ok his place at the board of admiralty, lord
Berkeley succeeded to the command of the fleet, and in the month of
June set sail towards Ushant in order to insult the coast of France. He
pillaged and burned the villages on the islands Grouais, Houat, and Hey
die; made prize of about twenty vessels; bombarded St. Martin's on the
isle of Ehe, and the town of Olonne, which was set on fire in fifteen
different places with the shells and carcasses. Though these appear to
have been enterprises of small import, they certainly kept the whole
coast of France in perpetual alarm. The ministry of that kingdom were
so much afraid of invasion, that between Brest and Goulet they ordered
above one hundred batteries to be erected, and above sixty thousand men
were continually in arms for the defence of the maritime places. In the
month of May rear-admiral Benbow sailed with a small squadron in
order to block up Du Bart in the harbour of Dunkirk; but that famous
adventurer found means to escape in a fog, and steering to the eastward
attacked the Dutch fleet in the Baltic under a convoy of five frigates.
These last he took, together with half the number of the trading ships;
but falling in with the outward bound fleet convoyed by thirteen ships
of the line, he was obliged to burn four of the frigates, turn the fifth
adrift, and part with all his prizes except fifteen, which he carried
into Dunkirk.

PROCEEDINGS IN THE PARLIAMENTS OF SCOTLAND AND IRELAND.

The parliament of Scotland met on the eighth day of September, and lord
Murray, secretary of state, now earl of Tullibardine, presided as king's
commissioner. Though that kingdom was exhausted by the war and two
successive bad harvests, which had driven a great number of the
inhabitants into Ireland, there was no opposition to the court measures.
The members of parliament signed an association like that of England.
They granted a supply of one hundred and twenty thousand pounds for
maintaining their forces by sea and land. They passed an act for
securing their religion, lives, and properties, in case his majesty
should come to an untimely death. By another they obliged all persons
in public trust to sign the association, and then the parliament was
adjourned to the eighth day of December. The disturbances of Ireland
seemed now to be entirely appeased. Lord Capel dying in May, the
council, by virtue of an act passed in the reign of Henry VIII.,
elected the chancellor, sir Charles Por