Our old town was however now in good favour with the government. Several of its seamen were doing good service in the Kings’ navy against the Dutch, and they had a good friend in Parliament in the old royalist Sir John Pettus, who had been one of the “strangers” captured by Cromwell in Lowestoft some 30 years before. They employed him to present petitions to Parliament on behalf of their own and the fishermen of other Suffolk towns. One of these proposals was that “fishing beer” should be exempted from the excise duty. In connection with this proposal a return was made of the number of fishing boats employed by Lowestoft and the neighbouring Suffolk fishing villages. From this return it appears that at this time Lowestoft sent out 25 boats, Pakefield and Kirkley 14, Southwold 11, Aldborough 5, Corton 2, and Dunwich 1. The consumption of beer by the crews of these 58 boats was estimated at 9 tuns per boat, amounting altogether to 522 tuns. It is probable that in these days a liberal supply of beer, which was very cheap, compensated for a deficiency in good food. Since the invention of tea, coffee and cocoa, beer is happily no longer necessary on board a fishing boat and has long since ceased to form part of the provisions carried by Lowestoft boats. In 1679 we find our old townspeople taking steps for advancing the general mercantile trade of town, by petitioning the Treasury to allow their merchants to export corn, and import coal. {101} This was not granted, nor can we see how, without a harbour, the ambitious project of engaging in such trades could be entertained. Leave was however given for the exportation of butter, cheese, and fish and for the importation of all materials requisite for building and furnishing ships. It was stated in this Petition that the town had then increased its shipping to the number of 60 vessels—a rapid advance on the 25 ships possessed 9 years before. As we are told by Gillingwater that the number of boats employed at Lowestoft in the herring fishery during the years 1722–1781, averaged about 33, there could have been no further advance in the fishing business until quite recent years. It is evident that our old townspeople had been bestirring themselves, and were making good use of the opportunity which the absence of Dutch busses from this side of the North Sea now offered. With such evidence of a revival of life and energy in our old Town, and the promise of further growth and commercial development in the future, (a promise since so happily realised), we may close our sketch of Lowestoft in olden times.