related what had paffed fince they last met; as what vifitations they had received from God, what temptations from the devil, the flesh, &c. And it is a maxim amongst them that expofing to one another what the devil has particularly tempted them to commit, will make the old fellow more careful how he tempts, when he knows that all his fecrets will be told the next meeting. In the claffes they only confeffed in general terms, that they have been tempted by the world, the flefh and the devil. But in the bands they confeffed the particular fins which they had been tempted to commit, or had actually committed. The last time I met in band was in London, where an old man (near fseventy years of age) informed us that he had for several weeks together laboured under a very grievous temptation of the devil, who all this time had been conftantly tempting him to commit adultery; he farther informed us, that having let too much of his houfe to lodg ers, gers, they were obliged to put the maid's bed in the room where he and his wife flept; and that one morning he had feen the maid lying asleep, nearly or quite uncovered, and he again affured us that ever fince that time the devil had been every day tempting him to do that which was nought with the maid. I could not help thinking the old gentleman was right in charging it on the devil, as there was little reafon to think it was any temptation of the flesh. Permit me to add, that this old buck had a wife about half his own age. I have been informed that fome young men of the brotherhood, have at times disguised themselves in women's clothes, and have fo got into the women's bands; it may be very curious to hear the confeffions of the holy fifters. By this time I fuppofe you have had enough of band-meetings. Mr. Wesley instituted another kind of private meeting for the highest order of his people, called the felect bands; to which none were admitted but fuch as were fanctified, or made G 2 made perfect in love, and freed from all the remains of fin. But as I never profeffed perfection, I was not permitted to enter into this holy of holies. But I have known a great number of these perfect faints, of both fexes; and I alfo lived in the fame houfe a whole year with one of these intire holy fifters. A few days before I came to live in ChifwellStreet, one of these perfect fifters was detected in stealing coals out of the shed of one of the fanctified brothers, but fhe, like the old fellow above mentioned, faid it was the devil that tempted her to do it. Four times every year new tickets are diftributed to all Mr. Wefley's people throughout the three kingdoms. Their ticket is a very small flip of paper, with a text of fcripture on it, which is exchanged every quarter for fome other text. Such as are only in a class, have a different text from such as are in a band, fo that no one can be admitted into a general meeting of the bands, appointed by any of the preachers when he intends to give them an exhortation, nor into any particular band, band, by a common fociety ticket. On the common tickets are fuch texts as these: "Now is the accepted time."—" Awake thou that fleepeft," and fuch like. But thofe for the bands are in a higher ftrain ; as," Be ye perfect as your heavenly father is perfect."-" Go on unto perfection." رو Ye are children of the light.' "Your bodies are temples of the Holy Ghoft;" and other texts of a fimilar tendency. For these tickets, each poor perfon paid one fhilling, fuch as were rich paid more; indeed the money seemed to be the principal end of iffuing tickets, at least in country places, the members in the community being fo well known to each other, that they fcarce ever shewed their tickets in order to gain admittance. I forgot to inform you that prayer-meetings, classmeetings, band-meetings, &c. were in general held in private houses, belonging to fome of the brethren. I am, dear Friend, Yours, &c. G 3 LETTER LETTER XI. "Stiff in opinions, always in the wrong ; "Then all for women, panting, rhiming, drinking, DEAR FRIEND, You now fee what sort of a fociety I was got into. In country places particularly, they confift of farmers, husbandmen; fhoemakers, woolcombers, weavers, their wives, &c. I have heard Mr. Wefley remark that more women are converted than men; and I believe that by far the greatest part of his people are females; and not a few of them four, difappointed old maids, with fome others of a lefs prudifh difpofition. Lavater in his effay on phyfiognomy says, "Women fink into the most incurable melancholy, as they also rife to the most enraptured |