. Witnesses were
summoned and upon Baltimore's appearance, he was ordered to make
answer in writing to Ingle by the 30th. On January 29th the matter was
again postponed until February 6th, "in respect of extraordinary
occasions not permitting them to hear the same to-morrow." Delay
followed delay until March 1st, when Ingle was "unprovided to prove"
the charges against Lord Baltimore for misconduct in the government
of Maryland, but on the 15th of the same month, "after several debates
of the business depending between Capt. Ingle and Lord Baltimore,
touching a commission granted to Leonard Calvert, * * * by the late
King at Oxford in 1643" the advocate for the State and the attorney
general were directed to examine the validity of the original charter
to Cecil, Lord Baltimore. Allusion to this matter was again made in
the records, but nothing showing its result unless it be the order of
the Council of State, of December 23d, 1651, that Lord Baltimore
should be allowed to "pursue his cause according to law."[68]

Ingle seems to have been at this time in the service of what was once
a parliament, but which had been reduced in 1648, by Pride's purge, to
about sixty members. In February, 1650, he informed the Council of
State that on board two ships, the "'Flower de Luce' and the 'Thomas
and John,' were persons bound to Virginia, who were enemies of the
Commonwealth." The vessels were stayed for over a month, when they
were allowed to sail down to Gravesend, where, before they left for
Virginia, the mayor and justices were to "take the superscription of
passengers and mariners not to engage against the Commonwealth."[69]
In April of this year the Council of State ordered the payment to
Ingle of L30 sterling for services and care in keeping Captain
Gardner, who had been arrested for treason, in having tried to betray
Portland Castle.[70] He again comes into notice in 1653, by some
letters written by him to Edward Marston. He had been cast away by
shipwreck in the Downs, and was then at Dover, where he had been very
ill. Having heard that two prizes which he had helped to secure, had
been condemned and that the rest of the men had obtained their shares,
he wrote to secure the eleven shares due him, and told Marston to send
one part to his wife, and the other to him. On November 14th, he again
wrote that he had received no answer although "I have written you
every post these 3 weeks, having been sick my want of money is
grea