Sir W. Penn gives his advice as to the mode of fighting at sea: "We must fight in a line, whereas we fight promiscuously, to our utter and demonstrable ruin; the Dutch fighting otherwise; and we, whenever we beat them. 2. We must not desert ships of our own in distress, as we did, for that makes a captain desperate, and he will fling away his ship when there are no hopes left him of succour. 3rd. That ships when they are a little shattered must not take the liberty to come in of themselves, but refit themselves the best they can, and stay out--many of our ships coming in with very small disableness. He told me that our very commanders, nay, our very flag-officers, do stand in need of exercising among themselves, and discoursing the business of commanding a fleet; he telling me that even one of our flagmen in the fleet did not know which tack lost the wind or kept it in the last engagement. Then in the business of forecastles, which he did oppose, all the world sees now the use of them for shelter of men." He observes that "we see many women now-a-days in the streets, but no men; men being so afraid of the press." He speaks of purchasing "four or five tons of corke, to send this day to the fleet, being a new device to make barricados with, instead of junke." The importance of protecting men against shot was even then, it will be seen, thought of. On the 10th he goes "to the office; the yard being very full of women coming to get money for their husbands and friends that are prisoners in Holland; and they lay clamouring and swearing and cursing us, that my wife and I were afraid to send a venison-pasty that we have for supper to-night, to the cook's to be baked." On the 23rd July Sir W. Coventry talks to him of the "_Loyal London_ (which, by the way, he commends to be the best ship in the world, large and small) hath above eight hundred men. The first guns made for her all bursted, but others were made, which answered better." Speaking of the late battle, he remarks that "the _Resolution_ had all brass guns, being the same that Sir John Lawson had in her in the Straights. It is to be observed that the two fleets were even in number to one ship." Sir W. Coventry "spoke slightingly of the Duke of Albemarle, saying, when De Ruyter come to give him a broadside--`Now,' says he (chewing of tobacco the while), `will this fellow come and give me two broadsides, and then he shall run;' but it seems he held him to it two hours, till the duke himself was forced to retreat to refit, and was towed off, and De Ruyter staid for him till he come back again to fight. One in the ship saying to the duke, `Sir, methinks De Ruyter hath given us more than two broadsides.' `Well,' says the duke, `but you shall find him run by-and-by,' and so he did, but after the duke himself had been first made to fall of."