A. D.I 635. 385 



of anfweiing fo great a man as Grotius. Mr. Selden had begun his 

 work in the reign of King James, probably upon the firfl appearance 

 of Grotius's Mare liberiim ; and, after many years intermifllon, he after- 

 ward reviewed, altered, and enlarged it, as he himfelf relates, by com- 

 mand of King Charles, to whom he dedicated it, when he publiflied it 

 in this year, under the title of Mare claujinn. Sir William Beecher, one 

 of the clerks of the council, by the king's command, folemnly deliver- 

 ed a copy of it to the barons of the exchequer in open court, who or- 

 dered it to be placed among their records, where it ftill remains. It is 

 not pofTible to give in a fmall compafs a fummary of the Mare claiifum : 

 it is fufficient to obferve, that its arguments are drawn from old re- - 

 cords and precedents of the titles and claims of the Saxon and Norman 

 kings, in times when there was little or* no commerce or naval power 

 exifting any where but in the Mediterranean fea ; times fo very differ- 

 ent from that wherein he wrote, when all the maritime nations of the 

 weft and north had a maritime commerce and a naval force, and when 

 fuch claims ftrenuoufly alTerted by any one naval potentate might rea- 

 fonably, and perhaps probably, bring on a confederacy of all the other 

 potentates for reducing that one to moderation. 



King Charles, bent on bringing the Dutch to acknowlege his fea • 

 dominion, had novv', befides other naval armaments, built the greateft 

 fliip of war that had ever been feen in England before, and gave it the 

 name of the Sovereign, of 96 guns and 1740 tons. And the better to 

 e'Table him to fit out a fuperior fleet, he ordered his chancellor Coven- 

 try to iffue writs to the fherifFs of the feveral counties, and to the magi- 

 ftrates, &c. of feveral towns, ' for affefllng and colledting money for fit- 

 ' ting out Ikips of war for fupprefiing pirates and for the guard of the 

 ' feas.' The precept for the county and towns of Dorfetfhire being , 

 given at large, it appears that they were commanded to procure and fit 

 out a fliip of 500 tons burden, with a commander and 200 failors, with 

 cannon, fmall arms, fpears, darts, ammunition, &c. anfwerable, and 

 ftored with provifions, and double equipage, and all other necelTaries, 

 for 26 weeks at leaft; all which was to be paid and maintained at their 

 own charge. 



Here follows the lift of all the ftiips which the feveral counties of 

 England and Wales were commanded to fupply for the year 1 636. 



Ships. 'Tuns. Men. 



Dorfetfliire ------------ i 500 2CO 



Cornwall -------------i 650 260 



Leicefterfhire ____- i 450 180 



Middlefex (Weftminfter included) ----- i 550 220 



Suffolk - - I . 800 320 



Huntingdonfhire - ---------1 200 80 



Vol. II. - - - ^ ^ 



