o, without doubt,
will have a great fleet in the Straights."

At a visit of the Duke of York, he hears, by a letter from Captain
Allen, "First, of our own loss of two ships, the _Phoenix_ and
_Nonsuch_, in the Bay of Gibraltar; then of his and his seven ships with
him, in the Bay of Cales, or thereabouts, fighting with the 34 Dutch
Smyrna fleet; sinking the _King Solomon_, a ship worth 150,000 pounds,
or more, some say 200,000 pounds, and another; and taking of three
merchant-ships. Two of our ships were disabled by the Dutch
unfortunately falling, against their will, against them--the _Advice_,
Captain W. Poole, and _Antelope_, Captain Clerke. The Dutch men-of-war
did little service. Captain Allen, before he would fire one gun, come
within pistol-shot of the enemy. The Spaniards, at Cales, did stand
laughing at the Dutch, to see them run away and flee to the shore, 34 or
thereabouts, against eight Englishmen at most."

"Captain Allen led the way, and himself writes that all the masters of
the fleet, old and young, were mistaken, and did carry their ships
aground."

"Captain Seale, of the _Milford_, hath done his part very well, in
boarding the _King Solomon_, which held out half-an-hour after she was
boarded; and his men kept her an hour after they did master her, and
then she sank, and drowned about 17 of her men."

He speaks, a few days afterwards, of meeting the owners of the
double-bottomed boat the _Experiment_, which again reminds us of the
plan, at present adopted, to guard ships against the effects of
torpedoes.

On the 17th of April he heard an account of the capture of three
privateers, one of which was commanded by Admiral Everson's son.
Captain Golding, of the _Diamond_, was killed in the action. "Two of
them, one of 32, and the other of 20 odd guns, did stand stoutly up
against her, which hath 46, and the _Yarmouth_ that hath 52, and as many
more men as they. So that they did more than we could expect, not
yielding till many of their men were killed. And Everson, when he was
brought before the Duke of York, and was observed to be shot through the
hat, answered, that he wished it had gone through his head, rather than
been taken. One thing more is written; that two of our ships, the other
day, appearing upon the coast of Holland, they presently fired their
beacons round the country to give them notice. And news is brought the
king, that the Dutch Smyrna fleet is seen upon the back of Scotland