d the opportunity. A fleet of more than six hundred vessels,
including fifty men-of-war, assembled at Helvoetsluys, near the mouth
of the Maas. The troops were embarked with great celerity. William
hoisted his flag with the words emblazoned on it, "The Protestant
Religion and Liberties of England," and underneath the motto of the
House of Nassau, _Je maintiendra_--"I will maintain."

The fleet set sail on the 19th October, the English Admiral Herbert
leading the van, the Prince of Orange commanding the main body of the
fleet, and the Dutch Vice-Admiral Evertzen bringing up the rear.

The wind was fair. It was the "Protestant wind" that the people of
England had so long been looking for. In a few hours the strong
eastern breeze had driven the fleet half across the sea that divides
the Dutch and English coasts. Then the wind changed. It began to blow
from the west. The wind increased until it blew a violent tempest. The
fleet seemed to be in the midst of a cyclone. The ships were blown
hither and thither, so that in less than two hours the fleet was
completely dispersed. At daybreak next morning scarce two ships could
be seen together.

The several ships returned to their rendez-vous at Goeree, in the
Maas. They returned in a miserable condition--some with their sails
blown away, some without their bulwarks, some without their masts.
Many ships were still missing. The horses had suffered severely. They
had been stowed away in the holds and driven against each other during
the storm. Many had been suffocated, others had their legs broken, and
had to be killed when the vessels reached the shore. The banks at
Goeree were covered with dead horses taken from the ships. Four
hundred had been lost.

Rapin de Thoyras and M. de Chavernay, commanding two companies of
French Huguenots, were on board one of the missing ships. The
frightful tempest had separated them from the fleet. They had been
driven before the wind as far as the coast of Norway. They thought
that each moment might be their last. But the sailors were brave, and
the ship was manageable. After enduring a week's storm the wind at
last abated. The ship was tacked, and winged its way towards the
south. At length, after about eight days' absence, they rejoined the
fleet, which had again assembled in the Maas. There were now only two
vessels missing, containing four companies of the Holstein regiment,
and about sixty French Huguenot officers.

In the meantime the Pr