LETTER DXLVIII. To Mr. G. H. My dear dear Mr. H, MU London, Feb. 24, 1744 Ultiplicity of urgent affairs has kept me from answering your kind letter fooner. Bleffed be Gon for giving you fuch a profperous journey. I am not forry that fome, af ter their much joy, have been brought down and plunged into much mifery. It is no more than might be expected. Stolen fweets prepare for bitter tears. On Monday morning I shall know what the rioters intend doing. There has been dreadful work near Birmingham, but fatan will be overthrown. We had a glorious faft on Monday, and collected above fixty pounds for our poor fuffering brethren. We have had two folemn funerals. I hope the work profpers in your hands. Our lawyer hath fent me word, that the rioters ftand trial. I think, GOD willing, to be in Gloucestershire by Monday fev'nnight. The LORD be with you. I falute all, and am, my dear Mr. H Your most affectionate, though unworthy friend. G. W. Feb. 26. P. S. Since I wrote the above, I have confulted with friends, and find it beft to come through Gloucefter to Abergavenny.— God willing, I hope to preach with you on Tuesday between feven and eight at night. Be pleafed immediately on the receipt of this to fend word to brother Adams to meet me without fail at Gloucester on Tuesday, to confer about our affize affair. I heard yesterday from Wales. I bought a fecond-hand fuit of curtains to-day, fo you need not fend any thing to Abergavenny. "Poor, yet making others rich," fhall be my motto ftill. LETTER DXLIX. My dear Friend, TH London, March 12, 1744. THIS leaves me juft returned from Gloucefter affizes, where it has pleafed the great Judge of quick and dead to give us the victory over the Hampton rioters. You remember I informed you, that I thought we should be obliged to appeal unto Cafar. A folemn day of fafting and humiliation was kept on that account; and accordingly laft term we lodged an information against them in the King's-Bench. Matters of fact being proved by a variety of evidence, and the defendants making no reply, the rule was made abfolute, and an information filed against them. To this they pleaded Not guilty, and therefore, according to the method of the Crown-office, the caufe was referred to the affizes held in Gloucester the third inftant. Our council opened the caufe by informing the court, that rioters were not to be reformers, and that his Majesty had no where put the reins of government into the hands of mobbers, nor made them either judge or jury. One of them in particular, the Recorder of Oxford, with great gravity, reminded the gentlemen on the jury of the advice of Gamaliel, "Refrain from these men and let them alone, for if this council, or this work be of man, it will come to nought; but if it be of GOD, ye cannot overthrow it, least haply ye be found even to fight against GOD." Our witneffes were then called. Mr. Adams and four more, three of which were not reputed Methodists, fo clearly proved both the riot and the facts, that the judge was of opinion, there needed no other evidence. The council for the defendants then rofe up, and difplayed a good deal of oratory, and I think faid all that could be faid to mend a bad matter. One urged, "that we were enthufiafts, and our principles and practices had fuch a tendency to infect and hurt the people, that it was right, in his opinion, for any private perfon to ftand up and put a stop to us; and whoever did so, was a friend to his country." He ftrove to influence the jury, by telling them, "That if a verdict was given against the defendants, it would coft them two hundred pounds; that the defendants rioting was not premeditated, but that coming to hear Mr. A, and being offended at his doctrine, a sudden quarrel arofe, and thereby the unhappy men were led into the prefent fray, which he could have wished had not happened; but however, it did not amount to a riot, but only an affault." Their other council informed the jury, "That they would undertake to prove, that the Methodists began the tumult first.” He was pleafed to mention me by name, and acquainted the court, "That Mr. Whitefield had been travelling from common to common, making the people cry, and then picking their pockets, under pretence of collecting money for the colony of Georgia; and knowing that Gloucestershire was a populous county, he at laft came there; that he had now feveral curates, of which Mr. Adams was one, who in his preaching had found fault with the proceedings of the clergy, and had faid, that if the people went to hear them, they would be damned." He added, that there had lately been fuch mobbing in StaffordShire, that a regiment of foldiers was fent down to suppress them; infinuating, that the Methodists were the authors; that we had now another cause of a like nature depending in Wiltshire, and that we were not of that mild pacific spirit, as we pretended to be." This, and much more to the fame purpofe, though foreign to the matter in hand, pleased many of the auditors, who expreffed their fatisfaction, in hearing the Methodifts in general, and me in particular, thus lafhed, by frequent laughing. But our LORD not only kept me quite easy, but enabled me to rejoice in being thus honoured for his great Name's fake. To prove what the defendants council had infinuated, they called up a young man, who was a brother to one of the defendants, and one of the mob. He swore point blank, That Mr. Adams faid, if people went to church, they would be damned, but if they would come to him, he would carry them to JESUS CHRIST," He fwore alfo," that the brook into which Mr. A was thrown, was no deeper than half up his legs." He faid first, that there were but about ten of them that came to the house of Mr. 4; and then he fwore, that there were about threefcore. He faid, there was a bell, and that one of the defendants did afk Mr. A to come off the stairs, but that none of them went up to him; upon which Mr. A willingly obeyed, went with them brifkly along the street, and as he would have represented it, put himself into the skin-pit and brook, and fo came out again. He faid alfo fome other things; but through the whole, his evidence appeared fo flagrantly falfe, that one of the council faid, "It was enough to make his hair ftand an end." The judge himself wifhed, "That the man had fo much religion as to fear an oath." So he went down in difgrace. Their fecond evidence was an aged woman, mother of one of the de fendants; fendants; fhe fwore, "That her fon did go up stairs to Mr. A——, and that Mr. A-- tore her fon's coat; but the talked so fast, and her evidence was so palpably falfe, that fhe was fent away in as much difgrace as the other. Their third and laft evidence, was father to one who was in the mob, tho' not one of the defendants. The chief he had to say was, That when Mr. A--was coming from the brook, he met “ him and said, Brother, how do you do? Upon which he an fwer'd, that he had received no damage, but had been in the “brook and came out again." So that all their evidences, however contrary one to another, yet corroborated ours, and proved the riot out of their own mouths. The book was then given to a juftice of the peace, who had formerly taken up Mr. C for preaching near Stroud, and had lately given many fignal proofs that he was no friend to the Methodifts. But he intending to speak only about their characters, and the council and judge looking upon that as quite impertinent to the matter in hand, he was not admitted as an evidence. Upon this, his Lordship with great candor and impartiality fummed up the evidence, and told the jury, "That "he thought they should bring all the defendants in GUILTY; "for our evidences had fufficiently proved the whole of the “information, and also, that the riot was premeditated.”— He faid, "That, in his opinion, the chief of the defendants " evidence was incredible; and, that fuppofing the Methodists "were heterodox, (as perhaps they might be) it belonged to "the ecclefiaftical government to call them to an account; "that they were subjects, and rioters were not to be their re"formers." He also reminded them "of the dreadful confe-` quences of rioting at any time, much more at fuch a critical "time as this; that rioting was the forerunner of, and might "end in rebellion; that it was felony without benefit of clergy, "to pull down a Meeting-house; and for all as he knew, it was "high treafon to pull down even a bawdy-house.-That this information alfo came from the King's-Bench; that his Ma"jesty's juftices there, thought they had fufficient reason to grant it; that the matters contained in it had been evidently "proved before them; and confequently they should bring in all the defendants guilty." Upon this the jury were defired to confider of their verdict, and for a while there feemed to be fome tained from hearing me. He then afked me, if I knew him. I answered, no. He replied, his name was Cadogan. I rejoined, that I had seen one Mr. Cadogan, who was formerly an officer at Georgia, about a fortnight ago at Brifol. Upon this, he immediately rose up, uttering the most abusive language, calling me dog, rogue, villain, &c. and beat me most unmercifully with his gold-headed cane. As you know I have not much natural courage, guefs how furprized I was; being apprehenfive that he intended to fhoot or ftab me, I underwent all the fears of a fudden violent death. But, as it providentially happened, my hostess and her daughter hearing me cry murder,. rushed into the room and seized him by the collar; however, he immediately difengaged himself from them, and repeated his blows upon me. The cry of murder was repeated also, which putting him into fome terror, he made towards the chamber-door, from whence the good woman pushed him down ftairs. About the bottom of which, a second cry'd out, "Take courage, I am ready to help you;" accordingly, whilst the other was escaping, he rushed up, and finding one of the women coming down, took her by the heels and threw her upon the stairs, by which her back was almost broken. By this time the neighbourhood was alarmed. Unwilling to add to it, I defired the doors might be shut, and fo betook myself to reft, not without reflecting, how indifpenfibly necessary it was for chriftians and chriftian minifters to be always upon their guard, and with what great propriety we are taught to pray in our excellent Litany," from fudden," that is," from violent and unprepared death, good LORD deliver us." That this may be our happy lot, is the hearty prayer of, dear Madam, Yours, &c. G. W. LETTER DLII. To the Same. Plymouth, July 4, 1744. SING INCE my laft, I have had fome particular informations about the late odd adventure. It seems, that four gentlemen came to the house of one of my particular friends, kindly enquiring after me, and defired to know where I lodged, that |