being the same length on the keel, one inch more beam, one foot more depth, but only three inches more draught, and one ton less burden, and she had the same number of men and guns, so that we may assume that these were regarded as satisfactory dimensions, especially as the Merlin, built in the same year by Jonas Shish, also at Rotherhithe, was of nearly similar measurements, being, length of keel, 53 feet; breadth, 19 feet 6 inches; depth, 6 feet; draught, 7 feet 4 inches; 109 tons, and the same number of men and guns.
Not much appears to be known concerning William Castle, the builder of the Monmouth; but Jonas Shish, or, as he was more familiarly called, "Old Shish," was a famous shipbuilder. Among other men-of-war, he built the Royal Charles, 1229 tons; the London, 1328 tons; and the Oak Royal, 1107 tons, which were excellent vessels in their day. Grateful as we must all feel to Pepys,—the minute recorder, as he certainly was,—no charity can blind us to the fact that he was a man of strong prejudices, which frequently warped his judgment. He appears also to have disapproved of pretty much everything relating to maritime affairs outside of his own set in the Admiralty, to whom he was attached body and soul. "Old Shish" found no favor in his eyes, and, according to Pepys, "was illiterate, low-spirited, of little appearance or authority, little frugality, a great drinker, and since killed with it." All this may be, and probably is, true, but there are some other things concerning "Old Shish" that are probably true also; for Evelyn
