at Britain and Ireland, and set up their first powdermills on the
little Hogsmill River, which joins the Thames at Kingston. Later, George
Evelyn retired, and John, having transferred his mills to Godstone, took
his brother Robert and three others into partnership and started on a
contract by which they supplied the Queen with a hundred lasts of powder
yearly at 7d. the pound. In 1604 the firm was practically reduced to
John and Robert Evelyn, and a partner named Hardinge, the others being
dead or doing no work. The firm was now employing a thousand hands, and
was given twenty-one years' contract to supply 120 lasts yearly at 8d.
per pound--nearly L10,000 worth of powder. But James I soon broke this
contract, and after three years the contract was given to the Earl of
Worcester; though whether the Earl ever made any powder, or what he did
with his contract, nobody knows. The progress of the manufacture of
gunpowder now becomes very obscure, though probably John Evelyn kept his
mills running at Godstone, making reduced quantities. It is not till
1621 that we find John Evelyn making another large contract with the
Government, but after that date the contracts were renewed every two or
three years, until the Evelyns in 1636 ceased to supply the Government
altogether. Their difficulties must have been almost intolerable. John
Evelyn and his son, also named John, who succeeded him in 1627, appear
to have been always punctual and trustworthy in supplying the powder
required, but the King would not or could not pay for it. The history of
each contract is always the same; for a few months all goes swimmingly,
then comes the Crown's inability to pay up; next stoppage of supplies;
eventually, settling up and a new contract. The Evelyn mills made the
last pound of powder for the King in 1636, and then under protest.
Charles was used to protests.

So far very little powder had been made at Chilworth. The Evelyn mills
were at Godstone--possibly near Wotton also. But it was the Chilworth
powdermills which broke the Evelyns' business. Immediately on coming to
the throne Charles I gave leave to the East India Company to set up
powdermills on the skirts of Windsor Park; but the mills frightened the
deer and were moved to Chilworth. Here, apparently, Sir Edward Randyll
owned or built a large number of mills, which he leased to the Company,
and it was the competition of the Company which silenced Evelyn's mills.
But the Company was equally