42 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1813. 



buss through his body. The ruf- 

 fians seemed satisfied at the perpe- 

 tration of these shocking enormi- 

 ties, and left the house, without 

 taking or searching for any arms. 

 Mr. Browne's recovery is doubtful; 

 Dr. Brailsford is out of danger. — 

 Clonmel Herald. 



4. One T. Standish, of Blackrod, 

 assuming himself to be heir of the 

 late sir F. Standish, with nume- 

 rous followers assembled at Dux- 

 bury-hall, near Chorley ; took pos- 

 session of the house, and turned 

 out the servants, in defiance of the 

 peace officers, who exerted them- 

 selves on the occasion, and were 

 personally insulted and abused. 

 Tliey continued in the house till 

 Saturday, when the magistrates, 

 R. Fletcher and J. Watkins, Esqs, 

 being informed of these proceed- 

 dings, oi; the head of a party of light 

 horse proceeded to the scene of 

 action. On the appearance of the 

 military the depredators began to 

 make off in every direction. By a 

 proper arrangement, however, the 

 military surrounded the hall, and 

 the maHstrates demanded admis- 

 sion ; which not being complied 

 with, the door was forced, and a 

 crowd of men, with several women, 

 appeared. Being warned of the 

 consequence of resistance, they 

 submitted; and after a proper hear- 

 ing before the magistrates,Thomas 

 Standish, the assumed heir,Thomas 

 Prescot, John Dike, William Gadi- 

 nan, and Thomas Aspinall, were 

 committed to Lancaster Castle; 

 and sixty other persons were bound 

 over to answer for their conduct 

 at the next quarter sessions at 

 Wigan. The freebooters, during 

 their continuance in the hall, had 

 made very free with the stock of 

 liquors, &c. 



Broadstairs, June 6. — A few 



nights since, as some fishermen 

 belonging to this place were 

 fishing for mackarel at the back 

 of the Goodwin Sands, they dis- 

 covered a large fish entangled ia 

 their nets, whichthey were obliged 

 to cut from their boat to prevent 

 the danger that threatened them. 

 Some hours after, they fell in with 

 their nets again, with the fish 

 completely rolled up in them, and 

 it appeared nearly exhausted. On 

 their approaching the fish, it 

 proved to be of an enormous 

 size ; and, with the assistance 

 of another boat, they towed it 

 into our harbour. On examina- 

 tion it appeared to be of the 

 species of the basking shark, of 

 the largest male kind; its length is 

 31 feet, and its greatest girth, at 

 the top of the back, 17| feet ; it is 

 supposed to weigh aboutsixtons; it 

 has five transverse apertures ofthe 

 gills on each side, and is of a dark 

 leaden colour : the form of the 

 body, like that ofthe shark, is ta- 

 pering ; the upper jaw projects 

 considerably beyond the lower, 

 and is round at the end. A great 

 number of people came from all 

 parts of the isle of Thanet to view 

 this monster of the deep ; and the 

 fishermen have been amply paid 

 for the damage sustained by the 

 loss of their nets. After this fish 

 had been shewn for three days, the 

 fishermen sold it to Messrs.Turner 

 and Co. fish merchants, who dis- 

 sected it, and 150 gallons of excel- 

 lent oil were drawn from the liver 

 alone. The body was taken away 

 by the farmers' servants for ma- 

 nure. 



7. A very decent elderly widow 

 woman, who kept a small chand- 

 ler's shop within two hundred 

 yards of the Castle Inn, at Wood- 

 ford, was this morning found mur- 



