we might indeed fay, elegance of choice, on the anniversary day of the great fire of London, in 1666, before the Lord Mayor of London, the gentlemen of the Corporation, and the Committee of City Lands; the fourth, on the 27th of September, before their Majefties, their Royal Highneffes the Prince of Wales, the Bishop of Ofnabrugh, and the two eldest Princeffes, with their attendants, and feveral other noblemen, ladies, and gentlemen, who all, if we may ufe the expreffion, fhook hands with the fire, as familiarly as the meaneft of their inferiors could be expected to do; the fifth, before a fpecial committee of the city of London, attended by their builders, furveyors, and other proper officers. After the trial, at which the LordMayor affifted, his Lordship laid the foundation ftone of a pillar, with the following infcription: The Right Hon. JOHN SAW BRIDGE, Efq; LORD-MAYOR of LONDON, Laid the FOUNDATION STONE Of this PILLAR, One Hundred and Ten Years after the FIRE of LONDON, On the ANNIVERSARY Of That dreadful Event; In Memory AN INVENTION For SECURING BUILDINGS AGAINST FIRE. And foon after, viz. on the 5th of November, the Report of the Committee of City Lands, not only extremely favourable, we may be fure, but highly honourable, to Mr. Hartley, having been agreed to in common-council, the court unanimously refolved, that the freedom of the city fhould be prefented to him, in confideration' of the advantages likely to accrue to the public from his invention, and for his refpectful attention to the city in his repeated experiments, performed before many of the members of the court; the copy of the freedom, with the refolutions of the court inferted therein, to be delivered by the Chamberlain to Mr. Hartley, and the report and the refolution to be fairly tranfcribed and figned by Mr. Town-Clerk, and by him, in like manner, prefented to Mr. Hartley. Moreover, the court ferioufly recommended the ufe of Mr. Hartley's method in all the houses, &c. already built, or which might afterwards be built, on the extenfive eftates belonging to the city. In return for all thefe no lefs juft and flattering marks of approbation, Mr. Hartley wrote the Chamberlain of London a letter, which, as it must fully exculpate us from the charge of fulfomeness in fpeaking of Mr. Hartley's modefty throughout the whole of thefe. proceedings, we think it highly incumbent on us to infert. as follows: It is pillar to commemorate the inven- But, to return to the experi tion for fecuring buildings from fire. The general respect which I entertain upon all occafions towards the city of London, as the most important member of the community, and the peculiar propriety of offering an invention to their attention, which above all feems calculated for the fecurity of great cities, were my motives for laying this matter before them. Their approbation of my conduct, and the fuccefs of my labours, is the highest fatisfaction to me. As they have been pleased to recommend the ufe of the invention in their own buildings, they may be affured that nothing in my power fhall be wanting to facilitate the execution. "It has coft me much labour and anxiety to bring the invention into that degree of forwardness in which it is at prefent; therefore I do more immediately and perfonally feel the kindness of the city of London, in giving me their affiftance and countenance in the profecution of fo important an object. As I know the public good to be the object of their attention, it is a double fatisfaction to me to labour with them in the common caufe, and to contribute my best endeavours under their powerful and refpectful patronage. I beg leave to affure them that the highest point of my ambition will at all times be, to merit the approbation of my fellowcitizens, and to obtain the good will of my country. I am, Sir, ments, Mr. Hartley's fixth and laft, was made on the 11th of November, before feveral of the most respectable members of both Houfes and as, befides all his trials being on the fame plan, we may be fure the laft, fuppofing any difference between them, was the fevereft, as calculated to answer all the cavils, and conquer all the objections which might have been made to his former trials, and obviate all thofe, which he might be apprehenfive of with regard to his future ones; and facts being moreover, on this occafion particularly, the beft, if not the only folid, arguments, we have fixed on this laft trial, as the propereft for our purpofe. On this memorable day, then, Mr. Hartley, after carrying his company, as ufual, round the houfe of trial, in order to see the marks of between twenty and thirty large fires, which, at former experiments, had been lighted in différent parts of it; firft, ordered a fire to be made on the deal flooring of one of the ground-room floors. Then, a large faggot of fhavings, fufpended by iron to the upper part of the fame room, was fet on fire. Thirdly, the ftaircafe was fet on fire, both above and below, without the fire's extending, in either cafe, beyond the fpot on which it was lighted. Laftly, the other room on the ground floor, filled almoft to the top with faggots, pitch, and other combuftibles, was fet fire to; but, though they all burnt with fuch fury, as to vomit forth a perpetual torrent of flame and fmoke, and thereby render all approach within thirty yards of the windows, on the outfide, abfolutely impractica ble, ble, the room adjoining to, and that immediately over, this little Etna, continued as cool and as acceffible, as if no fire had been in the house. Accordingly, Mr. Hartley and his company feem to have made it a conftant rule to país, in these very rooms, a great part of the time, during which the fire burned with the greateft fury-in the other. Nor was it walls, and floors, and ceilings, alone, which, by means of Mr. Hartley's invention, were enabled to mock the rage of the otherwife all-devouring element; fixtures, and even furniture, were thereby rendered proof against it, though found at the fame time fufficient to prepare iron for the anvil, and water for the tea-pot; and, of courfe, anfwer all the neceffary and useful purpofes of life: particularly, a bed being purposely fet on fire, little more of it was confumed than what the fire had been immediately applied to. Aftonishing as the effects of this contrivance for fecuring houses, fhips, and other buildings, of the most combustible materials, from fire, muft appear, the means perhaps may be thought equally fo. It is only nailing the thinnest plates of iron to the joifts, &c. and thefe plates may be plain, or painted of any colour. To crown all, as this method must be allowed extremely eafy, there is the greateft reafon to believe, that it will be found equally cheap. We are affured, that the additional expence of building, created by the ufe of this invention, will fcarce exceed three per cent. How would fuch an happy event have rejoiced the good heart of the Great Berkley, who our the the arts of fupplying man with food, this of defending him againft fire, must be ranked among the moft capital; nay, we need not fcruple giving it the fuperiority over that of fecuring him from water, fince he can do infinitely better without expofing himself to danger from the laft, than from the first of thefe elements. Ac cordingly, we should have given an account of this noble invention, at the head of our article of Projects; but that we expected fomething on the fubject from the ingenious and beneficent Inventor's own pen, till, through the nature of our publication, the opportunity of placing it there, flipt out of our hands, TABLE TABLE, exhibiting, at one View, the SUPPLIES granted for the Service of the Year, 1776, with the WAYS and MEANS of raifing them; each Article being accurately arranged under its feparate Head, &c. as ftated by LORD NORTH, in the House of Commons, on the 24th of April, 1776. S UPPLIES. ARMY. 20752 land forces with 3213 invalids Plantations and Africa £. S. d. £. s. de 659200 2 10} 723432 11 74 Irish and British pay for troops in} 42530 19 4 America |