and church." For this purpose the young man had sat in Quaker meetings and studied at Saumur, in France, without being influenced by French Calvanism. It is also evident that in his early experiences he belonged to that class of persons who were then called Seekers, who believed that all forms of Christianity were so corrupted as to be invalid, and that a new revelation must be awaited; for he speaks of his deep sense of the "irreligiousness of the religious," and of his inability to find any "such thing as the primitive spirit and church on the earth."

VII

FIRST IMPRISONMENT AND ROUGHNESS OF ENGLISH

LIFE

BUT after all his studies and experiences, his student life at Oxford, his travels in France and Italy, his investigations of the early fathers under the great professor at Saumur, his intercourse with gay people in Europe, in London, and with the Duke of Ormond in Ireland, his public employment on his father's feudal holding at Kinsale,—after all this, and after doubting whether there was any true or valid church on earth, and after considerable knowledge of Quaker meetings, Penn made the final decision that those Quakers were sufficiently near to primitive Christianity to justify his sacrificing himself in the cause which they had at heart.

He remained in Ireland attending to his father's affairs, making no change in his life or even in his cavalier dress; but he attended the Quaker meetings in Cork. Very soon, as might be expected, he was caught in one of those raids which were constantly made on the Quakers. Several constables, backed by a party of soldiers, entered the meeting where he was, September 3, 1667, and arrested everybody on the old charge of holding a riotous assembly. There is an apocryphal story that a soldier first entered the meeting to disturb it, on which Penn took him by

the collar and would have thrown him down-stairs if some prominent members had not interfered on the plea that such conduct would be inconsistent with the principles of their religion.

But we can safely reject this along with the other tales in the Harvey manuscript. Penn had too much sense to be guilty of such foolishness. He went with the others before the mayor, who, observing his dress, offered to release him on bond for his good behavior. This he refused, and argued with the mayor on the unlawfulness of arresting peaceable people under a statute which was intended only to suppress the Fifth Monarchy murderers. He was

sent to prison, and there addressed an admirable letter to the Earl of Orrery, Lord-President of Munster, asking to be released. He argued with great dignity and spirit on the unlawfulness of his arrest, and the bad policy of such interference with people's religious convictions.

"But I presume, my Lord, the acquaintance you have had with other countries, must needs have furnished you with this infallible observation: that diversities of faith and worship contribute not to the disturbance of any place, where moral uniformity is barely requisite to preserve the peace. It is not long since you were a good solicitor for the liberty I now crave, and concluded no way so effectual to improve or advantage this country, as to dispense with freedom in things relating to conscience; and I suppose were it riotous or tumultuary, as by some vainly imagined, your lordship's inclination, as well as duty, would entertain a very remote opinion. My humble supplication, therefore, to you is, that so malicious and injurious a practice to innocent Englishmen, may not receive any countenance or encouragement from your lordship, for as it is contrary to the practice elsewhere, and a bad argument to invite English hither, so, with submission, will it not resemble that clemency and English spirit, that hath hitherto made you honorable."

It was an excellent letter for a youth of twentythree. But what a scrape he was in! What a talk and scandal there must have been among the grand people of the Duke of Ormond's court at Dublin when it was known that their late companion, young Penn, the son of the admiral, with all his fine clothes on, was caught by the soldiers in a Quaker meeting! It would have been better to have been caught in a brothel or the lowest den of vice.

To save him, if possible, from such associations as he had fallen into, the Earl of Orrery at once released him, and often afterwards Penn was gently handled by the government because he was a cavalier, and cavaliers could not bear to see him degraded.

The admiral began to hear of these things, and ordered his son home. He promptly appeared, and as there was no change in his dress or outward appearance for some time nothing was said. Pepys heard of his return from that voluble gossip "Mrs. Turner.

"At night comes Mrs. Turner to see us; and then among other talk she tells me that Mr William Pen who is lately come over from Ireland is a Quaker again, or some very melancholy thing; that he cares for no company, nor comes into any; which is a pleasant thing after his being abroad so long and his father such a hypocritical rogue and at this time an atheist." (Vol. vii. p. 253.)

Before long, however, the admiral noticed that his son always kept his hat on, at that time a serious disrespect to a parent. An explanation was demanded, and Penn openly declared his principles, and announced that nothing would now restrain him

from remaining a Quaker. Entreaties again proving of no avail, the admiral asked if he would not at least take off his hat in the presence of his father, the king, and the Duke of York.

Such an offer of compromise on the part of the admiral was unusual, and must have been the result of many days' controversy with his son.

Beaten at every point, the distressed father at last pathetically pleaded for the respect due to himself and to the two persons, the king and the Duke of York, on whom the family fortunes depended. He thought he could at least secure this; and, indeed, his unruly young Quaker yielded so far as to say that he would take time to consider.

This infuriated the father, because he thought his son was going off to consult the Quakers. But Penn replied that he would consult with none of them, and before long, after much inward conflict, respectfully told his father that he could not comply with his request.

The admiral was again in a rage, and turned his son out of doors. Penn wandered about, living at the houses of friends and supplied secretly by his mother with money. The admiral, of course, had to relent. He allowed his son to come home to live; but treated him almost as a stranger.

Penn was now to begin his life's work in earnest ; and it may be well to consider what England was at this time, its ideals and its manners. It was very different from the England which we see today on our summer holiday trips across the Atlantic. Instead of the present population of thirty million,