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gaol, the town-hall, and a part of the public archives and the treasurer's offices, all have fallen a sacrifice to the flames. Most fortunately, the commissary's stores and king's provisions were by great exertions saved; and to this source of life, many now owe in a great measure their subsistence, it having pleased his Excellency to proclaim martial law, and, with his usual goodness and humanity, to order rations to be issued to the militia as in times of actual warfare; all the tents which could be spared in the garrison, have been pitched in Brunswick-square, to lodge the unfortunate sufferers, who have neither house nor home, and they are numerous.'

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14th. A Coroner's Inquest was held this morning, at the Swan, the corner of Church-street, Lambeth, on the body of Miss Jemima Prosser, about ten years of age, the daughter of a respectable tradesman in the Strand, who lost her life by falling from a barge into the Thames, about four o'clock on Sunday evening last. She had just returned from boardingschool, and was on a visit at the house of Mr Davies in Northumberland-street. The deceased went in company with Miss Ann Davies, on board a barge at the end of the street, it being a fine evening, and the tide high up. As they walked along the gunwale of the vessel, Miss Davies, who was foremost, suddenly missed her companion, and, upon looking into the water, she could discern her clothes, though her face was not visible. She gave an alarm, but the body had sunk before a boat could reach the spot. Several persons repeatedly endeavoured with drags to recover the body; but it was not found until between 10 and 11 o'clock on Monday night, when T. Duffin, a waterman, saw the body

lying partly on the shore, and partly immersed in water, opposite Lambeth palace.-Verdict Accidental death.

COURT OF KING'S BENCH.-Sittings at Guildhall, before Mr Justice Grose, and a Special Jury.-Libel,

THE KING . WHITE AND ANOTHER. -This was an information filed by his Majesty's Attorney General against the two defendants, one the editor and the other the publisher of "The Independent Whig," Sunday newspaper, for three libels on the Honourable Judge and the juries who tried Chapman and Bennett, two slave captains lately tried and acquitted at the Old Bailey, for alleged murders on two persons of their respective crews. The information alleged, that the libel was published by the defendants with a view to have it believed, that those two persons were unjustly acquitted, and in order to bring the administration of the justice of the country, and the trial by jury, into hatred and contempt, and both judge and jury were most violently accused.

The Attorney General, for the prosecution, stated the facts of the two cases for which Bennett and Chapman were tried. The first was indicted for the murder of a boy of the name of Richman, to whom he behaved with great harshness, but whose death was occasioned, not by the ill treatment he received, but by natural disease. With respect to the case of Chapman, who also stood accused of murdering one of his crew, the evidence was clear, and, if the witnesses had been believed, he must have been found guilty; but a conspiracy being proved, the jury found him not guilty. The present defendant, however, did not state a word of this evidence, and only took the case on the one side, and assuming that the testimony of the witnesses remain

ed uncontradicted, he proceeded immediately to impeach the conduct of the learned judge. The Attorney General, after commending Lord Ellenborough for the integrity with which he discharged the duties of his office, dwelt with great force on the incalculable mischiefs which would result to the administration of justice, if judges and juries were wantonly and malignantly attacked, and represented as objects of public scorn, after having faithfully discharged their du

ties.

The publication of the papers being proved, the libels were read. The records of the acquittal of the two indicted persons were also put

in.

Mr Adolphus then addressed the jury, and justified the defendants upon the principle, that the whole was a fair discussion of the propriety of the verdicts given in those cases. The Attorney General in reply read several passages, from which he argued that the remarks were not in the spirit of fair discussion.

Mr Justice Grose, in summing up, after having detailed the various passages in the libels, left the jury to. decide with what intention the author wrote it. The jury retired for a few minutes, and then returned a verdict of Guilty.

There was a second case against the same paper for a libel on Lord Ellenborough, but it was postponed to Saturday week, owing to some mistakes in the record, which it is necessary to amend.

15th. JOSEPH BUONAPARTE'S USURPATION OF THE THRONE OF

SPAIN. The Bayonne Gazette contains the following particulars of this remarkable event. His Majesty King Joseph Napoleon arrived on the 7th instant, at eight o'clock, at Pau.

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The emperor of France immediately repaired to meet his serene brother, and shortly afterwards the deputation of the Grandees of Spain, with the Duke del Infantado at their head, was presented to their new king, whom they welcomed by a congratulatory address. Messieurs Urquijo and Cevallos were then admitted to an audience, and conversed for a considerable time on the affairs of the kingdom. The deputation of the council of Castile were afterwards admitted, and discoursed for a considerable time with this deputation concerning the various establishments of the kingdom.

The deputations of the council of the inquisition, of the Indies, and finances, were presented to the king of Spain.

His Majesty said to the deputies of the inquisition, that "he considered the worship of God as the basis of all morality, and of general prosperity; that other countries allowed of different forms of religion, but that he considered it as the felicity of Spain that she had but one, and that the true one."

His Majesty answered the council of the Indies, that, "he should not consider America às a colony, but as an integral part of Spain, and that its welfare would be as dear to him as that of his European states."

His Majesty answered the council of finances, that "he well knew he had much effect in this branch; that the pay of the soldiers and sailors was several months in arrears, but that he hoped, with the help of his faithful Spaniards, that he should be able to provide a remedy for the evil."

The deputation of the military force of Spain, with the Duke del Parque at its head, then addressed

the king, who answered that he had confidence in the fidelity and attachment of the Spanish soldiery.

18th. This day's Gazette contains a Proclamation, which makes a most material alteration in the system hitherto observed respecting the distribution of prize-money, by increasing the advantages of the seamen and inferior officers. The following is an account of the new regulation: The whole of the nett produce be ing first divided in eight equal parts, the captain or captains, or commanding officer, who shall be actually on board at the taking of any prize, shall have two eighth parts; but in case of a flag officer or officers, being actually on board, and assisting in the capture, they shall have one-third of the two eighth parts.

The sea lieutenants, captains of marines and land forces, and master on board, and physician to the fleet, shall have one-eighth part, to be equally divided amongst them.

The lieutenants and quartermasters of marines, and lieutenants, ensigns, and quarter-masters of land forces, secretaries of admirals or of commodores (with captains under them,) second masters of line of battle ships, surgeons, chaplains, gunners, pursers, boatswains, carpenters, masters' mates, and pilots, on board, shall have one-eighth part, to be equally divided amongst them. The other four eighth parts of the prize to be divided into shares, and distributed to the remaining part of the crew in the following proportions, viz. To the first class of officers, namely, the midshipmen, surgeon's assistants, secretaries, clerks, captain's clerks, schoolmasters, masters at arms, captain's coxswains, gunners' mates, yeomen of the powder

VOL. I. PART II.

room, boatswain's mates, yeomen of the sheets, carpenter's mates, quar ter-masters, quarter-masters' mates, ship's corporals, captains of the forecastle, master sail-makers, master caulkers, master ropemakers, armourers, serjeants of marines and of land forces, four and a half shares each.

To the second class of petty officers, viz. Midshipmen, ordinary, captains of the foretop, captains of the maintop, captains of the afterguard, captains of the mast, sailmaker's mates, caulker's mates, armourer's mates, ship's cook, corporals of marines and of land forces, three shares each.

The quarter gunners, carpenter's crew, sailmaker's crew, coxswain's mates, yeomen of the boatswain's store-room, gunsmiths, coopers, trumpeters, able seamen, ordinary seamen, drummers, private marines, and other soldiers, if doing duty on board in lieu of marines, one and a half share each.

The landsmen, Admiral's domèstics, and all other ratings, not above enumerated, together with all pas sengers and other persons borne as supernumeraries, doing duty and assisting on board, one share each, excepting officers acting by order, who are to receive the share of that rank in which they shall be acting.

And young gentlemen volunteers by order, and the boys of every description, half a share each.

NAVAL ANECDOTE. A circumstance of a singular nature, and which, if it were not vouched by the best authority, would be liable to meet discredit, occurred during the action between the Virginie and Guelderland. It was observed from the Dutch frigate that the Virginie was prepared to board her whenever

an opportunity offered for that pur pose, and a part of the crew were consequently ready to repel the attempt. The purser of the Dutchman, a brave fellow, stood on the gangway, sword in hand, animating the men to resistance, and with his arm raised, in expectation of the effort. While in this attitude, a cannon-ball from the Virginie took his arm off within a few inches of the shoulder; the dismembered limb fell into the hold unheeded, and the poor fellow was put under the care of the surgeon. In two days afterwards, when the hold was examined and clearing out, the arm was found, with the sword so firmly grasped in the hand, that no common force could disengage it; and it therefore became necessary to cut off the fingers to separate the sword and hand. It was, however, previously shewn to a number of persons, in order that so extraordinary a fact should be confirmed by strong and indisputable testimony. The gallant purser was afterwards taken on board the Trent flag-ship, and though at first despaired of, skill and attention changed his condition to convalescence, and he is now recovering fast.

20th. On the 11th, 12th, and 13th instant, Mr Cannington opened various barrows in the neighbourhood of Stonehenge, under the direction of Sir Richard Hoare, Baronet, and with the aid and assistance of A. B. Lambert, Esq. and found a number of curious remains of Celtic ornaments, such as beads, buckles, and broaches in amber, wood, and gold; one of which, for its elegance and appropriate form, is at once a proof of the nobility of the person for whom the barrow was raised, and the elegance of the arts at the period of the interment, about 3000

years from the present period. The shape of this curious article is conical, and the exact form of the barrow itself, which it was most probably intended to figure. Conceive a piece of wood, imbricated in layers, one over the other, to the summit of the cone, and covered with thin plates of pure gold, and adorned with circles round the middle, and near the bottom with a triangular festoon about the lower edge, in which are two holes for a thread or wire to suspend it.

A bill was introduced to parliament to prevent the spreading of the small-pox, by which it is enacted,

1. That no one shall inoculate for the small-pox within the distance of three miles of any city, town, or village, under a penalty of 501.

2. That in every place destined for inoculation by the Suttonian method, the words "Small-Pox Hospital," or "Pest House," shall be posted up in large and legible characters.

3. That if any person shall be taken ill of the infectious small-pox, they shall be removed to a distance from all other habitations, at the expence of the parish, if their own relations are not able; and all masters of houses where the infection may appear, shall write up on the outside of their houses, in large and legible characters," Small-Pox here," under a penalty of 201.

4. And every master or mistress of a house where the small-pox breaks out, shall within 24 hours send notice thereof to the churchwardens and overseers, under a penalty of 101.

No such penalty to be levied till after two months; and in case the infection has not spread, then the

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magistrates to be empowered to remit the penalty.

A weaver of Trafford, near Chester, has lately worked a piece of table-linen, of the uncommon length of 1924 yards, a circumstance before unknown in that branch of manufacture.

A remarkable instance of the fatal effects of the introduction of virulent animal matter into the human system, lately happened in the case of James Grey, a shepherd, then in the service of Mr Archbold of Het ton, who, in the act of skinning a sheep which had died of disease (the thorter ill) and which was at the time in a state of putrescence, accidentally cut one of his fingers with the knife he was then using. The consequent effect of the poisonous matter into the wound was truly astonishing; for on his going home in the evening, he complained to his wife and family that (to use his own expression) he had inoculated him self, and he already began to feel the bad consequences of it over all that side of his body on which the finger was cut. At five o'clock the next morning, he complained exceedingly, when medical assistance was sent for, but no kind of relief could be given, and with such rapidity did the morbific matter attack his system, that he actually became a corpse, in the highest degree of putridity, by eleven o'clock that day, being less than 24 hours from the introduction of the matter to his dissolution. The above seems worthy of being mentioned as a caution to such as may be employed in the like operation.

22d. DUEL EXTRAORDINARY.- -A very novel species of duel has lately taken place at Paris. M. de Granpree and M. Le Pique having quar

relled about Mademoiselle Tirevit, a celebrated opera dancer, who was kept by the former, but had been discovered in an intrigue with the latter, a challenge ensued. Being both men of elevated mind, they agreed to fight in balloons, and, in order to give time for their preparation, it was determined that the duel should take place on that day month. Accordingly on the 3d of May, the parties met at a field adjoining the Thuilleries, where their respective balloons were ready to receive them. Each, attended by a second, ascended his car, loaded with blunderbusses, as pistols could not be expected to be efficient in their probable situations. A great multitude attended, hearing of the balloons, but little dreaming of their purpose: the Parisians merely looked for the novelty of a balloon race. At nine o'clock the cords were cut, and the balloons ascended majestically, amidst the shouts of the spectators. The wind was moderate, blowing from the N. N. W. and they kept, as far as could be judged, within about 80 yards of each other. When they had mounted to the height of about 900 yards, M. Le Pique fired his piece ineffectually; almost immediately after, the fire was returned by M. Granpree, and penetrated his adversary's balloon; the consequence of which was its rapid descent, and M. Le Pique and his second were both dashed to pieces on a house-top, over which the balloon fell. The victorious Granpree then mounted aloft in the grandest style, and descended safe with his second, about seven leagues from the spot of ascension.

24th. The Third Report of the distillation of sugar and molasses has been printed. It states, that "by far

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