This declaration, being the substance of what oaths of allegiance and
supremacy contain, G. Fox presented to the judges of the king’s bench;
but the proceedings having gone on at Worcester, they were unwilling to
meddle with the business, but referred it to the next quarter-sessions
at Worcester.
The yearly-meeting at London, at which he was, being over, he returned
again to Worcester, where the sessions being held in the month called
July, and he called to the bar, and the indictment read, justice Street
caused the oaths to be read also, and tendered to him again. G. Fox
then said, that he was come to traverse his indictment. But when he
began to show the errors that were in the indictment, viz. such as were
sufficient to quash it, he was soon stopped, and the oath required of
him; and he persisting in the refusal, was by the jury found guilty.
The chairman, how active soever he had been against G. Fox, yet was now
troubled, and told him of a sad sentence he had to speak against him.
To which G. Fox returned, that he had many and more errors to assign in
the indictment, besides those he had already mentioned. Whereupon the
chairman told him, he was going to show him the danger of a premunire,
which was the loss of his liberty, and all his goods and chattels, and
to endure imprisonment during life. ‘But,’ added he, ‘I do not deliver
this as the sentence of the court, but as an admonition to you.’ Then
the jailer was bid to take him away; and G. Fox afterwards understood
concerning this pretended admonition, that the chairman had said to the
clerk of the peace, that what he had spoken should stand for sentence.
Now whilst G. Fox was in prison, there came to him, amongst others,
the earl of Salisbury’s son, who was very loving, and much concerned
that they had dealt so with him; and he himself took a copy in writing
of the errors that were in the indictment. And G. Fox afterwards got
the state of his case, drawn up in writing, delivered to judge Wild.
He also wrote a letter to the king, wherein he gave an account of the
sentiments of those called Quakers concerning swearing; and how they
abhorred all plottings and contrivances against the king. Not long
after he fell into such a sickness, that some began to doubt of his
recovery; and then one of his friends went to justice Parker, by whose
order he had been first committed to prison, and desired him to give
order to the jailer, that he might have liberty to go out of the jail
into the city. Whereupon Parker wrote the following letter to the
jailer.
‘_Mr. Harris_,
‘I have been much importuned by some friends to George Fox, to
write to you. I am informed by them, that he is in a very weak
condition, and very much indisposed. What lawful favour you can
do for the benefit of the air, for his health, pray show him. I
suppose the next term they will make application to the king. I
am,
Sir, your loving friend,
HENRY PARKER.’
Evesham, the 8th of October, 1674.
This letter was sufficient warrant for the jailer to permit G. Fox to
be brought from prison to the house of one of his friends. His wife
was come to him before that time, and after having been with him about
seventeen weeks, and no discharge like to be obtained for him, she went
up to London, and being come to Whitehall, and meeting with the king
there, she gave him an account of her husband’s long imprisonment, and
how weak he was, and not without danger of his life. To which the king
said, he could do nothing in it, but she must go to the chancellor.
And so she went to the lord Finch, who was then chancellor; and having
given him an account of the matter, she told him that the king had
left it wholly to him; and if he did not show pity, and release her
husband out of prison, she feared he would end his days there. But the
chancellor said to her, that the king could not release him, otherwise
than by a pardon. Now G. Fox could not resolve to be freed thus,
as well knowing he had done no evil; and therefore he would rather
have lain in prison all his days, than to be thus set at liberty;
otherwise he needed not to have lain so long, since the king had been
willing long before to have given him a pardon; and also had said to
one Thomas More, that G. Fox needed not scruple being released by a
pardon; for many a man, that was as innocent as a child, had had a
pardon granted him. G. Fox unwilling to have a pardon, but desiring
to have the validity of his indictment tried before the judges, the
lord chancellor, who showed himself a discreet man, procured that
an _habeas corpus_ was granted to bring G. Fox to London, once more
to appear before the king’s bench. The _habeas corpus_ was with the
first opportunity sent down by his wife to Worcester; but there they
would not part with him at first, (being now recovered a little of his
sickness,) under a pretence that he was premunired, and was not to go
out in that manner. Thus it became necessary to send to London again;
and another order was got and sent down, to bring up G. Fox before the
king’s bench. Being still weak, he was carried up to London in a coach,
the under-sheriff and the clerk of the peace accompanying him.
Being come down, he was brought before the four judges at the king’s
bench, where counsellor Thomas Corbet pleaded his cause, and acquitted
himself exceeding well; for he started a new plea, and told the judges,
that by law they could not imprison any man upon a premunire. The
judges then saying they must have time to look in their books, and to
consult the statutes, the hearing was put off till the next day. And
since it appeared that Corbet was in the right, they chose to let their
plea fall, perhaps for fear of worse consequences. And thus they began
to examine the errors of the indictment, which proved to be so many
and so gross, that all the judges were of opinion, that the indictment
was quashed and void, and that G. Fox ought to have his liberty. The
same day several lords and other great men, had the oaths of allegiance
and supremacy tendered to them in open court; and some of G. Fox’s
adversaries moved the judges, that the oaths might be tendered to him
again, saying, he was a dangerous man to be at liberty. But judge
Matthew Hale, who was then lord chief justice of England, and really an
excellent and pious man, as hath been hinted already here before, said,
he had indeed heard some such reports of G. Fox, but he had also heard
more good reports of him. This saying was serviceable; and Hale and the
other judges ordered G. Fox to be freed by proclamation. Thus he was
set at liberty in an honourable way, and his counsellor Corbet, who
had pleaded for him, got great fame by it; for many other lawyers told
him, he had brought that to light, which had not been known before. And
after the trial, one of the judges said to him, ‘You have obtained a
great deal of honour by your way of pleading G. Fox’s cause in court.’
The year was now come to an end. But before I go over to the next, I
am to mention that the Baptists in England, losing from time to time
some of their best members, wrote therefore very fiercely against the
Quakers, endeavouring thereby to render them no Christians. But those
writings were continually answered, and that with so many convincing
reasons, that the Quakers got more adherents by it. The consequence
of this was, that a public dispute was appointed to be held between
the Baptists and the Quakers, in the meeting-house of the Baptists
at London. For the Quakers, there spoke by turns, George Whitehead,
Stephen Crisp, William Penn, and George Keith; and the opponents were
Jeremy Ives, William Kiffin, Thomas Plant, Thomas Hicks, and Robert
Ferguson, a Presbyterian, afterwards eminently known in Holland, by the
fierce declaration drawn up by him in the name of the duke of Monmouth,
when that unhappy prince went over to England with forces, to dispute
the throne against king James.
Jeremy Ives was an eminent teacher among the Baptists, that had been
in prison in London fourteen years before on a religious account, and
chiefly because for conscience-sake he refused to take the oath.
Not long after he wrote a smart letter from the prison, to two of his
society, (who having been imprisoned with him for the same cause, had
taken the oath, thereby to obtain their liberty,) wherein he reproved
them for their falling away, and signified that thus they had increased
the burden of their faithful brethren, from the bearing of which they
had withdrawn themselves. But what a changeable creature is man, if
he doth not continue watchful, and keep close to the divine grace,
continually laying hold thereon! For scarce five days passed, but this
inconstant Jeremy grew weary of imprisonment, and took the oath also to
get out of prison. Neither did he stop here; for it is plain that he
was now departed from his profession. To temporize therefore, and to
find out excuses for what he had done, he put forth a book in print,
wherein he asserted the lawfulness of swearing. It was asked of him,
whether he was that same Jeremy Ives, that once had been of such a
tender conscience, that he durst not take an oath, and had afterwards
publicly defended swearing as lawful? And he did not deny the fact, for
it was notoriously known: but he went about to disguise the matter, and
said, ‘I am that Jeremy who took the oath of allegiance, and wrote a
book to prove that some oaths were lawful, though not all.’ Neither did
he deny the fore-mentioned letter, for it was extant, and written as
followeth:
‘_Brother Pitman and Brother Shewel_,
‘I am at this time surprised with a holy passion; and though
Jonah could not say concerning the gourd, that he did well to be
angry; yet, if my experience in the word of the Lord doth not
deceive, I can truly say, I do well to be angry with you; whom
I have had a godly jealously of all along, viz. That you would
be as easily persuaded to part with, as unwilling to suffer for,
your spiritual liberties. Oh my brethren! Where is your first
love? How unlike the Christians in former times are you? Whose
zeal was so hot for God, that their eyes prevented the morning,
that thereby they might prevent the rage of the adversary, who,
as it is now, commanded them no more to worship in the name of
the Lord.--I always did conclude, that those that would--quit
the cause of righteousness--would quit the ways of holiness, as
yesterday’s sad experience hath taught, to the perpetual joy
of your adversaries, and the saddening the hearts, and adding
afflictions to the bonds of the prisoners of the Lord. I do
therefore conjure you, as you will answer the great God another
day, to consider, that now is the time for you to look to your
ministry, and to the flock over which the Lord hath made you
overseers, that you may be able through grace to say, ‘You are
clear from the blood of all men;’ and observe, that God is now
come to prove you, to see whether you will keep his commandments
or not. Remember when that apostate’s case was debated, you had
no zeal nor indignation against him, but you smothered all with
this, ‘If it were in a matter of faith and worship that he had
fallen from, you would have been as one man against it.’ Well,
behold the Lord is come home to you; the matter now is purely for
worshipping God; now God is proving you to see whether you will
obey him or no: and did not yesterday’s work witness, that you
were willing to prefer the fear of a man, that must die, before
the fear of the great God; and the fear of them that can kill the
body, before the fear of the Lord, that can cast body and soul
into hell? I have no more to say but this, that your cowardly
temporizing and complying with the precepts of men, makes me
jealous, that your fear towards the Lord is taught by the
precepts of men. I would not be too censorious, but my grounds
are great; and my bonds are my crown; but your cowardly spirit is
my great cross. You little think what a scandal it is amongst us
to hear it affirmed that one of you should say, you had rather
have given fifty pounds than have sworn, and yet swear that you
swear willingly. Oh! for the Lord’s sake, do somewhat that may
roll away this reproach; which that you may, is the prayers of
your brother, who could be contented to write himself,
Your companion in tribulation,
JER. IVES.’
Jan. 14, 1660.
‘Brother Ward, my fellow-prisoner, desires to present his love to
you, and so do some others.’
Thus zealously Jer. Ives wrote to his fellow-teachers, who for human
fear, and to avoid sufferings, had, against their profession, and the
conviction of their consciences, taken the oath. But who could have
imagined on sight of such letter, that he himself within so short a
space of time, should have done that which he reproved so severely in
others. Certainly in this case the saying of the prophet Jeremiah seems
to be very applicable, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and
desperately wicked; who can know it? Let therefore him who standeth,
be cautious lest he fall.” Happy had this man been, if he had been so
sensible of his transgressions as one Edward Chilton, who though by
profession a Quaker, yet when it came to a trial, either to take the
oath of allegiance, or to be premunired, he wavered and fainted; yet
not so, that he fell away totally: for he became so penitent for the
evil he had committed, that he found himself constrained to give proof
thereof by a letter he wrote to his friends, who remained prisoners,
because for conscience-sake they could not swear; whereas he, to be
released from imprisonment, had taken the oath that was demanded of
him. But of what a bitter relish this became to him, and what terror
and horror he was seized with, the following letter will show:
‘_My dear Friends_,
‘I desire to lay before you this my condition in this my fall,
that my fall may be no cause for you to stumble, but that you
by it may be the more encouraged to stand; for I have yielded
to the betrayer, and so betrayed the innocent seed in me; for I
forsook the counsel of the Lord, and consulted with flesh and
blood, and so I fell into the snare of the world, and yielded to
the covenant; and so I rested satisfied in what I had done, for
some certain hours; but when the Lord in his power looked back
upon me, then I remembered what I had done; then I remembered
that I had denied truth, which once I had professed, though once
I thought I should have stood when others fell. So the terrors of
the Lord have taken hold on me, and I lie under the judgments of
the Lord.
‘And now I feel the truth of the words that were spoken by
Christ, ‘that he that faileth in one tittle, is guilty of all;’
and now I feel the truth of that, ‘that it is better to forsake
wife and children, and all that a man hath, even life itself,
for Christ and the truth’s sake, than to break one tittle of the
law of God written in the heart.’ So I hope that, by mercy and
judgment, the Lord will redeem me to himself again. The Lord
may suffer some to fall, that the standing of them that stand
faithful may seem to be the more glorious, and for them to take
heed lest they fall.
‘Now I know and feel, that it is better to part with any thing of
this world, though it be as dear to one as the right hand, or the
eye, than to break our peace with God.
‘Pray for me; for my bonds are greater than yours.