THE HISTORY OF THE REBELLION, &c. BOOK VIII. 2 ESD. V. 9. And falt waters fhall be found in the fweet, and all friends ball deftroy one another; then fball wit bide itself, and underftanding withdraw itself into bis fecret chamber. Is. iii. 5. And the people fhall be oppressed every one by another, and every one by his neighbour; the child ball behave himfelf proudly against the ancient, and the base against the bonourable. As the winter had been very unprofperous and unfuccessful to the King, in the diminution and lofs of thofe forces, upon which he chiefly depended to fuftain the power of the enemy the year enfuing; fo the fpring entered with no better prefage. When both armies had entered into their winter quarters, to refresh themselves after fo much fatigue, the great preparation that was made at London, and the fame of fending Sir William Waller into the Weft, put the King upon the refolution of having fuch a body in his way, as might give him inter VOL. II. P. 2.M Ꮓ Ꮓ interruption, without Prince Maurice's being disturbed in his fiege of Plymouth; which was not thought to be able to make long refiftance. To this purpose the Lord Hopton was appointed to command an army apart, to be levied out of the garrifon of Bristol, and those western counties adjacent newly reduced; where his reputation and intereft was very great; and by it he had in a short time raised a pretty body of foot and horfe; to which receiving an addition of two very good regiments (though not many in number) out of Munfter, under the command of Sir Charles Vavafour, and Sir John Pawlet, and a good troop of horfe under the command of Captain Bridges, all which had been tranfported, according to former orders, out of Ireland to Bristol, fince the ceffation, that Lord advanced to Salisbury, and fhortly after to Winchester; whither Sir John Berkley brought him two regiments more of foot, raised by him in Devonfhire; fo that he had in all, at least, three thousand foot, and about fifteen hundred horfe; which, in fo good a poft as Winchester was, would in a fhort time have grown to a confiderable army; and was at present strong enough to have stopped, or attended Waller in his western expedition; nor did he expect to have found fuch an obstruction in his way. And therefore, when he was upon his march, and was informed of the Lord Hopton's being at Winchester with such a strength, he retired to Farnham; and quartered there, till he gave his mafters an account that he wanted other supplies. It was a general misfortune, and mifcomputation of that time, that the party, in all places, that wifhed well to the King, (which confifted of most of the gentry in most counties; and for the prefent were awed and kept under by the militia, and the committees of Parliament), had fo good an opinion of their own reputation and intereft, |