dity, made us fmile to see him take on himfelf the timorous, cautious, and prudential part, which did not use to be his custom; he declared he would never confent to fuch a rashness as might very probably coft us the lofs of our Admiral's fhip, and confequently of our whole fleet afterwards; which obliged the good old man to yield at last, but with a great deal of reluctance.

As soon as the bloody flag was fet up, before the ftorm arose which parted us, Mr. SAVILL and my felf being on the quarterdeck, 'fpied him charging a very little piftol, and putting it in his pocket: which was fo odd a fort of a weapon on fuch an occafion, that we two could imagine no reafon for it, except his having taken a refolution of going down into the powder-room to blow up the fhip, in cafe at any time it fhould be in danger of being taken: For he had often faid he would anfwer for no. thing, but that we fhould never be carried into Holland: and therefore Mr. SAVILL and I, in a laughing way, moft mutinously refolved to throw him overboard, in cafe we should ever catch him going down to the powder-room.

OUR fleet happening afterwards to go near the fhore to take in fresh water, Prince

RU

RUPERT dined with a gentleman who lived thereabouts; and returning on board in a little boat with only the Lord BLANY and my felf, there happened fo fudden and violent a ftorm, that we did not like it; and Prince RUPERT began to talk of Prince MAURICE's being caft away by a like accident; upon which, I could not but reflect on my family also, fince my grandfather and three of his brothers had been drowned. The Lord BLANY hearing all this, made us smile in the midst of our danger, by fwearing, that tho' he liked our company, he wifh'd himself out of it, and in any other boat whatsoever; fince he feared the ill fortune of our two families wou'd fink him.

THIS was the last year of the first Dutch War; yet before it ended, they burnt fome of our best ships at Chatham, and defign'd to make a defcent upon our coafts; which occafion'd the raising of feveral independent troops of horse; of which I had one given me, and was so foolishly fond of it, (being my first military command) that I indured my quarters at Dover as contentedly, and was as forry for being disbanded upon the Peace, as if I had been a meer foldier of fortune.

Ar the next meeting of Parliament, I receiv'd a writ to fit there; and being known by every body to be younger by three years than the prefixed age for the voting in the Houfe of Peers, it was opposed by ALGER

NOON Earl of NORTHUMBERLAND, who very gravely moved, that they would rather exclude Lords till fome years above the age of one and twenty, inftead of admitting one fo much younger. In this he certainly was in the right; and I acquiefced in it the more willingly, because that heat of youth (which was his objection) made me a great deal more inclined to fomething elfe, than to fitting there. Accordingly I followed it with too much eagerness, and without interruption, 'till the second Dutch war: During this time, and heat of temper, I had the good fortune not to be ingaged in more than one quarrel; but that had somewhat in it fingular enough to be related. I was informed that the Earl of ROCHESTER had faid famething of me, which, according to his custom, was very malicious; I therefore sent Colonel ASTON, a very mettled friend of mine, to call him to account for it. He denied the words, and indeed I was foon convinced he had never faid them; but the

meer

meer report, tho' I found it to be falfe, obliged me (as I then foolishly thought) to go on with the quarrel; and the next day was appointed for us to fight on horseback, a way in England a little unusual, but it was his part to chufe. Accordingly I and my Second lay the night before at Knightsbridge privately, to avoid the being fecured at London upon any fufpicion; which yet we found our felves more in danger of there, because we had all the appearance of Highway-men that had a mind to lie skulking in an odd Inn, for one night; but this I suppose the people of that house were used to, and fo took no notice of us, but liked us the better. In the morning we met the Lord RoCHESTER at the place appointed, who, inftead of JAMES PORTER Whom he affured ASTON he would make his Second, brought an errant Life-guard-man whom no body knew. To this Mr. ASTON took exception, upon the account of his being no fuitable adverfary; especially confidering how extreamly well he was mounted, whereas we had only a couple of pads: Upon which, we all agreed to fight on foot. But, as my Lord ROCHESTER and I were riding into the next field in order to it, he told me, that he

had

had at first chofen to fight on horseback, because he was fo weak with a certain diftemper, that he found himself unfit to fight at all any way, much less a-foot. I was extreamly furpriz'd, becaufe at that time no man had a better reputation for courage; and (my anger against him being quite over, because I was satisfied that he never spoke those words I resented) I took the liberty of representing what a ridiculous ftory it would make, if we returned without fighting; and therefore advised him for both our fakes, especially for his own, to confider better of it; fince I must be obliged in my own defence to lay the fault on him by telling the truth of the matter. His answer was, that he fubmitted to it; and hoped that I would not defire the advantage of having to do with any man in fo weak a condition. I replied, that by such an argument he had fufficiently tied my hands, upon condition I might call our Seconds to be witnesses of the whole bufinefs; which he confented to, and fo we parted. When we returned to London, we found it full of this quarrel, upon our being absent so long; and therefore Mr. ASTON thought himself obliged to write down every word and circumstance of this