CHRONICLE. 



97 



Aldermanbury. He was then in- 

 formed that Mr. Haigh was from 

 home, upon which he went away, 

 and called again about eleven, 

 when Mr. Haigh instantly dis- 

 patched a messenger to St. Luke's. 

 Two persons from thence soon 

 after attended, but the young man 

 having by this time become very 

 outrageous, they declined taking 

 hold of him without further assist- 

 ance. Mr. Presto, the constable 

 of the night for the ward of Crip- 

 plegate Within, was sent for, and 

 on his arrival the unhappy maniac 

 •mounted upon a small desk or 

 upper counting-house which stands 

 on the floor of the warehouse, and 

 swore he would not be taken. 

 Mr. Presto, more daring, or less 

 prudent, than the keepers of St. 

 Luke's, rushed up the two steps 

 that led to the place where the 

 lunatic had placed himself, and re- 

 ceived the contents of a pistol in 

 his head. The ball entered by the 

 temple, and the unfortunate man 

 died in less than two minutes. On 

 the lunatic being seized, another 

 loaded pistol was found in his 

 pocket, besides a quantity of pow- 

 der, nine bullets, and a bullet 

 mould. He was instantly taken 

 back to St. Luke's. On this cir- 

 cumstance being mentioned to the 

 alderman of the ward (Wood), he 

 considered it improper to suffer a 

 man who had committed murder 

 in the city of London, whether 

 sane or insane, to be sent out of it 

 until the affair was investigated ; 

 but the alderman having no power 

 to demand his person from the 

 keeper of the hospital, he wrote a 

 note requesting that the lunatic 

 might be brought back to the city; 

 with this the keeper of St. Luke's 

 complied, and last night he was 

 Vol. LV. 



committed to the Compter b)' Mr. 

 Alderman Wood, for further ex- 

 amination. 



This unfortunate person was 

 afterwards tried at the Old Bailey, 

 and was acquitted on the ground 

 of insanity. 



The Thais,Captain Schobell lately 

 arrived at Portsmouth, sailed from 

 Sierra Leone on the 4th of August, 

 and from Acra, on the Leeward 

 coast, on the 3rd of September. 

 Prior to her quitting the coast, the 

 Favourite and Albicore had arrived. 

 The Thars was eighteen months on 

 the coast. Though, unfortunately 

 for the cause of humanity, and the 

 improvement of Africa, the slave- 

 trade is still carried on extensively 

 under the Portuguese and Spanish 

 flags (the continuance of which 

 will materially depend upon cases 

 of appeal, which are forthcoming 

 for decision in the High Court of 

 Admiralty), yet we have the satis- 

 faction to learn, that in Junelastthe 

 Thais destroyed the last remaining 

 factory for this traffic (at Masure- 

 do), supported by British subjects. 

 The proprietors of this establish- 

 ment, John Bostock and Thomas 

 M'Quin, were brought home in 

 the Thais, sentenced, under the 

 late Slave-trade Felony Act, to be 

 transported for fourteen years. The 

 Thais landed forty of her crew, 

 commanded by Lieut. Wilkins, to 

 accomplish this act of humanity. 

 The factors resisted, killed one 

 man, and another was drowned 

 when advancing to the assault. 

 There were about 230 slaves in the 

 factory, who were released. The 

 Thais captured several vessels on 

 the coast with slaves on board ; 

 tliey were under Portuguese and 

 Spanish flags. One of the vessels 

 presented another instance of tiie 

 H 



