62 THE ASSOCIATION FOR THE FISHING 



Association at which the king himself was present, that fisher- 

 men of the association were being called away from the Lewis 

 to answer questions concerning fishing matters before the 

 Admiralty of Scotland in Scotch courts. The king, on 

 hearing this, emphatically declared that " he would not 

 have the fishermen of this society questioned for anything 

 concerning the said fishing business in any Court, or before 

 any other judges, than this council only and such judges as 

 shall be by them deputed." l 



It was evident that the king was now aroused to action 

 on behalf of his favourite scheme. On July 13th, 1635, he 

 addressed to the Council in Scotland a vigorous letter on the 

 subject of the wrongs done the Association for the Fishings 

 of Great Britain and Ireland, asking them to see that all 

 goods unjustly taken were restored and the delinquents 

 punished. At the same time, the king addressed a similar 

 letter to Sir John Hay, Clerk Registrar, telling him that he 

 had made choice of him to have the abuses corrected and 

 the offenders tried and punished, so that the business 

 of the Association might proceed without interruption. 



On the same date, another letter was sent to George, 

 Earl of Seaforth, whom the king evidently suspected to 

 be no enthusiast for the prosperity of the fishing. Charles 

 gave him a full account of what he had written to the 

 Council in Scotland, and advised him to do his best to assist 

 a work in which the king himself was so much interested, 

 and which could not fail to be of immense public benefit. 2 



These letters were not without their effect ; the Council 

 of Scotland, on 6th August, 1635, issued a proclamation 

 warning the islanders against molesting the members of the 

 Association, as they had been accustomed to do. 3 They had 

 been taking the law into their own hands, coming " in 



1 Col. S.P. Dom. Car. I., vol. 291, No. 44. 



"-Ibid. vol. 293, No. 100. 



3 Reg. Privy Council, Scotland, vol. vi. ( 2nd series) p. 96. 



