their Said Ship and her
Cargoe,[3]

[Footnote 2: A forced.]

[Footnote 3: A vote of the general assembly in May, 1725, _Records of
the Colony of R.I._, IV. 361, mentions three quite other persons as
claiming to have effected the recapture. No action on Simons's
petition is noted in the records.]

And in as much as the Said Nicholas Simons is now under a necessity to
leave off his Employment of a Mariner for fear of the Sd. Pirates And
has a new Employment to Seek for his Support he being in but low
Circumstances,

He therefore most humbly prays your Honours would be pleased to take
the premisses into your most just and wise consideration and bestow of
your Bounty upon him as in your accustomed goodness you Shall See
meet.

And your Peti'r as in Duty Bound Shall ever pray etc

Boston May NICHOLAS SIMONS.
1725

The above petitioner was the principle person
in Resqueing the Ship out of the hands of
the pirats, and had Incouragem't of a gratuity
by this Assembly for his good Service.

SAM'L CRANSTON Go'r

Past to the house of Deputys
by order
RICHD. WARD Record'r

_126. Instructions of George II. to Captains of Privateers. November
30, 1739._[1]

[Footnote 1: Opening pages of "vol. V." (1739-1745) of the manuscript
records of the vice-admiralty court held at Boston. These five volumes
of records are now deposited with the Suffolk Court Files. They are
described by Mr. John Noble in _Pubs. Col. Soc. Mass._, VIII. 169. A
summary of all the cases in this particular volume, wrongly declared
then to be the only one extant, is presented in the appendix to B.R.
Nichols, _Argument in Peele vs. Merchants Insurance Co._ (Boston,
1826), pp. 127-132. Various extracts are in Mr. Noble's article, pp.
170-184. War with Spain had been declared Oct. 23. Instructions to
privateers were of course issued in every war. Parts of those put
forth in 1693, 1705, 1706, and 1744 are printed in F.T. Pratt, _Law of
Contraband of War_ (London, 1856), pp. 264-269, 257. Others are in
R.G. Marsden, _Law and Custom of the Sea_, II. 404-435. Of acts of
Parliament on privateers and prizes, the latest in force at this date
was that of 9 Anne ch. 27, but a fresh act was under discussion in
Parliament at this date, and on Dec. 20 the royal assent was given to
the act 13 Geo. II. ch. 4, "for the encouraging of seamen to enter
into his Majesty's service".]

Instructions for the Commanders of such Merchant Ships and Vessells as
may