APPENDIX NO. 3: FROM THE MONTHLY MEETING OF FRIENDS, CALLED BY SOME, THE
FREE QUAKERS, HELD AT ADJOURNMENT, ON THE 9TH DAY OF THE 7TH MONTH, 1781
Charles Wetherill
Wetherill, Charles. History of The Religious Society of Friends Called
by Some The Free Quakers, in the City of Philadelphia. Philadelphia:
Printed for the Society, Number 3 of an edition limited to 800 copies,
signed by Charles Wetherill.]
This Document is on The
Quaker Writings Home Page.
TO THOSE OF OUR BRETHREN WHO HAVE DISOWNED US:--
Brethren:--Among the very great number of persons whom you have
disowned for matters religious and civil, a number have felt a necessity
of uniting together for the discharge of those religious duties which we
undoubtedly owe to God and to one another. We have accordingly met, and
having seriously considered our situation, agreed to establish and endeavor
to support, on the ancient and sure foundation, meetings for public worship,
and meetings for conducting our religious affairs. And we rejoice in a
firm hope, that as we humble ourselves before God, his presence will be
found in them, and his blessing descend and rest upon them.
As you have by your proceedings against, separated yourselves from,
us and declared that you have no unity with us, you have compelled us,
however unwillingly, to become separate from you. And we are free to declare
to you and the world, that we are not desirous of having any mistake which
we happen to make laid to your charge; neither are we willing to have any
of your errors brought as guilt against us. To avoid these, seeing that
you have made the separation, we submit to have a plain line of distinction
made between us and you. But there are some points which seem to require
a comparison of sentiments between you and us, and some kind of decision
to be made upon them. The property of that Society of which we and you
were once joint members, is far from being inconsiderable, and we have
done nothing which can afford even a pretension of our having forfeited
our right therein.
Whether you have or have not a right to declare to the world your sentiments
of the conduct of any individual; or whether you have or have not a right
to sit in judgment over and pass sentence upon your Christian brethren
differing in sentiment from you, although educated among you, are not questions
now to be considered: but you having taken upon you to do those things,
it remains only to be enquired, what are the consequences in law and equity
of your having so done. Surely you will not pretend that our right is destroyed
by those acts of yours. But we suggest to your consideration, Whether your
conduct has or has not disqualified you to hold any part of that property?
A serious and full consideration, of this question, and the critical and
strikingly singular situation in which you stand, cannot injure you; but
it may, possibly, induce you to consider, with the more candour and readiness,
what equity requires to be done by you toward us, or by us toward you;
and tend to a decision the most proper between brethren differing in sentiment
one from another concerning their respective rights to property, yet each
believing in him whose precept leads us, "to do unto others as we would
they should do unto us."
Whatever may have been the consequences to yourselves, either of your
conduct toward us as friends to the present revolution; or of your conduct
in other cases, less immediately respecting us, it seems to be unquestionably
certain, that we have not done anything which can possibly forfeit our
right. And we see no reason why we should surrender it up to you; but think
it a duty incumbent on us to assert our claim.
As a place for holding our meetings for worship and meetings for business
relative to the Society, is become necessary for us, since you have separated
yourselves from us, by testifying against us, and thereby rendering it
highly improper for us to appear among you, as one people, at your meetings;
we think it proper for us to use, apart from you, one of the houses built
by Friends in this city for those purposes. We are desirous of doing this
in the most decent and unexceptionable manner, and we are willing to hear
anything which you may choose to say on the subject. And therefore we thus
invite you to the opportunity of doing it, and of shewing what degree of
kindness and brotherly love toward us, still remains among you. We also
mean to use the burial ground, whenever the occasion shall require it.
For, however, the living may contend, surely the dead may lie peaceably
together.
Lest any may infer too much from this representation, we think it proper
explicitly to declare, that should our right to the property in question
be found, in the law, to be superior to yours, from any consideration whatever,
it is far, very far from our wish to seclude you from a joint participation
with us in the use of it. Neither do we mean to solicit a decision in law,
unless you by your conduct compel us to it.
We sincerely and earnestly desire to have this subject amicably, equitably
and speedily adjusted, and request that this free communication of our
sentiments may be made known to all who are usually consulted on business
among you, and that, for this purpose, it may be read when you next meet
together on religious business.
As Christians, labouring in some degree to forgive injuries, we salute
you, and though rejected by you, we are your friends and brethren. Signed
in and on behalf of the said Meeting, by,
SAMUEL WETHERILL, JR., Clerk.
The foregoing is copied from the original which was presented to Philadelphia
Monthly Meeting. The following is endorsed on the back, in a handwriting
evidently contemporaneous with the transaction.
The printed copy of a paper presented to the Monthly Meeting of Friends
of Philadelphia, on the 27th of the 7th month, 1781, by Timothy Matlack,
attended by Moses Bartram and White Matlack, the said T. M. saying "that
they were appointed by a Monthly Meeting of "Friends, by some called the
Free
Quakers, to deliver the same, and desired it might be read," and giving
it to the Clerk it was laid on the table; upon which the said Timothy and
his companions withdrew. Our meeting proceeded on our usual business, and
at the close of it a Committee of five were appointed to inspect the Contents
of the said paper, and Report their Judgment to a future meeting of the
propriety of reading it in our meeting, who knowing that a paper of the
like kind had been the same week delivered in the like manner to the Monthly
Meetings for the northern and southern districts, and that a committee
was appointed by each of those meetings also to consider the propriety
of reading the same in those meetings: The three Committees in a few days
met together and on comparing the several papers found they were exact
copies of each other, and after deliberation on the contents, which were
new and extraordinary, manifesting a disposition for Contest,
and to give
Friends trouble, it was advisable to call together a great number of Friends
selected from each of the Monthly Meetings, in order for further consultatoi
on the subject, and that unanimity might prevail in our conclusion, who
accordingly met, when the papers were again read, and after a full communication
of sentiments the following report was agreed to be verbally delivered
to eahc of our succeeding Monthly Meetings--viz. "We have considered the
contents of the papers presented to our last meeting by Timothy Matlack
and othersm and are of the judgment that it is improper to be read in the
meeting, of which we think the parties concerned will have grounds to be
convinced on a cool and dispassionate reconsideration of the nature and
tendency of the requisition they make."
Which report being accordinglymade to each of our Monthly Meetings
in the eighth month and approved, it was agreed that the Clerk of each
meeting should give the same verbally as the answer of the meeting to Timothy
Matlack or eithr of the persons who attended with him if they should apply,or
in case of an application to any other Friend, by any of the said persons,
they should be referred for an answer to the Clerk of each meeting respectively,
which was done accordingly by the said Clerks respectively to the said
T.M.