this whole matter, in order to fpread every where the true reason of our returning without having fought; which being never in the least either contradicted or resented by the Lord ROCHESTER, intirely ruined his reputation as to Courage, (of which I was really forry to be the occafion) tho' no body had still a greater as to Wit; which fupported him pretty well in the world, notwithstanding some more accidents of the fame kind, that never fail to fucceed one another when once people know a man's weakness.

WITHIN a few years after, a war against the Dutch was again declared, tho' not 'till a fquadron of our fhips had endeavoured to intercept and furprise their Smyrna fleet a little unfairly of which defign we failed very oddly, and by a fault that had certainly been punished under a wife administration. Sir EDWARD SPRAGG, who heard nothing of the war, returned home in company with those very Smyrna merchants: and with his whole fquadron failing fafter than they, paffed by ours that lay in wait for them; and yet Sir ROBERT HOLMES, our commander, and alone trufted with the fecret, would not fo much as communicate it to Sir EDWARD

SPRAGG,

SPRAGG, because he must have commanded both fquadrons (as being the fuperiour of ficer) and confequently deprive him of a prize, which, instead of that, proved an errant Tartar: For the Smyrna merchants, together with their Dutch convoy, made their part good against Sir ROBERT HOLMES's fquadron; and fo got safe home, meerly for want of Sir EDWARD SPRAGG's being called to his affiftance.

THE Duke of YORK, always eager after a military fame, and Admiral of England, commanded the fleet in person that summer: which made me go a Voluntier once more, tho' I confefs not with half so good a will as before; my heart being ingaged violently at that time, and I can never forget the tenderness of our parting.

I waited on the Duke in his own fhip, where I intended to ftay; but meeting the Earl of OSSORY there, who was both my kinsman and friend, and commanded the Victory, a Second-rate fhip; he invited me fo earnestly to be with him, that I accepted his kindness; and afterwards found I could not have been any where else so well, on feveral accounts; fince no man

ever

ever did more bravely than he, on all occafions.

Soon after, I had fome experience of the Duke's firmness in any resolution he had once taken; for tho' he grew fo very kind to me, as to favour me in much greater matters, yet I could never prevail on him to grant me one request, which at that time I thought it a little hard to be denied. My request was, that if in the next ingagement he perceived any fhip to fail of doing its duty, by reason of her Captain's being killed (which was but too ufual) he would then fend me an order to go on board and command her immediately; whereby, instead of being an infignificant Voluntier, I might have an opportunity of doing the fleet fome fervice, and of gaining fome honour. But tho' he knew it well, and allowed the reason of the thing, as being the only way of making the Voluntiers useful; yet he counted it too great an alteration of the settled orders, which gave the Lieutenant in such a cafe the fame power which his Captain before had, tho' feldom found to make good use of it.

OUR

OUR Scouts having been negligent, DE RUITER with his whole fleet furprized ours at South-wold Bay; fo that weighing anchor in great hafte, we had much ado to defend our felves from their Fire-ships: DE RUITER himself was seen nobly to go in a boat from fhip to fhip, to direct and animate his men, ordering all his fhips to attack only our great ones; which, not being much above twenty, were hard put to it by fo great a number of theirs. Yet the enemy had no fuccess to boaft of, except the burning our Royal James; which, having on board her, not only a thousand of our best men, but the Earl of SANDWYCH himself Vice-Admiral of England, was enough almost to stile it a victory on their fide, fince his merit as to fea-affairs was most extraordinary in all kinds. He dined in Mr. DIGBY's fhip the day before the battle, when no body dreamt of fighting, and fhewed a gloomy discontent so contrary to his ufual chearful humour, that we even then all took notice of it; but much more, afterwards.

THE enemy alfo was once mafter of the Royal Katherine, and had fent away her Captain Sir JOHN CHICHELY with most of

2

her

her men, to be kept prisoners in other ships; a few only remaining there, whom they ftowed under hatches, with a guard over them. But the boatswain being among them, with his whistle encouraged the rest to knock down all the fentinels first, and then to fall on the Dutch above deck; by which brisk action they redeemed that confiderable ship. The boatswain's name was SMALL, whom I had opportunity of knowing well afterwards when I had the command of that ship. He was a Nonconformist, always sober, meek, and quiet, (even too mild for that bustling fort of employment) and very often gave me an image of those enthufiaftick people who did fuch brave things in our late Civil War: for he feemed rather a Shepherd than a Soldier; and was a kind of heroc in the shape of a faint.

BUT the Duke of YORK himself had the nobleft share in this day's action; for, when his ship was fo maim'd as to be made incapable of fervice, he made her lie by, to refit, and went on board another that was hotly engaged, where he kept up his ftandard 'till fhe was disabled also; and then left her for a third, in order to renew the fight,