Star.
London, England, 1823-08-22 00:00:00

THE CHARTERS OF ENGLAND.

That there might be a complete edition of the Sta
tutes (which is now in progress of printing under the
sanction of Parliament) the Royal Comm :sinners on
Public Records caused the most extensive examina-
tions to be made. For the purpose of examining all
Charters, and authentic copies and entries thereof—
"A series of the Charters of the Liberties of England"
being prefixed to this collection—two Sub-Commis-
sioners have occupied one whole summer in making a
progress through England and Ireland, to every place
where it appeared such .charters, copies, or entries,
might be • preserved ; and searches have been made
successively at every cathedral in England which
was know to possess any such documents, at the Uni-
versities, &c. They have made some most valuable
and interesting discoveries. Besides the rare Chan-
talaries, or collections of charters, found in Rochester,
Exeter, Canterbury, and other cathedrals; in Lincoln
Cathedral they also found 14 An original of the great
charter of liberties,;ranted by King JOHN in the 17th
year of his reign, in a perfect state. This charter
appears to be of superior authority to either of the
two chartertof the same date preserved in the British
Museum. From the contemporary endorsement of
the word Lineania on two folds of the charter, this
may be presumed to be the charter transmitted by
the hands of Hargb, the then Bishop of Lincoln, who
is one of the Bishops named in the introductory
clause; and it is observable that several words and
sentences are inserted in the body of this charter,
which, in both the charters preserved in the British
Museum, are added, by way of notes for amendment,
at the bottom of the instruments." In Durham Ca-
thedral, several charters of the liberties of England
are preserved with great care, die Carta de Foresta,
"2 Hen. 111. the earliest charter of the forest, &c. the
original and all authentic records of which were sap-
,posed by Blackstone to be lost.
The collection of charters thus formed, will be
found, as may be inferred, to differ from Blackstone's
edition of the charters in many particulars, as well
as from all other printed copies of the charters :-
Ist, in exhibiting a complete series of the.charters of
liberties, granted by the Kings of England, in which
'their original and progress may he traced until their
final and complete establishment, in the 29th Edw.
I. 2d, in procuring in every instance, a faithful tran-
script from original charters or entries thereof, in
characters representing manuscript with its contrac-
tions or abbreviations, so far as the same could be ac-
complished by printing types; Sdly, in affording op.,
rituality to avoid many errors, which had crept even
into the copies given by Blackstone, in his edition of
the charters, &c. 4thly, in possessing charters not
before printed, viz. 1. The Charter 16th John, for
the free election of Prelates, &c. which is particu-
larly adverted to in the Magma Ckarta granted by that
King ; 2. The first Charter of the Forest, granted
2d Henry 111. now preserved in Durham cathedral,
&c. the existence of which escaped the researches of
Blackstone.

The hind upon Commonside farm, near Hawick,
Cumberland, was last week gored to death by a bull.
It appears that the unfortunate Marshal Ney, was
an American by birth, was born near Elkion, Mary-
land, aad that his proper name was Michael Rodolph.
His history is briefly this :—He commenced his mili-
tary career, and received the first rudiments of his
education in Captain Lee's dragoons of the Maryland
line during the Revolution, from which he was ha
nourably discharged. He was born in Cecil county,
in that State, and after the period of his discharge
from the Army, he removed to Carolina, where he
married, but his matrimonial connection rendered
him unhappy, on which be left his family, took a
vessel to the West Indies, remitted the proceeds, and
declined returning to his native country, since which
no trace could be found of him until the French Go.
vernment, after the execution of Ney, took possession
of his papers and made the discovery.

SIR RO rJzr WILSON:

LISBON. AUGUST c

EXTRACT OF A LETTER .IROU TUT) AUtUST 3.

" I inform yon that Sir Robert Wilson arrived, on
the 26th ult. at Vigo, having come from Corunna by
sea. Our ttodps marched out of this city with some
Portuguese, and in an action which they had with the
Constitutionalists of Vigo, they beat them completely,
taking from theniabove thirty prisoners, some horses,
and a great deal of baggage.: On out side we had
only one man wounded; theConstitutionalists had some
killed. On the SOth, 2000 French joined Morillo at
Pontevedra, in consequence of which General Pa-
larea, who was with some troops at Redohdella, re-
treated to Puenteareas, from which point they are
now dislodged, and the French in Vig o.
6, General Morillo and the French troops entered
Vigo on the 4th of this month, in consequence of
which Sir Robert Wilson, who has acquired a mourn-
ful notoriety by his adventures and intrigues in Ga-
licia, and who has already been once obliged to quit
the city of Oporto, has just arrived at this port, and
is detained and strictly watched on board the schooner
that brought him." •
When the French entered Vigo, Sir Robert Wilson
retired to the island of Ozmas, at the entrance of Vigo
Bay ; from this situation, in which he was in much
distress for want of provisions, he, with some com-
panions, was relieved by the English brig Nassau,
which arrived here on the 7th.

The Captain of this vessel reported himself from
London, after thirty days voyage, having touched at
Corunna and Vigo, to be laden with bale goods,
and bound to Gibraltar with passengers, Messrs.
Wilson, Erskine, &c.

The names of these Gentlemen, of course shewing
who they were, the Government placed a guard, that
Sir Robert might not have any communication with
the shore. It having been signified to Mr. Ward, the
British Charge d'Affaires here, that Sir Robert
wanted a surgeon to dress his wounds, which had
been exposed for some days, he having so hastily left
Vigo, that all the necessaries were left behind, the sur-
geon of the Arabella packet was dispatched to him.—
Lisbon Papers.