My Lord,

We have received your Lordship's two Letters of the 5th Instant, each transmitting a Copy of a Letter from the Lord Lieutent of Ireland; in one of which are expressed the Alarms given to the Merchants of that Kingdom from the late appearance of Rebel Privatiers, and their apprehensions for the safety of their Linnen Ships; and in the other a Representation from Sir John Erwin of the defenceless state of the Fort and Harbour of Cork, and proposition for a Ship or Frigate of War to be constantly stationed near the Fort of the Cove, or between that and Spike Island, for the safety of the Shipping at that place. In return we are to acquaint your Lordship, for His Majesty's information, that upon the first notice we received of the ap­ pearance of the Privatiers abovementioned off the Mull of Cantire, we immediately sent orders for His Majesty's Ship the Albion of 74 Guns, and the Ceres Sloop of 18 Guns, to proceed without a moments' loss of time from Plymouth up St George's Channel, as well for the protection of the Trade of His Majesty's Subjects, as to scour the Channel of any of the Rebel Privatiers that may infest it, calling at Dublin and Campbel Town for Advices, and returning round the West of Ireland to Plymouth for farther Orders. Since which, we have sent the Exeter of 64 Guns to cruize between Milford Haven, the Old Head of Kinsale, and the Scilly Islands; and have destined the Arethusa of 32 Guns to proceed up the Irish Channel and cruize between the Mull of Galway, Belford Lough, and Mull of Cantire; the former calling alternately at Milford Haven and Cork, and the latter at Carrickfergus and Campbel Town, for Information, or any further Orders it may be necessary to send to them.These two last mentioned Ships will guard the Southern and Northern Entrances into St Georges Channel; and it is intended to employ two Sloops and two Cutters constantly in attending upon the Linnen Ships; which, it is hoped, will quiet the Alarms of the Merchants, and effectually secure their Trade.                                 

With respect to Sir John Irwin's proposition, we must beg leave to observe that the stationing of Ships in Ports for the protection of the Trade belonging to those Ports (besides the impracticability of finding Ships for that purpose from the numerous applications we have received of the same nature) would be locking them up from the performance of other more essential Service, as the numerous Privatiers that now infest our Coasts cannot be restrained, nor the Trade of His Majesty's Subjects properly at­ tended to, but by keeping our Cruizers as much at Sea as possible, in order to intercept the one, and give due protection to the other; which, indeed, from the great number of our Ships now employed in North America, and from the unexpected Equipment of Rebel Cruizers in the French Ports, is a very difficult task for us to execute, and it is to be apprehended that our difficulties will rather increase than diminish, as we have already set forth in our Letter to your Lordship of the 28th Ultimo, if such Equipments are continued in the Ports of France. We have only to add upon this Subject that we conceive it to be the less necessary to station a Ship at the Cove, as, besides the Exeter which, as has been mentioned above, is frequently to call there, the Boyne of 70 Guns, which is stationed between Ushant and Cape Clear, is also ordered to call at Cork once in every Ten days or a Fortnight. We are, My Lord [&c.]