preach there again. Such blind ecclesiastics shut up the kingdom of God against men; they enter not in themselves, and such as are going, they hinder; wo unto them, Matt. xxiii. 13.

The Word of God gaining ground in this parish greatly offended the blind guide; therefore he thought it necessary to furnish himself with a few twopenny sermons, fit to stop the growth of the Gospel. You know dumb dogs cannot bark without notes. One of these twopenny farragos was served up on the Lord's day to his congregation, with a view to debase me, whom he was pleased to style, a fellow from the plough tail, pretending to inspiration! If this journeyman divine had gone home and read his Bible, he would have found Elisha was at the plough tail, with twelve yoke of oxen before him, when God sent Elijah to call him, 1 Kings xix. 19; and the Bible informs us that a double portion of God's Spirit was upon him. Therefore I am not the first ploughman who pretended to inspiration; and, for my part, I would sooner be a spiritual ploughman than a hunting divine; for I believe every preacher who is useful in ploughing up God's mysteries, and sinners' hearts, is a spiritual ploughman. "No man," says Christ, "having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God." Jeremiah tells us to plow up the fallow ground of the heart, and sow not among thorns. Therefore I to my plough, and he to the chase.

However, this cry of false fire in the church

sent many flaming with rage to the meeting-house; and no wonder, when the host was mustered and panoplied by a master of arts. I believe that a mob, inflamed from the pulpit, and encouraged by a bench, would think they did God service if they made the Church of Christ to swim in blood. "The time cometh that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service. And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father nor me."

Among this impenitent host one appeared more furious than the rest. He sat and laughed in my face, preach how or what I could; and then went and informed people what tricks he had played with poor women who came to hear me: but he was so famous for lying, that he himself became a proverb; therefore none would credit him, even if he told the truth. God permitted this man to reign about two years, and then laid him on a bed of sickness. At this time a young man went to visit him, and asked him what he then thought of the doctrines of the Gospel. He said, 'Get away with your damned nonsense, and let me hear no more of it.' God took him at his word, and instantly bereft him both of speech and rationality; he struck him both mad and dumb in a moment; and soon the harbinger of Death began to chase life from him. Finding this, he lay on his back, and fought like a tyger. What views of hell his imagination was impressed with I cannot determine; however, he soon closed his eyes in death.

His name was M-n. Thus did the Almighty bend his bow, and make it ready; "he also prepared for him the instruments of death; he ordaineth his arrows against the persecutors."

At Woking, in Surry, I was one day preaching from these words, "O Death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?" On that day curiosity led two poor widows to hear me, who got their bread by digging sand and selling it. A few days after they went to dig sand on Sen Heath, and some of their children with them; when, as the women were digging in the hole under ground, one of the children said, Mother, come away; the ground moves:' but they had no power to move; so it fell in, and smothered them both. Thus God sent me to preach their funeral sermon, and himself undertook their burial at his own expense. The pestilence that walketh in darkness is God's servant, and so is the destruction that wasteth at noon-day, Psalm xci. 6.

I had now been some time at Thames-Ditton in the miserable occupation of coal-heaving, and with a miserable company of coal-heavers, who daily assailed my ears with their oaths and lewd conversation, until my soul was bowed down within me; but, whenever I could get into a stable, hay-loft, or store-house, to spend a moment with my God in prayer, it was as though I were wafted up into the third heaven; so sweetly did I feel the sounding of his bowels towards me, Isaiah lxiii. 15. I one day, in an agony, asked his blessed Majesty where

fore he permitted me to labour among such men, as he had made my conscience so tender of sinning, and given me an holy indignation against it; adding, that I feared it would in time harden my heart; and beseeching him to send me somewhere else to live, though it were in a wood, rather than let me hear the filthy conversation of the wicked. In answer to my petition he sent these words as a powerful reproof; "Do men light a candle to put it under a bushel?" I was from that hour fully convinced that I was to appear in a more public character, and I never afterwards prayed that I might live in a wood.

Seeing the whole place given up to blasphemy and dissipation, I found a desire to preach to these miserable beings, hoping that God would make it useful to them; for I grieved to see and hear their wickedness.

It happened, on a certain day, that myself and others were unloading a barge of coals, at which time I laboured under sore temptations; and, to add to the burden, I experienced extreme poverty, and an empty cupboard at home. Various temptations within, and filthy conversation without, drove me to my wit's end. The men soon after agreeing to go to the public house to dinner, I went under the barge tilt, or cabin, and wrestled hard with God in prayer, telling him of my little ones wanting bread, and how hard I felt it to see them suffer. To which he sent me this sweet, soul-satisfying answer, "I know thy works, and tribulation, and

poverty; but thou art rich," Rev. ii. 9. Finding great liberty with my God in prayer, I wept for joy, and further asked him wherefore such a desire after the salvation of souls was kindled in my heart, if he did not intend to make me useful to them, as he had made me useful to many others? To which he gave me this answer, " "Behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it," Rev. iii. 8. I got up, wiped my eyes, and came away with my countenance no more sad; having enjoyed a better repast than any of them, and found, by happy experience, that "man doth not live by bread only; but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live," Deut. viii. 3. I told a friend, the same day, that I was to preach the Gospel at Ditton: and soon after a door was opened to another man, to whom God gave but little to say. The person was a London professor; but I had reason to fear that he was not a possessor of the grace of God; and indeed his wretched life soon evinced it. The week following I was invited to preach at this place to a numerous auditory, who appeared very attentive, and God's presence was much with me; for during several weeks many heard me gladly, and approved much of the doctrine. But several persons, who were good customers to the publicans, seeming rather serious, my zealous exclamations against dissipation soon raised a storm, which beat violently on my head for several years: how