Son, and begotten Son, when commence- | spondents give any information rement of existence is excluded?

shall furnish the best method of improving clay, gravel, sand, chalk, peat earth, or bog land, founded on experiments, on not less than 50 acres.

3. A gold medal, or 30 guineas, for the best set of experiments on 8 acres, to ascertain (being equally divided) the comparative advantages of the spade and plough, in raising flax, lucern, carrots, parsnips, or turnips.

4. A gold medal, for ascertaining, by a set of experiments, the comparative advantages of the following manures; soot, coal ashes, wood ashes, lime, gypsum, bones, nightsoil, &c., used as top-dressings on grass and corn lands. 5. A gold medal, or 50 guineas, to him who, by actual experiment, shall increase the force of steam with less fuel than is now used, and without otherwise augmenting the expense.

6. A gold medal, or 50 guineas, to him, who shall invent, and produce to the Society, the best and easiest way, superior to any now known, of preventing the emission of dense smoke from chimneys, &c.

7. A gold medal, or 30 guineas, to the person who shall communicate the cheapest method of purifying the inflammable gas from coal, superior to any now in use.

8. A gold medal, or 100 guineas, is offered for a substitute for white lead, as the basis of white paint, if superior to any at present known, provided it contains no noxious quality, and will not be considerably dearer.

9. A gold medal, or 50 guineas, is offered for a certain method of preventing wrought iron from rusting, the same being cheap, and superior to any now in use.

10. A gold medal, or 30 guineas, to any person who shall discover the cause of dry rot in timber, and disclose a better method of preventing it than any hitherto known.

11. A gold medal, or 30 guineas, is offered for the best composition for printers' ink, if superior to any now in use. The same premium is offered, under the same conditions, for the best composition used in the finest copperplate printing.

12. A gold medal, or 30 guineas, to the person who shall produce the largest quantity of cloth, not less than 30 yards long, and 27 inches wide, made in England or Ireland, from hop-stalks, nettles, or other raw vegetable substances, the produce of these kingdoms, su

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perior to any hitherto produced from these substances, and not dearer than cloth of equal appearance, made from hemp, flax, &c.

13. A gold medal, or 30 guineas, will reward ingenuity, for the best constructed mill for grinding corn, for private families, &c.; the working to be easy and expeditious, and superior to any now in use. For a portable corn-mill, a similar premium is of

fered.

14. A gold medal, or 30 guineas, to any person who shall furnish the most effectual way of supplying water in case of fire, or for the means best calculated to extinguish it in buildings, superior to any known at present.

15. A gold medal, or 30 guineas, for the best method of preventing accidents arising from stage coaches.

16. A gold medal, or 30 guineas, to the inventor of a method to prevent accidents, from the falling of horses drawing two-wheeled carriages.

17. A gold medal, or 30 guineas, will be given for the most effectual and cheapest method of making and repairing roads, in any manner whatever, the same being proved by actual experiment.

18. A gold medal, or 30 guineus, will be given to the person who shall lay before the Society, a method superior to any now in use, for rendering boilers of steam engines, &c. less liable to accidents from explosion.

19. A gold medal, or 50 guineas, will be paid for the greatest quantity of nutmegs, not less than ten pounds, equal to those imported from the East Indies, raised in any of the British settlements in the West Indies, or on the coast of Africa and adjacent isles.

20. A gold medal, or 50 guineas, will be paid for the best account of the process employed in India or China, in the manufacture of what we denomi

nate India paper, and use in copperplate printing, together with an account of the materials of which it is made.

MELANCHOLY ACCIDENTS.

Destruction of the Theatre in Birmingham.

ON the morning of January 7th, 1820, the town was dreadfully alarmed by the cry of" Fire;" when, on further inquiry, it was found that the Theatre was in flames. Every possible assist

broken, eyes struck out, or their bodies severely scorched. The house adjoining was blown away, in part, over the

ance was instantly rendered, but the fire remained unsubdued, and in about two hours, that magnificent structure was reduced to a heap of ruins. Hap-heads of the family sitting round a pily no lives were lost; but not an article of any description was saved. On the preceding evening, Pizarro had been performed; and it has been conjectured, that the wadding from the muskets occasioned the disaster. The Theatre was insured in the Sun Fire Office for £7000, and the furniture in the Norwich Union for £2000. A former theatre in this place was burnt down by an incendiary, in 1791.

Gas Explosion in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. ON Thursday evening last, Jan. 8th, 1820, we had, says our correspondent, a dreadful explosion of Gas, within 100 yards from my house. This calamity was occasioned by the breaking of one of the main pipes, through which the gas had escaped, and made its way into a house near which it lay, but which had no connection with its light. The explosion took place while the family were enjoying the evening with some friends: and far beyond any scene I had ever witnessed, this was awfully tremendous. Two houses were in an instant shivered to pieces; and we had to pull the family from under the burning ruins. One child was killed on the spot; and in one of the houses almost every individual was injured. Some had legs, thighs, or arms

table; but all escaped without injury, except one young woman, who was severely burnt. In another account it is stated, that, from the violence of the shock, some tables and chairs were thrown across the street, and one window being blown quite out, was carried over a wall on the opposite side of the street.

Fire at Magdalen Hall, Oxford. ON the morning of January 9th, 1820, about 3 o'clock, a dreadful fire broke out in Magdalen Hall, near Magdalen College, which, in three hours, totally consumed the whole range of buildings, consisting of about 18 sets of rooms, and all the furniture, books, &c. were destroyed; but happily no lives were lost. Fortunately, the lodgings of Dr. Macbride, the Principal, were saved from the conflagration, by pulling down the buildings which connected the two together. This accident is supposed to have originated in the room of a young man, over the common rooms. It was discovered by the guard of one of the mails, on the road leading to Oxford; and but for the timely alarm given by him, it is probable that many must have perished.

COMMERCIAL REPORT, JANUARY 21st, 1820. THE year commenced with a season of unusual severity, which has greatly interrupted our communications with the interior; and by closing the ports of the Continent to shipping, has tended to narrow the commercial operations of this Port, in a great degree. However, the leading articles of import, have maintained their prices, and seem inclined to improve in value. In raw Sugars, there has been a fair demand, with an advance of 2s. to 3s. per cwt.; the low' rate of this indispensable article of luxury, appears at length to have attracted attention.— The spirit of speculation may probably be checked, by the new duties now imposed upon the introduction of refined Sugars into Russia; hitherto that country has been the mart, for the disposal of refined goods.

Coffee is stationary in price; the consumption of this berry increases considerably,-the quantity taken out of Bond for home consumption, during the last year, amounted to 16,822.cwt.

Cotton Wool is in steady demand; the new American Cottons are coming in very freely, yet prices are firmly supported. The annual consumption is in progressive increase: it has been ascertained that last year's consumption in the United Kingdom amounted to 428,500 bags, averaging 8240 bags weekly.

Dyewoods are in limited request. Fish Oils are looking up, but Tallow remains unaltered in price. The stocks of British American Timber have very much accumulated of late, and the prices are very moderate. Mirimachi Pine in cargoes sells at 19d. per cubic foot.

Irish Provisions are generally inquired after at this season, for shipment to the British American settlements. Irish Butter has lately been a favourite article of speculation, at an advance of price.

Since our last, two vessels have sailed from hence for the Cape of Good Hope, with about 400 settlers, under the conduct of an officer of the navy.

PRINTED BY H. FISHER, LIVERPOOL, PRINTER IN ORDINARY TO HIS MAJESTY.

The vile defamer's pois'nous breath
Diffuses pestilence and death;
Assuming friendship's sacred guise,

His mouth's the vehicle of lies;

An enemy to all that's good,
Destruction is his proper food.

-What king so strong,

Abednego.

'Can tie the gall up in the slanderous tongue!

Shakspeare.

AMONG the various vices which deform human nature, and derogate from the happiness of the species, perhaps there is none more extensive in its range, and pestiferous in its influence, than Defamation. It respects neither age, nor sex, nor character, nor condition, but blows its poisonous breath upon all, and generally most copiously upon those who are celebrated either for wisdom or virtue.

[1820.

ruin: in all such cases, tho' publicity would not be defamation, it would unquestionably be a total departure from that charity which covereth a multitude of sins.

What then is defamation? It is intentional misrepresentation, for the purpose of detracting from the reputation of any one.* I have said intentional misrepresentation, because a person the most benevolent, and the most hostile to any thing defamatory, may give circulation to a misrepresented fact, not knowing or supposing it to be such. The authority from whom he received it, might be such as to preclude the suspicion of inaccuracy; and the motive which actuated him in its repetition, might be the most virtuous and commendable. It might possibly be to shew the inexperienced By defamation I do not mean a sim- the dangers to which the imprudent ple relation of the truth, however that are exposed, from the adoption of certruth may operate to the injury or dis- tain principles, the formation of cerhonour of any individual; for the pub- tain habits, or an association with licity of facts, however painful to the persons of bad or doubtful character; delinquent, is often salutary, at once or it might be to throw a little light correcting the offender, and exhibiting into the picture, by shewing that the a beacon for the admonition of others. disgraceful fact possibly arose from Any pain experienced by such publi- peculiar circumstances, that it was city, must be considered as the neces- the result of unexpected and violent sary result of folly and wickedness, temptation, that the fact is a solitary as confirmatory of those scriptures one, and that no one can condemn it which teach that the way of transgres- with greater severity than that with sors is hard, and as the natural pro- which he condemns it himself, and that moter and guardian of virtue. But although in his character there is much although truth is not defamation, how-to blame, yet there is also much to adever it may affect the reputation or circumstances of the guilty, yet prudence, and especially Christian charity, will in many cases conceal and not publish the infamy of others; and more especially if such infamy be a deviation from general character; or if they have repented of their evil, and have given evidence that they have done so by a change of conduct; or if publicity would produce no good effect on themselves or others; and farther, if such publicity would entail infamy upon such as had no participation in their crime, and thus involve the innocent and the guilty in one common No. 13.-VOL. II.

mire, and that therefore he ought not to be avoided as a pestilence, or execrated as a demon, but pitied, and, if possible, restored as a fallen brother. Defamatory reports circulated by persons actuated by such motives, and accompanied by such palliatives, lose much of their malignity; the poison is not only diluted, and thus weakened,

*The reader will perceive that I have not adopted the definition given of this term by is defamation; hence the maxim-the greater lawyers. According to them, any offensive truth the truth, the greater the libel. the malignant, perhaps such a definition may be necessary to the good order of society.

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