The National Register. — London, England, 1816-07-21 00:00:00

I 71. ;7V ationat iOttr+ • , tf 4 .t • -a ttc 41 Our Ming, frontitution anb UatusS. No: 411.—V01.. IX. ON THE END OF THE IMULD. How would the penetrating eye of Butler have looked into the hearts of the modern Philosophers who planned the destruction of the world on the 18th hitt. from the spots on the sun's disk ! and would have sent them to the wise Astrologer of his day, That deeds in destinies, dark councils, And sage opinions of the moon ; To whim all people, far Rail near, On deep importances repair. 2 Mid. cant. 3. and would have laughed at their restless folly, while he quaffed in peace his nut-brown ale, and slept as soundly a:: on any other night of his existence. It is true, that Imfore that terrible day, and near its approach, there will signs in the sun, and la the moon, and in the stars ; hitt these arc not sib+ signs as spots on the sun's disk : Meteors arc tilt signs of that nature—they are the nu torah exhalations of the planetary system, its diurnal coarse--its astonishing velocity, and its rotatory Illation ; and these are frequently shown to be as transitory as the spray of the sea upon the objects of the surrounding shore. Seine minds, ignorant of the wonderful phenomena, have alto ascribed the rain, during the present month, to these spots on the sun : but they do not recollect, that rain is the dissolving of clouds which are moved by the wind, and are not only far below the sun, but far below many mountains; from the summits of which travellers have stood, and beheld storms of rain and lightning, and thunder, playing. below them !—the aqueous particles of these clouds tithing in drops of rain upon the earth, are thus returned to refresh its vegetation, and render its otherwise parched surface fruitful : but they arc opera tions of a lower region ; a medium too low for the sun's operation, except in its congenial effect. Some have gone so far back as to imagine they can trace some re cords of many spots on the sun previous to the deluge ; which event happened 2349 years before the Christian Ara, according to the Bible history; but as Moses 1 not said one word about the sun or his situation at that time (ace Gen. probably these calculations or minutes of their own, _ ter has been peculiarly revealed to them in these latter days, in preference to Moses ! But it is an extraordi nary presumption in any philosophers to assume a spirit of dictation and alarm ; when they, by a short reference to the only authority on such grave subjects, may not only satisfy themselves, but be detected by their readers ! Throughout the Old Testament, the end which is there alluded to, is the end of each man's life. It seems to have been re. served for the Christian Revelation to declare the end of the world, as well as jinn:tonality. The expectation of this is often, as it were, habitually expressed by the : term " these latter days," as denoting that the lime was at hand: and many of the els hortetions to n-orolity arc founded not only upon the tweet% tainty of life, bitt upon the time being short!--" Brethren, the time is short," said St. Paul ;—and St. Peter says, " the end of all things is at hand.' 1 Pct. iv. 7,17. Hat, in the time of our Saviour, the people being desirous of knowing something of these facts, asked their Di'. Master," when these things should be, and what would be tile sten of his cursing and of the end et' the world r Matt. xxiv. 3. Our Lord's answer clearly distinguished between the tribulations arising from the calamities winds were assuredly to fall upon their city, and the time of which they enquired —for they had supposed their city to be as eternal as the world itself—lint he conelniled by declaring, that " such things mast needs be,lett the mid was not yet." v. 6. And eller their afflictions and persecu tions for the sake of their faith, he promises " the timid reward of salvation to those who should endure through them." v. 13. Exhorting them in their patience still to possess their souls Luke MILL In.), he them: foretells the fall of Jerusalem and it grievous sorrows, and that she should be trodden loon of the Gentiles until their time should he fidtilled, Luke axi. 21. It wa, not until after those tribulations that the second coining of the Sim of Alan was to be expected; when the suit should he dark ened, and the moon should not give her light, and the stars of lien% eii should IAII, and the powers of the heavens should be shaken (Matt. xxiv. 29.); and then should appear the sign of the Son ot'Msn in heaven, &c. v. 30. Biit of th..t day end hour know sib oo man; no, not the angels of heaven, but my father only, y. 30. Ile ye ready ; for in such au hour as ye think not, the Son of Mau coined'. %. 44 And this exhortation is followed (eh. xxv.) uy the cc ebtated parables and %aluable examples of the ten virgins and the eight talents ; and the subject is closed by an awlhl delineation of the last judgment, and the merciful distributiou of rewards and punishments. Such is the end described by it. Matthew.—No one doubts his authority, and every one acknowledges that none of the signs which he predicts have yet appeared; but as the sutler inds ofJetusalent took place, these must as-tiredly follow as the close of the prophecy. And ev en those who have applied the terms sun, moos, and .stars, to the chiefs of political hemi spheres, which fell in the dire visitations of the French revo lution, do also acknowledge that our Lord's prophecy of his own second coming was general, and not confined to one:nation ; and thit Iscfine that awful period, all the nations of the earth should see and feel the blessings of his salvation; and there for- it mast he at once confessed, that though the tiz:al approaca, it is not yet. A sufficient period is given for morn, for vigilance, and for repentance, to all the nation of the world! Pittex 9 'd OFFICIAL NARRATIVE 0f THE LATE MASSACRE OF CHRISTIANS AT BONA. TRANSLATION Or A COPY OF AN ITALIAN LETTER ADDRESSED • BY THE ENGLISH VICE•CONSUL AT TRAPANI, TO THE BRITISH VICE-CONSUL AT PALERNO am truly afflicted at having to announce to von the arrival ILI this port yesterday, and cuntitined arrival to-day, 111* several coral fishing-boats, which have had the good fortune to escape from firma, bringing the dreadful hews of the tragedy which has occurred in that barbarous country. sc.entv-idne vessels had &tumbled on the one pert, and 14 on the other, consisting of Neitpf/iilnl/S, AS well us those from Corsica and st, Margnerite, under tho English lin, for the purpose of carrying en the coral ti.licry allowed them by the British establishment, at'lliona, as well as by passports from Mr. aponnel, tbr Bri tish Consid-tidneral at Algiers; or from M. B. Escredero, your ova.,ni at Bona, appoimed by the Engli s h C onsu l, each' boat paying 20i) crowns to the establishment for that fishery . . " flaring personally examined several nettle boat -toasters, in order the better to ascertain the circumstances connected with the events, I communicate the substance of the inhuma tion I hat . i. collected. Ad the masters having immediately on their arrival at Botta p.,iti the duties, and obtained the passports mentioer • above, landed and proci tded to take from the magas. the British Consulate, where supplies are stored, sue-. , shoot as were necessary Ow six months, as well as all articles used in the coral fishery. Tory bad tranquilly commenced their labours, and had deposited in their magazines what coral they had collected. " On the 23d, the Feast of the Ascension of onr Lord, at one in the morning, when the crews of all the boats were preparing to hear mass, a gnu was fired from the Castle, and at the same moment there appeared about 2,000 infantry and cavulry, con sisting of 'forks, Levanters, and Moors. One part at these troops proceeded towards the country, and immediately an other band advanced un the river, %allele the fishing-lioats were lying, at greater or less distances from the sea, and tired, as did also the forts, on the tinfortnnate fishers, who were partly on board their boats and partly on land, and massacred the whole of them. They took their English flags and tore them in pieces, trampled them tinder their feet, and dragged them along the , •.I as in t " Those SUNDAY, JULY 21, 1816. But the end of the world has been supposed by manyerninent men to be by fire—an inter; retation warranted from some ex pressions of our Lord himself; in allusion to that element. " 1 am come to scud tire on the earth, and what will I if it be al ready kindled." Luke xii, .19.—For St. John It•iptist hail already announced hint as " buptising with the lily Ghost sod with fire, and that be shon:d burn ap the cha:f with unguent-li ablefire." Mat. iii. 11. 17.—St. Paul adopts the same allusion in speaking of the future judgement; when, by the example of a building, he says, " Let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon; for other foundation can no man lay, than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. How if env man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stnlible ; every win's work shall be made manifest.. Pair the day shall declare it, because it shalt he revealed by fire: and the fire shall try every man's work of whet sort it is. 1 Cor. Il.—lf any man's work abide, which he bath beat thereupon, lie shall receive a reward—if any man's work shall he blunt, he shall sutler loss, hut he himself shall be saved ; yet, sons by feu," v. 11.—Tlu, same Apo.tle, in his second eplutle to the Mess. oh. i. v. 8. uses the setae sentiment in speaking of the second coming or our 1.ur,l ; when he shall he revealed firm Heaven, with his mighty angels its Naming fire, taking ven4eanee on them that knots. not Clad, and that obey not the son of our Lord, Jesus Christ ; who shall be punished with (vedastits,, destruction from the presence (lithe Lord, and from the glory of his power; when he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be ad. mired in all them that believe in that day !"—We trace the same allusion in the epistle to the Hebrews, c. ii. 6. where lie is repudiating those who tall away from tie r faith, who crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open *twiner for the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft noon it, and bringetli forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, reeeiveth blessing from God; but that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing, whose end is to be burned." Ityllhatore we see that beat is the governing principle of creation. St. Peter closes this part of revelation, if the second of' the Epistles which bear his name may be adopted as genuine, ch. iii. 7.; where, after mentioning the destruction of the old world by water, adds, " Hut the heavens and the earth which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, • I a tbousand years as one day," Psa. xe.4. The Lord is not '- concerning his promise, as some men count • suffering t vermilion al. looking to. coming of the of God wherein the heavens oe fro shall be dissolve.i, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat ! nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for " new heavens and a uew earth wherein dwelleth righteous ness !" These are the authorities on which has been founded both the prevalent opinions, that the end of the world is not vet, for its signs are not seen, and its salvation not accomplished, for all its nations mug first become a gospel world ; and that when the end shall conic it will be by the means of fire; effecting as well the dissolution of all temporal systems, as also the punish ment of past offences, and pnrifying, by its secreting power, the whole uu-verse, and also the frail heart of man, for that peace and rest and that new heaven in which it will become titled to dwell for ever! The following is a description of a curious phenome non which was observed by the Hon. Company's ships Fairlie and James Sibbald, on their Lite passel,,-e to Cal cutta:— ;. On the Ist October our latitude at noon was IS deg. 25 , min. S. longitude 81 deg. 0. min. E. we observed quantities of stuff floating on the siirface of the water, which hail, to its, the appearance of seaweed—but were quite astonished to find it burnt cinders, evidently volcanic. .lhe sea was covered with it during the two next days: our latitude on the 3il October at noon was 10 deg. 9 min. S. longitude si deg. 20 min. E ; the surfaee of the water was so completely covered with the vol. canic matter, that I should think it very unlikely to have been drifted any considerable distance, as it is probable it would have been much inure scattered. In an old chart I had on board, there is a submarine volcano placed in the same longi tude slid latitude about S deg. 30 min. S. and from the great distance from any land where we found this curious phenome• nog', I think there can be no other way of accounting fur it, than the probability of a submarine volcano existing in that neighbourhood." An article from Vienna, dated June 529, gives the fol lowing particulars of a most dretulful fire : " Accounts from the circle of Clirisidine _...y. that a area :Ifni fire which broke out at Hohonansuth, in spite of the most active exertions to extinguish i., in which the Magistrates greatly dis tinguished themselves, has destroyed 20. buildings, among which were several public establishments, which, with the finest fruit gardens, were in a f, w hours the prey of the flames. 4 simplest and continued rain ou the following dap. increased the distress, by undermining a great part of what remained standing. h undreds of fatuities in this unhappy place, which experienced a similar visitation in 1711, are now languishing without a roof to cover then', and deprived of every hope ex cept from the humanity and benevolence of their generous countrymen." Considerable damage has been done at New Orleans, in consequence of the rapid inundation of the river; the whole of the suburbs was covered with water ; sad the road was only ,hs'boau. 2-. ~..: '-. . 71, . _, . " vessels have this moment arrived. The mas ter of the first relates, that on the arrival of a courier hostilities were suspended that the Vice- ( :maul, who still survi ve d, was set at liberty, Ant was not permitted to leave the town; that several masters and seamen, who, dnring the massacre, bad taken refuge in a magazine, were also set at liberty ; and that the Vice-Consul had advised them to put to sea with the hosts which were without crews. The same master, who speaks Turkish, having asked a Turk the reason of these hostilities, the latter replied, that the Dey of Algiers bad declared war against the English, because the Admiral had made a demand tending to burn the Algerine fleet. God knows whether this 'be true! The master of the last beat, on board of which was a master barber, an intelligent man, states, that the fortress had recommenced tiring, without the reasou of that proceeding being known. " la this state of uncertainty, I can as yet say nothing posi tive, but expect to be able so to do whenl shall have received better explanations from the other boats. which were on the point of sailing wills wounded men, and cannot be long in Sr. riving; for I shall not fail to interrogate the masters as they al-live, provided I am permitted by the Depiitation, in order to send you fuller information on a subject of such high interest, and accounts of which you will doubtless have to transmit to those entitled to such conunimication.—l ani ke. " SALVADOKE NIALATO, Trapani, May 28. English Viceakinsul." A LOIERS.—It is a remarkable historical fact, that Al giers, against which such formidable preparations arc now nudging in our liaxbours, was the first town that expe rienced the dreadful bombardment Ban ships of war. In the infancy of Louis the Fourteenth's naval power, the Barbary corsairs infested the Mediterranean, and drew on them the vengeance of that Monarch. It was on that occasion that a young man named Bernard Re naud, who had never served at sea, and whose genius the great Colbert had drawn from obscurity, proposed to the Council the construction of bomb-vessels to act against Algiers. The proposition was at first ridiculed ;but the King encouraged the young engineer, and, preparations being made, he was sent out with the celebrated Du Qucsne, to superintend the performance of his ow n suggestion . The en tereprise completely succeeded; Renaud was honaured fur his destructive invention; and the A lgerines sent Deputies to Versailles to solicit pardon and peace. They restored all their Christian captives, and even paid a large stun of money to their conquerors. NEW KIND Or PROXY.---It is stated, that the Dey of Algiers, who was only acting as Deputy for a mau whom the people disliked, was struivleti by proxy for Ls waster. ...... .-...n..3. nags arm Tore mein ne they can trace some re- day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thotli'lid . ;e 7 aTs . ia - 171e - c - e . is,l7 : ain . ple - dTli j etn — n - nder their feet, and dragged theta an previous to the deluge ; as one day," Psa. xe.4. The Lord is not slack concerning his along the ground as in triumph. 1 years before the Christian promise, as some men count slackness; bat is long saffering to " Those who happened to be in the country saved themselves its ward; not willing that any should pe r i s h. b ut that all should by flight. They declare that they saw tie troops pillage the history; but as Moses has come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come u a house of the English Consul, and the seigesieee containing the sun or his situation at that thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall • • ewe .. - 111 . , . ' Kr. F • - 4,..,-.- these gentlemen have seine with a_.linllat . • rir own, by which this mat- best, a nd be burnt up. Seeks( than that a shim ". *. - gli. '!". ' led to them in these latter man or o persons on; tyeto be e all holy solved, what mann f h . ! But it is an extraordi- versation and godliness, looking for and hosting unto the bes filled oar town with . r* 4 -•••. , . . , k oo ph ers t o assume a s pi r i t coming of the day of God wherein the heavens king on fine men, who are believed to he aussaered; as for ths less af abut i i they, by a short reference shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with f ervent s even ty t h ousan d ounces . h RTrIVP RIIMPAR_ in ay rant nom heat ! nevertheless we, according to his promi se , l oo k f or " Th ree ot h er vesse l s h ave t hi s moment arrived. The - ,