lity, the whole amount of the marriage prefents exceeds not the value of foool.

The affignees applied to the commiffioners for their opinion, whether they had power on any future occafion to compel Mr Fordyce to appear, and be again examined? When Mr Lane, in a very masterly manner, expounded the law in fuch cafes, declaring that" they had full power to have him examined again, as often as they pleafed touching his af fairs but not fo as to make him anfwer fuch questions as might tend to a conviction of himfelf, in concealing to the value of 20l. for that being a capital felony, the wife and merciful law of England will not permit."

Mr Fordyce then rose up, and "declared upon his honour, and as he was a gentleman, or by any other tie that was held facred amongst men, he would, of his own accord, without compulfion, wait upon his creditors at all times, to explain his accounts and his affairs, fhould he be at the moft diftant part of the globe, or if his attendance should be attended with ever fo great hazard or inconvenience to his own person." In fhort, I did not know which to admire the most on this remarkable event, the polite, yet ftrict juftice of the commiffioners, the fympathizing lenity of the creditors, or the manly candour of Mr Fordyce.

Private letters from Paris affirm, that no less than four hundred and fifty thousand pound fterling has been remitted to his Swedish Majefty by the Court of Verfailles within thefe laft four months. It is added, that thefe remittances were made at different times in moderate fums bythe way of London, Amfterdam, and Hamburgh, as if for the use of fome merchants in Berlin, in order to avoid all caufe of jealoufy and fufpicion.

Advice is faid to be received, that the Portuguese Governor at Rio Janeiro has feized the cargoes of two French Eaft-Indiamen, bound for Europe, and confined their crews, in return for an affair of the like nature by the French at the Ifland of Mauritius, on a Portuguese veffel bound for Lifbon in Nov. 1771.

We learn from Philadelphia that Capt. Johnfon, juft arrived there from Jamaica, brought advice, that` a number of veffels belonging to Montego Bay in Jamaica, which had for fome time paft followed the practice of Cutting wood on the İfland of Cuba, were furprised by a Spanish brig, fitted for the purpose, who made prizes of ten floops and fchooners.

We have the pleasure to inform the public, that by the indefatigable industry of a very curious Gentleman at Canton, a fufficient quantity for experiment, of the Upland Rice from Cochin China, fo long wished for, has been fent by the Thames Eaft-Indiaman, to his friend in Gray's Inn, who will take proper care that it is diftributed to fuch persons in our fouthern Colonies, as will make a fair trial of this most useful grain. We are further indebted to this curious Gentleman, for a parcel of the feeds of the Croton Sebiferum of Linnæus, or the Tallow Tree of China, preferved in a moft excellent manner; this tree feems to afford a fubftance between wax and tallow, and which bids fair to be of as great ufe to our fouthern American Colonies as it is in China.:

We hear that the Captain that carried out the late Mr Eyre, who was convicted at the Old Bailey for ftealing paper at Guildhall, has depofited in the Bank two thousand one hundred guineas, which he found fewed in the lining of his coat and breeches after he was dead.

Strict

Strict orders are iffued from the Treasury to the friends of Govern. ment in the city, not to interfere in the election for Lord Mayor, as the perfon of that magiftrate is a matter of total indifference to the court, and as any interference in his appointment, on the fide of Government must draw a torrent of obloquy upon the administration.

They write from Copenhagen, that orders have lately been iffued for raifing 3000 men,to man the fleet which is now fitting out there.

We learn from Stockholm, that Prince Charles, his Swedish Majefty's brother, had marched lately at the head of 8000 men; where they are defigned for, is not yet publicknown.

SCOTLAND.

EDINBURGH, Sept. 18.

Extract of a letter from a gentleman in the Eaft-Indies to his friend in Edinburgh,dated Trichnapoly, Feb. 18, 1772, giving an account of a melancholy accident which happened there three days before, as follows.

"I had just got my gun in my hand to go a fhooting, when I heard a moft violent explosion, and on my looking out (for at that time our battalion was encamped at Jumbokifna) faw fuch an immenfe column of smoke, that in my life I never faw any thing more dreadfully grand; I can hardly paint the fcene of diftrefs that prefented itself to my view on my going into the fort, not only from the fight of the ruins, and the mangled bodies that were scattered about, but from the horrid marks of fear that was visible in every countenance, as well for the fafety of their friends as themfelves, for at this time the magazine fituated in

the middle of the rock, was expected to blow up; thank God that did not happen, or elfe Trichnapoly muft have been an entire ruin. The laboratory where they were drying powder was the firft that took fire, and immediately communicated itfelf to the great magazine, by which the lower part of the artillery barracks, all the ftore-houfes, artillery park, and fome adjoining houfes were entirely destroyed. There is a very large breach made in the Nabob's garden wall, and ftones of a prodigious fize thrown into the pa lace, and other places to a vast distance..-The company has fuftained a very great lofs, 340,000 ball cartridges having blown up, all the gun carriages being destroyed, almost all the stands of arms, tumbrils, &c. But what is worst of all and cannot be replac'd, is the loss of the brave fellows, one hundred and two Europeans being killed and wounded.”

By a letter from Port-Glasgow we are informed of the following uncommon tho' melancholy accident; On the 4th inft. a poor woman, who lives in that neighbourhood, having been for a confiderable time fo infirm as to require the help of a fmall rope fixed to the fore-part of her bed-ftead, to enable her to get into it, defired her fon a fine boy of about ten years of age, to make her bed, which he immediately fet about; but unluckily the rope caught hold of his neck in such a manner that he was not able to call out for help, and his mother fitting at the fire-fide with her back to him, did not obferve his fituation, till he was quite dead. The fhock this poor woman must have undoubtedly felt on looking about, is beyond defcription; and the lofs fhe has fuftained by being deprived of her only affiftant, makes her cafe truely deplorable, as she is

*now

now left with a helpless infant which fhe was fondling in her lap at the time the accident happened.

Doctor Robert Finlay, one of the minifters of Glasgow, is chofen profeffor of divinity in the university of St. Andrews.

We hear from Kirklifton, that yesterday a child of three years old, was toffed by a cow, and had its thigh broke and that George M'Alpie, a mason, fell from a fcaffold at fame place, and was much hurt.

to

On the 18th inft.. a foldier who had been fentenced to be lafhed for neglect of duty, found means jump down from his place of confinement in the castle, and was fo terribly bruifed, that he died foon after.

Same day a woman lifting up water out of the quarry hole in Brown's Park, accidentally loft hold of her pail, and endeavouring to catch it, fell in, and was drowned.

A Gentleman who has made a month's tour through the greatest part of England, gives a very pleafing account of the prefent crop. He fays, that the late rains alarmed the planters and farmers a little; but thinks, if it now holds fair, the damage will not be worth mentioning; that the wheat, barley, and oats, are remarkably fine and heavy, and they are bufy cutting; and that the growth of grain in general is about one third more this year, than it has been for many years paft.

We are informed from the beft authority, that notwithstanding D. H. and Co. are to recommence their business the 28th current, yet they are not to pay fpecie at any of their branches, but only at their principal office where their notes are payable. On the 20th inftant, in. time of Divine fervice, the people in the Old Weft-kirk, were fuddenly alarmed by one of the galleries giving a loud

crack. The confufion on this occafion cannot well be described, men, women, and children calling out murder, and jumping from their feats in order to get out, in fuch crouds, that feverals were trode down, and much hurt. Some of the doors in the hurry were forced to, and the. paffages fo much crouded, that it was impoffible to effect their defign. Upon enquiry into the matter, the gallery proved to belong to Inverleith family, and as it had no connection with any of the reft, the fear of danger greatly decreased: upon which the Rev. Mr Gibson intimated from the pulpit, that no perfon fhould be admitted into that gallery till it is repaired; and after baptizing fome children, difmiffed the congregation.

On the 22d inft. The celebrated Mr Pennant, author of the Zoology, and Tour to Scotland, was elegantly entertained at dinner by the Lord Provoft, and had the freedom of the city conferred upon him.

We

A correfpondet mentioning the late bankruptcies, obferves, that few have placed their fympathy where moft due. A perfon who has failed by unforeseen and unavoidable misfortunes, ought not only to be pitied, but affifted; fuch as have become bankrupt by their own folly, mifmanagement, or extravagance, ought to meet with a different fate. delpife not the man who was once feemingly rich, because he is now poor; but we blame his folly in purfuing fchemes, which he knew muft, in the end,lead him to deftruction. Too many have overlooked the truly misfortunate who have fuf fered (and many of them have lufttheir all). by dealing with those bankrupts, with whom they intrumed their fortunes; fuch unlucky perfons are certainly entitled to our higheft fympathy, good wishes, and aid..

Extract