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lent on interest, as they judged would best secure an interest until the year 1821. He also admits that the said Samuel Middleton continued the treasurer of the said fund until the year 1812, when Joshua W. Satterthwait was appointed by the said Chesterfield Preparative Meeting at Crosswicks, to succeed him, who continued treasurer until Tenth-month, in the year 1816, when this defendant was appointed by said Preparative Meeting to succeed him. This defendant also admits that the loan of two thousand dollars was made to the said Thomas L. Shotwell, and the bond and mortgage given and executed by the said Thomas L. Shotwell as set forth in the said bill of interpleader, but for greater certainty, he begs leave to refer to the said bond and mortgage, which he is ready to produce-and this defendant, in further answering, admits that the association styled or called the Preparative Meeting of the people called Quakers, at Crosswicks, and the Chesterfield Preparative Meeting at Crosswicks, and the Preparative Meeting of Friends at Crosswicks, are one and the same association, and not other or divers, and that the moneys so loaned to the said Thomas L. Shotwell, and secured by said bond and mortgage, was not the proper money of this defendant in his own right, but was part of the permanent fund created as aforesaid, and under the direction of the trustees of the said school, chosen by the said Preparative Meeting, and that the Chesterfield Preparative Meeting at Crosswicks, chose trustees of the said school fund-and this defendant, in further answering, says, that he admits it to be true, that on the 31st day of First-month, 1828, certain persons alleging themselves to be trustees of Friends' school of Chesterfield, established at Crosswicks, made a report to certain persons claiming to be the Chesterfield Preparative Meeting of Friends at Crosswicks, aforesaid, of the tenor and purport set forth in said bill-but this defendant denies that they were really and truly such trustees and such Preparative Meeting as had the lawful control over the said school fund. He denies that they were identified in regular and due succession with the trustees and Preparative Meeting in existence, when the said sum was loaned to the complainant, and the said mortgage given to this defendant, and he denies that they were authorized and entitled to appoint a treasurer to receive said money. This defendant admits that the said Stacy Decou called on this defendant for the books, obligations, papers, and funds in his hands as such treasurer, and that he refused to give them up, and he insists that the said Stacy Decou had not then, and still has not any title to receive the same. And this defendant, in further answering, admits that the said association styling themselves the Preparative Meeting of Friends at Crosswicks, may claim to be at least twothirds of the original subscribers and contributors to the said school fund, and of their lawful representatives, and to be a majority of the regular and lawful members of the Preparative Meeting of the Society of Friends or people called Quakers, at

Crosswicks aforesaid, and to have the control over said fund as stated in said bill, but this defendant denies their pretensions, and insists that they belong to the party commonly called and known by the name of the Hicksite party; that they have seceded from the doctrines, principles, discipline, and government of the ancient and regular Society of Friends, and that as such seceders they are not entitled to appoint a treasurer to the said school fund, or to have the control of the funds thereof, and that the claims of the said Stacy Decou, to be the regular and lawful treasurer of the said fund, and to be entitled to receive the moneys due from the complainant on said mortgage, are entirely unfounded-though this defendant admits that the said Stacy Decou may have demanded the same of the said complainant, and warned him not to pay over the same to this defendant, and alleged that this defendant has no right to receive the same as stated in said bill, yet this defendant has no knowledge thereof, and leaves the same to be proved as this high and honourable court may direct. This defendant admits that the complainant has paid him the interest on the said mortgage accruing up to the 2nd day of Fourth-month, 1827, and he presumes, though he does not know, that the said complainant will be willing to pay the residue when it shall be ascertained by the decree of this court, to whom it ought to be paid. And this defendant admits that the said Stacy Decou claims to be the lawful and regular treasurer of the said school fund, and to be lawfully entitled to the said bond and mortgage, and to receive the money due thereon; but this defendant denies his claims to be just and lawful, and insists that he, this defendant, is the regular and lawful treasurer as aforesaid. He also admits that he has lately filed his bill of complaint in this court, against the said Thomas L. Shotwell and Elizabeth his wife, for the purposes and with the prayer for relief, as in the said bill of interpleader is set forth, and he further admits, that in the charging part of his said bill, he, this defendant, has set forth, charged, and alleged substantially, the matters which he is said in the said bill of interpleader to pretend therein, but for greater certainty, this defendant begs leave to refer to his said original bill for the particulars thereof. And this defendant, in further answering, says, that the religious Society of Friends or people called Quakers, are an ancient and well known sect or body of christians, who date their origin in England in the seventeenth century, under the auspices and influence of George Fox, who is generally considered the founder of this religious society

that the Society of Friends, as a christian sect, hold doctrines in reference to christianity, which, like those of other sects, are in some measure common to all christians, and in other respects peculiar to themselves-in what among Protestants are commonly deemed the great essentials of christianity, the religious sentiments of the Society of Friends, or people called Quakers, are in accordance with the doctrines commonly entertained by the

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other Protestant sects of Christians who arose after the dawn of the great Protestant reformation in Europe-that some of these religious doctrines still are and always have been by the said religious Society of Friends, considered fundamental. And this defendant, in further answering, saith that the said religious Society of Friends are duly organized under a certain regular form of government and rules of discipline, and under and by virtue of which, new members are admitted, and offending members disowned, and individuals, while they continue members of said society, are guided and governed-that in the government of this society they have a Yearly Meeting, so called from the circumstance of its meeting annually at a stated period, which Yearly Meeting forms the tribunal of the last resort, and presides over and ultimately reviews the proceedings of all the other inferior meetings; that the religious meetings of this society are established in a due and regular subordination-the. Preparative Meetings are subordinate to the Monthly Meetings, the Monthly Meetings to the Quarterly Meetings, and the latter are subordinate to the said Yearly Meeting. The great and primary Yearly Meeting of this religious society, in England, where the sect first arose, as above mentioned, was instituted and organized as early as the year 1669, and it has continued down from that time, and is still in full operation. And this defendant, in further answering, saith, that the members of the religious Society of Friends were among the first settlers of this country, and were soon organized here under the same form of government and discipline which had protected and fostered them in England, whence they had emigrated. Their first Yearly Meeting was held at Burlington, in New Jersey, the third First-day of Sixth-month, June, 1681, O. S. for the provinces of Pennsylvania and New Jerseythat in 1685 it was agreed to be held alternately at Burlington and Philadelphia-that in 1755 the time of holding it was changed to Ninth-month, September-that in 1760 it was concluded to be held at the same time at Philadelphia only, and that in 1798, the time of holding it was altered to the third Second-day, or Monday, in Fourth-month, April, at which time, in each and every succeeding year, it has ever since continued to be held, and still is held at the said city of Philadelphia, commencing yearly on the third Monday of April, at the hour of ten in the forenoon. And this defendant, in further answering, saith that there have been for many years past, a Monthly and Preparative Meeting of the said Society of Friends of Chesterfield, in the said county of Burlington, which hold their meetings at the village of Crosswicks, in the said township of Chesterfield, which meetings own in fee simple, real and personal estate, and among the rest a lot of land in the said village of Crosswicks, on which a Friends' Meeting-house has been erected for public worship, all which real and personal estate was held and still is held in trust, for the said religious Society of Friends-that the said meeting at Cross

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wicks is under the control and jurisdiction of the said Yearly Meeting of Philadelphia. And this defendant, in further answering, saith, that there has been for several years past a dispute and controversy in the Society of Friends, which divided them into two parties-the one generally called and known by the name of the Hicksite party, the other by the name of the Orthodox party. The Hicksite party derived their name from Elias Hicks, who is their leader, and first broached among them the peculiar doctrines and tenets by which that party is distinguished, but although that portion of the Society of Friends, who are considered by this defendant as orthodox, on the division and disunion, as aforesaid, were generally called a party, and are generally known by the name of the Orthodox party, and in accordance with this general appellation they are so called by this defendant, in his said original bill, and in this his answer, merely to designate and distinguish them, yet he does not consider them a party, but as composing and being the true Society of Friends, from whom the said Hicksite party have seceded. The said Hicksite party and Orthodox party, differ essentially from each other in religious doctrine; and the Hicksite party have materially departed, as hereinafter shown, from the regular discipline and government of the Society of Friends. And this defendant, in further answering, saith, that the following religious doctrines have always been held and maintained by the Society of Friends, or people commonly called Quakers.

In the first place, although the Society of Friends have seldom made use of the word Trinity, yet they believe in the existence of the Father, the Son, or Word, and the Holy Spirit. That the Son was God, and became flesh-that there is one God and Father, of whom are all things-that there is one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom all things were made, who was glorified with the Father before the world began, who is God over all, blessed for ever— that there is one Holy Spirit, the promise of the Father and the Son, the leader, and sanctifier, and comforter of his people, and that these three are one, the Father, the Word, and the Spirit-that the principal difference between the people called Quakers, and other Protestant Trinitarian sects, in regard to the doctrine of the Trinity, is, that the latter attach the idea of individual personage to the three, as what they consider a fair logical inference from the doctrines expressly laid down in the Holy Scriptures. The people called Quakers, on the other hand, considering it a mystery beyond finite, human conception, take up the doctrine as expressly laid down in the Scripture, and have not considered themselves as warranted in making deductions, however specious.

In the second place, the people called Quakers have always believed in the doctrine of the atonement-that the divine and human nature of Jesus Christ the Saviour were united; that thus united, he suffered, and that through his sufferings, death and resurrec

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tion, he atoned for the sins of men. That the Son of God, in the fulness of time, took flesh, became perfect man, according to the flesh, descended and came of the seed of Abraham and David-that being with God from all eternity, being himself God, and also in time partaking of the nature of man, through him is the goodness and love of God conveyed to mankind, and that by him again man receiveth and partaketh of these mercies--that Christ took upon him the seed of Abraham, and his holy body and blood was an offering and a sacrifice for the sins of the whole world.

In the third place, the people called Quakers believe that the Scriptures are given by inspiration, and when rightly interpreted are unerring guides; and to use the language adopted by them, they are able to make wise unto salvation, through faith which is in Jesus Christ. They believe that the spirit still operates upon the souls of men, and when it does really and truly so operate, it furnishes the primary rule of faith. That the Scriptures proceeding from it, must be secondary in reference to this primary source, whence they proceed; but inasmuch as the dictates of the spirit are always true and uniform, all ideas and views which any person may entertain repugnant to the doctrines of the Scriptures, which are unerring, must proceed from false lights. That such are the doctrines entertained and adopted by the ancient Society of Friends, and that the same doctrines are still entertained by the Orthodox party aforesaid, to which party this defendant belongs. That these doctrines are with the said religious society fundamental, and any individual, entertaining sentiments and opinions contrary to all or any of the above mentioned doctrines, is held not to be in the same faith with the Society of Friends, or people called Quakers, and is treated accordingly.

And this defendant in further answering, saith, that the Hicksite party aforesaid, do not adopt and believe in the above mentioned doctrines, but entertain opinions entirely and absolutely repugnant and contrary thereto. In regard to the first religious doctrine above named, the Hicksite party aforesaid believe that Jesus Christ was a mere man, divinely inspired, partaking more largely of divine inspiration than other men, but that others, by resorting to the same means, and using the same exertions, may receive the same portion or measure of divine inspiration; that Jesus Christ, as well as the apostles and prophets, never has been and never can be set above other men; and though of late the said Hicksite party sometimes ascribe divinity to Jesus Christ, yet they do it only in a figurative sense, from the circumstance of his partaking more largely than other men of divine inspiration-in every other respect they consider him a mere man. They do not believe that he partakes of the divine as well as human nature, that he is one and the same essence with God, with that supreme and omnipotent Being who presides over and governs the universe. In respect to the second religious doctrine above mentioned, the Hicksite party deny the doctrine of the atonement