manded by Captain Lavigne Luenell; and the Notre Dame de Deliverance, of three hundred tons, twenty-two guns, and sixty men, commanded by Captain Pedro Litant; all three of them belonged to St. Maloes, and having been out four years in the South Seas, on the coasts of Chili and Peru, and now on their return, immensely rich, from Lima, in Peru. The two privateers bore down on the French, who made little account of them, and kept their wind; but a quarter past seven, Captain Talbot fired a gun at them, when the French hoisted their colours and formed a line. The Duke, being somewhat too hasty, went to windward, and immediately began to fire away; while Captain Talbot bore to leeward, and advanced within pistol-shot of the nearest ship to him, which was the Marquis d'Antin, where they entertained each other exceeding smartly for three hours, before the French submitted. During the time that the Prince Frederic was engaging the Marquis d'Antin, the Lewis Erasmus got on his bow, and put Captain Talbot between two fires; who, as soon as the first ship had struck, lost no time, but went and returned the visit to the Lewis Erasmus; at the same time that the Notre Dame de Deliverance crowded away from the Duke, who had orders to chase her, while Captain Talbot attacked the Lewis Erasmus, where he found such warm work that it was three hours before she would strike: though the Captain of the Duke, seeing night coming on, and apprehending that Captain Talbot would be puzzled to take care of the disabled ships, quitted the chase, and let the third make her escape. Captain Talbot all along conceived that his adversaries were Martinico ships, but was agreeably surprised to understand they were richly laden with the treasures of Peru and Chili; a treasure that might well repay him and his sailors for their trouble, though the Prince Frederic had one lieutenant and five men killed, and twenty-five wounded; the Duke had seven men killed and eight wounded; the Lewis Erasmus had only the Captain and one man killed, and four wounded; and the Marquis d'Antin had no more than the Captain and six men killed, and eight wounded; but this was owing to the English Captain firing more at their rigging than between the decks, for fear of sinking them. The prizes lost all their masts, and were obliged to be towed by the Prince Frederic and Duke to Kinsale, in Ireland, where they happily arrived on the 30th of July, when Captain Talbot found that the prizes had a treasure of two million six hundred and sixty-five thousand three hundred and fifteen dollars in specie; pistoles and doubloons to the value of three hundred thousand six hundred and ninety-three dollars; gold bars to the value of thirty-two thousand dollars; and wrought plate to the value of eleven thousand dollars: amounting in all to three million and nine thousand and eight dollars, being six hundred and seventy-seven thousand and twenty-six pounds, besides eight hundred tons of cocoa, and other valuable effects; which were conveyed by three men-of-war to Bristol, and conducted in forty-five waggons to the Tower of London; the whole weight of treasure, including the package, amounting to seventy-eight tons, thirteen hundred, one quarter and sixteen pounds; the proprietors having seven hundred thousand pounds to their share, and every common seaman being entitled to eight hundred and fifty pounds for his dividend.

The Notre Dame de Deliverance, that escaped from the Duke privateer, made the best of her way to Cape Briton, imagining the French had still possession of the island; where she was taken, the 20th of July, by the Sutherland and Chester, men-of-war, and carried into Louisburg, when she appeared as valuable a prize as either of her consorts; her cargo consisting of eighteen

serons of gold, weighing one thousand one hundred and seventy pounds averdupoise: fifteen thousand three hundred and ninety-nine double doubloons; one hundred and sixty-two gold snuffboxes, weighing nine hundred and fifty-two ounces; one million and seventy-two thousand pieces of eight; seven hundred and sixty-four ounces of virgin silver; thirty-one pounds of silver ore; several diamond rings and solitairs; eight hundred and seventy-six serons of cocoa; two hundred and three serons of Jesuits' bark; one hundred and ninety-one tanned hides; one hundred and eighty-one dozen of fans; and twenty-six bales of Carmenian wool: the whole amounting to upwards of four hundred and sixty thousand pounds, which was safely conducted to Portsmouth under convoy of four men-of-war.

Dr. Lipscomb could neither have read this nor any other narrative of the capture of the Marquis d'Antin and Louis Erasme, or he would hardly have buckramized the two captors into five. The Prince Frederic and the Duke gallantly advanced in the face of three tall ships, taking two and putting the other to flight: and the whole was excellently conducted. The captains and crews of the privateers behaved with the greatest generosity to their prisoners, allowing them to keep all their private valuable effects; and when they put the fore-mast men ashore, they distributed twenty guineas to each. And as if to render the whole affair nationally creditable, the conduct of the owners was also equally noble; for, receiving their enormous share of seven hundred thousand pounds soon after the rebellion broke out, they made a voluntary tender of it as a loan to the government to prosecute the war; this was accepted, and an interest paid to the proprietors.

Such is the actual picture so travestied by Dr. Lipscomb, who concludes by assuring his readers that this testimonial is retained as an heir-loom by the Lee family, "as a trophy, not of the victory of arms, but of the triumph of justice and reason." Now it is rather difficult to understand this curious peroration. How far "justice and reason stand up for such a deeply discreditable feature of warfare as privateering, is more a matter of law than principle; and in the case before us, the absurdity of the terms is strikingly evident. But it is easily shewn, and in Sir George's own autograph, that the case which drew the aforesaid silver vase was a very every-day affair, for which fees and "refreshing fees "-exclusive of proctors' and attorneys' pickings-were abund

antly charged: a sample of them may bear out the remark; especially as these items are extracted after there had been more than a year's expenses in filing, settling libel of appeal, hearing allons and "further hearings," and all that

Hilary term, 1747-8. LORDS. Feb. 18th. Marquis d'Antin, taken by the Prince Frederick and Duke. Fee for hearing. Crespigny proctor for captors and appellants. 10. 108.

Easter term, 1748. LORDS. May 4th. Marquis d'Antin, taken by the Prince Frederick and Duke. Fee for sentence. Crespigny proctor for the captors. 107. 10s. Easter term, 1748. LORDS. May 5th. Marquis d'Antin. pigny proctor for the captors. 21. 28.

Fee for a consultation. Cres

Trinity term, 1748. ADMIRALTY. June 24th. The Marquis d'Antin, taken by the Prince Frederick and Duke. Fee for hearing before the Lords, and for a consultation. Crespigny proctor for the captors. 12. 128.

Trinity term, 1748. LORDS. July 4th. Marquis d'Antin. Fee for further hearing. Crespigny proctor for the captors. 127. 128.

Same term. LORDS. July 5th. Similar entry. 107. 10s.

And the Louis Erasme's dollars were pretty well sifted by the same process, while their unfortunate consort fared even worse; for, among the jottings there are fees and "refreshing fees" refreshing fees" upon her also for a long time after her partners were condemned, owing to some contested claims by ships in sight at the capture. By thus despoiling truth of false ornament, as Alfieri has it--

Il ver dispoglia

D'ogni mentito fregio, il ver conosco ;

and on weighing in words the agreement and disagreement of ideas between Lipscomb and myself on this point, the logical truth may be readily found by the propositions of Locke. This is the manner in which the charges

for the consort run:

Hilary term, 1749. LORDS. February 27th. Notre Dame de Delivrance. Fee for settling an act. Greenly proctor for the Sunderland and Chester. 31. 38. This was followed on the next

day by a fee of 10l. 10s. for a motion on said act; and another of 12. 128., on the 5th of March, for a "further hearing."

Easter term, 1749. ADMIRALTY. May 3rd. Notre Dame de Delivrance. Fee to oppose an allon (allegation). Greenly proctor. 31. 38.

Trinity term, 1749. ADMIRALTY. Notre Dame de Delivrance. Farrer for the captors. 27. 28.

Fee for a consultation.

Same term. June 15th. Refreshing fee for further hearing, 51. 58. And between that date and the 27th, three more "refreshers," each of the same amount.

Easter term, 1750. LORDS. May 1st. Notre Dame de Delivrance.

Fee for settling the case, and for the hearing. Greenly proctor and Hamersley solicitor for the Sunderland and Chester men-of-war, the appellants. 217.

Easter term, 1750. LORDS. May 14th. Notre Dame de Delivrance. Fee for further hearing. Greenly for the Chester and Sunderland, captors and appellants. 10. 10s. And two days afterwards another hearing, 10l. 10s. May 30th, a "further hearing," 107. 10s.; and further hearings in June, &c. &c.

Sir George was actually afterwards the advocate for "Commodore" Walker and his well-known group called the Royal Family privateers; the which are stated to have made above a million sterling, in their fortunate cruises. But, as a large portion thereof in specie and bullion was sent to the Bank of England and detained under conflicting allegations-where it actually still remains, invested in the name of the Accountant-General of the Court of Chancery,we should like to know what "justice and reason" have had to do with it the while. Various attempts have been made to substantiate claims upon this property. Even so late as the 23rd of July, 1831, a reward of five guineas was offered in "The Times" newspaper to any person who could procure the log-books of the Royal Family privateers, or any or either of them, which sailed from the port of Bristol in 1746. Soon after this advertisement appeared, the solicitors for the claimants addressed Dr. Lee for information as to any papers or memoranda left by Sir George on the subject; mentioning that they had traced a log down to 1823, but were now utterly at fault.

So much for the abstract virtues of dancing the hey in a prize-court! But, having poured forth a tribute of respect and unfeigned admiration upon the career of those very eminent brothers, Sir William and Sir George, we will now return to Hartwell.

Sir Thomas Lee, the third Baronet, had succeeded to the title and estates on his father's death in 1702; and was highly esteemed as a landlord, magistrate, and general man of business in the neighbourhood, on which account his services were in constant requisition. He served in three parliaments for the county of Bucks, and in three others for the borough of Chipping Wycombe in a time of much local political fermentation. Among the letters before me is one from Lord Cobham, dated December 26th, 1727, rather coolly intimating his pleasure that Sir Thomas should declare himself a candidate for the county, but that the "little interest I have in it must follow the general disposition of the gentlemen and freeholders in supporting the old Whigg interest." Duke Wharton also followed on the same side: but he was more warmly greeted and treated by others, as, for example, the Earl of Lichfield—

Sr,

Ditchley, Jan. 20th, 1728.

I recd your's this day, and I am sorry to have itt confirm'd by you, that you are likely to meet with an opposition in Buks, and by a person so little known. For my part, I never heard of him before, and I find he is not better known by any other gentlemen of the county that I have lately conversed with. I cannot think it much to the creditt of those persons that support him, and both hope, and don't doubt, that such an opposition will not be of any manner of consequence. But, however, I think you are extreamly right in makeing the uttmost application to all gentlemen in time, for by that I think you have no need to doubt of success.

I have wrote into Bucks to my steward there, to go to all my people and engage their votes for you, and my steward shall be there before the election, to meet them att my house, and bring them all in, as he has been used to do, and I will take care of all other people of my acquaintance. I have a brother with me now who is a freeholder, and shall be sure to be there. If this opposition continues, which I can hardly think possible, I should be glad to know when you think the election will be, for I suppose the writt will be moved for and ordered to morrow, so that I should hope itt will come on soon.

I have received answers to both my letters to Sr Wm Stapleton and the Duke of Bedford, with promise of their interest. I am, with the utmost sincerity, S',

Your most obedient humble servt,

LITCHFIELD.

He married Elizabeth, daughter and heiress of Thomas Sandys, Esq. of London,

M