the supposed offices of the Lares, or household Gods of the ancients; drive away the evil spirits of error and misrepresentation. The most valuable legacy parents can leave their children, as has been well said, is not their success alone, but a fair reputation. Those who have nobly contended for liberty, though not always successful, have always been the favorites of fame.

The intention of the publication of this collection is, not only to enable the enquirer to know what I did write; but what I did not write, and why I did not. It will be noticed, perhaps, how little is said in these essays about a government for lay representationists. When the expulsions took place, my relation became changed. In my first essays, I had no one to consult with. In the first movements of the expelled; they did not feel the need of my counsel, and so did not ask it. I had thought much upon these matters; but it was always for a state of things, which I hoped would never come to pass; and if it should come to pass, might leave me out of the list; or at most should I be included in it, leave me still as an equal. Each individual, had felt as an equal to me, and felt too, as though the plan that made him so was his own. Men generally feel so, when they hear others express their own thoughts, before they themselves have expressed them. It was this equality that made heroes of all; and heroines of those women, who followed the martyrs of principle, through the evil report, they had to suffer. Movements of moral sublimity.

Much has been said about conventional arguments, and compacts, real or implied. Before the formation of union societies, in strictness of speech, no relation existed among writers or petitioners, answering to them. But in regard to myself, there was a most solemn compact with my God (if it may be so called) to which my conscience was witness, that in lay representation matters I would be no man's superior. Such however was the relative condition of all, in point of fact, that there could be no constitution making operation among us, which would not prove to be inequality making; or the changing primitive and actual relations of equality, into artificial relations of inequality. All who had labored, or suffered, or had been expelled, for the sake of the common cause, were in fact volunteers; and it always seemed to me, that no new relation could in equity be imposed upon them in their life time, without their personal consent. In this respect, my views of social justice had long corresponded with those of the Friends. And besides, as has been shewn, I was religiously bound to make no artificial distinctions among representationists. Others, it seems had no such

views, or opinions; they of course had no such scruples. With the arguments for or against principles, or facts, I have now no concern, as I write not as a historian, but to furnish historical evidence. History may decide against me. My draft of conven

tional articles, of 1828, is probably now lost. It can never again be of any use. The opinion of the majority of the convention was probably, expressed by one of the members, in the well known verses, on dislike.

"The reason why I cannot tell;

But I like you not, Doctor Fell."

No man had acted with me, in these matters of conscience; no one was under any obligations to me, as I had sought to bind no one to any conditions. In constitution and discipline concerns, I can have neither praise nor blame; and it is no part of the business of this introduction to praise or blame them.

I now address myself particularly to the descendants, and successors of those who were expelled, or suffered, or labored for the sake of lay representation :-My respected younger friends, it is to you, I confide this collection of my essays (as historical documents) for safe keeping. When I am gone the way of all flesh, your fathers who then survive, must soon follow. You will learn from these essays, how, I was first a forerunner, then an equal, and finally a follower of those, who made the good confession before many witnesses. A three fold relation of a very small number, if of any save Mr. Stockton and P. B. Hopper, Esq. The statements and evidences of an actual condition of equality, will be to you I trust, quite convincing; and will be duly appreciated, as due to those local preachers who labored, if not more abundantly than others, did labor very diligently, and when called to make the choice, chose rather to suffer excommunication, than to betray the rights of the laity. The consequences of equality among those volunteers, in precluding the official relations of teachers and learners, as already stated, I flatter myself, will also appear evident to you. But I now feel myself deeply concerned to state to you, that neither this equality, nor its consequences, can descend. Nature disowns the relation of equality between parents and children, and grace also. Law and gospel agree in requiring children to obey their parents. Is not this perpetual, and undeviating command, founded upon natural inequality? Parents in a social and religious state, have a social, and religious knowledge, which their children cannot inherit by birth right, and which they cannot acquire without precept, as

well as example. Every parent is a natural teacher, and every child a natural learner. In reference to this view, I, at an early period, began my parent's chatechism, &c. When this subject is touched in these essays, the axioms, or maxims, in my mind and judgment, if not expressed, were, that all children are born in a state of social and religious ignorance or ignorant of the principles of society and religion ;—and that by a process of teaching and learning, they may be raised to a state of equality with their parents in these kinds of knowledge. Or in other words, that children are born unequal to their parents in knowledge; but may be raised to equality with them, by education. I hold the opinion religiously, or conscientiously, that the right of children to the equality consequent upon instruction, is a divine right; or, that it is according to the will of God, that children should be instructed in the principles of social and religious knowledge, to a degree which may enable them to become equal with their predecessors; for otherwise society and religion, however high they might be raised, must degenerate. This divine right of children to learning, or instruction becomes divine authority, or command to the parents to teach them. The propositions may be announced thus: nature and time destroy social and religious equality in society; artificial instruction, or education, restores them. The first operation must continue as long as the human race exist in a social and religious state; and the latter ought to be commensurate with it. Teaching and learning always find a sufficient natural supply of incentive and excitement, in the mutual feelings and interests of parents and children, to perpetuate them. The first obligation to teach is upon the parents; they must do it themselves, or procure, or patronize teachers to do it.

Now among the yoke fellows, who labored in behalf of lay representation, there were no children, no learners, no probationers. The name of each petitioner; the name of each of the expelled; and the name of each adherent of the principle, was as a unit, none were cyphers. One man it is true, may reap what another man has sowed; but the laborers have not equal hopes and fears. The feelings of the seedsman and the reaper, cannot be confounded. History itself, would be of no use, if all children were born equal in knowledge to their parents. Children inherit no birth right knowledge from their parents. From the beginning of the world, the first or natural vouchers of children for the opinions and actions of their fathers, is, father told me so. The birth night is to be told so. The inequality of parents and children, in social and religious

knowledge is demonstrable; and it is equally demonstrable, that teaching is the only means by which children can become equal in knowledge to their parents. As the first prompter, in the order of time, to equality; as I have now lived to witness the time, when the occasions which made it necessary are passing away, and the equals themselves are greatly diminished, and in a few years will no longer exist,—do I not owe it, as a duty to you, to caution you in a particular manner, in this very instance, against the dangerous consequences of supposing, that you have by right of succession, a participation in our equality; or which is the same thing, an exemption from instruction. A proneness of this kind, is common, if not universal. It is the maxim of freemen "All men are born equal.” And it is so convenient and taking, that it is seldom thought worth while to add, except in social and religious knowledge. Scarcely had the prosecutions of representationists ceased, or "we had (so to speak) no more firing against us," than an alarming spirit of indocility began to disclose itself; and as some thought insubordination and anarchy. The truth however was, there were no learners in our ranks, and attempts to teach must have become well nigh abortive. The re-action of the learner's mind did not exist. Habits had to be renewed. The transition as usual was painful, and the result doubtful. It remains for your surviving fathers and yourselves, to follow nature and time, in their perpetual operation of inequality making, and heartily pursue the course of teaching and learning, until the equilibrium is maintained. The deaths of the first successful laborers, in any great cause of piety, or patriotism, are apt to be regarded as calamities; but experience proves, that being dead, they yet speak; and that posterity thus learn more from them, than their contemporaries may have done. My hopes of our final success, have from the beginning been derived in part from the assumption, that necessity if not choice, would compel those who might come after us to read for information, and that thus the clue to teaching and learning would be again restored. The love of reading and the love of hearing, upon the same subjects, persons or theories, are not commonly separated. No one surely ever hated to hear of what he loved to read. In a very short time the contents of this little book will be classed among the works of past generations. As it is the first of the kind, which can appear among us, if it shall be read with favor, will it not contribute to form a new era in our church? Every discovery the young mind makes by reading, not only increases its thirst for

knowledge; but shows the natural inequality in knowledge, and the efficacy of this artificial means to restore the equality.

As soon as might be, after the expulsion of the local preachers, in Baltimore, I sought an interview with them, to disclose to them my views respecting the natural, and the divinely authorised relations of teachers and learners, and pointed out to them the divine right of children, in regular order and succession, by means of instruction to become equal with parents in social and religious knowledge. I took care to notice our equality among ourselves, and the consequent impossibility of changing our relation to each other; but offered for consideration a plan by which the difficulty might be so far removed, as to admit of our making a beginning. These ideas did not take. Hopes of some favorable result from the appeals were not wholly extinguished; nor were anticipations of accessions from the old church quite given up. It did not seem to be fully appreciated, that the equality of all who should thus unite with us, would render them also unteachable. It is surprising how intelligent and reflecting men should overlook the necessary consequences of equality and inequality. If I could have gained a superiority, and the General Conference had granted us lay representation in answer to our petition; do you not perceive that it could have been of no use to me; and as things have happened, as a superior could I have gladly hailed the defeat of my friends? On a moment's reflection, one or the other of these events must have been anticipated. Could either of them have furnished food for ambition? But was not ambition common to the party? Let their faults be exposed and analyzed, and will they not be found to be the faults of equality, (equality has its faults) rather than of ambition? Is not the tendency to anarchy so much complained of, a feeling of equality too strongly confirmed, to yield suddenly, if at all, to constitutional inequality? Now, if as a secret mentor, I had any agency, if I foresaw what we might be called to suffer, how could I help forseeing that these sufferings could only be sustained by feelings of equality; and forseeing also, that by yielding in the trial, all would be lost? As those who were called to the test triumphed. I indeed, was not permitted to go over Jordan with them, though not hindered, I trust, by any sin of mine. This great example, (no voluntary separation under the then existing circumstances could have produced the same or equal effect,) while it failed to convert others to act from principle, was, and still is fruitful of consequences. It is indirectly working like leaven in the old lump. The spirit and practice which since prevail, are not those of primitive Ameri- .