The second cause of Tangier's unhappiness is, that most of the persons, that have been sent thither, have never intended to inhabit there, but have been needy, and greedy, and have only designed to live there a while to fill their purses, and then to return for England with their gains. By this means the sober inhabitants of Tangier, from whose industry and good behaviour only we can reasonably expect prosperity, impoverish the city, and discourage the rest. And many other inconveniencies proceed from hence, to his majesty's prejudice, and of the place. To remedy this inconveniency, such laws should be enacted as might encourage men to live there, and discourage their departure upon such unhandsome terms as they commonly leave the garison.

The third cause is, the difference and variance between traders and soldiers, encouraged too much by the rulers covetousness, and the citizens poverty and wants; and the unreasonableness of both, unwilling to comply with one another: for this discourageth all wealthy persons from inhabiting there, because they are not countenanced, nor have those liberties which it hath pleased his majesty to grant them. Some in a late governor's time, for frivolous accounts, have been called in question for their lives, condemned contrary to all law and reason to gratify his displeasure, and others of the female sex. These, and such like proceedings, ruin Tangier, and hinder it from that prosperity and wealth which it might easily attain to.

Fourthly, Tangier's ill fate, since it is in the English hands, is due to the ill reports spread abroad of the place by the vulgar sort, encouraged by the many persons dead there through their own miscarriages, and the ill usages of popish officers, who to my knowledge have valued more ten or twelve shillings at pay-day, than the lives of their soldiers; and have not treated them like men, much less like Christians. I have saved the lives of a great many of my neighbours, when they have wanted necessaries. For which good deeds I have been reproved by some Irish officers, who expected their pay between their death and the following muster. The meanest soldier must be encouraged, and not suffered to want when fallen into a sickness, though most times through his own intemperance. I dare affirm, and will offer to prove, that the unmercifulness of the officers, and the neglect of physicians and apothe caries, who, though paid for that purpose by his majesty, have killed three parts of those that are dead in Tangier. I have sometimes buried three or four in a day, dead for want of that which his majesty hath provided for them in case of sickness.

Fifthly, another cause of Tangier's unhappiness, is the strange victories of the Moors, and the sad massacre of the English, when they have gone out against them in the open field; with the vast opinion of valour they have gained amongst us, through our unadvisedness, and their successes. The defeat of Fines's party on the first and third of May, and of my Lord Tiviot, and his company, on the second, have struck a great terror into our English hearts, and caused us to look upon a Moor as an excellent soldier: but truly we are mistaken; I know their valour, and the strength of their country, more than any that hath yet been in Tangier; for, when I have been amongst the Moors, I

have enquired many things concerning their order, militia, numbers, &c. which I perceive we are ignorant of.

The greatest strength of the Moors army, is in the horse and lance foot they have, armed partly with guns, and partly with lances; but they have no great guns, neither do they know how to manage them, nor carry them into the field. They fight in disorder, without rank or files, the horse by themselves, and the foot by themselves. In set battles, which have seldom been seen in this country, the horse make up the van and the rear, and the foot the main body; so that many times the foot have nothing for them to do, but to destroy the defeated enemy, when the horse hath routed and terrified them. But they are for ambushes and surprises, because their country is very proper for that purpose. Muley Arxid overcame Gayland in this manner, as he had before ruined Bembouka. In this country they have but little or no standing army; all is made up of their several divisions, or companies of Arabs scattered about, who know their distinct monkadems, or colonels, under whom they are to fight, and to whom they are to repair in all alarms. But they cannot subsist long in one place, because they have no purveyors, nor other provisions, but what every man brings with him, unless it be some small quantity, which the place where they lie may afford them, in case of necessity. They fight in the same manner, as the Roman authors have represented the ancient Mauri; neither are they better skilled in marshalling an army, or fighting. Let any man that knows the art of war, compare them with us, and judge whether we may not be able to encounter them. If they have had successes against us, it is through our weakness and unpreparedness. We have marched against them only with muskets and swords, and they have come against us with horse and lance: before our men had time to discharge their muskets, the horse and the lance had disordered our men, broken their ranks, and cut them all to pieces on a sudden. Had we a wall of pikes to oppose against them, lined with muskets, all the horse of Barbary could do us no mischief, and we might safely march through their whole country. An example we have lately had of a worthy commander, Sir Palmes Fairbourne, who made his retreat with his party without any considerable loss, only with the assistance of a stand of pikes, which kept off the Moors horse, whilst his foot fired upon them. Their foot signify nothing, their horse have no guns or very few, only pistols. For their infantry, they are unskilful in the managing of a gun, neither have they the courage to stand a shot. The Portuguese seldom encountered with the Moors, but they had the victory; therefore, we must ascribe all our losses to the unadvisedness of our commanders, and the disorder of our men, and their want of those defensive weapons, which were able to keep off the fury of the Moors horse. I dare engage with five or six thousand English, against above twenty thousand Moors, if the English may have those arms and provisions that become them. Such is the weakness of this country, that they can scarce bring together, under one commander, twenty thousand men for they are all divided under several heads of families, since the death of the last Emperor of Morocco, and will not consent

to set up a monarch again. He, therefore, that hath the longest sword, gets the victory, and the chief command. In this case, it is an easy matter for us to make an interest for ourselves, by encouraging some party, and imitating the Roman policy, who never ventured against a nation, or people, but with the assistance of some of their own soldiers. But it is our unhappiness, that we know not what is done amongst the Moors; we live in Tangier within the walls and lines, and, unless we send a flag of truce for some pitiful business, we scarce see the face of a Moor in a year's time, but at a distance, unless some of them come to bring provisions to us. But we have never sent any to understand their country, to search into their strength and dependencies, to examine their interests, their inclinations, and those other things which we might improve to the advantage of Tangier. If any be sent for that purpose, he must not be a nobleman, for they care not to see any greater state amongst them than they observe. Their greatest princes live as king Evander in Virgil. As they have a great respect for clergymen, I think such a one, if ingenious, and acquainted with the language of the country, might do much good, either to persuade them to a peace and trade with us, or to understand those particulars, which might cause us to secure the interest of Tangier; that may be done either by peace or war. But let us be well assured of this, that, whilst we keep only the walls of Tangier, we shall only spend money; it will never bring any profit to our king, unless the country be opened for us, which may be easily done, with little or no expence; and, instead of several thousand pounds which his majesty spends in the maintaining of Tangier, it shall not only maintain itself, but yield a considerable revenue to the crown of England. For the future, it may be rendered a dreadful city to the Moors, Spaniards, Turks, and French, and keep in the incursions of those of Algier.

If Tangier were in that condition, men would desire to go over and inhabit there, for the conveniency of trade; some neighbour factories would settle there, and we should vend all commodities of wool which lie upon our hands, amongst the Africans, for now the Dutch and French furnish them. We should secure our merchants from the pirates of Algier, for then they would not dare to break with us upon every slight occasion. When the Vandals conquered Africa, it was stronger than it is now, and they had not the advantage of guns as we have, yet they found but little difficulty to subdue the inhabitants, who were then assisted by the Romans and Grecians.

I could offer many things for the good of Tangier, from my know. ledge of the country since the beginning of the world: but I know not how acceptable these things will be. I am certain, if a right course was taken, the mole, which hath been long building, might be speedily finished; Tangier might be made the most prosperous and hopeful city that belongs to England; and it should repay to his majesty all that has been expended in the keeping of it since it was ours. If I be required, I shall be willing, not only to give a further account, but also to be instrumental in the promoting of the good of Tangier.

A LETTER TO THE EARL OF SHAFTSBURY,

This 9th day of July, 1690.

FROM

TOM TELL-TROTH, A DOWNRIGHT ENGLISHMAN.

Folio, containing four pages.

I

MY LORD,

HAVE lived to see your lordship great as well as popular, and a stout assertor of the protestant religion and interest. Wherefore to your lordship have I thought fit, in this time of danger to our native country, to lay before you the great mischiefs that both the monarchy and protestant religion do suffer, in respect of the present designs of papists and commonwealth's men: and when I have discovered to your lordship their intrigues, as far as my strict scrutiny and search into them, besides sufficient testimonies from others truly informed, have satisfied me, I hope we shall take such adequate measures from them, to satisfy both your lordship and this kingdom, that ruin and desolation will come swift on us, confusion and every evil work, if some speedy remedy be not instantly proposed by the wisdom of the great council of this nation.

And first, my lord, your lordship will please to give me leave to make a parallel between the past actions of the designing men before and after 1641, to the happy restoration of the king; by it I shall be able to satisfy your lordship, that what was then designed and effected upon the person of the late King, Church of England, and Government, were the result of such pernicious counsels and designs, as are now hatching by these sons of Belial, to the present disturbance, if not ruin of our flourishing church and kingdom.

It is obvious to all that have had any knowledge of the late transactions before 1640, and after, that the papist seeing our church so well guarded with purity of doctrine and faith, with innocent ceremonies, to defend her from the invasion of slovenly and dishonourably worshiping of the great god; as well also to avoid the superstition and foppery of the worship of the Church of Rome: behold what emissaries were there sent out, and with what cloathing to deceive; the puritan must be drawn in to make an outcry against canons, ceremonies, and whatever was injoined by law in the worship of God must be antichristian, at least it must be said unlawfully imposed on their tender consciences. From sowing these doctrines, the poor and the ignorant were taught to believe bishops to be the very limbs of antichrist, and superstition and idolatry brought by them into the church; and many worthy patriots,

such as Prynne, Bastwick, and Burton, &c. would smell popery and superstition, in gown, surplice, cross in baptism, worshiping God towards the east, a primitive custom in the church of God, &c. then publish to the world the great care they had to bring things to a due reformation both in church and state. But behold the consequence of this undertaking; they had no sooner gone about to undermine the Church of England, but then it was fit time to call in question too the miscarriages of state, and to be sure Archbishop Laud, who was the most eminent assertor of the rights of the church, and as true a protestant as ever lived, must be the first man cried down by the teachers and rabble, for being popishly inclined, or rather for being a papist, and must be butchered too for that supposition; by his death ended the tranquillity of the once flourishing Church of England: thus had the papist, hand in hand with fanatick rage and zeal, triumphed over us. But, after this, it was not enough to bring our church low, but we must yet go higher-Well! What encouragement has the king given to papists of late, by preferring them to places of great consequence in the government, such as were Strafford, &c.?-These persons, say those, must be removed for evil counsellors, or we shall have no peace in our Israel; accordingly our zealous teachers sent their disciples abroad in all avenues of the city, to cry down evil counsellors, for that their design was to bring in popery, and destroy liberty, ay the liberty of the subject. And then forsooth shipmoney, a huge burden to what we have felt since, was against Magna Charta, indeed every thing in the government found fault with, as either popishly or arbitrarily inclined; then cry out for reformation, reformation. And when, for peace-sake, our good king had granted many of their unreasonable demands, and had delivered to their fury innocent blood, to prevent, as he thought, the shedding much more; yet would not their rage stop here, but, at last, king, church, and all were brought to destruction, by the most horrid rebellion and villainy, as can scarce be paralleled in any kingdom in the world in all circumstances.

And now, my lord, one would think, that this pretended glorious re formation should have produced some settlement by this time to the tottering kingdom: no, truly; we found nothing but sect springing out of sect; and they, that once prayed and fought together against the peace of the kingdom in one body, and, as it were, under one denomination, are presently dwindled into many little parties and saintships, and every one crying to his neighbour, I am holier than thou art ;' so that from papist sprung puritan, from puritan presbyterian, from presbyterian independent; from thence anabaptists, antinomians, fifth-monarchists, sweet singers in Israel, quakers, Muggletonians, and the Lord knows what, till, by and through the inconstancy of their persons and judgments, and the various freaks of the several humours, all was reduced to a chaos; so that neither a single usurper, nor a parliament without a king, nor committee of safety, nor keepers of the liberties, or councils of officers, and strength of arms could produce any quiet, till God wonderfully restored him, whose undoubted right it was to sway the scepter of these kingdoms. And thus, my lord, I have, in short, given your lordship an account of what has been acted in those times; let me now crave leave further to make the parallel with the present times;