be put: the bufinefs of the day upon which the livery were met being fpecified in the fummons iffued to call them together, it was his duty to take care that no other

The Judge gave a charge, and in a few minutes the jury found a verdict of Guilty on the third count, which was,-"Will the people of Birmingham fubmit to the treafon and fedition laws?" Binns's trial is poftponed till next affizes; four only of the fpecial jury being prefent, and only fix others appeared in court who were admitted by the crown and defendant. The conviction of Jones is the first that has taken place under the late act. His fentence is not yet known.

12th. At another common hall the report from the fheriffs was read; ftating, that having taken the carlieft opportunity of waiting on his Majefty at the levee, they had obtained an audience, and delivered the meffage directed by the livery; to which his Majefty anfwered, "That the address not being the addrefs of the city of London in its corporate capacity, he could not receive it on the throne; that the anfwer given by the Duke of Portland was by his Majefty's defire; and that his Majefty repeated his readinefs to receive the petition of the Lord Mayor, Aldermen, and Livery, at the next or any other le vee, provided the perfons prefenting it did not exceed the ufual number of ten."

Two refolutions were then paffed, declaratory of the rights of the livery; and another was of ered, which the Lord Mayor faid "he could not, confiftently with his duty to preferve inviolate the rights of the livery, admit to

2

ter much altercation had taken place between feveral speakers, the Lord Mayor ordered the infignia of office to be taken up, and the hall was of courfe diffolved; but not before an unanimous vote of cenfure on the motion of Mr. Waithman was paffed on the conduct of the Lord Mayor for this unprecedented attack on the deliberative rights of the livery of London in common hall affembled.

15th. The Prince of Wirtemberg arrived in town, waited upon the Royal Family at Buckingham-houfe, and paid his refpects to the Princess Royal, his intended bride.

A general and alarming mutiny broke out on board the Channelfleet, at Spithead. The crews unanimoufly refufed to proceed to fea unlefs their wages were advanced to thirty fhillings per month, and their allowance of provifions increafed.

Mr. Colquhoun, in his treatise on the police of the metropolis, ftates the following curious fact:

"There is a class of cheats, or female bankers, who accommodate barrow-women and others who fell fifh, fruit, vegetables, &c. in the ftreets, with five fhillings a day (the ufual diurnal stock in fuch cafes); for the use of which, for twelve hours, they return a premium of fixpence, when the money is returned in the evening, thereby receiving, at this rate, about feven pounds ten fhillings a year for every five fhillings they lend out. In contemplating this curious fyftem of

banking

banking (trifling as it feems to be) it is impoffible not to be forcibly ftruck with the immenfe profits that arife from it; for it is only neceffary for one of these female fharpers to poffefs a capital of feventy Thillings, or three pounds ten fhillings, with fourteen steady and regular customers, in order to realize an annual income of one hundred guineas!"

17th. The Prince of Wirtemberg fet out this morning on his tour to Bath, Bristol, Birmingham, Oxford, Portsmouth, and other places, previous to his marriage. His Serene Highnefs was attended by Count Zippelin, Baron Gorbitz, and Sir John Hippefly. The tour is expected to take up near three weeks.

20th. In confequence of fome ftrong remonftrances from the feamen on board the fleet at Spithead, the lords of the admiralty have refolved to recommend to his Majefty that an addition of five fhillings and fixpence a month be made to the wages of petty officers and feamen of the royal navy; which will make the wages of able feamen one fhilling a day, clear of all deductions; an addition of four fhillings and fixpence a month to the wages of every ordinary feamen; and of three fillings and fixpence to the wages of landmen: and that none of the allowance made to the marines when on fhore fhall be stopped on their being embarked on board any of his Majefty's fhips. Alfo, that all feamen, marines, and others, ferving in his Majefty's fhips, fhall have the full allowance of provilions, without any deductions for leakage or wafte; and that, until proper fteps can be taken for carrying this into effect, fhort allowance

money fhall be paid to the men in lieu of the deduction heretofore made; and that all men wounded in action fhall receive their full pay until their wounds fhall be healed; or until, being declared incurable, they fhall receive a penfion from the cheft at Chatham, or fall be admitted into the Royal Hospital at Greenwich.

21ft. This morning early a fire broke out at Mr. Bartlet's, tallowchandler, Brewer-ftreet, Goldenfquare, which in a fhort time confumed the whole of the premises, the inhabitants efcaping only with their lives. A quick fupply of engines and water prevented its communication, by the great exertions of the firemen.

22d. A royal proclamation was iffued for pardoning fuch feamen and marines of the fquadron of his Majefty's fleet stationed at Spithead as have been guilty of any act of mutiny or difobedience of orders, or any breach or neglect of duty, and who fhall, upon notification of fuch proclamation on board their refpective fhips, return to the regular and ordinary difcharge of their duty.

26th. The following anfwer was yefterday returned by the Lord Mayor to the requifition of the livery to call a common hall for the purpose of taking into confideration the report of the fheriffs.

66

Manfion-houfe, April 25, 1797. "Gentlemen,

"Having fully confidered the requifition figned by a number of the liverymen of London, and delivered to me by you on the 22d inftant, wherein they requeft of me to convene a common hall within eight days, for the purpofe of taking into confideration the report

dozen found English kicks, and carried him prifoner to the guardhoufe. The dragoons are obliged to be cautious; and do not go out fingly or without arms, as they run a risk of being affaffinated. Inquiry is making by our court to discover the ringleaders; and every body acquits the English from the smallest degree of blame."

DIED at Botany Bay, March 16, 1796, where he had in fome degree rendered his fituation comfortable, and habituated himself to the exile into which he had been fo cruelly fent by his inhuman perfecutors, Jofeph Gerald. He lived in a fiall houfe, with a garden attached to it, at a distance from the town of Sydney, to which he retired with a fixed and deep decline, which brought him to his grave in less than two months. He received the most liberal attention from governor Hunter; and his body, at his own defire, expreffed two days before his death, was buried in his own garden. Three days after Mr. Gerald (viz. on the 19th of March, 1796) Mr. Skirving died of a dyfentery. He had bought a fmall farm already cleared, and fet himfelf to the improvement of it with indefatigable induftry. In getting in his harvest he caught this complaint, which is very common, and fell a victim to it.

5th. At Afton, in Yorkshire, of a mortification, occafioned by breaking his fhin in stepping out of his carriage two days before, the Rev. William Mafon, precentor and one of the refidentiaries of York cathedral, prebendary at Drimeld, and rector of Afton; author of "Elfrida," "Caractacus," "The English Garden," "Tranflation of Frefnoy's Art of Painting," and feveral

other celebrated poems, "The Life of Gray," &c. He was the fon of a clergyman who had the living of Hull; but it is not eafy to fix the precife time of his birth. He was admitted of St. John's College, Cambridge, where he proceeded B. A. 1745; and whence he remov ed to Pembroke-hall, of which fociety he was elected a fellow 1747, and took the degree of M. A. 1749. In 1754 he entered into holy orders, and was patronized by the then Earl of Holderneffe, who obtained for him the appointment of chaplain to his Majesty, and gave him the valuable rectory of Afton. Mr. Mafon was an acknowledged fcholar, and poffeffed high claims to a confiderable degree of poetical reputation. All that could be ga. thered from the Greek and Roman ftores, certainly contributed to embellifh his mind; but it may be reasonably queftioned whether it was enriched by any great share of original genius; though it must be admitted that his "Caractacus" and "Elfrida" abound in paffages marked by energy and spirit. The memorable "Heroic Epiftle to Sir William Chambers" has been often attributed to this gentleman; and if he were the author of it, he cer tainly poffeffed no small portion of fatirical humour, as well as poeti cal ftrength: but the work is fo different from the general charac ter of his productions, that it is hardly to be confidered as the offfpring of his mind. It is certain that he never acknowledged it. In private life his character, though with fomething in his manners beyond the mere dignity of conscious talents and literature, was diftinguifhed by philanthropy and fervid friendship. For the latter quality

we

we have only to obferve his conduct in relation to Gray, whofe genius he estimated with a zeal of enthufiafm (to borrow an expreffion of old Theobald)" amounting to idolatry." Upon the whole, he is to be viewed as a man who may be ranked with the fupporters of Britifh literature and morals. - The appointment of the four canons refidentiaries of York cathedral is in the gift of the Dean, who is obliged, by ftatute, to give the vacant canonry to the firft man he fees after the vacancy, capable of taking it. Mr. Markham was his firft fight on the death of Mr. Mafon. He married Mary, daughter of William Shermon, of Kingiton upon Hull, Efq. who died, March 24th, 1767, in her 28th year, at Briftol; in the north aile of which cathedral he erected to her memory a neat monument of white marble, with the well-known lines.

At Laufanne, in Switzerland, S. A. D. Tiffot, M. D. who, for near half a century, enjoyed a very extenfive reputation as a phyfician and medical writer. He was one of the earliest, ableft, and moft zealous vindicators of the practice of inoculation on the continent of Europe. His treatife on this fubject," L'Inoculation juflifice," was publifhed in 1754; but the works which rendered him the moft popular were, his "Avis au Peuple," and his treatifes on the health of literary men, and of people of

fashion.

MAY.

2. The Recorder paffed fentence of death on Elizabeth O'Connor, for privately stealing in a fhop; James

Andrews, for returning from tranf-, portation; William Noah, James Barrow, Henry Butler, John Tull, William Ward, and William Smith, for houfe-breaking; Samuel Chefter and Thomas Perry, for a highway robbery; Jarvis, for privately ftealing a quantity of wine; and Thomas Bennet, for forgery.-The feffions was then adjourned to the 31ft of May.

5th. A melancholy accident happened this evening at Plymouth. Two young ladies, daughters of Mr. Shephard, furgeon, of the dockyard, and another lady of the name of Gregg, were playing on one of the fhip's yards, which was at the maft-houfe to be repaired; when it gave way on a fudden, and the ladies not being able to extricate themfelves, rolled over them, which occafioned the immediate death of the two first, who were moft shockingly mangled; and the other had her leg broken. The eldest of the two fifters was about the age of fifteen; and the other only in her twelfth year.

7th. The mutiny was renewed at Spithead. The Channel fleet refufed to put to fea, under the pretext that government did not mean to fulfil the promises held out by them to the failors; the delegates re-affembled, and fent a deputation to the London, Admiral Colpoys' fhip, at Portfmouth, whom the Admiral refufed to admit on board, and enforced his authority by or dering the marines to fire into the boat. This condu&t was refented by the crew of the London, who immediately depofed the Admiral, ftruck his flag, and hoifted the enfign of defiance.

This evening, between eight and nine o'clock, Mr. Fryer, of South

ampton