79 In ye euening I walked out a foote to Rob: Withers; & I was
noe sooner gonne butt there came in a company of disguised men
to Tho: Lepers with swords & pistolls; cuttinge & hackeinge amongst
ye people off ye house: & putt out all ye candles,: & ye people
helde vppe ye chaires before y^m to saue ymselues: & after a while
they droue all ye people of ye house out of ye house in ye night
& searched & lookt for mee: whoe was ye person onely they
looked for: & layde waite in ye high ways: w^ch: I shoulde
haue come in if I had ridden to Rob: Withers

And soe when ye meetinge was donne they came in & thought
to haue founde mee in ye house: but ye Ld preuented ym
as abovesd:

And soe when I was come to Rob Withers: some freinds came

                              Tho: Leper

from ye townde where Rob: Withers liued & gaue vs ye rela
tion of this: & they were afraide least they shoulde come to search Rob: Withers house | alsoe for mee to doe mee mischeife but they came not:

And ffreinds perceiued they was some of y^m: french men: Sxx

& S^r Rob: Binleys seruants: for some of y:^m saide in there nation
they vsed to tye ye protestants to trees: & whippe y:^m & destroy
y^m: & these vsed often to abuse freindes in there meetinges &
goeinge from there meetinges: for they tooke Rich: Huberthorne
& seuerall others out of ye meetinge & carryed y^m: a good way
off in ye feildes & there bounde y^m: & left y:^m ʌbounde in ye winter
season * & ʌone of his seruants came to ff. fflemminges house & thrust his naked rapier Into att his doore: & att his
windowes: & there came a Cousen off ff: fflemminges with a cudgell in his hande w^ch was noe freinde: &
hee bid him putt vppe his rapier; but hee woulde not but vapored with it &att him & was rude: & hee vppe with his staffe & knockt

[vertically in margin]

him downe soe as hee made him sprawle one y^e: grounde &
hee tooke his rapier from him; & had it not beene for freindes
hee woulde haue runn him through with it. & soe freindes
preserued his life y^t woulde haue destroyed theres:

[page 93]                                                        I walk-
ed in the Evening to Robert Withers’s again. And no sooner was I
gone, but there came a Company of disguised Men to Thomas Leper’s
with Swords and Pistols; who suddenly entring the House, put out
the Candles, and swung their Swords about amongst the People of the
House; so that the People were fain to hold up the Chairs before
them, to save themselves from being cut and wounded. At length
they drove all the People of the House out of the House, and then
searched the House for me; who, it seems, was the only Person they
looked for: for they had laid wait before in the High-way, by which
I should have gone, if I had ridden to Robert Withers’s. And not
meeting with me on the VVay, they thought to have found me in the
House; but the Lord prevented them. Soon after I was come in at Robert
Withers, some Friends came from the Town, where Thomas Leper lived,
and gave us a Relation of this wicked Attempt: And the Friends were
afraid, lest they should come, and search Robert Withers’s House also for
me, and do me a Mischief: But the Lord restrained them, that they came
no[t] Though these Men were in disguise; yet the Friends perceived some
of them to be French-men, and supposed them to be Servants belong-
ing to one called Sir Robert Bindlas: For some of them had said, that
in their Nation they used to Tye the Protestants to Trees, and whip
them, and destroy them. And his Servants used often to abuse Friends,
both in their Meetings, and going to and from their Meetings. They
once took Richard Hubberthorn and several others out of the Meeting,
and carried them a good way off into the Fields; and there bound
them, and left them bound in the Winter-Season. And at another
Time one of his Servants came to Francis Flemming’s House.** and
thrust his naked Rapier in at the Door and Windows: But there being
at the House a Kinsman of Francis Flemming’s, one who was not a
Friend, he came with a Cudgel in his Hand, and bid the Serving-
man put up his Rapier: which when the other would not, but va-
poured at him with it, and was Rude; he knock’d him down with
his Cudgel, and took his Rapier from him: And had it not been for
Friends, he would have Run him through with it. So the Friends
preserved his Life, that would have destroyed theirs.

And after this I went to see Justice West & Rich. Huberthorne wast
with mee: & wee ridd uppe ye sands where neuer noe man

    before                 not knoweinge y:^e way nor y^e: daunger of y:^e sands

ridde ʌ a very dangerous place: & swimmed ouer ye water ʌ &

came to wests house: & when wee were come in hee saide to
vs did syou not see two men rideinge ouer ye sands I shall

                                  for I am y^e: crowner

haue there cloaths anon ʌ for they ncannott escape drowne=
inge & wee tolde him y^t wee was ye men & hee was astonisht att it

                                            wondred howe wee escaped drowneinge

And then ye preists & professors raised a report with& a slaunder

upon mee

ʌ y^t neither water: coulde drowne mee: nor coulde they draw
bloode of mee: & y^t surely I was a witch:

for when they beate mee with great stafes they did not much drawe
my bloode but bruised my heade & body: & thus ye Lords power
carryed mee ouer there bloody murderous spiritts: in whome ye

From Robert Wither’s I went to visit Justice West, Richard Hub-
berthorn accompanying me. And not knowing the Way, nor the
Danger of the Sands, we Rid, where (as we were afterwards told)
no Man ever rid before; swimming our Horses over a very dangerous
Place. When we were come in, Justice West asked us if we did

[page 94]

not see Two Men riding over the Sands? I shall have their Cloaths anon,
said he, for they cannot escape Drowning; and I am the Coroner.
But when I told him, that we were the Men, he was astonished at
it; and wondred, how we escaped Drowning. Upon this the envi-
ous Priests and Professors raised a slanderous Report concerning me,
That neither Water could drown me, nor could they draw Blood of me;
and that therefore surely I was a Witch (for indeed, sometimes when
they beat me with great Staves, they did not much draw my Blood,
though they bruised my Body oft-times very sorely. )