of which they complained,
rather than be relieved at the expense of purchasing a new privilege to
the lords; and without this advantage, the peers would not contribute to
their relief.

{WILLIAM AND MARY, 1688--1701.}

THE ENGLISH AND DUTCH FLEETS BAFFLED BY THE FRENCH.

The next object that engrossed the attention of the lower house, was the
miscarriage of the fleet during the summer's expedition. Admiral Russel,
who commanded at sea, having been joined by a Dutch squadron, sailed
in quest of the enemy; but as the French king had received undoubted
intelligence that the combined squadrons were superior to his navy in
number of ships and weight of metal, he ordered Tourville to avoid
an engagement. This officer acted with such vigilance, caution, and
dexterity, as baffled all the endeavours of Russel, who was moreover
perplexed with obscure and contradictory orders. Nevertheless, he
cruised all summer either in the channel or in soundings, for the
protection of the trade, and in particular secured the homeward-bound
Smyrna fleet, in which the English and Dutch had a joint concern
amounting to four millions sterling. Having scoured the channel, and
sailed along great part of the French coast, he returned to Torbay in
the beginning of August, and received fresh orders to put to sea again,
notwithstanding his repeated remonstrances against exposing large
ships to the storms that always blow about the time of the equinox. He
therefore sailed back to soundings, where he continued cruising till
the second day of September, when he was overtaken by a violent tempest,
which drove him into the channel, and obliged him to make for the port
of Plymouth. The weather being hazy, he reached the Sound with great
difficulty: the Coronation, a second-rate, foundered at anchor off the
Ram-head; the Harwich, a third-rate, bulged upon the rocks and perished;
two others ran ashore, but were got off with little damage; but the
whole fleet was scattered and distressed. The nation murmured at the
supposed misconduct of the admiral, and the commons subjected him to an
inquiry: but when they examined his papers, orders, and instructions,
they perceived he had adhered to them with great punctuality, and
thought proper to drop the prosecution out of tenderness to the
ministry. Then the house took into consideration some letters which had
been intercepted in a French ship taken by sir Ralph Delaval. Three of
these are said to have been wri