prifoners, whom they lodged in the dungeon, which had been previously guarded by a party of toldiers. This had the defired effect; for, before ten o'clock, the streets were perfectly cleared, and peace and tranquillity prevailed. Many were wounded; but it does not appear that any one was killed. Mrs. Briely, who kept the house at Birmingham in which the Oxford Blue received the wound which was the caufe of his death, together with Busby and two others, are committed for trial. where two houfes were gutted; fome of the furniture had been thrown into the canal, but the greatest part was deftroyed. Having perfuaded the mob to difperfe, the fame gentlemen, accompanied by a party of Blues, went into Stafford-ftreet, where they found a vaft concourfe of people, and one houfe entirely pillaged. Here the riot act was read, and the people perfuaded to difperfe. The magiftrates returned to the hotel, where they had fcarcely arrived when their affiftance was required in Park-street; but before they got there, the mob had completely gutted a houfe and deftroyed the furniture. It was with difficulty they difperfed the mob, who threatened aloud to deftroy every houfe of ill-fame in the town. On Monday the rioters demolished another houfe in Park-ftreet, and gutted two others in Bear-yard. The other magiftrates came to town in the afternoon, and an exprefs had been previously fent for three additional troops of the Blues. About fix in the evening the magiftrates read the riot act in moft of the principal streets, and warned the inhabitants to keep within their refpective habitations, as, in one hour after they retired, the military would be difpatched to clear all the streets in the town. About nine at night, the Blues, being reinforced with two troops from Kidderminster, and one from Bromfgrove, after having been infulted with ftones and brick-bats at the door of the hotel, were difpatched in every direction, with exprefs orders to clear all the ftreets. They purfued the fugitives in full fpeed through all the narrow avenues, and took many Portfmouth. This town was vifited by a moft tremendous ftorm of thunder, lightning, and rain the thunder was uncommonly loud and awful, and lightning vivid to a degree feldom witneffed. It fell upon the lamp-iron of the Star and Garter tavern, whence, paffing into the bar and coffee-room, it forced its way upwards through the roof, which was confiderably damaged by it. One of the beams of the fecond floor was fit for feveral feet, and two perfons were ftruck in the bar, who appeared for a fhort time bereft of animation, but were very foon recovered. During the above storm the lightning fet fire to the barns and stables of Mr. Whettam, junior, at Broom-house farm, near Gofport; which were very foon confumed, with upwards of ten loads of wheat, a quantity of hay, fix fine horses, and ten pigs. 25th. Leicefter. On Saturday night laft, a number of diforderly perfons (under a pretext of being aggrieved by the high price of provifions) affembled together in this place, and, before the civil power could be collected to restrain them, committed fome acts of violence, by breaking the windows of thofe individuals whom they had marked as objects of their refentment. By the active exertions of the mayor and other magiftrates, joined to thofe of the principal inhabitants, a ftop was at length put to thefe riotous proceedings, and the mob difperfed. On Sunday, a great number of perfons were made fpecial conftables, for more effectually preferving the peace of the town, in cafe of a renewal of thefe difturbances. The militia established was alfo called out, and, by the judicious arrangement and fpirited conduct of Capt. Farmer, were extremely ferviceable on the occafion. Thefe prudent precautions prevented any further mifchief; and the arrival of a troop of the Oxford Blues on Tuesday, effectually reftored tranquillity in the town. Several perfons who had been apprehended as active in the riot, underwent an examination at the Exchange, on Wednesday, when 'four were committed. DIED, At Jura, one of the Hebrides, aged ninety-eight, Donald Mc. Crain; and two days after, his wife, Catherine Lindlay, aged 108. These two remarkable people were ftout and active till a fhort time preceding their deaths. The woman, to the aftonifhment of all the country, gained her harveftfee in the years 1788 and 1789. JUNE. 6th. During the difplay of fireworks on the Thames laft night, two weft-country barges ran foul of fome boats; by which accident nine perfons loft their lives. It appears the barges were lashed to gether, and either from inattention or want of skill in the coxfwain, ran against one of the lighters from which the fireworks were let off; and the anchor of this veffel dragging, the drifted with the barges againft one of the piers of Weftminfter-bridge. Unto the lighter three fmall boats were faftened; and before the unfortunate crews of them could extricate themselves, the ftrength of the tide fwung the barges round; by which circumftance two of the boats were sunk, and the third dafhed to pieces against the pier. In the boats there were about a dozen perfons, eight of whom perifhed. A waterman on board the lighter was the ninth unhappy fufferer. In the parish of St. George, Can-. non-street, Ratcliffe-highway, there is an inftitution founded by Mr. Raine, whereby young women who have been four years in fchool, four in the hofpital, and five in fervice, are entitled to draw lots for a wedding - portion of 1001. The days of drawing are May-day, and the day after Christmas-day; when fix of thefe young women, who have previously laid in their claims, draw tickets, which confift of five blanks and one prize; but thofe who are unfortunate at one time are not precluded an halfyearly chance as long they live. But if the fortunate maid cannot find a man who will marry her that day fix weeks, from which the draws the fortunate lot, fhe forfeits her right to the 1001. which is otherwife then paid. Whenever this ceremony takes place, the concourfe of people is immenfe; and the intereft which fuch an inftitution has on the feelings of the young female spectators is wonderful. At a trial in the court of Common Pleas, Haydon verfus Maden, an extraordinary circumftance happened. This was an application to the juftice of the jury, for a compenfation in damages for a violent affault committed by the defendant and his wife on the plaintiff. Mr. Maden, hufband to the celebrated operatrix on the teeth, lives at Enfield, and poffeffes fome fields in that neighbourhood. There was a common foot-path through one of those fields, which Mr. Maden thought proper to ftop up. The plaintiff pulled down the bufhes, &c. with which it was ftopped. The defendant and his wife faw this, and came up to the plaintiff with great indignation.. Mr. Maden gave him five or fix terrible blows with a large stick, which he had in his hand, and which brought the plaintiff to the ground. When he was down, Mrs. Maden, not fatisfied with what her husband had done, pulled this poor man by the hair, and tore his face. The evidence was very ftrong against the husband, but nothing appeared against the wife. Mr. Serjeant Bond, as counsel for the defendant, faid, every drunken fellow in the parifi, who became independent as he became drunk, went about pulling down peoples gates, filling up their ditches, &c. all under pretence of reforming the evils and mifchiefs that had crept into the parifh. After thus levelling peoples fences, thefe reformers proceeded next to rob their orchards and gardens. Juft as the foreman of the jury was proceeding to deliver in the verdict for damages against the defendant, which the judge was elearly of opinion fhould be 30l. with cofts, one of the gentlemen of the jury fell into a fit, which reduced the bar rather to a dilemma. Mr. Serjeant Marfhall, leading counfel for the plaintiff, faid, his client was not to lofe his right, becaufe one of the gentlemen of the jury had fainted away. It would be extremely inconvenient for the plaintiff, who was then attending, with all his witneffes, to be obliged to bring them again from Enfield; and therefore requested either that the court would ftop a little to fee if the gentleman recovered, or to fwear in another juror who had heard the cause tried, or difcharge the jury and call another. Mr. Serjeant Bond faid, there was too much humanity in his breast to permit the unfortunate gentleman to ferve again that day. He thought as a juror had been withdrawn, that this was the best verdict they could have in this cafe. Lord Loughborough faid, if the counfel for the parties could not agree about this cafe, he did not know that he could do any thing but difcharge the jury. There could not poffibly be a verdict, as there had been no trial. The plaintiff muft move the court for a Ventre de Novo. His Lordship faid, an accident once happened before him on the circuit, and on that occafion he took it on him to act, in order that a man might not remain in prifon. On a trial for felony, one of the jurymen, when the trial was proceeding, fell into a fit. He was carried out into an adjacent room, and after some time he came back again. It turned out that he was dead drunk with fpirits, which he had taken in the morning; on which his Lordship fined him, and difcharged the jury; and upon confideration, and on hearing arguments upon it fome B8 time time afterwards, it was decided, that his Lordship was warranted in what he had done. His Lordfhip faid, that was a cafe at the affizes; but it would be extremely improper, he conceived, that he fhould decide this in term-time, when the court was fitting. He faid, they might apply to the court to-morrow morning. This cafe was new, his Lordship faid; he did not recollect that it had ever happened before. 7th. The feffion for the jurif diction of the High Court of Admiralty of England commenced at the Old Baily, when John Kimber was tried upon a charge of having murdered a negro-girl. Thomas Dowling, the furgeon, among many other things, fwore that Captain Kimber fufpended the negro girl five different times, firft by one arm, then by another; next by one leg, and then by another; and laftly, that he fufpended her by the two hands; and that at fome of thefe times, when fhe was fo fufpended, the Captain flogged her himfelf with a long whip, with uncommon feverity. The whole time that she was fufpended might be about half an hour. Speaking sa profeffional man, he was of opinion, that the fufpending and flogging were caufes of the convulfions, and her death was occafioned by the convulfions. He admitted, that he did not difclose this circumftance in the Weft Indies after their arrival, nor at Briftol after their return, except to a few of his private acquaintances. But that he was fent to London to give evidence before the Committee for the Abolition of the Slave Trade; to give an account of the firing from, on board flave fhips on the town of Calabar; and that he mentioned this murder to Mr. Wilberforce the day before he made his fpeech for the abolition of the flave trade in the Houfe of Commons. On his cross-examination, he denied he had ever faid that he would be the ruin of Captain Kimber. On the contrary, however, evidence was brought, that fwore pofitively that he had frequently uttered these words. The evidence of Devereux was in all particulars fimilar to that of Dowling. He fwore, that he did not know that he had ever been accused of mutiny on board a former fhip in which he had ferved. Three witneffes alfo contradicted Devereux on the point of his not knowing that he was charged with mutiny on board the Wafp; they pofitively fwearing that he was charged with mutiny on board that fhip; that he knew it, was told of it, and himfelf confeffed that he was guilty of it; and that on his change from the Wafp, Capt. Kimber took him on board the Discovery at Calabar, out of humanity. On the part of the prifoner they called Mr. Walter Jacks, Mr. Laffer, and Mr. Riddle, who all pofitively fwore that "Dowling, the furgeon had told them, that Captain Kimber had ufed him exceedingly ill; that he believed him to be a rafcal; that he would be revenged on him, and would ruin him if it were in his power." Mr. Jacks faid, these words occurred to him immediately after he heard that Captain Kimber was taken into cuftody. These three gentleman alfo fpoke to the general character of Capt. Kimber for good-nature and humanity. When the trial had arrived at this ftage, the Jury faid they were per fectly fectly fatisfied of the prisoner's innocence, and gave a verdict of Not Guilty. On the motion of Mr. Pigott, Dowling and Devereux were committed to Newgate to take their trial for wilful and corrupt perjury, and Mr. Jacks bound to profecute. The Solicitor-General obferved, that although these two witneffes had been materially contradicted in certain points, yet there was not one witnefs called on the part of the defendant to deny the tying, fufpending, and the flogging, which was the material charge againft Capt. Kimber. Mr. Sylvester fuggefted that it was probable fuch evidence would be brought forward at the trials of these perfons for perjury. 8th. Came on the trial of Capt. Donald Trail, late commander of the Neptune Botany Bay fhip, and William Ellerington, the chief mate, indicted for the wilful murder of one of the convicts on their paffage over; when, after a trial of three hours, they were both honourably acquitted, and a copy of their indictment was granted them. The attorney, who was the occafion of these trials, was ordered to be struck off the roll. Same day the Admiralty Seffion ended, when the following prifoners were capitally convicted, and received fentence of death, viz. George Hindmarsh, for the wilful murder of Sam. Burn Cowie, late chief mate of the merchant fhip called the Fly, by beating and wounding him, and afterwards throwing him overboard into the fea at about one league's distance from Anamaboe, on the coaft of Africa, to be executed on Monday, and his body to be antomized; alfo Charles Perry and John Slack, for piratically feizing a merchant vessel, called the Fairy Schooner, at Tantum-querry Roads, on the coast of Africa, and firing a blunderbufs at the reft of the crew, who were coming on board in an open canoe. 8th. Tuesday and Wednesday very violent and dangerous riots prevailed in Mount-street, Grosvenor-fquare, in which the watchhoufe there, a well conftructed and handfome building, has been nearly demolished. The whole originated from the affembling of about forty fervants of fome neighbouring people of fashion at a publichoufe to join in a dance on Monday evening, in honour of his Majefty's birth-day. This, to certain overzealous officers of juftice, appeared an infringement of the peace, which they very wifely took upon them to put a stop to by proceeding to the house, and taking all the jovial band into cuftody, and confining them all night in the watch-house. Next day, however, they were all difcharged; but a few of the unfortunate people, who behaved riotoufly at their liberation, fupplied their place. Several of thefa were taken into cuftody, and by the exertion of the military all is now quiet, not without fome perfonal injury to a few who fuffered from repeated firings from the conftables and patroles, which were deemed neceffary to quell the tumult. No life was loft. 9th. Mr. Baker, M. P. and Mr. Bond examined in the watchhouse those who had been taken up. Among them was the fecond coachman of the Duke of Gloucefter, who was bailed for 20μl. A young lad, fervant to Lady Frances Harpur, was difcharged; and four or five detained. |