The Pennsylvania packet, or, The general advertiser — Lancaster, Pa.;Philadelphia, Pa., 1780-12-05 00:00:00, page 2

CADI Z, July gr, 17^
THE merchant frig'ite the Unity, winch flipped
c f Gibraltar in tfr night of the 23d, w& taken by
one of Don Gabon's fayadron, and feat in here the
2dh.
fey order of the King, Don Louis de Cordova has
divided bis fleet i to fix divisions, a d toe corps
serve into two, with several frigates, fire hops, did
fortiler vefiels. n -
The choice the court has made cf Count d Lltaff .0
command the combined ayny gives umccrf d fp'isf..b
op, and the attack of Gibraltardeeins d termed up
on. Thecamp ofSt Roch is full of troops and ammu
nition. Some gun b ats are building for Doi, Barcco,
which upon tr al seem to tucre/d they ca?ry one 24 or
36 pounder each, and rifeio little above tiie water that
Dotting can hurt them but bombs: two of these bents
were feet to cannonade the Mole, and otwiio ihinamg
the enemy fired upwards of 500 (hot at them they were
not in the kafi damaged, and made a considerable
breach.
Hague, Aug. % The declaration of the court of Co
penhagen is dated the 8;u of July, and after a proper
introduction, felting lorth the neceffit} there was for
corning to the resolution of protecting thetrade and na
vigation of the neutral pow< rs, 't goes on in these words.
" If the rights of neutrality are Cured, and if the
law of nations founded on impartiality, eftabliflied by
custom, and avowed by all countries, are of any
weight, no neutral nation should by a war betwe 11
other powers lose the rights it possessed before that
war. Such nation is authorised t) trade to all parts of
Europe, as if there was general peace (contraband traf
fic excepted.) The King desires nothing beyond what
neutrality allows ; this is his rue, and tat of his peo
ple, and Irs Mdjefty's not thinking it r-ght that any
belligerent power ihould interrupt the trade of his sf
t?tes„'he, therefore, lays before them the principles he
ever has maintained, and ever will, in conjunction with
the Empress of Russia, whose sentiments are the fame
with his, viz.
First, Taat neutral veffcls ffiall fail from port to port
and on the crafts of nations at war. Secondly, That
the effed.s belonging to neutral powers Ihall be free in
neutral veff&s, except contraband goods. Thirdly,
That l under the denomination of contraband goods is
understood only what is expressly mentioned as such in
the third article of his Majef r y's treaty of commerce
with Great Britain in the year : and in the 26th
and 27th of his treaty with France in 1742 and the
King will .keep to the fme with regard to any powers
with whom he is. not now in treaty. Fourthly, That
bya blocked up port is underfto id one into which no
vessel can enter without evident danger from the ships
placed to block,it up. Fifthly, That these principles
shall serve as rmes for trials in courts of admiralty,
&c." The declaration then concludes with faying,
that it is his Majesty's determination to protest the ho
nour of his flag, and the freedom of the trade and na
vigation of his fubjeds ; and that he has for that pur
pose fitted out part of his naval force, &G.
PARI S, June 11, 1780.
M. de Marville„ on last, made an address
to the general assembly of the clergy. He called their
attention to the pains which the king had taken to the
present moment to edablifh good or der in his finances,
and to avoid burdening his people with taxes. But
he added that having a war to support in all the quar
ters of the globe, and being determined to keep up a
formidable navy, his majtfly must necessarily incur ex
traordinary exponcestill he shall be able to procure a
peace that will be honourable to him and fatisfadory to
his allies in the present war: and that he doubted not the
clergy would give him a new proof of their zeal by gran
ting him thirty millions on loan: cardinal Rochefiu^
coult answered in general, that indeed the clergy
ought to make the greatest efforts to second the great
views of their sovereign, but the requisition being much
greater than any heretofore made, the assembly would
Retire to examine whether they could reconcile it with
their other engagements. The coromiffarles them
selves retired to wait the issue of their deliberations,
and in two hours the clergy asked them in and declared
to them, that they would fatisfy the wants of the state-
The clergy never before have made so great a grant to
their foyereign, and however cnotnious it may appear
and whatever difficulty they may find in railing it,
this venerable body did not fuffer itfelf to be urg'd on
this occasion, because they were sensible of the urgent
wants of the slate, and that the national honour is in
terested in this war, and because they are firmly per
suaded that the wisdom of the king and his council will
employ this extraordinary subsidy to a good purpose.
L O N D O N,
AuguO 20. When the King was informed of the cap
ture of the Eaf land Weft- India feet, by Don Louis
de Cordova, he was immediately seized with horrid,
paroxysms, indicating the most violent symptoms of
that species of madness, which attends persons in the
east, when bit by a tarantula. Lord North, the chief
physician in politics, sent direaly for the band of slate
Sellers, who having, as on such occasions is usual, play
ed over several deleffable times to humour his Majes
ty's disorder ; they at last fiddled him into his senses,
but he unfortunately relapsed a'gain—Lord North
caught the disorder, and in a moment, with epedemie
fwiftnefs, the whole court by its baneful influence,
were in a slate of lunacy — Her Majefly the- Queen
leaped out of bed naked as Venus; and the Prince of
Wales appeared as bare as- Apollo of Delphi—The
maids of honour forgot their modefly : the lords in
waiting forgot their breeches. A general tumult en
sued.—The guard's- -the menial domefticks --and the
lords of the council, with their secretaries, mingled to
gether in the great anti chamber, tag-rag and bobtail,
where they danced and capered to and fro, belly to bel
ly, back to back, right and left, hands across, &c.
The dolors are deputing on the nature of the distem
per--- the doctors of divinity are preparing to exercise
the spirit of madness which possessed the court---the
doctors of law are taking down notes of the case---the
doctors of phyfick are preparing clyflers and emeticks,
to drive t e disorder up and down, and the undertakers
of the kingdom are fluffing for the funerals of such as
might become defunfl.
Augufl 2^. The grand fleet under the command df
admiral Geary is to be re informed with several capital
flips, and to fail again in the course of this week down
the channel for the proteaion of the fleets that are
daily exp-fled.. ,
All the civil officers who had retired from C harles'
Town, and were living here on penfiops, have had
this alternative given them- to receive a year's salary,
and return immediately, or be flruck off the pennon
lift.',
The loss to government, and the array and navy
in America, by the late capture will be very gr'at,
far twenty of the Weft Indii lh : ps were entirely lade^
with stores, provisions, & c. for their use, and amongh.
other valuable articles, there were no less than 39%°°°
sacks o' flour.
Fxtraff of a letter from Plymouth, Auguft22. „
"On Sunday ni,t several American prisoners es
caped from Mill Prifora in this neighbourhood, among
wuom was the well known captain Cunningham, ta
ken only about two months ago; they were luchi y
flopped yest pr day morning, on the point of setting off
in a poll chaise for Exeter, and fifely lodged in the
black-hole, where Mr. Cunningham's golden key,
which he has twice fuccefsfully made use of, will pro
bably be of no further avail.
On the 2d of this month a very extraordinary
fight was seen ar Kirton Ie Moor, in Cumberland a
man, his wife, and thirty of their children, walking to
the Christening of the thirty - firft. The youngest of
the walkers was two years and five months.
Sept 7. Colonel O'Hara is about to embark for A
merica, in' order to fuccced general Matthews in toe
co rmand of the detachment of the guards, that officer
being on his passage home for the recovery of his
health.
From the St. LUCIA GAZETT E.
Carriage, October 21, 1780.
ON the 10th there was a heavy f-a at the entrance
of the harbour and along the coafl, attended
with heavy rains, and, at times, severe gertts of wind,
insomuch, that his Majefly's ships, which lay '^r
out, were in danger of parting from their anchors.
Tn the evening, the wind was felt much severer in the
harbour, but on fliore, nothing was particularly ob
served that seemed to indicate the approach of so se
vere a change of whether. The gale canrot be said
to have fairly commenced, 'till about one o'clock the
. next morning, when it began to blow from about the
north-east in the mo.flfudden and severe gusts. At
day light there was scarce a vessel in the harbour but
what had drifted, and many, though so e.irly, were
on Ihore. In short the whole were driven nt a elufter
on the Merne Fortune fide. His Majefly's fhipe
Ajax, Egmont, and Montague all put to sea in the
night; the firft about nine o'clock, the second near
midnight, and the Montague not till near day light.
The Amazon frigate rode it out till near noon, wiien
The was obliged to cut. The only vessel of war that
remained was the Vengeance, Commodore Hotham,
and file at noon, was obliged to cut away all her
malls, to save her from going ashore where every foul
mul lhave perished. The final! craft which lay at
the head of the harbour, were mostly driven on fliore
very early; the sloop Nelly, prize to the Amazon,
was overfet ; a schooner belonging to Mr. Miller funic
at anchor, as did alf® a tender belonging to one of his
Majefly's ships, and the sloop Two Friends, belong
ing to Antigua, was likenife loft; others were dif
mafted and much damaged. It would fem as if the
former part of the gale was intended to prepare the
mind for the redoubled violence with which in the af
ternoon it increased. From three to five, which was
esteemed the height of it, those vessels, which had rode
it out were torn from their anchors, and carried with
astonishing force againflthe other flipping. His Ma
jefly's armed snow St. Vincento, was one of those :
Die lay across the Gut where the Cornwall is funk, and
notwith Handing the advantage she had over others,
of making fail to that vessel, she was driven on the
opposite fide with the greatest rapidity, and entirely
difmafled. Toa person acquainted with the excellent
qualities of this harbour, it would be fufficient, to
give him a proper idea of the force of the wind, to
learn, that not a vessel can be said to have rode it out :
but on shore, even in the most interior part of the is
land, the havock and deftruftion is inexpressible.-Hou
ses levelled with the ground, the woods almost entire
ly cleared of their lofty inhabitants, and scarce a
branch cr leaf to be seen on those remaining. In fine,
the whole country wears the face of winter. On Mor
ne Fortune not a hut was left standing, or a house but
what was unroofed; a soldier and a sailor were killed.
At the grand Cul de Sac, not a house was left, and
they had the misfortune, out of so small a number of
men at that poll, to lose ten, together with a woman
and a child- In the town of the Carenage, not a house
escaped without some damage, numbers were entirely
destroyed, and others rendered useless. It was almost
as dangerous to be within as without doors, as scarce
a house among the whole could be depended on. Tiles,'
Hates, and shingles flew about with great force m all'
parts; even pieces of joist, boards, &c. were carried at
a great difiauce, and the wind came with such violence
at the corners of the streets, as to render them impas
sable.
The gate continued till one in the rhorning of the
12th (24 hours) during which time the wind came ve
ry little, if any, to the fouthwardof east, or farther to
the northward than .north-north east. At the end of
the gale, the wind went to the southward, and great
quantities of rain fell. It is unknown the mifchief
that would have been done, had the wind, during the
gale, came to the westward or southward. It is at
present, upon the whole, much less than could be rea
sonably expected. Only two square-rigged vessels
will be totally loft, viz. The (hip Champion, captain
Hall, from New-York, and the brig Dolphin, Captain
Morrison, laden with falt-fifh, last from St. Kitts.
Of the others, some were totally difmafted, many
much damaged, and some lives are left. The /Etna
Bomb also loft her snazin-maft.
At Gros Islet his Majefly's ships the Deal-Callie,
and Camelion toy. Those velfels rode out the gale
till the afternoon of the 11th, when they were obl g^d
to put to sea. The town also fuffered rouct, as did
I'Arice la Raye.
Souffriere seems to be the place that has fuffered
most; indeed the accounts from thence are Shocking.
T e sea demolished the major part of the town. It
rose so high as to go as far -s tne church. Upwards
of fifty lives are said to be loft on Ihore. The fliip
Barbary, captain Wifeman. and the brig Murtha,
captain Oates, both trem Liverpool, were driven t@
fea+ as was a schooner, belonging to Mr. Bolton,
w' fe fiore in that pc, was entirely deftreyed.
At I'Ance Choifeu! the sea broke through the hou
ses, but we have not been able to learn of the parti
cular damage done there. Islet a Carret likewise fuf
fer^d much.
A fmn.il schooner which failed from hence for Bar
bados on the roth, was driven back by the gale and
got into Gros Islet, where the following afternoon she
funk at an anchor, and every foul on board perished.
But the mod melancholy piece of intelligence we
have yet to relate, is of his Majefly's (hip the Beaver'#
Prize, which failed from hence the Bth for Barbados ;
on board of whom was lieutenant colonel Mitchel of
the 27th reg. doffor Knowles, surgeon of the general,
hospital here, doftor Ore of the 35th reg. and a lady.
She was driyen alhore at Swanna ; of the whole only 49
got on Ihore, among which was the lady, who, with a,
bout half of the men, died food after their landing.
The Mary and Isabella, belonging to messieurs Scott
and Wilson in Barbados, was driven out of Carhffe
Bay in tnat island, by the ftme gale, and wrecked at
a place called Petit Trou, to windward of this Inland,
The crew all go' ashore, except three, but many were
much hurt. It is somewhat amazing that the gale
begin in tha r iCand fifteen hours before it did here.
The most of the Flipping, among which was his Ma
jetty's flop tiie Albermarle, were driven out about
eleven o'clock o' tiie forenoon of the ictii. There hav.
ing been no arrival from that idand face the eale, it
is not in our power to give any account o' the damage
done there, which, we fear, must have been confidect.
abb.
His Majefly's (hip the Montague returned here ear>
ly in the morning of th 6 12th, totally difmafled toge,
ther with the loh of her bowsprit and head- She was
driven.by the wind under the lee of St. Vincent, ant
had, at one time, upwards of nine feet water in he&
hold.
BASSETERRE, (Sr. Christopher's) ORober r 6.
We should at all times be happy to give our readers
agreeable intelligence, but are sorry to fay wehavet
noticing to offer the public in this paper, but a repe
tition of distressing and melancholy events. On Wed
inlday, at midnight, it blew a very hard gale and en
creafed all next day with, a very high sea, which drove
the following vessels on Ihore; a fh>p with part of her
cargo of lumber on bo rd, prize to the privateer ibi,
Belona; a sloop and schooner, prizes th the Spitfire,
capt. Mairs; a sloop belonging to Mr- Henry Sibly,
foundered ; and a sloop prize to a man of war: leveret
of the veffels^put to sea, many of which ingoing out
ran foul of other vessels at anchor and did confiderahle
damage; a brig fill at anchor had her foremaft an#
bowsprit carried away, a fllip had also her foremaff
and bowsprit carried away, and the Mathew, capt,
S!e>g, in endeavouring to get out, got foul of the Bro~
therfon, capt. Totaling, and forced her from her an
chors, this last had her yards and topmasts struck and
was so light that Ite could not go to sea, and was con
sequently forced ashore at Johnson's Bay, where she
soon went to pieces, and tl^ mate was drowned. A
schooner belonging to Tobago, bound to New-York
with rum, put out from the Salt- Ponds, and was for
ced on shore under Londonderry fort, a vessel loaded
with tobacco from St- Eu ftatius, and a small fchooner #
were seen to founder off Half way Tree; a schooner be
longing to Mr. Priddie, drove ashore at Palmeto Point,
and was totally loft. On that day and the next, thought
the wind had in some degree abated, the surge was fa
excessive high, that many spars, hoglheads of co^l%
lime, &c. &-c. were washed off the bay, and great inju
ry done to several honfes. On Saturday the wind aba
ted, and we were in hopes that the violence of the wea
ther was over, in which we were in a great degreecon
firmed, by a heavy rain, with thunder and lightning^
setting in ycfl'rday morning, but about eight o'clock
the wind faifted to the southward, which increased the
swell, by which the Minerva, capt. Robbin, mentioned
in our last to have just arrived from Bristol, with 1
Cargo worth 12,000!. flerling on boar l , was forced on
the reef of Smith's fort, where she now lies with all her
mails cut away, bilged, and so far from the shore,
that if the weather continues her crew and cargo must
inevitably perish. Also a brig from Salem, with &
cargo of fifh and lumiter on board, prize to the Venus
frigate, overfet in the breakers, by which one man,
in attempting s o swim on shore, was drowned, but the
rest of the crew duck to her bottom, and have filter
got ashore- she is gone to pieces.
Yesterday, about two o'clock in the afternoon, a
light fliip, foppofed to be capt. Hart from Nevis,
came off here firing a number of distress guns; the
was immediately affifled by boats from the flops, and
came too by an anchor and cable left by one of the
flips which put out.„
This morning, at fix o'clock, the Minerva was full
at a great difiance from the shore: a few of her haM^
have swam ashore, and inform that her gundeck is en
tirfy under water, and that she must soon go to pie
ces—the wind lulled and the sea abated.
Juftas this paper was going to press, Capt. Divine
in his boat, with twelve of his crew, in attempting re
find at Irish Town, was overfet in the breakers, the
capt- and two men are drowned ; they belonged to w
snow whit'll lay at the Salt Ponds, and which went
aihore ks inight. The Rowley, capt., Power, and Bl
the other veffeis which lay at the Salt-Ponds, were
ashore and dished to pieces.
Several vessels are now in the offing, some of whirl
appear to be damaged; a brig with both top- masts,
and a schooner her main mail carried away.
Off. 24. T^e loss at Barbados is, we hear, very
considerable; it is reported 1500 persons have loft thei,
lives in Bridgetown, by the fall of houfe*. a»4 ocher
accidents.