A. B. 1784. 41 



1784, January 14"*— At the commencement of the fefllon of parliament 

 another bill, for the better government and management of the affairs of 

 the Eaft-India company, was brought in by Mr. Pitt, who had lately been 

 appointed firfl lord of the treafury and chancellor of the exchequer. But, 

 notwithflanding the fupport of adminiftration, it was reje6ted by a ma- 

 jority of the houfe of commons on the fecond reading (January 23"). 

 As the fame bill, with fome trifling modifications, was afterwards car- 

 ried through a new parliament in this fame year, it is unneceflary to go 

 into any particular account of it here. 



The peace between RuiTia and Turkey in the year 1774 releafed the 

 Grim Tartars, who inhabit the coafts of the fea of Afof, from their de- 

 pendence upon the Turkifli empire. But, though they thereby obtain- 

 ed a nominal independence, they in fad became fubjed to the emprefs 

 of Ruffia, who, after two fucceflive princes were fet up by her influence, 

 or authority, at lafl: thought proper to accept a refignation of the fove- 

 reignty. The Turkifh emperor did not view this ulurpation unmoved; 

 and his preparations for refenting it were fupported by the courts of 

 France and Spain, who declared they were detei-mined, that no diftant 

 power fliould fend any hoftile fquadron into the Mediterranean to in- 

 terrupt the trade of their fubjeds. It muft have been exceedingly gall- 

 ing to the emprefs to fee the principles of her own armed neutrality 

 thus turned againft herfelf, and that by the very powers who had been 

 mofl: benefited by it, but who now thought, they had as good a right to 

 controul the navigation of the Mediterranean, as flie and her neighbours 

 had to controul that of the Baltic. The emprefs, however, by dint of 

 management, carried her point, even without bloodftied, and the Turk- 

 ifli emperor formally ceded his pretenfions to all the countries on the 

 north fide of the Black fea on the 9''' day of January 1784. She loft no 

 time in modeling her new territories, in which her leading principles 

 were holding out invitations to the Greeks, whofe anceftors flae affeded 

 greatly to revere, to migrate from the Turkifti dominions into her own, 

 and doing every thing to actrad a great and flourifliing commerce to 

 her new fea ports. In purfuance of the firft of thefe objeds, flie gave 

 Greek names to feveral places. The capital of the new province of Cather- 

 inoflaw was called Cherfon ; the clafllc name of Taurica was revived, and 

 fuperfeded that of Grim ; the antient name of Theodofia * was reftored 

 to Gaffa, and Acht-air became Sebaftopolis. For the accompliftiment 

 of the fecond objed, which fhe had much at heart, flie iflhed an edid 

 (February 22'*), wherein, after premifing, that it had ever been her wifli 

 to protect commerce in that entire freedom, which its various fpecula- 

 tions and turns fo indifpenfibly require, and that her late treaties with 

 Turkey had removed the,obftrudionsto the freedom of navigation upon 



Theodofia in antient times was celebrated as a port capable of containing a hundred veflel»i 

 [^Strata, L. vii, p. 475.] 



Vol. IV, F 



