$30 Defects of the Church Government of the Quakers: [‘May-t, 
secret mectings, than the journeymen 
taylors in London know respecting the 
discussions in the cabinet council, 
The business of the “select meetings” 
is never made the subject of conversation 
by the members, except amongst them- 
selves. In public meetings of discipline, 
to which all members are admitted, I am 
well informed, questions are not decided 
by the majority, but, in general, the re- 
commendation of a few “ weighty friends” 
members of the select meeting, will 
silence all opposition. They are, in fact, 
the’ selfappointed rulers of the society. 
The motive of preference in the elec- 
tion of the members of the select mcet- 
ings, to fill up vacancies, is not known; 
but must of course vary in some degree, 
#ccording to the temper and character of 
the electors. In general, judging from 
_the choice made, we may infer, that the 
member must be a weighty fricnd; 
which.implies, that he must have much 
solemnity of manner, and an obsequious 
deference to the opinions of the ministers 
and elders; he must not have a cape to 
his coat, his pockets must be inward, and 
if they be thought weighty too, it is so 
much the better, It were, however, 
Injustice to assert, that more regard is 
had to wealth than vprightness of cha- 
Yacter, jn the appointment. He must 
‘not be known to have committed any 
gross act of immorality; and he must be 
‘vepular in his attendance on meetings of 
‘worship on week days. Such are the 
real rulers and legislators of the society, 
they are in fact a close corporation or 
ehapter electing their own members. 
Every unprejudiced mind, who contem- 
plates the exclusive spirit of such asystem, 
will not be surprised to learn that the 
members’ of this select religious corpo- 
ration are jealous of their own power, 
alarmed at a spirit of free inquiry, and 
hostile to the progress of knowledge. 
Like the superiors of all other close 
corporations, they are generally the most 
ignorant and prejudiced part of their 
own community. 
Persons not acquainted with the so- 
eiety, suppose that the ministers are self- 
appointed, or have no other call to the 
office, except a real or imagined call of 
the Spirit. When a member has, or 
supposes he has, such a call, he is fora 
time permitted to obey it ; but he never 
becomes an acknowledged minister, 
until he has received a notice from the 
select meeting, appointing him a member 
of their body, or signifying their appro- 
tation of his nynistry. Should he per- 
sist in preaching, after they have desired 
him to be-silent, he would be publicly 
admonished; however desirous ‘the ma- 
jority’ of the society at large’might be, 
that he should “ exercise his gift.” , 
Tt cannot be doubted, that a myste- 
rious exclusive system, which operates 
without any known or definite law, has 
a tendency in every religious society, to 
destroy openness and sincerity of cha- 
racter, and substitute a servile obse- 
quious deference to the members -ex- 
ercising this undefined priestly authority 
thus producing at artful, evasive, cunning, 
habit, in the members at large, 
It would bea great improvement in the 
church government of the quakers, if the 
members of their select meetings, or in 
other words their elders, or rulers, were 
chosen every year by ballot in their pub- 
lic “meetings. for discipline,’ every 
member of a certain age, and of irres 
proachable character, having a vote. 
The effect of such a change would soon 
be perceptible, it would infuse new life 
and spirit through the whole; sincerity 
would take place of formality, and a 
more direct, mere manly, and generous, 
tone of feeling, would characterise both 
the individual. members and the society 
as a public body. If such a change were 
to take place, the more enlightened mem- 
bers would no longer have to deplore in- 
stances of ignorance and bigotry, which 
would disgrace the darkest periods of 
papal superstition, The following cir- 
cumstance was communicated to me by 
a highly respectable member of the so- 
ciety. It occurred whilst he was at the 
place, and from it we may infer that the 
American Friends have need of the same 
reformation in their church government, 
as the Friends in England, An ap- 
proved female preacher, and very amia- 
ble woman, was reading the Scriptures 
with her husband, who was also a 
preacher, and both of them members of 
one of the select meetings in the United 
States, The part which engaged their 
attention was the book of Jonah: the hus- 
band expressed his astonishment at the 
‘extraordinary deliverance of the prophet ; 
when his wife unfortunately said, she 
had always considered the swallowing of 
Jonah by the whale, as a figurative ex- 
pression, implying that he had been 
thrown into deep distress for his disobe- 
dience, and afterwards relieved from it 
by divine appointment. An opinion so 
reasonable, and so modestly expressed, 
if it did not excite approbation, might 
have been expected to escape ae 
suc 
