clear account of the specific charge which was preferred against him. It appears to have been a participation with others in a conspiracy for the restoration of James. This plot was principally charged upon the Roman Catholics, and William Penn was, in the idle rumors of the day, ranked with the adherents to the Popish faith. There was therefore reason to apprehend that the general odium resting upon the professors of that religion would be brought to bear upon this prosecution. The trials and executions upon the pretended disclosures of Oates and Bedloe must have been fresh in his memory. Under these circumstances William Penn judged it most prudent to remain for a time in retirement. He accordingly appeared but little in public for two or three years.

There seems no doubt that, as his private residence at London could have easily been known, the king and queen had no desire to bring him to trial, believing his innocence; but that his name had been included in the warrant by some of the king's advisers for the sake of the effect on the public mind.

From the place of his seclusion he sent the following letter to the Yearly Meeting of Friends:

"Third month 30th, 1691.

"MY BELOVED, DEAR, AND HONORED BRETHREN :-My unchangeable love salutes you, and though I am absent from you, I feel the sweet and lowly life of your heavenly fellowship, by which I am with you, and a partaker amongst you, whom I have loved above my chiefest joy. Receive no evil surmisings; neither suffer hard thoughts, through the insinuations of any, to enter your minds

against me, your afflicted, but not forsaken, friend and brother. My enemies are yours, and, in the ground, mine for your sakes; and that God seeth in secret, and will one day reward openly. My privacy is not because men have sworn truly, but falsely, against me; 'for wicked men have laid in wait for me, and false witnesses have laid to my charge things that I knew not;' who have never sought myself, but the good of all, through great exercises; and have done some good, and would have done more, and hurt no man; but always desired that truth and righteousness, mercy, and peace, might take place amongst us. Feel me near you, and lay me near you, my dear and beloved brethren, and leave me not, neither forsake, but wrestle with Him that is able to prevail against the cruel desires of some; that we may yet meet in the congregations of his people, as in days past, to our mutual comfort. The everlasting God of his chosen, in all generations, be in the midst of you, and crown your most solemn assemblies with his blessed presence, that his tender, meek, lowly, and heavenly love and life, may flow among you, and that He would please to make it a seasoning and fruitful opportunity to you, desiring to be remembered of you before Him, in the nearest and freshest accesses, who cannot forget you in the nearest relation.

"Your faithful friend and brother,

WILLIAM PENN."

Soon after he wrote to Thomas Lloyd, President of the Council in Pennsylvania.

31 *

“LONDON, 14th of Fourth month, 1691.

"DEAR FRIEND:-My love in the unchangeable truth salutes thee and thine, and the friends and family of God, in those parts, desiring your temporal and everlasting welfare, with an unfeigned affection.

'By this time thou wilt have heard of the renewal of my troubles, the only let of my return, being in the midst of my preparations, with a great company of adventurers, when they fell upon me. The jealousies of some, and unworthy dealing of others, have made way for them; but under and over it all the ancient rock has been my shelter and comfort; and I hope yet to see your faces, with our ancient satisfactions. The Lord grant, if it be for his glory, whose I desire to be, in all conditions; for this world passeth away and the form and beauty of it fadeth; but there are eternal habitations for the faithful; amongst whom I pray that my lot may be, rather than amongst the princes of the earth. I hope I need not urge my circumstances to excite thy love, care, and concern for me and my suffering interest in the country. I know thou hast better learned Christ and Cato, if I may so say, and wilt embrace such an opportunity to choose to express thy friendship and sincerity. By all this God may prepare me to be fitter for future service even to you there. I ask the people forgiveness for my long stay; but when I consider how much it has been my great loss, and for an ungrateful generation, it is punishment! It has been £20,000 to my damage in the country, and above £10,000. here, and to the province five hundred families; but the wise God that can do what He pleases, as well as see what is in man's heart, is able to requite all; and I am persuaded

all shall yet work together for good in this very thing, if we can overlook all that stands in the way of our views, Godward, in public matters. See that all be done prudently and humbly, and keep down irreverence and looseness, and cherish industry and sobriety.

"Thou hast heard of our great loss of dear John Burnyeat, and Robert Lodges, one in Ireland, and t'other in England, in about the same week; and Robert Barclay, Th. Salthouse, and dearly beloved George Fox, since. He died at Henry Goulney's, by Gracious Street meetinghouse, where he preached his farewell the First day, and departed the Third, at night, between nine and ten. I was with him; he earnestly recommended to me his love to you all, and said, 'William, mind poor Friends in America.' He died triumphantly over death; very easily foresaw his change. He was got into his inn, before the storm that is coming overtook him, and that night, very providentially, I escaped the messenger's hands. I shall add only, that Friends have had an extraordinary time this General Meeting, so that God supplied that visible loss with his glorious presence."

XX.

WILLIAM PENN did not permit the time of his seclu

sion to pass unemployed, but produced several valu

"A KEY, OPENING THE WAY TO EVERY CAPACITY HOW TO

DISTINGUISH THE RELIGION PROFESSED BY THE PEOPLE

CALLED QUAKERS FROM THE PERVERSIONS AND MISREPRESENTATIONS OF THEIR ADVERSARIES."

The following passages are taken from it.

READER-Observing the prevailing power of prejudice, we have the less wondered at the hard treatment which we, as a people, have suffered from other persuasions. The credulous have been excited to look upon and treat us as heretics, seducers, blasphemers, and what not, while, blessed be God, our aim and bent have been the very power and work of religion upon our souls, that we might be God's workmanship, through Christ Jesus his blessed Son and heavenly agent; taking this to be the very life and soul of true religion, the effect and fruit of the Divine nature, which makes us Christians indeed here and fits us for glory hereafter. It will be the business of this little key to open a way to so clear and plain an understanding of our true principles, distinguished from our enemies' perversions, that we hope, with God's blessing, all impartial