nately driven from before it with very considerable loss. In the successful defence of St. Marc, the undaunted and active courage, and the military conduct of the marquis de Cocherell have merited my fullest approbation. I have the honour to be, SIR, I have the honour to inform you, that, after giving previous orders to colonel Dessources to proceed with his column, in the morning of the 30th ult. to his destined post of La Selle, where, according to your excellency's instruction, he was enabled to take post, I moved forward with the centre column, under colonel de Pestre. We arrived, after two very hot days, march, at post Mitchell, not quite completed, and occupied by about 50 of the enemy, who retired on our approach. In the evening we discovered a column of troops descending the hills on our left, where they encamped. A detachment of cavalry was immediately sent to reconnoitre them; they proved to be colonel Dessources' column. This officer was unable, from the badness of the roads, and the heavy rains which we have had every evening, to proceed to the place of his destination; he therefore, in a very proper and soldier-like manner, marched and joined us; which, in some measure, defeated your original plan of cutting off the enemy's retreat by La Selle; but I cannot help deeming this junction rather a fortunate circumstance, as it enabled us to drive the enemy from a very advantageous position they had taken the next day, to dispute our passage, which, from their superiority of numbers (about 1200 men, with three pieces of cannon), must, in all probability, have cost us a number of valuable lives to have carried; but this additional strength gave us an easy victory; for no sooner did they perceive a detachment of infantry and cavalry, which I sent to gain the heights and turn their flank, than they immediately fled in the utmost confusion, and with such precipitation, that though lieutenant-colonel Carter, with the detachments of the 14th, 18th, and 21st British light dragoons, pursued them with that alacrity and spirit which has ever distinguished him, he could only come up with a very few. He succeeded, however, in driving a great many into the river Artibonite, most of whom perished; and he. had the good fortune to take two of their guns, with their ammunition, mules, &c. &c. The third was most probably lost in the river, the carriage being left behind. We found the fort in the Bourg of Mirebalais as perfect as it had ever been, and in no manner destroyed. We did not see colonel Bazil and his column till near an hour after we were in possession of Mirebalais; he was, however, at the place appointed, and, had the enemy made any stand, would have fallen on their rear, and have enabled us, no doubt, to have given a better account of them. Although the action, from the rapid retreat of the enemy, was very short, yet, sir, I have the satisfaction to inform you that time enough was given to evince as much alacrity and spirit to enter it, both in the officers and men, as I ever remember to have witnessed. I enclose a return of the artillery and ammunition found in the fort of of Mirebalais; and I am happy to inform your excellency that the repossession of this important post and district was effected without loss, one serjeant and one private of the dragoons being all our wounded. I have the honour to be, &c. G. CHURCHILL, brig.-gen. Lieut.-gen. Simcoe, &c. &c. Return of ordnance, and ordnance stores, taken in the fort of Mirebalais, on the 2d of June, 1797. 2 French eight-pounders, badly spiked, since unspiked and rendered serviceable. 2 Six-pounders, serviceable. 2 Two-pounders, ditto. A large proportion of shot for the above ordnance, of every description; the ammunition not ascertained, but it is stated to be damaged. G. CHURCHILL, brig.-gen. 15. A daring mutiny on board the St. George man of war, of 96 guns, capt. Peard, one of lord St. Vincent's fleet, was lately quelled by the spirit and activity of her commander and his first lieutenant, whose conduct on the occasion, while it exhibits a glorious example to the officers of our navy, entitles them to the thanks and gratitude of their country. Three . men, who had been sentenced to suffer death for mutinous behaviour in some other ship, were sent on board the St. George to be executed. The crew, on the arrival of the prisoners, drew up a remonstrance in their favour, and begged of capt. Peard to intercede in their behalf with the admiral of the fleet. The captain replied, that he should lay their prayer before lord St. Vincent; and, in pursuance of his promise, he lost no time in submitting the remonstrance to the admiral. The noble earl's an1797. swer was, that he considered the sentence of the mutineers as founded upon solid justice and imperious necessity, and consequently he could not think of retracting the sanction which he had given to the judgment of the court-martial, by whom they had been convicted. Upon this determination being made known to the people of the St. George, the strongest symptoms of dissatisfaction were manifested by them. Observing their conduct, the captain took the precaution of watching their proceedings with the utmost strictness; and very soon discovered, by means of an honest tar, that they had entered into a resolution of seizing the ship, deposing the officers, and liberating their condemned companions. The evening previous to the day appointed for carrying into effect the sentence of the court-martial was the time fixed upon to put their plan in force. Captain Peard seeing the crew assemble in the waste, immediately approached, and addressed them to the following effect I am perfectly aware of your intentions, and shall oppose them at the risk of my life. You have determined to resist the authority of your officers; I am resolved to do my duty, and to enforce a strict obedience to my orders. I am sensible that you are, for the most part, the victims of delusion; I know the ringleaders, and do not hesitate to avow my intentions of bringing them to justice. I command you to disperse, and to return to your duty.' Finding this address did not produce the desired effect, the captain instantly rushed in amid the crowd, accompanied only by his first lieutenant, bravely seized two of the people, whom he knew to be the promoters of the conspiracy, drag -- (I) ged ged them out by main force, and put them in irons, without experiencing the slightest resistance from the crew; and such was the gallant spirit and determined courage displayed by him on the occasion, that order was immediately restored, by the remainder of the men retiring to their respective stations. The three convicts were next morning hanged at the yardarm, agreeably to their sentence, in the presence of the repentant crew, whose conduct from that time was marked with a becoming submission and subordination. The two mutinous seamen remained in custody till Friday and Saturday, July 7th and 8th, when, after a most impartial hearing, they were condemned, and executed the next morning, Sunday the 9th. The following judicious order was given out by the admiral, on the Saturday night previous to the execu tion. General Order. Every ship in the fleet is to send two boats, with an officer in each, and two marines or soldiers properly armed in each boat on board his majesty's - ship the St. George, at half past seven to-morrow morning, to attend a punishment. The sentence is to be carried into execution by the crew of the St. George alone, and no part of the boat's crews of other ships, as is usual on similar occasions, are to assist in this painful service in order to mark the high sense the commander in chief entertains of the loyalty, fidelity, and subordination of the rest of the fleet, which he will not fail to make known to the lords commissioners of the Admiralty, and request their lordships to lay it before the king. This memorandum is to be read to the ships' Companies.' The first lieutenant has since. been promoted to the rank of master and commander, as a just tribute to his acknowledged merit. 16. Yesterday morning, about eight o'clock, a special jury was assembled at Warwick, and the cause of the king versus Binns, which had excited considerable attention, was tried before Mr. justice Ashhurst, Mr. Perceval, assisted by five other counsel, conducted the prosecution, under the direction of Mr. White, solicitor to the Treasury; Mr. Romilly, assisted by Messrs. Reader and Fletcher, undertook the defence. It appeared that the sentences composing the charge had been abstracted from different parts of the speech which Binns delivered, and so put together in the indictment, as to convey a meaning highly seditious; for it stated, that he had said, that force was justifiable to obtain a reform in parliament. But it was sworn by five witnesses, that his words were, ' If attempts were made to deprive the people of the trial by jury, and the liberty of the press, that then it would be laudable to oppose it by force.' -Thus,' said Mr. Romilly, the words were applied to a mere hypothesis, and not respecting a reform in parliament. When the words are thus applied, they are far from importing any thing crimi. nal; nay, (continued the counsel) to support by force the trial by jury, and the liberty of the press against the attacks of government, is justifiable according to Blackstone.' Here the learned counsel read a quotation from Blackstone's Commentaries.-Mr. Perceval re plied. The trial lasted near eleven hours and a half, when the jury retired, and, after deliberating about two hours . hours and three quarters, followed the judge to his lodgings, and delivered a verdict of-Not guilty. 20. Yesterday the coroner's inquest was taken on the body of the right hon. Harvey Redmond viscount Mountmorres, who, on Friday morning last, shot himself at his lodgings, in York-street, St. James's square, and brought in their verdict-Lunacy. It appeared on evidence, that his lordship's physician had been with him the preceding day, when a conversation took place respecting his lordship's departure for Ireland, when he appeared particularly gloomy, and lamented the miseries of his unhappy country, and the portentous cloud that overhung its politics. So agitated was he at the recital, that his physician endeavoured to dissuade him from his intended journey, in the deranged state of mind and body he then appeared to experience. This advice had very little weight with his lordship, for, after taking the medicine prescribed, he dressed himself for the journey, and had made all things ready. It is supposed that the derangement increasing, he did not go to bed, but sat up the whole of the night, and in the morning committed the fatal act of suicide, by discharging the pistol in his mouth. privateer, of 10 guns, and 50 men, with her prizes, an English ship and brig, by his majesty's ship Proserpine, capt. Lake; also, Le Lynx, French lugger privateer, of 14 guns, and 50 men, by his majesty's sloop Stork, capt. Pearson; and the re-captures of the Charlotte of Liverpool, and the Neptune of Greenock, by his majesty's ship Magnanime. 22. This gazette contains accounts of the capture of the Prodigy French brig privateer, pierced for 18 guns, mounting 14, and 87 men; by his majesty's sloop Espiegle captain Boorder; also, a French lugger privateer, of 10 guns (only 4 of which were mounted), and 34 men, called the Revenge, by the Resolution hired lugger, Mr. George Broad commander. 26. This gazette contains accounts of the capture of the Flibustier privateer brig, of 12 guns and 104 men, by his majesty's ship Maidstone, capt. Mathews; also, Le Batave, of 12 guns, and 54 men, by his majesty's ship Roebuck, capt. Burrows. 29. This gazette contains an account of the capture of Le Tiercelet French schooner privateer, of 8 guns, 10 swivels, and 47 men,. copper bottomed, (together with the Prosperity, of London, which the privateer had captured three days before), by his majesty's ship Magnanime, capt. De Courcy. Bath, Aug. 30. At the yearly conference of the methodist preachers and delegates from the principal societies in the kingdom, lately held at Leeds, they came to a resolution, that if any of the members of their societies should maintain and propagate opinions iniinical to the civil government and established religion of the country, they should no longer be consider(12) ed ed as having fellowship or connection with them, but, that all such should be desired quietly to withdraw themselves from the societies: - which, if they refused to do, and continued to act contrary to the spirit of this resolution, that then they should be forthwith expelled; it being unanimously determined that the societies should not become a nursery of sedition or acknowledge the disturbers of the public weal. SEPTEMBER. Admiralty-office, Sept. 2. Copy of a letter from vice-admiral Kingsmill, to Evan Nepean, esq. dated on board L'Engageante, at Cork, the 27th of August, 1797. SIR, I herewith transmit, for the information of my lords commisioners of the Admiralty, a letter to me from capt. Pulling, of his majesty's sloop Penguin,containing particulars relative to a capital brig privateer, and a prize she had made of the brig Express, of Dartmouth, bound to Newfoundland, both of which he has brought in here. R. KINGSMILL. Penguin, Cork Harbour, Aug. 23. SIR, I have the honour to inform you, that on the 21st instant, in lat. 48 deg. 30 min. north, long. 8 deg. west, being on the larboard tack, with the wind easterly, blowing hard, at half past eight A.M. saw two sail a-head, standing towards us, with every appearance of being cruizers. At half past nine, having weathered us about a mile, they bore down, the headmost under English colours, but very soon discovered themselves to be the enemy, when we opened our fire, which obliged them to haul up again on the starboard tack: wore immediately, keeping under their lee, with a constant fire at both. At three quarters past nine the sternmost struck, and hove-to, but the sea running too high to take immediate possession of her, and finding the other of much more consequence, who was making every endeavour to escape, I continued the pursuit, when, after an hour and forty minutes running fire, having shot away her maintop-mast, she struck, and at nine took possession of her. Found her to be L'Oiseau French privateer, of 18 guns (pierced for 20), 10 9-pounders, and 2 long French twelves, with 119 men on board. At half past meridian, wore, and made sail after the other, who by this time was nearly out of sight, endeavouring to get off. At four brought her to, and took possession, finding her to be the Express, of Dartmouth, prize to L'Oiseau, formerly L'Appocrate French privateer, of 12 guns, taken a few months ago. L'Oiseau is quite new built, for a corvette, launched in June last, and coppered. Her length of keel 73 feet, of gun-deck 87 feet, and breadth of beam 25 feet her first cruize from Nantz, out 34 days, and had taken two other vessels. She has been chased five times before by his majesty's. frigates, but always maintained a decided superiority of sailing; spares the Penguin at least one-third of her canvas; and we are much indebted to their disorder, and a high sea, for our success. She had one man killed, and five wounded. I beg leave to express the warmest approbation of the conduct of my first lieutenant, Mr. George Neat Tremlett, with every officer and man in his majesty's sloop I have the honour to command, for their zeal |