The weight of my argument depending much on proving _Stewart_ no seaman, the reader I hope will pardon my inserting this account of him. He was the son or apprentice of a shopkeeper at _Glasgow_ in _North Britain_, and went supercargo of a small ship to _Maryland_ or _Virginia_. On his return from his first voyage he touch’d at _London_, where he squander’d away most of his money: so not caring to look his friends in the face, he desir’d of captain _Shelvocke_ to be imploy’d in our expedition; who made him his steward. He was a young man of good sense and good education: so that it’s plain if he were qualified for doing the duty of a sea-officer, his ambition would not have suffer’d him to accept a steward’s place: and how fit this man was for first mate of a private ship of war, I leave other judges than my self to determine. In this article I appeal to Mr. _James Moffat_ and Company, mercers in _St. Martins le Grand_. This spark had not been long tampering with the men, before he brought them to any thing he pleased; especially when they saw he always had the captain’s ear, and was so very much in his favour also; which gave us all a kind of emulation, wondering what rare qualifications _Shelvocke_ could discover in a fellow, who but a few days before rinsed our glasses and filled us our wine. But the mystery was here unravell’d, on our finding a round robine sent up by the men to _Shelvocke_, by this minion of his. Robine is a mutinous letter, at the bottom of which every subscriber sets his hand in a round ring, to avoid being called first in the mutiny. The tenor of this letter set forth their diffidence of the gentlemen owners, and their fears of being all cheated: which the fellows before had no notion of, if not prompted to these apprehensions, as I said before, by _Shelvocke_ himself; who finding all that he had done and said fail of the desired effect, had now made use of this emissary _Stewart_, to poison the men’s minds, when otherwise they would have been quiet at their duty. I need no stronger argument to prove the honest and orderly disposition of the ship’s company, than this writer’s own words, page 4. who says himself, they were four fifths landmen; whose first complaint, ’tis well known, is always for want of provisions; which they, however do in a more submissive manner. But this was quite out of the case; as what they never could or did complain of. Besides, if the boatswain and his mates were supported in the discharge of their duty, they were sufficient enough to keep them under. Add to this, that we were nine officers at his table, an unusual number for such a ship, being so design’d that we might effectually oppose any intended mutinies: but this despotic man had so intimidated us, that had we offered our service, by promising to assist him in bringing those pretended mutiniers to reason, the very proposal from us would have been construed a real mutiny. And further it may be easily imagined,