The Weavers Pocket-Book, To the reader
TO THE READER: And more eſpecially, To the Masters, Wardens, and Aſſistants in the Corporation of Worſted-Weavers, relating to the City of Norwich, together with all my worthy Friends, whether Masters or Journey-men, employed in the Art and Miſtery of Weaving.
AT laſt (my worthy Friends) I have found both leiſure and advantage, to teſtifie both to you, and to the World, the great value and reſpect which for more than twenty years (that is, ever ſince I underſtood any thing of you) I have had, as for very many of your Perſons, ſo for that Occupation wherein you dayly are employed: ſo great (I will aſſure you) that for theſe twenty eight years I have hardly been conſulted by any Friend about the diſpoſal of a Child whom I have not adviſed to your Trade: and, but that in the Education of a Child Nihil invita Minerva, the Genius of the Child ought to give a principal Conduct, I will aſſure you, next to the immediate ſervice of GOD in his Goſpel (from which theſe times de…erred me, unleſs I had had enough to have left them to have enabled them to do it freely) I had devoted my Sons to your Fellowſhip; nor would any thing have more pleaſed me as to any Son of mine, than to have ſeen him fancying one of your Looms. For I have either taken falſe Meaſures (which yet I think I have not) or no Employment which I have in my Eye, hath ſuperiour advantages to you, if equal with you, to ſerve all the Nobler Ends of Mans Life. Were I ſo be your Orator, I think I have Topicks enough by me to perſwade any Perſon that nothing can commend a Trade to a VViſe-man, but what is to be found in Yours; ſome of thoſe things you will find enlarged upon in the firſt of my Obſervations in the following Sheets. My thoughts, that it was pity that ſuch a number of Perſons employed in ſo excellent an Employment as you are, ſhould want any Advantages to help you from Looms unto Heaven, is that which your hath engaged me in this Service; a Deſign which for ſome years I have had in my Thought, even ever ſince I ſaw Mr. Flavel's Navigation and Husbandry Spiritualized: But many of you know, that from my Youth upward, my Hand hath been full of Employments, and my latter years more full than my former. More than forty years of my Life, were ſpent without much care what to Eat or Drink; ſince that time thoſe Cares have alſo been upon me, and made my work ſomething more, than to conſider what Subject next to Preach upon, and how to handle it. Theſe few Sheets by reaſon of this, were taken in hand again and again, and as often laid aſide, at laſt a very few days have finiſhed the greater part of them, (and for ſome of that leiſure you may thank ſome Informers too:) It is a noble deſign to inſtruct People how to Spiritualize every Object, and a nobler Practice for any to do it. Our Bleſſed LORD made it his buſineſs to take all Advantages to commend to his Diſciples and Hearers ſpiritual Meditations on earthly Objects: The ſight of Bread, John 6. brings forth that excellent Sermon about the Bread of Life. His asking of Water of the Woman of Samaria, gave him an occaſion to diſcourſe of the living water, which whoſo drinks ſhall thirſt no more: And it is more than probable, that his ſight of a Shepherd with his flock of Sheep, and of a Vine, gave occaſion to thoſe excellent Sermons, John 10. John 15. It is the great Diſadvantage of moſt Worldly Employments, that they have a natural tendency to divert the Soul from GOD; upon which account I remember it was, that holy Mr. Palmer preferred the Work of the Miniſtry to all the Employments of the World, as leading the Soul directly to the Meditations of GOD, and whoſe Work ly in a Communion with him; whereas all other Employments bent the Soul another way. I know no better way to remedy this Diſadvantage from the nature of your Work, than by ſhewing you, how you may make it an Advantage to you. This is the very buſineſs of theſe few Sheets. Brethren! give me leave to tell you all, That my Hearts deſire and Prayer to GOD for you, is that you may be ſaved. Though I have a juſt regret and compaſſion for any Soul, that I ſee like to periſh Eternally; yet methinks, I have a juſter and ſadder regret for any induſtrious Souls. I would not have one of them periſh eternally whom I ſee ſo induſtrious to take pains that they and their Families might live a few years comfortably in this Life. There is a Generation of Men that are too lazy to go to Heaven; or to live here, but upon the Alms and Spoils of others: It had been good for them they had never been Born, and it had been alſo good for the World they never had been Born: for their Lives in it are of no further uſe, than to defile, and to devour, and to diſtrub it. If ſuch Men periſh, let them periſh, we having given them a due Warning. But methinks it pities my Soul to think that a Weaver ſhould eternally periſh. A Weaver whom I ſee before four of the Clock in the Morning and after 8, 9, 10, at night hard at Work, that one ſo patient of Labour for the Bread that periſheth, ſo patient of Self-denial in the Sports and Pleaſures which others ſpend their Life in, and all for a few Shillings at the end of the Week; I ſay, that ſuch a one, after the long Toyl of his Laborius Life, ſhould at laſt lie down in Hell; this goes very near me: And I cannot but ſay ſometimes, Surely we (who are the Lords Miniſters) do not inſtruct theſe Men enough; we do not preſs the thoughts of Eternity upon them as we ought to do. Theſe are a People that are not too lazy to be ſaved, they are Men that can work night and day in their earthly Maſters work for a Livelihood for their Bodies. Surely, if we could perſwade them they had Souls, and thoſe immortal Souls, that they are Beings ordained to an Eternity; That Eternal Happineſs is not to be got by a Loom, but by Believing, Reading, Hearing, Prayer, Self-denial, taking up Chriſts Croſs, Mortification of beloved Luſts, they might be perſwaded to ſpend ſome time every day, in Reading, Praying, ſome time in Hearing; to ſpend ſome time in ſearching and trying their wayes, that they may turn unto the LORD. I know that when we have done and ſaid what we can, Old Adam (as he ſaid) will be found too hard for Young or Old Melancthon. The way of Man is not in himſelf, neither is it in Man to direct his ſteps. But ſhew me that perſon who hath done what in him lies towards his own Salvation, to whom GOD hath denied his free, but effectual Grace. My good Friends! You know I cannot from the Pulpit as formerly ſpeak unto you; if I could, neither were this a fit Theme to diſcourſe there; neither would the ſound of my words in your Ears abide with you, ſo as a printed Book may, I have on purpoſe contracted my Diſcourſe into a few ſheets, that it may be a burthen not too heavy for an ordinary Purſe. I propoſe to my ſelf nothing of gain in it. If I may but gain one Soul, it is enough; if not, I have but my Labour for my Pains (as we ſay in our Engliſh Proverb.) I would willingly help on your Salvation, and ſhew my Love and Kindneſs to an induſtrious People; I have nothing elſe but my poor Prayers, by which I can ſhew my ſelf,
Your faithful Friend and Servant, in the work of the Goſpel. J. C.