second appearing of Christ was at hand, and that the Church was rising in her full and transcendant glory, which would effect the final downfall of Antichrist.

From Bolton they removed to Manchester, and lived, for a number of years, in Canon-street, with John Townley, who was by trade a brick-layer, and possessed considerable property. Here the number of persons which were formed into a society, were about thirty.

James and Jane Wardley, as well as most of the society, were in low temporal circumstances; but as John Townley was wealthy, he contributed liberally to the support of such of the society as were necdy; on which account he sustained much injury in his property, by persecutors.The meetings of the society were held both at Manchester and Bolton, (which were twelve miles apart,) but more generally at Manchester.

VII. John Townley had a measure of faith in the testimony of James Wardley; his wife was a member of the society, and had great power of God, and the gift of prophecy.-John Hocknell was her natural brother; he lived in Cheshire, twenty-four miles from Manchester.-According to the account of his daughter, Mary Hocknell, now living at WaterVliet, he, having separated from the Church of England, had joined the Methodist society, and had stated meetings at his house; till visiting the society at Manchester several times, and afterwards being visited by James Wardley, about the year 1766, he received faith in his testimony. And be ing very zealous for the cause, and a wealthy man, a number of poor members of the society, were gathered and supported at his house, which, at first, displeased Hannah his wife, and her natural relations, (the Dickins family,) who were wealthy and high spirited people; whereupon three of her brothers, with the assistance of a magistrate, had John put into prison at Middlewich, four miles from his own house, He was tried and released, and soon after, Hannah became a member of the society, and continued through all the increase of the work, till she departed this life (in America) sound in the faith.

VIII. About this time, [1766,] and onward, the Believers frequently held meetings at John Partington's, in Mayor-town, as they passed and re-passed from Manchester to John Hocknell's. The manner of public devotion practised by the so

ciety, while under the ministry of James Wardley, was, in divers operations of the spirit and power of God, according as they were moved from time to time.

Sometimes, after assembling together, and sitting a while in silent meditation, they were taken with a mighty trembling, under which they would express the indignation of God against all sin. At other times they were affected, under the power of God, with a mighty shaking; and were occasionally exercised in singing, shouting, or walking the floor, under the influence of spiritual signs, shoving each other about, or swiftly passing and repassing each other, like clouds agitated by a mighty wind. From these strange exercises, the people received the name of Shakers, and by some, were called Shaking Quakers: but from the time of James Wardley's ministration to the present day, they have been, most generally, known and distinguished by the name of Shakers.

XI. The work which God promised to accomplish in the latter day, was eminently marked out by the Prophets, to be a work of Shaking; and hence, the name (though by the world intended for derision) was very properly applied to the people, who were both the subjects and instruments of the work of God in the latter day.

Thus the Lord promised, that he would shake the earth with terror. (Lowth's translation of Isai. ii. 19, 21.)—That, in that day, there should be a great shaking in the land of Israel. (Ezek. xxxviii. 19, 20.) That he would shake the heavens and the earth. (Isai. xiii. 13. Joel, iii. 16. Hag. ii. 6, 7, 21.) That he would shake all nations, and that the Desire of all nations should come. And according to the apostle, (Heb. xii. 26.) That yet once more, he would shake not the earth only, but also heaven ;-signifying the removing of things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. All which, particularly, alluded to the latter day, and now, in reality, began to be fulfilled; of which, the name itself was a striking evidence, and much more the nature and operations of the work.

The effects of Christ's first appearing, were far from fulfilling those promises in their full extent: for in reality, that heaven which was to be shaken, had not yet been built; neither was the appearing of Christ, in the form of a man, so properly the Desire of all nations. But as his second appearing was to be manifested in that particular object,

(namely woman,) which is eminently the Desire of all nations; therefore it was, that the present work of God began in shaking, both as a preparatory, and an increasing work, for the full and final manifestation of Christ. And this particular operation was a significant token, that God was about to shake, to the foundation, and utterly ruin all their corrupt systems, and their false notions of the work of God, and of the use and end of his creatures,

X. These various operations continued, with a gradual increase of light and power, until about the year 1770, when the present testimony of salvation and eternal life was fully opened, according to the special gift and revelation of God, through ANNE LEE, that extraordinary woman, concerning whom, so many strange things have been conjectured; and who, at that time, was received by the society as their spiritnal Mother of whom it may be sufficient, here, to state the following particulars.

According to her natural genealogy, she was of the English nation; born about the year 1736, in the town of Manchester, where she was also brought up. Her natural father, John Lee, lived in Toad-lane, in Manchester, and was a blacksmith by trade, with whom she lived, until she embarked for America. By occupation, she was a cutter of hatter's fur. She had five natural brothers, viz. Joseph, James, Daniel, William and George, and two sisters, Mary and Nancy.

From her childhood, she had great light and conviction of the sinfulness and depravity of human nature, which she often made known to her parents, entreating that counsel and protection, by which she might be preserved from sin. But not having attained that knowledge of God which she early desired, nor having any to strengthen and protect her in the pursuit of that true holiness which she sought after, she grew up in the same fallen nature with the rest of mankind, and was married and had four children, who all died in infancy. Her husband, Abraham Standley, was also a black-smith by trade, and lived with her at her father's house, while she res mained in England.

XI. About the year 1758, she became a subject of the work that was under the ministration of James and Jane Wardley, and joined herself to that society of people, who then were

called Shakers.

The people of the society were known to be a people of

the most blameless deportment, remarkable for the clearness of their testimony against sin, the strictness of their moral discipline, and the innocence and purity of their lives and manners. As their light extended to the confession of every known sin, and to the taking up of a cross against every thing which they knew to be evil, hence they were endowed with great power, by which ANNE found that protection, which, for the time then present, was answerable to her faith; and in all things she conformed to the rules of discipline in the society, and was baptized into the same spirit ; and by her perfect obedience to all that she was taught, she attained to the full knowledge and experience of those who stood in the foremost light.

As the only distinction among the members of the society, was formed according to the different degrees of spiritual light and power known and felt in each, respectively, and as it was the faith of the society not to rest short of complete salvation from all sin; therefore, those who received the greatest light and power of God, were acknowledged as the lead; that is, the greatest light of God, in whomsoever it was made manifest, was acknowledged and followed, as the lead, without respect to persons.

XII. When, therefore, ANNE, by her perfect obedience, had attained to all that was made manifest in the leading characters of the society, and still finding in herself the seed or remains of human depravity, and a lack of the divine nature, which is eternal life abiding in the soul, she did not rest satisfied in that state, but laboured in continual watchings and fastings, and in tears and incessant cries to God, day and night, for deliverance. And under the most severe tribulation, and violent temptations, as great as she was able to resist and endure, such was, frequently, her extreme agony of soul, that, clinching her hands together, the blood would flow through the pores of her skin.

By such deep mortification and suffering, her flesh wasted away, and she became like a skeleton, wholly incapable of helping herself, and was fed and nourished like an infant, although, naturally, free from bodily infirmities, and a person of a strong and sound constitution, and invincible fortitude of mind.

XIII. In this manner she was more or less exercised in soul and body for about the term of nine years, during which period,

the way of God, and the nature of his work, were gradually opened from one thing to another, and the light and understanding which she received, was gradually communicated to the society, until she received that manifestation of God by which the man of sin was revealed, and through which she discovered the transgression of the first woman—the root and foundation cause of human depravity, whence all mankind were lost and separated from God; and by special and immediate revelation, she received the Testimony of God against the whole corruption of man, in its root and every branch; which is, properly, The Testimony against the flesh; or The Testimony against all sin.

Her testimony was in the power of God, attended with the word of prophecy, and such energy of the Spirit, as penetrated into the secrets of the heart, and was irresistable, especially in those with whom she was united.

And from the light and power of God which attended her ministry, and the certain power of salvation transmitted to those who received her testimony, she was received and acknowledged as the first Mother, or spiritual parent in the line of the female, and the second heir in the covenant of life, according to the present display of the gospel. Hence ainong Believers, she hath been distinguished by no other name or title than that of Mother, from that period to the present day. To such as addressed her with the customary titles used by the world, she would reply, I am Ann the Word ;' signifying that in her dwelt the Word.

XIV. After ANNE was received and acknowledged as the spiritual Mother and leader of the society, the manner of worship and the exercises in their public assemblies were, singing and dancing, shaking and shouting, speaking with new tongues and prophesying, with all those various gifts of the Holy Ghost known in the primitive Church. These gifts progressively increased until the establishment of the Church in America; by which, those who were in the spirit of the work, were convinced, beyond all doubt or controversy, that it was the beginning of Christ's reign upon earth.

The first full and public testimony which was borne by Mother, against the root of human depravity, was about the year 1770. And the convincing power of God which attended it, caused the formal denominations to raise and stir up tumultuous mobs, by whom she was often shamefully, and very cruelly treated; and was a number of times imprisoned.