THE ENGLISH FISHING SETTLEMENTS. 313 



surety for abstaining from such courses. The heritors of 

 the Isles were to be ordered to prevent foreigners from 

 fishing or trading within their bounds, and to do their 

 utmost to preserve the fisheries for the use of natives and 

 the members of the Fishery Company.* 



The first branch of the Corporation to establish itself in 

 Lewis appears to have been one, at the head of which was 

 the Earl of Portland, the Lord Treasurer of England. 

 Captain Mason was consulted as to the manner in which 

 the Association's stock should be employed. He had the 

 whole scheme mapped out. The partners were to become 

 naturalised Scotsmen (thus escaping the disabilities under 

 which the law placed non-Scotsmen) and be made burgesses 

 of a free burgh to be erected at Stornoway in pursuance 

 of the Act of Parliament passed during the reign of King 

 James VI. thus enabling them to conduct general trading 

 as well as fishing. The King was to purchase Lewis from 

 Seaforth, giving him other lands in lieu thereof, and the 

 whole island was to be given up to the fishing industry. 

 A company of soldiers was to be sent to Lewis, and ten 

 pieces of ordnance were to be supplied by the King for a 

 fort at Stornoway. Six acres of land near Deptford were 

 to be set apart for building dwelling-houses and workshops, 

 for those employed in spinning and making nets. And 

 detailed suggestions were made for the general conduct of 

 the Associates' business.f 



In February, 1633, the Council of the Corporation had . 

 the Lewis fisheries under consideration. Captain Mason 

 was admitted as a Fellow of the Corporation, and was 

 charged to consult John (now Sir John) Hay, in respect of 

 the ground-leave to be paid to Seaforth. All the pre- 

 liminaries having been arranged, the fleet of herring-busses 

 and trading vessels set sail for Lewis under the command 

 of Mason. In May, Mason's vessel, the St. Peter, was 

 appointed flag- ship of the fleet, and power was given to 

 him as the chief Agent of the Corporation in Lewis, to try, 



* Acts of Par!. Vol. V., pp., 244-5. 



t MS. in Public Record Office, State Papers, Vol. CCXXIX., No. 95, 



