22d. The bank of England gained a caufe in refufing to pay a bill ftolen from them, and loft at a gaming table. 24th. parliament, Mr. Cook and

The two members of

Mr. Wilmot, who were appointed to revife the lift of penfions grant ed to the American refugees, made their report to the lords of the Treafury, by which it appeared that a faving of upwards of 20,000l. per ann. will accrue to the nation, by the reduction of fuch of the above penfions as they deemed unneceffary and unmerited. Thofe gentlemen who held employments under government in arrears, were to be paid their falaries up to the 10th of October laft, and then to be confidered no longer as fervants of the crown. A petition from the 25th. county of York, and alfo a petition from the city of York, relative to a more equal reprefentation, were prefented to the House of Commons. Before it was fent from York to be prefented to parliament, it had 10,124 names fubfcribed to it, exclufive of those figned to a duplicate in London.

Letters from Bohemia advise, that on Thursday the 26th of February a dreadful fire broke out in the town of Budin.

Ift.

Being St. David's day, the honourable fociety of ancient Britons met at the Welsh charityschool in Gray's Inn Road, and proceeded from thence to St. George's church, Hanover-fquare, where an excellent fermon, fuitable to the occafion, was preached by the right Rev. the Lord Bishop of Bristol. The whole collection at church, and at the different tables, added to the donation of his royal highnefs the Prince of Wales, and of the noblemen and gentlemen, contributors to the faid charity, amounted in the whole to 4691. which is 71. more than last year.

The feffions ended at the OldBailey, when fix convicts received judgment of death, eighteen were fentenced to be transported to America, eighteen to be kept to hard labour in the house of cor[N] 3

rection,

rection, feven of whom were ordered to be whipped, feven to be imprisoned in Newgate, four to be privately whipped, and 24 difcharged by proclamation.

Dublin, March 1st,

In the Aflembly of the Delegates of thirty-four different Corps of Volunteers of the Province of Leinster, at the Exchange,

Refolyed unanimously, That the virtuous citizens of Geneva, who wish for an afylum in this kingdom from the hand of tyranny and oppreffion, deferve our utmost approbation, and fuch of them as establish themselves amongst us fhall upon every occafion receive our utmost attention and fupport.

The commiffioners appointed for receiving fubfcriptions for the bank of Ireland, received the fum of 600,000l. in government fecurities, and lodged the fame in his majefty's treasury, being the original flock or capital of this bank. A general order was fent to 3d. the lord lieutenants of the counties in England for disbanding the militia.

Came on a fecond time to be tried before the Earl of Mansfield and a fpecial jury of merchants, a cause wherein Mr. John Carvick, of Bank-ftreet, was plaintiff, and Mr. Abraham Vickery, of the bank of England, defendant. The action was brought to recover the amount of a bill of exchange, drawn by Mr. John Maydwell the elder, and Mr. John Maydwell the younger, payable to their own order, directed to, and accepted of, by the faid Mr. Vickery, which bill had originally been obtained by one Nixon, without a valuable confideration, and only indorfed

by John Maydwell the younger, one of the drawers: the queftion therefore to be determined was, whether the bill in that ftate was negociable? when the jury were clearly of opinion the plaintiff ought not to recover, the bill, with only one indorsement, not being negociable; which opinion the judge immediately entered in his book and read to the jury. By this important decifion it is fettled, that where two perfons not in partnership draw a bill of exchange, they must both indorfe it before they can negociate the fame.

A petition was presented from the electors of the an4th. cient town and borough of Southwark, which fet forth the prefent difproportioned and inadequate reprefentation of the commons, and the unconftitutional duration of parliaments.

Paffed the great feal a grant to the Right Hon. 5th. Lord Thurlow, of an annuity of 2680l. per annum,

Was decided at Guildhall, before Lord Mansfield and a special jury, a caufe wherein merchants and underwriters are materially interested. The cafe was, feveral fhips were left behind at Jamaica, through a mistake, by the unfortunate convoy which fuffered fo feverely in September laft; the Glorieux, of 74 guns, was alfo left behind, and the fhips at the ifland took the opportunity of the Glorieux's failing, to follow the fleet, which they joined, before they got through the Gulf of Mexico, where the mafters of the merchant veffels went immediately on board the admiral's fhip, to get failing orders, which they had not before

received.

received. In the ftorm which af terwards happened many of these fhips were loft, and others taken, which the underwriters refused to pay for, the policies being warranted to fail from Jamaica with convoy, which they alledged was not done, as the Glorieux was a chance fhip, and not regularly appointed for that purpose by the admiral on that station; and though this fhip, when joined, conftituted part of the convoy, yet the jury gave a verdict in favour of the underwriters, agreeing, that joining a fleet at fea, and then receiving failing inftructions, was a deviation from the policy warranted with convoy, let the junction be made under any circumftances whatever.

The ports of Dover and 8th. Calais were opened for paffengers to and from Great-Britain and France.

A petition from the free

10th. holders of the county of Surry; alfo

A petition from the inhabitants of Scarborough; and alfo

A petition from the freeholders of the county of Nottingham, were feverally prefented to the Houfe of Commons, complaining of the prefent inadequate reprefentation of the people in parlia

ment.

A court of aldermen was

12th. held at Guildhall, when James Sanderfon, Esq. was elected alderman of the ward of Bridge Within, in the room of Thomas Woolridge.

Two petitions from the gentlemen of the county of Flint were prefented to the Houfe of Commons on the unequal reprefentation.

with an account of the crews of the Speedy and Marquis de Seignally floops of war (which were appointed to convoy the outwardbound fleets to the West-Indies) having mutinied, and refused to proceed on that voyage.

A letter from Liverpool, dated March 13, after mentioning the lofs of the Count Belgioiofo Eaft Indiaman off Dublin Bay, adds, all on board perifhed (147 perfons.) She was one of the richest fhips ever failed from Liverpool, not lefs in value than 130,000 dollars on board, besides a great value in ginfeng, bale goods, and 300 tons of lead; and as a great part of the cargo was very weighty, little was expected to be fished up.

The

Lord Howe set off for 14th. Portsmouth, in confequence of an exprefs received from Sir Thomas Pye, with an account of fresh irregularities having broke out among the feamen. crews in many of the fhips, it was faid, paraded about the streets with bludgeons, in a tumultuous manner, to the great dread of the inhabitants, who were under the neceffity of continuing confined to their houfes, to avoid danger, His lordship and Capt. Levefon Gower have been fuccefsful in appeafing the failors, every thing remaining quiet on board and on fhore on the 16th inftant, when his lordship left Portsmouth.

By late general returns of mufters from New-York, the number of men killed in the British fervice amounts to 43,633 men rank and file, exclufive of the officers which fell in the field, or loft [N] 4

their

their lives either naturally or accidentally. 18th.

Was a total and visible eclipfe of the moon. It began at 31 minutes paft feven o'clock, and ended at 14 minutes paft 11 o'clock.

27th.

This evening the late archbishop of Canterbury was buried at Lambeth, when a coffin found in the grave where he is interred proves, by the infcription, to be one of the bishops of Ely, who lived in the reign of Queen Mary, and died in that of Queen Elizabeth. The date of the coffin plate is 1570, which makes it 213 years fince his interment; the body and cloaths were perfectly found; the corpfe had a hat under one arm, and a cap on the head.

DIED. The Hon. Mifs Ifabella Courtenay, third daughter of Lord Viscount Courtenay. This young lady, who was moft elegantly accomplished, and had almoft completed her 18th year, was ftanding before the fire at his lord fhip's houfe in Grofvenor-fquare, about fix o'clock on the preceding evening, when a fpark flying from the grate, fet her cloaths on fire, fhe was fo miferably burnt before any afliftance could be procured, that fhe died at two o'clock next morning in the greatest agonies. No perfon was in the room when the melancholy accident happened except her fifter, Lady Honywood, and her child, who were not capable of affording any affiftance, the former falling into fits. The young lady, when her cloaths caught fire, ran out of the room, and from room to room, without meeting with any one to give her the leaft aid, until it was too late

to overcome the flames. It is generally thought her immediate death, however, was owing to the fright. In fuch cafes, the first thought fhould be to avoid running about; to fall down and roll one's felf up in the carpet, or in the bed-quilt, as the safest and moft certain expedient; but the horror and trepidation are generally fuch as to prevent the mind from taking the neceflary steps for deliverance.

Aged 73, that well-known and ingenious mechanic, Mr. Chriftopher Pinchbeck.

At Shrewsbury, Mr. R. Yeomans, painter and undertaker. He was fuppofed to be one of the largeft men in England, weighing near 40 ftone. His coffin meafured fix feet and a half in length, three feet three inches over, and two feet four inches in depth. Mr. Yeomans was in the 39th year of his age, and till very lately was as active as moft men.

APRIL.

Plymouth, Apr.1ft. On the rft inft. 300 of the Medway's crew landed at North Corner with bludgeons, paraded up Fore-ftreet dock, and went into Liberty-field, and there waited for the crew of the Crown. About an hour after, the crews of the Crown and Vengeance, near 800 men, landed to fight the Medway's people: but the crew of the Medway, finding they fhould be overpowered, difperfed and went on board their fhip, which prevented a great deal of bloodshed. The quarrel originated from fome of the Medway's people infulting the boatfwain's wife of the Crown.

Nothing

tween France, Spain, and the

United States of America.

His Royal Highness George Prince of Wales took his feat for the first time at the council board.

22d.

Mr. Bembridge, late accomptant to the Pay-Office, was brought before the judges in the court of King's Bench, agreeable to the intimation given to his counfel to that effect by Lord Mansfield in the courfe of laft week, when Mr. Bearcroft, on the part of Mr. Bembridge, addreffed himself to the court in a long and able fpeech, praying for a new trial. This application, however, though fupported with very powerful arguments,

the court did not think proper to comply with, and Mr. Bembridge being then in the cuftody and prefence of the court, their lordships declared their intention of taking that opportunity to proceed to judgment. Accordingly Mr, Juftice Willes, as the middle judge, proceeded to a full and elaborate revision of the circumstances that had tranfpired in the evidence adduced against Mr. B. in his trial; and after commenting upon fome of them, with no inconfiderable fhare of point and feverity, concluded with pronouncing the judgment of the court, which was to this effect:-that he fhould be fined in the fum of two thoufand fix hundred pounds, and be confined in his majesty's court of King's Bench for fix months. Mr. B. was accordingly configned to the cuftody of the marshal, and conveyed to that prison. He bore 3

His Royal Highnefs the Duke of Cumberland, with 23d.

his duchefs and retinue, fet out for Dover, to embark for Calais in their way to Paris.

W. Vaughan, the mef fenger, feized in the King's 25th. Bench prifon, in the apartments of a bankrupt, the fum of 22251. in bank notes, concealed in the window-cafe or frames of the windows, from his creditors.

26th.

A melancholy account was received, that the city of Theffalonica, capital of Macedonia, a great magazine for the Levant trade, has been totally overthrown by an earthquake; in the lower part many French, Englifh, and Italians are buried in the ruins. This difafter is more deftructive than that of Meffina. Warehoufes of all kinds of commodities, belonging to the merchants of Marfeilles and London, are fwallowed up.

The Dolphin man of war, of 44 guns, Capt. Sutton, arrived from New-York with feveral tranfports, &c. under convoy. The final evacuation of that city took place on the 26th of this month, when it was delivered up to the American governor, George Clinton, Efq. who took poffeffion of it in due form with fome companies of New-York militia, amounting to about 550 men, which are to continue there as the garrifon, till. further arrangements are made by the American government.

Was tried, before the Earl of Mansfield, at Guild. 30th. hall, two actions of infinite concern to inn-keepers: two travellers fued for the recovery of their

loffes