‘An act for preventing mischiefs and dangers that may arise by certain persons called Quakers, and others refusing to take lawful oaths.
‘Whereas of late times, certain persons under the name of Quakers, and other names of separation, have taken up, and maintained sundry dangerous opinions and tenets, and among others, that the taking of an oath, in any case whatsoever, although before a lawful magistrate, is altogether unlawful, and contrary to the word of God; and the said persons do daily refuse to take an oath, though lawfully tendered, whereby it often happens, that the truth is wholly suppressed, and the administration of justice much obstructed: and whereas the said persons, under a pretence of religious worship, do often assemble themselves in great numbers in several parts of this realm, to the great endangering of the public peace and safety, and to the terror of the people, by maintaining a secret and strict correspondence amongst themselves, and in the meantime separating and dividing themselves from the rest of his majesty’s good and loyal subjects, and from the public congregations, and usual places of divine worship:
II. ‘For the redressing therefore, and better preventing the many mischiefs and dangers that do, and may arise by such dangerous tenets, and such unlawful assemblies, (2) Be it enacted by the king’s most excellent majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the lords spiritual and temporal, and commons assembled in parliament, and by authority of the same, that if any person or persons, who maintain that the taking of an oath, in any case soever, (although before a lawful magistrate,) is altogether unlawful, and contrary to the word of God, from and after the four-and-twentieth day of March, in this present year of our Lord, one thousand six hundred and sixty-one, shall wilfully and obstinately refuse to take an oath, where, by the laws of the realm he or she is, or shall be bound to take the same, being lawfully tendered, (3) or shall endeavour to persuade any other person, to whom any such oath shall in like manner be duly and lawfully tendered, to refuse and forbear the taking of the same, (4) or shall by printing, writing, or otherwise go about to maintain and defend that the taking of an oath in any case whatsoever, is altogether unlawful; (5) and if the said persons, commonly called Quakers, shall at any time after the said four-and-twentieth day of March, depart from the places of their several habitations, and assemble themselves to the number of five or more, of the age of sixteen years or upwards, at any one time, in any place under pretence of joining in a religious worship, not authorized by the laws of this realm, (6) that then in all and every such cases, the party so offending, being thereof lawfully convicted, by verdict of twelve men, or by his own confession, or by the notorious evidence of the fact, shall lose and forfeit to the king’s majesty, his heirs and successors, for the first offence, such sum as shall be imposed upon him or her, not exceeding five pounds; (7) and if any person or persons, being once convicted of any such offence, shall again offend therein, and shall in form aforesaid be thereof lawfully convicted, shall for the second offence forfeit to the king, our sovereign lord, his heirs and successors, such sum as shall be imposed upon him or her, not exceeding ten pounds: (8) the said respective penalties to be levied by distress, and sale of the party’s goods so convicted, by warrant of the parties before whom they shall be so convicted, rendering the overplus to the owners, if any be: (9) and for want of such distress, or non-payment of the said penalty within one week after such conviction, that then the said parties so convicted shall for the first offence be committed to the common jail, or house of correction, for the space of three months; and for the second offence during six months, without bail or mainprize, there to be kept to hard labour: (10) which said moneys so to be levied, shall be paid to such person or persons, as shall be appointed by those before whom they shall be convicted, to be employed for the increase of the stock of the house of correction, to which they shall be committed, and providing materials to set them on work: (11) and if any person after he, in form aforesaid, hath been twice convicted, of any the said offences shall offend the third time, and be thereof, in form aforesaid, lawfully convicted, that then every person so offending, and convicted, shall for his or her third offence, abjure the realm; or otherwise it shall and may be lawful to, and for his majesty, his heirs and successors, to give order, and to cause him, her, or them, to be transported in any ship or ships, to any of his majesty’s plantations beyond the seas.
III. ‘And it is ordained and enacted by the authority aforesaid, that all and every justice of Oyer and Terminer, justices of assize, and jail-delivery, and the justices of the peace, shall have full power and authority, in every of their open and general quarter-sessions, to inquire, hear, and determine all and every the said offences, within the limits of their commission to them directed, and to make process for the execution of the same, as they may do against any person being indicted before them of trespass, or lawfully convicted thereof.
IV. ‘And be it also enacted, that it shall and may be lawful to, and for any justice of peace, mayor, or other chief officer, of any corporation, within their several jurisdictions, to commit to the common jail, or bind over, with sufficient sureties to the quarter-sessions, any person or persons offending in the premises, in order to his or their conviction aforesaid.
V. ‘Provided always, and be it hereby further enacted, that if any of the said persons shall, after such conviction as aforesaid, take such oath or oaths, for which he or she stands committed, and also give security that he or she shall for the time to come forbear to meet in any such unlawful assembly as aforesaid, that then, and from thenceforth, such person and persons shall be discharged from all the penalties aforesaid: any thing in this act to the contrary notwithstanding.
VI. ‘Provided always, and be it ordained and enacted by the authority aforesaid, that all and singular lords of the parliament, for every third offence committed against the tenor of this act, shall be tried by their peers, and not otherwise.’
This act caused E. Burrough to write a small book, called, ‘The Case of the People called Quakers, stated, to show the falsehood of the accusations charged upon them.’ First he showed in this treatise, that suppose the Quakers were heretics and erroneous people, which was never yet proved; yet we found no examples in Scripture that such should be imprisoned, or afflicted with corporal punishments. Having treated of this matter at large, he laid down the state of their way of meeting and worship, appealing to others on this account, with these words:
‘What judgment do our neighbours give in this case? They say, concerning our meetings, that they have known us to meet together in such manner, for divers years, in towns and villages, and never knew, nor understood of any harm or danger therein, nor ever were any way prejudiced, either in their persons or estates, in our meetings. The very witness of God in all our neighbours does testify, and give judgment, that our meetings have always been peaceable and quiet, and that we come together in peace and good order, and part in the same, and no person hath been harmed by such our meetings; inquire of the neighbourhood, and they will tell you they believe in their consciences, our meetings are for good, and have good effects, and are not evil, nor bring forth any evil, to any.