Admiralty-Office, Jan. 3, 1800. Extract of a letter from lieutenant Pengelly, of the Viper cutter, to vice-admiral fir Thomas Pafley, commander, &c. at Plymouth.

SIR,

HAVE the honour to acquaint

Dodman bearing N. feven or eight leagues, I difcovered a fufpicious veffel to windward ftanding towards the Viper, under my command; at noon perceived her to be an enemy; and at a quarter paft brought her to close action, which continued for three quarters of an hour, when the fheered off; I had the good fortune, however, after a running fight of an hour and a half, to lay her close on board, and, upon pouring two broadfides into her, the ftruck her colours, and proves to be Le Furet, of 14 guns, fourpounders, and 64 men, seven of which had been sent away in a prize on the morning of the day fhe was captured. Le Furet is quite new, this being her first cruize; is well stored, and was victualled for two months. I am happy to add that we had only one man wounded, and myfelf gigntly hurt. The lofs of the enemy was four men killed; the first and fecond captains, and fix men, wounded; four dangerously.

Aberdeen, Jan. 5. Major Macpherfon, of Lorick, and eight other gentlemen,fhooting wild-fowl on the duke of Gordon's grounds, between Strathfpey and Badenoch, unfortunately perifhed in the violent ftorm of fnow, which did fo much damage by fea and land on Thursday laft. They had retired for shelter to an old cothoufe, fixteen miles from any town, which was blown down upon them by the fury of the wind. The bodies of major Macpherson and three others were found under the ruins. The fifth gentleman was found on the outside of the cottage.

Yarmouth, Jan. 7. The lofs of one of his majesty's gun.brigs, of 12 guns, lieutenant Warren, took place during a fog on Sunday laft,on the fand called the Cockle. Every exertion on the part of the fleet to get to her affiftance was fruitlefs, the fea running with a heavy fwell quite over her, which obliged them for that day to abandon their attempt of faving the crew. On Monday morning they made another attempt, and fuc

ceeded fo far is to fave all the crem

except the furgeon, pilot, and fix men, who fell victims to the watery

element.

Admiralty Office, Jan. 7. This gazette contains a letter from Mr. Geo. Buckley, collector of the cuftoms at Newhaven, to Evan Nepean, efq. dated the 4th inft, ftating the capture of Le Général Brune, of two guns, 15 men, and 30 tons burthen, which he effected in the customhoufe boat, aflifted by four others manned with volunteers from the

town.

9. A general court of proprietors was held at the bank of England, upon the adjourned debate relative to the refolution of the court of directors, to accommodate government with a loan of 3,000,000l. for fix years, without intereft, but liable to be called in at any time within that period, if the three per cents. fhould be at 8o, upon condition of the charter of the corporation of the bank being renewed for a further term of 21 years, to be computed from the 1ft day of Auguft 1812, when the prefent charter expires.

The bufinefs was opened by reading the minutes of the proceedings of the last court;-after which

The governor came forward and addreffed the court.-It gave him the utmoft degree of fatisfaction to obferve fo numerous an attendance of proprietors affembled on the prefent occafion, as he was firmly perfuaded there was not one of them who would retire without the fulleft conviction of the eligibility of the terms on which the further prolongation of the charter of the corporation of the bank of England had been acceded to on the part of government. He had fufficiently ftated the reafons which had influenced the court of directors in the

refolution they had adopted, when he laft had the honour of addreffing the court of proprietors; he, however, deemed it his duty to repeat thofe reafons. The directors, ever alive to whatever might prove advantageous to the profperity of a corporation on which the wealth, the credit, and the existence of the country itself in a great meafure depended, had, with that difcernment which characterifed them, confidered the prefent opportunity of renewing the charter as one which they were bound, by the truft repofed in them, not to neglect.They confidered it a favourable opportunity in a twofold point of view, not only as the terms on which the renewal was propofed to be granted were every way in favour of the proprietors, and were fuch as it could not be expected government would liften to at a future period, when in all probability the country would not have the expences and calamities of war to contend with; but it was alfo favourable, inasmuch as the fum to be advanced by the bank to government would, in its operation at the prefent juncture, peculiarly aid the intereft of the public, the neceflities of the government, and the common caufe in which the nation was engaged. Its effects would be fuch as could not be derivable from an aid of twice the amount, when peace had rendered the neceffities of the ftate lefs urgent. He affured the proprietors that the court of directors had not determined upon the meafure propofed by their refolution, until after the matureft reflection, and the firmeft affurance that the fun to be given to government bya loan of 3,000,000l.without intereft, for fix years, fell infinitely fhort of what the prefent or any future adminiftration would be entitled

to

to demand, if the remaining twelve years of the charter were fuffered nearly to expire. It had been objected, that it had never been usual to apply for a renewal of the charter fo long before its expiration; on this point he could affure the proprietors, that it appeared from precedents that applications to government to that effect had been made at the different periods of fix, nine, twelve, and even twenty years prior to the period of its determination, and had always been at the precifetime when the advantages to the bank with refpect to the terms, and the advantages to the public by the affiftance afforded government, were mutual and reciprocal. It was of the highest importance at the prefent moment that the bank fhould fecure to itfelf the permanent enjoyment of its charter, as, from infinuations which had been thrown out that it would not be renewed, other banks had been formed throughout the kingdom, and a new circulating medium introduced, the object of which was to excite a fpirit of rivalfhip, with reference to the national bank of the country; the natural confequence of the certainty of the charter's continuing for a period of 33 years would be that of difappointing and rendering vain the attempts of all rah fpeculators. He had nothing further to add, but to obferve, that the court of directors had felt confiderably hurt at an obfervation which had been thrown out by a proprietor at the last court, intimating that they had not acted from their own view of the fubject, but that their refolution was the refult of the undue influence of minifters: on this point he affured the proprie tors, that the court of directors difclaimed any fuch undue influence; that they had acted folely from their

own conviction; and that the propolition came from themfelves originally, and was not made on the part of government to them. With this impreffion they had come to a refolution, which he begged leave to read. The refolution stated, that the court of directors felt themfelves injured by fuch an infinua. tion, and deemed it an improper and unjuftifiable attack on the part of the proprietor who had made it. This, with the exception of fome arithmetical calculations proving the pecuniary advantages the bank would obtain by the prefent advance, formed the outline of the governor's obfervations.

The deputy-governor bore teftimony to the uncontrolled and independent motives by which the court of directors had been actuated, and expreffed his regret that the leaft fufpicion fhould have been harboured in the breaft of any one to the contrary.

Mr. Smith obferved, that as he had had the honour of propofing the adjournment of the debate, he felt it incumbent on him to renew it. He expreffed his entire fatisfaction in the statement and reasons offered to the court of proprietors by the worthy governor, and trufted the refolution of the court of directors would be fanctioned by the unanimous vote of every one prefent. He compared the fituation of the bank corporation to that of a perfon holding a beneficial leafe, renewable at certain periods. Was it not to the interest of fuch a perfon to avail himself of the opportunity when the wants of his leffor required an immediate fupply, and when the ftate of his own finances best enabled him to grant it? Did he not thereby obtain terms more advantageous to himfelf, than if he waited till circumlances altered (A3) their