nothing more to say to you, seeing you are discharged.

This was all he could get from them; therefore after the court was risen, he went to speak with them at their chamber, desiring to know, what cause they had to detain his father, seeing they had discharged him; and wishing them to consider, whether this was not partiality. Upon this Simpson said, "If you be not content, we will tender you the oath also, and send you to your father." To which Lower replied, "Ye may do that if ye think fit; but whether ye send me or no, I intend to go, and wait upon my father in prison; for that is now my business in this country." Then justice Parker said to him : "Do you think Mr. Lower, that I had no cause to send your father and you to prison, when you had such a great meeting, insomuch that the parson of the parish complained to me, that he had lost the greatest part of his parishioners; so that when he comes amongst them, he hath scarce any auditors left." To this Lower returned, "I have heard that the priest of that parish comes so seldom to visit his flock but once, it may be, or twice in a year, to gather up his tithes, that it was but charity in my father to visit such a forlorn and forsaken flock : and therefore thou hadst no cause to send my father to prison for visiting them, or for teaching, instructing, and directing them to Christ their

true teacher, who had so little comfort or benefit from their pretended pastor, who comes amongst them only to seek for his gain from his quarter." Upon this the justices fell a laughing; for Dr. Crowder, the priest spoken of, was then in the room, sitting among them: though Lower did not know him, and he had the wit to hold his tongue, and not to vindicate himself. But after Lower was gone away, the justices so jested on Crowder, that he grew ashamed; and was so nettled with it, that he threatened to sue T. Lower in the bishops court, upon an action of defamation: which Lower having heard of, sent him word, that he might begin if he would; and that he would answer him, and bring his whole parish in evidence against him. And he told him the same afterwards to his face; which so cooled the priest's eagerness, that he thought it more safe for him to let him alone.

Soon after the sessions were over, an habeas corpus was sent down to Worcester, for the Sheriff to bring up G. Fox to the king's bench bar; whereupon his son-in-law, Lower, conducted him: for the under sheriff had made Lower his deputy, to convey G. Fox to London who being arrived there, appeared before the court of king's bench, where he found the judges moderate, and they patiently heard him, when he gave them an account how he had been stopped in his journey, and committed to

jail; and how at his trial, the oath of allegiance and supremacy had been tendered to him; and also what he had offered to the justices as a declaration, that he was willing to sign, instead of the said oaths. To this it was told him by the chief justice, that they would consider farther of it. Being then delivered to the keeper of the king's bench, he was suffered to go and lodge at the house of one of his friends; for though he continued a prisoner, yet they were sufficiently persuaded that he would not run away. But after this, justice Parker, as it was said, moved the court, that G. Fox might be sent back to Worcester, that his cause might be tried there; for Parker saw clearly, that if G. Fox had been acquitted here, this would have tended to his shame, for having committed him unjustly.

A day then being appointed for another hearing, and G. Fox appearing again at the king's bench, and hearing that it was under deliberation to send him back to Worcester, signified, that this was only to insnare him, by putting the oath to him, that so they might premunire him, who never took oath in his life. And he farther told them, if he broke his yea or nay, he was content to suffer the same penalty as those that break their oaths. Now seeing Parker had spread a report in London, and it had been said in the parliament house, that when he

took G. Fox, there were many substantial men with him, out of several parts of the nation, and that they had a design, or plot in hand, G. Fox did not omit to shew the fallacy of that malicious story and since he thus laid open Parker's shame, it was not strange, that by his friends at court, he procured that the king's judges com. plied with his desire that G. Fox should be remanded to Worcester jail: insomuch that whatever he said, he could not prevent it; only this favour was granted him, that he might go his own way, and at his leisure, provided he would be there without fail by the assizes, which were to begin on the second day of the month called April.

G. Fox then after some stay, went down leisurely, and being come to Worcester, he was on the second day of the aforesaid month, brought from the jail, to an inn near the sessions hall; but not being called that day, the jailor came to him that night, and told him he might go home, meaning to the jail: whereupon he walked thither, being accompanied by one of his friends. Next day being brought up again, a boy of about eleven years old was set to be his keeper. Having in my relation of the proceedings before the king's bench past by most part of the pleading, so I shall do here likewise, to avoid repetitions of what hath been several times related already, concerning such

kind of trials; yet I cannot pass by in silence, that after he had given an account of his journey before he was taken, he added, that since his imprisonment, he had understood, that his mother, who was an ancient and weak woman, and had desired to see him before she died, hearing that he was stopped, and imprisoned in his journey, so that he was not likely to come and see her, it struck her so, that she died soon after; which had been very hard to him. Judge Turner, who formerly had been very severe to him, seemed now (as some thought) inclined to have him set at liberty, since he saw they had nothing justly against him; but Parker, who had committed him, endeavoured to incense the judge against him for if he had been released, then he himself must have borne the blame of having committed G. Fox unjustly; and therefore he told the judge, that G. Fox was a ringleader; that many of the nation followed him; and one knew not what it might come to. Yet the judge gave but little ear to all this, being willing to be easy; but he could not resolve to do this, by setting G. Fox at liberty, lest he should displease others; and thus in conclusion, G. Fox and his cause were referred to the sessions again, and he continued prisoner, but with this proviso, that he should have the liberty of the town; which accordingly he had.