38 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1816. 



gunpowder and otlier conibuhti- 

 bles^ coniUHiniciitiiit;- with uliiili 

 was !i I'use, to wliicli they set fiio. 

 A servant auiUj however, fortu- 

 nately awoke, ami seizing a pitch- 

 fork, beint; tiie lirst \ve;ipon he 

 coukl fimi, he ran to the pailoin-, 

 at the Siinie time calling to alarm 

 the family. When he entered the 

 room, he |)ercei\e'.l tlie ball anil 

 flaming fuse, and in the momen- 

 tary confusion, not knowing- what 

 it was, he dashed at it with the 

 pitclifovk ; and the piongs having 

 stuck into it, lie diew it towards 

 him, and retreated into the 

 kitchen. In tlie midst of ti>e agi- 

 tatitm \vhieh this in^accountalde 

 circumstance proihiced, he fm' 

 a moment aljandoned the pitch- 

 fork and the Hannng ball, to call 

 to his master upstairs. In two se- 

 conds the combustibles exploded 

 like a claj) of tlnmder, and rent 

 the house from top to bottom. 

 Not a wall but was shattered ; 

 the windows were blown to 

 pieces, and the back door of the 

 kitchen fortunately burst open, 

 which gave vent to tlie fury of 

 the explosion. M'hen Mr. John- 

 son was first alarmed by the ser- 

 vant, he immediately startetl out 

 of bed, and laying hold <jf a blun- 

 derbuss, which v\as rea<ly loaded, 

 he went to a front window, which 

 he opened, and perceiving eight 

 or ten of the ruffians at some dis- 

 tance, he fired among tiiem : but 

 he had scarcely done so when the 

 explosion took place in thekitchen, 

 ;>«d threw his family into the ut- 

 most state of consternation. The 

 assailants, on hearing the report, 

 returned again to 'he front of the 

 house, and commenced an attack 

 with fire-arms, upon which Sir. 

 Johnson having one loaded pistol. 



fired it at them. By this time 

 the neighbouring families being- 

 alarmed l>y tlie exjjlosion and 

 tiring, were coming into the 

 street, ujjoii which the banditti 

 ran oH" in diHeient (lirections, 

 and owing to the darkness of the 

 night, effected their escape. Hap- 

 )iilv not one of Mr. .lohnson's fa- 

 mily received the smallest injury. 

 The inhabitants of Belfast have 

 ottered a reward of '20001. for a 

 discoveiy of the otlenders. 



4. n Hamburgii paper states, 

 that some 3 ears ago several Swiss 

 families formed settlements on 

 the river Ohio, which have flou- 

 rished surpiisingly. Tlie district 

 which they have planted lias re- 

 ceived the name of New Swit- 

 zerland, and their chief to\\n, 

 whicii contains alxtut 400 houses, 

 is called Vevay. They have culti- 

 vated the grape so successfully, 

 that last autumn some of the 

 colonists ciu^ked '2O0 gallons of 

 wine, which they sold for two 

 dollars a gallon. The other fruits 

 of Europe have been cultivated 

 witli equal success. The Canton, 

 New Switzerland, expects soon 

 to have a representative in (.'on- 

 gress. 



.5. The Swift, belonging to 

 Montrose, Captain Crawl, was 

 run down off Flamborough Head 

 by a Newcastle collier, and, me- 

 lancholy to relate, the captain, 

 mate, nine seamen, and eight 

 passengers, were lost ; only one 

 person saved. 



6. Last week a melancholy 

 affair occurred in the George's 

 Dock B^sin, Liverpool : — A brig, 

 the Albion, Captain Pioctor, 

 which had parted from her cable 

 in the river, inemleavouringto en- 

 ter the basin, with a strong breeze 



from 



