1724. Followers. And how can we expect to die well, if we do not not live well? Or can we expect the Answer of • Well done, if we are not in the Practice of doing well? "And I do defire and earnestly exhort Friends to read the holy Scriptures, and wait to feel the Power from which they fprung, thro' the holy Writers, and alfo to teach them to their Children. And, • dear Friends, let me prevail with you in the Love of God and his dear Son, to keep clofe to your Meetings for the Worship of Almighty God, and for the well-ordering of your Society; and do it in the meek Spirit, for that is of great Price with the • Lord; and when in your Meetings, get into a reli• gious Exercise, and lively Concern for God's Glory, and your Souls Peace and Profperity. I pray the holy Lord of Sabbaoh, to open your Hearts to • him in the Reading of this Epistle, as mine is open to you, my beloved Friends, that you and I may be edified (tho' outwardly feparated) as we were when • together; and if we should never meet more in this • World, that we may meet in the Kingdom of God, ⚫ where we may never part more. Amen. Hallelujah, ⚫ faith my Soul.

Burlington

I defire this may be copied and read at the Close of one of each of your particular Meetings, and, if it could be readily, in every Family of Friends; to all whom is my very dear Love in Jefus Chrift, whofe Servant I am, and hope to be to the End, and I am an entire Lover of Souls, and a Wellwifher of Sion's Profperity.'

T. CHALKLEY.

On the 11th of the Fourth Month I left Home on a Journey to Long-Ifland, in order to vifit Friends Meetings, and alfo to negotiate fome Bufinefs I had there; the first Meeting I had was at Burlington, where I had occafion to advise them to keep in Remembrance

of

Musketto

of that ancient Love which firft united our Society 1724. together, and in which, in Times of cruel Perfecution, fome freely offered to fuffer the Imprisonment of their Bodies to obtain the Liberty of their Friends in Confinement. From thence we travelled to Amboy, Amboy. and fo over to Staten-Iland. The Day being very hot, and the Evening cold, I got a fevere Cold, which I did not get clear of for about two Weeks, notwithstanding which, I went to Meetings, though ill in Body. The first Meeting I had on Long-Iland, was at Flushing, on a Firft-day: A comfortable Flushing. Meeting it was! in which was closely preffed, the Taking up the Cross of Chrift, by all who defire to be his Difciples, and that without it we could not be true Chriftians. From Flushing we went to Musketto C Cove, and had a Meeting there on Third-day, which was large, and to general Satisfaction, and fome were there that were newly convinced. I seeing the Openness of the Meeting, advised Friends to build a Meeting-house there, which they approved of. On Fourth-day we had a Meeting at Westbury, and on Westbury.. Fifth-day at Cowneck. From Cowneck I went to the Cowneck. South-fide of the Ifland, and had a Meeting at Captain Hicks's. The Neighbours, who were not of our Rockway. Society, came generally to this Meeting, and they. were preffingly exhorted to come to Chrift, and the Way opened unto them. It was a good Time, and I thought a Time of Love to us all, though before the Meeting I was exceedingly fhut up in myself, so that the Meeting was very beneficial to me, among the reft, to fee how the Lord could work by his Power, and unlock the Soul, as in a Moment, as he did for my poor Soul at Times. O may I, with Chrift's Followers and Minifters, ever depend upon him, is my Petition! From Rockway (for fo is the Place called) we went to Westbury, and had a very large Meeting on a First-day; and, as I was informed, fome were convinced there that Day. From hence I went

1724. to a Place called Fofter's Meadows, where we had a large Meeting in one Duefbury's Barn. After this I Meadows. went over to the Main Land, and had a Meeting at a Weftchefter. Place called Weftchefter. From thence we went to

Fofter's

Flushing.
Huntington,

Flufbing, and had a large Meeting on a Fifth-day of the Week, in which the right training up of Children, and careful Education of Youth, was zealously recommended. From Flushing I went to Huntington, where fome were lately convinced of the Principle of Truth as it is in Chrift Jefus, fome of whom were excommunicated by the Prefbyterians, with whom they had formerly join'd. We had a pretty large Meeting in a Friend's Barn, where one Prieft Prime oppofed me, as he also had my Friend Benjamin Kid fome Time before, of which, by Letter, I gave an Account to my dear Friends Thomas Lightfoot and Benjamin Kid, defiring them (in their Return from New-England) to have an Evening-meeting there. The Grounds of this Prieft's Cavilling, or Difpute, was that I had declared, That it is the Light of Chrift, or his Spirit, which convinceth the World of Sin, and not a natural Light, or the Light of a natural Confcience; from whence he took Occafion to charge me with denying a natural Confcience; the Falfhood of which I charg'd upon him before the Auditory, and defired him, if he had any Thing on his Mind, to write it to me, to which I promis'd to return him an Answer.

From Huntington I went to the General-meeting of Newtown. Friends held at New-town, which was fo large that the Meeting-house could not contain the People, and the Weather being exrreme hot, the People without Doors were fome of them uneafy, and went to and fro; but those that were in the House, and so near as they could hear, were very attentive, and as far as I could learn, New-York. generally fatisfied. Our next Meeting was at NewYork, which was the quieteft Meeting I ever had there; and those few Friends at New-York, and fome that were there from Leng-lfland, parted with us in the

Love of Chrift, and in the Fellowship of his bleffed 1724.
Gofpel; and fo I travelled homewards, having good
Satisfaction in vifiting my Friends; and when I came
Home, I found my dear Wife and Children in Health, Frankfurt
for which I blefs God.

After this Journey I kept to Meetings at and about Home as ufual, and was at the Fifth-day-meeting in Philadelphia, when Samuel Prefton was married to Mar- Philadel phia. garet Langdale (the Widow of my dear Friend and Fellow-traveller Jofiah Langdale :) The Meeting was large, and the Parable of the Virgins, and the Bridegrooms's Coming at Midnight, was opened, with an Exhortation to the People to be ready against that Hour, and that they should take Care to have the holy Oil of divine Grace in their Hearts.

After this Meeting I had fome Affairs which called me into Chester-County, and on the Road my Horfe Cheftergave a fudden and violent Start out of the Path, and Counsy. threw me down, and before I could get up again, he ftruck my Face, and on my Right Eye with his Foot, being newly fhod, which ftunn'd me for the prefent; but as foon as I opened that Eye which was unhurt, I perceiv'd that I lay on my Back, under my Horfe's Belly, with my Head between his fore Feet. He ftood still, and I got on my Hands and Knees, the Blood streaming out of my Nose and right Eye, and while I was bleeding, a Man and Woman came by, and ftay'd till I had done bleeding, and faw me mount. ed on my Horse again. I went forward, being about two Miles from th oufe I intended to go to, and after riding about a le, I met with a Friend that knew me, and was furprised to see me fo bloody, and went with me to Randal Majling's, (a faithful honeft Friend, who was upwards of eighty Years of Age, and had fuffered much for his Profeffion of the Truth in his younger Years) where feveral tender-hearted, motherly Women dreffed my wounded Eye. I was truly thankful to the Lord for his Providence towards me in this Deliverance, among many others, which he

1724.

in his Goodness hath vouchfafed to me. I stay'd at this Friend's House three Nights, and mended apace, and the Friend accompanied me to my House at Frankfort, where my loving Wife, with fome Surprize, received me very affectionately; and thro' her Care and continual Application, I recovered, that I could fee pretty well with Spectacles, which I was obliged to ufe for fome Months. Such Accidents plainly few us the Neceffity of preparing for fudden Death, as we know not when, or how, we may go off the Stage of this Life.

On the 25th of the Fifth Month, I received a Letrer from a Perfon in the County of Burlington, relating to Water-Baptifm, to which I made Anfwer as follows:

4

THE

HY Lines I received laft Night, in the Perufing of which, there was a Chriftian Love in my Heart towards thee, tho' unknown by Face, and • I have much Freedom of Mind to answer thine, according to thy Requeft, and my fmall Ability. First then, We are near in Sentiments to each other in the grand Christian Principle of faving Religion, which is the Work of the holy Spirit of Chrift upon the Soul, for that is the Baptifm which is Christ's, and is truly faving, and abfolutely neceffary to Sal⚫ vation; Chrift's Baptifm being but one, which is with the holy Ghoft, and with spiritual Fire or Water; John's being the Element, or Figure; and CHRIST'S being the Spirit, Pow, and Divine Sub⚫ftance, and is to be with the urch of Christ, and with his true Minifters the End of the World. Secondly, In Anfwer thy Query, Was WaterBaptifm (that is, the Element) not commanded by • Chrift himself, in Matth. xxviii. 19? I anfwer, I believe not. My Reafon is this, because the holy Ghoft, or Spirit, is mentioned in the Text, or that Command, in exprefs Words, and Water is not; • and therefore we omit going into outward Water,

• and