USA > Massachusetts > Nantucket County > The history of Nantucket County, island, and town : including genealogies of first settlers > Part 61
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At this time a friend was convinc'd whose name was Star- buck, ** who became very serviceable, and lived and died an emi-
*Chalkley's Journal, pp. 19-20. Acushnet is meant.
fIt is a bit uncertain who is meant, as the Town was governed by 2 board of seven Trustees. From his statement regarding disputing with your friends in Barbadoes" it is likely that Stephen Hussey was the man as he had been at the Barbadoes.
#This part of his Journal must have been written some years later ** Doubtless Mary Starbuck, wife of Nathaniel.
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ment minister of Christ, on that Island. Sev'ral scores of them came and accompanied us to the water-side; and when we embark'd on board our sloop, they desir'd that I would come and visit them again. So I recommended them to the grace of our Lord Jesus, and we parted in great love and tenderness."
Chalkley again visited Nantucket in the Spring or, Summer of 1704. Of this visit he says in his Journal: "There are large meetings, people there being mostly Friends, and a sober growing people in the best things; tho' not of our society, when they first received the truth, yet they receiv'd it with gladness; and altho' divers of the people, call'd presbyterians were very cruel in their expressions, and bitter in their spirits against us, yet there were some who went under that name, who were more open and charit- able towards us and received us gladly with tenderness; and in some places we had meetings at their houses to our mutual sat- isfaction.'
The next Friend of whose visit to Nantucket we have any ac- count, was John Richardson, an Englishman, who visited the Is- land in 1701. Concerning his experiences his Journal says: * "Now I leave the Account of my Travels in those Parts, f and enter upon my second, with my honest Companion James Bates, who was born in Virginia and travelled much with me through many Provinces, and some Islands; we had good Service together, and it was much with me, when on Rhode Island, to visit Nantucket, where there were but very few Friends: Peleg Slocum, an honest public Friend near Rhode Island, intended to carry us in his Sloop to the said Island that Night; and Peleg thought we had been close in with our desired landing Place, but we fell short, and Night coming on, and having but one small Cannoe to help us ashore, which would carry but three People at once, we went ashore at twice, and left the Sloop at an Anchor; ; and it being grown dark, we thought we were going up into the Island among the Inhabitants, but soon found that we were upon a Beach of Sand and Rubbish, where was neither Grass nor Tree neither could we find the Sloop that Night, though we sought it carefully, and hollowed one to another till we were weary, so that we were forced to settle upon our little Island, from the Center of which, one might cast a Stone into the Sea on every Side; here we staid that Night, not knowing but the Sea, when at the Height, would have swept us all away, but it did not; there I walked and sometimes sat, until Morning, but slept none; at last the Morning came, and the Mist went away, and we got on Board again, and reached the Island about the ninth or tenth Hour.
The Master was willing at our request to land three of us, (i. e.) me, my Companion, and Susanna Freborn, a public Friend, who had a Concern upon her Mind for some Time, (as she signified to Friends in Rhode Island where she lived) to visit the few Friends in Nantucket, and Friends thought this a proper Season to pay that Visit. She was a Woman well beloved, and in good Unity with Friends.
We landed safe, and as we went up an Ascent, we saw a great many People looking towards the Sea, for great Fear had possessed them that our Sloop was a French Sloop loaded with Men and Arms, who were coming to invade the Island; ** I held out my Arms and
* Page 84.
¡Rhode Island. .
¿It looks very much as though the island was Muskeget.
** France and England were at war and French privateers were off the coast.
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told them, I knew not of any worse arms than these on board. They said, they were glad it was no worse, for they had intended to have alarmed the Island, it being a time of War; I told the good like People, for so they appeared to me that Peleg Slocum, near Rhode Island, was Master of the Sloop, and that we came to visit them in the Love of God, if they would be willing to let us have some Meetings amongst them. They behaved themselves very courteously towards us and said they thought we might.
We then enquired for Nathaniel Starbuck who we understood was in some degree convinced of the Truth, and having Directions to his House, we went thither, and I told him, We made bold to come to his House, and if he was free to receive us, we would stay' a little with him, but if not, we would go elsewhere: for we heard he was a seeking religious Man, and such chiefly we were come to visit: He said, we were very welcome. And by this time came in his Mother,Mary Starbuck, who the Islanders esteemed as a Judge among them, for little of Moment was done without her, as I un- derstood.
At the first Sight of her it sprang in my Heart, To this Woman is the everlasting Love of God. I looked upon her as a Woman. that bore some Sway in the Island, and so I said, and that truly, we are come in the Love of God to visit you, if you are willing to let us have some Meetings among you: She said she thought we might; and withal said, there was a Non-conformist Minister who was to have a Meeting, and they were going to it, and she thought it would be the best way for us to go with them to the Meeting. I showed my Dislike to that for these Reasons: first, we did not want to hear what that Minister had to say, because some of us had tried them before we came there, (meaning the Non-conformists of several sorts) and if we should go, and could not be clear without speaking something in the Meeting he might take it ill; but as we understand there is another Meeting appointed at the second Hour for the same. Man, therefore, as the present Constitution of Things are, we look upon ourselves to stand upon an equal Ground in a religious Capacity with other Dissenters; and if we should appoint our Meeting at the same Hour, then the People will be left to their Choice to which Meeting they will go .* The great Woman approved of the Proposal, and said, indeed that was the best Way. The next Consideration was, where shall the Meeting be? She paused awhile, and then said, I think at our House. I from thence gathered she had a. Husband, for I thought the Word our carried in it some Power besides. her own, and I presently found he was with us; and he ap- peared not a Man of mean Parts, but she so far exceeded him in soundness of Judgment, clearness of Understanding, and an elegant way of expressing herself, and that not in an affected Strain, but very natural to her, that it tended to lessen the Qualifications of her Husband.
The Meeting being agreed on, and Care taken as to the Appoint- ment of it, we parted, and I lay down to try if I could get any Sleep, for I have shewed before what sort of a Night the last was with us; but Sleep vanished away from me, and I got up and walked to and fro in the Woods until the Meeting was mostly gathered. I was under a very great Load in my Spirit, but the Occasion of it was hid from, me, but I saw it my place to go to Meeting, the Order of which was such, in all the Parts thereof, I had not seen the like before; the large and bright rubbed Room was set with suitable Seats or Chairs, the Glass Windows taken out of the Frames, and many Chairs placed without very conveniently, so that I did not see any- thing a wanting, according to the Place, but something to stand on,
*Evidently Mr. Richardson did not desire to appear as a disturber.
1
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for I was not free to set my Feet upon the fine Cane Chair, lest I should break it.
I am the more particular in this exact and exemplary Order than in some other Things, for the Seats both, within and without Doors were so placed, that the Faces of the People were towards the Seats where the public Friends sat, and when so set, they did not look or gaze in our Faces, as some I think are too apt to do, which in my Thoughts bespeaks an unconcerned Mind; The Meeting being thus gathered and set down in the orderly and ample manner, (although there were but very few bearing our Name in it) it was not long before the mighty Power of the Lord began to work, and in it my Companion especially did appear in Testimony in. the fore Part thereof; and while he was speaking, a Priest (not him before touch'd on, but another,) flung out some Reflections upon him, and the People for his sake, which I did not see the least Occasion for; * after which he went away, (but more of this in the Sequel. )
I sat a considerable Time in the Meeting before I could see my Way clear to say anything, until the Lord's heavenly Power raised me, and set me upon my Feet as if one had lifted me up, and what I had first in Commission to speak, was in the Words of Christ to Nicodemus, viz. Except a Man be born again he cannot see the Kingdom of God; with these Words, Nay, the natural and unregenerate Man cannot so much as see the heavenly and spiritual Kingdom of Christ, which stands not only in Power, but also in Righteousness, Joy and Peace in the Holy Spirit; and to be born again, was not to be done unperceivably, no more than the natural Birth could be brought forth without Trouble; and to pretend to be in Christ and not to be new Creatures, is preposterous; and to pre- tend to be new Creatures, and yet not able to render any Account how it was performed, was unreasonable; for it could not be, as I urged before, without our knowledge; for to be born again signi- fied to be quickened and raised into a spiritual and new Life, by which the Body of the Sins of the Flesh is mortified, and we come to live a self-denying Life: Those who are crucified with Christ, they are crucified to their Sins, that as he died for Sin, we might die to Sin; In this State we live not after the Flesh, although we live (as the Apostle said) in the Flesh; but the Life which these' live, is through Faith in the Son of God; And to all this, and much more wrought in us, and we know nothing of it is unreasonable.
As I was thus opened, and delivering these Things, with much more than I can remember, the great Woman I felt, for most of an Hour together, fought and strove against the Testimony, sometimes looking up in my Face with a pale, and then with a more ruddy Complexion; but the Strength of the Truth increased, and the Lord's mighty Power began to shake the People within and without Doors; but she who was looked upon as a Deborah; by these People, was loth to lose her outside Religion, or the Appear- ance thereof; When she could no longer contain, she submitted to the Power of Truth and the Doctrines thereof, and lifted up her Voice and wept: Oh! then the universal Cry and Brokenness of Heart and Tears was wonderful! From this Time I do not re- member one Word that I spoke in Testimony, it was enough that I could keep upon the true Bottom, and not be carried away with the Stream above my Measure.
*The charge of interference with religious service certainly can- not be maintained against the Friends on this occasion. Richardson declined to attend the other meeting lest he should feel it his duty to speak but the minister who attended Richardson's service was offen- sive in that way.
+Mary Starbuck.
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I might add much more concerning this Day's Work, but I in- tend not to say anything to the Praise of the creature, but to the Renown of the mighty Name of the Lord of Hosts, and let all Flesh lie as in the Dust forever; for while I continued speaking in this State as before-mentioned, and thus swallowed up in the internal Presence of Christ, where there was not want of Power, Wisdom nor Utterance, I spoke but a Sentence and Stopt, and so on for some Time: I have since thought of John's being in the Spirit on the Lord's Day. If it had been a State to have been continued in, I ani of the mind, I should not have been sensible of Weariness, neither of Hunger. or Pain. This is a Mystery to many, yet these are faith- ful and true Sayings, thou mayest read that canst; but there are none that can know the white Stone and new Name, but they who have it; there are none who stand upon Mount Sion with Harps of God in their Hands, but only such as have come through great Trib- ulations and have washed their Garments and made them white in the Blood of the Lamb; to these are the Seals of the Book of the Mysteries of the glorious Kingdom opened; these are called out of Nations, Kindred, Tongues and People; these are redeemed out of the fallen and earthly State of old Adam, into the living, heavenly and spiritual State in Christ the second Adam; these cry holy; the other part of the Children of Men cry unholy, because they are not willing to cast down their Crowns at the Feet or Appearance of Christ in their own Souls; altho' such, with the four Beasts may cry come and see yet are they not properly qualified to worship the Lord God and the Lamb before his Throne, as the four and twenty Elders did, and as all do, and will do who worship God in his holy Temple in Spirit and in Truth, according to his own Appointment; who are not tied up to the Canons, Creeds, Systems and Dictates of Men, much of which is beaten out of the Wisdom, Parts, and nat- ural Comprehension of earthly fallen Man.
I return from this, which may seem a mysterious Digression, to the other Part of what did happen concerning the Meeting, and come now to the breaking up thereof; and as extreme Heats oft end in extreme Cold, and as great Heights frequently center (as to Man in this Capacity) in great Depths, and great Plenty in great Poverty, which I have often seen to be good in order to keep the Creature low, in Fear, and in a Dependence upon the Lord, I soon fell into such a Condition that I was like to die away; and when it was so, I with my Companion made a Motion to break up the Meet- ing, but could not do so for some time, for they sat weeping univer- sally: then I told the Meeting, especially such as were near me, that if I should faint away. I would not have them to be surprized at it; for I was much concerned lest that I should hurt these ten- der People; my Life was not dear to me in comparison of the Worth of the Souls of the Children of Men; but all this did not break up the Meeting; But after some time Mary Starbuck stood up, and held out her Hand, and spoke tremblingly and said, All, that ever we have been building, and all that ever we have done is all pulled down this Day, and this is the overwhelming Truth; or very near these Words. Then she arose, and I observed that she, and as many as could well be seen, were wet with Tears from their Faces to the fore-skirts of their Garments, and the Floor was as though there has been a Shower of Rain upon it; but Mary, that worthy Woman said to me, when a little come to consider the poor State that I was in, Dear Child, what shall I do for you? I said, a little would do for me; if thou canst get me something to drink that is not strong but rather warm, it may do well: So she did, and I went unto her Son's, where my Cloaths were, that I might shift me, for I felt Sweat in my Shoes as I walked.
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I mention this partly for the sakes of such of my Brethren, who may at any time be in the like Case, to take care to keep out of the Cold, and beware of drinking that which is cold, neither is Brandy good, for it feeds too much upon the weakened Vitals; but in all Things endeavour to possess your Vessels in Sanctification and Honour; And as it is not in Man's Power to make the Vessel clean nor prepare it, therefore if the Lord doth (with thy Obedi- ence through the Work of his Grace and Holy Spirit) fit thy Ves- sel for his Work and Service, take this Caution; see that thou neither destroy, defile, nor hurt the same. But it may be, some or other have done all these, some one way and some another.
I remember Peleg Slocum (before mentioned) said after this Meeting, that the like he was never at; for he thought the Inhabi- tants of the Island were shaken, and most of the People convinced of the Truth; However, a great Convincement there was that Day, Mary Starbuck was one of the Number, and in a short time after received a public Testimony, as did also her Son Nathaniel.
After I was somewhat revived, my Companion having a Mind to speak to the Priest to know why he did so reflect on him, de- sired me to go with him, which I did with several more, and com- ing to his Door where he was set upon a Bench, James Bates asked him why he did so reflect? He replied, he was in a Passion, and had nothing against him; then James forgave him, and they fell into some Debate concerning Faith; my Friend urged the Apostle James's Words, which are these, As the Body is dead without the Spirit, so is Faith without Works. The Priest said, Dead Faith was nothing, and that it had no Being in the World. I thought he appeared to be in the Craft; and after they had tugged at it awhile, I said, I found something in my mind to mind to interpose, if they would hear me; they both showed a Willingness to hear what I had to say, and then I asked, what Belief or Faith that was the Devils had? for I did not understand, but that although they believed there was a God, they remained Devils still; there- fore the Word dead is a proper Word, and properly adapted to that which any may call Faith and is not operative, but a Notion that' may be received by Education, by bearing or reading, and not that Faith which works by Love, and overcomes the World; and be- cause of its not working, being inactive and useless, is fitly called dead: What dost thou say to that? He said, I was too great a Scholar for him. I replied, there was no great Scholarship in that. He then invited me to stay all Night, and said I should be as wel- come as his own Children, and he and I would dispute about that between ourselves. I declined it and shewed these Reasons for so doing: If he declined the Debate publicly, I would not debate it privately, for then these Neighbours of his would want the Ben- efit of it; and so we parted, with my saying, as it immediately sprang up in my Heart, Thou hast been a Man in thy young years that the Lord has been near, and favoured with many Openings, and if thou hadst been faithful to the Gift of God thou mightest has been serviceable, but thou has been unfaithful, and a Cloud has come over thee, and thou art laid aside as useless.
I was altogether a Stranger to the State of the Priest, nor had I heard anything of him, nor indeed of the State of the Inhabitants of the Island, but what I heard after mostly from Mary Starbuck; for as we walked from the Priest's House towards our Quarters, she said, Everything she now met with, did confirm her in the Truth; for she knew this was the State of the Priest, as I had said, she being acquainted with him in his best State, and then he had fine Openings, and a living Ministry among them, but of late a Cloud was come over him, and, as I said, he was laid by and
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useless. She also put me in mind of something I had said in the Meeting about Election, which as near as I can remember was thus; Ihad endeavoured to make one in the Election, and one born again much the same; for I had laid waste all claim to Election without being born again; for as Christ was the Chosen or Elect of God, who never fell, could such as were in the Fall be the Branches of Christ, the pure heavenly Vine? Or such as were found in the impure State, and in the Degeneracy, by reason of Sin and wicked Works? Or would Christ be married to a People, and be- come as their Husband, who were in an unconverted State? Could this be the true Church of Christ? Could this be the Lamb's Bride, who had departed from this Spirit, and was in the Pollu- tions of the World through Lust, and running after the Pleasures and Fineries of the World, depending on Ceremonies, and out- side Things and Elements, which appear not to be essential to our Salvation, neither do we find Life in them? I was of the Apostle's Mind that neither Circumcision nor Uncircumcision avail- eth anything, but a new Creature: And what Man in the World can say, that Water (although he may have been baptized or dipped into the same) had converted him or changed his State from a natural .to a spiritual, or from a dead to a living State in Christ? Or, who that have gone through the most celebrated Ceremonies (as some may account them) had thereby got Dominion over Sin and Satan ?
Having thus treated of Things, or to this purpose, among them I said to Mary, that she warred and strove against the Tes- timony for a. Time: And as near as I remember, she said their Principle was. That such as believed in Christ, were always in him; and whom he had once loved he loved to the End; And it' was a Distinction they had given to their Church, to be called Elec- tarians; and as I said, or near it, she had no mind to be pulled out of her strong Hold. But when she saw the Glory of Christ, and the true Church, as the Queen of the South saw Solomon's and the Glory of his House; and as she had her Questions and Doubts answered, she had no more Spirit in her, or Doubts or Questions, but openly owned, This is the Truth, this is the Glory I have heard so much of: That Spirit of doubting and questioning was swal- lowed up now by her hearing and beholding for herself this great- er than Solomon, his Wisdom and Glory, and the great House that she had built (the Servants, the Attendance, and excellent Order, with the Ascent unto the House of God, which were all wonder- ful in Solomon's House, carried in them a lively Resemblance of Christ, his Power, Glory, and Wisdom) as also that Order and Mean which is seen among his faithful Servants, his Church and People, even such as our spiritual Solomon rules in and over by his Spirit and Power. Here is Solomon, or Man of Peace, elsewhere called the Prince of Peace; and as Solomon ruled in Jerusalem, formerly called Salem, or City of Peace, and indeed over all Ju- dah, and over all his Tribes, so doth Christ in his Kingdom every- where upon the Face of the whole Earth. Learn this, see and know in and for thyself, that thou art truly transplanted out of the Kingdom of Death and Darkness into the Kingdom of Christ, which is a Kingdom of Power, Life, Light, Peace and Joy in the holy Ghost. I was much bowed down in my Spirit, and in Weakness. Fasting, and in much Fear; for the more that Truth appears, the more it brings the Creature into Self-abasement."
Richardson immediately after departed for Lynn.
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The next public Friend to visit Nantucket, of whom there is any detailed account, was Thomas Story, in 1704 .* His story as he tells it in his autobiography is as follows:t "Before I proceed, I think proper, first to give a general Relation of the State of the People in the Island of Nantucket, (where I went next after this) with Respect to Religion at this Time. This small Island lies about 20 Leagues from the main Land of New England,¿ inhabited by a mixed People of various Notions, and some among them called Christian Indians, but no settled Teachers of any kind: And as poor Hirelings search all Corners for settled Maintenance, several such, from time to time had made their Attempts upon this People on that Account, but were disappointed; for there was in this Is- land one Nathaniel Starbuck, whose Wife was a wise discreet Woman, well read in the Scriptures, and not attached unto any Sect, but in great Reputation throughout the Island for her Knowledge in Matters of Religion, and an Oracle among them on that Account, insomuch that they would not to anyThing with- out her Advice and Consent therein: So that when at any Time such Hirelings came to preach among them, and attempted to have a settled Maintenance, she always opposed it with solid Argu- ments, as being contrary to the Practice of the Apostles
and Primitives, and the Nature of the Maintenance of a Gospel Minis- try; ** but would consent so far, as when any Preachers came among them that they liked, and staid some Time and took Pains among them, every Family might give unto such what they pleased, for the Help of themselves and their Families, if they had any, as Indian Corn (Maze) or other Grain, Meat, Flesh, Fish, or such other Provisions as they happened to have at the Time to spare; and Wool &c for Cloathing, but nothing certain or settled : For Ministers of CHRIST ought to travel abroad in the World in that Calling, and not to sit down in one Place, unless they have Families to take Care of, and cannot leave them.
And some Time before this, John Kinsey, one of our Ministers from Philadelphia, had been to visit them with good Acceptance, tt and had good service for Truth among them; and had been in- strumental in the Hand of the Lord, to beget a good liking in them to the Way of Truth, but received nothing from any of them (for that is not our Way) on account of his Ministry: And I finding a like Concern at this Time, and accompanied by several Friends of both Sexes, we on the 13th Day of the Fifth Month, about the tenth Hour in the Morning, set sail for the said Island in a Shallop belonging to our Friend Peleg Slocumb, ¿¿ before men- tioned; which, under divine Providence, he himself chiefly conducted, and landed there the next Morning about Six.
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