meeting, in which exercise, the pure influence of divine love, made our visits reviving.

On the fifth day of the fifth month, 1768, I left home, under the humbling hand of the Lord, having obtained a certificate, in order to visit some meetings in Maryland; and to proceed without a borse looked clearest to me. I was at the quarterly meetings at Philadelphia and Concord; and then went on to Chester River; and crossing the bay with friends, was at the yearly meeting at West River; thence back to Chester River, and taking a few meetings in my way, proceeded home. It was a journey of much inward waiting, and as my eye was to the Lord, way was several times opened to my humbling admiration, when things had appeared very difficult.

In my return, I felt a relief of mind very comfortable to me, having, through divine help, laboured in much plainness, both with friends selected, and in the more public meetings; so that (I trust) the pure witness, in many minds, was reached.

The eleventh day of the sixth month, 1769. Sundry cases have happened of late years, within the limits of our monthly meeting, respecting that of exercising pure righteousness toward the negroes, in which I have lived under a labour of heart, that equity might be steadily kept to. On this account, I have had some close exercises amongst friends, in which, I may thankfully say, I find peace. And as my meditations have been on universal love, my

own conduct in time past, became of late very grievous to me.

As persons, setting negroes free in our province, are bound by law to maintain them, in case they have need of relief, some, who scrupled keeping slaves for term of life, in the time of my youth, were wont to detain their young negroes in their service till thirty years of age, without wages, on that account. and with this custom I so far agreed, that I, being joined to another friend, in executing the will of a deceased friend, once sold a negroe lad till he might attain the age of thirty years, and applied the money to the use of the estate.

With abasement of heart, I may now say, that sometimes, as I have sat in a meeting, with my heart exercised toward that awful Being, who respecteth not persons nor colours, and have looked upon this lad, I have felt that all was not clear in my mind, respecting him and as I have attended to this exercise, and fervently sought the Lord, it hath appeared to me, that I should make some restitution, but in what way I saw not till lately; when, being under some concern that I may be resigned to go on a visit to some part of the West-Indies, and under close engagement of spirit, seeking to the Lord for counsel herein, that, of my joining in the sale aforesaid, came heavily upon me; and my mind, for a time, was covered with darkness and sorrow; and, under this sore affliction, my heart was softened to receive instruction: and here I first saw, that, as I had been one of the two executors, who had sold

this lad for nine years longer than is common for our own children to serve, so I should now offer a part of my substance to redeem the last half of that nine years; but, as the time was not yet come, I executed a bond, binding me and my executors to pay to the man, he was sold to, what, to candid men, might appear equitable for the last four years and a half of his time, in case the said youth should be living, and in a condition likely to provide comfortably for himself.

The ninth day of the tenth month, 1769.-My heart hath often been deeply afflicted under a feeling I have had, that the standard of pure righteousness, is not lifted up to the people by us, as a society, in that clearness which it might have been, had we been so faithful to the teachings of Christ, as we ought to have been. And as my mind hath been inward to the Lord, the purity of Christ's government hath been opened in my understanding; and under this exercise, that of friends being active in civil society, in putting laws in force which are not agreeable to the purity of righteousness, hath, for several years, been an increasing burden upon me, having felt, in the opening of universal love, that where a people convinced of the truth of the inward teachings of Christ, are active in putting laws in execution, which are not consistent with pure wisdom, it hath a necessary tendency to bring dimness over their minds; and as my heart hath been thus exercised, and a tender sympathy in me toward my

fellow members, I have, within a few months past, in several meetings for dicipline, expressed my con cern on this subject.

CHAPTER X.

Under some bodily indisposition, his body, by abstinence, much weakened; and his mind, at that time, exercised for the good of the people in the West Indies. His afterwards communicating to friends his being resigned to visit some of these islands.-The state of his mind, and the close considerations he was led,into, while under this exercise. His preparations to embark, and his considerations on the trade to these islands; and his being, when the vessel was ready to sail, released from the concern he had been under.-His religious engagements after his return home.— His sickness, in which he was brought to a very low state; and the prospects he then had.

THE twelfth day of the third month.-Having for some years past dieted myself on account of a lump gathering on my nose, under which diet I grew weak in body, and not of ability to travel by land as heretofore; was at times favoured to look with awfulness toward the Lord, before whom are all my ways, who alone hath the power of life and death; and to feel thankfulness raised in me for this his fatherly chastizement, believing, if I was truly humbled under it, all would work for good. While I was under this bodily weakness, my mind being at times exercised for my fellow-creature in the West