the confusion which the first had put them into, that they immediately called out to me, upon their parole of safety, to come to them.

Accordingly I went up to the door, which they had barricaded, and made up with great stones; when they told me they were ready to surrender upon condition of obtaining mercy. I returned to sir Thomas; and telling him what I had done, and the consequence of it, and the message they had desired me to deliver (a great many of the Highland gentlemen, not of this party, being with him,) sir Thomas, in a high voice, and broad Scotch, best to be heard and understood, ordered me back to tell them, He would cut them all to pieces, for their murder of two of his grenadiers, after his proffer of quarter.

I was returning, full of these melancholy tidings, when sir Thomas, advancing after me a little distance from the rest of the company; Hark ye, sir, says he, I believe there may be among them some of our old acquaintance (for we had served together in the service of the States in Flanders,) therefore tell them they shall have good quarter. I very willingly carried back a message so much changed to my mind; and upon delivering of it, without the least hesitation, they threw down the barricado, opened the door, and out came one Brody, who, as he then told me, had had a piece of his nose taken off by one of my grenadoes. I carried him to sir Thomas, who confirming my message, they all came out, and surrendered themselves prisoners. This happened on May-day in the morning; for which reason we returned to Inverness with our prisoners, and boughs in our hats; and the Highlanders never held up their heads so high after this defeat.

Upon this success sir Thomas wrote to court, giving a full account of the whole action. In which being pleased to make mention of my behaviour, with some particularities, I had soon after a commission ordered

me for a company in the regiment under the command of brigadier Tiffin.

My commission being made out, signed, and sent to me, I repaired immediately to Portsmouth, where the regiment lay in garrison. A few days after I had been there, admiral Russel arrived with the fleet, and anchored at St. Helen's, where he remained about a week. On the 18th of May the whole fleet set sail; and it being my turn the same day to mount the main guard, I was going the rounds very early, when I heard great shooting at sea. I went directly to acquaint the governor, and told him my sentiments, that the two contending fleets were actually engaged; which indeed proved true, for that very night a pinnace, which came from our fleet, brought news that admiral Russel had engaged the French admiral Turvile; and, after a long and sharp dispute, was making after them to their own coasts.

The next day, towards evening, several other expresses arrived, one after another, all agreeing in the defeat of the French fleet, and in the particulars of the burning their Rising Sun, together with many other of their men of war, at La Hogue. All which expresses were immediately forwarded to court by Mr. Gibson, our governor.

About two months after this, our regiment, among many others, was, according to order, shipped off on a secret expedition, under the command of the duke of Leinster, no man knowing to what place we were going, or on what design; no, not the commander himself. However, when we were out at sea, the general, according to instructions, opening his commission, we were soon put out of our suspense, and informed that our orders were to attack Dunkirk. But what was so grand a secret to those concerned in the expedition, having been intrusted to a female politician on land, it was soon discovered to the enemy; for which reason our orders were countermanded, before we reached the

place of action, and our forces received directions to land at Ostend.

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Soon after this happened that memorable battle at Steenkirk, which, as very few at that time could dive into the reason of, and mistaken accounts of it have passed for authentic, I will mention somewhat more particularly the undertaking was bold; and, as many thought, bolder than was consistent with the character of the wise undertaker. Nevertheless, the French having taken Namur, and, as the malcontents alleged, in the very sight of a superior army, and nothing having been done by land of any moment, things were blown into such a dangerous fermentation, by a malicious and lying spirit, that king William found himself under a necessity of attempting something that might appease the murmurs of the people. He knew very well, though spoke in the senate, that it was not true that his forces at the siege of Namur exceeded those of the enemy; no man could be more afflicted than he at the overflowing of the Mehaigne, from the continual rains, which obstructed the relief he had designed for that important place; yet since his maligners made an ill use of these false topics, to insinuate that he had no mind to put an end to the war, he was resolved to evince the contrary, by showing them that he was not afraid to venture his life for the better obtaining what was so much desired.

To that purpose, receiving intelligence that the duke of Luxemburg lay strongly encamped at Steenkirk, near Enghien, (though he was sensible he must pass through many defiles to engage him, and that the many thickets between the two armies would frequently afford him new difficulties,) he resolved there to attack him. Our troops at first were forced to hew out their passage for the horse; and there was no one difficulty that his imagination had drawn that was lessened by experience; and yet so prosperous were his arms at

the beginning, that our troops had made themselves masters of several pieces of the enemy's cannon. But the further he advanced, the ground growing straighter, so straight as not to admit his army's being drawn up in battalia, the troops behind could not give timely succour to those engaged, and the cannon we had taken was forcibly left behind in order to make a good retreat. The French had lost all their courage in the onset; for though they had too fair an opportunity, they did not think fit to pursue it, or at least did it very languidly. However, the malcontents at home, I remember, grew very well pleased after this; for so long as they had but a battle for their money, like true Englishmen, lost or won, they were contented.

Several causes, I remember, were assigned for this miscarriage, as they called it: some there were who were willing to lay it upon the Dutch; and allege a saying of one of their generals, who, receiving orders to relieve some English and Scotch that were overpowered, was heard to say, Damn 'em, since they love fighting let 'em have their bellies full. But I should rather impute the disappointment to the great loss of so many of our bravest officers at the very first onset. General Mackay, colonel Lanier, the earl of Angus, with both his fieldofficers, sir Robert Douglas, colonel Hodges, and many others falling, it was enough to put a very considerable army into confusion. I remember one particular action of sir Robert Douglas, that I should think myself to blame should I omit: seeing his colours on the other side the hedge, in the hands of the enemy, he leaped over, slew the officer that had them, and then threw them over the hedge to his company; redeeming his colours at the expense of his life. Thus the Scotch commander improved upon the Roman general; for the brave Posthumius cast his standard in the middle of the enemy for his soldiers to retrieve, but Douglas retrieved his from the middle of the enemy, without

any assistance, and cast it back to his soldiers to retain, after he had so bravely rescued it out of the hands of the enemy.

From hence our regiment received orders to march to Dixmuyd, where we lay some time, employed in fortifying that place. While we were there, I had one morning steadfastly fixed my eyes upon some ducks, that were swimming in a large water before me; when all on a sudden, in the midst of a perfect calm, I observed such a strange and strong agitation in the waters, that prodigiously surprised me. I was at the same moment seized with such a giddiness in my head, that, for a minute or two, I was scarce sensible, and had much ado to keep on my legs. I had never felt anything of an earthquake before, which, as I soon after understood from others, this was; and it left, indeed, very apparent marks of its force in a great rent in the body of the great church, which remains to this day.

Having brought the intended fortifications into some tolerable order, we received a command, out of hand, to re-embark for England. And, upon our landing, directions met us to march for Ipswich, where we had our quarters all that winter. From thence we were ordered up to London, to do duty in the Tower. I had not been there long before an accident happened, as little to be accounted for, without a divine providence, as some would make that providence to be, that only can account for it.

There was at that time, as I was assured by my lord Lucas, constable of it, upwards of twenty thousand barrels of gunpowder in that they call the White Tower, when all at once the middle flooring did not only give way or shrink, but fell flat down upon other barrels of powder, together with many of the same combustible matter which had been placed upon it. It was a providence strangely neglected at that time, and hardly thought of since; but let any considerate man consult the consequences if it had taken fire; perhaps to the de

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