USA > New Jersey > Burlington County > Burlington > History of the church in Burlington, New Jersey : comprising the facts and incidents of nearly two hundred years, from original, contemporaneous sources > Part 5
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"Dear Sir ! I long to have a letter from you to know of your welfare, and other good news you have to impart to me, and what hopes you can give us, of having good ministers sent over to these parts, which are so greatly wanted and desired ; and if they come not timely, the whole country will be overrun with Presbyterians, Anabaptists, and Quakerism ; the Quaker Mis- sionaries do mightily swarm out of old England into these parts, and have proselited many ; many in Long Island are Quakers or Quakerly affected.
" You see, Dear Sir, what a long letter I have writ to you, I question not your acceptance of it. It's but a summary of affairs here, but I keep a punctual Journal of all things worthy my notice in my Travells.
" I have written the more at length to you, hoping, Dear Sir, and desiring that you would be pleased to impart either the whole or what part of it you think requisite to my Lord of London, and my Lord of Worcester, and to your Honourable Corporation. We intend about two weeks hence to set forward to Maryland and Virginia. I have had a very kind letter from his Excellency, Governor Nicholson, inviting us to Vir- ginia, but before we go hence, I purpose to have a Publick meeting in this place to detect the Quakers errors out of their own Books, after the method I used at Turner's Hall, in Lon- don. All course of Justice against Criminals is at a stop here, so that the Criminal Court can do nothing against murtherers ; the Quakers throw the whole Burden of Jurymen upon the Churchmen, so that a great List of Churchmen have been sum- moned , such as have appeared (some formerly Keithians) men of good sense and repute have refused to swear, not that they think it unlawfull, but that there is no law in the Province, that
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enjoins swearing in any case, and severall persons have lain long here in Prison, some on suspected murther, and can have no trial, and are said to be in great want of Bread. Colonel Quarry I suppose will give my Lord of London or yourself, some more full information. This is one instance of many of the great Deficiency of Quaker Government. I send you here- with a small specimen of my printed Labors here away. My sermon I preached at Boston soon after my arrival, was sent to you soon after it was printed, but it hath not come to your Hands. I send you this one ; the single sheet called a Refuta- tion, &c., I lately printed at New York. Mr. Increase Mather has printed against the six rules in my Sermon, and I have my answer in the press at New York, in vindication of them ; when it is done, I shall order some copies to be sent to you, all which I hope will be acceptable to you and the clergy.
"I remain your affectionate, " Humble servant, "GEORGE KEITH."
PETITION FROM CHURCHMEN OF BURLINGTON, THAT MR. TAL- BOT MAY SETTLE WITH THEM. " BURLINGTON in W. N. Jersey 2 Ap1 1704 " Right Honorable,
" Wee think it our duty by this opportunity of our worthy friend the Reverend M' George Keith to acquaint your Lordships with our concerns here. And first we desire to adore the good- ness of God for moving the hearts of the Lords Spirituall nobles & gentry to enter into a society for propagating the Gospell in Foreign parts, the benefit of which we have already experienced & hope further to enjoy. The Reverend Mr Keith on his first arrivall appointed a time & place to read out of the Quakers authors their grosse errors but they refused to hear him & con- tinue to revile & reproach him for exposing them, but we of the church of England members have a great value for him for his good instructions & great Pains amongst us to confirm us in the true orthodox doctrine, & hath also brought over sundry of his former friends Quakers who are now joined with us. These encouragements caused us sometime since to joyn in a subscrip-
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tion to build a church here, which tho' not as yett near finished have heard many good sermons in it from the Reverend MT Keith & the Revª Mr Jnº Talbot whom next to Mr Keith we have a very great esteem for, & do in all humility beseech your Lordships he may receive orders from you to settle with ust & indeed he is generally so respected by us that we should esteem it a great happiness to enjoy him, and we have great hopes God Almighty will make him very Instrumentall not only to confirm and build us up in the true orthodox doctrine, but also to bring many over from the Quakers, he being so very well qualifyed as we presume thereto. Our circumstances att present are so that we cannot without the assistance of your Lordships maintain a minister, tho' we are in hopes as Quakerism decreases our church members will encrease so that in time we may be enabled to allow a Reverend Minister such a competency as to have a com- fortable subsistence amongst us : we conclude with our prayers to the Almighty that he will please to shower down his blessings upon your Lordships as a reward for your great charity & care for the good of souls, which will ever oblige Right Honble
"your Lordships most humble " & dutifull servants
" NATH : WESTLAND HUGH HUDDY ROBERT WHEELER
W BUDD WM FISHER JOHN WARD
WM BUSTILL JOHN LAMELL EDMP SHEART
ABRAHAM HEWLINGS WY MARTINEAU
EP BERRY
JACOB PERKINS
GEORGE WILLIS JOHN ROGERS
THO : PEACHEE JOHN JEWELL."
A DOOR OPEN TO THE GOSPEL.
Mr. Talbot to the Secretary. " Philadelphia, 7th April, 1704. " WORTHY SIR :
" Mr. Keith has fought the good fight, finished his race, bravely defended the Faith, done the Church of Christ true and laudable service, which I trust will be regarded here and rewarded hereafter. I may say he has done more for the Church
+ Mr. Keith, the bearer of this Petition, thus speaks of its answer, "Some time ago, the Right Reverend Henry, Lord Bishop of London, has writ to him [Mr. Talbot] to fix at Burlington, to be Minister of the Church there, where there is now a large Congregation."
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than any, yea than all that have been before him. He came out worthy of his mission and of the Gospell of Christ. Taking nothing of the Heathen that he came to proselyte ; besides his ordinary or rather extraordinary travels, his preaching excellent sermons upon all occasions, his disputes with all sorts of Heathens and Hereticks, (who superabound in these parts ;- Africa has not more monsters than America.) He has written or printed ten or a dozen Books and Sermons, much at his own charge, and distributed them freely ; which are all excellent in their kind, and have done good service all along shore. Now, since friends must part, I pray God, shew some token upon him for good, that he may arrive safe in England where he would be, that all his adversaries may see it, and be ashamed of their impious omens, &c. I have one prayer more to God for the sake of his Church in the deserts, viz: That the Reverend and Honorable Corporation may find one amongst the thousands of the Reverend and Learned Clergy of England, worthy, honest, and willing to succeed, that the People of the Lord may not be scattered abroad in the wilderness like sheep without a Shep- hard. Nova Cesarea or New Jersey has been most unhappy ; there is not, nor ever was, an orthodox minister settled amongst them. But there is one Mr. Alexander Innes a man of great Piety and Probity, who has by his Life and Doctrine preached the Gospell, and rightly and duly adminis- tered the Holy Sacraments. We hope he will find favour with the Noble Corporation because he is worthy, and has need of it ; as the people have need of him and are not so able or willing as we could wish to support the ministry ;- 'tis pity those hands should be put to dig that are fitt to cultivate the vineyard.
" If I had an Estate I could not have laid it out better than in the service of God, apud Americanos along with Mr. Keith, who is a true son of the Church of England, sound in Faith & holy in Life whom I love & reverence as my Father & Master, & shall be as Loath to part with him as if he were so indeed. Therefore I am the more obliged to the Reverend and Honor- able Society for their generous allowance to me, that I might not be burdensome to him nor to others, but beneficial to all as
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far as we could goe. God be praised a Door is opened to the Gospel and the true light shines to them in the Wilderness, but there are many adversaries ; and now our Champion is gone, we must make a running fight out by God's blessing and his books. I shall do my best. I mean to gather up the arrows that he has shot so well at the mark, and throw them again where there is most need.
" Your most humble " And obedient servant, " JOHN TALBOT." THE PARTING OF KEITH AND TALBOT.
" April 23, Sunday, 1704. I preached at Annapolis in Mary- land, Col. Seamour Governour of Maryland, being present, who very kindly entertained us at his House both then and at other times, during our Abode there, as we waited for Passage down Maryland-Bay to James-River in Virginia. Mr. Talbot accom- panied me from Philadelphia to Annapolis in Maryland, where with true Love and Affection, we did take our Farewell of one another, and he returned to serve God and his Church, as formerly, especially in Pensilvania, West and East-Jersey, where he was like to have the greatest Service and Success." Keith's Journal.
"TOUCH AND GO, FROM PLACE TO PLACE." Mr. Talbot to Mr. Keith. "N. York, October 20th, 1705.
"REVEREND SIR :
"We received advice from Barbadoes that your Fleet was arrived,t a confirmation of which we shall be glad to have from yourself. We the clergy in these Provinces, Pensilvania, N. Jersey, and N. York, being convened here by the directions of my Lord Cornbury and his Excellency Governour Nicholson, to make a representation of the present state of affairs of the Church, which we have drawn up, in a scheme, and transmitted
+ "The 14th of August, I came to my Family in London, safe and well, not- withstanding of the false Prophecy of some of the Quakers, That I should never see England any more, after my Departure out of it, in April, 1702." Keith's Journal.
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to your venerable Society signed by the twelve apostles, } I mean to do in this Letter as I do in my Travels, touch and go from place to place, and tell you such things as I thought not so proper for the Public view. I got some hundreds of Fr. Buggs Books printed, which I had endorsed with a challenge and so was bound to answer it; but I could not provoke the friends to it by no means. No they say, as they used to do, that they will answer in print. Then I offered to take the two Almanacks by Dan. Leeds and Caleb Pusey and prove them by Friends Books. I challenged ye latter at ye head of his Regiment to come forth and see himself proved a Lyar, in ye very same book and page where he most impudently charges G. K. D. L. and ye eight ministers of your Church of England. But all I could get of them at present was this sorry paper, "False News from Gath," which I intend to answer with " true news to Gath," Ashdod and the rest of the uncircumcised, unbaptized Philistines ; at length I appointed a meeting at Church, whether they would come or no, and there I exposed their errors before all men, women and children that were there; but none answered a word, though several Quakers were there, whilst I, Mr. Sharpe and Mr. Nichols examined ye " Bomb," and D. L. Almanack by their books, and proved ye quotations true. I have hired a chamber at Burlington, where I keep the present collection of friends books ; several of them came to me there and were satis-
fied, but some desired me to set down my quotations book and page, which I promised to do at my leisure, particularly to one of their friends of ye ministry whom I believe will come off. I have forgot his name, he lives near Peter Chamberlain's in Pensilvania. Mr. Sharpe was very jealous to bring ye Quakers to stand a tryal ; he carried one of ye Bombs into their meeting, and read a new challenge which I sent them, to answer what they had printed; but all in vain. Sam. Jennings stood up and said, 'Friends let's call upon God;' then they went to. Prayer and so their meeting broke up. Since, I have read
+ There are now Thirteen Ministers in the Northern Parts of America, all placed within these two Years last past, and generally Supported and Main- tained by the Honourable Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts. Keith's Journal.
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several scandalous Letters from several Quakers, whereby I see they are preparing War against me; one was from W. Bake- shaw, the same villain that pulled ye paper out of your hand last yearly meeting at Philadelphia. He said there was not a word of truth in the Bomb, and he would answer it but none appeared. Mr. Nichol, Mr. Sharp and I preached in our turns, proper sermons to warn ye people of their errors, and heresies ; so we kept up ye Christian yearly meeting so happily begun by you at Philadelphia. Mr. Nichols gives his service to you, he is indeed an ingenious man, and will prove in all appearance an able hand against Quakerism. I have promised to set him up with friends, goods, &c. ; we mean to go down to Chester and give him a broad side there if the Governour will give us leave. They are all out at Philadelphia as much about Government as. ever they were about religion. There is Charter against Com- mission and Major against Governour. They have 2 sheriffs,. Captain Fenny appointed by Governor Evans, and young John. Budd by ye Major. Now the Governour proclaimed their pro- ceedings null and void, but G. Jones told him it was not he nor his, neither that should take away their Charter; so much for State affairs, you may hear all perhaps one of these days in Westminster Hall, meanwhile here's a Government divided against itself; God preserve his Church and let them that have the watch look out. There is a new meeting house built for Andrews, and almost finished since you came away, which I am afraid will draw away great part of the Church, if there be not ye greatest care taken of it; Mr. Rudman serves there some times, but chiefly at the Country Church (in Oxford near Frank- fort) with good success ; but he has met with some disturbance- from Edward Eaton, who has been very pevish and scandalous in words and writings, for which he was presented to ye Grand Jury, but it was hard to persuade them to find the Bill; but what will come of it I know not.
" Mr. Sharp and I have gone the rounds several times from: Burlington to Amboy, to Hopwell, to Elizabeth Town, to Staten Island in our turns, with good success, God be blessed, in all places. He has gathered a Church himself at Cheesquaks, where he preached several times, and baptized about forty per-
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sons. Now I am alone, for my Lord Cornbury has preferred him to be Chaplain of Her Majesty's Fort and Forces at N. York. I saw his Commission signed this day in ye room of Mr. Mott who dyed about 3 months ago. I was loth to part with my good friend and companion in travel, but considering how he had been disappointed at home, I would not hinder his preferment abroad, hoping that the good providence of God and ye venerable Society will supply his place.
" The Assembly sat at Burlington in September, but did nothing that my Lord desired them, so he dissolved them and called another there in October. Now I hear that Mr. Wheeler our good friend is chosen instead of Thomas Gardener. It seems their interest goes down thereabouts. Sam. Jennings complains that a man can't turn friend of truth now but he is ridiculed out of it. I hope the venerable Society will take Mr. Bradford's case into their consideration. It has cost me Ten pounds and more out of my Pocket to print some small books to give away, where I could not stay that the Church might be served and the Printer employed, without setting forth those that are erroneous. I know you will not forget ye Reverend Mr. James, who has been so zealous for ye service of ye Church, since you put him upon it. I count him as my father now you are gone, and indeed our Convocation had been at a Loss for a. Foreman had not he supplied the place by his gravity and wisdom. I have drawn another Bill upon Mr. Hodges, not knowing when I should have so good opportunity ; besides I have been at more than ordinary charge for horses and cloaths, for I never received any from England since I came out of it. As for that parcel that my Friend Mr. Gillingham sent by Capt. Innifer, I can't hear what is become of it. My horse you know dyed at Burlington and ye Quakers recorded it as a judg- ment upon me. Ben. Wheat set it down in his Almanack, such a day of y 1st month, John Talbot's horse dyed, and Barnet Lane haled him into the river. But I was more sorry for the mare that you were so kind to give me, for she dyed before I came over the Bay in Maryland. I hope ye venerable Society will see good to take you into their number, for it may be of use to them to have one there that has been here. I hope the
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Letter will come safe to your hand by Mr. Robert Owen minis- ter of a church in Maryland who is a very honest Gentleman. And indeed so are all the Missionarys in general, especially the English one Mr. More, the only countryman we have amongst us, a man according to my own heart, I'm sorry he's to go so far off as ye Mohocks, God knows whether we shall see him again. I had ye same call and had gone to the same place, but when I saw so many people of my own nation and tongue, I soon resolved by God's grace to seek them in ye first place, and if we could not recover those that were fallen, yet by God's help we may keep them out of ye pit of Quakers and Hereticks who have denyed ye Faith and are worse than Indians and Heathens who never knew it.
" As for a Suffragan we are all sensible of ye want we have of one, and pray God send us a man of peace, for otherwise he will do more harm than good, as proud, ambitious, covetous men used to do, troubling the State and perplexing the Church, and then they run away, and leave all in the lurch. I saw our honored friend, Coll. Nicholson, last month at Burlington, where he staid a week or ten days. I was obliged to him every way, particularly for his friendly advice in a case that was diffi- cult to me at that time, but I shall not mention names because I am resolved, by God's grace, to take heed what I say of any man, whether good or bad.
"Coll. Nicholson took Bills of Mr. Bass for the money in hand, £70, Pensylvania money, and gave it all to the Churches in these Provinces, with Bills of Exchange to make it up &100 sterling, besides what he subscribed to the Churches to be erected at Hopewell, Elizabeth Town, Amboy and Salem. We have made it appear that he has exhibited to the Churches in these Provinces about £1000; besides, what he has given to particular persons and the poor would amount to some hundreds more, which we did not think fit to mention. He is a man of as much prudence, temperance, justice, and fortitude as any Governor in America, without disparagement to any, and of much more zeal for the house and service of God. I have seen four of them together at Church in Burlington, but in the after- noon their place had been empty had it not been for the Honor-
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able Governor Nicholson; so that I can't but observe the example of his piety in the Church, is as rare as his bounty towards it; no wonder then that all that love the Church of England are fond of Governor Nicholson, who is a true son, or rather a nursing father, of her in America. I hope you will do him all the service you can at home whereby you will oblige all the Churches abroad.
" Mr. Urquhart is well chosen for the people of Jamaica, and indeed I think none fitter than the Scotch Episcopal to deal with Whigs and Fanaticks of all sorts. Had not Stuttart been allowed to preach he had brought them all to the Church almost by this time; but now they resort most to a barn that is hard by, and will not pay Mr. Urquhart what is allowed by Law, though my Lord Cornbury has given his orders for it. Mr. John Lillingston designs, it seems, to go for England next year; he seems to be the fittest person that America affords for the office of a suffragan, and several persons, both of the Laity and Clergy, have wished he were the man; and if my Lord of London thought fit to authorize him, several of the Clergy both of this Province and of Maryland have said they would pay their tenths unto him, as my Lord of London's Vicegerent, whereby the Bishop of America might have as honorable provision as some in Europe. Ah, Mr. Keith, I have wanted you but once, that is ever since you went. I pray God supply your place with such another, who will pass through all Governments serving the Church, without giving offence unto the State. I hope, good Sir, you will excuse this long Letter. I had not time to write a short one ; therefore, amicitia nostra, I desire that you would take all in good part that comes from
" Your most faithful friend " And humble servant, " JOHN TALBOT."
WILLIAM BUDD AND OTHERS.
" At Burlington in West-Jersey, there is now a settled Con- gregation, with a fixed Minister, to wit, the Reverend Mr. John Talbot, my Fellow Labourer, where there is a large Congrega- tion, and a considerable Number of Communicants, many of them having been formerly Quakers, and Quakerly affected, or
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such as were of no particular denomination. And such of them as had not been Baptized in Infancy, have received Baptism, partly by Mr. Evans, & partly by Mr. Talbot, & some of them by me. Mr. Talbot has Baptized most of them who have been Baptized, since our Arrival among them, and particularly all the Children, both Males and Females, of William Budd, who formerly was a Quaker-Preacher, but is come over from Quakerism, to the Church, with diverse others of the Neigh- bourhood, in the Country about the Town of Burlington, who come usually to the Church at Burlington on the Lord's-Day ; some of them, Six, Eight, and some of them Ten, or Twelve Miles, and some of them more." Keith's Journal.
THE CLERGY MEET AT BURLINGTON.
The Clergy of New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, met in Burlington, Nov. 2d, 1705, when the following Address was drawn up, signed, and sent under cover to the Lord Bishop of London :
" To the Most Reverend Fathers in God the Lord Abps., the Right Reverend the Bishops, and others Right Honourable Members of the Society Erected for Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts.
" Your Missionaries being convened at Burlington esteem themselves in duty bound to lay before the Most Reverend, the Right Reverend & Right Honorable Members of the Society, what we conceive to be necessary, with God's blessing on our Labours, to promote the ends of our Mission. The presence and assistance of a Suffragan Bishop is most needful to ordain such persons as are fit to be called to serve in the sacred Minis- try of the Church. We have been deprived of the advantages that might have been received of some Presbyterian & Indepen- dent Ministers that formerly were, and of others that are still willing to conform & receive the Holy Character, for want of a Bishop to give. The Baptized want to be confirmed. Their presence is necessary in the Councils of these Provinces to pre- vent the inconveniences which the Church labors under by the Influences which Seditious Men's Counsels have upon the public administration & the oppositions which they make to the good inclinations of well affected people. He is wanted not only to
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govern and direct us, but to Cover us from the Malignant Effects of those misrepresentations that have been made by some persons impower'd to admonish and inform against us, who indeed want admonition themselves. It is our humble desire that the Custom of the Romans of not Condemning Men before they be heard may be of Force with the Most Reverend, the Right Reverend & Right Hon'ble Members of the Society, for we find to our Grief that those Characters given of us by those persons have made sad impressions on your minds, as have in some measure lessened our reputation, which is dearer to us than all Your En- couragements which we have received by Your Bounty. And it is our humble prayer that no Credit hereafter be given by the Society to any Complaints against us but such as are under the hands of three of the Clergy. The Provinces of New York, the Jerseys and Pennsylvania consist of People of several Nations, & have Preachers among them that speak to them in their own Tongues. The Dutch and the French being of the Presbiterian Perswasion And the former generally tainted with Republican Principles, it is humbly proposed that there be no preacher per- mitted to preach among them but in the English Tongue, or at least of Episcopal Ordination, that can preach both in English & in their own Tongues, Nor any schoolmasters to Teach any Vulgar Language, but the English, without a particular license from the Governor, till God bless us with a Bishop. This last Expedient is thought by the Governor to be a likely means of uniting the Country both in their religious and Civil interests -and humbly beg Your Benediction &. Prayers, and crave leave to subscribe ourselves, as we are,
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