abettors as aforesaid, shall be apprehended and brought to justice, shall, upon conviction of such offender or offenders, receive his Majesty's most gracious pardon. Given at the court at Carltonhouse, the twenty-ninth day of January, 1817, in the 57th year of his Majesty's reign. FEBRUARY. 1. A dispatch has been received from Governor Farquhar, containing a detailed account of the late destructive fire at the Mauritius, from which it appears that 19 streets of Port Louis were entirely consumed, and that the sections of that town, numbered 1, 2, 3, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 35, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, were either totally or partially destroyed. The fire was purely accidental, and its destructive ravage is to be attributed to its having occurred at the dry season of the year, and to the prevalence of a strong breeze, veering with violent gusts from time to time during the conflagration. Fortunately, from its breaking out early in the evening, few lives were lost; but a population of 20,000 persons have been reduced to want and beggary by the loss of every thing belonging to them. Among the public build ings destroyed are, the Catholic church, the barracks for the blacks, hospital for the blacks, prisons for the blacks, large grainmagazine, the colonial marine store-house, the public bazaar, the commercial exchange, and building called the Bourse, the government printing-office, the former post-office, the police pri sons, the military prisons and guard-houses, the quartermastergeneral's-office and store-houses, the out-houses of the governmenthouse, the great cooperage, the timber and mast-yard, the weighing-yard, the guard-house in front of the military hospital, and the guard-house of the marine. A detailed account of the names of proprietors whose houses have been destroyed may, it is announced, be inspected at the Colonial Department. 6. A murder was committed near Saltley, near Birmingham, on the body of Mr. Pennington, of the firm of Pennington and Bellchambers, wine-merchants, of London. Mr. Pennington was on his way to Coventry, via Castle-Bromwich, in his gig, and was waylaid on the road about a mile beyond Birmingham. He was found with a pistol-shot through his temple, and quite dead. The assassinating villains had taken his gold watch and the contents of his pocket of silver, &c. but fortunately abandoned the object of their fury without discovering his pocket-book, which contained bank-notes of several hundred pounds' value. The horse and gig went several miles before it stopped, and then it was by overturning. The doleful tidings were communicated to Mrs. Pennington by a friend in London, who bore it with as much fortitude as could possibly be expected, under the afflicting circumstances. She is left a widow with six children, (the eldest is only 13) and is far advanced in her pregnancy of another. A murder was committed at Ledbury, acco2panied by circum stances stances of the most barbarous and savage ferocity. William Harris, hostler at the New Inn, got up about 4 o'clock in the morning to brew, and was in the act of lighting a fire, it is supposed, when some villain who had concealed himself unexpectedly rushed upon him, and with a hatchet, which he found on the premises, almost split his head in two! It was evident that the wretch must have repeated his blows, and he afterwards cut the throat of the hapless victim from ear to ear! The smockfrock the deceased wore, and a silver watch, maker's name B. Ballingford, Liverpool, No. 1818, were taken from his person, and with this booty only the murderer decamped. The body of the poor sufferer was discovered about five o'clock, still warm, with some signs of respiration, but he expired soon afterwards. He was stretched at length on the brewhouse floor, with his feet under the copper furnace. He was a very industrious and careful man, and had the preceding day paid the rent of his mother's house; and the idea that this money was about his person, it is imagined, led to the perpetration of the murder. A man was on Friday apprehended in a public-house, at Worcester, on suspicion of being concerned in the horrible crime, and conveyed to Ledbury, where several others are in custody. S. A rare and beautiful appearance of the Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights, was observed in Derby and its neighbourhood. This singular phenomenon took place about eight o'clock, and continued without intermission for a full half hour, during the whole of which time the sky was illu minated from the horizon to the zenith, extending east and west for a considerable distance. Broad streaks of light, of various sizes, rose from the horizon in a pyramidical undulating form, and shot with great velocity up to the zenith; they changed their forms very frequently and rapidly, and broke out in places where none were seen before, shooting along the heavens, and then disappearing in an instant. The sky in various places was tinged for a considerable space with a deep purple, and the stars shone very brightly during the whole time through the clouds which formed the Aurora Borealis. A short time after this singular phenomenon had ceased, the rain began to descend, and continued to do so most of the night, though not violently. Supplement to the London Gazette. Wednesday, Feb. 12. By his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, Regent of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, in the name and on the behalf of his Majesty. A PROCLAMATION. George, P. R. Whereas, by an Act passed in the 56th year of his Majesty's reign, intituled "An Act to provide for a new silver coinage, and to regulate the currency of the gold and silver coin of this realm,” the Master and Worker of his Majesty's Mint in London was authorized and empowered to coin, or cause to be coined, silver bullion into silver coins, consisting of crowns, half-crowns, shillings, and sixpences, of the standard of 11 ounces and 2 pennyweights of fine silver, and 18 pennyweights alloy, to the pound troy, and in weight after the rate of 66 shillings to the pound troy. And whereas, in virtue of the powers so given, a coinage of halfcrowns, shillings, and sixpences, at the rate of 66 shillings to the pound troy, and of the standard of fineness above-mentioned; every such half-crown piece having for the obverse impression the head of his Majesty, with the inscription, Georgius III, Dei Gratia," and the date of the year; and for the reverse, the ensigns armorial of the united kingdom, contained in a shield, surrounded by the garter, bearing the motto, "Honi soit qui mal y pense," and the collar of the garter, with the inscription, "Britanniarum Rex Fid. Def." with a newly-invented graining on the edge of the piece, every such shilling and sixpenny piece having for the obverse impression the head of his Majesty, with the inscription, Georgius III. D. G. Brit. Rex F. D." and the date of the year; and for the reverse, the ensigns armorial of the united kingdom, contained in a shield surrounded by the garter, bearing the motto, "Honi soit qui mal y pense," with a newly-invented graining on the edge of the piece, has been completed, and is now ready to be delivered for the use of his Majesty's subjects; we have therefore, in the name and on the behalf of his Majesty, and by and with the advice of his Majesty's Privy Council, thought fit to issue this pro clamation; and we do hereby ordain, declare, and command, that the said pieces of silver money shall from and after the 13th day of this instant February, be current and lawful money of the Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and shall pass and be received as current and lawful money of the said kingdom, that is to say, such half-crown pieces as of the value of two shillings and sixpence; such shilling pieces as of the value of one shilling; and such sixpenny pieces as of the value of sixpence, in all payments and transactions of inoney. And we do hereby, in further pursuance of the powers given to his Majesty by the said Act, in the name and on the behalf of his Ma+ jesty, and by and with the advice of his Majesty's Privy Council, further proclaim, ordain, and declare, and name the said 13th day of this instant February as the day from and after which so much and such parts of the Act made in the 14th year of his Majesty's reign, entituled, "An Act to prohibit the importation of light silver coin of this realm from foreign countries into Great Britain or Ireland, and to restrain the tender thereof beyond a certain sum," as enacts or provides, or may be construed to enact or provide, that any tender in silver coin of the realm shall be legal to the amount of 25 pounds, or a tender for any greater sum according to its value by weight; and also so much of any Act or Acts whereby the said last recited Act is continued, revived, or made perpetual, shall be repealed, and the same are by virtue of the said first recited Act, and this our proclamation, repealed accordingly. And we do hereby, in further pursuance of the powers given to his Majesty, by virtue of the said first recited Act, in the name and on the behalf of his Majesty, and by and with the advice of his Majesty's Privy Council, proclaim, ordain, declare, and name the said 18th day of February as the day from from and after which no tender or payınent of money made in the silver coin of this realm of any sum exceeding the sum of 40 shillings at any one time shall be reputed a tender in law, or allowed to be a legal tender within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, either by tale or weight of such silver coin, or otherwise howsoever. Given at the Court at Carltonhouse, the twelfth day of February, one thousand eight hundred and seventeen, in the fifty-seventh year of his Majesty's reign. 12. In the march of a detachment of our Indian army, under the command of Sir Geo. Holmes, from Baroda to Palempore, in the territories of his Highness the Guicawar, two young officers of the 56th regiment were amusing themselves, during a halt, by snipeshooting. They had been beating the jungles on the banks of a river, and one jungle they had repeatedly tried in vain. They were, however, surprised by a tremendous roar, and the sudden spring of an enormous tiger from this very jungle. Lieutenant Wilson, on whom the animal sprung, upon his recovery stated, that he neither saw, nor heard, nor felt more, than that the monster's mouth was close to his own. His companion, Lieutenant Smelt, saw the tiger spring; he gave a backward cat-like stroke with his paw, and on Wilson's fall, he smelt to him, paused for a moment, and then leapt off as a cat would have done if disturbed at a meal. Smelt expecting Wilson had been killed, reached the camp, and immediately sent the dooley (a sort of palanquin) bearers to the spot. They found the gentle man alive, but insensible: his flesh had been torn away from the head downward to the lower part of the back, and a wound also on the thigh; in all 19 wounds. A halfeaten buffalo was found in the jungle: luckily for Wilson the tiger had dined. We are happy to add, that the wounded gentleman is now living and well: both the sportsmen will be rather more cautious, in future, how they go snipe-shooting in India.-Calcutta Paper. 13. A most shocking murder was committed between 9 and 10 o'clock, upon the person of the Rev. Mr. Longuet, at Pangbourn, near Reading, in Berkshire. Mr. Longuet was a Roman Catholic priest, and a teacher of the French language, residing at Reading. On Thursday last he paid a visit to the family of Thomas Morton, Esq. who resides about six miles from Reading. Mr. Longuet quitted Mr. Morton's house between 8 and 9 o'clock: previous, however, to his quitting it, Mr. Morton came to the door with him, and, observing that it was a very dark night, endeavoured to persuade him to continue there all night. This hospitable offer, however, was unfortunately for the poor gentleman rejected, accompanied by these words" I know the road very well; and although it appears very dark now, it will be much lighter to me when I get from the light of the candle." He then bade Mrs. Morton a good night, and pursued his journey. He had not proceeded many miles before he was attacked by some villains, who barbarously murdered him, apparently with some sharp instrument; for, when he was found on Friday morning, his head was nearly severed from his body, body, and he was dreadfully mangled, cut, and stabbed in various parts of the body. His body was cut open, and in his heart were no less than five stabs, supposed to have been inflicted by a bayonet: this circumstance, it is hoped, will lead to the detection of the perpetrators. It does not appear that the unfortunate gentleman had. much property about him. The magistrates in the neighbourhood have been very active in publishing handbills of the circumstances, and in offering rewards for the apprehension of the inhuman delinquents. 14. Commitments to the Tower for the crime of high treason against Watson, senior, Preston, Hooper, and Keen, alias Kearns, were drawn up and signed by twelve Cabinet Ministers and Privy-Counsellors, and they were accordingly sent to the place of confinement. wounding the said Richard Platt: and whereas a bill of indictment has since been preferred and found by the grand jury of the city of London, against the said James Watson the younger, for the said offence: and whereas the promise of the said reward of 500l. for the apprehension of the said James Watson the younger, was, by and under our authority renewed, on the 22d day of January last; but the said James Watson has not yet been apprehended: and whereas the said James Watson the younger, and Arthur Thistlewood, late of No. , Southamptonbuildings, Chancery-lane, stand charged upon oath with high treason, committed by them and sundry other persons, now in cus tody in the Tower of London : We, therefore, in the name and on the behalf of his Majesty, and by and with the advice of his Majesty's privy council, do hereby enjoin all magistrates, and all other his Majesty's loving subjects, to use their utmost endea vours to discover and cause to be apprehended the said James Watson and Arthur Thistlewood, in order that they may be dealt with according to law. And we are hereby pleased to renew the said promise of a reward of five hundred pounds, so made on the said 6th day of December, and renewed on the said 22d day of January last, to be paid upon the said James Watson the younger being apprehended and lodged in any one of his Majesty's gaols. And we do hereby promise to any person or persons who shall discover and apprehend, or cause to be discovered and apprehended, the said Arthur Thistlewood, the like sum of five hundred pounds, to be |