THE ISLES AND THE COMMONWEALTH. 343 



Charles sent an Englishman named Crawford not, by 

 the way, an aggressively English name " a black proper 

 man," to Lewis, where he was received by the Earl. In 

 May, 1653, while Crawford was with Seaforth, a privateer 

 belonging to one Captain Brassie, and commanded by 

 Captain Edwards, arrived from Ayr in Stornoway Harbour. 

 The arrival of this ship puzzled Seaforth and his friends, 

 who came to the conclusion that she had been sent by 

 the King for Crawford. But all doubt was soon set at 

 i rest by the appearance of a lieutenant with seven or eight 

 men, who came ashore for provisions, when it was ascer- 

 tained that the Fortune was employed, not in the King's 

 service, but in that of the Commonwealth. Seaforth at 

 once decided on a hazardous course of action. He 

 seized the lieutenant and his men, and sent a message to 

 Captain Edwards, summoning him to surrender his ship 

 for the King's service, and promising him terms. The 

 letter written by the Earl is a naive document. It 

 assumed that the captain and crew of the Fortune were 

 employed in their present service with "greife of heart," 

 and that they would willingly embrace the opportunity 

 of transferring their allegiance to the King. The captain 

 replied in a blunt, sailor-like fashion. Brushing aside the 

 ingenuous sophisms of Seaforth, he demanded the instant 

 delivery of his men, otherwise he would use the power 

 " which it hath pleased God to putt into my hands." But 

 the Earl in his own island, and among his own people, 

 was not so easily intimidated. He made preparations for 

 seizing the ship, whereupon the captain, recognising the 

 futility of resistance, and notwithstanding his brave words, 

 sailed out of the harbour, after discharging a couple of 

 broadsides at the town.* 



This overt act of hostility against the Commonwealth 

 marked the beginning of Seaforth's undoing. Captain 

 Brassie lodged a complaint with Colonel Lilburn, who 

 succeeded Monck as Commander-in-Chief in Scotland ; 



* Scottish History Society, Vol. XVIII., pp. 140-1. Mcreurius Foliticus 

 (Vol. XLIV., pp. 2547 and 2820). 



