sail, in order to come into the line and his station; but, upon Colonel Kirkby's calling to him, to keep his line, he accordingly did. That the Admiral sent his Lieutenant Landgridge to command him the said Constable to keep his line of battle, within half a cable's length of the ship before him, which was twice verbally delivered. And that he signed the paper, Consultation, as is in Colonel Kirkby's trial aforesaid; tending to the hinderance and disservice of her Majesty, &c. and was drunk during the fight, &c. All which being fully proved, as aforesaid; the said Captain John Constable denied his breach of orders, or neglect of duty; but owned the signing the paper or consultation prepared by Colonel Kirkby, and did it at his request, and for that he had received damage in his masts and rigging; and owned no other article to be true, but that he had signed to: he called several witnesses to his behaviour during the fight, who all declared he kept the quarterdeck during the engagement, and encouraged his men to fight; and that sometimes he gave them drams of rum; and that verbal message, delivered by Lieutenant Landgridge, was delivered him in some heat and passion, and was understood to be, to keep the line within half a cable's length, and to follow Kirkby; which he did. That he so understood it himself, and several of his men: he prayed the mercy of the court, and so concluded, &c. Where upon due consideration of the premises, the court was of opinion, that the said John Constable, Captain, fell under the 12th, 14th, and 20th articles of war; and adjudged the said Captain John Constable to be immediately cashiered, and rendered incapable of serving her Majesty, and be imprisoned during her Majesty's pleasure, and sent home to England a prisoner in the first ship, the Admiral shall think fit; and be confined a prisoner, till then. Captain Cooper Wade, commander of the Greenwich, was tried * before the aforesaid court, on a complaint exhibited by the JudgeAdvocate, on the behalf of the Queen, of high crimes and misdemeanors, of cowardice, breach of orders, and neglect of duty, and other ill practices; committed during a fight, commenced the nineteenth of August, 1702, as aforesaid. (Refer to that part of Colonel Kirkby's tryal.) The witnesses sworn on behalf of the Queen; Masters Inferior officers 1 9 Who dep sed, that, during the six days engagement, he never kept the line of battle, fired all his shot in vain, not reaching half • October 10th, and 12th. way to the enemy; that he was often told the same by his Lieutenants and other officers, but notwithstanding he commanded them to fire, saying, they must do so, or the Admiral would not believe they fought, if they did not continue the fire. That, during the whole fight the Admiral was engaged in, the said Captain Wade received but one shot from the enemy; that he was in drink the greatest part of the time of action; and that he signed the paper or consultation drawn up by Colonel Kirkby, as aforesaid; and, in the time of fight, arraigned the honourable courage and conduct of the Admiral. All which being fully proved, as aforesaid : That the said Captain Cooper Wade denied the arraignment of the honourable courage and conduct of the Admiral, during the whole six days engagement, declaring the bravery and good management of the Admiral in this time of action, and that no man living could do more or better, for the honour of the Queen and nation. He called some persons to justify his behaviour, who said little in his favour. He begged the mercy of the court, and so concluded. Whereupon the court was of opinion, that the said Cooper Wade fell under the 11th, 12th, 14th, and 20th articles of war; and accordingly adjudged the said Cooper Wade to be shot to death but it is farther declared by the court, that the execution of the said Captain Cooper Wade be deferred, till her Majesty's pleasure be known therein; but be continued a close prisoner till that time. Captain Samuel Vincent, commander of the Falmouth, and Captain Christopher Fogg, commander of the Bredah, were tried* before the aforesaid court, on a complaint exhibited by the JudgeAdvocate, for high crimes and misdemeanors, and ill practices in the time of Admiral Benbow's fight with Monsieur Du Casse, as aforesaid, in signing a paper called a consultation and opinion held on board the Bredah, the 24th of August, 1702. (Which is verbatim recited in Colonel Kirkby's tryal, to which I refer.) It tending to the great hinderance and disservice of her Majesty's fleet then in fight and the said paper so written, being shewed to each of them, they severally owned their hands to the same. But the said Captain Vincent and Captain Fogg, for reason of signing the same, alledged, that, being deserted during each day's engagement by Colonel Richard Kirkby in the Defiance, Captain John Constable in the Windsor, Captain Cooper Wade in the Greenwich, and Captain Thomas Hudson in the Pendennis, and left as a prey to Monsieur Du Casse, they had great reason to believe they should be captives to the enemy. And the Honourable John Benbow, Esq. Admiral, &c. coming in court, declared, that during the six days. fight the said Captain Fogg behaved himself with great courage, bravery, and conduct, like a true Englishman, and lover of his * October 18th. Queen and country: and that the said Captain Samuel Vincent valiantly and courageously behaved himself during the said action, and desired leave to come into the said Admiral's assistance, then engaged with the enemy, and deserted by all the rest of the abovesaid ships, which he did to the relief of the said Admiral, who otherwise had fallen into the hands of Monsieur Du Casse. Whereupon the court, being of opinion, that the signing of the aforesaid paper brought them under the censure of the twentieth article of war, accordingly adjudged Captain Samuel Vincent, and Captain Christopher Fogg, to be suspended: but the execution thereof is hereby respited, till his Royal Highness Prince George of Denmark, Lord High Admiral of England, &c. his further pleasure be known therein. Captain Thomas Hudson, commander of the Pendennis, died on board his said ship in the harbour of Port-Royal, at Jamaica, the At five o'clock the twelfth day of October, 1702, the president, &c. having finished all the business before the court, dissolved the same. DIVISION OUR DESTRUCTION: OR, A SHORT HISTORY OF THE FRENCH FACTION IN ENGLAND. Nought else but Treason from the first this Land did foil. Spencer's second Book of the Fairy Queen, Cant. 10. Stan. 48. London: printed and sold by John Nutt, near Stationers'-hall, 1702. Quarto, containing twenty-two Pages. SINCE INCE it is certain, that the greatness which France has acquired, and the dangers which the rest of Europe is obnoxious to, arise both from the same cause, which is that maxim the French have so firmly observed, viz. to create and foment divisions among neighbouring states and princes; therefore, at this juncture, a short dissection of that maxim is necessary to invigorate our resentments against France, and to unseal the eyes of some among us, whose credulity has rendered them agents in their own destruction. I shall say nothing of the divisions France has raised in the empire, in Spain, in Poland, in Holland, and, indeed, in all places where the French ministers have resided, but will confine myself to a short account of what they have done in England only. I shall begin with the Revolution, when no nation was ever more immediately preserved from slavery, both in conscience and estate. We were amazed at our deliverance, and acknowledged the wonderful mercy of God in that instance of our gratitude, the crowning his great instrument of our freedom. We were then so truly possessed of the source of our misfortunes, we so plainly saw our slavery come rolling down, in full tides, from those inexhaustible springs of oppression, the ambition and power of France, that we unanimously addressed our deliverer to direct us how we might remove the principles of our fear, and raise up liberty to our posterity. The King told us (and we agreed with him) that, whilst France possessed the overgrown power he was at that time master of, the liberty, not only of England, but of Europe, was in a very precarious condition; and we could then see his strength increased yearly, his dominions were daily inlarged, and the strongest towns were too weak to resist the battery of his money. And the depredations of his neighbouring countries were the exercise and reward of his armies; and his power at sea was grown to so surprising a height, that he was a match for Holland and England in conjunction. That ambitious monarch no longer disguised his intentions; he let the world see, that he thought himself strong enough to conquer Christendom, and that the conquest of Christendom was the quarry he flew at. But, though our dangers were great at that time, yet our eyes were open, and we put on our brave old English principles; the common danger not only united our factions, but the impending tyranny of France reconciled the jarring interests of the rest of Europe, and finished that confederacy, which the intrigues of France, and our two former Kings, had rendered abortive for so many years before. At that time, our circumstances were happily come to a crisis scarce hoped for a few weeks before. A set of persons sprung up, brave, wise, and honest; and, though the cankered tongue of envy has been hard upon them since, it is to the virtue of those men that we owe the unravelling of our entangled affairs, and the hopes of liberty which are yet left. The late ferment of the nation had worked off part of its phlegm; a new spirit of gallantry warmed our youth, and our old men fell out with avarice; Westminster-hall was purged, and property was put into clean hands, The church was truly in the King's interest, and we had at last got a King, who had no separate interest from his people. Thus our affairs stood when the confederacy commenced. The French King wisely foresaw his ruin, if we proceeded as we began; and, knowing it fruitless to tamper with the new ministers, he was necessitated to play on his game, with those that were left of his old pack. He found our new measures were not to be broke any way, but by our old divisions, so he concerted with his friends here in secret to divide us; and the war was not a year old, before the wretches of the last reigns were warm in the merciful bosom of the new government; they began to hiss, and were readier to sting, than kiss the hand that signed the act for their pardons. Those very men, who were the instruments of our late Kings, whose heads at the Revolution tottered on their shoulders, now skreened from justice by the act of indemnity, began to resume their old principles, and wish again for those masters, under whose tyranny they had indulged their luxury and covetousness. But they found it impossible openly to bring about their designs, the ability and integrity of the new ministry being so apparent and necessary at that time: all they could then do was to work themselves into the secrets of the nation, and discover them to France. They privately, at first, made what new proselytes they could, and slily lamented their country, insinuating, that it was oppressed with taxes, and worn out with the ignorance and pride of its new governor. As they grew stronger, they embarrassed all publick affairs as much as was possible, and they were particularly assiduous in the destruction of our money; and, when they had drawn on an inevitable necessity to recoin it, they struck in with the court, and were very zealous for recoining, hoping that so dead a stop to trade, in the midst of a heavy war, would undoubtedly have broke the back of the present constitution; and we were, as the French faction had foreseen, in the very agonies of confusion; our trade, and ministry, both civil and military, were at a plunge. Our enemies rejoiced, and our friends were dejected, at the loss of our current money. We stared on one another, and knew not what to think, when Exchequer bills, which are now ridiculed, revived our trade, set out our fleets, brought our army into the field, and supported our alliances. The French party were surprised, the loss of so sure a game made them desperate, and, from that time, they have resolved the destruction of him who, in preserving England, disappointed them. The war continuing, and the charges growing heavier, the most Christian faction took hold of the popular end of the staff, and began to rail publickly, at visionary mismanagements, and corrupt ministers; and this step was the foundation of the heats and divisions among us since. Thus, the Tory party commenced patriots; grown patriots they rail at all men, and all things, that do not chime in with their interests. They entertain the King, after the fatigues of a campaign, with vexation all the winter; they grow bolder every day than other; and, when the most Christian King found it necessary to have a peace, they, by delaying the King's business, and frustrating his designs, tired him into the peace of Reswick. That peace was no sooner concluded, but the Tories fell into the old specious arguments and artifices, to inflame the nation; mismanagements, favourites, corrupt ministers, foreigners, and standing armies; the King, to satisfy them, sends away the Dutch, and disbands the army. They then demand the forfeited estates in Ireland, and plainly tell the King, that he ought not to have disposed of them, and that they will take them from him again. The best King takes no notice of the indignity offered him; but sacrifices his just rights and resentments, to the ease and happiness of his people. |