MY being at Limbricke so long, must excuse my silence in the affaires of Dublia; in my de­parture thence, and returne to Corke, newes came suddenly thither that present morning being Twelfth even; Iannuary eleventh, 1641. both the Towne and Castle of Kingsale were taken from the Rebells, and a most glorious victory obtained over them; all Corke ecchoing of this newes, and the poore English I am sure rejoycing seriously, as some Irish I am sure hung downe their heads apparently; I and Iohn Birges with two more tooke horse that afternoone, & went forthwith to Kingsale twelve miles distant from Corke, the rather because of my businesse with Mr. Beklow my Uncle, dwelling over the har­bour three miles from that Towne, a right worthy and religious Gentleman, of whose welfare in these times I was desirous to be enformed; when we came to Kingsale we found the Towne already in the po­wer [Page] of the English and reduced by the noble and couragious attempt of Sir Simon Harcourt, and Sir Thomas Temple, whose two Regiments had not made an end of their execution upon the Rebells in the Church yard, at what time we entred the Towne, and I also assure you, the execution was exceeding hot, these two great Commanders gi­ving command to their souldiers, and crying to their hearers, Souldiers, cut off all males, which I assure you was done to the purpose; such pittifull clamours and mortall groanings I never heard be­fore, and desire never to see or heare the like again, though of Rebell, whose former demeanour I am sure had deserved it, could it have been worse, but these two couragious cavalleers have fully as I sup­pose paied some of their old scores; in the meane time was the Earles of Kildare and Barrimore, with my Lord of Castlelions busied with taking in of the fort, having three thousand 500. men in their com­pany, their Lordsh. had five good peeces with them, yet the fort stands so strongly mounted, and so un­approachable either by farre or neare assaults, that their peeces could doe them little good, save that by the advice of one Iohn Simons a very skilfull gun­ner, the artillery was drawne up a very steep nar­row and broken passage in the rereward just before the mouth of the forts gate, upon signall given the said rereward very speedily, and in as good order as for the straitnesse and inconveniency of the place could be expected, retired behinde the artilleries, and caused the carriages to advance even to the ve­ry [Page] gates; the Rebells whether out of misprision of our forces that they were not so great as indeed to their cost they afterward found them, or thinking that our rereward did indeed flye because they cried at their retreat, emine, emine, the Rebells hearing emine, forthwith issued out of the fort crying Saint Patrick and the crosse, they flye; but the Can­noneers, and especially Iohn Simous did their duty so well, that neither Saint Patricke nor the crosse brought them very farre, for the Gunnes with such dexterity let flye amongst them, with their five pee­ces that were laden in such a manner, and such stuffe, that forthwith fourescore and eleven of them were upon the ground, some with more members, some with lesse, and the fort wicket not onely beat open, but sent fifteene yards in; our companies forthwith advanced, and with the losse only of Mr. Freane an Irish man, but an honest man, recovered the outward court, but at the gaining of the inward our losses were more heavy, for there my Lord of Castlelions was brained with a stone from one of the battlements, and Mr. Edward Speneer shot with a collever: to speake truth, the rogues shewed great stoutnesse, and resolution before wee could master them within the second court, and never was quarter once demanded by them, nor offered by us, at the last seeing themselves no way able to hold out against us, either answerable to us in num­ber or ammunition, they desperately carryed their powder and other combustible stuffe into a kinde of cellar or vault under the Fort hall, and as wee [Page] were furious in forcing the inward gate of the Fort, upon a suddaine it flew open, our men following hot, followed the villaines unadvisedly into the said cellar, where the cursed captives blew up them­selves, and some of our men; and thus God bee thanked is that strong Fort recovered, and I trust will be for hereafter better looked unto, comman­ding not onely that Towne, but all the Country thereabouts and all the whole harbour, and by a little cost might be made invincible; let us be wise at least after we have smarted.

But all the rest is not so pleasant, God tempe­reth our sweet with bitter, lest perhaps we should be too frolick. Decem. 20. being Thursday, was as execrable and dreadfull a murder acted upon the bodies of a worthy Gentleman, his wife and chil­dren, and whole family in the Vantry as ever I thinke was heard tell of in the memory of man; this Gentlemans name war Mr. Iohn Davenant, Ne­phew unto the late Bishop of Sarum, he was a great Spilchard fisher in the Vantry, there dwelt by him one Odonnel Swillevan an incarnat Divell, who came into the house of the said Mr. Davenant with all his savage rebellious crue, who seazing the Gentle­man and his wife, first bound them in [...]o chaire, set them to the fire, then tooke their eldest sonne and spitted him before their face, laid him down to the fire, then caused the servant maid to turne him, after him the second, then a young tender daughter, next they abused his wife, after that roasted her before the poore Gentlemans face, who all the while pro­voked [Page] them all he could, that so by that meanes hee might have his death hastned rather then to be thus tormented in the tortures of his dearest and nearest, the sight of whose miseries was to him a thousand deaths, at length they cut out his tongue, then his members, his legs likewise, and then roasted him; was ever such cruelty heard of amongst the very Canniballs! God grant the Kingdome of England may take some speedy course, not onely for pre­vention, but likewise for redresse and revenge of such unparalleled bloud suckers. This I thought good to intimate unto you being as certaine as la­mentable, desiring you, and all true Christians there' with you, first to commend our case to God in your religious prayers, then to the King and Par­liament how much you thinke it concernes.