of the throne of Poland, has gone through its business and ended regularly; whereas, for many years before, there was not one Polish diet but what broke up in confufion before they had done any bufinefs. On the 21t the hereditary prince of Courland did homage, and took the oaths for, and received the investiture of, the duchies of Courland and Semigallia from his Polith majesty, in behalf of his father as well as himself. Some time before the diet clofed, on a falfe report being spread, that an act had paffed in it prohibiting the Jews from marrying under thirty years of age, all the Jews were in fuch a hurry to marry their children before the law could take place, that even the children at the breaft were not permitted to be undifpofed of. A propofal lately made by the French to the Swedish court, to pay the arrears of fubfidies, due by the former to the latter, amounting to twelve millions of livres, in the space of eight years, on the footing of a million and a half per annum, has been approved by a majority of the fenate, in hopes the diet will agree to it. Some members of the fenate were of opinion, that it would be better to liften to the propofitions of the court of London. Others, again, were for having the nation renounce all fubfidies, and depend entirely on frugality and economy for the recovery of their finances. But in fo cold and barren a country as Sweden, without any extraordinary means to compenfate these disadvantages, fuch methods alone might appear infufficient even to keep the finances in an healthy condition. On the 18th ultimo, the tribunal da Cafa da Supplicacam at Litbon pronounced fentence on the principals and accomplices of the affaffination of M Viera de Andrade, chief judge of the Cape de Verd Inlands, and others, which was committed on the 13th of Dec. 1762. The fentence was executed the 22d. Colonel de Oliveira, a knight profeffed of the order of Chrift, was drawn at the tail of a horfe to a gibbet at the fquare du Rocio, and there hanged, together with Capt. de Fonfaca, and adjutant Oliveira. Three mulattoes, and four negroes, who were accomplices, were hanged at another gibbet. After this execution, the criminals were all beheaded; and their heads are to be sent to Cape de Verd, to be fixed up where the crime was committed. Major da Sylva, a clerk, a foldier, a negro, and a mulatto, were condemned to be whipped, and fent to the galleys. The captain in chief of the town of Praya was exiled to the Indies for ten years, and fentenced to pay a large fine The eftates of all the criminals, except the laft, were given, by the king's order, to the widows and children of the perfons alfaffinated. According to private letters. from Conftantinople, there have been more ftate victims during the months of Cctober and November laft, than during all the preceding part of the prefent emperor's reign. The khan of the Tartars has been fent on board a man of war to Scio; but with his wives and concubines and all his domeftics. The aga of the ་ the janiffaries was depofed and banished. Abdi Aga, formerly governor of Cyprus, loft his head, which was expofed before the feraglio. The wife of Mr. Jordan, peruke-maker, in Southwark, was lately delivered of two fons in one day, and the next day of another; who are all likely to live. Died about the middle of this month, Mir Jaffier Aly Cawn, nabob of Bengal, in which dignity, he is fucceeded by his fon. Lately. Mrs. Carter, at Dublin, aged 104. Mrs. Moore, at Enneskellen in Scotland, aged 120. 7th. FEBRUARY. Caufe was fhewn in the court of Common Pleas, in behalf of Mr. Beardmore, and Mr. Meredith, his clerk, against fetting atide the verdicts obtained by them against the earl of Halifax; when the court affirmed the faid verdicts. See page 112 of our laft vol. At the fame time the court eftablished the verdict obtained by Meffrs. Wilfon and Fell, against three of the meffengers, upon a writ of enquiry of damages. See page 80 of our last vol. Several confiderable shocks 9th. of an earthquake were felt about this time, at Irtyfchfrom in Siberia; particularly this day, when they deftroyed all the houfes and fortifications of that place. On the 14th, a flight fhock was felt at Abbeville in France, attended with a hollow murmuring found, which came from the fea coaft, in a direction from North to South. The bill to indemnify perfons who have omitted to qualify themfelves for offices. The bill for allowing further time for the importation of goods, &c. from the ceded islands, upon payment of the duties they would have been liable to, had thefe islands remained in his majesty's poffetlion. And to fome private bills. The peruke-makers having peti tioned the king, humbly befeeching his majefty, in confideration of their diftreffed condition occafioned by fo many people wearing their own hair, and employing foreigners to cut and drefs it; or, when they employ natives,obliging them to work on the Lord's day, to the neglect of their duty to God, &c. that he would be pleased to grant them relief; fubmitting to his majefty's goodness and wisdom, whether his own example was not the only means of refcuing them from their distress, as far as it occafioned fo many people wearing their own hair. His majefty was graciously pleafed to receive their petition, and to return for answer: "That he held nothing dearer to his heart than the happiness of his people, and that they may be affured, he fhould at all times ufe his endeavours to promote their welfare." Several of the peruke-makers, who attended on this occafion, gave fuch offence by their incon fiftency in wearing their own hair, that they had it cut off by the mob. The The day following, the hatters petitioned his majefty for redrefs, on account of that bufinefs having been engroffed by foreigners, to the ruin of many hundreds of his majefty's fubjects. About eleven o'clock 14th. in the forenoon, Mr. John Williams, bookfeller, in Fleetftreet, was brought, in a hackney coach, No. 45, from the King's Bench prifon, to ftand, purfuant to his fentence, in the pillory, in New-palace-yard, Weftminfter, for re-publishing the North Briton in volumes. A few minutes after twelve, he mounted, amidft the repeated acclamations of upwards of ten thousand people, who never ceafed fhouting till his hour of ftanding was expired. Oppofite to the pillory were erected four ladders, with cords running from one ladder to another, on which were hung a jack boot, an axe, and a bonnet; the laft with a label, Scotch bonnet: the boot and bonnet, after remaining there fome time, were burnt, the tops of the boot having been previously chopped off. In the mean time a gentleman, with a purple purfe, ornamented with ribbons of an orange colour, began a collection in favour of Mr. Williams, by putting a guinea in himself; and then carrying it round, gave an opportunity to every one to contribute according to his fancy, by which means it is fuppofed Mr. Williams got above 200 guineas; one gentleman gave 50. Mr. Williams, at going into the pillory, and getting out, bowed to the fpectators: and held a fprig of laurel in his hand all the time. The fame coach carried him VOL. VIII. back, and the mafter of if refused to take any hire. 18th. The right honourable the earl of Hilfborough, touched with the very mean and deplorable condition, in which he found three Cherokee Indians, lately arrived in London, immediately took them out of the hands of a tavern-keeper and a Jew, who had advertised them to be feen for money, at the tavern-keeper's houfe, fent his tradesmen and equipped them genteeily in the English fashion at his own expence. A id this day they were introduced, by Mr. Montague, the agent for Virginia, to the lords of trade and plantations; and, with their ufual folemnity, had four talks with their lordships; the first complimentary; the fecond, to tender obedience to the great king their father, and to produce famples of gold, filver, and iron ore, found in their country; the third, to complain of the incroachments of fome of his majefty's fubjects on the hunting grounds, referved by treaty for the fole ufe of the native Indians: and the fourth to exprefs their furprise, that, having often heard of learned perfons being fent to inftruct them in the knowledge of things, none had ever appeared; and to entreat, that fome fuch men might foon be fent among them to teach them writing, reading, and other things. Their lordships difmif fed them well pleased, with affurances of reprefenting to the king the fubjects of their talk. His majefty was foon after gracioufly pleafed to order them a variety of prefents, and to direct that particular care should be taken [4] for for their fafe return to their own country. The tavern-keeper and the Jew, who had made a fhow of them, were brought before a great affembly, and severely repriimanded. On the fecond of March, the chiefs embarked on board a fhip in the Thames on their return home. The mercury in a thermometer at a gentleman's houfe in the fouth of Kent, funk within the ball. At the fame place, and at ten the fame evening, the beft Farenbeit's fell to 10 deg. At half after feven the next morning to 7 deg. which is 25 deg. below the freezing point, perhaps the greateft de gree of cold ever felt in England, and within 7 deg. of the cold of Iceland. The fame day the difference occafioned by this degree of cold in the refractive power of the atmosphere was very remark able. In the morning of the day following icicles could be difcerned floating in the air, like very fmall needles, which fparkled in the funshine, and made an appearance equally beautiful and uncommon. On the 22d of November laft, juft before fun-fet, Farenheit's fcale, by one of Bird's thermometers, was fo low as 10% in Bedfordshire. Came on to be tried, in 19th. the court of Common Pleas, Westminster-Hall, a caufe between a private foldier, plaintiff, and his colonel, defendant, for the latter breaking the former from a ferjeant to a private man, contrary to the rules of a court martial; when, the fact being proved, the plaintiff obtained a verdict for 7el, damages. At Dantzic, between eight oth and nine o'clock in the evening, there appeared in the firmament two furprising lights in the likeness of two moons near the real moon, one towards the S. E. and the other to the N. E. with a large circle round them, which was of the colours of the rainbow; foon after nine o'clock the two moons difappeared, but the large circle lafted till after eleven o'clock. A poor tanner, of Battle, in Suffex has lately found out a method of tanning calves fkins with oak faw-duft inftead of oak bark; which will be the means of faving a great number of oak-trees.which used to be frequently cut down very young, purely for the fake of their bark.-In confequence of this difcovery, feveral mills are already erecting for the grinding of oak chips and fmall pieces of oak, for the purpose above mentioned; and the fociety of arts intend to give the inventor a reward of 100l. A proclamation appeared in the London Gazette for 23d. revoking all the prefent Mediterranean paffes within the term of two years, at which time they are to be exchanged for new paffes; except pafles granted to thips gone or going to the East Indies, or other remote places, where they cannot be timely furnithed with new paffes, whofe paffes are to continue in force for two years after the faid term.— This is done, as the faid proclamation fets forth, to prevent a mifunderstanding between us and the governments on the coaft of Barbary, teveral paffes of the prefent form form having, during the war, or by undue means, fallen into the hands of foreigners, who, being at war with thofe ftates, make ufe of them to cover their property. An Attorney, who fome time ago caufed lady T—, a peerefs in her own right, to be arrested, was brought up to the bar of the houfe of lords, and, after being feverely reprimanded, was difcharged, upon his making his humble fubmiffion, and paying the ufual fees. At the fame time their lordships ordered, that himfelf and the plaintiff fhould pay the cofts of the bailiffs. The weavers in Spital Fields have invented a method of quilting in their looms, which is much neater than the quilting performed by women in the ufual way. This, however, will only be changing hands, and taking the bread from the poor quilters, to put it into the mouths of poor weavers; no very wife scheme, till women have as many ways to get a living as men. A grain of wheat, fown in the month of October 1763, in the garden of Crifp Molineux, efq. in Norfolk, produced 42 ftems, containing 2151 grains. A fheep, killed fome time ago by Mr. Clayton, butcher, had on the right kidney forty-four pounds of fat, though the gut-fat weighed but two ounces: a fingularity not remembered by the oldest bufcher living. Mr. Timothy Helmfley, common councilman of Bread-ftreet ward, has left 10,000l. to charitable purposes. A remarkable animal was lately killed at Frothem in Weftrogoth. land. He was about a foot long. His eyes were fmall, his ears very fhort, his upper lip cleft like that! of a hare's, and he had a fort of whitkers about the mouth like a cat. He had only four teeth, two above, and two beneath, an inch in length, and bent inwards. The fore-feet were very fhort, fomething like a dog's, and the hind ones, which were fomething longer, refembled those of a goofe. The toes were very long, and armed with talons, four before and one behind, and between each there was a fine membrane. The hindfeet were placed very forward under the belly. It is thought the creature was amphibious, and that he used his tail, which was about as large as a hand, in fwimming. A fociety has lately been formed at New York, on the plan of the fociety of arts, &c. in London, by the name of the fociety for promo-> ting of arts, agriculture, and economy in the province of New York, in North America: and they have intreated all lovers of their country, whofe fituation furnithes them with an oportunity to devote fome part of their time to the making of useful experiments and obfervations, to communicate the refult of them. Some time ago, a negro at Lifbon, named Firmien da Cofta,' gave the following most furprising inftance of fidelity and affection. Hearing that his matter, Emmanuel Cabral, was taken up for killing a foldier, he quitted the woods to which he had fled for refuge, and voluntarily furrendered himself into the hands of justice, declaring that he alone was guilty of the affaffination, and that his mafter was innocent. Accordingly the mafter, after a long examina[F] 2 tion, |