SIR,

THe Embaſſadours of the United Provinces having been long in Treaty with the Parliament, and yet notwithſtanding have given no reaſonable ſatisfaction to the juſt demands of this Common-wealth, and being ſince remanded by their maſters the States; his Excellency General Blake thought it not good any longer to protract time, but vigorouſly (for the honour of this Common-wealth) to proſecute the work in hand, and to fight the Hollanders whereſoever he can meet them; with this reſolution he ſet ſail with a gallant Fleet of ſhips towards the Northern ſeas, there to diſturb and give a check to the inſolency of the Dutch, whom he underſtood in great numbers to be fiſhing upon our Engliſh ſeas; leaving Sir George Aſcue to command the reſt of the Fleet in the Downs.

He had not ſailed far, but that he made a diſcovery of certain Hollanders, whom he purſued ſo cloſe that he forced them to ingage, and after ſome ſmal diſpute, he boarded four, two whereof were men of war, the other were Marchants ſhips, laden with many rich commodities, all the reſt were diſperſed up and down, being not able in that haſt to keep company with each other.

His Excellency then ſet forward in his courſe Northward, and according to his intelligence, he found the Dutch fiſhing, with many men of war that attended them for their preſent guard, and to convoy them home; his Excellency comming near them, ſaluted them firſt with one ſingle gun, thereby willing them (it being the cuſtome at ſea) to lore their Top-ſails, and ſubmit to the Common-wealth of England, but (their ſpirits being heightned with the preſumption of their own ſtrength) they refuſed, anſwering him with a broad ſide, and after that with another, whereupon both parties ingaged, maintaining a gallant diſpute with great reſolution, for a good ſpace; for having before elevated their ſpirits with Brandy wine, viz. Strong-water, they ſtoutly maintained their decks; but it pleaſed the Lord of Hoſts at laſt to crown our Fleet with victory, ſo that they ſunk two, took four, all men of war, with about an hundred ſail of Fiſhermen, which they brought all ſafe into our Harbours in Scotland.

From aboard the Iames, Iuly the 1. 1652.

A Letter from Rotterdam. SIR,

WE heare no talk now but of making great preparations to defend our ſelves and ſhips againſt your ſhips, who we hear take all they can meet withall at ſea; this hath cauſed a generall alarm throughout the Countrey, and men and money are raiſing apace to make our party good againſt you; for by your laſt anſwer given to our Embaſſadors with you, we do conceive that you intend war to this State; who in moſt places of this Country are no ways ſorry for it; for till we have beaten you at ſea, we think we ſhall never be able with treating to bring you to accept of ſuch terms of our own, as we have given to other nations by being Maſters at ſea. We think out ſelves capable and ſufficient to do it, or elſe we would never have begun with you: and whereas you expect ſatisfaction, we may chance to demand the like of you with double intereſt for the charges you have now put us to, by your lofty carriage at ſea, this hath ſo much incenſed our common ſort of people, that unleſſe ſome ſudden courſe be taken by the Magiſtrates to right them againſt the Engliſh, they will raiſe inſurrections, and revenge themſelves on the Magiſtrates, who dare hardly walk the ſtreets for fear of being miſuſed by the peeple in generall.

A Letter from Dublin in Ireland. SIR,

I Promiſed you an account of the laying down of arms by the enemy upon this laſt agreement; but my puddering buſineſs doth ſo turmoil me, that I know not whether I have performed that task or no, my fickle memory in the hurty of affairs, doth not inform me concerning my performance of that promiſe; but to be ſure, I ſhaſ now give you a full account, as briefly as may be: Dungon, Scurlock, Weſtmeath, and the Lord of Clonmaleer, did bring in part of the forces, in all about the number of 800 at the moſt; the reſt, being near ſo many thouſands, ſtill doth refuſe to ſubmit, being they are not pardoned for their murthers, and we are as well contented that the war is now clearly ſtated upon that account. The Lord of Clanrickard is about Letrim with a conſiderable Army, my Lord Preſident, and Commiſſary General Reynolds, are both at Slego to take that in, Colonel Venables is fortifying Belturbet, the Lieut. General, and Major General, and the Lord of Broghil are all gone into Kerry to ſubdue Muskerry: The Lord Taaff is hereabouts with the Byrons, Coales, Conways and Grace, who all keep in ſeveral great faſtneſſes, and by means of the great Woods and Mountains, eaſily eſcape me; but I am fortifying ſeveral places near them, and now an finiſhing Tullon, from whence I newly came hither for ſome accommodations to fortifie Dedrum. As I lay at Tullon laſt week, there was an ambuſh laid by Captain Conway, and Captain Line, for Collonel Pritty, who was comming from Carlow to me, with a guard of ren horſe: I did hear of it, and diſpatched away two parties from my Camp; the enemy had engaged Collonel Pritty, killed two, and took Captain Miller and four Troopers priſoners, but Collonel Pritty eſcaped; the parties diſpatched out purſued them cloſe, and killed four, releaſed Captain Miller, took Captain Line and one more, and ſixteen good horſes, their riders eſcaped in the Bogs. That night I ſent out a party of horſe and foot to the Briſcales, who killed above fourty, and took thirty good horſe, and returned; here Mr. Phelim ſent his Trumpetter to me for to grant Captain Line a Parol, I returned him no anſwer, owning him as a murtherer and woodkern, and upon that ſcore intend to proſecute him, ſent him word that I would not give nor take quarter with him, nor any of his party, and by a Proclamation which I ſent him by his Trumper, offered 200 li. for any to execute him upon his own lentence of not comming in upon the Agreement, but ſtanding out as a murtherer, therefore if any ſhould bring me his body or head, I would give them 200. li.

Sir, I am Your humble Servant J. H. Dublin, Iune 20. 1652. Poſtiſcript.

Since I writ this Letter, I have certain intelligence, that Slego is ſurrendred, and that Sir Theophilus Jones with a party of Horſe of Dragoons, killed two Collonels, ten Captains, and three hundred of a party of three thouſand he met with in the County of Cavan, and took all their horſe; and that the Liev. Gen. Ludlow fell upon a party of the enemy near the Lough, killed many, took a great quantity of powder and ammunition, and 60 horſe.

From the Downs we received intelligence, that Sir George Aſcue, whom Generall Blake left to command the reſt of the Engliſh Fleet in the Downs, is very active and vigilant to diſcharge the truſt repoſed in him, and receiving intelligence of about 45 fail of Hollanders, that were on the coaſt of France, he reſolved to fight them; ſo ſetting ſail towards them, it was not long before he deſcried them, and comming near them, he preſented them with a broad-ſide, they anſwered him with the like, whereupon hapned a very deſperate ingagement, but after a very hot and bloudy diſpute, which continued for about 2 hours with great gallantry and reſolution, Sir G. Aſcue became victor, took 7 of them, ſunk and burned four, and forced about twenty four more of them to run on ground on the French ſhore, all which we conceive cannot poſſible eſcape ſhipwrack. The reſt of the Hollanders Sir George is in very hot purſuit of. It is reported by ſome that the Rubey is ſunk, which (if true) would prove a very great loſſe, ſhe carrying 42 guns, and about 480 men. It is alſo reported that Vantrump hath ſent a letter to Gen Blake, wherein he challengeth him to fight him upon equall terms, upon the coaſt of Flanders or the narrow ſeas; but it is believed his heart will hardly ſerve him to make good his challenge.