HAD the Writings I am about to consider, a sufficient Stock of ge­nuine Truth to support the Com­parisons they contain: Were these Comparisons altogether Just and Equal, Or did I conceive the Means proposed likely to effectually answer the Purposes intended, Nothing here would have interfered at this Time. I apprehended them to be materi­ally deficient in these Respects, and there­fore would modestly put in a Claim to be heard with impartiality.

THE Author of the Pamphlet called PLAIN TRUTH, after laying open the Pro­bability of an Attack from the Enemy, gives us what he calls an early Example from the Book of Iudges, of the Children of Dan sending Spies to see into the Situation of the People of Laish, and to search the Land, &c. Iudges xviii. 2. He lays down this Case, and observes upon it as a similar In­stance to the present Situation of Philadel­phia and Pennsylvania.—With how much Justice and Propriety let us examine.

[Page 4]THE Children of Dan (it must be re­membered) were at this Time departed from the true Faith, had forsaken the God of their Fathers, and were gone into Ido­latry; from hence may be easily accounted their covetous Disposition of invading their Neighbours.

THE People of Laish, we are told in the same Chapter, verse 7. dwelt careless, after the Manner of the Zidonians, quiet and secure, and there was no Magistrate in the Land that might put them to Shame in any Thing. This appears to be the real State of the Case, they had thrown off all Restraint and were arriv'd to that Degree of Extravagance as to be quite shameless, and therefore no Wonder they were liable every Moment to be destroy'd and to be smote with the Edge of the Sword, and the City to be burnt with Fire, for there was no Deliverer because it was far from Zidon. This I pre­sume, cannot allude to the before-mention'd Zidon, because, according to the Comparison there introduc'd, They, like themselves, dwelt careless. Nor can it be reasonably suppos'd to be any other Zidon then upon Earth, because an evident Absurdity would follow, in supposing that any such could afford a Deliverer; we are therefore under a Necessity to extend the Application, and to suppose the Deliverer here alluded to, to be [Page 5] that from Mount Sion, a Deliverer infinite in Power, and the only Deliverer that could then, or can now do the Business effectually. But this Deliverer it seems, was out of the Question. They possibly thought it timorous and womanish to expect it, and therefore neglected the suitable Means to obtain it, and the Consequence was Desolation and Ruin.

I would now ask, is it probable to sup­pose, that the People of Laish, at that time of the Day possess'd of a Country, where there was no Want of any Thing in the Earth, ver. 19. and at a Time when the Nations around them were almost continu­ally at War, and they themselves likewise frequently engag'd in it, for any thing we know, when it was the Custom of the Times, an Eye for an Eye, and a Tooth for a Tooth, and Men thought themselves at Liberty to do as they pleas'd, for in those Days there was no King in Israel, but every Man did that which was right in his own Eyes, Judges xvii. 6. Under these Considerations, is it probable that the People of Laish were unacquainted with military Skill, or destitute of any warlike Accoutre­ments then in Use? I think not: And there­fore must suppose that the Expressions, 'A 'People careless, quiet and secure, has a Referrence to a People who thought them­selves [Page 6] secure, by Means of some acquired imaginary Strength of their own, such as Preparations of Defence, and the like, and so being vain in their Imaginations became quiet and careless. As the People of Laish appears to have been thus unhappily circum­stanced, their Ignorance and Unthoughtful­ness, of which this is a recent Instance, may, I should think, be usefully thought on by the present Generation, by the Pennsylva­nians especially, who it seems, according to our Author, page 7. ‘are if possible, more careless than they.’ I am sorry this should be the Case in any Country, especially in a free Country. A Country enjoying all the boasted Priviledges of Reason and Na­ture, and the Thing is in itself so unaccount­able, that I must freely confess, I should have questioned my Author's Veracity here, if the Ingenuity of his Performance did not depend on the contrary.

That corresponding Passage in his Title-Page, which so feelingly prepares the Rea­der for future Impressions, evidently il­lustrates, that his Sentiments upon this Score are fix'd and invariable, else why he applys a Passage to the People of Pennsylvania, spoken to a Generation whom the Author he cites every where Pictures in such dis­mal Colours, I am at a Loss to determine.

[Page 7] ‘The Romans (says Salust) were arrived to that Pitch of Corruption that they gloried in Extravagancy and Rapine, and made Sarcasms upon Virtue. Modesty and a disinterested Mind pass'd with them, only for Sloth and Cowardice, those that were in Power, neglecting Vir­tue and conspiring against Innocence, pre­ferr'd only their own Creatures. Inno­centes circumveniunt suos ad Honores tol­lunt.’

I am sorry this, or any thing like this, should be the Case with any body, but as the Thing seems to remain a settled Point with our Author (who must be allow'd to have all the Opportunities necessary to be sufficiently inform'd) unwilling Necssity o­bliges us here (under some secret Restric­tions) to give Way to his better Judgment. And this being premised, we shall now take leave to observe, that as the Consequence of these Things is a Matter of the last Impor­tance, CONSIDERATION becomes highly and immediately necessary,—Is it so then Plain Truth? Is there no Magistrate in the Land that might put them to Shame in any Thing? Yes, we are, if possible, more care­less. And what is the Remedy? An Asso­ciation thoroughly arm'd and disciplin'd, to defend Liberty and Property; and then, we might with more Propriety, humbly ask the [Page 8] Assistance of Heaven. Alas! Gentlemen, the Penetration of Heaven is unspeakable. It requires not the most scrupulous Propriety in this Respect. Those I acknowledge who are over-much sollicitous to square the Arti­cles of their Creed by the Touchstone of Aristotle, may frame their Addresses to Hea­ven according to their own Rules of Me­thod and Propriety: But the honour'd Pro­phet has long since declared, that the Lord seeth not as Man seeth, for Man looketh on the outward Appearance, but the Lord looketh at the Heart. ^* The Prayers of the Heart must therefore be those that are accepta­ble to him. Prayers, that arise from a Sense of the Necessity of the Thing prayed for, and which are the Result of a broken Heart and a contrite Spirit. These, he has often graciously declar'd his Approbation of, without any where prescribing preparatory Steps to be observed on the Part of his Creation (especially since the ushering in of the Gospel-Day) with respect to the accom­plishing or chalking out any of their own Deliverances. Infinite Wisdom and Power, who has reserved to himself the Disposition of human Events, very well knew the Fali­bility and Weakness of human Expedients. And he who has said I am that I am, can require no external Aid to bring about the [Page 9] Purposes of his Providence; and notwith­standing he may sometimes be pleas'd to bless defencible Measures with Success, it does not follow from thence that they are either lawful or necessary; if it did, the same Argument would equally justify every Spe­cies of War; even the most savage and cruel Depredations, seeing such are found frequently to succeed according to very barbarous Contrivances. GOD annul'd Cir­cumcision among the Jews, but nevertheless permitted them to continue in the Use of it afterwards for a Time. So for his own wise Reasons, such Things are doubtless permitted now, tho' directly contrary to the Temper and Spirit of the Gospel of Peace.

Nothing I have hitherto said, I think, can reasonably subject me to any uncharitable Imputations, with respect to those who are in Principle for the Use of defencible Mea­sures, for tho' I think all military Prepara­tions absolutely unlawful to some Christians, those who can neither willfully swallow the Commands of CHRIST, nor make the ami­able Nature and Tendency of the Gospel-Dispensation to subside to any suppos'd worldly Inconveniencies, yet I would not be thought Censorious of those who have, upon mature Consideration, deliberately form'd their Judgment contrary-wise.

[Page 10]And with respect to the ASSOCIATION, I have before had Occasion to mention, thus much I hold myself warranted to say concerning it, That the best Way to render it prosperous and successful is, for every particular Member to endeavour, as much as in them lies, to improve their respective religious and moral Characters: Rectitude of Life, and Contrition of Soul in each Indivi­dual, is the most likely Means to procure the Salvation of the whole.

Arms and Ammunition and a feasible Pos­ture of Defence, have a natural Tendency to buoy up the Mind with a presumptuous Dependency upon them, and, as in the be­fore cited Instance of Laish, to make the People careless and secure: Therefore guard against these Things, ‘He (saith the Pro­verb) that will be his own Councellor shall have a Fool for his Client.’ As you would avoid being Fools, as your Re­putation and every Thing near and dear to you is at Stake, let your Councellor be in Dig­nity suitable to the importance of the Office he is to perform, ever remembring, that except GOD be retained in your Knowledge, you stand but too fair a Chance to be left to your­selves, and then one may venture to tell the Consequence without pretending to a Spirit of Prophecy, the Drums in your Companies will ultimately prove your best resemblance, [Page 11] they make a great Noise, but look into them and behold what is there!

I have a fair Opportunity here to put in a few Words to another Set of Men whom I have several Times remarked, using their Endeavours to find out some colourable Pretext for their dis-union with their Bre­thren the Quakers, in Point of War and Preparations of Defence. One of these in the Pennsylvania Gazette, N ^o 986 gives a large Quotation from R. Barclay's Apology. page 568, 569. and thence deduces a Con­sequence which is in itself ludicrous and unfair, and which, tho' we were to grant every Part of it, proves nothing; the chief Point he aims at, seems to turn upon this Question: Whether Christians may be so far attach'd to the World as to be vindictive of their Rights, Possessions and Dues. I suppose it will not be denyed but the Quakers are born under the same natural Inconveniencies with other People, and have as many na­tural Wants to satisfy, and if so, it clearly follows, they have at least an equal Neces­sity of looking after and vindicating their Rights, Possessions, and Dues. How far they do this, consistent with Christian Perfection, is the next Point to be consider'd: And here we must appeal to the general Practice of the Society ever since its first Establishment, for it is by no Means fair to form a Con­clusion [Page 12] of any People by the particular Behaviour or Practices of a few of their Members: That there may be some such among the Quakers, who are too vindictive of their Rights, Possessions and Dues, may, for aught I know, be true; but that the So­ciety are therewith chargeable, remains a Point to be proved; the Contrary I think is abundantly manifest, their Care of their own Poor, and their full Proportion of those of the Publick, besides their Charity to diffe­rent Societies, and their Universal Benevolence to Mankind, are standing Instances of this.

Another Writer of the same Stamp, who appears in the same Paper N ^o 988 intro­duces his Performance by telling his Rea­ders, That an Insight into the Conduct of Mr. William Edmondson, during the late Trou­bles in Ireland, may further explain the real Sentiments of the Quakers, on the Head of Defensive War: As if the Sentiments of the Quakers were to be explained by the par­ticular Conduct of one of their Members. I have before taken Notice of the Injustice of this Method of Proceeding, and shall now add, that supposing any Thing W. E. either practis'd himself, or has related in his Journal, were inconsistent with the Prin­ciples and Practices of the main Body of the Quakers, Does that justify or even tolerate Dissentions of the same kind? Now several [Page 13] Reasons may be given on Behalf of them Times that are now of no Force.

The People called Quakers in those Days, had not very long been convinc'd of the Truths they now entertain; their Numbers were but small to what they soon afterwards became, and their Discipline was likewise in its Infancy, and yet I see no Jarring, no Inconsistency for all that, even in the Case of W. Edmondson now before us, he appears to have acted upon the same Principle as the present Quakers do in the Magistracy, and the same Arguments will avail for the Practice of both: The People he acted against were Raparees, they were Thieves, a vile licentious Crew, inconsistent with the Peace of civil Society, and a Scandal to human Nature: And if the Magistrate be the Minister of GOD, if he bears not the Sword in vain, it must, if ever, be certainly necessary to use it upon such Extremities as these: but what Relation does this bear to defence from a foreign Invasion? Very little indeed. The Difference between them is manifestly this; The one, to wit, Go­vernment, is ordain'd of GOD, and Magi­strates are said to be his Ministers: But the other, to wit, War, is more or less the Off­spring of Lust. The Magistrate, in the Execution of his Office is to be in all Re­spects upright, to know no Revenge or Lust [Page 14] of any Kind, a thing exceedingly difficult, if not altogether impracticable in the Exe­cution of military Exploits. The one of these GOD has seen meet to ordain for the Benefit of Mankind; but the other forbid­den, to prevent their Destruction.

WAR and its ruinous Effects, is allowed by every body to be one of the most cala­mitous Evils that can befal any People, a general Reformation from it is every where acknowledged a most desireable Thing, and notwithstanding the Work, if ever done, must have a Beginning, and the only Way to make it general, is, to compleat it in the Particular. Yet the People called Quakers are stigmatized and reproached for begin­ning a Work so generally acknowledged glorious in itself, and beneficient in its Ten­dency. To object the Inconvenience the Par­ticulars principled against Wars and Fighting are obnoxious to from the Encroachment [...] an Enemy, is to doubt GOD's over-ru­ling Providence: One would think the in­nate Goodness, and excellent Tendency of the Work, exclusive of the Command to perform it, is sufficient to inspire all that are rightly concern'd, with an humble Con­fidence in GOD's Protection, and more especially when to these salutary Views are added, a conscientious observance of the divine Command.

[Page 15]I had like to forgot to have taken some further Notice of this last-mentioned Wri­ter in the News-Paper, who (as I have shewn) begins his officious Performance with an unfair Supposition, but which is not much to be wondered at, for, from the pertinent Animadversions he afterwards makes, we may easily take the Dimensions of his Upper-Works, and from thence shall be enabled to form a suitable Idea of the real Cause of such a mouthful of Moon­shine; the pert, important Air he assumes, puts me in Mind of a Saying I have some­where met with, That ‘In the Kingdom of the Blind, he that has but one Eye is a Prince.’ If my Author can find any Thing couch'd under this old Theorem worth his Acceptance, 'tis at his Service, and before I part with him, I would just put him in Mind, that one of the Six Things, which the wise Author of the Pro­verbs says the Lord hates, is Him that sow­eth Discord among Brethren, ch. vi. ver. 19.

I shall now take my leave of my Rea­der, recommending to his Consideration, the following elegant and significant Passages from the sacred Records.