"After the Revolution, several proposals were made in relation to the establishment of a commerce in the South Sea, which were received with approbation; and it is certain that king William gave instructions to Admiral Benbow, when he went out last to the West Indies, to enquire how far any of these projects were feasible. After the breaking out of the last general war, all the world expected that the first thing the maritime powers would have done, would have been sending a squadron to these seas, either for the service of the prince whom they owned as king of Spain, or for their own advantage. The people of this nation, in particular, were so desirous of seeing the war carried on this way, and on this side, that, to give them hopes, and to shew, at the same time, that the legislature approved their sentiments, a bill was brought in and passed, in the House of Lords, for the better carrying on the war in the West Indies, which was lost, however, by a kind of ministerial craft, in the House of Commons; and soon after, for reasons which have never yet been explained to the public, all designs of this nature were laid aside. The only expedition of this nature, during the whole war, was that of the Duke and Duchess, under the command of Captain Woods Rogers, already related, which was fitted out at the expence of some private merchants of Bristol. On the change of ministry, a prodigious clamour was raised on this head, and all of a sudden a resolution was taken to secure all the advantages that could be wished for to this nation from the trade of the South Seas, which ended, however, only in erecting a company under that title. The nation very soon became sensible that this would not do, and therefore, as soon as our disputes with the king of Spain came to a height, in the reign of the late king, George I. a design was immediately set on foot for sending privateers once more into that part of the world, which ended in the expedition of Captain Shelvocke and Captain Clipperton, already related at large.