dated October 24, 1653, Barrière relates an interview which he had with Cromwell the previous day. He found him, he said, well disposed to assist the prince. 'Ce à quoy j'ay trouvé plus de disposition s'a esté à l'afaire de La Rochelle; et pour sest effect il me demanda de luy faire voir Conan, qui présentement est avecque luy. A son retour je vous manderay ce qu'il luy aura dit, car en me séparant de luy, il me dit que quant il auroit veu sest homme là, il me diret ce qu'il pourroit faire.' On a later page, after mentioning Conan's intended departure for Spain, he adds: 'Monsieur de Conan vient tout présentement de parler à Cromwel, qui l'a fort questionné sur les moyens de faire réussir l'affaire dont il est question, et a tesmoigné désirer avec passion qu'elle se peut exécuter; mais pourtant luy a dit qu'il ne ce pourroit enguager à rien jusques à ce que l'on eust des nouvelles d'Espagne, et que lorsqu'il auret de l'argent, on fourniroit toutes les choses necessaires, luy a recommendé de revenir le plus tost qu'il pourret, et que peut estre a son retour les afaires auroyent changé de face et, que, sela estant, luy, Cromwel, et tout ce qui gouverne en Angleterre estoyent entièrement portés a sela pour le soulagement du peuple et pour le service de Son Altesse.'

A letter written on November 14 from Madrid by the Comte de Fiesque to the Prince de Condé adds: 'La resolution est prise icy de ligue offensive et deffensive entre l'Angleterre et l'Espagne, pour laquelle il sera porté expressément qu'ils attaqueront ou la Guyenne, ou la Normandie, ou qu'ils descendront a la Rochelle, selon ce qui sera jugé a propos pour le bien du party, et cela dans le mois d'Avril prochain[22].'

The projected league between England and Spain came to nothing, but the existence of these schemes at the time when Hane was sent to France and the indications afforded by Hane's letters explain the objects of his mission.

A minister like Stouppe was an admirable choice when the main object was to learn from Huguenot preachers and Huguenot politicians what their views of the political situation were. If, however, Cromwell was to intervene in France and send an army to Guienne, as he was asked to do, he required also some trustworthy information about the Huguenot strongholds and the coast seaports. The state of the defences of Bordeaux and La Rochelle, and the comparative military value of the different places which Condé's agents and the agents of Bordeaux offered him, were questions on which the opinion of a skilled engineer would be of the greatest value. It is probable that Hane's mission was more military than political, and that he was rather a spy than a political intriguer.

Whether spy or political intriguer his peril was much the same. The tortures with which the hangman of Bordeaux threatened him were employed impartially to extract the truth from either. One of Sexby's four companions had been arrested on suspicion in Languedoc. 'He was put in prison,' says Sexby, 'and after racked to make him confess with whom he had corrispondence, but God inabled him to keep secret what he knew, though the torture and paine he suffered cost him his life[23].' It was only by a miracle that Hane escaped a similar fate. The story of his escapes and his wanderings is so vivid and picturesque that it seemed worth rescuing from entire oblivion, even though it throws little light on the dark places of Cromwell's foreign policy.

Hane's services and sufferings were not unrewarded. Before he started the Council of State had voted that £100 a year in Scottish lands should be settled upon him 'to encourage him and his family to settle in this nation.' On November 1, 1653, Mr. Moyer, on behalf of the Council, moved Parliament to give effect to this recommendation. He reported 'that there is one Major Hane, by birth a foreigner, who hath performed many eminent services in the war of Scotland; hath very great skill in fortifications and all matters relating to the profession of an engineer, and is of very great use at this time in services of that nature; that he is a person eminent for godliness, and of undoubted affection to this commonwealth.' Parliament, however, in a fit of economy, or because it knew nothing of the nature of Hane's services, negatived the vote without a division[24]. This was merely a postponement of his reward. On June 26, 1654, Cromwell's Council of State voted that an ordinance for naturalizing Hane should be prepared, and agreed to another ordinance settling lands to the value of £120 a year upon him. Eventually the naturalization ordinance was made to date June 26, 1654, and that conferring the lands July 27 of the same year, and both ordinances were confirmed by Cromwell's second Parliament on April 28, 1657[25]. Hane meantime had returned to his duties in Scotland, where he no doubt superintended the erection of those forts at Inverness, Leith, Ayr, and Inverlochy, which were built to bridle the Scots. It is not improbable that the plans of those forts, which still exist in Worcester College Library, were drawn by Hane's hand. William Clarke, the owner of the plans in consequence of his position as secretary to General Monk, was necessarily acquainted with Hane; and the narrative of Hane's adventures in France was doubtless copied by Clarke from Hane's original manuscript. The copy is dated as begun on October 14, 1657, which proves that Hane must have committed his story to writing within a very short time after the events had occurred.

In the summer of 1657 Hane was called to a new sphere of action. Cromwell had allied himself with France, and 6,000 English soldiers had been despatched to Flanders. In September Turenne and Sir John Reynolds laid siege to Mardyke, for which purpose the Protector had promised to provide artillery and mortar-pieces. Hane was sent for from Scotland to take part in the siege. He had just obtained leave from Monk to go to England, on account of the dangerous illness of his wife, and Monk's messenger overtook him at Alnwick and brought him back to Scotland. Before he could sail however Mardyke had fallen. On September 29, 1657, Monk wrote to congratulate Thurloe on its capture, and in the same letter announced Hane's departure: 'You may acquaint his Highness that Mr. Hane sett sayle from hence on Saturday morning last the wind being very fair. Hee had his tackling fixt, and everything ready to play his morter-piece, as soone as a platforme should be layd for it; being hee could not gett those materialls there, which hee carried with him, wee thought fitt to provide him heere, and wee hope hee was there on Monday last.' He was immediately sent back to England to report to the Protector the state of his new acquisition. Lockhart wrote on October 3 to Thurloe that in order that his Highness 'might want no informatione that can be given him concerning that place, Mr. Hains, the ingeneer (who hath visited the place and consithered all the defects of it), will be with his Highnesse before these can come to your lordships hands.' When Dunkirk fell Hane was again summoned to inspect and add to its fortifications, but he was taken ill immediately after his arrival. On August 11, 1658, Lockhart informed Thurloe of his death. 'Mr. Hains the ingeneer is dead. I endeavoured all I could to cherish him, both before and during his