AS to the scandalous Paper put forth by that wicked, lewd, lying Woman, who by our means is detected for her wickedness, and is now your Prisoner: we say we know little of it to be true, nor doth it at all reach us, for we have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of dark­ness, but do rather reprove them, and we are as desirous the wickedness and rottenness of others that have gone under the disguise of Quakers, should be made manifest, detected and discovered as hers. But we desire also you would not very readily yield and prostrate your belief to one that hath so egregiously forfeited her credit and repu­tation with you, by being found before you in so many notorious lies and falshoods, especially when her accusa­tion of others is but to excuse herself, and to extenuate her own vileness, and to divert you from further searching and prying into her miscarriages; and also the persons whom she so accuses are at a distance from her and not here to speak for themselves, and all of them except two or three as well unknown to us as to your selves. But had she known such [...]vils by them it had been far more honest and honourable for her (before her apprehension, and then it would not have savoured of revenge and malice) to have declared those things to the Nation, to have made the guilty manifest, rather then to have gone about deluding and cheating of simple people, or so to have caused the [Page 3] way of truth and righteousness to have been the more re­proached, by her evil practices and leud Conversation; and if any that have passed under the name of Quakers have faln from the power of truth which should have preserved them from sin and evil, or others professed a name with us only in deceit and hypocrisie, yet was that no ground or warrant for her to run into evil also; we desire she may receive a just recompence of reward for the wickedness she is found guilty of, and we doubt not but the same hand of justice hath or will find out others, to punish them for their faults also, (if any such hath been) in the several places of their abodes. As for our parts we can truly say our attaching of her was not the effect of any passion or enmity we had to her person, but to her leud wicked practices, which we have heard of for above three years past. As in many places borrowing Money, and pretending she would bring it or send it again in a few days but never did. And sometimes pre­tending to leave Gold in pawn, and instead of Gold pieces would leave Shillings sealed up, telling people there was so many pieces of Gold. And sometimes borrowing Scarfes, Hoods, Riding Cloaths, promising to leave them at some remarkable Friends house, and did not. And much more such wicked and ungodly acti­ons too tedious to relate▪ Such as she is hath caused the way of truth and righ [...]eousness to be evil spoken of, and the name of God to be blasphemed, whose condemnation slum­bers not, whose latter end is worse then their beginning, and for whom it had been better they had never been born. And yet if ye consult with Scripture ye will in all ages and generations find there hath been such as hath turned from the way of Righteousness into crooked and by paths; for in Abrahams Family, there was an Ismael as well as an Isaac, in Isaac's Family an Esau as well as a Jacob; among the Twelve a Judas; in the Church of Philadelphia those that said they were Jewes, and were not, [Page 4] but did lie, and were of the Synagogue of Satan; and in the Church of Corinth an incestious person, and in several other Churches of the Gentiles, those that drew back unto perdition, that went out from them being not truly of them, for had they been of them they would have continu'd with them as the Apostle testifies: But, supposing the matter to be true, which we believe is much of it lies and falshood, if twenty persons or more in 16. years experi­ence have turned aside and drawn back unto perdition, in whose soul the Lord will take no pleasure. As that is no new or strange thing, so it shall not afright or deter us from walking in the way of truth and righteousness, in which we have found peace and satisfaction to our soules; but rather invite and exci [...]e us to walk the more accurate and circumspectly, and to make straight steps to our feet, least any among us also fall into the same snare of the Devil, apd that was the use the Apostles made of the Apostacy and backs [...] ding of some in former ages, Let us take heed least there be in any of us an evil heart of unbelief, &c. And labour to enter into that rest least others falling after the same example of unbelief come short of it, Heb. 4. 11. And al­though we have affirmed and do still affirm, that the light with which every man is enlightened with, being believed in, obeyed, followed, is sufficient to save, and doth lead to the light of life, yet we never did nor do we at this day affirm, that it saves or preserves any from siu and evil fur­ther then they are led and taught by it, and are obedient to i [...]; for to those that rebell against it the light is their dai­ly condemnation, it's the savour of death unto such; and as Job speaking of the Twilight to the thief or murtherer its as the shaddow of death unto them; for although the Grace of God which brings Salvation which hath appeared unto all men, teacheth to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, yet they [Page 5] are not obedient to it, but receive it in vain, that turns the Grace of God into lasciviousness. And as to her accusations we say in general, they touch us not, we challenge the worst of our adversaries to declare and make manifest what evil they have found by us, and we hope through Grace to make it manifest to all men that we are not of those that draw back unto perdition, but of them that be­lieve to the saving of the soul, and we also hope through the same Grace to hold fast our profession without wavering, and to put to silence the ignorance of foolish men which watch for our halting by our good Conversation.

And whereas she challenges us to accuse her if we can of any incivility she acted among us while she walked with us, we answer, had she lived in the truth unto this day, which she saith she once lived in, (though we have none but her own words for it) there had been no cause for the several accusations which are brought against her at this day, and many more will be brought against her as she well knowes, which is the true reason why she conceales her right name and hath passed under several names, and also the place of her abode, which we desire she may be detained until she doth reveal, and also till a testimonial do come from the said place, that her report therein is true, (being she hath told you that her dwelling house is against the white Lyon in Southwark, and it hath not been found so) and this we hope you will judge reasonable, and so let it be manifest, you are a terror to evil werks and workers and bear not the Sword in vain. And whereas she saith she once walked innocently and unblameable, we answer, we know not that, but were it so—that will no more ex­cuse her, then it will excuse the fallen Angels, of whom Jude speaks, who keeping not their first estate, but lost their pristine habitation, and are now reserved in everlast­ing [Page 6] Chains under Darkness, unto the judgment of the great Day, for it is not what we were Yeares or Weekes past, or what we formerly could witness of the Lords presence and preservation; but what we can witness the Lord is to us, and what he is in us to day, that must speak us peace and satisfaction: So in that which sets Truth a top of all deceit and deceivers. We rest your Friends.