I was close to him at the time. Monk, who
was standing by his side, undid his own cloak in a moment, threw it
over his comrade, and held up his hand to the few of us that had seen
what had happened, to take no notice of it.
"It was a good thing that Deane and Monk were on board the same ship.
If it had not been so, Deane's flag would have been hauled down and
all the Fleet would have known of his death, which, at the
commencement of the fight, would have greatly discouraged the men.
"They told me, though I know naught about it, that Rear-Admiral
Lawson charged with the Blue Squadron right through the Dutch line,
and so threw them into confusion. However, about three o'clock, the
fight having begun at eleven, Van Tromp began to draw off, and we got
more sail on the _Resolution_ and followed them for some hours, they
making a sort of running fight of it, till one of their big ships
blew up, about nine in the evening, when they laid in for shore.
Blake came up in the night with eighteen ships. The Dutch tried to
draw off, but at eight o'clock we came up to them, and, after
fighting for four hours, they hauled off and ran, in great confusion,
for the flats, where we could not follow them, and so they escaped to
Zeeland. We heard that they had six of their best ships sunk, two
blown up and eleven taken, but whether it was so or not I knew not,
for, in truth, I saw nothing whatever of the matter.
"We sailed to the Texel, and there blocked in De Ruyter's squadron of
twenty-five large ships, and we thought that there would be no more
fighting, for the Dutch had sent to England to ask for terms of
peace.
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