The Sun.
London, England, 1809-09-14 00:00:00

TO THE EDITOR.

St.a,—Having recently looked into a book called
Merlin's Centuries, I met with a passage which
seemed to me so curious, that I resolved to publish
it, with such explanations as, in my mind, render it
very intelligible, and strongly pointed to the com,
mencen*nt of the present century. Of thin let
others judge as they please. I here send you the
whole passage referred to, in the very spelling of the
time as I transcribed it :
Three werkend wekes (i) in hondredes tould, •
A dozeine whol and nal fe beholde ;
Ther cumy Hi one of doutefulle size, (2)
Quhorn klbionestiall_lieighly prize,
Though at fir:a daune hv.change her name, (3) '
And islands twane make bore one Reaume.
Newe Race tb-cont from Saxon shor, (4)
Threde Icinge cloth g t tro' cradles foure. (s)
My sons think on Threde Fdwarde's glorie, (6),
Hys yeres ages ben tould in stone.
New <Auk of Tyme tell three be three ;
Agen come Roiale lutnley !
Then daunceth lamys long his stronde, .•
Apd merle days Rath auld Yoglonde.
Time's nerve yere's and nine toms shal see, (7)
Come second'skepkred lubiley I
Auld greye must then be chaunged to grene,
Lou ! ther, ages a May dene Quene !

The above is all that is nece,sary for the present
purpose. Now I beg the reader's attention to the
toliowing notes :-
1. Three working weeks.—The old Bard is writing
of centuries, and plainly describes the present gt h.—
Three weeks, of six days each, in hundreds, make
1800, or a dozen and half hundreds ; after which

comes one.
Of doubtful site.--. That is, the present century;
about the beginning of which some wits would
puzzle us, duriag the whole of it, to find out when
it began.
3. Tho' irst dawn.—lt opened with the union
of Great Britain and Ireland, the two Islands that
make but one Realm or Royalty.
4. The new Race from the Saxon shore.—Can be
no other than the illustrious House of Brunswick.
In Merlin's time, the whole North of, Germany was
called Saxony.
5. Third King doth give front cradles.—Tnis may
to some appear mysterious, but it is very pain, if the'
last. observation be just. Gracile,. among our ances-
tors, was a word used metaphorically, for descents.
or generations; for the same cradle nursed all the,
children of the family. Now his Majesty is the
fourill, in the descem of. this new race, and the third
Sovereign, his father. having .thed when Prince of

Wales.
6. Third Edward's ,Glory..--This part of the pro-
phecy remains to be fulfilled, and may be worth all.
the rest, if it insurer; us (as I am willing to hope) a
continuance of the life of our beloved Sovereign ,
to the extent of Edward the Third. We should
hope on this account; that every thing in the
above description is really what it appears to
be, a prophetic.view of the present generation, which
opinion may be entertained without impiety. The
allusion I take to be to the famous Jubilee proclaim-
ed by Edward the Third, iti the fiftieth year of hi's
reign, when that great King, full of years and ho•-
nour, was preparing to take leave of the world.
7. Times new years and nine turns shall see.—
Thu above verses, in my explanation, describe the
opening of the present century, nine years turns
from which bring us to 1809. In that year his Ma-
jesty, if he live to the wishes of his subjects, will ac-
complish the soth year of his reign, and may have
second sceptred jubilee. What follows when grey
(or age) is to be succeeded by green (or youth,)
t will riot pursue, having arrived at the point
most earnestly-. wish for, and with which I shall be
content.; Some of your readers may perhaps remark,
that the year alluded to is just one century beyond
that of Swifi's explanation -of another prophecy
Merlin's, but «it h that 1 have nothing to do, further
than to observe, that Dr. Johnson, in Writing of it,
says, it cannot be read without amusement.

Another vessel is arrived from New York, which
tailed-one day later than that by which the Presi-
dent's Proclamation teas brought to this country.—
Besides several copies of the documents which we
published on Tuesday,
,private. letters have been re-
ceived by this vessel, which .state that the .Wasp.
American sloop of waf was to sail on the -Itith EXTRACT OF A LETTER, DATED CAPE OF GOOD
ult. '
ROPE, MAY 30, 1809. ,
with dispatches. for France, in answer to some im- - ~ We continue tile blockade of the Isles of:France
portant propositions lately received from the French i and Bourbon with the whole of our squadron,which,
Government. Report stated that an amicable ad-
,! having been reinforced by two very tine frigates, is
julitment of differences was on the eve of taking very respectable. We are in daily expectation of
Oade between America and France, and sore ap- ,i the arrival of two others, when, it is expected, the
\ prehensions were expressed that a rupture w ith greater part of the enemy's fOrce, 'it not the Islands
Great
.Britain would he the consequence. The themselves, will fall into our hands. Their frigates
writer concludes by saying—" It. is now too late ty and cruiters are for the most part at sea.
make any shipments, and the opinion is, that we j . 4, The L'Vereide sailed about three weeks since,
shaft have a war with England." This opinion, with dispatches to the French Governor DE CAEN,
however, W(4 conceive to be given on very light relating to an exchange of prisoners, and in a .month
grounds.' There is nothing of hostility or ayerity or six weeks we expect a cartel.
in the language lately .
used
,by the Piesident ; and Charwell has just sent in a
we are not without hope' that the mission of lAri, " His Nlajesty's ship
worth at least 30,0001."
Jackson, vested as he is with ample powers, .11 rich Batavian prize,
produce the desired end of • re-establishing pedal
amity and friendship between the two countries.. On Saturday a grand sailing match took place .at
Tot bay, between eleven sail of the-Torbay fishing
In the late engagement bet weeen the Swedes and
smacks, in consequence of three handsome presents
Russians in Bothnia, the loss on both sides was given by Lord COURTNA,Y, They all assembled
considerable than we had reason to suppose from the
first 'accounts. Our Correspo9dent at Stockholm
.: • beautiful yacht Dolphin, and
by a signal gun from her, they all started. Great
adds, by way of P. S. to his last communication,
.the ' skill was displayed by the crews of the different
following particulars :--.1. you must have heard, be- vessels ; and atter sailing several. leagues, with 'a
fore this reaches you, that there has been an obsti- line breeze, in sight of many spe6iators, the first
nate and sanguinary battle. Our loss in killed aad prize was won by the Six Sisters, JOHN. `WHEATEN;
wounded amounts to 1200 men ; that on the part of- the second by the Samuel and Mary, SAMUEL
the Russians is estimated at 2300 in killed, wounded, GORLEY ; and the third.by the Phoenix, BARNABAS.
and prisoners. The Swedish troops in the field were GREEN. The whole concluded with the greatest
about 6000 men ; those of the Russians exceeded harmony, and without any accident. •
10,000. The Swedes attempted to hit off -the re- The failure of the Banking-house of BLoxii A 111 and
treat of the enemy, but in this they were unsuccess-
it' Co. which we mentioned on Tuesday, is very ex-
', as the Russians burnt or destroyed the bridges
winch had favoured their flight to the other side of iensive in its consequences. Its debts amount to up-
wards" olhall a-million, and the dividend, it is said,
Utnea) whole they have taken up a strong position:i
will be very trifling. . ' '

L:INCAS7'ER dISSIZES.

Prisnner for two years, knew his writing well, and
wai(iropininti:lhaltnterwas -not .s his writing, toe
ihrediou of which appeared to. be written by two
%lards.

ANONYMOUS LETTERS.
7rillirpa 'Filson was indicted fur 'havieg felon
oesiV wtitten and sent a letter, 'without any mine
sob.eribed thereto; threatening to take away
ThnMas SehOlfield, of Merton.
'The "ATTOANEY-GEERAL stated to. the Jury,
that the Prisoner was charged with a capital felony,
which Was made' so since the seventh of the late
King, which makesihe sending such a letter with-
out a name telony without the benefit of clergy.
More threatening language to murder could not be
described than in 'the letter. The Prosecutor, it
was also stated, had served the office • of overseer
for a number of years, and had given such general
SatiSfaelion to the Parishioners, that they had voted
him a siker cup.
Thomas Scholfield said, be was Steward to Mr.
Hilsion, of Penington'e he served theoffice of over-
seer 'nine years ; it was three years since he was in
office ; on the 29thef April last, when he went to
the Old Black Boy Inn, at Manchester, (the house
he usually put up at when in that town), the land-
lady gave letter, which she had received by
the post, dire6ted for him ; it proved not to have
any name to it ; the contents of it charged him 'with
having done a number Of bad acts to Mr. Penington's
tenants, and to the parishioners, while he was over-
seer, telling him to recollect the death a certain bad
charaaer had died, and that before the cock crew
thrice, 'as it did to Peter,• he might be no more :
and not, to be surprised, when he got home, if his
wife told him his property was burnt. It was writ-
ten in the most low and abusive language; the di-
rection appeared to be by two hands, and, it was
sealed with shoemaker's wax; be believed the writ-
ing to be the Pi isoner's.
The Witness underwent a long cross-examination
by Mr. SCARLET :-1-le‘ acknowledged that he had
not seen the Prisoner write but once, and that was
twelve months since; that he did not make any
charge against the Prisoner till. the 26th of Juue,
although he received the letter the 29th of April,
and that 'he knew the Prisoner's writing; his son
was in Lancaster Castle before he made the charge ;
he denied knowing that the Prisoner was employed
to investigate his son's accounts,• as overseer, and
did not know it now ; and said, that, upon the Pri-
soner's report of his son's accounts, his son was sent
to Lancaster Castle ; the reason why he did" not
make the charge sooner was, he wished to get all
the information he could ; he kept the letter a secret
the day he received it, and did not mention it to any
body; when he saw the Prisoner write 12 months
since, he did not see what he wrote, and Uteri he
was about two or three yards diatAnce from him,
and did not know what he was writing about ;
denied having said before the Magistrates, that the
reason for his not making the charge sooner was,
he expee.ted he would have made an apology..
Jonathan Scholfield, the son of the witness, said
he kneSse the prisoner well; he saw him write a
note on the 7th of last April, and several times be-
sides, and believed the letter his father had received
to beehe writing 'of the Prisoner. •
. On his crass-examination' by Mr. CRoss, he de-
nied that the PriSoner had been employed to examine
his accounts, but said, he and others" had put them-
selves- in that osition," and it was in consequence
of them he was gent to Lancaster Castle, for not giv-
ing up his books as overseer ; denied having said that
his fathei-AvouH settle the Prisoner for saying that
his accounts were wrones; but acknowledged.he had
said secertaiu other per;on Would soon follow him to
Lancastr Castle, on account of a letter his father
had received ; never saw a 'name to the letter, or any
taken Off-3 hau written with the Prisoner for two
days together, in settling his accounts.
Thomas Hitchin deposed, that he had seen the
Prisoner write several times, and wag well acquaint-
ed with his writing. He believed the anonymous
letter received by the Prosecutor to be the writing of
the Ptisoner.. The Prosecutor first shewed'him the
letter the beginning of June.
He was•cross-examined by Mr. SCARLET.
Lie acknowledged that he 'was a tenant of the
Prosecutor's; denied having said that he and the
Prosecutor were determined on being revenged of
the Prisoner for sending the Prosecutor's sou to the
Castle, and if, right, would not do' wrong. The
Prosecutor's son was sent to the Castle for not deli-
vering his books, as Overseer of the i'oor, to the
Justices.
Ralph Ryder had, known the Prisoner for eight or.
nine years; had seen hitn write three or four times,
and believed the writing of the letter in question to
he his writing.
On his cross-examination by Mr. Caoss, •he ac-
knowledged, that when the letter was shewn to him,
he formed no opinion respecting its being the hand-
writing of the Prisoner, till he compared it with the
writing of the Prisoner in the parish books.—The
letter concludes with cautioning him to beware of
destruaion, and to pray God that he might arrive
safely at home.
The evidence being concluded for the Prosecution,
Mr. SCARLET took an objection to the indittment,
upon the ground that the whole of the letter was OM
set forth in any part of it, but merely by paragraphs
or sentences, and they being miceene6ted, therefore
the meaning of the letter was uncertain, and he con-
tended that did not amount to a threatening letter,
stating something would be done by the writer, but
merely,cautiomed the ProSecetor to be cateful of cer-
tain evils. The Learned Geotleman cited Lloyd's
case, in Mr. East's book, -page 112, from the Here-
fordshire Assizes, on a reference to the Judges, and"
on account of the whole of the 'letter not being set
forth, the Judges held it to be bad;
Judge CHAMERE thought there was sufficient to
go to the Jury, tieing of opinion that the wordy ".be-
ware of destruction" amounted to a thrdat.
Joseph Thorpe, a schoolmaster, said, he had known
the Prisoner from is boy; considered him an inge-
nious man, being a good mathematician ; they had
often been employed in working problems together,
and sat cloSe together when' writing The writing
of 'the ,letter had no resemblance to the Prisoner's,
and had no doubt upon his mind that it was not the
Prisoner's writing. .
Charles Thorpe, the Constable who conveyed the
Prosecutier's son from Manclesster to Lancaster, said,
that while he had him in his custody, he said it
would not be long 'before the Prisoner would follow
him to Lancaste'r Castle, for writing the letter to his
father, 'and that his 'case wasThot so bnd as-the Pri-
soner's. The witness had beeneintimate with the

3l':dge CIIANIRE, in summing up the evidence, ob-
s,±rved,:thathe never knew writing worse proved, and
tile 'idly found iiinl—Not Gailty.
•

The Prisoner was discharged at the bai.

Captain THOMAS STAINES, of the Cyane frigate,
of whom such honour-Able mention is made by Sit
JoaN. STUART, in the London Gazette of Tuesday,
is ihoson of Mr. STAINES, 'formerly of Dandelion.
In the very gailirnt anion in winch, with the assist.;'

acre of the gun-boats, he took dnd destroy-
ed the enemy's of forty gun-boats, he lost
his left artn by a cannon shot, close to am socket of
the shoulder; but we are glad to learn, that, by a

letter which has been received from him, writer

in very high spirits, that lie is in a fair way of doing

well.

CORONER'S INQUEST.—Yesterday an Inquest WE
taken before A. GELL, Esq. Coroner for Westmin •
ster, on the body of a Gentleman; who shot liiinseif
on Monday last at the Angel Inn, St. Clement's
The first witness examined was the Waiter, who
described the.behaviour of the deceased, on coming
into the Coffee-room, as being very singular ; he con.;
tinued but a short time in the house before Lie,ret ed
to the privy, and soon after the report of two pistols
was heard ; on going to the privy the deceaSed was
found lying in a shrieking mangled state, hiving dis-
charged two pistols through his head ; in his p,ct;et
was fund several pistol balls, some powder, otnd v.vo
or three flints; ri letter was also found in
.his pocket,
addressed to a Gentleman in Cletnerit's Int., who
proved to he his brother.
Mr. James You.ing, Surgeon, in the Strand, stated
that he was sent for on Monday, about one o'clock,
and on 4oing into the privy found the deceased lying
as described by the last witness; his scull was 'frac-
tured, and the brains forced ont about his daubs.;
Hone of the pistols had been pointed against his lett
cheek, and the contents had lodged in the back ;talc
of his brain ; thf other pistol had been dirpaed agai
his right temple. In this state helived near twelve
hour's but remained all the tune insensiWei
Mr. John Wright, Carpenter, of Mtle-end., knew
the deceased, who had lodged with him Iv wares of
two years: He was Coliecting Clerk to an Ale-
brewer in Mile-end Road. About two years and a
half ago his wife died in child-birth 3. and since that
time he had been in .a )ow desponding way, so much
so, that he would frequently sit and cry for hours at
a time. The child died when about two months
old, but he had three children alive at present, the
elder nine years old. The deceased went to Mar-
gate last Saturday week, and did not return till Mon-
day evening last. He went out as usual about ten
o'clock on Monday morning, and the witness did not
hear any more of him till Tuesday evening when he
was informed of his death; he was not wore than

twenty-nine years of age. The witness did not know
that he was embarrassed ; had enquired at his em-
ployer's, and fou'nd his accounts there were quite
correta. •
The brother-in-law of the deceased was also exa4
mined, who stated, that the deceased had been in a

desponding way for some time, owing to the 1035 of
his wife, and to some pecuniary embarrassments
which he laboured under. That despondency had
lately increased to such a degree as to render his
,friends very unhappy on his account.
The evidence being concluded, the Coroner ob•
served,• this was one. of the melancholy instances
which so frequently occurred, in which despondency
had by degrees increased to lunacy, which had ulti.
mately led to ttie dreadful catastrophe, suicide.
•A
considerable difference of 013411011, however,
prevailing amongst the Jury, the Coroner proceeded
to take their opinion severally, when it appeared,
that of 16, (the number impanelled) nine were of ,
opinion that no symptoms oh insanity were apparent
in the conduti of this unhappy young man, and
seven were of a contrary opinion ; and, .in compli-
ance with the opinion of the majority,. a yerdia of
Felo de se, was rettirned.

On Tuesday evening an inquest was .held on the
body of Mr. Joseph Cooley, at the Angel, Edmonton,
who lost,his lite by the shaft of a one-horse chaise
entering his beily, when coming to town to his place
of residence, Moortields, on horeback, on Sunday
evening last, when he survived only a tew hours
aster.. The Jury returned a, verdict of Accidental
Death.

The following is a statement of the late melancholy
loss at Meikle Ferry, by Tain, as given in a leiter
from a gentleman residing near that place The
'total number lost is 147. The bodies have all been
found, except '29."

A respe6table tradesman in the neighbourhood of
Goswell-street, has undertaken, tor a large win of
money, to walk 1620 miles in three successive days,
on the north road, limiting himself to twelve hours
each day. He starts at on early hour on Monday
next : several bets are depending on the issue.

Remarkable Epitaph on a tomb-stone at Abercona
way, Cornarvoushire
. " Here lieth the body !ot Nicholas Hookes, of Ccinway;
Gent. who was the ()lie-and-fortieth child ot hip father, Nil-
Hookes, Esri by Alice, his wife, and tne father of
seven-and-twenty children. He died the aoth•ot 'March,
1637."- .

Sandon and Hitchen,
~the country Bank Note fa-
bricators, stood in the pillory, at Warwick, on Sa-
turday last. They were well dressed, very i&upu-
dent in their behaviour, and vowedvengeance q,ainst
their prosecutors.

Sir JAMES PULTENEY'S house, .in Piccadilly, at
the corner of Bolton-row, was• attempted to be
robbed on Tuesday night: About 11 o'clock, two
men and a woman ascended on the wall, on the side
of Bolton-street, and attempted to get in at the
first floor window. This alarmed Mrs. BROWN, the
-housekeeper, %Ito, on perceiving them, sprang a
rattle, when the villains ran off before the watchmen
arrived.
Saturday morning two fine boys, apparently not
more than :six months old, supposed to be twins,
were left at the door of Mr. D.-a. Gentleman re-
siding in the neighbourhood of Battersea. The little
10;1u/slings were discovered by the gardener last
asleep, Carefully wrapped up„in blankets, in a neat
cradle, and Laving with them a quantity of linen of
different descriptions.. They have been adopted by
Mr. D. as his own.

. UNION-HALL—Four persons were brought yester-
day for examination, who had been taken into cus-
tody at Vauxhall, by Goff and Wortley, on suspi-
cion of having picked the pocket of L )rd William
Somerset, on Monday evening, of a very valuahle
gold snutf-box. His Lordship stated, that in pas-
ing from the Rotunda, he telt some person press
against him, and immediately feeling for his snuff-
ax, which on account of its size he . carried in his
coat-pocket, he missed it,. On turning round, he
dotty the four prisoners near him, on charging them
with robbing him, two of them appeared much con-
itased, but escaped among. thecrowd. The officers
being apprised of his Lordship's loss, soon found
them and took them into custody. On searching
them, nothing suspicious was found, nor could any
trace of the snuff-box be discovered, but the officers
considered it to be their duty to detain thew.
On being ordered to give an -account of them-
selves, two of them described themselves as straw
hat-manufacturers, at Newry, in Ireland. A third
stated himself to, be the son of a proVisiOn-merchant
In Ireland, otind the foutth as Sergeant Conimander
of the 21st Regiment, absent on furlough. Oti exa-
mining his furlough it appeared that his leave of ab-
sence hal expired. He was, therefore detained until
information could be. sent and an answer received
from the iegithenr. The other three prisoners, after
receiving a suitable admonition from the Magistrate,
were discharged.

\VoltsHip-sTirEET..Yesterday. Catherine Smith
and Ann Garret underwent an examination, charged
wi►h robbing the ready-furnished apartments of Mr.
Jacob Newman, in Whitecrusi-street, in the parish
of St. Luke, of sheets and other property, which they
-pledged. They were fully committed for trial.
•

In Mr. Brown's Garden, of Maida,Hill, Padding-
ton, there is a pear-tree in full blossom, for the second
- time this season ; a' cirumstance seldom occurring in
this Country.
A few days ago Thomas Lawson, of Hull, was
apprehended in Lincoln, on suspicion of being one
- of the ptineipals of'a large and desperate gang of
house-breakers, who have for some time past in-
fested and alarmed the town of Hull, and who, on
the 24th of August broke into the house of Mr.
Norblade, a merchant there. A constable from
Hull had been round the country in pursuit of him,,
but in vain; and he was taken at Lincoln, with
some professional address, by Mr. Matthew White,
a special constable for that city. Lawson was for-
merly tried and sentenced at York to be transported,
and served the 'term on board the hulks : since t hat
time he has found means to be licensed to keep a
public-house at Hull, which has been the resort 'of
hii gang of house-breakers. Upon finding himself
- in danger of being apprehended, he, made his es-
.- cape ; but many stolen goods were found on his pre-
mises. He is removed to Hull. •
The following circumstance•occurted at Smiths,
near Whitby, on Tuesday se'nnight :—Mr. Samuel
Price, of that _place, having sent his servant-boy
with a horse and sledge, to fetch 4 plough
,from
the blacksmith's shop, where it had been repairing,
the horse having taken- fright at some:fish exposed
to dry against the side of a house, turned suddenly
round, and set off at full gallop towards the place
whence it set out. The boy was thrown off, and
the horse and sledge passing over his body, hp was
• taken up for dead. In turning a corner, a fisher-
man's wife, of the name of Jefferson, having run
under the window of a shop on the oppoSite side of
the street, to avoid the horse, the sledge was driven
against her with such violence, as to. throw her
down, break her leg, and otherwise bruise her in so
dreadful a manner, that her life is .despaired of .
The poor woman is the mother of four young chil-
dren, and in a state of pregnancy. The furious ,
animal continued its course, till turning down an
openirig leading to the sand, it precipitated itself
from a staith, over the heads of a woman and three
children, who '.here sitting under it, the whole of
who:n providentially- escaped without injury.—
Crossing the sand at full speed, it-plunged into the
' sea, and nearly upset a fishing coble, in which were
an old man and a boy ; .the latter being thrown out
into 'he Water, though afterwards taken up, without
having sustained much injury; The horse then pro-
ceeded-towards another fishing Coble at a little dis-
tance, from which the people succeeded; with some
difficulty, in beating it .Off •s-pith their oars. After
. swimming' about some time in great agitation, it
took to the shore, and gallopping up the-beach, pro-
ceeded a considerable distance into the country be-
fore it was taken and secured.
In the memory of- the oldest.person living, there
has not been so great a profusion of nuts as the
present season affords; every hedge of hazel, cop-
pice,. and wood, teems -with them ; they hang as
thick (almost) as_ the leaves that surround them.--
This is the case, not only in particular districts and
counties, but throughout Eogland.-7-But if the.
prodigality of nature is. admirable in regard, ter this
beautiful produetian; so ought the public. caution
to be-no • less, in regard to its use. " The kernels
of nuts," says an eminent physici4), Yr are extreme-
ly injurious to asthmatic pet so.ns ; they are hard of
)digestion, and‘ stuffing, causing shortness of breath,
Wheezing, &c."—They should not be prematurely
gathered, nor immediately used a week's lodging
in the husk will improve their flavour, and render
tln.mi less exceptionable in point of wholesomeness.

LONDON : Printed by RI(
At the Surz-O,FF