Well Friend; what does my Quandum Brethren ſay of me ſince I left their Society.

Say of thee, marry, no more than what 〈◊〉 and moſt good People think of thee.

Prethee what's that?

Why, to be plain with thee, thou are a me ••• Weather-cock and a Friend to nothing, but the Mamon o • Unrighteouſneſs; and having left the Truth and the Light for the Wages of Sin; therefore conſequently thou ar • in the Gaul of Bitterneſs and in the Bond of Iniquity.

Nay, this is no more than what I expected from a Quaker, but Spleen and ill Nature, for I have experinced to my coſt, that nothing but Nonſence and Contradiction will be Reliſhed among you: Its well known I left you for no other cauſe, but for your Erronious and Vile Principals, in appearing to the World to be Peaceable Humble, Hon ••• , True, and Sincere, when in Reality, your Society is made up of little elſe, but Envy ſecret Malice, Bitterneſs, Pride, Deceit, and Fraud. Though covered over with the notion of Sainctty, and this is the real Fundamentals of your Hocus Pocus, or Art of Ledgerdmain, and is at this Day very finely Acted and Humour'd among you.

Well George I am not inclind to Quarrel with thee neither am I prepar'd to enter into a Diſpute with thee at this time, by reaſon Satan has not only puff'd thee up, but furniſhed thee with railing accuſation againſt us: But leaving the Lord to rebuke thee, I ſhall only ask thee ſome Queſtions, and ſo proceed moderatly in ſerious Diſcourſe.

You may ask me what Queſtions you pleaſe (provided they be not Impertinent ones) I will endeavour to Anſwer them, as well as I can.

Pray George tell me, why thou lefts the Religion thou weret brought up in, and joine thy ſelf to our Profeſſion, if thou didſt not ſee ſomthing in it, that invited thee to it? And if thou ſaweſt any thing amongeſt us, (eſpecially in the Doctrinal part) that was ſo very Wicked, Vile and Erronous, as thou ſeemeſt to Inſinuate, tis ſtrange, being ſo cuning as thou art, thou dideſt not find it out till now, having been ſo long amongeſt us.

As to your firſt Queſtion, its true, I was at firſt mightily taken with your modeſt Apparrel, Behaviour, abſtenace from Oathes, and abundance of other pretended Vertues, theſe were the deluſive Bates that caught me, and many others, and was ſo cunningly Supported with that new invented Prattle, (I wont ſay Doctrin) of the Light within, that your Villainy and Deceit, were ſo Dark without that, I could not quickly deſcern it: And to the other Queſtion tis well known both in Penſilvania and other places, I long ago openly Proteſted againſt many of your Errors, and notorious Impieties, and by Gods bleſſings Convinc'd many of their Wickedneſs, who are now ready to Confeſs that preſumptious notion of the Light within was nothing but the Spirit of Error and Deluſion.

Well I ſee thy carnal Thoughts begins to prompt thee to Paſſon and Heat, but it being no new thing in thee I paſs it by: But I muſt tell thee, thy hopping from Perk to Perk, after this rate makes thee in my opinion ſmell very Rank of a late Salamanca Dr. tho in Charity to thy aged Carcaſs, I wiſh thee better Succeſs, than he had, and leave thy deſerts to thy ſelf.

I ſee nothing but Sence comes amiſs to a Quaker; heres a Compariſon with a Contradiction in the Belly of it, the Docter you ſpeak of revolted from the Church to the Baptiſt, and I from the Baptiſt to the Church, ſo that her's a down right Contrarity in ſtead of a Parralle.

Pray George been't ſo Angrey, the Compariſon is not ſo Wide as its Odious, for you both hopp'd, and both to one Church too, tho not both at a time, nor both one way, for now I think on't the Baptiſt and Church of England made an Exchange, for Two turn Coates, but which has got the beſt Bargain is hard to Determine.

Well, well for all your Reflections tis well known I am highly eſteem'd of and I am ſatisfy'd that I am Chang'd for the Better, and as for others who have chang'd their Opinions in Religion (which you are pleaſed to call Hopping) if they keep out from herding among the Quakers there may be ſome hopes of them, but if once deluded and decoy'd with your pretended Light within, it proves ſuch a Cloak for Deceit and Knavery that very few, without a Miracle are reclam'd; it being little leſs than bewitching.

Nay I have promiſed, I will not engage in a Quarrel, with thee therefore for bare theſe tart Arguments, and tell me what an Auditory thou hadeſt at Billings-gate Steeple-houſe Sermons.

I aſſure you a very numerous Company, came both fore, and afternoon, of all Ages and Quallities, which is an infailible argument of their approving my Doctrin.

Not at all George in my Opinion, for I have ſeen almoſt as great a Crowd at Bedlam, to hear and ſee the mad Folkes there, and indeed its no ſtrange thing to ſee the Multitude run after Novelties, an inſtance of which we had not long ſince of the White Parſon, who Preach'd againſt Hirlings, and tho a Docterin quite contrary to thine, he drew more numerous Multitudes after him than came to thy Sermon.

Here's another fine compariſon again, but you miſtake the place, its Grace-church ſtreet Meeting Houſe, that is a more nearer Type of Bedlam, it being throng'd always ſo full of Fools and Mad Men, both Speakers and Hearers being little better; and to render the Emblem more exact, the Holders Forth are not only gifted with the motions, actions, and poſtures of Lunaticks, but they humour their very Tone too to a Miracle.

Truely George thy Tongue's no ſlander otherwiſe perhaps I might frame an anſwer ſuitable enough to thy railery; But to let thee ſee my good nature, I can as eaſily forgive thee for what thou haſt done, as ſome Charitable People, Cherriſh Old Lame Defective and Foundred Horſes, for the ſtrength they had formerly. Yet before we part I muſt tell thee that the White Parſon's Doctrin and thine in ſome meaſure agrees for tho' he Preach'd down hire becauſe he had loſt it, thou Preacht it up in hopes to obtain it.

You talk of good Nature, when tis well known, you are altogether ſtrangers to it, elſe what meanes your Tribe by calling me Lyar, Falſe, Treacherous, and Deceitful Man, Wicked and Malicious, and for no other cauſe but by expoſing their ernonious and falſe Principals; therefore knowing my Innocency, and their odious Clamours, and falſe Accuſations, the Crime will ly at their Doors in calling Names; and I ſhall beare Revilings with the greater Patience.

But George thoſe things, which thou now calleſt, Vile, Errovr, and Heriſies, thou for ſome Years preach'd up and Applauded, and dideſt affirm, that in ſo doing thou hadeſt a divine Sence and Acceptance, and that thou very zealouſly Labour'd to defend them, by many cuning Arguments.

I deny that I ever ſo much as Endeavoured to defend thoſe vile Errors, which oppoſe the four great Fundamental Doctrine of the Chriſtian Religion, which I have ſince charged them with, or indeed any other Article of the Chriſtian Faith, prorerly ſo called: But ſuppoſe I did endeaver to mantain, your Heritical Notions (while under a miſtaken zeal) is that an Argument of my doing ſo always: Muſt Paul be thought an unſound Chriſtian, becauſe he was once a Perſecuting Jew, and continue a Perſecuter, and a blind Leader of the Blind, for fear of being call'd an Apoſtate, from the Principles he retain'd in the Days of his Ignorance; If this be the ſence of your Arguments, you may with as much reaſon Exclaime againſt the Man, who uſed for ſeveral Years laſt paſt, to walk willfuly about the Streets without Cloathes, and be angey with him for Cloathing himſelf, becauſe he uſed to go Naked, as to rail at me for leaving that Society, which my Conſcence as well as Reaſon tells me is moſt notoriouſly Miſled, but no wonder to hear Quakers Argue at this rate, when they themſelves are conſtant in nothing, but Contradiction and Nonſenſe; for if any one ſhould ask what Religion you profeſs, I am ſure no better Anſwer could be made than that no body knows, nor your ſelves neither; therefore its great Pitty, this Inſcription is not ſet over all the Doors of your Meeting-Houſes, viz. This Place is Dedicated to the unknown God.

Away with this Sophiſtry, and Critical Reflections; I plainly perceive that thy Back is Riſen in a great meaſure againſt me; prethee George abate thy carnal paſſion, and lay aſide all prejudice and ill Will: For to be plain with thee if thy ſeperation from us be purely for Conſcience ſake, I am ſo far from blaming thee that I highly commend thee, but if this change proceeds from the hopes of worldly Gain or ſelf Intereſt thou are in a moſt ſad and deplorable Pickle, and conſequently, will add but little Credit to the Church of England, or ſolid ſatisfaction to thy ſelf, in the long run.

Tis but loſt Labour to diſcourſe with ſuch an Iliterate Cox-com as a Quaker; have not I ſufficiently inform'd the World in my two Sermons lately publiſhed, that it was the Quakers vile Errours baſe Principals, wild Frentick, and abominable Deluſions, which you ſo much cry up for the true Light and movements of the Spirit, the cauſed me to Relinquiſh their Society, and no any Intereſt of Worldly advantage as many o • you ſo falſely, as well as fooliſhly Imagin.

VVell George if it prove ſo 'twill be thy own another Day. But tis a Riddle to me, to ſee thee play Faſ. and Looſe at this ſtrange rate, and to tell thee freel my thoughts, thy Black Gown don't at all become thee however thou thinks of thy ſelf, I mean as to thy outward Tabernacle, for inwardly the Light has been long Extinguiſh'd: Therefore I leave thee as a loſt and undone Veſſel: For thy very Sermons beſpeaks thee no leſs.

I vallue not what the Quakers ſay of me I am ſure my Sermons has gain'd a general approbation and kind reception, and had been much eſteem'd had not an Ignorant and Illiterate Perſon of your Society thrown out a ſham one to diſgrace me, it being ſtuft with nothing but impertinence, traſh and rediculous Nonſence from one end to the other, which plainly ſhowes the Malice, Envy Govetouſneſs and Fraud of thoſe ſort of People, notwithſtanding, their pretended Light purity, honeſty and plain dealing, ſo at preſent Farewell.