The Revenous Beast Discovered, AND THE Devourer Pursued.  
In a Short Account truly stated of the unjust Proceed and Cruel deal by Dove Williamson Priest of Elton in the County of Nottingham, against William Claytor of the same Town.  
William Claytor being a Farmer, painfully labouring to provide for his Family, and to pay such Rent as was due unto the Owner of the Farm, the Lord gave an increase to the labour of his hands, & blessed it, and his corn and  increased, of which increase the said Priest demanded a Tenth part, which he calls his Tithes, but unto his demand the said William could not consent, knowing that it was the fruit of his own labour which God had increased unto him, and that the Priest had neither been at any charge nor taken any pains about it; And being also convinced by the light of Christ in his own conscience that both the Law and the Priesthood was changed under which Tithes were paid and received, and that the Substance being come, all shadows are to cease, and that the Gospel is free, and to be preached freely, the said William could not for conscience sake satisfy the Priest, to give him that part which he calls his Tithes. So the Priest sent for a Sub-poena out of the Exchequer to cause the said William to appear in that place in his own person, to answer what the Priest should object against him; and the said William appeared to have answered in the Truth, but his appearance would not be taken without an Attorney to appear for him, though he was commanded to appear in his own person upon pain of a great sum of money, and he having performed on his part what was required, and being there as he was commanded to answer for himself, he had not freedom to employ another to do that which he was commanded to do himself, and was free to do it, and for that end went near upon an hundred miles; But deceit not receiving Truth, the said William was sent to the Fleet, (a prison in London) and was kept a prisoner for the space of two years, during which time the Priest made spoil of his goods, and took & carried away his corn from off his ground by a cart load together from one land before it was set on the cock, so greedy was the beast of his prey, and the devourer to make spoil, neither regarding God nor man. Let the Scripture be searched and this man tried in the spirit of Truth, and it will be plainly seen unto whom he is like, not like a Minister of Christ (who laboured with his own hands to make the Gospel without charge) but like a greedy dumb dog that can never have enough, seeking to devour and destroy and murder the innocent; and after all this is done, and that the said William had been a Prisoner two years, the Priest procured a Habeas Corpus, and removed the body of the said William to the Common Pleas Bar, and there declared against him for 38 l. 10 s. debt, when he had made spoil of his goods at his own pleasure, and the said William answered that he did not owe him any thing. So he was returned into the prison again, and did from that time continue a prisoner about a year and a quarter longer, and then the Priest proceeded against him at the Common Law, and brought down a Trial which was tried at the Assizes held at Nottingham in the year 16●9. and thither the Priest brought a man whose name is Richard Horse-poole, and he swore that the Priest was damnified for want of his Tithes to the value of 7 l. So the Jury who was to try the matter they gave unto the Priest 20 l. and there could be no witness heard of the said William's part, though there were some ready to have given crew evidence, who knew well the spoil of goods the Priest had made in taking and carrying them away. Then the Priest proceeded upon this unjust verdict, and was now minded for his prey, and two Bailiffs came on the Priest's behalf, whose names are George Miller and Robert Miller, who are like minded with the Priest to devour at once, and these two men upon the 14. day of the ninth month, 1659. seized upon the goods & chattels of the said William, and took and drove a way eighteen head of  which the said William valued truly to be worth threescore pounds. So the Bailiffs procured one William Bartrum and Bryan Goodwin, William Oliver and Thomas Rick, who were ready to be like minded with them, and these men valued the goods so taken by the Bailiffs to be worth but six and twenty pounds, at which rate they passed, and the Bailiffs proceeded to make sale of them, and sold them at Alehouses, and never came at any Market with them. And after they had thus finished the mischief of their hearts as far as they were suffered, they brought 7 of the  back again when they had wronged them seven or eight days, which the said William valued to be worth eighteen pounds; So that they kept eleven  which were worth two and forty pounds. Let all who have the sense of God's fear in their hearts consider this soberly, and weigh it coolly, and it will appear to be the Devils work from the beginning, for a man to be sued for denying an unjust demand, and then cast into prison because he could not answer deceit, and then kept a Prisoner three years and a quarter, and during that time the Priest spoiling his goods, and then declares against him for eight and thirty pounds ten shillings debt, and when it came to be proved could not prove any debt, but a man falsely swears to seven pound damage for Tithes, and the Jury made that up twenty pounds for the Priest, and the Bailiffs made it up too and forty pounds, and thus is the innocent made a prey unto the teeth of the ungodly; And both Priest, Judge, Jury, swearer, liar, Bailiffs and praisers all devouring by consent, and all like minded in exercising cruelty, and all must perish together without speedy repentance, for a wicked and an ungodly generation you are, whom the Lord is spewing out, who delight yourselves in committing such filthy and horrible things as these are; what will ye do in the end which is hasting upon you all, when the Lord will inquire after all your do, and that you must come before Him to give an account, what then will ye do, and where will you hid yourselves to escape the wrath of Him who Judges in Truth and righteousness? there will not be a hiding place found for you, neither amongst the Rocks nor under the mountains, but the terrible day of the Lord will come upon you, and the fierce wrath of the Lord will overtake you, and his indignation will take hold upon you, and a just recompense of reward will he give unto you according to your deeds, and this is to you all from first to last who have acted thus cruelly without showing mercy; You may here read what is brought force by you, O ye Priests of Eng. here is your fruit, & by it are you known to be a Troop of Robbers, false prophets and Deceivers; We do not delight to lay open your filthiness, but that you may see yourselves and be ashamed, and for the sake of the simple who are following of you and deceived by you, that they may come out from amongst you, and escape the judgement that is coming upon you. And thou Priest Williamson, there needs no proof be brought against thee, for thou hast uncovered thyself to thy shame for ever, and hast made thyself manifest what thou art, and the fruits brought forth by thee do witness against thee that thou art not of Christ's sending, He sends forth his as Lambs among Wolves, but thou art come forth a Wolf among Lambs, Therefore repent of the evil of thy do, and restore that which thou hast wrongfully caused to be taken away by violence, for the cry of the oppressed and the Family of the Innocent will rise up in judgement against thee, and the Judge of all the earth will do right unto thee, and repay thee according to what thou hast done, and judgement without mercy will the Lord give unto thee, and heavy will his strokes fall upon thee because thou hast showed no mercy.  
O ye Rulers of England who have now power in your hands to remove these oppressions, and take off these burdens which lie so heavily upon the innocent, the cry is exceeding great, put it not from you, nor do not neglect it any longer, but set your hearts to do the work of the Lord, and take off the yoke from the necks of his People, and then will the Lord be with you, and his Arm will he make bare for you, and all your enemies shall fall before you, and none shall prosper that rise up against you; But if you be double minded, and neglect the work of the Lord, and seek to exalt yourselves and fear the faces of men, the Lord will withdraw from you, and your enemies will prevail over you, and you will be rooted out as others have been before you, for cursed are all that do the work of the Lord negligently; Therefore with boldness show yourselves in the face of all your enemies, and arise in the Power of the Lord God, that your hands may be strengthened to take off all these burdens which make the innocent to groan under them, and let not any thing stand that is contrary to the Truth of God, but strike it all down, that all whose faces are Sion-wards may walk on their way rejoicing, being freed from all oppression, and by your Government defended from all injury and cruelty either to their Persons or Estates, That so the exercise of their tender Consciences may not be bowed down, nor any come into sufferings for it; But all may stand in their Freedom towards the Lord, and that none may exercise Lordship over them; And so all being peaceably affected towards the Nation, all may stand in their Freedom towards the Lord, and that no Law may stand to compel or force the tender Conscience of any; This is that which is your great work which in the integrity of your heart you are to perform unto the Lord without delaying, and then will the Lord be on your side and justify you, and what then need you fear who rises up against you to condemn you; so let not your hearts be feeble, nor your hands slack, but be you faithful unto God, and in his strength go on and prosper, and the Lord will be with you, and he will stand by you against all that shall oppose you, and give you the heads of all your enemies to Reign over.  
This is published for no other end but to manifest Truth and lay open deceit, that the Rulers of the Nation may see the Government, and what it is, and the Laws, and how they are executed. And that all people may see what a Ministry there is, and what their way is, and how they are upheld and maintained, and in what cruelty they do compel it, that all these abominations may be rooted out from the earth, that such a Government may be changed and such Laws disannulled, and such execution of them repealed, and such a Ministry removed, that all such ways may be altered, and such a maintenance razed out, never more to be remembered, that so all cruelty, Tyranny and oppression may cease, and Truth and equity set up and exalted, that he alone may Reign over all who will not give his glory to another.  
WILLIAM SMITH.