity in this, as well as other respects; it is therefore the advice of this meeting, that all fuch monuments over dead bodies of friends, fhould be removed, as much as may be with difcretion and conveniency; and that none be any where made or set up, near or over the dead bodies of friends or others, in friends' burying places, for time to come. And it is recommended to friends, as much as may be, to get into the practice of burying our dead in rows; grown people by themselves, and diftinction children by themselves, without any of families or relatives, and to take care that grave-yards are decently inclosed.

According to the primitive fimplicity and innocency of friends, it is the advice of this meeting, that no friends imitate the world in any diftinction of habit or otherwise, as marks or tokens of mourning for the dead. 1717.

Advised against imitating the vain cuftom of wearing or giving mourning, and all extravagant expenfes about the interment of the dead. 1724.

CHILDREN.

INASMUCH as we have a large body of youth growing up, the offspring of friends, these call for our fpecial care and concern, that they may be preserved in the way of truth, in which our forefathers walked; and in order thereto, we tenderly recommend to all parents and guardians, first, that they take heed to themselves, that their own spirits be rightly seasoned and directed, for the help and good government of their children; and then, that they have a constant watchful eye in love over them for their good, and keep them as much as poffible within their notice and obfervation; for this we are fenfible of, that the mifcarriages of youth have very much proceeded from their being imprudently indulged, or left to themselves, by which means they become exposed to the danger of evil examples on the one hand, and vicious corrupt principles on the other, with which the world too much abounds ; and therefore we earnestly and tenderly advise all parents and guardians to be watchfully concerned in this respect, and that they take all proper occafions, both by example and inftruction, to help their children; and that mothers of children as well as fathers, as they have frequently the beft

opportunities, would take particular care to instruct them in the knowledge of religion, and the Holy Scriptures; because it has been found by experience that good impreffions early made on the tender minds of children, have proved lafting means of preserving them in a religious life and converfation. This practice was enjoined strongly upon the people of Ifrael by Mofes and Joshua, the fervants of the Lord, who required them to read or repeat the law to their children; and the apostle Paul takes notice of Timothy's being well inftructed in the Holy Scriptures from a child, and of the unfeigned faith which dwelt in his grand-mother Lois, and his mother Eunice, 2 Tim. i. 5, who no doubt had a religious care of his education.

But when parents or guardians are deficient in fuch their care, we recommend to monthlymeetings, that they ftir them up thereto, either by visiting them in their families, or in fuch manner as in the wisdom of God they may fee meet; that fo the doctrines of the gofpel, and a converfation agreeable thereunto, may be maintained unto all generations. 1732.

It is the fenfe and judgment of this meeting, that the natural right of membership extend to all children, born of parents who are both members, and fhould one of the parents be difowned, it fhall not prejudice the right of those children born afterwards, provided the other parent remain in membership.

That where but one of the parents is a member, become fo by application or otherwise, their