That night the prince lay at the deanery, having before ordered the advanced guard to march to Clist-heath, and settled the quarters of the army; which was done so much to the content and satisfaction of the inhabitants in, and about the city, and such just pay. ments made for what the soldiers had, and such civil behaviour among them, without swearing and damning and debauching of women, as is usual among some armies, that it is to admiration to behold. I am sure, Sir, I was an eye-witness of the whole order, and, when we marched away from this city, their joy was turned into dulness and cloudiness.

On the ninth the prince commanded Dr. Burnet to order the priest-vicars of the cathedral, not to pray for the Prince of Wales, and to make use of no other prayer for the king, but what is in the second service, which they refused to observe, till they were forced and very severely threatened; the bishop and the dean being then gone from the city.

About twelve this day, notice was given to the canons, and all the vicars, choral and singing lads, to attend in the cathedral im. mediately, for that the prince would be there; and Dr. Burnet ordered them, as soon as the prince entered into the quire, they should sing Te Deum, which was observed. The prince sat in the bishop's chair, and all his great officers attending on him. After Te Deum was sung, Dr. Burnet, in a seat under the pulpit, read aloud the prince's declaration, and reasons for this his expedition; when this was over, the prince returned to the deanery.

The baggage was many days bringing from Torbay, but the ammunition, both arms for foot and horse, and the artillery, were brought in to Topsham Road, and there, by boats and other carriages landed; the field-pieces were sent after the army at Clist-heath, the brass cannon remaining some of them in Exon.

The greatest part of the army were ordered to march forward to Ottery and Honyton, and in several parties were ordered to divers places in the county. One party was sent to the North of Devon, for horses, which were bought at excessive rates. From Roman Catholicks, they took horses without money; and many gentlemen, who might have had money, refused, as the bishop's son, and divers others.

On Sunday, Dr. Burnet preached at the cathedral on this text, Psalm cvii. last verse. Ferguson preached in the Presbyterian meeting-house, but was fain to force his way with his sword up to the pulpit, for even the old Presbyter himself could not away with the breath of his brother Ferguson in his diocese: his text was in Psalm xciv. Who will rise up for me, against evil doers.' I heard one of that gang say, that his discourse came, very much under the lash of the 25th of Edward the Third; he is not much regarded by any of the prince's retinue.

Sir William W who had been at Ford with the prince, to see Sir William C- -, were both refused to be seen of him. One Major M, and Sir Will-were in commission to make new levies, which was carried en vigorously, and many enlisted under

them: But Sir W, it seems, began to use an old trade of taking money for quarters: complaint was made thereof to the prince, and they were discarded, and the men disbanded to seek for new officers. But Sir W- does continue under the prince's protection.

The prince was here above three days, before any appearance of gentry came, insomuch that the great officers began to wonder, that the prince should be invited in to England by them, and not to appear to the prince's assistance; but this consternation was soon over, when a considerable body of the gentry came in to him. Some that were for taking off the test and penal laws, they have not appeared as yet. So that now the counties of Cornwall and Devon are in the possession of the gentry thereof, and the prince's army quite marched away.

Pendennis Castle is managed by several gentlemen, who take their turns. Plymouth Fort is declared for the prince's service, by the Earl of B, who, it seems, was to have been poisoned, by throw. ing white mercury over a leg of mutton (appointed as one dish for his supper) instead of flour: for that, and some other reasons, he secured the Lord H- -, turned out all Papist soldiers, and has taken in the country soldiers into the fort.

Since which, there is an association among the gentry, worded much after that of my Lord Shaftsbury's.

Mr. Seymour being made Governor of Exeter and the Lord Mordaunt in his absence, there are new levies raising every day; so that this city is almost full of these new regiments, which are hourly disciplining by officers and old soldiers left here by the prince. All their arms are the prince's, and I am told, he brought with him as many as will set out twenty-thousand, both horse and foot. I am apt to believe this to be true, having seen most of what has been landed. All the vessels that brought up the ammunition, &c. are returned again to Torbay, under the guard of the principal men of war, a squadron of which lie now in the sound of Plymouth, and saluted each other with many cannon from the fort and the fleet.

On Sunday last, there was a report that the twenty-thousand French were landed at Porlock in this county, upon which the whole country rose with pikes, spits, scythes, and what weapons they could get, and made away for Exeter, but it proved a false alarm; for there were two small French ships driven by the Dutch fleet a-shore, and the French quitted their vessels and went on land, and were some killed, others sent hither. So that now they are pretty quiet again; but it has given that advantage to the commissioned officers, who are to raise new levies, to pick and chuse amongst them whom they please.

I shall now return again to the prince. When his highness left Exeter, Wednesday Nov. 21, he marched with his own guards, attended by a great many of the gentry both of Somersetshire and Devon to St. Mary Ottery, where he dined; after which he marched to Axminster, where he continued four days; from thence to Crook. horn, where he tarried only one night; from thence to Sherborne,

where his highness was splendidly entertained by the Lord D
from thence he went to Wincanton, where he lodged at the house of
one Mr. Churchill a merchant, and, it is credibly reported, designs
for Oxford.

Sir, I have given you the best account I can of this great affair; you may communicate it to such friends as you think fit. Sir, I am, with all due respects,

Wincanton, 1 Dec. 1688.

Your most obedient servant,

N. N.

A further Account of the Prince's Army, in a Letter sent from
Exon, dated Nov. 24.

HAD I not insensibly overslipped my time the last post, you had
received this then. When I came here, I endeavoured to inform
myself, after the best manner I could, as to the number and quality
of the prince's army; and all generally concluded them to be about
thirty-thousand, all picked men, and many of them personally
present at the siege of Buda. This I am certain of, that they ap-
peared to be men resolute, well disciplined, and stout, and of an
extraordinary stature, and their arms suitable, muskets, swords, and
pikes, being far larger than ever I yet saw; and notwithstanding
the streets were thronged, almost as thick as yours on a lord-mayor's
day, yet was it even a rarity to see one of them shorter than six
foot; and some of them were, I am confident, six foot and a quarter,
if not six foot and an half in height: so that, were it lawful to trust
in an arm of flesh, they might have some cause to presume. But the
tenor of their words was otherwise; their civil deportment and their
honesty of paying for what they have (and the strictness of their dis-
cipline hinders them from being otherwise) winning not a little the
affections of the country-men, who daily resort thither, forty or
fifty in a gang, to be enlisted. My Lord Mordaunt's regiment was
soon compleated, which, with two others, was raised and maintained
at the charge of the gentry in this county, of which Edward Seymour,
Esq. is by the prince made governor. During his highness's stay
here, which was till last Wednesday, there appeared a court most
splendid, composed, not only of foreign, but of many of the English
nobility and gentry, which came hither to wait on his highness since
his arrival, of both ranks, upwards to the number of sixty, all
mighty gallant in their equipage, each striving thereby to add to the
glory of their design. The gentry of these parts first seemed slow
in their advances to serve the prince; but, as soon as the ice was
broke by Capt. Burrington, the majority soon followed his steps,
and have entered into an association. It is to admiration to consider
the vast magazine of all warlike utensils brought hither by the
prince's army, their baggage having for a fortnight together been con-
tinually landing, and yet not fully ended. Were it not for the badness
of the roads, as I was informed by a private sentinal, they could
draw into the field an artillery of above two-hundred pieces: but
the greatest curiosity I yet saw was a bridge of boats; such as I

conceive the Imperialists use to pass over the Danube and Saave with, which was, for the speedy conveyance of their carriages, laid over the river in two or three hours, and afterwards as soon removed; not to mention a smith's shop or forge, curiously, contrived in a waggon; or another contrivance the foot carry with them to keep off the horse, which, in their manner, may well yield the service of a' pike.

There hath been lately driven into Dartmouth, and since taken, a French vessel loaden altogether with images, and knives of a very large proportion, in length, nineteen inches, and in breadth, two inches and an half: what they were designed for, God only knows.

For ESSAY ON MAGISTRACY, See VOL. 1. p. 3.

THE SPEECH

OF

THE PRINCE OF ORANGE

TO SOME PRINCIPAL GENTLEMEN

OF

SOMERSETSHIRE AND DORSETSHIRE,

On their coming to join his Highness at Exeter, the 15th of November, 1688.

Exeter, printed by J. B. 1688. Folio, containing one page.

THOUGH we know not all your persons, yet we have a catalogue of your names, and remember the character of your worth and interest in your country. You see we are come according to your invitation and our promise. Our duty to God obliges us to protect the Protestant religion, and our love to mankind, your liberties and properties. We expected you, that dwelt so near the place of our landing, would have joined us sooner; not that it is now too late, nor that we want your military assistance so much as your countenance, and presence, to justify our declared pretensions, rather than ac complish our good and gracious designs. Though we have brought both a good fleet, and a good army, to render these kingdoms happy, by rescuing all Protestants from Popery, slavery, and arbitrary power; by restoring them to their rights and properties established by law, and by promoting of peace and trade, which is the soul of government, and the very life-blood of a nation; yet we rely more on the goodness of God and the justice of our cause, than on any human force and power whatever. Yet, since God is pleased we shall make use of human means, and not expect miracles, for our

preservation and happiness; let us not neglect making use of this gracious opportunity, but with prudence and courage put in execu. tion our so honourable purposes. Therefore, gentlemen, friends, and fellow-protestants, we bid you and all your followers most heartily welcome to our court and camp. Let the whole world now judge, if our pretensions are not just, generous, sincere, and above price; since we might have, even a bridge of gold to return back; but it is our principle and resolution rather to die in a good cause, than live in a bad one, well knowing that virtue and true honour is its own reward, and the happiness of mankind our great and only design.

THE

LORD CHURCHILL'S LETTER
TO THE KING.

SIR,

SINCE men are seldom suspected of sincerity, when they act contrary to their interests; and though my dutiful behaviour to your Majesty, in the worst of times (for which I acknowledge my poor services much over-paid) may not be sufficient to incline you to a charitable interpretation of my actions; yet I hope, the great ad vantage I enjoy under your Majesty, which I can never expect im any other change of government, may reasonably convince your Majesty and the world, that I am acted by a higher principle, when I offer that violence to my inclination, and interest, as to desert your Majesty at a time when your affairs seem to challenge the strictest obedience from all your subjects, much more from one who lies under the greatest personal obligations imaginable to your Majesty, This, Sir, could proceed from nothing but the inviolable dictates of my conscience, and necessary concern for my religion (which no good man can oppose) and with which, I am instructed, nothing ought to come in competition. Heaven knows with what partiality my dutiful opinion of your Majesty hath hitherto represented those un happy designs, which inconsiderate and self-interested men have framed against your Majesty's true interest and the Protestant re ligion. But, as I can no longer join with such to give a pretence by conquest to bring them to effect, so will I always, with the hazard of my life and fortune (so much your Majesty's) endeavour to preserve your royal person and lawful rights with all the tender con. cern and dutiful respect that becomes, Sir,

Your Majesty's most dutiful and

Most obliged subject and servant,