Wesley Corpus

6. Yet still we spared him, hoping God would give him repentance. But finding, after some weeks, that he continued going from house to house, justifying himself, and condemning my brother and me for misrepresenting him, on Monday, July 22, I rode to Bearfield again, and put myself to the pain of writing down from the mouths of these seven women, as near as I could, in their own words, the accounts which I judged to be most material. I read over to each what I had written, and asked if I had mistaken any thing. Every one answered, No; it was the very truth, as she was to answer it before God. I would now refer it to any impartial judge, whether we have shown too much severity; whether we have not rather leaned to the other extreme, and shown too much lenity to so stubborn an offender. Even when I returned to London soon after, I declined, as much as possible, mentioning any of these things; having still a distant hope, that Almighty Love might at length bring him to true repentance. Some who came up from Lincolnshire in the beginning of August occasioned my writing the following letter :-- * London, August 15, 1751. * Rev. Srr,--l. I take the liberty to inform you, that a poor man, late of your parish, was with me some time since, as were two others a few days ago, who live in or near Wrangle. If what they affirmed was true, you was very nearly concerned in some late transactions there. The short, was this: that a riotous mob, at several times, particularly on the 7th of July, and the 4th of this month, violently assaulted a company of quiet people, struck many of them, beat down others, and dragged some away, whom, after abusing them in various ways, they threw into drains, or other deep waters, to the endangering of their lives. That, not content with this, they broke open a house, dragged a poor man out of bed, and drove him out of the house naked; and also greatly damaged the goods; at the same time threatening to give them all the same o1 worse usage, if they did not desist from that worship of God which thev believed to be right and good.