392 
escape me, I fired a shot wide of 
her, with the hope that she would 
then have shortened sail, as I was 
gaining fast upon her; as this was 
without effect, I fired a serond, 
which she returned, and kept up a 
running fire till the instant I laid her 
along side, nor did she then give up 
a contest so fraught with temerity, 
until the first captain and eight men 
were killed, and 14 wounded, one 
of whom is since dead of his wounds. 
I am happy to add, that the damage 
on our side consists only in one man 
wounded, anda few shot in the hull 
and rigging. 
“Tam, &c. 
“* R. H. Pearson.” 
Between 3 and 4 o’clock in the 
afternoon, a fire was discovered in 
that beautiful edifice, Boston church, 
which threatened its total destruc- 
tion, but by the timely and judicious 
application of the engines, the fire 
was completely extinguished in the 
space of three hours. The accident 
happened by the carelessness of a 
workman, who had lighted a fire 
upon the lead in the gutter of the 
roof, which so rapidly extended it- 
self along the spars and beams, that 
the whole interior space between the 
ceiling and the roof, was filled with 
such a volume of smoke, as for a 
long time to deny all entrance; but 
by the spirited exertions of the firc- 
men, the water was at length con- 
veyed to the very heart of the fire, 
and that elegant building was thereby 
saved. Meantime, an engine was 
very successfully employed within 
the church to extinguish the flames, 
“as they appeared to spread along the 
ceiling. Considerable damage has 
been done by this accident, (it is 
supposed not fo.a less amount than 
10001.) but nothing equal to what 
ANNUAL! REGISTER, 1803. 
might have been expected ; indeed; 
about 5 o’clock, it was the general 
opinion that nothing could save the 
roof, as the lead began to melt and 
run ; fortunately the discovery was 
in the day time, and there was very 
little wind, or the church must have 
beenatotal ruin. Never were greater 
exertions used by all ranks and de- 
scriptions of persons than on this oc- 
casion, and it is but justice to say, 
that the officers and soldiers quar- 
tered at Boston, and every stranger 
there, felt a natural impulse in say- 
ing this pride and ornament of the 
town. 
25th. The Hertford coach, com- 
ing to London, and crossing the 
new-laid gravel on Stamford-hill, 
with fourteen outside passengers, 
and driven by the proprietor’s bro- 
ther, was overturned; one of the 
outside passengers was killed on the 
spot, and a young woman, one of 
the two passengers who escaped un- 
hurt from the fall, had her arm 
broken in two places by the other 
passengers trampling on her. The 
person killed was the foreman of the 
late Mr. Whittingstall. 
26th. The anniversary meeting of 
the charity-children of the different 
parish-schools, took place, as usual, 
this day, in the cathedral of St. 
Paul, which was fitted up for their 
reception. An excellent sermon was 
preached by the Rev. R. Cray, D. D. 
and rector of Cracke, county of 
Durham. Theappearance was grand 
and striking. More than 7000 chil- 
dren, clothed and educated in the 
metropolis, and a great number of 
them wholly supported by the vo- 
luntary bounty of individuals only, 
without any obligatory support from 
the laws, present, to the admiration 
of surrounding states, a picture of 
the British character, liberally and 
amiably 
