“September 9. Brother Joseph Parmenter made a public Confession, in the presence of the Congregation for the sin of drunkenness.

“September 21. At a Church meeting of the Brethren to consider his case, the question was put whether they would accept his confession [to] restore him; it passed in the negative, because he has made several confessions of the sin, and is still unreformed thereof: the Brethren concluded it proper to suspend him from Communion in the Lord’s Supper, for his further humiliation and warning. He was accordingly suspended.

“March 3^d, 1722-3. Sabbath Evening. Brother Parmenter having behaved himself well (for aught anything that appears) since his suspension, was at his desire restored again by a vote of the Brethren, nemine contradicente.

“March 10. Joseph, a negro man, and Tabitha his wife made a public confession of the sin of fornication, committed each with the other before marriage, and desired to have the ordinance of Baptism administered to them.

“May 26. The Brethren of the Church met together to consider what is further necessary to be done by the Church towards the reformation of James Penniman. He being present desired their patience towards him, and offered a trifling confession, which was read, but not accepted by the Brethren, because he manifested no sign of true repentance thereof: they came to (I think) a unanimous vote that he should be cast out of the Church for his incorrigibleness in his evil waies, whenever I shall see good to do it, and I promised to wait upon him some time, to see how he would behave himself before I proceeded against him.

“At the same church meeting Major Quincey was fairly and clearly chosen by written votes to the office of tuning the Psalm in our Assemblies for Public Worship.

“January 26, 1723/4 Lord’s-day. In the afternoon, after a sermon on 1 Cor. 5.5.[7] James Penniman persisting in a course of Idleness, Drunkenness, and in a neglect of the Public Worship, &c. had the fearfull sentence of excommunication pronounced upon him.

“February 2, 1723/4. Lord’s Day. After the public service the Church being desired to stay voted—that Benjamin Neal, David Bass and Joseph Neal jun. members in full communion have discovered such a perverse spirit and been guilty of such disorderly behaviour in the House and Worship of God that they deserve to be suspended from communion with us at the Lord’s table.

“February 9. Lord’s Day evening. David Bass acknowledging his offensive behavior and promising to be more watchfull for time to come, the brethren signified their consent that he be restored to full communion with them.

“March 1. This day (being Sacrament day) Benjamin Neal and Joseph Neal, confessing their offensive behavior in presence of the Brethren, were restored to the liberty of full communion.”

“January 21, 1728. Joseph P—— and Lydia his wife made a confession before the Church which was well accepted for the sin of Fornication committed with each other before marriage.

“August 12, 1728. The Church met again at the house of Mrs. Marsh to examine into the grounds of some scandalous reports of the conduct of Brother David Bass on May the 29^th who was vehemently suspected of being confederate with one Roger Wilson in killing a lamb belonging to Mr. Edward Adams of Milton. The witnesses, viz. Capt. John Billings, Mr. Edward and Samuel Capons of Dorchester, being present, the Church had a full hearing of the case, who unanimously agreed that brother Bass, though he denied the fact of having an hand in killing the lamb, yet was guilty of manifest prevaricating in the matter, and could not be restored to their communion without giving them satisfaction, and desired the matter might be suspended.

“[Nov. 11, 1728.] On Monday November the 11, 1728 we had another church meeting to hear and consider Brother David Bass’s confession, which (after some debate) was accepted; and it was unanimously voted by the Church that it should be read before the whole Congregation, with which brother Bass would by no means comply, and so the matter was left at this meeting.

“But on December the 15 following David Bass’s confession was read publicly before the Church and Congregation, which he owned publicly, and was accepted by the brethren by a manual vote.

“November 17, 1728. Mehetabel the wife of John B—— Jun^r made a confession before the Church and Congregation for the sin of fornication, which was well accepted.

“September 28, 1729. Elizabeth M—— made a confession before the whole congregation for the sin of fornication, which was accepted by the Church.

“July 2, 1732. Abigail, wife of Joseph C——, made a confession of the sin of fornication, which was well accepted by the Church, though she was ill and absent.

“August 6, 1732. Ebenezer H—— and wife made their confession of the sin of fornication.

“July 1, 1733. Tabitha, a servant of Judge Quincy, and a member of this Church, made her confession for stealing a 3 pound bill from her Master, which was accepted.

“August 11, 1734. Nathan S—— and wife made their confession of the sin of fornication which was well accepted by the church.

“September 28, 1735. Elizabeth P——, widow, made her confession of the sin of fornication and was accepted.

“[Sept. 8, 1735.] At a meeting of the First Church of Christ in Braintree at the house of the Pastor, September the 8^th 1735, after prayer—Voted, That it is the duty of this Church to examine the proofs of an unhappy quarrel between Benjamin Owen and Joseph Owen, members in full communion with this Church on May 30^th 1735, whereby God has been dishonored and religion reproached.

“After some examination thereof it was unanimously voted by the brethren—That the Pastor should ask Benjamin Owen whether