HISTORY OF MARINE ARCHITECTURE.

83

fcrent times to render the most watchful attention on the part of the blockadestotally useless: so that the mismanagement to which the misfortunes alluded to

were

lost to England, especially in respect to fish and other perishable commodities ; which would soon befelt in a very heavy manner in all parts of the nation, the great consequence of that trade fully ap-pearing hy the merchants, set down in the report made upon their petition.

It is necessary, for the safety and honour of the kingdom, and of all manner of trade whatsoever,that the Channel and Soundings be well guarded ; and if this be done, the traders in gallies own theyhave no reason to complain.

The enemy have not altered their mode of making war by sea : they always endeavoured to infestour trade by their privateers to as great a degree as they could ; but it must be owned, that of late theyhave had better success than ever ; and the great encouragement they met with, the sea, in effect,being left open to them, it is too probable will soon increase their numbers.

The merchants do insist, that the list of 1146 ships, given in by them, does not con’ain all theirlosses during the war ; but, in a manner, such only as have been taken in the Channel and Soundingswithin two or three years last, and principally such as did belong to the port of London.

They have already had an account of 34 ships taken in the Channel and Soundings since they madetheir complaint to the house of lords ; of which ships they delivered a list to the committee, and af-firmed, that the loss of those ships, by a moderate computation, amounted to above j[. 170 , 000 . Theyaffirmed beside those named in that list, several other rich ships are missing; and many of them, theyfear, have met with the same fate, the Channel and Soundings being infested with the enemy’s menof war and privateers as much as ever ; the neutral ships which come into the poits of Britain de-claring that they have been boarded by them in those places several times in a day.

It is asserted in the answer, that at the end of the last war, notwithstanding the sums granted byparliament for its augmentation, the royal navy was less, by twenty ships, than at the beginning;instead of which it was increased by 113 ships and vessels, of which 39 were of the line of battle ;beside 21 ships which were building on the 30th of September, J 697 , whereof 13 were of the line ofbattle.

And though in the same observation it is alleged, that nothing has been given in this reign forbuilding of ships, yet the provision for the navy in general has been much larger in this war than in thelast : for, in this reign, there has been granted, for the use of the navy, including the ordnance forsea service, and the sums voted for the service of the year 1708, the sum of £. 15,366,867. 171 . 10*/.whereas all the sums received by the treasurers of the navy, between the 5th of November, 1688,and the 30 th of September, 1697, including the money given for building of ships, only amounted tothe sum of £. 15,236,SQS. 1 j. 5 d. ■

It may be also observed, that in the year 169 s there were 105 ships of the line of batt'e in thoroughrepair; whereas it appears, that on the 1 st of December, 1707, three first rates, eight second rates,and two fourth rates, wanted re-building or great repairs, which, considering the nature of the ships,makes a great part of the strength of the line of battle.

I he lords committees take notice,, that cluiing the war only 25 ships of all sorts have been taken ordestroyed by cruizing ships at sea; and of that number only five ships from 30 to 60 guns.

The