pomp and magnificence at Petersburgh.

The war with Perfia, in concurrence with all late events in which the Ottoman power and fafety are concerned, has proved unfortunate to the Porte. The ancient, venerable, once great, and even of late confiderable commercial city of Baffora, after a fiege of more than twelve months, was April 16th. at length compelled, by dint of ficknefs and famine, to fubmit to the Perfians. The defence of that city refted upon the government of Bagdad, which, in the prefent ftate of Perfia, would have been fully competent to the purpofe, if the divifions and diforders which extend through that vaft and unwieldy empire, had not rendered all its parts inefficacious. The family of Omar Pacha, taking advantage of the venality and weakness which have fo long degraded government in its feat, had for feveral years, without affuming the title, or pretending to its rights, in realty exercifed all the powers of fovereignty in the extenfive provinces which compofe the important frontier of Bagdad. The time which should have been now allotted to the public defence, was applied to the remedy of this evil; and that not being easily compaffed by force, recourfe was had to intrigue; money and promifes had the defired and ufual effect upon the great men of the country, and fo powerful a party was formed against the unfortunate Omar, that his head with his vaft treasures were brought in triumph to Conftantinople. Such was the inglorious compenfation which the Porte received for the lofs of Baffora.

A new Basha who fucceeded

Omar, having neither power nor influence in the country, was eafily defeated by the Perfians, at the head of fuch a small and ill-formed force, as he was able to raise for the relief of that city. Though Baffora fubmitted upon compofition, the Perfians, according to the barbarous maxims of the eastern world, were guilty of great exceffes and cruelties, the former of which extended even to the Chriftian merchants, who fuffered confiderably upon this occafion. This fuccefs encouraged Kerim Khan, the Regent of Perfia, to fend a confiderable army under the command of his brother, against the government and city of Bagdad. Here his hopes were effectually checked. The great men of the country, uniting now in their own defence, totally routed the Perfians with great flaughter.

The numerous fons, family, and officers of the unfortunate Chiek Daher, have been hunted with a rage as cruel and unremitting, as the avarice which principally excited the purfuit was boundless. Unhappily for them, the taking of new treafures from time to time, have kept up the ardour of the chace, and it will probably only end in the extermination of the whole race.

It would feem wonderful, if long and conftant experience had not rendered it familiar, that in that vaft extent of the globe, through every part of which the poffeffion of riches is, with mathematical certainty, attended with inevitable deftruction, and yet, that the avidity of accumulating wealth, is at least as ftrong in thofe regions fo unfriendly to property, as in any other part of the world.

Its feems remarkable, that the mag.

the munificence of Prince Repnin, during his embaffy at Conftanti. nople, was a most grievous eyefore to the Turks, who confidered it as a kind of infult, and an often. fatious triumph over them, in confequence of the loffes and difgraces of the late war. This jeaToufy was fo pravelent, particularly among the common people, that the Grand Vizir was obliged to take effective meafures, to prevent its being productive of infult or mifchief.

Great efforts have been ufed fince the peace to restore and ftrengthen the Turkish marine, and feveral fhips of war of great force, and upon a new conftruction, have this year been lauched at Conftantinople. Equal pains have been taken to ftrengthen the fortreffes on the Danube and Neifter, and every thing of late tends to fhew, that the ftrongest jealousy prevails with respect to the navigation, and the greatest apprehenfion of the power, which Ruffia will poffefs in confequence of it upon the Black Sea. It can fcarcely, however, be imagined, that the Porte, in its prefent ftate, will venture upon a new war with Ruffia, unless encouraged to it, by an affurance of the most powerful fupport on the fide of Europe.

The northern kingdoms afford

year. Sweden continues to be governed with great moderation, and apparently to the fatisfaction of the people, whilst the King is equally induftrious and fuccefsful, in placing it in a moft refpectable ftate, with refpect both to its land and naval force. As this feems to be an era, when the opulence of merchants particularly excites the envy and avarice of Princes, who not content with the power, would become univerfal traders, and monopolize alfo the commerce of the earth, the Danish King has fhewn his approbation of fo laudable.a fyftem of regal policy, by abolishing the Guinea Company, taking all their affairs into his own hands, and appointing a few of his officers to manage the future traffic.

The ftates of Holland have renewed the charter of their Eaft India Company upon fuch liberal terms, as might be expected in a commercial and wife commonwealth. For finding that the Com. pany had of late fuffered greatly, as well by a decline of commerce as other loffes, they accepted the fum of two millions of florins for a new charter for thirty years, inftead of three millions, which they had paid for the former, under the fame conditions, and for a like term.

CHRO

JANUARY.

than their engagement in the mili tary service.

at court,

and elsewhere, as ufual. [For the Ode performed at St. James's on the occafion, please to turn to our article of Poetry for this year.]

The town of Norfolk, the beft fea- port, and most flourishing town, in Virginia, was, all to three houfes, burnt to afhes. Shortly after the provincials made themfelves matters of New-Providence, one of the Bahama islands, with a fmall feet of feven fail, which, at their return, met with the Glasgow man of war, and attacked her. But as to the details of thefe events, and others of the fame kind, we muft leave them, as making part of the unhappy war between the mother country and her colonies, to the able pen which favours the public with the hiftorical part of this work. Mr. Melish contracted with the commiffioners of the victualling office for 1000 oxen, at 33s. 1od. per hundred weight; no bad criterion of the price of fuch provifions at this time.

An ordinance was published at Paris, granting a general pardon to all deferters, by which it was computed that upwards of 20,000 men would return to the fervice; and likewife decreeing, that deferters fhall not for the future be punished with death, but be fent to work at the fortifications for a longer term VOL. XIX.

this date.

"We learn from Vienna, in Dauphiny, that, notwithstanding the difcovery which had been made, at a fmall distance to the fouthward of the town, in 1773, of a valuable piece of antique Mofaic, they had difcontinued their refearches after thefe monuments of antiquity, till the fingular patronage given to the arts, by the governor of the province, had determined Monfieur Schneider, painter, and profeffor in the fchool of drawing, at the Royal College in that town, to continue his researches in the fame spot where the firft piece of Mofaic was found. By the labours of this artift were found many pieces of marble, curious both for their fize and fculpture; and a piece of Mofaic was difcovered, larger and more variegated than the former. This pavement is thirty-four feet in length, and twenty-four in breath. In the middle is a tablet, on which are three female figures, one half naked, who appear greatly terrified, and as if flying from a foldier, armed with a lance, who is in purfuit of them. Above this tablet is a rampart, on which is a tent, and two other warriors, one of whom feems to be giving orders for ftopping the women, and the other founding a trumpet. Thefe figures, which are of the natural [H]

fize,

fize, are in the Grecian drefs. Above the tablet are five medalions; one reprefenting the head of Medufa; and the others, the four feafons, with their particular attributes. The rest of this rich pavement confifts of twenty-fix compartments, alternately fquare and round. The whole is bounded by a border of exquifite tafe and workmanship.

Mr. Schneider, by a contrivance of his own, raifed this Mofaic without injuring it, and fent it to the college, where it remains a precious monument to all the loyers of the.fine arts.

In purfuing his refearches, with an ardor increased by fuccefs, he has difcovered a fecond pavement in white Roman Maftic, interfperfed with fragments of the most uncommon marbles, fcattered, as it were, by chance; the whole polifhed, producing a beautiful effect, and forming a very hard body. Some of this kind of marble has likewife been depofited in the fame college. The analytical decompofition of this factitious marble might prove very ufeful to our modern workers in ftucco."

In confequence of the pregnancy of the first and favourite fultanefs of the Grand Signior, which was lately notified in form, His Highnefs granted permiffion to the Chriftians throughout his dominions, to repair fuch of their churches as might have foffered by the ruins of time. Thankfully availing themselves of this permillion, the Chriftians worked night and day for the reftoration of their places of worship. One of the Turkish emirs, however, viewing this privilege with a jealout eye, employed every artifice to inftigate the people to revolt;

infomuch that the fultan found himself at length constrained by policy, to revoke the permiffion he had given to the Chriftians, and to iffue an order, that such of their religious edifices as had been repaired, fhould be inftantly demolifhed. By this event, not only Chriftianity nuft fuffer fome decay in the Turkish dominions; but many beautiful reliques of ancient architecture, upheld by Christian piety, may perish paft the poffibility of being retrieved.

The lottery finished drawing at Guildhall.

3d.

Being Twelfth-day, the 6th. lord - chamberlain of the king's houfehold, in the absence of his Majefty, made the usual offering at the altar, of frankincenfe, myrrh, &c. and alfo a purfe of gold, to be diftributed among the poor.

Began, attended with an high eafterly wind, one of 7th. the greateft falls of fnow that has happened in England in the memory of man; and it was followed by fo intenfe a froft, that the barometer, at times, funk two or three degrees lower than it did in the great froft which began during the last days of 1739, and continued about three months in 1740; and, by the 16th, the Thames was entirely frozen over at Mortlake. Nor was this inclemency of the weather confined to our island. The Sound itfelf, that vaft body of water which feparates Denmark from Sweden, was frozen over as hard as during the above great froft; fo that even heavy-laden fledges croffed it with fafety. On the 2d of February, here in England at leaft, the wind, which had continued eafterly from the beginning of this vifitation, turned to the

fouth,

ferent appearance.

The many and great inconveniencies and evils usual on these occafions, in a country like this, where they are feldom felt, and of courfe little provided againft, it would be unneceffary to dwell upon; fuch as fnow-drowned fields, obstructed roads, ftoppage of handicraft labour; and their natural confequences; and perhaps, confidering the humanity which now univerfally prevails, it might be equally unneceffary to enlarge upon the relief afforded by thofe in rich, and even eafy, circumstances, to their fuffering brethren. Their Majefties behaved on the occafion with their ufual benevolence; as did likewife many corporate bodies and individuals; particularly the city of London, and the nobility and gentry throughout England, as well on their eftates, as in the places of their refidence; and, to crown all, their affiftance was given moftly in kind; that is, in bread, broth and coals; by which means, the profligate and the inconfiderate were, in a great measure, prevented from making any improper ufe of it.

On this occafion we would beg leave to recommend to our readers the perufal of accounts of fome perfons who lived a long time in a house buried by a flide of fnow, or valanza, from a neighbouring fteep mountain, which he may find in our First Volume, p. 297; and in our Eighth, p. 85 as likewife that of an article relating to heat and cold; and another, concerning the freshnefs of ice-water obtained from falt water; both in the fecond part of our present volume.

In the mean time, the following particulars relating to the great frolt

tertaining. It began on the 24th day of December: the day after it was very fharp, the wind blowing north-eaft, and continuing fo till the 29th, when it changed a little to the fouthward of the east, about eaft-fouth-eaft, and blew hard; the cold was then very severe; water thrown up, fell down in ice; and the mercury in the thermometer fell to 25 degrees below the freezing point. On the 30th, the cold ftill increafing, it fell to 32, which was lower than ever it had been remembered in England. On the 31ft, towards the evening, the wind being much abated, the feverity of the froft was not fo great; and there was fome appearance of a thaw on the 1ft and 2d of January; but on the 3d, in the evening, the froft fet in again, with greater violence than ever; and on the 4th, in the morning, the mercury fell one degree lower than it had been before, when there was an uncommon great hoar, and the air was fo tharp and penetrating, as to render it difficult for ftrong perfons to endure the cold; and vegetables in general fuffered prodigiocfly.

8th.

The river Stour, which runs through Canterbury, was fo fwelled by the heavy rains that fell for three preceding days, that the ftreets contiguous to the river were one continued torrent, and most of the houfes filled to the height of four feet. Nothing could equal the diftrefs and confufion occafioned by this deluge, but the readiness of the inhabitants whom it did not affect, particularly the two members, to contribute to the relief of the poor fufferers.

A young fellow was shot dead in attempting to rob the Norwich [H] 2 coach,