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MR. URBAN, Shrewsbury, Dec. 7. HAT the habitations of our ancestors, as well as the edifices

THAT which they raised for the purpose of religious worship, are equally deserving of our notice, whether viewed as remains of art, or monuments of their labour and ingenuity, we have full proof, by the attention which is manifested in your Miscellany to every subject that has a tendency to illustrate the manners and customs of our forefathers. Under such an impression, I take the liberty of sending you the annexed view of a curious timber house situated at the bottom of the Wyle Cop, adjoining the East or English Bridge in the town of Shrewsbury, which has been taken down during the present year. (See Plate I.)

The mansion is supposed to have been erected in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, by William Jones, an alderman and opulent draper of the town, and father of Thomas Jones, esq. six times Bailiff, and first Mayor of Shrewsbury.

The building was spacious and rude, its exterior, unlike the generality of our ancient mansions, being void of the usual carved ornaments, grotesque heads, &c. The entrance from the street was by a remarkably low archway, which led to a small area surrounded by the house and its former appendages, and formed a communication to a few smaller buildings adjoining the river side, which were doubtless the warehouses of the original occupier of the house.

A portion of the great chamber or withdrawing room remained nearly in its original state, having a large chimney piece adorned with grotesque carving, and a variety of devices and armorial bearings in plaster displayed upon the ceiling, and, with the other principal apartments, fronted the street. Yours, &c. H. PIDGEON.

Mr. URBAN,

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date from it much of his subsequent ill-health!!"

This is something like what is stated by Neal, who says, that a Puritan Clergyman had his days shortened by what he suffered from prelatical persecution, he dying at upwards of eighty!!

Now, Sir, being at Winchester with Crowther, I assert that I never saw any oppression, except in one instance, in six years, among two hundred boys; and those who inflicted this one oppression, on complaint to the Warden, were expelled instantly.

How many have died since by such oppression, I know not; but poor Crowther must have been a long time dying; and as I have never been in robust health, it may be said, if any mention of so humble a Wykechamist may be made after death, that I "never recovered the oppression I suffered at school." You shall have at least, during life, my hand to the contrary; and I shall add, that dining and sitting next to this identical MR. CROWTHER at a Wykechamist meeting in London, having never met him from the time of our being at school, he spoke with delighted reminiscence of those days, and it would be singular indeed that he should have come to dine with his oppressors, so many years afterwards, if he "never recovered the oppression he suffered !"

These charges in general are too despicable to notice; but the name under which they are published, has induced me not to withhold my own, and to be somewhat more particular.

Mr. Wilson says, "his (Mr. Crowther's) TENDER spirit, like Cowper's, never recovered the OPPRESSION under which he suffered from the tyranny of the ELDER boys!!"

I was the senior of the ELDER BOYS, when he was junior; and I defy any human being to say that from me, as one of the oppressors, he ever heard Bremhill, Dec. 3. an unkind word, or that one junior boy ever received any thing but protection. Many now alive were elder boys with me at the time, some in the highest stations; and I can say the

IT has been observed by the Rev.

Daniel in Sermon preached at Christ Church, Newgate street, of the late Mr. Crowther, "that his tender spirit NEVER RECOVERED THE OPPRESSION he suffered at Winchester, from the TYRANNY OF THE ELDER BOYS! if he had not to ·GENT. MAG. December, 1829.

same of them.

As this accusation has been publicly made," I shall here give the names of all those elder boys, some of whom

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for the better maintenance of mutual correspondence.

"There are about 4 or 500 receivinghouses to take in letters, where the messengers call every hour, and convey them as directed; as also post-letters, the writing of which are much increased by this accommodation, being carefully conveyed by them to the General Post-Office in Lombardstreet.

"There are a great number of clerks and poor citizens daily employed as messengers, to collect, sort, enter, stamp, and deliver all letters, every person entertained giving 50% security, by bond, for his fidelity; and the undertakers oblige themselves to make good any thing delivered to their messengers, under the value of 107. if sealed up, and the contents indorsed. By these messengers are conveyed letters and parcels, not exceeding one pound weight, to and from all parts of London, and all places within the bills of mortality; as also to the four towns of Hackney, Islington, SouthNewington-Butts, and Lambeth, but to no other towns; and the letters only to be left at the receiving-houses of those four towns, and not delivered in the street; but if brought home to the houses in those towns, a penny more to be charged.

"They now do use stamps, to mark the hour of the day on all letters when sent out from their office to be delivered, by which persons are to expect their letters within one hour from the time marked thereon, by which the cause of delay of letters may be easily discern'd, viz. whether it be really in the office, or their own servants with whom letters are left.

"All persons are desired not to leave any letters on Saturday nights, after six of the clock in the winter, and seven in the summer, that the poor men employed may have a little time to provide for their families against the Lord's-Day, having no leisure all the week besides.

"To the most remote places, letters go four or five times of the day; to other places, six or eight times of the day; to inns of court, and places of business, especially in term or Parliament-time, 10 or 12 times of the day.

"London extends from Lymehouse to the end of Tuttle-street, seven miles and an half, which extraordinary length renders speedy communication very uneasie and troublesom. Now, to keep up a necessary correspondence, the way formerly used was, to hire porters, at excessive rates, to go on errands, and to send servants or apprentices, who lost the time that should be spent to learn their trades and benefit their masters, and would often loyter, and get vicious habits and evil company, to their own and masters' hurt. Or else, such as could not spare the porter so much money, nor kept

servants, have been forced to sw and leave their work for, it ma day, to do that which now they at the easie rate of a penny.

"The objections to this u have heard of arc, 1st, from porters, that it hinders their liv the porters are an inconsideral respect of the whole inhabi great city, and a useful under not in equity or prudence be d ed, for the peculiar advantage Others alledge, that their le speedily answered, and there miscarry. But that may be party is not at home, and his s produce his letter as they o punctually left by the Penny ger. Or the party may not b not willing to write, or rem pretend he received it not, « money, which he cannot or And indeed I am also inform dance of letters are so ill s uncertainly directed, (the på the party, the sign, or what near, being omitted,) that to deliver such, which is senders, and not of the offic

Thus far from Mr. I ous vindication of the ing. JAMES

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MR. URBAN,

Shrewsbury, Dec. 7. THAT the habitations of our ancestors, as well as the edifices which they raised for the purpose of religious worship, are equally deserving of our notice, whether viewed as remains of art, or monuments of their labour and ingenuity, we have full proof, by the attention which is manifested in your Miscellany to every subject that has a tendency to illustrate the manners and customs of our forefathers. Under such an impression, I take the liberty of sending you the annexed view of a curious timber house situated at the bottom of the Wyle Cop, adjoining the East or English Bridge in the town of Shrewsbury, which has been taken down during the present year. (See Plate I.)

The mansion is supposed to have been erected in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, by William Jones, an alderman and opulent draper of the town, and father of Thomas Jones, esq. six times Bailiff, and first Mayor of Shrewsbury.

The building was spacious and rude, its exterior, unlike the generality of our ancient mansions, being void of the usual carved ornaments, grotesque heads, &c. The entrance from the street was by a remarkably low archway, which led to a small area surrounded by the house and its former appendages, and formed a communication to a few smaller buildings adjoining the river side, which were doubtless the warehouses of the original occupier of the house.

A portion of the great chamber or withdrawing room remained nearly in its original state, having a large chimney piece adorned with grotesque carving, and a variety of devices and armorial bearings in plaster displayed upon the ceiling, and, with the other principal apartments, fronted the street.

Yours, &c. H. PIDGEON.

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date from it much of his subsequent ill-health!!"

This is something like what is stated by Neal, who says, that a Puritan Clergyman had his days shortened by what he suffered from prelatical persecution, he dying at upwards of eighty!!

Now, Sir, being at Winchester with Crowther, I assert that I never saw any oppression, except in one instance, in six years, among two hundred boys; and those who inflicted this one oppression, on complaint to the Warden, were expelled instantly.

How many have died since by such oppression, I know not; but poor Crowther must have been a long time dying; and as I have never been in robust health, it may be said, if any mention of so humble a Wykechamist may be made after death, that I " never recovered the oppression I suffered at school." You shall have at least, during life, my hand to the contrary; and I shall add, that dining and sitting next to this identical MR. CROWTHER at a Wykechamist meeting in London, having never met him from the time of our being at school, he spoke with delighted reminiscence of those days, and it would be singular indeed that he should have come to dine with his 'oppressors, so many years afterwards, if he “never recovered the oppression he suffered!"

These charges in general are too despicable to notice; but the name under which they are published, has induced me not to withhold my own, and to be somewhat more particular.

Mr. Wilson says, "his (Mr. Crowther's) TENDER spirit, like Cowper's,

never recovered the OPPRESSION under which he suffered from the tyranny of the ELDER boys!!"

I was the senior of the ELDER BOYS,

when he was junior; and I defy any human being to say that from me, as one of the oppressors, he ever heard an unkind word, or that one junior boy ever received any thing but protection. Many now alive were elder boys with me at the time, some in the highest stations; and I can say the same of them!

As this accusation has been publicly made," I shall here give the names of all those elder boys, some of whom

caused Mr. Crowther "to die so slowly!"-The names of these elder boys were, Bowles, Eccles, Gabell (late Head Master), Lee, Heath, Holles, Runwa, Elliot, Newhouse, Tyrwhit (late Sir Thomas Jones), Howley (Archbishop of Canterbury), Hawes, to whom am indebted for anecdotes in my present researches, Le Breton, Hamley, Bingham, Maundrel, Heathcote (Archdeacon of Winchester), Kirby.

Having given the names of these oppressors, I can testify against Mr. Wilson's statement, as publicly as he

has not hesitated to make it.

I have one more observation to offer. Crowther remained at Win

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and

chester till 1788. Can a reflecting human being imagine if, in his junior year, he had received such treatment as is inferred,-that this "meek" boy should have said not one word to his father or mother, or that they should have made no representation, what a monster of a mamma must she have been, to have sent the "meek" boy back again to his oppressors! in order that a most respectable character -doubtless from some misapprehension-should be left, forty years afterwards, to cry out "Murder!!"

However such statements may be calculated to amuse and edify the Mayor and Aldermen of London, I believe there is no one who knows any thing about the matter, who would not say with me, INCREDULUS ODI!

From a letter from the Junior in my chamber, and Crowther's friend at New College, I extract the following passage: Of the six Præfects you mention, I will engage that four of them (yourself, Lee, Hamley, and Howley,) never hurt the hair of a junior boy's head. Of the others, I have no particular remembrance; but I repeat that, having left Crowther a stout boy at Winchester in 1785, and KNOWING HIM WELL afterwards at College (New College), I have NO REASON

WHATEVER TO BELIEVE A WORD OF
PUBLISHED!!
THE STATEMENT

I knew Crowther very well, both at WINTON and OXFORD!!"

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The speculations, which in the times of the ancient Greek sages, Anaximander and Xenophanes, prevailed in physics and theology, are still urged by the philosophers of these times, and sometimes inferences derogatory to Divine Benevolence are drawn. In this our own age, as indeed in most others, the discoveries of the geognost, the naturalist, and the astronomer, are often made the basis of assumptions invalidating certain points in revelation, and what we know of the Divine attributes.

The inauspicious aspect of Iceland may, therefore, be cited by some of these philosophers, on the present occasion. The vain sceptic, arrogating to himself that right of judging which none save a higher than human intelligence has any just pretension to use, might probably urge in full view of the gloomy and chaotic aspect of the extensive districts which diversifies almost the whole face of that island, that an argument here may be superinduced of the improvidence of nature, and the inadaptation of the means to the end. An answer, however, might be found to a position of this kind. It is conjectured, and with much appearance of reason, that that very extensive island, reared in the midst of the ocean, had its origin from marine volcanoes, and hence its prominent characteristic features would seem not so much intended for the support of mankind, as to subserve certain probable effects in the physiology of that part of our globe, unknown to us. This is beyond question possible; while it is granted, on the other

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