fome fucceed, whilst others, trembling with terror, and their ftrength exhausted by mental and bodily fatigue, loft their precarious footing, and perished in the attempt.

"The firft men who gained the fummit of the cliff, were the cook, and James Thompson, a quartermafter; by their own exertions they made their way to the land, and the moment they reached it, haftened to the nearest house, and made known the fituation of their fellow-fufferers.

"The house at which they firft arrived was Eaftington, the prefent habitation of Mr. Garland, teward or agent to the proprietors of the Purbeck quarries, who immediately got together the workmen under his direction, and with the most zealous and animated humanity, exerted every effort for the prefervation of the furviving crew of this unfortunate fhip; ropes were procured with all poffible dispatch, and every precaution taken that affiftance fhould be fpeedily and effectually given; and we are happy in this opportunity of bearing teftimony, under the authority of the principal furviving officers, to the kind, benevolent, and fpirited behaviour of this gentleman, whofe conduct on the melancholy occafion, entitles him to univerfal refpect and regard, as well as to the particular gratitude of those who were the immediate objects of his philanthropy.

"Mr. Meriton made the attempt, and almost reached the edge of the precipice; a foldier who preceded him, had his feet on a fmall projecting rock or ftone, and on the fame ftone Mr. Meriton had faftened his hands to help his progrefs; at this critical moment the quarrymen arrived, and seeing a man fo

nearly within their reach, they dropped a rope to him, of which he immediately laid hold, and in a vigorous effort to avail himself of this advantage, he loofened the ftone on which he ftood, which giving way, Mr. Meriton must have been preci pitated to the bottom, but that a rope was providentially lowered to him at the inftant, which he feizea as he was in the act of falling, and was fafely drawn to the fummit.

"The fate of Mr. Brimer was peculiarly fevere; this gentleman, who had only been married nine days before the fhip failed to beautiful lady, the daughter of Captain Norman, of the royal navy, in which fervice Mr. Brimer was a lieutenant, but was now on a voyage to vifit an uncle at Madras, came on fhore, as we have already observed, with Mr. Rogers, and like him got up the fide of the cavern, where he remained till the morning, when he crawled out, and a rope being thrown to him, he was either fo benumbed with the cold as to faften it about him improperly, or fo agitated, as to neglect making it faft at all; but from which ever caufe it arofe, the effect was fatal to him; at the moment of his fuppofed prefervation he fell from his stand, and was unfortunately dafhed to pieces, in the prefence of thofe who could only lament the deplorable fate of an amiable and worthy man, and an able and fkilful officer.

"As the day advanced, more affiftance was obtained; and as the life-preferving efforts of the furvivors would admit, they crawled to the extremities of the cavern, and prefented themselves to their prefervers above, who stood prepared with the means which the fituation

[P] 4

would

would permit them to exercife, to help them to the fummit.

The method of affording this help was fingular, and does honour to the humanity and intrepidity of the quarry-men. The distance from the top of the rock to the cavern was at least 100 feet, with a projection of the former of about 8 feet; ten of these formed a declivity to the edge, and the remainder of it was perpendicular. On the very brink of the precipice ftood two daring fellows, a rope being tied round them, and fastened above, to a strong iron bar fixed in the ground, behind them in like manner two more, and two more. A ftrong rope alfo, properly fecured, paffed between them, by which they might hold and fupport themselves from falling; they then let down another rope, with a noose ready fixed, below the cavern ; and the wind blowing hard, it was in fome inftances forced under the projecting rock fufficiently for the fufferers to reach it without crawling to the extremity; in either cafe, whoever laid hold of it, put the noofe round his waist, and after escaping from one element, committed himself full fwing to another, in which he dangled till he was drawn up with great care and caution.

"It is but juftice in this place to fay, that the furvivors received the friendly and humane affiftance of Mr. Jones and Mr. Hawker, gen. tlemen refident near the spot.

But in this attempt many fhared the fate of the unfortunate Mr. Brimer; and unable, through cold, weakness, perturbation of mind, or the incommodioufness of the stations they occupied, to avail themfelves of the fuccour which was offered them, were at laft precipitated from

the ftupendous cliff, and were either dafhed to pieces on the rocks beneath, or falling into the furge, perifhed in the waves.

"Among these unhappy fufferers, the deftiny of a drummer belonging to the military on board the Halfewell, was attended with circumftances of peculiar diftrefs; being either washed off the rock by the feas, or falling into the furf from above, he was carried by the counter-feas or returning waves, beyond the breakers, within which his utmost efforts could never again bring him, but he was drawn further out to fea; and as he swam remarkably well, continued to ftruggle with the waves, in fight of his pitying companions, till his ftrength was exhaufted, and he funk, to rife no

at the houfe of their benevolent friend, Mr. Garland, they were mustered, and found to amount to feventy-four, out of rather more than two hundred and forty, which was about the number of the crew and paffengers in the fhip when the failed through the Downs; of the remainder, who unhappily lost their lives, upwards of feventy are fupposed to have reached the rocks, but to have been washed off, or to perish in falling from the cliffs, and fifty or more to have funk with the captain and the ladies in the roundhoufe, when the after-part of the fhip went to pieces.

All thofe who reached the fummit furvived, except two or three, who are fuppofed to have expired in drawing up, and a black, who died in a few hours after he was brought to the houfe, though many of them were fo miferably bruifed that their lives were doubtful, and they are fcarcely yet recovered."

On the 2d of Angust the following Article appeared in a London Gazette Extraordinary.

"TH

St. James's, August 2. HIS morning, as his majefty was alighting from his carriage, at the gate of the palace, a woman who was waiting there, under pretence of prefenting a petition, ftruck at his majefty with a knife, but providentially his majefty received no injury. The woman was immediately taken into cuftody, and upon examination, appears to be infane." The circumstances attending this alarming event are thus related: As the king was alighting from his poft-chariot, at the garden entrance of St. James's, the woman, who ap

peared very decently dreffed, in the act of prefenting a paper to his majefty, which he was receiving with great condefcenfion, ftruck a concealed knife at his breast, which his majefty happily avoided by drawing back. As fhe was making a fecond thruft, one of the yeomen caught her arm, and, at the fame inftant, one of the king's footmen. wrenched the knife from her hand. The king, with great temper and fortitude exclaimed, "I am not hurt take care of the poor woman-do not hurt her."

The fame day fhe underwent an examination before the privy council, when it appeared that her name was Margaret Nicholfon, daughter of George Nicholfon, of Stocktonupon-Tees; and that fhe had lived in feveral creditable fervices. Being afked where fhe had lived fince the left her laft place? the answered franticly, he had been all abroad fince that matter of the crown broke out."-Being asked what matter? she went on rambling, that the crown was her's-she wanted nothing but her right-that the had great property-that if she had not her right, England would be drowned in blood for a thousand generations. Being further asked where the now lived, fhe answered rationally, "At Mr. Fifk's, ftationer, the corner of Wigmore-street, Mary bone." On being questioned as to her right, fhe would answer none but a judge, her rights were a mystery. Being afked, if fhe had ever petitioned? the faid, fhe had, ten days ago... On looking back among the papers, fuch petition was found, full of princely nonfenfe about tyrants, ufurpers, and pretenders to the throne, &c. &c.

Mr. Fisk being fent for and interrogated,

terrogated, faid she had lodged with him about three years; that he had not obferved any ftriking marks of infanity about her-fhe was certainly very odd at times-frequently talking to herfelf-that the lived by taking in plain work, &c. Others who knew her, faid, fhe was very induftrious, and they never suspected her of infanity.

Dr. Monro being fent for, faid, it was impoffible to difcover with certainty immediately whether the was infane or not. It was propofed to commit her for three or four days to Tothillfields Bridewell. This was objected to, because it was faid fhe was a flate-prifoner. At length it was agreed to commit her to the cuftody of a meffenger.

Her lodgings being examined, there were found three letters about her pretended right to the crown, one to Lord Mansfield, one to Lord Loughborough, and one to General Bramham,

Aug. 12. Between the 2d inftant and this day, Margaret Nicholfon underwent fome farther examination, the refult of which appeared in the following article.

"Whitehall, Aug. 8, 1786.

PRESENT, The Lords of his Majefty's moft

honourable privy council.

This day Margaret Nicholfon, in cuftody for an attempt on his majef ty's perfon, was brought before the lords of his majefty's moft honour-. able privy council, and after a full examination of Dr. John and Dr. Thomas Monro, and feveral other witneffes, concerning the ftate of her mind, as well now as for fome time past, and also after examining the faid Margaret Nicholfon in perfon, their lordships were clearly

and unanimoufly of opinion, that he was and is infane.

W. FAWKENER.'

In confequence of this determination, the unhappy woman was conveyed, on the 9th inftant, to a cell prepared for her in Bethlehem Hospital.

The following Letters are faid to have been written by the late King of Pruffia, on the Death of Colonel Vantrofcke, a very valuable Of ficer in his Service, to the widows of that Officer.

ΤΗ

Letter I

HE death of Colonel Vantrofcke, your husband, commanding the regiment of Old Waldeck, has affected me in a very particular manner. By his death I am deprived of a brave and good officer; fuch was the reputation he enjoyed univerfally, and I know full well how to value the important fervices he has rendered me. The infignia of the order of Merit which he received from me, and which you return, with thanks to me for the favours I had conferred on him, will remain for you and your children everlafting tokens of the well

earned diftinction which he received at my hands. But I fhall not ftop here; you may, on the contrary, reft affured, that I certainly will neither forget the widow of so deferving an officer, nor the children that he has left behind. Let me know, without any referve, the real ftate of your domeftic concerns at the moment of his death, the number and age of your children. Communicate this matter to me, as to one ever difpofed to give you a proof of his benevolence." Potsdam, Jan. 21.