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HISTORY OP ENGLAND.

CHAP.

III.

But the liberality of the nation had been made fruitless bythe vices of the government. The list of the King’s ships, itis true, looked well. There were nine first rates, fourteensecond rates, thirty-nine third rates, and many smaller ves-sels. The first rates, indeed, were less than the third ratesof our time; and the third rates would not now rank as verylarge frigates. This force, however, if it had been efficient,would in those days have been regarded by the greatest po-tentate as formidable. But it existed only on paper. Whenthe reign of Charles terminated, his navy had sunk into de-gradation and decay, such as would be almost incredible ifit were not certified to us by the independent and concurringevidence of witnesses whose authority is beyond exception.Pepys, the ablest man in the English Admiralty, drew up,in the year 1684, a memorial on the state of his department,for the information of Charles. A few months later Bon-repaux, the ablest man in the French Admiralty, havingvisited England for the especial purpose of ascertaining hermaritime strength, laid the result of his inquiries before Lewis.The two reports are to the same effect. Bonrepaux declaredthat he found everything in disorder and in miserable condi-tion, that the superiority of the French marine was acknow-ledged with shame and envy at Whitehall, and that the stateof our shipping and dock-yards was of itself a sufficientguarantee that we should not meddle in the disputes ofEurope. * Pepys informed his master that the naval ad-ministration was a prodigy of wastefulness, corruption, igno-rance, and indolence, that no estimate could be trusted, that

* I refer to a despatch of Bonrepaux to Seignelav, dated Feb.1686. It was transcribed for IVIr. Fox from the French archives, duringthe peace of Amiens, and, with the other materials brought together bythat great man, was intrusted to me by the kindness of the late LadyHolland, and of the present Lord Holland. I ought to add that, even inthe midst of the troubles which have lately agitated Paris, I have foundno difficulty in obtaining, from the liberality of the functionaries there,extracts supplying some chasms in Mr. Fox’s collection.

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