Blackftone, if that would be making him fatisfaction.-But as the outrage was fo great, and attended with bad confequences to Mr. Blackstone's wife, he told the court, that he came there as an Englishman, and was defirous it might be made appear that our laws were made to protect the innocent, and punish the guilty, and that he, therefore, chofe to fubmit his caufe to the verdict of his twelve countrymen, the jury. Accordingly, after the charge was given by the judge, the jury, which was fpecial, withdrew for about ten minutes, and brought in a verdict of 2001. damages, with cofts.

The galleon Santiffima Tri9th. nidade, from the Eaft Indies, arrived in Plymouth road. She is the largest and richest fhip ever brought into the ports of England, She was loaded at Madrafs with a vaft collection made by governor Pigot of foreign curiofities, particularly wild beafts, moft of which died in the paffage, it being fo very long, and the fhip fo very labourfome. One of those which has furvived is a ferpent, which is, it is faid, fourteen feet long, eats only once a month, and then changes its fkin, and, as fome fay, is quite harmless. The fociety for the encouragement of arts, &c. have lately beftowed the following premiums, viz.

Thirty guineas to Mr. Keyfe, an eminent painter in Fleet-ftreet, for the difcovery of a method to fix crayons, fo as to ftand even a fevere rubbing of foap and water.

Ten guineas to one Mr. Ringrofe, for a new improvement in agriculture.

Ten guineas to a gentlewoman, for an improvement in manufactures, by finishing a piece of lace

in a very elegant manner 'with knitting-needles.

11th.

Ended the feffions at the Old Bailey, when one malefactor received fentence of death for murder, one for perfonating a failor, in order to receive his wages, and three for other crimes. The murderer and two others were executed. Thirty-five to be tranfported for feven years, and one to be whipped. Three were branded.

18th.

Happened in and about London one of the greatest thunder ftorms in the memory of man. Some buildings fuffered by it, particularly the elegant fpire of St. Bride's, Fleet-ftreet, which was fhattered fo much, that it was obliged to be rebuilt. Several balls of fire were feen in the ftreets at the fame time, but foon disappeared without doing any mifchief. Some perfons, however, were hurt by the ftones that flew from the damaged buildings. At Chatham the lightning killed one man, hurt fome others, and had it not been for a heavy rain that attended it, would probably have fet the Ra millies man of war on fire. In London there was no rain till the lightning was over.

A conftable attempting to 21ft. execute, in the court-yard of a foreign minifter, a warrant against one of his domeftics, for a breach of the peace, was fome time confined in the minifter's house, but had fatisfaction made him; and the domeftic was delivered up to the civil power, to be dealt with according to law.

Was executed at Guildhall, be fore Mr. Bennett, fecondary of Wood-ftrect compter, a writ of inquiry of damages, in an action of trefpafs, wherein Meff. Wilfon

and

and Fell, two booksellers in Paternofter-row, fome time fince imprifoned for printing fome numbers of the Monitor, were plaintiffs, and three of his majefty's meffengers defendants; when, after many learned arguments by the council on both fides, the jury, to compose which one perfon was fummoned out of each ward in this city, withdrew, and in about forty minutes brought in the damages at 6001.

The fourteen journeymen printers, who fome months ago obtained a verdict against the king's meffengers for falfe imprisonment, on account of the North Briton, No. 45, were prevailed on to accept their money of Meffrs. Nathan Carrington and R. Blackmore, two meffengers, in manner following: thirteen of them, who had 2001. cofts and damages decreed them, accepted 1201. each, and one of them, who had 3001. decreed him, accepted 1751. and all agreed to pay their own cofts..

23d.

A violent ftorm of hail, rain, thunder, and lightening, did immenfe damage in Middlefex, Berkshire, Wilts, Yorkfhire, Durham, Oxfordshire, Gloucefterfhire, Effex, Bucks, Worcefterfhire, Hants, &c. to the buildings and fruits of the earth, and feveral lives were loft thereby. The hail-ftones in fome places were an inch and a quarter long, three quarters of an inch broad, and half an inch thick. The da mage fuftained in Berkshire alone, is estimated at 20,000l. This ftorm was likewife feverely felt at Doway in France, where the hailftones were as big as hens eggs, and did proportionable mischief. At Heidelberg, it was ftill more VOL. VII.

dreadful, and the lightening fet fire to the electoral palace, great part of which was confumed.

The king has lately received a letter written with the emperor of Morocco's own hand, infifting, it is faid, that a fhip belonging to Marth Holud, brother to the dey of Algiers, having been caft away on the British coaft, and the cargo. loft, the whole value of the faid cargo fhould be made good to the fufferers.

Mr. and Mrs. Liddal, at 25th. the Green Dragon at Harrowgate, took the flitch of bacon oath at Dunmow in Kent, taken notice of by the Spectator; when the gentlemen of the neighbourhood, to celebrate fo unusual an inftance of conjugal felicity, fent in each fome elegant or plentiful difh, and all dined together in the house of the happy couple.

27th.

The court of common pleas was moved to increafe iffues, on the return of the diftringas iffued at the fuit of Mr. Beardmore's clerk against the earl of Halifax, when the court was pleased to order 500l. iffues on the alias diftringas; it appearing by affidavit, that, though this action had been commenced for near twelve months, no appearance had yet been entered for the defendant. 30th.

The executors of Jennix

Dry, efq; have paid the treafurers of St. Thomas's, St. Bartholomew's, St. Luke's, and the London hofpitals, and likewife thofe of the London, work-house, 2001. to each, pursuant to the will of the deceased, being a part only of the teftator's perfonal eftate, which he bequeathed wholly to the use of the said hofpitals, and workhouse.

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And

The beginning of this year a terrible famine broke out in feveral parts of Italy, particularly the kingdom of Naples, and the ecclefiaftical state, and was followed by a great mortality, particularly in the former, owing more to the ufe of bad corn fent them from other countries, than even the want of good corn, infomuch that, by the advice of the phyficians, vaft quantities of it were thrown into the fea at fome leagues from Naples, it being fo far gone as to occafion a fatal and infectious diforder even amongst the poultry, who partook of it. On this occafion, the king of Spain fhewed great tendernefs for his former fubjects, fending them wheat, flour, and bifcuit, to anfwer their most preffing wants; and the pope gave leave, with the advice of the cardinals, to take out of the cafile of St. Angelo, 300,000 crowns, part of the vaft treasure depofited there by Sixtus Quintus, to be touched only in the most preffing exigencies. The corn imported into the kingdom of Naples alone, on this occafion, is faid to have amounted to close upon thirty thoufand tons; notwithstanding which there perifhed there upwards of 500,000 fouls in lefs than fix months, and a proportionable number in the

papal territories. As great part of the corn thrown into the fea on this melancholy occafion has been pofitively aflerted, in letters from Naples, to have been bought up in England, it seems, if not proper to vindicate the nation's juftice, honour, and humanity, by inquiring into paft frauds in that important trade, at least high time to make fuch regulations, as may prevent fuch abuses for the future.

The laft Dutch East India fhips, which arrived in Holland from Batavia, brought letters from Caffambazar, giving an 'account, that in March, 1763, a most violent fire happened at Moxudabath, which had reduced that place' to afhes. And that on the 2d of April following, there was such a vehement earthquake at Deher or Decca, that it caufed the water in the river Ganges to rife twenty feet above its common level, and agitated it in the fame way as it is at new and full moon. Upwards of 500 veffels with provifions, and a great number of people's lives, were loft; but the most shocking and dismal part of the account is, that at Lockepoer, about two days journey from Decca, a circuit of land, near fifteen English miles in circumference, was swallowed up, and all the people and cattle on it were drowned.

Lisbon, June 10. On the 2d inft. a fire broke out in our cuftom-houfe, containing to the a mount of above half a million fterling, and the building being of wood, erected in a hurry after the late dreadful earthquake, and little affiftance at hand, it being a holiday, (Holy Thursday) the flames fpread fo rapidly, as to elude all

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the

And the executors of the late Dr. Ofbaldifton, bifhop of London, have paid into the hands of the treasurer of the fociety for propagating the gospel in foreign parts, the fum of 5001. bequeathed to them by his lordfhip; who has alfo left 2001. for the relief of poor clergymen's widows, and 1000l. for repairing the episcopal palace at Fulham.

A fmall piece of ground in Piccadilly bought fome years ago when a field for 301. by a brewer, as a wafte place to put his butts in, &c. was lately fold for the benefit of his fon, an orphan, for the fum of 25001. fo greatly is that part of the town improved even in the memory of man.

In the course of this month there arrived various accounts of our logwood cutters in the bay of Honduras having been not only disturbed in their bufinefs, but ordered to remove fuddenly from their ufual places of fettlement, on pretence of their having nothing to prove their being fubjects to his Britannic majefty; and, granting they were, that they had roved too freely about the country, gathering the fruits of it as if it belonged to them. Thefe proceedings were made an ample fund of declamation by the party writers, who failed not to reprefent them in lights no way favourable to the wifdom of our own, or the fincerity of the Spanish court; whereas, by two articles in the London Gazette, it is probable that the whole was owing to too great attention to forms in the Spanish commanders in that part of the world, and too little, perhaps, in our logwood cutters, neither of which, if we confider the characters

of the parties, can be any matter of furprife. The articles above referred to are as follows: St. James's, July 21. In answer to the reprefentations made by his majefty's ambassador at the court of Madrid, upon the late tranfactions of their governor of Jucatan, and his proceedings towards the British subjects employed in cutting logwood in the bay of Honduras, the Spanish miniftry have replied, that they have not received any advices from that governor relative to this affair; but that it is certain the catholic king has given pofitive orders to his governor of Jucatan to abide by, and obferve the XVIIth article of the laft treaty of peace, and that hè will not approve of the conduct of his fubjects who act in contravention to it. That it is the intention of his catholic majefty, that no one fhall impede the English in their cutting logwood in the ftipulated places; and he will difapprove of his governors and minifters, whenever they act to the contrary, and renew the most strict orders to that effect. St. James's Sept. 28. Laft night one of his majefty's meffengers arrived from Madrid, with difpatches from his majefty's ambassador at that court, tranfinitting a duplicate of the orders, which, in confequence of his excellency's late remonftrances, that court has difpatched to don Felipe Ramirez de Eftenoz, governor of Jucatan :. in which orders his catholic majefty difapproves the proceedings of the faid governor, with refpect to his majesty's fubjects in the bay of Honduras; expreffes his defire of giving his majesty the greatest proofs of his friendship, and of preferving