178 THE SIEGE OF PLYMOUTH. 



stone) and but little to the houses, save that they 

 shot off one vane of the windmill, which was pre- 

 sently new grafted ; so that by experience we find 

 the loss of Mount Stamford was the wonderful pro- 

 vidence and goodness of God towards us, which had 

 we kept, we must necessarily have lost the best part 

 of our strength in the defence of it ; our ships being 

 beaten out of Cat water before we lost Mount Stam- 

 ford by the enemy's cannon planted at Osan, and 

 by a battery under Mount Edgcumbe, on the other 

 side, from riding between the island and the main, 

 so that they were fain to take Mill Bay for a sanc- 

 tuary ; nay, rather the loss of that was infinitely 

 advantageous unto us, in the nearer uniting of our 

 small strength for the defence of the town, and the 

 offering an opportunity to us to seize upon the fort 

 and island of St. Nicholas, the most considerable 

 strength in the kingdom, which then were utterly 

 destitute of provisions, ammunition, or any thing 

 else necessary for the defence of them ; of which 

 neglect, the authors of it, account may be given to 

 the Parhament in due time ; for in the very instant 

 of the loss of Mount Stamford, while all men stood 

 in doubt of the issue, Colonel Gould, by order from 

 Colonel Ward, late Commander-in-Chief, took poss- 

 ession of both those places, and afterwards settled 

 stronger garrisons, with store of provisions and am- 

 munition of all sorts, in the said fort and island ; the 

 securing whereof, and at the request of the well- 

 affected of the town, of four Deputy Lieutenants in 

 them, of whose unfaithfulness to the State the towns- 

 men had great suspicion, we have found since to be 

 a most effectual means under God to preserve the 

 town ; for these persons and places being secured 

 and victualled, the town, which before was alto- 

 gether divided, and heartless in its defence, now 

 grew to be united with a resolution to stick by us in- 

 the defence thereof; partly out of fear, knowing 

 that the fort and island would be goads in their sides 

 if the town should be lost ; but especially from their 



