S^ ANNUAL REGISTER, mii 



TKoilghpoor in eJiternal appenrarice, 

 it has Ijeen recently discovered to be 

 imruensely rich within; captain Hol- 

 iTies having, at differcoL times, fouud 

 large bowls filled with guineas and 

 half-guineas, and parcels of bank- 

 notes stuffed under the Covers of old 

 chairs. Mr. Dancer generally had 

 his boriygirtwitba hay-^band, to keep 

 together his tattered garments j and 

 the stockings he usually wore had 

 been so frequentlydarned and patch- 

 ed, that scarcely any of the o iglnal 

 could be seen? but in dirty or cold 

 wealher they were thickly covered 

 vith ropes of hay, which .served as 

 substitutes for boots ; his M'hole 

 garb much resembkd that of a mi- 

 serable mendicant. Notwitlistaud- 

 ing his extreme penury, Mr. Dancer 

 possessed many praise-worthy qua- 

 lities. He observeii the most rigid 

 integrity in every transaction, > ii ' was 

 iievcr averse to a .sist those of whom 

 he enteriained a t^ood opini n, and 

 whose embarrassments required a 

 teniporary aid; although, auhe same 

 time, it must be confessed, he did 

 not lend his money without expeci- 

 ing the usual interest. We have not 

 heard whether he has left any legacy 

 to his faithful and old domestic, old 

 Gritfiths, who, however, hasfor ma- 

 ny years past fared much better than 

 his master, having been indulged 

 with whatever he chose to eat and 

 drink, besid s a good and comfort- 

 able bed to sleep upon. The latter 

 Mr. Dancer always deemed an un- 

 necessary luxury. Mr. Dancer seems 

 to have been the principal branch of 

 a thi ifty tree, every scion ot which 

 was of a similar K-xtare. He in- 

 herited a considerable property by 

 the death <,f a si Uer. who exactly 

 resembled him in temper. She sel- 

 dom quitted her obscure residence. 



except dn being i"oused by the n6i.se 

 of hunters and iheir hounds, wheii 

 she would sally forth, armed with a 

 pitch-fork, in ordet t6 check thd , 

 progress of thfc intruders on her bro- 

 ther's grounds ; on which ocCasiort 

 she had very rriiich the appearance 

 of a mei-e bundle of rags. — A bro- 

 ther is still alive, very rich, and said 

 to be (if possible) more penurious 

 than the deceased. 



Drowned, in crdssingtheThameSj 

 at Chiswick, Benjamin Vandergucht, 

 the famous picture-dealer and col- 

 lector. He \Vas the duly son of Mr. 

 John Varidergucbt, picture-dealer, 

 in Lower Brook-stfeet, and was one 

 of the first students at the Royal 

 Academy on its institution in 1769. 

 He was returning from Chiswick,- 

 where he was employed in cleaning 

 and arransins: the duke of Devon- 

 shire's pictures. A barge, by the 

 carelessness of the boy who was 

 guiding the horse in the towing-path, 

 van foul of the boat, which overscti 

 As Mr. Vandergucht could swim, 

 it is imagined he was drowned by 

 the clinging of d woman passenger, 

 who sunk with him, and had in her 

 arms a childa ftiwmouthsold, which 

 was providentially saved by the hu- 

 mane exertions of another of the 

 passengers. After two nours search,i 

 his body was found and taken home< 

 His fate is the more to be deplored, 

 as he has left a worthy and amiable 

 widow, and eleven children, tolament 

 their great loss. Mr. Vandergucht 

 was one of the first connoisseurs in 

 painting ; he had indeed inore expe- 

 rience n; the art than any of his con- 

 tenijjoiaries. Hewas a lemperatCy j| 

 placid, unoffending man, and very' 

 much attached to his family* , 



OCTQ. 



