JANUARY.

Admiralty-office, Jan. 3.

Copy of a letter from commodore Hood, commander in chief of his majesty's ships and vessels in the Leeward Islands, to sir Evan Nepean, bart. dated on board his majesty's ship Centaur, off Guadaloupe, the 6th Nov. 1803.

Sir,

I HAVE the honour to enclose, for the information of the lords commissioners of the admiralty, a copy of a letter I received from captain Graves, of his majesty's ship Blenheim, giving an account of the capture of a privateer by the boats of that ship in Fort Royal Bay, Martinique.

The capture of two more of the enemy's privateers is set forth in a letter from captain Younghusband, of the Osprey. The brave and handsome conduct of lieutenant Henderson, and those in the boats under his command, is truly meritorious and I trust such display of the gallantry of our officers and men will soon make these piccaroons repent their temerity. On the 26th ult. between Tobago and Grenada, the Centaur, after a chase

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of seven hours, captured the Vigi lante schooner privateer, of two guns, and forty men well armed with musketry. The capture of this vessel is particularly fortunate, as she has, from her superior sail. ing and management, done much injury to the trade.

I have also the satisfaction to acquaint you of the recapture of the brig Earl St. Vincent, from Dublin, bound to Barbadoes, and a Swedish schooner, by his majesty's sloop St. Lucia: they had been captured three days before by the L'Harmonie privateer, of Martinique, and who only escaped the vigilance of captain Shipley, by throwing her guns overboard, and sawing down her gunwales.

I have the honour to be, &c.
SAM. HOOD.

I beg leave to acquaint you, that on the 26th instant I discovered a suspicious sail under the land of Trinidad, and immediately chased; but on arriving within about four miles of her, it fell calm; and as I was now convinced she was an enemy's privateer, from the number of sweeps she was rowing, and having no chance of coming up to her in the Osprey, I sent three boats to attack her, under the command of lieutenant Robert Henderson; the cutter in which he rowing much faster than the other boats, he, without waiting to be joined by them, in the most brave and determined manner, and under a heavy fire from the guns and musketry of the schooner, boarded and captured the French schooner privateer La Ressource, mounting four 4-pounders, and having on board forty-three men, two of whom were killed, and twelve wounded.

was,

Lieutenant Henderson, with three seamen, are slightly wounded, and one dangerously; the cutter bad only seventeen seamen in her,

who all behaved with the utmost bravery.

I have further to inform you, that having put lieutenant Collier and sixteen men on board the prize, he next day chased and captured La Mimi French schooner privateer of one gun and twenty-one men.

I am, &c. GEORGE YOUNGHUSBAND.

Admiralty-office, Jan. 7, 1804. Copy of a letter from the right hon. lord Keith, K. B. admiral of the blue, &c. to sir Evan Nepean, bart. dated on board his majesty's ship the Monarch, off Ramsgate, the 6th instant.

Sir,

I enclose, for their lordships' information, a copy of a letter which I have received from capt. Owen, of his majesty's ship Immortalité, acquainting me, that his majesty's gun-brig the Archer, and the Griffin hired cutter, (the crew of the former being reinforced by lieutenant Payne and some of the Immortalité's men,) had captured one of the enemy's gun-vessels, a dogger, a schuyt, and two Blankenberg fishing-boats, apparently part of a convoy proceeding to Boulogne.

I have the honour to be, &c.

enough to fall in with and capture a French lugger gun-vessel, No. 432, mounting an eighteen, and a twelve-pounder, commanded by an ensign de vaisseau, with five seamen, a lieutenant, and twenty-six grenadiers of the 36th regiment of the line, some of whom, with two seamen, escaped in her boat during the running fight, which she continued for a quarter of an hour with her stern gun and musketry. The Archer had part of her rigging cut, but no one materially hurt on either side.

The Archer and Griffin after wards captured a dogger, a schuyt, and two Blankenberg fishing-boats, which the prisoners report to be part of a convoy, which, with a prame of 16 guns, and five or six gun-vessels, escaped under the land in the dark; some, I understand, laden with provisions and stores. The schuyt has gin, and the fishingboats timbers and knees for boats; each vessel had three or four sol

diers on board.

Lieutenant Sheriff, of the Archer, has done every thing I could possibly wish or expect from his zeal; and lieutenant Payne, of this ship, who commanded the boat and party assisting the Archer, executed that service with his usual alacrity, and the commander of the Griffin has my thanks for the share he bore in bringing off the latter vessels, which was effected under a very heavy fire from the shore, to which they were as close as possible.

I have the honour to be, &c. (Signed) E. W. C. R. OWEN. The right hon. lord Keith, K. B. &c. K.B.

MURDER.

7. An inquisition was yesterday taken before his majesty's coroner

for the county of Middlesex, at the Black Lion inn, Hammersmith, on view of the body of Thomas Milward.

The jury, which was composed of the most respectable persons in the neighbourhood, having heard the coroner's charge to them, and viewed the body, proceeded to at tend to the depositions.

The first witness called was a Mr. Lock, a wine-merchant, in Hammersmith. He said, the de ceased was an utter stranger to him. On Tuesday night last, between eleven and twelve, as he was re turning home, in company with a Mr. Stow, he was accosted by Francis Smith, the person now in custody, who said, "Mr. Lock, Í want to speak with you."-He stepped aside to him; when Smith told him he had killed a man, whom he believed to have been the ghost (meaning, as the witness supposed, the person who had been in the habit of disturbing the village by assuming that character). The witness and Mr. Stow accompanied him, and a watchman who was with him, as far as a lane that crossed Black-lion-lane, where they found the deceased stretched on the ground, and quite dead. He was conveyed to the Black Lion. Smith at first did not appear to consider he had done any harm in killing the ghost, till the witness suggested to him what might eventually be the consequence of such an act; and then he was much agitated. When the deceased was brought to the Black Lion, and it was discovered who he was, Smith seemed extremely to regret what he had done, and he desired to surrender himself to an officer of justice. The witness had heard of the neighbourhood of Hammersmith being visited by a ghost, and that (AS)

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