how to act, and proved to my satisfaction that, when properly placed on the tide, the Torpedoes would invariably go under the bottom of the vessel. I then filled one of the Torpedoes with one hundred and eighty pounds of powder, and set its clockwork to eighteen minutes. Every thing being ready, the experiment was announced for the next day, the 15th, at five o'clock in the afternoon. Urgent business had called Mr. Pitt and Lord Melville to London. Admiral Holloway, Sir Sidney Smith, Captain Owen, Capt. Kingston, Colonel Congreve, and the major part of the officers of the fleet under the command of Lord Keath were present: at forty minutes past four the boats rowed towards the brig, and the Torpedoes were thrown into the water the tide carried them, as before described, under the bottom of the brig, where at the expiration of eighteen minutes, the explosion appeared to raise her bodily about six feet; she separated in the middle, and the two ends went down; in twenty seconds, nothing was to be seen of her except floating fragments; the pumps and foremast were blown out of her: the fore-topsail-yard was thrown up to the cross-trees; the forechain-plates, with their bolts, were torn from her sides; the mizen-chain-plates and shrouds, being stronger than those of the foremast, or the shock being more forward than aft, the mizenmast was broke off in two places; these discoveries were made by means of the pieces which were found afloat.

The experiment was of the most satisfactory kind, for it proved a fact much debated and denied, that the explosion of a sufficient quantity of powder under the bottom of a vessel would destroy her. There is no doubt left on any intelligent mind as to this most important of all facts connected with the invention of Torpedoes; and the establishment of this fact alone, merits the expenditure of millions of dollars and years of experiment, were it yet necessary, to arrive at a system of practice which shall insure success to attacks, with such formidable engines.

This fortunate experiment left not the least doubt on my mind that the one which I made in the harbour of New-York in August 1807, would be equally successful. The brig was

anchored, the Torpedoes prepared and put into the water in the manner before described; the tide drove them under the brig near her keel, but in consequence of the locks turning downwards, the powder fell out of the pans and they both missed fire. This discovery of an error in the manner of fixing the locks to a Torpedo, has been corrected. On the second attempt, the Torpedo missed the brig; the explosion took place about one hundred yards from her, and threw up a column of water ten feet diameter sixty or seventy feet high. On the third attempt she was blown up; the effect and result much the same as that of the Dorothea before described. About two thousand persons were witnesses to this experiment. Thus, in the course of my essays, two brigs, each of two hundred tons, have been blown up. The practicability of destroying vessels by this means, has been fully proved. It is also proved, that the mechanism will ignite powder at any required depth under water within a given time. It now remains to point out means by which Torpedoes may be used to advantage with the least possible risk to the assailants.

INDIAN PROPHET.

It appears that a new prophet has arisen among the western Indians, which is another evidence that the aborigines of this country descended from the ancient Jews, as that nation were remarkably given to prophecying. It is well known that nine tribes and a half of that chosen people are lost; and it has been conjectured by the learned, that they found their way to this continent. Be that as it may, this prophet holds a language very similar to that which this moral and exemplary people used whilst under a theocratic government. The only difference is, that he is directed by the Kitchi Okemaw, or Great Spirit, and they

were under the immediate influence or command of Jehovah the Divinity, who particularly presided over their nation. The Jehovah of the Jews is the same as the Mars of the Romans, and means the God of War; the Jews, therefore, may plead some excuse for the bloody and unchristian wars which they waged, in his name, against peaceable and unoffending nations. But as there is nothing in the name Kitchi Okemaw that conveys the idea of devastation and war, it is supposed that the malign spirit that rules over the destinies of the English nation has a secret influence in this business. For, notwithstanding their pretensions to the christian virtues, they are now, and ever have been, governed more by the spirit of Jewism than Christianity.

From the Vincennes Paper.

Mr. Dubois, who was sent by the governor on a mission to the prophet, returned on the 3d of July. He was received by the prophet in a friendly manner; and he denied most positively any hostile intention against the United States. He was asked why he had been brought from the lakes, and why he had re. jected the salt, and ill-treated the men who carried it. To the first question he answered, that he had been directed by the Great Spirit to assemble all the Indians that he could collect, and that he would continue to do so. To the question relative to the salt, he would return no answer.

Mr. Dubois had some private conversation with some old friends of his, whom he met at the prophet's town, and from. whom he learnt that the prophet had been preparing for war for a long time, but they could not tell whether it was against the United States or the Osage nation.

We understand the governor has received a communication from the Indian agent at Fort Wayne, in which all the circumstances of the combination against the United States are particu larly detailed, and exactly correspond with what we had heard through other channels.

ANECDOTE.

Dean Swift having preached an assize sermon in Ireland, was afterwards invited to dine with the judges; and having in his discourse considered the use and abuse of the law, he had bore a little hard upon those counsellors who plead causes which they know in their conscience to be wrong: when the dinner was over, and the glass began to go round, a young barrister, who happened to be present, took occasion to retort upon the Dean; and after some altercation on both sides, the counsellor at length asked him, "If the devil were to die whether a parson might not be found for money to preach his funeral sermon ?" "Yes," said Swift," and I would gladly be the man; for I would then give. the devil his due, as I have this day his children."

PORTRAIT

Of the illustrious Fenelon, author of Telemachus.

At once the man of fashion and the saint of the court, Fenelon was every where wished for, and he never showed himself but to some chosen and useful friends. He united all the sprightliness, all the complaisance, that the intercourse with women requires, with all the modesty and reserve, proper to his profession. Unassuming with Burgoyne, sublime with Bossuet, brilliant with the courtiers, of graceful manners, a lively imagination, an affectionate theology, passionately fond of virtue-the fire of his eyes announced the most unconquerable passions, and his conduct the most astonishing victory. Amiable genius! he excited a love of virtue by his eloBorn to cultivate quence, full of grace, mildness, nobleness, truth and taste. wisdom and humanity in king's, he made the throne resound with the miseries of the human race, trodden under feet by tyrants; and the abandoned cause of the people found an advocate superior to the arts of flattery!What goodness of heart!-what sincerity!-what a splendour of words and images? Who ever strewed so many flowers in a style so natural, so melodious and so tender!-Who ever ornamented reason in so captivating a dress?

CHRISTIAN MORALITY.

William Smith, a free black, steward of the packet Sea-Island, between this port [New-York] and Savannab, has been convicted of inveigling out of the State of Georgia a negro wench and child, and sentenced to be hanged. We have not heard of any punishment inflicted by our Georgia brethren on their citizens who inveigled the blacks from Africa, though they brought them away into slavery, while poor Bill Smith only attempted to introduce them into liberty. And supposing Bill to have stolen them, the humane legislature had no idea that a "second thief had the best right."

The captain of a trading vessel, having contraband goods on board, which he wished to land, says to an exciseman or wharfinger, whom he knew; "If I were to put a half crown piece upon each of your eyes, could you see? The answer was, "No-and if I had another upon my mouth, I could not speak."

No. 6.

❝Slave to no sect, who takes no private road,

"But looks through Nature`up to Nature's God."-POPE.

LETTER IV.

ON MORAL EVILS.

BY SOAME JENYNS.

[Continued from page 171.]

[The more we peruse the work of Mr. JENYNS, on the Nature and Origin of Evil, the more are we convinced that he wrote under restraint; the reasons for which, as before observed, are obvious. His attempts to avoid the charge of infidelity put us in mind of the ingenious Voltaire, who, by his writings, has done perhaps more than any other man to eradicate superstition, and its baneful consequences, intolerance and persecution; he concludes his chapter on Grace in the following ironical style, "These are Marcus Aurelius's words, not mine; for God, who inspires you (Priests) has given me Grace to believe all you say, all you have said, and all you shall say " So Mr. Jenyns, after stating his opinion of revelation in the most unqualified terms, that it is impossible we can be certain of its divine authority even by a personal communication with its first author, much less thro' the fallacious mediums of tradition or history, adds in a note, nothing here offered is meant by any means to invalidate the authority of revelation.