Page:The Annual Register 1758.djvu/118

104 James's, presents to his Royal Highness the Duke of Cumberland.

At Wigton there was such a fall of rain as has not been known in the memory of the oldest man living. It swelled the rivulets to such a degree in that town and neighbourhood, that five bridges within two miles of the town were swept away by the flood. In several houses in the town the water was six feet deep the day after the food.

Two powder-mills at Hounslow blew up with about 600 weight of powder.

The lords of the admiralty received information, that a Dutch ship, having on board the baggage of the Marquis de Pignatelly, minister from the court of Spain to the court of Denmark, and several of his domestics, was on the 30th of June last, boarded three times, by the crews of three different English privateers; that some of the crews armed with cutlasses, pistols, and hatchets, forced open the hatchway, and went into the said ship's hold, and there broke open two trunks belonging to the Marquis de Pignatelly, wherein were rich cloaths and laced liveries, which they carried away to their ship: and that whilst they were so doing, the crew of another English vessel joined, upon which the said crews committed very great outrages, by breaking open all the said Marquis de Pignatelly's cases, and trunks, and taking and carrying away all the valuable effects, which were in of the said cases and trunks, and destroying or damaging the rest of those effects; and then falling upon his, the said minister's officers, beat them in a very cruel and shameful manner, and stripping them of their cloaths, carried them off, together with their letters of credit and a bill of exchange. Their lordships, therefore, in order to discover and bring to justice the persons guilty of the piratical offences above-mentioned, are pleased to promise a reward of 500l. without any deduction, unto, or amongst such person or persons, as shall, within three months from this time, discover any two or more of the offenders, concerned in committing the piracies above mentioned.

Advice was received, that an unsuccessful attempt had been made on the island of Goree, near the river Senegal; but that the ships who had attacked it, had lost but a few men, and received very little damage.

The same day an account was received of the burning the Rose, a French man of war of 40 guns, by the Monmouth, Captain Hervey, in the island of Malta, of which insult the Maltese complain loudly.

The Magdalen hospital in Goodman's-fields for the reception of penitent prostitutes was opened, when fifty petitions were presented, and several of the penitents admitted.

This day a company of labourers, headed by some farmers, assembled in a riotous manner, and pulled down a bridge that was building near Norwich, and after having levelled it with the ground, they broke up the road, and then dispersed.

At Poole, in the county of Montgomery, whilst the court of great sessions was sitting in the hall there over the market place, an alarm was given that the floor gave way; which occasioned