Beal commonly called 'Singing by Rule,' and when the
Society had discoursed the matter the Moderator pioposed to vote for said
two ways as followeth viz. that those that were for singing in publick in
the way practiced by Deacon Marshall should hold up their hands and be
counted, and then that those that were desirous to sing in Mr. Beals way
called 'by Rule' would after show their minds by the same sign which method
was proceeded upon accordingly. But when the vote was passed there being
many voters it was difficult to take the exact number of votes in order to
determine on which side the major vote was; whereupon the Moderator ordered
all the voters to go out of the seats and stand in the alleys and then
those that were for Deacon Marshalls way should go into the mens seats and
those that were for Mr. Beals way should go into the womens seat and
after much objections made against that way, which prevailed not with the
Moderator, it was complied with, and then the Moderator desired that those
that were of the mind that the way to be practiced for singing for the
future on the Sabbath &c should be the way sung by Deacon Marshall as
aforesaid would signify the same by holding up their hands and be counted,
and then the Moderator and myself went and counted the voters and the
Moderator asked me how many there was. I answered 42 and he said there was
63 or 64 and then we both counted again and agreed the number being 43.
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