desire your patience, and though it tend not to the information of you, faithful elders in Israel, who know them already, yet it may be to the younger, by commemorating the kind dealings of the Lord towards us, and stirring up the pure mind in them, and that none of us may be ungrateful to him, for all the benefits and labour that he has bestowed upon us.

I have already said that some of the seeds, which that libertine spirit had sown, were brought over into this nation, and particularly that of height and finery in apparel and household furniture, &c. And by exampling one another, they came to a great height at last, though not to that degree, as in the other nation, but we are going fast into them.

Now, upon this occasion, I must revive the memory of that worthy elder, William Edmundson, of this nation, whose memory and labours live, and are sweet to the upright in heart, and who (as most of you well know) was eminently instrumental in the hand of the Lord, not only in a powerful ministry by word and doctrine, but also for establishing and maintaining good order and discipline in the Churches of Christ. He zealously and with undaunted courage stood up faithfully for the Lord and his cause, and opposed all false liberty in its first appearance, and was, to my certain knowledge, much grieved, when he saw it growing in this nation, and faithfully bore his testimony against it, without favour or affection, and though he did so, and that many epistles and minutes went forth from our half.

year meeting, against that libertine spirit of height, pride, and other things, that had grown upon us, yet all did not prove fully effectual, until at last the Lord blest his unwearied endeavours with success, as a chief instrument in the hand of God, for putting godly discipline in due and close execution, by which means a stop was put to that spirit, in great measure, until he was taken from us, and it is now about thirty years since the Lord raised up and spirited many godly elders to join with him as one man, in this work of reformation, and thereupon epistles were given forth from half-years meetings, which named abundance of superfluities, in apparel, house furniture, garnishing of houses, &c. with numerous other things relating to conversation and behaviour, and running greedily after the things of this world, too long to enumerate, and which may be seen in those minutes; and for the more ef fectual performing this work, they directed us to choose out right spirited Friends, who had a concern upon them for the prosperity of truth, and putting away all those things that were as nuisances in the Church, to visit every particular family, to see, inspect and advise accordingly, as they saw occasion for it.

Now, about this time, the Lord had also raised a concern in the minds of the faithful elders, in most parts of this nation, and, with them, had likewise been preparing the hearts of a younger and middle aged generation, to join in this work, and when those epistles and minutes came down to this province, there was a general assent in the

minds of Friends to comply with the advices they gave us, as seeing the necessity of it; and indeed I must confess, I believe that we, in this city of Cork, were at that time as much concerned to take the advice as any in the nation; for though our wives and children dressed pretty plain, yet many of them wore rich costly apparel, though of grave colours, and many of our houses were furnished with divers superfluities, that were not agreeable to the plainness of truth, and as truth (I am satisfied) led into, in the beginning.

However, so it was, that the Lord touched the hearts of those also, and they joined heart and hand to the work, in first cleansing their own houses and families from these things, and after that, as elders were appointed according to the advice of the half-year's meeting to visit families, so some of those, the younger, were appointed amongst the rest; but I well know it was very hard for some of them to give up to it, as thinking the service too weighty for them, but having a concern upon their spirits, that the work should go on, they at last complied, though in a cross to their own wills; they went in much weakness, fear and trembling, but the Lord (I testify) was with and strengthened them in the service. I write this for the encouragement of all honest hearted young persons, such who are concerned in spirit for the prosperity of truth, and that think themselves very weak, and thereby are too backward in such services, which the faithful elders in the Church of God shall think them measurably capable of.

It is with me to let the younger know how Friends proceeded in their visits; and this I do, in order to stir up their minds by way of information and encouragement. The visiters chosen first met together, and, in the love of God, without partiality, examined one another, how far they stood clear themselves, relating to the things about which they were going to advise others; and, after due examination proceeded thus: when we came to a family, we sat down with them, and first waited a while upon the Lord, and then, as it arose in the minds of any, we principally in the first place directed them to the gift of the Lord's Spirit in themselves, as that by which alone they could grow in the truth, and which would lead them in outward things, agreeable thereto, as to conversation, behaviour, and plainness of apparel and speech, &c. as it led our elders in the beginning; and that although. these things were very commendable in their places, yet told them they would not do of themselves, except the heart was also right in the sight of the Lord: and having spoken what was in our minds, according to the state of the family we visited (sometimes all together, and sometimes particularly apart, as we saw occasion for it) we then came to the minutes from our halfyear's meeting, and spoke particularly to them.

And this I may tell you of a truth, that in all those visits we made in this city at that time, we met with no opposition or contradiction in any one family or particular person, that I remember, but a general condescension in all, and some

times a free and open confession of things that had been amiss, and that in great tenderness, with hopes of amendment for the future; so that the visiters and visited had great satisfaction in that service; and this I may further tell you, above all, the Lord owned our service, by favouring us with his holy power therein, so that in some families, where things were well, the Lord overshadowed us by his living presence, and melted us down together, as into one lump; May my soul never forget those times, while I have a day to live in this world!

Now, after those visits were over in this city, in convenient time most of those visiters here did accompany some other faithful elders in the province, and they went through it, visiting the families of Friends, like as they had done in this city, which had much the same effects as here, there being a general condescension to comply with the desire of the half-year's meeting; and accordingly, in time, there was (I think I may say) a pretty full and effectual reformation in this province in outward things that had been amiss, and which that meeting desired might be put away, and I understood the like success attended that service in other parts of this nation; and thus things stood for several years, and there was great unity among Friends of this province in particular, as well as in general throughout the rest of the kingdom, and the Lord was pleased therewith, which he manifested oftentimes by the overflowing of his divine power in the meetings of Friends.