But his best contribution to the problem of defence is a letter, written in the year 1595 to the Lords of the Council. It had been decided that "mutual succour be gyven from the Counties of Devon and Cornwall to each other," and the point of the letter is to show that Devonshire should be supplied with reinforcements from Somerset rather than from Cornwall. His reasons are well put and convincing. "If there shall any discent be made by the enymye in either county by the waie of surprise, and that the enymye doe but burne or sacke, and departe, then can nether be releeved as aforesaid, bycause there wilbe no tyme given to unite the forces of the same shere, where such attempt shalbe offered, much lesse for the drawing in of any numbers from affarr; and for any such enterpryze, where there is no purpose to hold and possesse the places gotten, each shire with 4000 men shalbe able either to repel or to resiste the same. But if the enymy dispose himself to fortyfye any part in Cornewall or to strengthen any neck of land of advantage, and thereby begyne to dryve us to a defensive warr, then there is noe country adjoyneth to Cornwall but Devon from whence any spedy supplie maie be had to impeach the begining of such a purpose. And if ought be attempted in Devon--of which Plymouth is most to be feared, having, in one indraught, two goodly harboroughes, as Cattwater and Aishewater--then it is also very likely that the enymye will either assure Cornewall, or seeke utterly to waste yt, because yt is next his supplies, both from Spayne and Brittaine (Brittany); and hath divers ports and good rodes to receive a fleete." He proceeds to point out the length and narrowness of Cornwall, and the extreme difficulty of sending succour to Plymouth. The river can only be forded in two places, and that by small ferries at Stonehouse and Aishe, which would be of little use for horses or ammunition. Moreover, the enemy would bring "gallies" with them, which would enable them to command the river Tamar. If four thousand men were taken from Cornwall, the enemy would certainly become cognizant of the fact, and nothing would be easier for them, in that event, than to lay waste the whole shire, either by sending round a ship from Plymouth or across from Brittany. Three hundred soldiers would be sufficient. He points out that no county in England is so dangerously situated as Cornwall, with the sea on both sides of it, and with sparse inhabitants. It is so narrow that if the enemy were to possess any of two or three straits, the men of the West would be quite cut off from the men of the East, for between Mount's Bay and the sea entering within St. Tees, it is but three miles and a half from sea to sea; between Truro and St. Pirom but five miles. He concludes the letter by making manifest the advantages of the position of Somerset, its breadth, its richness, and lack of separating rivers.