clover cut for hay is to be tithed by 14th. At Maidstone affizes came Was tion for his offence, he bad already fuffered near fix years of exile, and [The latter part of his address nine months of clofe confinement.read from a written paper by Mr. Erfkine, the feelings of Mr. Purefoy being fuch as to overpower his utterance.] men to his character, most of whom The prifoner called nine gente They all fpoke to the general mildhad known him from early life. nefs of his character, and the good. humoured cafe and averfion to quarrel which marked his general de portment. After a charge by the judge, Mr. baron Hotham, which fenfibility, the jury, without hefitadid equal honour to his juftice and tion, returned their verdict “ Guilty." Not lancholy accident happenest in John- clined to attack fome other recruit, Was was added to them, who patroled during the night round Charingcros, St. Martin's lane, and their vicinity. The coroner's inqueft returned this evening, after a deliberation of eight hours, was, that George Howe, the deceafed, had come by his death in confequence of endeavouring to efcape from illegal confinement in a house of bad lame. 17th. This morning, between one and two, a fire broke out on the Surrey fide of Westminster-bridge, at Aftley's amphitheatre, which was foon in a general blaze, and totally deftroyed, together with feveral houfes in front of the Weftminfterroad; a public-house and fome other fmall dwellings down Stangate-ftreet: and it was with difficulty prevented communicating to the wheel-manufactory, the boat-builders, and a timber-yard in the neighbourhood. 18th. Mrs. Hanau, the miftrefs of the house in Johnson's court, was brought to the public-office, Queenfquare; but as no evidence was produced to criminate her, fhe was confequently difcharged. - John Jacques, who kept a recruiting office in the next house to that of Mr. Hanau, was alfo examined relative to a perfon fouud fick of the finall-pox in his houfe, who, on the recommendation of Mr. Reynolds, an eminent furgeon, had been fubfequently removed to the work-houfe of St. Martin's parith, where he died the next morning. He alfo was discharged. 19th. The White-horfe publichouse, Whitcombe-ftreet, Charingcrofs, a recruiting-houfe, wherein Edward Barrat, a mariner, had been ill-treated, was faved this evening from deftruction by the intervention of the military. . 22d. On this and the preceding days fome riots took place in the city, in confequence of which the following hand-bill was posted up and circulated in the city this morning: "The lord mayor fees, with inexpreflible concern, that notwithstanding all the caution which has been given, and the endeavours of the good citizens to preserve peace and good order, that the fame daring attempts to overpower the civil officers of this city, which were made on Wednefday night, were laft night renewed in Shoe-lane. The inhabitants of this city must be convinced that the authors and actors in these tumults have no other view than that of overturning and defiroying our laws, our conftitution, and the liberties which through them we enjoy, in order to introduce among us the fame bloody and ferocious government which France now groans under. "The lord mayor, therefore, gives notice, that, if any farther riots or tumults thall be attempted, he fall feel himfelf obliged to ule the most effectual means to fupprefs the fame, and therefore enjoins you to keep your lodgers, fervants, and all others of your family within doors as foon as it is dark, as you will answer for the confequences which may arile. from any breach of the peace. “Manjion-house, Aug. 22, 1794.” Plymouth county, New England. This is become one of the most populous diftricts of the United States, notwithflanding the barren and late uncultivated ftate of this part of the country. The inhabitants are enligtened and virtuous: crimes apparently are unknown, or, at least, feldom if ever committed; for a capital execution has not taken place there for upwards of fixty years. A dread A dreadful fire took place at Bofton nearly at the fame time as the late fhocking fire at Radcliffe, London; and, what is very remarkable, from the fame caufe (the boiling over a pitch-kettle), which burnt with fuch rapidity as to confume nearly one-fourth of the place, deftroying feveral wharfs and ftores in a few hours. The lofs of property is eftimated at 100,000l. fterling, and, it is believed, the whole is uninfured; if that is true, it will occafion the ruin of many very refpectable families. An action was tried at the last Shrewsbury affizes, before a special jury, brought by two young gentlemen of the name of Pallingham, against a Mrs. Lloyd, of Chefter, to recover eftates of the value of 150,000l., which he had enjoyed for 20 years. The plaintiffs produced 104 witneffes in fupport of their claim, which was clearly eftablifhed; and the jury returned a verdict in their favour. One hundred and five fnakes, in one neft, were discovered and killed in a dunghill, at Haletbury, in Wilts. Stanley, who was lately executed at Ilchefter, was about three years fince elected king of the Gypfies. His wife and daughter attended at the place of execution, and were not more remarkable for the beauty of their perfons than for the very coftly appearance of their drefs. The Dutchefs of Marlborough has juft built and endowed fix almshoufes at Blenheim, for the refidence of as many indigent females, who are to have an annuity of 101. each, and linen and fuel, for life. DIED. At Paddington, George Colman, eq. patentee of the theatreroyal Haymarket. Farther particu lars of this gentleman will be given in a fubfequent part of this volume. In the Fleet prifo", after an imprisonment of eleven years and three months, in his 67th year, Benjamin Pope, efq. He was nearly as remarkable a character as that of old Elwes, of ufurious and penurious memory. He was originally a tanner in Southwark, and dealt largely and extenfively in this branch, that his stock in trade was for many years fuppofed to be worth 60 or 70,000l. In the latter part of his time in this trade, and when he was well known to be worth fo much money as to be called Plumb Popc, he took to the lending of money, difcounting, and buying annuities, mortgages, &c. In this branch of bufinefs, it appears, Mr. Pope was not fo fuccessful as in his former trade; for the name of Pope the ufurer every now and then ap pears in the proceedings of our courts of law, when our fages in the law commonly differed widely from Mr. Pope in their opinion of his practices in this branch of bufinefs. The most remarkable and the laft inftance of this fort was, when he was caft in 10,0001. damages for fome ufurious or illegal practices in fome money transactions with fir Alexander Leith. This was generaily thought a fmart fentence, and perhaps the well-known and well couted character of the man contributed not a little towards it. Mr. Pope himfelf thought it fo oppreffive and unjuft, that he never, in all his life afterwards, left off complaining loudly of it, and even printed a cafe, fetting forth the hardfhip and great lofs he fuffered. At firit Mr. Pope, to be even with his plaintiff, went abroad to France with all his effects and property, where where a man in his advanced years, ample fortune, and without any family but his wife, a moft worthy and refpected woman, might certainly have lived very comfortably. But Mr. Pope abroad was removed from his friends and cuftomers; and, his money being idle, which was always confidered by him as a great misfortune, he refolved to come home; and, to thew his refentment (as he faid) to all this oppreffion, fubmitted to imprisonment rather than pay the money. This he did moft heroically, and fuffered the long imprifonment of eleven years and three months. In the courfe of this time Mr. Pope's affairs were very different complexions; and at one time he might have got his liberty for a thousand pounds, but he remained inflexible, and fent them word, that "this would be acknowledging the juftnefs of their debt, which he would die fooner than do," and he kept his word. Mr. Pope, in prifon, had many opportunities of indulging thofe propenfities he had all his life been remarkable for. He looked always at the pint pot of fmall beer before he paid for it, to fee that it was full; a precaution that in him was fomewhat excufable, as the pint lafted him generally two days, water being his common drink; and as to ftrong beer, it ufed to be a note of admiration with his fellow-prifoners when he drank any with them at their apartments; but as for his fending for any for himfelf, of that he never was guilty. His three-farthing candle he always bought by weight, that is, had the heavieft of fix, eight, or ten, for his money. In all this time, near twelve years, he has never had a joint of meat on his table; his greatest luxury was a groat plate from the cook's fhop, and that generally ferved him for two meals. But in thefe points he was not much at a lofs; for his family, though living at a great diftance, knowing of his penurious difpofition, fent to him very frequently a very comfortable and proper fup ply: and on thefe occafions he has even been known, fometimes, to give fome leavings to his errandgirl, or elfe to fome diftreffed object. To do juftice to fuch an eccentric character as Mr. Pope, it is proper to ftate, that, while in trade, he had early begun the benevolent practice of giving away, every week, a fione of meat, and often more, among his workmen and poor neighbours; and this practice he never left off, not even when he was every day weighing his candle, or looking after the measure of his small beer. In money tranfactions Mr. Pope fuffered many frauds and impofitions in prifon; as he had not that fcope of cuftomers in his confined state, and, always bent upon making the most of his money, was more eafily impofed upon; fo that he is fuppofed to have loft, by fuch means, more money than would have paid his debt and cofts, large as they were. SEPTEMBER. Ift. As the corpfe of a gentleman was proceeding to the burial-ground, it was arrefted by a fheriff's officer and his followers, under the ufual warrant on a writ of capias ad fatisfaciendum. The friends, who followed, immediately left their coaches, and told the officer, if he chofe, he was welcome to take the body, but he should not have coffin, throud, or any one particle in which the body was enveloped, as those things were were the property of the executors; and farther infifted, that, as the deceafed had, by his will, bequeathed his body to them, no execution would hold good against the corpfe. The bailiff, after attending to many literary and perfuafive arguments, and having difcuffed the matter as fully as the time and place would admit of, was very properly convinced that the fpirit of the law meant a living and not a dead body, and accordingly marched off without infifting farther on the legality of his capture. This, it is prefumed, is the firft and only infiance of the kind that has happened fince the arreft of the dead body of a fheriff of London, not many years fince. Among the vast number of perfons liberated from the King's-bench prifon, a now almost uninhabited place of confinement, under the late infolvent act, was a farmer, who had remained in cuftody there eleven years, for the cofts of an action, in which he failed, for having killed a hare on his own grounds. 3d. Edinburgh. On Wednesday came on, before the court of oyer and terminer in this city, the trial of Mr. Robert Wait for high treafon. The particulars of the charge were, that he belonged to certain committees of the Friends of the People in Scotland, called the committe of union, and the committee of ways and means, whofe profeffed aim was, in conjunction with certain focieties in England, to form, at a certain time and place not fpecified, a convention of perfons, whose avowed aim was to ulurp the powers of government, to compel the king and parliament by force to make laws, altering the mode and duration of parliament, and thereby to fubvert the conftitution; with having, to effect this purpofe, caufed certain pikes and battle-axes to be fabricated; with having formed a defign to feize the cattle, the bank, the judges, &c. and with having attempted to feduce the foldiery from their allegiance, by caufing a number of printed handbills, addreffed to a regiment of fencibles, to be diftributed at Dalkeith. After evidence had been adduced in fupport of the facts, Mr. William Er kine, counfel for the prifoner, faid, that he would reft his defence on the correfpondence carried on between the right hon. Henry Dundas, the lord-advocate, and the prifoner, by which it would appear, that he had attended the meetings of the Friends of the People with no other view than to give information of their proceedings. A letter from the prifoner to Mr. fecretary Dundas was read, which stated, that, as he did not approve of the dangerous principles which then prevailed in Scotland, and was a friend to the conftitution, he thought it his duty to communicate to him, as a good fubject, what information he could procure of the proceedings of thofe who ftyled themfelves Friends of the People. From an acquaintance with feveral of the leading men among them, he flattered himself he had this in his power; and he then went on to mention fome of the names of thofe leading men in Perth, Dundee, and Edinburgh. It concluded with enjoining fecrecy. To this letter an answer was returned, which was alfo read. It acknowledged the receipt of Watt's letter, and, after expreffing a hope that things were not fo bad as he had reprefented, defired him to go on, and he might depend upon his communications |