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LETTER IX. 



Donaghadee, August 19, 1813. 



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_L HE afternoon was delightful ; the little' wind 

 there was, favourable ; and the sea perfectly 

 smooth. Consonant as these circumstances 

 were to our wishes, yet, like all other human 

 concerns, a something still was wanting. The 

 breeze was so faint that we made little pro- 

 gress, and seven hours were expended on the 

 passage, during which the two coasts were seen 

 to great advantage. 



The rock of Ailsa presented a very singular 

 and interesting object ; its perpendicular height 

 is about nine hundred and forty feet above high 

 water-mark. While we moved slowly on, the 

 mind was naturally and involuntarily drawn to 

 the country we were about to visit. Of its topo- 

 graphy, and natural history, I felt myself inex- 

 cusably ignorant ; but of the objects in which 

 its political interests were involved I was not 

 altogether so uninformed. 



The incorporation of one independent king- 



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