THE DUTCH WAR 89 
off by an English fleet. Upon their refusing to go, they 
were ‘‘chased by several English parliament vessels, who. 
fired and threw stones at them, cut their nets, and compelled 
them to abandon their fishing and fly northwards.” 1 It 
was in vain that complaints were made to the English 
government of the conduct of their men-of-war and privateers, 
for such acts were committed with the tacit consent of the 
government. 
There now ensued the period of trouble with Spain, which 
led to many more hardships for the English fishermen. 
Even before the order had been given to seize all English 
ships in Flanders, privateers from Dunkirk and Ostend had 
been a constant source of danger to the English sailor. 
These had been actively aided in their work of preying 
upon English commerce by privateers sent out by the 
exiled Charles II., with commissions signed by himself. 
English merchant vessels and fishing boats were captured 
daily, and no fishing fleet dared to sail without convoy.? 
In view of the numbers and ubiquity of the enemy, the 
few warships set apart as permanent coast guardships 
seem to have been quite inadequate. In 1656, only two 
war-vessels were on permanent duty as guard to the North 
Sea fishery, three had been sent to the northern coast, one 
was on the Scotch’ coast, and two at Iceland.? In this year 
thirty-five vessels, valued at £25,000, had gone to the 
fishing at Iceland; the owners, however, were of opinion 
that the convoy provided by government for their ships 
was not sufficient; they represented that their vessels were 
“in great danger of ruin by the enemies, to the utter 
undoing of 500 men, with their wives and families.” The 
loss of these vessels would be the more keenly felt on account 
of the fact that of their fishing fleet “‘4 of about 70 fishers” 
1Cal. S.P. Dom. Commonwealth, 1656-7, p. 485. 
2 Ibid. vol. 124, No. 51; vol. 225, No. 4, No. 40; vol. 228, No. 44. 
3 Ibid. vol. 226, No. 4. 
