[From Atholl Papers - AP X12-40]

[Letter from John Quayle to Mr Harrison, 30 June 1750]

Sir

I lately received your favour of the 11^th past - The two bills of £2620 were followed by my letter to his Grace of the 5^th instant concerning another bill on the same gentleman for £380 payable the 24^th to make up the whole three thousand which I hope his Grace recd - Since then we have wrought extreme hard to get in as much money as paid off the sold^rs. The Moars have not had such a scourging for an age.

His Grace's last rect is to me for £1000 dated the 30^th Decr past - after wch the 30^th January I forwarded Mr Barretts bill under cover to the Governr , dated the 16^th of that month drawn on Stephan Dillon and Co for £300 please to acquaint his Grace to give a rect for this sum as so much from me that it may be creditted to me in acct. fter this no more money was remitted that I remember till the last £3000 for which his Grace will please to give his rect as from the Comrs of the reveune because we gave Mrs Stanley rects for all she paid in and entered them in our own books as so much paid us which will be placed to her credit at the audit of 1749 now ready to be held and bought to our charge for the current year 1750. but as I made up most of that sum it will be proper to send this receipt enclosed to me that at delivering it in I may get credit from the rest of the Comprs for what I advanced on acct of the customes - When we can give up that rect to the new Receiver with whatever cash we have on hand at his entrance upon his office and it will fall regularly into acct.

We are intollerably plagued this summer with cruisers - they are so dareing as to robb & plunder vessells of their money and goods (ay and of provisions too) not only within the heads & promontarys of the Island but even on dry ground within our ports - Dow the Whitehaven cruiser lately robb'd one Read in a boat in Douglas port of 25 guineas ; another of eighteen pence and they say another of 2s and took some provisions from them - for which Read hath brought an an acion agt him & his crew - ten of whom being caught are now detained here to answer it - he himself got off for Whitehaven I suppose to complaine, and give out that the letters he took from them were enough to condemm a whole nation, and that he would lay them before the Lords of the Treasury - and see whether he had not a right to seize that money & retain it - these ten men were taken on board a large Dutch vessell at Ramsey going to seize her by force of arms and to carry her bodily off with her cargo of brandy and teas from the place where she grounded near the harbour mouth, but the Ramsey people it seems by a stratagem overpowered them & brought them in upon the execution of Read's arreast. If they contended themselves with acting within the sphere of their duty in making captures at sea why not but to come in & commit depredations within our ports are just looked upon as so many acts of piracy - one Morris a surveyor in a Drogheda barge committed a depredation of the same sort lately at Portlemarrey [Port St Mary] of which I gave the Govern^r an acct which I concluded he would transmit to his Grace - but this is not all these gentry threaten to attack the merch^ts cellars and warehouses which if they do, or continue hostillerys within our ports the merchants will intirely cease trade and march off to some other country, then this Island is absolutely ruined. I forgot to mention that I have enquired what the import of those letters was, w^ch Mr Doo took from the boatmen in Douglas along with the money - 'tis generally agreed they were letters of orders from Ireland for goods.

I beg leave to offer my most humble duty to his Grace - and am

Sr

Yor most humble servt

John Quayle

Castletown 30^th June 1750