5. Wonders 〈…〉 Month of July 169●… A Faithful NARRATIVE Of the Several Strange Prodigious Signs, AND Wonderful Appearances& Accidents, Which have lately happened in Several Parts of England, Both from the Heavens, Earth, and Water: Being a Relation of 

I. A Prodigious Thunder and Lightning, at a Place called Everton, near Daventry in Northamptonshire; which sad Accident killed Four Persons; the Names of which were, Mr. Simon Marriot, Mr. Robert Marriot his Son, Mr. Richard Wills, and Mr. Thomas Burroughs; and wounded Ten Persons more, Mr. Thomas Gregory and his Wife( the Owners of the Field) were two of them: Which sad Relation is attested by Mr. William Needler of Tatnam, Mr. Thomas Hoggins, of St. Martins, Mr. Tulse in Foster-Lane, and Mr. Lovett, a Grocer, in Daventry in Northampton-shire.  
II. A Whale, or Sea-Monster, of a Prodigious Size, near New-Castle; with the strange Actions it performed.  
III. Of a Strange and Wonderful Apparition of Armies on the Land, near the City of Exeter; which appeared the very Evening before the late Famous Battle in IRELAND.  
IV. Of a Terrible Tempest, which happened in several Counties,( particularly in the Isle of Ely) with the Damage it did.  
V. Of a most Strange and Wonderful Apparition of Armies in the Air, near Malden in Essex.    

licenced according to Order.   
London, Printed for H. Jones, in the Strand, 1691.   

A Faithful NARRATIVE Of the Several Strange, and Prodigious Signs, AND Wonderful Appearances& Accidents Which have happened in several Parts of England, both from the Heavens, Earth, and Waters, &c.  

THERE is no Person of any Age or Understanding, but must needs aclowledge that the last Four, if not Twelve Years, has been, as it were, an Age of Prodigies and Wonders, in these three Kingdoms; so that, it may be, no former time can parallel, so many strange Transactions, as have happened in so little space; and therefore, as an ingenious Person says, 
A Book of Wonders is most fit,  
In wondrous Times for to be writ.   
And another Learned Author says, The Wise Creator of Heaven and Earth is wont, when the measure of our Wickedness comes to the height, rather to inflect upon us Temporal, than Eternal Punishments; and to use for our Amendment, the occasion of these Natural Effects, thereby to affright us, from the terror of those Sights, to a Repentance, and dutiful Respect of him. And if we consult History, we shall find, that there hath never been any notable Apparition or Prodigy, seen in the Heavens, on the Water, or the Earth, but it hath been attended, in the sequel, with more than ordinary Occurances here on Earth: Neither is there any one, except he hath no Religion, who is not affrighted at Lightning, the clashing noise of Thunder, or an horrible Comet; for God speaks to Men, not only with the Tongues of Men by Prophets, Apostles, and Teachers, but sometime also by the Elements, and other extraordinary Signs in the Heavens, Earth, or Sea.  
In order whereunro, it cannot surely be unreasonable, nor unprofitable, to publish to the World, what has lately happened in several parts of England; of which I shall therefore proceed to give an Account as followeth:   

Of a prodigious Clap of Thunder and Lightning, near Daintry in Northampton-shire; Killing four Persons, &c.  
WE have of late, had great Thunders and Lightning, accompanied with terrible Storns of Rain; whose sudden violence overflowed divers Places, to the great Damage: among others of this kind, of the sad effects of the Storms, we have a particular Account in the following manner, attested by Credible Witness.  
At a Place near Badby, a Mile from Daventry in Northampton-shire, on Monday the 27th. of July 1691. 16 Persons being in a Field( called Everton Field) at Harvest-Work, The Sky immediately overcasting with black and dismal Clouds, prodigious Thunders& Lightning ensued, which accompanied with extraordinary Showers of Rain, made them seek shelter under the Trees and Hedges; but they proved no safe retreat; for immediately a Flash of Fire broken from a Cloud, and falling amongst them with a very sudden motion, struck four of them dead; they not having leisure to utter one word; and Burnt Ten of the rest in so terrible a manner, that their Lives are despaired of: Amongst the Wounded, are the Master of the Ground, and his Wife. And it is remarkable, that one of those Killed, held in his Hand a Snush-box, just putting it to his Nose; and another had a little Dog between his Legs, holding him by the Ears, as if at play; which Dog was likewise found Dead. The Fire likewise split an Ash-tree( under which they sat) all in pieces; many Splinters of which are brought to London, as a testimony of this sad and deplorable Disaster. The Storm continued a long time, making the Earth, and the neighbouring Villages, to tremble.  
The Names of the Persons Killed( being Four) which were as followeth, viz. 

Mr. Simon Marriot; Mr. Robert Marriot his Son: Mr. Richard Wills, who was found Dead with a little Dog in his Lap; who was also killed.  
Mr. Thomas burrow, who was found Dead with Snush in his Hand, just putting it to his Nose.    
The Confirmation of this Relation( if any Doubt the Truth thereof) may be had from divers Creditable Persons in the City of London, as well as in the Country where it happened; particularly from 

Mr. William Needler of Tatnam:  
Mr. Thomas Hoggins, of St. Martins:  
Mr. Tulse, a Goldsmith, in Foster-Lane.  
Mr. Lovert, a Grocer, in Daventry:     

Of a Whale, or Sea-monster, near Newcastle.  
ON Saturday the Fourth of this instant July, 1691. Between the hours of Nine and Ten in the Morning, there appeared off of a small Seaport, in the County of Cumberland, called Gossforth( which place is situate not far from Newcastle, and within Three Miles of Sea Scale) a Whale, or some other most strange and wonderful Sea Monster, in the shape of a Whale, being of a prodigious and unheard of length and breadth: he was visible to great numbers of Spectators, for above three hours, very near the shore, during which time, by his often moving his Body, and flounching up and down in the Sea, he made so prodigious a Noise( infinitely exceeding that of the coming in, or going out of the Tide at any Bridge, or on the greatest Flood) that it allarmed the Inhabitants that were in the Neighbouring Villages, and others that were at Work in the Fields, for near Ten Miles round.   

Of an Apparition of Land Soldiers, near the City of Exeter.  
ON Saturday the Eleventh of this instant July, 1691. In the Afternoon of the same day, several Country-Men being at Work, in a Meadow belonging to a small Village, near the City of Exon▪ in the County of Devon, as they were busily employed in Loading, or as they call it, Housing their Hay, one of them plainly descried at some distance, a great Body of Armed Men, moving towards them, most of which seemed to be mounted on large White Horses; the Country-man informing the rest of the Company of it, they plainly saw the same as well as himself: The Men that were mounted on the Horses, had their Swords drawn, and Pieces, like Carbines, hanging on their Shoulders. After some short time, this seeming Body of Men, marched themselves on the Left of them, clear out of Sight; four of the Persons that saw this Sight or Apparition returning home, went before one Mr. F— an Honourable Justice of the Peace of that County, and made Affidavit of ●… e same; what may be thought not a ●… tle Remarkable in this Apparition 〈◇〉 that on the very next day being ●unday the 12th. the late Famous Bat●… e in Ireland was Fought, in which ●heir Majesties Forces obtained a Sig●al Victory over the French and Irish ●apists; in which Action the Earl of ●ortland's Regiment ( who were all ●hite Horse, and but just Arrived in ●… e Camp from England) were consi●erably Engaged▪ much the same Ap●arition, or like Body of Men, were 〈◇〉 some Days before in Pembrook●… ire in Wales, and in Cheshire; in the ●ormer of which Places, several Per●ons likewise made Affidavit of the ●… uth, of it before an Honourable ●ustice of the Peace of the said Coun●… y, who sent up an Account of the ●ame to a Relation of his in Grays-●nn London.  
The foregoing Relations of Armed Men, and what ensued thereupon in Ireland, brings to my remembrance, ● Relation given by Mr. Hamilton in ●is Account of the Actions of the Inniskilling Men, that just before the Famous Defeat given to Mac-Carty's Army, killing of his Men, and taking himself Prisoner; there was see● strange Apparitions of Bodies of Me●… &c. in the Adjacent Neighbourhoo●…   

Of a Terrible Tempest in the Isle 〈◇〉 ELY.  
ON Thursday the 15th. instant, the●… fell a mighty Tempest of Rai●… Hail, Lightning, and Thunder in t●… Isle of Ely, Cambridge-shire, and so●… parts of Hartford-shire; before t●… Tempest began, the Sky was for ● considerable time Black and Dar●… when on a sudden there happened ● great Storm of Hail, which by t●… assistance of of an East-Wind, fell wi●… such violence, that the Hail-Sto●… rebounded two Foot high from t●… ground, after which followed a fier●… shower of Rain, which seemed rath●… to come down in Pailfuls, than in t●… common way, and so affrighted the I●habitants, that they ran immediate●… into the Fields to save the Sheep a●… Lambs, and other small Cattle; du●ing this dreadful Storm, the Heave●… sent forth such huge and freque●… flashes of Fire, that the Firmame●… seemed to be in a flamme; some 〈◇〉 the Hail-Stones that fell, were of 〈◇〉 very large Size; the Rain caused so great a Torrent of Water, that in several parts great Quantities of Sheep and Lambs, &c. were drowned, which with several considerable quantities of Hay were carried away with the Torrent.   

Of strange Apparitions in the Air, near Maldon in Essex.  
IN the first Week of July, 1691. At a small place near the Town of Maldon, in the County of Essex, there was seen the following Apparitions, or Appearance: Just about twy light, or the shutting up of the Evening, at the House of the Vicker of the Parish, which is situate near half a mile from the Church, at a time when the Gentleman and his Family was at Supper, a great Dog that belonged to the House, was observed to make a very great and unusual Barking, as if the House had been beset with Thieves; upon which a Servant was ordered to go into the Yard, to find out the occasion of the Dogs Barking, who coming to the place, saw, to his great Admiration, a strange and unusual Light in the Sky, upon which, giving information thereof to his Master, &c. they all came out, and looking in the Sky, they all soon after, saw the plain likeness or appearance of a Body of Men in the Air, divided into two Bodies▪ and soon after tha●, they heard th● plain noise or report of Guns, grea● and small, and to their thinking, Me● drooping down from both Parties; a●ter some time, these Bodies of Me● vanished, and they saw the appea●rance of only two Men on Horse-back▪ Engaged with Pistols, and to thei● thinking, the one killed the other, an● then vanished.   
FINIS.   

ADVERTISEMENT.  
☞ An Impartial Journal of all the Tran●actions of Their Majesties Forces, and th●… of the Irish Rebels, both Regular Troops an● Rapparees. With an exact List of all t●… Irish Rebels, that have been killed, or tak●… Prisoners in each Action: with the Names 〈◇〉 the English Officers that Commanded, the D●… when, and Place where each Action was pe●form'd. Printed for Rob. Hayhurst in Li●tle-Brittain.