NOTE ON THE WHITE-TAILED EAGLE AND SALMON. 77 



from sum far Cuntry, and was Extreame weary, hauing one shot 

 made at her, and budged not ; but, at the second shott she was 

 killed. 



Mr. Readman acquainted me y' hee deliuer[ed] y^ small 

 token J sent you, w"'' was a dryed Salmon ; w^'' be pleased to 

 accept as a poore mite of y^ affection of 



Yo'' Reall Freind and humble Seru', 



Fffra. Newby. 



[P.S.] — The shipps that are Now in harbour to be Refitted 

 out w* Speede are the Coulchester, Speedwell, Vicktory, Rich- 

 mond, Garland, Reserue, Aduenture, and Delfe. 



The matter did not end here. Joseph Williamson, Secre- 

 tary to the Navy Commissioners, hearing, from the official to 

 whom this letter was addressed, of the occurrence of the Eagle, 

 wrote to Mr. Silas Taylor, Keeper of the King's Stores at 

 Harwich, 3 and one of Newby's superiors, asking for further 

 information about the bird. Taylor's reply ■* here follows : — 



Harwich, Oct. 25, 1666. 



This morning the Truelove, from convoying the Amunition 

 to Scilly &c., return'd backe hither, haueing first conuoy'd the 

 Shipps imployed in that seruice safe backe. Her consort, the 

 Roebuck, is gone for Ireland. 



At the end of your last written Intelligence, I read the Story 

 of our Eagle kil'd here. I saw the Skinne of it, but did not 

 looke upon it as soe strange a thing as others did ; for why 

 should not an Eagle fly hither as well as to Scotland ? Others 

 thinke that the Eagle may come Southerly, as beeing weather- 

 wise and [that its coming] prognosticates a hard winter ; and 

 severall thoughts severall men haue. I haue nothing to say to 

 it : Onely an Eagle was kild here ; and I sent you noe notice of 

 it because I though it not W'orth y" writeing about ; and, your 

 intelligence giveing me notice of it, 1 thought it ma}' bee a 

 freindly reproofe. 



Our Shippe are here still [that] I formerly wrote you off; 

 and we haue noe newes ; Onely I am, S^ 



Your most humble serv', 



Silas Taylor. 

 To Joseph Williamson, Esquire. 



3 This Silas Taylor (alias Domville) was the man who collected the matter relating to 

 the history of Harwich which Dale afterwards added to and published in 1730. Dale speaks 

 of him in his preface as "a lover of Antiquities, a person of leisure, and a member of the 

 Corporation," but adds that, " dying in debt, all his MSS. and papers were, together with 

 his goods, seized on by his creditors and so dispersed." 



4 State Papers, Domestic, Chas. II. , vol. 176, no. 28. 



