per cent. per annum, as hath not been subscribed, in pursuance of an act of this session, for reducing the several annuities which carry interest after the rate of 41. per cent. per annum, to the rates there mentioned, and who do, on or before the 30th of May next, subscribe their names, or signify their consent, to accept of an interest of 31. per cent. per annum, to commence from the 25th of December 1755, subject to the same provisions, notices, and clauses of redemption, which their respective four per cents. are now liable to, shall, in lieu of their present interest, be entitled unto, and receive an interest of 41. per cent. per annum, until the 25th of December, 1750, and thence an interest of 31. 10s. per cent. per annum, until the 25th of December, 1755; and that no part of the same shall be liable to be redeemed, until after the said 25th of December,

1755.

Resolved, that such part of the national debt, incurred before Michalmas, 1749, redeemable by law, which now carries an interest of 41. per cent. per annum, and which shall not be subscribed on or before the 30th of May next, be redeemed and paid off.

Wednesday, March 21. Ordered, by the House of Commons, that Mr. Speaker do give notice that such of the following annuities as are not subscribed on or before the 30th of May next, are to be redeemed or paid off (agreeable to the clauses of redemption) to the days mentioned below, viz.

Exchequer annuities, bank annuities, 1748, March 25, 1751.

Bank annuities 1746, lottery 1747, June 24, 1751.

Annuities 1747, ditto 1749, September 29, 1751.

These resolutions and orders were published at length in the London Gazette, as sufficient notice of the intended redemptions, and signed

Arthur Onslow, Speaker.

His Majesty was empowered to borrow money upon the sinking fund for the said purpose.

March 23. The House of Commons resolved to raise one million on annuities at three per cent. to be charged on the sinking fund, and to be raised by subscriptions, without a lottery, and to be appropriated to the payment of the million to the bank, which the government borrowed for circulating Exchequer bills. The subscribers to pay ten pounds per cent. on

April 20; fifteen per cent. June 20; twenty-five per cent. August 18; twentyfive per cent. October 18; twenty-five per cent. December 18.

March 28. The subscription opened for a million at three per cent. was full the next day in the afternoon.

April 2. About ten at night was felt a smart shock of an earthquake at Liverpool; it extended near forty miles north and south, and about thirty leagues east and west; it was a vibratory motion, and continued about two or three seconds; a person apprehensive of what it was, went out to observe the air, and saw multitudes of blood red rays converging from all parts of the heavens to one dark point, but no luminous body; this phenomenon disappeared in fifteen minutes.

April 5. Incredible numbers of people, being under strong apprehensions that London and Westminster would be visited with another and more fatal earthquake, on this night, according to the predictions of a crazy life-guardman, and because it would be just four weeks from the last shock, as that was from the first, left their houses, and walked into the fields, or lay in boats all night; many people of fashion in the neighbouring villages sat in their coaches till day break; others went to a greater distance, so that the roads were never more thronged, and lodgings were hardly to be procured at Windsor; so far, and even to their wit's end, had their superstitious fears, or their guilty consciences, driven them.

His Majesty in council, declaring his intention of going abroad, nominated the archbishop of Canterbury, and others as Regents.

April 12. His Majesty went to the House of Peers, and made a speech, thanking them for their zeal and dispatch in getting through the public business; and gave the royal assent to the following acts:

An act for granting to his Majesty the sum of 900,0001. out of the sinking fund, for the service of the year 1750; and for applying certain surplus monies, remaining in the Exchequer, as part of the supply of the said year; and for the application of certain savings in the hands of the paymaster-general; and for obviating a doubt in an act of the fifth year of king George I. in respect to the payment of certain annuities thereby granted, for the improvement of fisheries and manufactures in Scotland; and for the futher appropriating the supplies granted this session of Parliament; and for giving further time for the payment of duties omitted to be paid

and at the house of

Davies, esq. while the family were at tea in the back parlour, the windows were shattered to pieces in an instant, the shutters fell into the room, the tea furniture was broken to pieces, and the partitions all scorched. June 14. The Parliament was further prorogued to Aug. 30.

June 17. This evening the new-born Prince was baptized by the name of Frederick William; the ceremony was performed by the right reverend the lord bishop of Oxford. The sponsors were their royal highnesses prince George and the princess Augusta, and prince William of Saxe Gotha, brother to her royal highness the princess of Wales, who was represented by the right honourable lord North and Guildford.

William Alexander, esq. tallow chandler, and John Wallinger, esq. painterstainer, were chosen sheriffs of London and Middlesex.

A plot of ground was hired at Chelsea, to make a large building for the reception of 300 Moravian families of the Lutheran church, to carry on a manufacture there.

A pardon passed the great seal to Simon Fraser, esq. eldest lawful son of Simon late lord Lovat, for his accession to the late rebellion.

June 27. The Lord Mayor, aldermen, and common council, waited on their royal highnesses the prince and princess of Wales, when Richard Adams, esq. the recorder, read the city address of congratulation on the birth of prince Frederick William, as also on the recovery of the prince of Wales; to which his royal highness was pleased to make an answer expressing his approbation of their address, and of his great regard for the city.

June 30. Sir Edward Seymour's claim to the dukedom of Somerset, which had long been before Mr. Attorney General, received his approbation.

The public was amused with an account of Hannah Snell, the female soldier, who was born in the city of Worcester, in the year of our Lord 1723, and who took upon her the name of James Gray, made oath and said, that she had served his Majesty king George as a soldier and sailor from the 27th of November, 1745, to the 9th day of this instant June, and entered herself as a marine in captain Graham's company in colonel Frazier's regiment, and went on board the Swallow, his Majesty's sloop of war, to the East Indies, belonging to admiral Boscawen's squadron, where she was present at the siege of Pondi

VOL. 11.

cherry, and all other sieges during that expedition, in which she received twelve wounds, some of which were dangerous; and was put into the hospital for the cure of the same, and returned into England in the Eltham man of war, captain Lloyd, commander, without the least discovery of her sex. On the 24th, she presented a petition to his royal highness the duke of Cumberland, who put her on the King's list for a pension of 301. a year for life.

July 2. Mr. Sewell fruiterer in Newgate-Market, and Mr. Boult, goldsmith in Cheapside, agreed with the committee of the city lands to farm Newgate Market, on paying a fine of 7007. and 700 per annum. Mr. Papworth, grocer in Coleman-street, farmed Leadenhall Market, for 1000l. per annum, and 10007. fine.

July 10. A petition was presented to the Lord Mayor and court of aldermen, signed by above 100 graziers, salesmen, and inhabitants in and near Smithfield, against erecting booths for exhibiting shows and entertainments there during Bartholomew fair, as not only annoying the graziers and salesmen, and disturbing the inhabitants in the exercise of their callings, but giving the profligate and abandoned of both sexes, opportunity to debauch the innocent, defraud the unwary, and endanger the public peace.

July 11. About five o'clock in the afternoon was a violent storm of thunder, lightning, rain, and hail, by which the streets in London were soon overflowed, and many cellars filled with water, and above 40007, damage done to the gardeners in and near Southwark; numbers of fish of all kinds were seen floating the next day in the river, and taken out dead; several hailstones measured above three inches round, but were of a flat form, so as to be more properly called ice cakes.

July 12. Were installed knights of the Garter at Windsor, by proxy, prince George, prince of Hesse, duke of Saxe Gotha, margrave of Anspach, and earl of Albemarle; in person, duke of Leeds, duke of Bedford, and earl of Granville.-the earl of Inchiquin was proxy for prince George; the other proxies were Sir Clement Cotterell, Sir Edward Fawkener, Sir Molton Lambart, and Sir Charles Eggleton.

July 13. The excessive heat of this and some preceding days so affected the fish in the Thames, that they gathered in shoals to the bank side, and buried themselves in the ooze and mud, and were easily taken in great quantities; loads of fish perished in the fens in Cambridgeshire, and one

E.

person lost 3001. by the death of jacks and pikes.

July 10. Was a terrible storm of thunder and lightning, by which the lead of several houses in Bishopsgate-street was melted, and a turret on the top of a house shivered. In Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire, it lasted with a heavy rain from nine in the morning till ten at night; a ball of fire fell on St. Ives' steeple, and split it about the middle, burnt a house, and damaged others. At Harleston field, near Northampton, nine sheep were killed; six miles from Coventry, a barn was burnt, and thirty sheep and three calves killed, and a shepherd was struck dead in Marton field, not far from them. At Worcester the storm began between ten and eleven the night before, and continued till near five the next morning, and was very terrifying.

The Lord Mayor and court of aldermen, on considering the petition relating to Bartholomew fair, agreed to suppress the same, as far as gave occasion to the complaint.

Aug. 5. There fell, some miles above Altyr, in the county of Murray, Scotland, such a quantity of rain, that a small river running by that place, rose twenty-two feet perpendicular above the common level of the water, and did incredible damage to the fine fields lying along its banks, by totally carrying off some, and covering others with immense quantities of sand and gravel; it swept sway with it several houses and mills, and the corn of whole possessions. As the waters in that neigh bourhood rose in no proportion to the bourn of Altyr, it is imagined, that what is called a water spout fell near the source of this small river, as it did in Lorrain on the precise day that this happened at Altyr.

Aug. 10. The river Don rose to such a height, that, in the middle of the night, it carried off half of a large house, with the furniture. The gentlewoman of the house was providentially abroad, and her youngest son narrowly escaped with his life, the water having surrounded his bed.

Aug. 22. Above 10,000lbs weight of lead was taken off the roof of Westminster-hall, in order to have it slated.

Aug. 23. A quarter before seven in the morning was felt in Nottinghamshire a violent shock of an earthquake, which shook people in bed, and made the windows jar. It was perceived at Nottingham, Retford, Scofton, Tuxford, &c. and seemed to tend N. by E. That morning and all the day was very calm, the sky clear and serene, and a bright sunshine. A very re

markable Aurora Borealis was seen about ten days before, that met together in a point at the zenith, and appeared very red. Aug. 25. The lords justices prorogued the Parliament from the 30th instant to Oct. 25.

Twenty-five houses were consumed by a fire at Bellingham in Northumberland.

Aug. 29. At seven o'clock in the morning, was decided at Newmarket, a remarkable wager for 1000 guineas, laid by Theobald Taaf, esq. against the earl of March and lord Eglington, who were to provide a four wheeled carriage with a man in it, to be drawn by four horses nineteen miles in an hour; which was performed in fifty-three minutes and twentyseven seconds. The pole was small but lapped with fine wire; the perch had a plate underneath, two cords went on each side, from the back carriage to the fore carriage, fastened to springs, the harness was of thin leather, covered with silk; the seat for the man to sit on, was of leather straps, and covered with velvet; the boxes of the wheels were brass, and had tins of oil to drop slowly for an hour; the breechings for the horses were whalebone; the bars were small wood, strengthened with steel springs, as were most parts of the carriage, but all so light, that a man could carry the whole with the harness. The near fore horse was a brown one, named Tawney, late Greville's; the off fore horse was a dark grey, named Roderick Random, late Mr. Standford's; the near wheel horse was a chesnut, named Chance, late duke Hamilton's; and the off wheel horse a grey, named Little Dan, late parson Thompson's of Beverly, and each had a rider; lord March's groom sat on the carriage. Two or three other carriages had been made before, but disapproved, and several horses killed in trials, to the expence of six or seven hundred pounds.

Newcastle upon Tyne, Aug. 28. On July 24, about eleven at night, broke out the greatest fire ever known here; it began in a brewhouse, adjoining to which was an eminent bookseller's house and warehouse (Mr. Bryson's) who happened to be abroad, but his servants narrowly escaped the flames, which consumed about ten houses, and several warehouses, the damage was 10,0001. of which 3000l. was insured.

Sept. 2. At Gloucester was the most violent rain ever known, lasting three hours, with very little intermission, by which the principal streets were above three feet deep in water, so that most of the cellars were filled, and many of their shops. At Stroud and Painswick, several