Letters concerning the English nation Author:Voltaire Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: and faithfully with thee, as thofe that are followers thereof have plainly done' Thy faithful friend and fubjeft, Robert Barclay." A more furprizing circumfta... more »nce is, that this epiftle, written by a private man of no figure, was fo happy in its effects as to put a ftop to the perfecution. LETTER IV, ON THE U A K E ABOUT this time arofe the illuftrious William Pen, who eftablifh'd the power of the Quakers in America, and would have made them appear venerable in the eyes of the Europeans, were it poffible for mankind to refpect virtue, when reveal'd in a ridiculous light. He was the only fon of vice- admiral Pen, favourite to the duke of Tork, afterwards king James the fccond. William Pen, at twenty years of age, happening to meet with a -f .Quaker in Cork, whom he had known at Oxford, this man made a profelyte of him; and William being a fprightly youth, and naturally eloquent, having a winning afpecT:, and a very engaging carriage, he foon gain'd over fome of his intimates. He carried matters fo far, that he formed, by infen- fible degrees, a fociety of young Quakers, who met at his houfe; fo that he was at the head of a feet when a little above twenty. '., . 1666. -)' Thomas Lot. Being return'd, after his leaving Cork, to the vice-admiral his father, inftead of falling upon his knees to afk him bleffmg, he went up to him with his hat on, and faid, Friend, I'm very glad to fee thee in good health. The vice-admiral imagin'd his fon to be crazy ; but foon finding he was turn'd Quaker, he employ'd all the methods that prudence could fuggeft, to engage him to behave and act like other people. The youth made no other anfwer to his father, than by exhorting him to turn Quaker alfo. At laft his father confin'd himfeli to thi...« less