Colonel V enables. 147 



According to the writer, who was 

 evidently no admirer of Cromwell, one of 

 the objects of the expedition was to get 

 Venables out of the way. " 'Twas doubt- 

 less," he says, "none of the least ends 

 which that fox, Oliver, had in that design ; 

 to rid himself of some persons whom he 

 could neither securely employ, nor safely 

 discard : which end seemed chiefly to 

 influence the managery of the whole 

 business, as you will perceive by the 

 story." 



During this expedition Venables appears 

 to have acted with the greatest bravery 

 and fortitude in the face of a series of 

 most trying disasters. On one occasion, 

 at the assault of a fort, " he being before 

 brought very low with his flux, the toil 

 of the day had so far spent him, that 

 he could not stand or go but as supported 

 by two; and in that manner he moved 

 from place to place, to encourage the 

 men. But the latter he could not prevail 

 on, neither by commands, entreaties, or 

 offer of rewards. At last, fainting among 

 them, he was carried off." 



On their return to England in September, 

 Venables and Penn were both imprisoned 

 in the Tower. What became of Venables 

 afterwards ? Gosden, writing in 1827, 

 says : " His subsequent liberation, and 



