and assured, this wondrous visitation never came to me from any other spirit but the Spirit of the LIVING LORD, and the whole nation stands in danger of utter ruin for their neglect. Strongly are the words said to me, if the Lord calleth and no man answer, they shall call, and he will not answer, but laugh at their calamity, and mock when their fear cometh. And now I am full of the fury of the Lord, whose anger is kindled against his Shepherds; for deeply are the words said to me, it was the Lord that worked in Mr. Sharp's heart, to send the prints of our Saviour to the Bishop, at the time the Lord had ordered his words to be sent to him by you, and he has as much refused to obey the command of the Lord, as he refused to receive the pictures of our Saviour. Now the contempt that the ministers of God's word, when they first treated me in the like manner, sunk my spirits, when I sought them in the bitterness of my soul, and they would not hear. This sunk my soul in secret sorrow, and in private prayer and tears I poured out my complaints and grief unto the Lord; for as man refused to hear me I trusted wholly in the Lord, and knowing I was so much their inferior in rank and fortune, I bowed in submission with a broken heartto their silent contempt; but now I find that you are a lady of family and fortune, not inferior to them, and Mr. Sharp, an artist of no low profession and well known in the world, to be treated with this contempt hath raised my spirits with indignation; so I shall thank you, or Mr. Sharp, to write to the bishop, in my name, or your own, what is the duty of a bishop, if he judge the calling not of God. To try and prove it by his arguments, and shewing his strong reasons, is the command of the Lord unto man. I must conclude with saying, I wish the bishop was as good a judge of his duty, as a bishop, as Mr. Sharp is of his engraving, as an artist; but he cometh far short of Mr. Sharp,

for though he gave Mr. Sharp credit as an artist, I cannot give the bishop cred it as a bishop; un-less, like Peter, he is convinced of his errors and goeth out and weep bitterly. This I have written to you for your perusal, in the height of anger, as you and Mr. Sharp are treated with contempt on my account, as well as the LORD, for doing the thing that he had commanded you. Now, my dear Miss Townley, you see how my passions were worked, after hearing in what humble polite manner Mr. Sharp addressed the bishop, and offered to wait upon his lordship, and give him every information; for the glory of God and the good of mankind were all the ends he could have in view, but the glory of God and the good of mankind were treated with scorn and contempt, But now judge my surprise after I had written in the height of my anger, as a private letter, to you, I was answered in the following manner: "The preparation of thy heart in thy letter to Townley, came from ME, for thou art full of the fury of the Lord, and all my fury this land shall find.-The enemy shall break in upon them and destroy them, if my Spirit, and my faithful servants are treated with this contempt; therefore my strict command is to thee, to have thy letter, thou hast written to Townley, in the height of thy anger, put into print; for it was I, the Lord, that worked that anger in thee; and they shall see much greater in ME. If they do not repent, I will strengthen the enemy, to be strong against them and they shall not be able to get out of his power, for they are doing despite to my Spirit and to my servants; and I will reward them according to their works, unless they return with weeping, as Peter did. Then will I shew mercy into them, and not destroy them; for the battle is mine, to give the victory which way I will. So let the letter be printed, and my answer to it, for it is fatal for thee, or Townley, or Sharp, if out of fear of offending the bishop, my command is not obeyed; for all men shall

but for the sable of the Sheptiere, scaching,
at the Truth
on the're Wretinos

( 37 )

know thy writings come from the LIVING LORD, who feareth no man's person, and for my Honour and great Name, I cannot save this land from ruin, but for the sake of the shepherds' searching into all thy writings, to know, and to prove from whence they came; for the word is gone out of my mouth, and shall not return, till unto me every knee do how, and every tongue do swear. Here you see I am caught in a net, by my own feet, thinking to write you a private letter, I am ordered to make it public; to kindle the wrath of mankind against me; but what is the wrath of man, to the wrath of the Lord? Man can but kill the body, but the Lord can cast soul and body into hell. It is better for me to die, than the whole nation to perish, by my disobeying the command of the Lord; so I must stand the trial of their fury; as in man I could never find pity. Here I was ordered to add a parable that was in my thoughts, of a man at Topsham in Devonshire: he was a man that my father told me of, that had for a long time been stealing of salt, from a salt trader; at last the owner of the salt caught him, stealing of his salt; he had filled up near a hundred weight to carry away; when the owner came, who told him if he would pay him 30l. for all the salt he had stolen from him, as he had lost it for a long time, he would forgive him. The thief paid him the 301. and went and indicted the master, for concealing a thief, and not indicting him; and the master told my father, it cost him five hundred pounds, and brought him to beggary, poverty, and want; that he had made it up with the man, thinking to save the expences of a prosecution: so to encourage men in vice doth but harden their hearts the more. This thing of the man I was ordered to pen, and now I shall give the answer of the Spirit, that was given to me in answer to this parable of the man.

Now thy fable thou hast ended,

For to answer I'll appear:
Like the thief I now intend it
My indictment shall be here.

But now within thou dost begin,
Thy pondering heart I know:
Satan may with the thief compare,
But will the LORD do so?
For to compare my honour here,
Unto a thief that's cast:

The Brazen Serpent this will clear;
For so I now shall burst

On every man, that's in your land,
power to appear,

In

If they do judge thy written hand
In blasphemy is here.

If they go on to act like him,
And say they'll it forgive;
For the expences of the law,

The man tho ght he should save;
To harden sin he did begin,
Until it did abound,

And then upon his head it came—
Then tremble at the sound;
For to your Land it so will come,
For sin you're hardening here.
If Satan now do guide her hand,
In her it must appear;
If it be not, I'll tell your lot,

You harden it in your Land.
In blasphemy I now tell thee,
Your nation it doth stand;
Men do blaspheme my every Name,
That speak against my word.

The shepherds now must own with shame
They do blaspheme the Lord;
If 'tis from me thy writings be,
Then here they do blaspheme.
And won't my shepherds now agree

To know from whence it came ?
Then I'll go on, I tell thee plain,
With my indictment here
Until I've brought the heavy load,
Their ruin shall appear;

As on the man the load did come,

His ruin for to be;

Because the end of him was known,

He was in poverty

Brought by the law, thou well dost know

His folly brought him poor;

Because the thief, he well might know,
Would quickly steal for more;
down the thirty pounds

When he

paid

He harden'd was in sin.

And so the man his sorrows found,

Because he'd harden'd him

For to go on in every sin,
And he the stroke did feel.

And perfect so is now your Land,
Your wounds I'll never heal

While you go on to harden sin,
And rob ME of my fame.
One way or other this is done,
For blasphemy must come;
They all must know the truth is so,
If thou dost here blaspheme.
And like the man the shepherds are,
To let thee steal my Name;
Because like he the shepherds be,
That trouble think to save;
And with the man they do agree,
The money's all they crave;
This is the likeness of your land,
And so they do agree;

And if this way they now go on,
They'll find his poverty

Will come on all, both great and small,
For who shall you redress?

As you're hardening sin in all,
I'll boldly answer this:

If now from ME thy writings be,
As I affirm them here,

Your land is full of blasphemy,
As men so boldly swear;
Against my name they do blaspheme,
And rob me day by day.
And so you let them to goon→
Give me the gold, you say:
Sin may abound in every sound,
For ought that you do care.
Just like the man you all are found,
And so his end you'll share,
If you go on to act like him,
Thinking to save the first,
I plainly tell you in the end,
Like him your end shall burst;
For poverty and misery

Shall fast upon you come.
My land is full of blasphemy,

Then tremble now vain men ;
For I'll make clear, I tell you here,
That I the Lord do warn ;
But you my Spirit cannot bear,
And back you all do turn

My offers all; for now I call,

And do you all invite

For to receive my offer'd love,

But it you all do slight.

For like the Jews you hear the news,

And crown my head the same;

For back the thorns you now do turn,

Then tremble at my Name.

If I turn back the coming stroke,
As then the Jews did see;

Your names like them must be forgot:
You'll not accept of ME,