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1716. caught enough to eat plentifully of till we got into the Capes of Delaware. Îbus I faw it was good to depend upon the Almighty, and rely upon his eternal Arm; which, in a particular Manner, did preferve us fafe to our defired Port, blessed be bis great and glorious Name, through Chrift for ever!

Philadel I now ftay'd at, and about Home for fome Time; phia. after which I was concerned to vifit Friends in feveral

Maryland. Places, and in the adjacent Provinces, as Maryland, New Jersey. New-Jersey, &c. and was at many Marriages and Fu

Nottingham.

Rivers.

nerals, at which, many Times, we had good Opportunities to open the Way, and alfo the Neceffity to be married to Chrift Jefus, the great Bridegroom of the Soul; and alfo to exhort the People to confider and prepare for their latter End and final Change; which many Times was fanctified to divers Souls, and the Lord's Name was glorified, who is worthy thereof.

In the Year 1717 I went into Maryland, to look after my Affairs in that Province, and as I travelled I had divers Meetings at Nottingham, and at Busb-River, Bulb and about which Time at Bufb-River, feveral were conGunpowder vinced. The Meeting I found in a growing Condition Maryland. in that which is good, feveral Perfons meeting toge ther in Silence to worship God, according to Chrift's Inftitution, which was, and is, and ever will be, in Spirit and in Truth: And for the Encouragement of all fuch, Chrift hath faid, That fuch the Father seeketh to worship him: And again, Where two or three are met together in my Name, there am I in the midst of them. And if Chrift be in the midft, there is no abfolute Need of Vocal Teaching, except it be the Will of the Lord to call any to it. Let the fpiritual Chriftian read and judge.

Philadel bia, &c.

After my Return I had feveral Meetings in the Country near Philadelphia; and about the latter End of the Eighth Month I was at divers Marriages, one of which was on the Third Day of the Week, about Afteen Miles above Philadelphia, over Delaware River.

The

The next was over the River again, about twenty 1717. Miles below the City: The third was about twenty Miles further down the River, and on the oppofite Side at Salem (on the following Days;) fo that I croffed Delaware River three Times in three Days, and rode about one Hundred Miles. The Meetings were all large, and Matter fuitable to the Occafion freely opened to the People. Thefe Remarks are not intended to fet up Man, or exalt Flesh, but to ftir up others to come up to the Work of Chrift in their Generation; All the Glory and Godliness of Man is but as the Grafs, which foon withers, without we dwell in the Root of true Religion, and holy Life of Chrift; and that God may have the Glory of all his Works, is the End of all the Labours and Travels of the Servants and faithful Minifters of Chrift.

In the Tenth Month 1717, divers Confiderations Takes a moving me thereto, I took a Voyage to Barbadoes, Barbadoes. Voyage to in the Snow Hope, J. Curtis Master, and from thence to Great Britain and London; partly on account of Business, and hoping once more, if it pleafed God, to fee my aged Father, my Brother, Relations, and Friends; which Voyage I undertook in the folid Fear of God. I defired the Concurrence of my Wife, and my Friends and Brethren of the Meeting to which I did belong, in this Undertaking, the which I had in a general Way, and the good Wishes and Prayers of many Particulars, with a Certificate from our Monthly-meeting, fignifying their Unity with my Converfation and Miniftry, and prefent Undertaking: And felt the Love and Goodness of God therein, but in many Respects it was a great Crofs to me, as the leaving my beloved Wife and Children, and many of my dear Friends, whom I loved well in Chrift: And the Croffing of the Seas always was troublesome to me, being fickly at Sea, especially in windy or ftormy Weather; and the Confinement was worse to me for the Time than a Prifon; for it would be much easier to me to

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e Time, y Nacere and Lebrinen, a vela icinen: But Sea I went, * me kais restored, mu got from Frusdegous to Mecite me if Ngheid Tei, and as Lingeri at Day, where we fear Wind about to LIT and win de Wnd was it, we Wild to Beninyout, wiet we met with two other Velle's bound out to Sea, who walked alb for the Vicc. We lay there two Nigros, and then on the Firth Day Morning es Sal, the Weather being bitter Cox, and the Ice very thick on the Sides of ocr Veffel, and on our kopes Theme Day that we left Bombaybust, we got out to Sea, took in our Boat, and went on our Way; and in four or five Days we got into Warmer Weather.

In ton Voyage I wrote fomething on the Common Prayer, ufed by fome of the Church of Egid, whofe Converfations were very loofe and corrupt, which I entitled, One truly tender Scruple of Conscience, about that Form of Prayer called the Common Prayer, as used by the Church of England and ber Members, &c.

In this our Voyage we faw feveral Ships but spoke with none; and in twenty-feven Days from our Capes, Barbador, we arrived at Barbadoes, and came to an Anchor in Carlisle-Bay.

I had been twice in Barbadoes before, but this was the quickeft Paffage by one Day. Here I was lovingly and tenderly received by my Friends. I took my good Friend, Jofeph Gamble's Houfe, for my Quarters, most of the Time whilft I ftay'd on the Ifland; And I vifited Friends Meeetings feveral Times over,

there

hou

Joshua Hill Tho. Davisen

there being five of Friends Meeting-houses in the 1717. Inland, and our Meetings were fometimes large and

open.

Our Stay was longer here than we at first expected, by Reason of a great Drought, they having no Rain for more than a Quarter of a Year, which was a great Hindrance to Trade on the Inland. While I was this Time in Barbadoes, our ancient Friend George Gray died. I was at his Funeral, at which there were many People; and on this Occafion we had a large Meeting at our Meeting-house at Speights-Town, where I had a feasonable Opportunity with the People, opening to them the Neceffity of preparing for, and thinking of their latter End; and preffed them earnestly I thereto. They were generally attentive and fober, and fome were broken into Tenderness. While we were burying the Friend, there appeared a difmal Cloud hanging over the Ifland, fuch an one as I never faw before: It was to my thinking, of the Colour of the Flame of Brimftone, and I expected there would have been a great Storm, or fome mighty Guft, and much Rain, they having had very little for many Weeks, or fome Months; but it went over, and there was no Rain, nor Wind, as I remember. Soon, after fome People came in from Sea, and they faid, that from that Cloud it rained Afhes; and they brought fome of the fame to the Ifland, fome of which Ashes I have now before me: The Tafte of them feems to me to be a little fulphurous, and have fome glittering Particles in them, in Colour and Smell I think they differed little from common Afhes. Herein the Almighty and Infinite Being fignally fhewed his Mercy and Favour to poor Mortals; for had not his Mercy prevented, he could as easily have rained down the Fire as the Athes, who rained down Fire and Brimftone on the Cities and Inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrab, for their Pride and Idlenefs, much of which abounds among the Inhabitants of Barbadoes, the People

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1717. ple being very luxurious. Oh! may the luxurious In~ habitants of that Ifle, as also all others, confider their Ways and Doings, and not provoke the great Lord, the Sovereign of Heaven and Earth, as many of them do by their evil Lives, and voluptuous Converfations; and that they would kifs the Son, though not with a Judas's Kifs, of Profeffion, or fpeaking well or fair of him only, but with divine Love manifefted through Obedience, while his Wrath is but a little kindled against them, before it break out into a Flame.

After this Funeral I was fent for to Bridge Town, to the Burial of a Mafter of a Ship, a young Man, who was very fresh and well a few Days before. There was a great Appearance of People, and I was pretty largely opened in the Meeting, on the Words of the Prophet, where he fays, All Flesh is Grass, and all the Goodlinefs thereof, is as the Flower of the Field. The Grass withereth, the Flower fadeth, because the Spirit of the Lord bloweth upon it: Surely the People is Grafs. The Grafs withereth, the Flower fadeth; but the Word of our God fhall ftand for ever, Ifaiah xl. 6, 7, 8. And I treated of this Word, its Wonderfulness, its Duration, and its Work in Man: As alfo of the fading Conftitution of mortal Man, though young and ftrong, as that young Man was a few Days before, whofe Corpfe was then before us.

I was at divers other Burials on this Inland, which indeed doth prove a Grave to many New-comers, it being a hot Climate, makes those who are not accuftomed to it, very thirfty, and by Reason of the extream Heat, it is not eafy to quench their Thirst; so that what is called moderate Drinking, throws many Strangers into a violent Fever, and oftentimes is the Caufe of their Death. I note this as a Caution to any who may tranfport themfelves there (that may fee this) that they may fhun that Danger, which might be avoided by drinking cool Drinks, of which they have many Sorts very pleafant, viz. Cane, Sugar-reed, and

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