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 find him in the month of June 1583, as Comptroller of the queen's navy, at sea in charge of two barques, ‘both manned with 100 men, for apprehending of certaine outragious sea-rovers, who, it was confidently bruited, had vanquished the sa.id two ships: but within few dayes after,be 'ond all expectation, the said will, Borough and his company had discoinforted and taken to the number of ten sayle (whereof three were prizes), and ten of the chief pirates ou the 30th of Au ust were hanged at Wapping-in-the-Wose, besides London; one of whom, named Thomas Walton, as he went towards the gallows, rent his venetian breeches of crimson to ifata and distributed the same to such of his old acquaintance as stood about him’ (, 696). Perhaps the most noteworthy event in thorough‘s career was the part he played in the famous expedition to Cadiz in command of the Lion, under Sir Francis Drake, wherein they succeeded, on 19 April 1587, in destroying upwards of a hundred sail lying in the harbour, besides capturing many valuzthle prizes. Unfortunately for Borough’s fame, he felt it his duty to differ with his high-handed chief as to the wisdom of a proposed land attack upon Lagos. Drake`s reply to his vice-admiral's ill-guarded and hastily written remonstrance was to place Borough under arrest in his cabin for two days. The plan so nearly failed as to justify all Borough's objections, for the invaders had to retire after considerable injury, which was feebly atoned for by the distant bombardment of the town by the fleet, which did little or no damage (, ii. 188). Borough's share in the affair terminated in the mutiny of his ship’s crew while he was a prisoner and therefore helpless. His ship reached England in charge of another commander on 5 June, whence Borough wrote to Lord-admiral lloward, detailing his version of the affair. This was followed by along contradiction of the charges brought against him by Drake, which so far succeeded in saving him from further punishment or disgrace (see, pp, 241-255; also , ii. 121). Borough's latest service at sea of any importance calling for notice was his command of s small ship named the Bonavolia in the Armada fight 1538 (, p. 239). In a beautifully written autograph letter of Borough, dated Chatham, 28 Aug. 1589, he informs Mr. T. Randolph, residing at Maidstone, that he is ‘letted’ from seeing him by ‘ the great business for the dispatch of Sir Martin Frobisher's shippes to the sea,’ that he is ‘in comission for the late portugnile voyage,' and that another matter that he has in ‘handling' is 'getting a good wife' in the person of Lady Wentworth, which ‘matter is in effect concluded' (Harl. MS. 6994 (l04)). The latest notice of him with which we are acquainted is one, dated 31 Oct. 1590, of a person unnamed, who gives notice to Mr. Burrowes, of Limehouse, ‘that his life is in danger from one who intends to shoot him’ (Lansd. MS. 99 (94)). Borough somehow managed to survive another nine years; he died in 1699.

Borough wrote ‘ A discourse of the Variation of the Compas, or Magneticall Needle, made by W. B., and is to be annexed to the News Attraction by R[obert] N[orman],’ London, 1581, 4to; other editions 1585, 1596, 1611, 1614. In this work he points out that nearly all the charts of the period were useless for the purposes of navigntion from the non-observance of variation ; he instances Mercator’s famous map of 1569, wherein is to be observed ‘ Wardhouse ’ in Nonvay set down in two places 19 degrees apart; all west of this point being laid down from an earlier map by Olaus Magnus [of 1532, now lost]; all east of it from his own observations embodied in Anthony Jenkinson's map of Russia, 1562. Besides four other short pieces to be found in Hakluyt (i. 414 and 455) may be seen ‘A dedicatory Epistle to the Queen annexed unto his exact map of Russia, briefly containing his travails in those NE. partes,' and also his short autobiography before alluded to (, 417). We learn from his ‘Discourse' that the map of Russia was presented to the queen in 1578, It is now lost. He also wrote ‘Instructions for discouery of Cathay Eastwards for Pet & Jackman,' 1580 (, 435). The most interesting chart by William Borough known to us is one of Norway, Lapland, and the Bay of St. Nicholas, signed by him, and preserved in the British Museum (O. R, MS. 18 D. iii. 123). Three others, preserved at Hatfield, are: l. ‘Polar Seas to Lat. 20,' probably by him. 2. ‘Frobisher`s Navigation,' 3. ‘The Thames to Gravesend, and part of the N. Sea.' The remaining manuscript pieces by Borough calling for notice are: 1. ‘Tables of the prices of Masts,' n.d. (Harl. 306, 20). 2. ‘Necessary notes to be obserued in the voyage for discouery,' 1568 (see supra). 3. ‘Declaration concerning a proposal of Sir J. Hawkins and Peter Pett, with reference to the Navy,' February 1584 (Lansd. 43 (33)) 4. ‘Articles objected, with the Answeres to the same, touching the voyage of the Lion,' with two letters giving an account of his misunderstanding with Sir Francis Drake, April-May 1587 (Lansd. 52, arts. 39, 4l-2) ; see supra. 5. ‘Discourse what course were best should be taken for the resistance 