informed the house that the king's minifters had not 1780. held the smallest previous communication with him upon the subject; that he had been in town three days, and had never been asked whether his health would enable him to continue in the chair, nor had he been applied to directly or indirectly, on the fubject of choosing a new speaker. He called upon the minifters to declare, why he was thus difgracefully difmiffed. After debates, lord George Germain's motion for the appointment of Mr. Cornwall was carried by a majority of 203 votes to 134, who fupported Mr. Dunning's motion.

The king went the next day to the house of peers, Nov. and delivered his fpeech to the parliament. In it he took notice of the fignal fucceffes which had attendedthe progress of his arms in Georgia and Carolina. These he trusted would have important confequences in bringing the war to a happy conclufion. When the commons were debating upon the addrefs, Mr. Fox reprehended the ministers in the most pointed terms, for having dared to fend orders to officers in all the towns of the kingdom, as well in thofe where there had not been the smallest proneness to tumult, as in those where it had entirely fubfided and quiet was perfectly restored, giving them power to act at difcretion, without the authority of the civil magiftrate. Thefe orders, he declared, had not been recalled, till almoft every election. was over. He likewise arraigned the ministers in terms of the utmost severity, for the infult which, he faid, had been offered to the navy, and the prejudice done to that service, by the late appointment of Sir Hugh Pallifer to the government of Greenwich Hofpital. The

addrefs

1780. addrefs was carried, upon a divifion, by a majority of

212 to 130.

Major Tyler, who ferved formerly in one of the American continental regiments, by his irregular purfuit of pleasure, occafioned an information to be lodged against himself and Mr. John Trumbull, who was deputy adjutant general with Gates at Tyconderoga in 1776. Tyler escaped: but Trumbull was taken and committed to prifon on the 2ift of November, being charged with holding a treasonable correfpondence with the enemy. When he was re-examined the next day, three letters were produced and read, one to his father the governor of Connecticut, the second from Dr. Franklin's grandfon at Paffey, where the doctor refides, and the third from a Mr. White of Lyme in Dorfetshire. Mr. Trumbull in his answers to the questions asked him, faid, that he arrived in England in the beginning of July; and that the profeffion he had in view was that of painting, of which Mr. B. Weft, the historical painter, could inform the bench fully, as well as of the manner how he usually spent his time. Nothing appeared particularly criminal: but circumftances were fuch, that the bench conceived he was not entitled to his liberty; they therefore figned his warrant of commitment for New Prifon, on account of the unrepaired ftate of Newgate. Confinement will be his chief fuffering; and his relations may difmiss all apprehensions of any further danger to his personal safety.

Some detached pieces of European intelligence will close the prefent epistle,

Mr. Jay has been laboring at the court of Madrid to effect a treaty between Spain and the United States of America;

America; but to no purpofe. For particular reafons 1780. that court declines making the treaty with France, the bafis of one with them. Congrefs was much overseen in drawing bills upon him. The importance of Spain to America fhould not have been brought forward, at least fhould not have been placed in fuch a glaring point of view. The measure of drawing, in expectation that the Spaniards would fupply the cafh, was confidered by them as desperate, and as what congrefs were prompted to by their imbecility. It was in the power of the Spanish court to have made the loan that was afked: whereas, instead of furnishing Mr. Jay with 30 or 40,000l. fterling, the fum requested for immediate fervice, he was fupplied with only about 42001.

On the 29th of September died Maria Theresa, em→ prefs of Germany, queen of Hungary and Bohemia, and archduchefs of Auftria, and natural fovereign of all the widely extended dominions appertaining to that great house. Her death has occafioned no convulfions in the European fyftem of politics.

Lord George Germain, in his letter to lord Cornwallis of November the 9th, commended Cornwallis's "determination to inflict exemplary punishment on those traitors, who had repeated the violation of their oaths of allegiance, or broken their parole, and taken arms against the king, as wife and promotive of the great object of the war." He added, "I have not the leaft doubt, from your lordship's vigorous and alert movements, the whole country, fouth of the Delaware, will be restored to the king's obedience in the course of the [next] campaign."

The

1780.

The French king this year dignified and for ever rendered his name-day memorable, by a present to his fub→ jects, worthy the humanity and magnificence of a great and enlightened monarch. It was no lefs than abolishing for ever, that relic of barbarifm, fo long the opprobium of the chriftian name, and a standing difgrace to the most civilized and learned quarter of the worldthe inhuman cuftom of putting the question, as it was called, by torture. It had been fo long established and rivetted, that it seemed to be an original and indivisible part of the conftitution of their courts of juftice. The French king did alfo, in order to leffen the burdens of his people, make a prodigious reform in his houfhold. In purfuance of the new plan adopted in his court, no lefs than 406 offices in that department were abolished.

put to

The torture having been mentioned, let it be remarked that no one is capitally condemned in Holland, till he acknowledges himfelf guilty; and that the torture is practised, when needful, to produce fuch acknowledgment. But then it must observed, that no one is the torture without that evidence, which would hang him in Great Britain. If the accufed has firmness of body and mind to support under the rack through the whole process, he is discharged though guilty; but though innocent, if (overcome by excruciating pain) he pronounces himself guilty, to obtain momentary ease, execution follows.

The bounty and kindness extended by the bishop of Lugo to the British prifoners, deferves every degree of praise and gratitude. Although fome of their commanders behaved otherwife, the Spanish nobility and merchants, in general, fhowed extraordinary marks of

friendship,

friendship, and even of affection, to thofe British gen- 1780. tlemen who fell in their way, while national hoftilities were carrying on. The Spaniards labored hard in pushing on their works against Gibraltar, but had often the mortification of feeing them when nearly completed, destroyed in a few hours by the weight of fire from the batteries. Gen. Elliot would let them proceed to a certain point, and then at once throw all their hopes to the ground. Some judicious and fuccefsful fallies were likewife made occafionally, though sparingly, by the garrifon. The vexation of being fo baffled by a handful of men, has at length whetted the invention of the Spaniards to a project, that may afford much trouble to the garrifon when perfected, and infinitely increase the difficulties and dangers of the defence.

The conduct of the duke of Modena, in abolishing the inquifition in his dominions, must be enumerated among the remarkable circumftances, that have diftinguished the year 1780. It affords a fresh inftance of the progrefs, which liberal ideas, with refpect to toleration and the rights of confcience, are now making throughout Europe. Upon the death of the grand inquifitor at Reggio, the prince immediately ordered that, tribunal to be for ever abolished, its revenues to be applied to laudable purpofes; and the prifons and other buildings, which could preferve any memorial of its having ever exifted, to be demolished.

In the course of this year a confiderable number of well-fought and defperate actions have taken place between British and French frigates; in which, though the. former had almoft continually the advantage when upon equal terms, and the latter were frequently taken; yet

there