With the
Duke, all of us discoursing about the places where to build ten
great ships: the King and Council have resolved on none to be
under third-rates; but it is impossible to do it, unless we have
more money towards the doing it than yet we have in any view.
But, however, the show must be made to the world. In the evening
Sir W. Pen came to me, and we walked together, and talked of the
late fight. I find him very plain, that the whole conduct of the
late fight was ill; that two-thirds of the commanders of the
whole fleet have told him so: they all saying, that they durst
not oppose it at the Council of War, for fear of being called
cowards, though it was wholly against their judgement to fight
that day with the disproportion of force, and then we not being
able to use one gun of our lower tier, which was a greater
disproportion than the other. Besides, we might very well have
staid in the Downs without fighting, or any where else, till the
Prince could have come up to them; or at least till the weather
was fair, that we might have the benefit of our whole force in
the ships that we had.
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