Chapter XX: Part 20

1798. The French troops took possession of the fortifications of Malta, and the fleet anchored in the ports. They found two line of battle ships belonging to the Maltese, a frigate, three galleys, two galliots, and several guard boats; 1500 pieces of artillery, 35,000 stand of small arms, 12,000 barrels of powder, and a large quantity of shot and shell. The order of knights from this day became virtually extinct; from a position of political importance it fell to the level of an obscure association, and such, as far as human foresight goes, it is destined to remain.

1798. The Irish rebels defeated with great slaughter at Ballynahinch by general Nugent. This quelled the insurrection in the north.

1799. A division of the French army, under Olivier, took Modena, and drove the Austrians beyond the river Po.

1805. American ship Atahualpa, captain Porter, treacherously attacked by the Indians while bartering for skins in Sturgis's cove. Captain Porter and 8 of the crew were killed, and 11 wounded.

1812. Putnam county in New York erected.

1813. Major CHAPIN and other American prisoners taken at the head of the lake, and sent in boats for Kingston, when arrived near York rose upon the guard, and after a short struggle took the boats and returned to Niagara.

1816. PIERRE FRANCOIS CHARLES AUGEREAU, duke of Castiglione and marshal of France, died. He was the son of a fruit merchant, and served as a carabineer in the French army. He first distinguished himself in 1794, after which his career for a number of years was brilliant, and full of honor and glory.

1829. A large body of Turkish cavalry and infantry defeated near Kuganoff, and 600 killed.

1843. HENRY R. CLEVELAND, aged 34, died at St. Louis, Mo. He was an elegant and graceful writer, and the author of the well written life of Henry Hudson, in Sparks' Biography.

1843. SAMUEL KIDD, professor of oriental and Chinese literature in University college, London, died, aged 42.

1846. More than 6000 persons driven from their houses by a disastrous fire in St. Johns, Newfoundland.

1848. GEORGE POZER, a wealthy merchant of Quebec, died, aged 95.

1848. Insurrection at Prague; the princess of Windichgratz shot by the insurgents.

JUNE 13.

1483. ANTHONY WIDVILLE, earl Rivers, beheaded at Pontefract.

1502. OLIVER MAILLARD, a French divine of the order of Cordeliers, died. He was an eminent preacher, and published several volumes of Latin sermons.

1584. JOHN SAMBUCUS, a learned German physician, died. His learning attracted the attention of the emperor Maximilian II, and he was appointed counselor of state and historiographer of the German empire. He wrote several learned and useful works.

1605. Riot at Moscow, when Fedor Godonoff, the reigning czar, who had been but two months on the throne, was dragged with his family from the palace, and shut up in one of his own private houses, where he was murdered a few days after.

1633. Lord Baltimore obtained a grant for a tract of land in America, now the state of Maryland, which was first settled by a colony of catholics.

1666. Second charter granted to South Carolina by Charles II. It was an enlargement of the previous charter, making the colony independent of any other province.

1678. HENRY SCOUGAL, an eminent Scottish divine, died, aged 28. His great exertions to sustain himself as a professor of theology at St. Andrews, and as a preacher, threw him into a consumption, and he died greatly lamented.

1710. Second great immigration of Palatines.

1721. A treaty concluded at Madrid with Great Britain. The ships employed for the traffic of negroes by the Royal company of Great Britain, were to be admitted, without hindrance, to trade freely.

1757. Decree of pope Benedict XIV, prohibiting the use of any version of the Bible in the common language.

1767. JAMES WORSDALE died; an English painter and dramatic writer.

1769. Corsica seized by the French. General Paoli fled, and embarked at Corsica for England, where he remained until 1790.

1770. WOODFALL, the publisher of the _Letters of Junius_, was prosecuted and found by the jury guilty of printing and publishing only, which was tantamount to an acquittal.

1777. WILLIAM BATTIE died; an eminent English physician and medical writer.

1780. Major-general Gates ordered by congress to take command of the southern department.

1780. A society formed in Philadelphia, under the name of the American daughters of liberty, for the purpose of supplying the soldiery with clothing. The city was divided into 10 districts, and four appointed to each district to solicit subscriptions. Their donations amounted to 2030 shirts, and they obtained 77 shirts and 380 pairs of stockings from New Jersey.

1788. GEORGE LUKINS dispossessed of seven devils by the same number of clergymen, in the Temple church, Bristol, England.

1794. Battle of Ghent; the Austrians defeated by the French.

1794. Violent earthquake and eruption of Mt. Vesuvius, which did much damage.

1796. Action between British ship Dryad, lord Beauclerc, and French frigate La Proserpine, 45 guns; which last was captured in 44 minutes, with the loss of 30 killed, 45 wounded. British loss 2 killed, 7 wounded.

1797. SIMON ANDREW TISSOT, a celebrated Swiss physician, died. He was the advocate of experimental rather than theoretical systems of medicine, and early adopted the practice of inoculation. His fame was not confined to his own country.

1810. BONAPARTE prohibited the exportation of grain.

1813. Battle of Carcagenta, in Valencia; the Spaniards under general Elio attacked the French, and were defeated with the loss of 1500 men, of whom 700 were taken prisoners.

1817. RICHARD LOVELL EDGEWORTH, an English philanthropist and practical philosopher, died. He invented the telegraph, which was generally adopted during his lifetime. He spent a great part of his life in improving and experimenting on various instruments used in agriculture and the arts.

1833. JAMES ANDREW died; principal of the East India company's seminary at Addiscombe, and author of a Hebrew grammar and dictionary.

1843. CHARLES STERNS WHEELER, of Massachusetts, a good scholar, died at Leipsic, Germany, aged 23.

1848. PIERRE VAN CORTLAND died, aged 86; a gentleman who filled many important public stations, civil and military, in the state of New York.

1848. GAMALIEL S. OLDS, a distinguished American scholar, died at Circleville, Ohio, aged 71.

1855. The anti-slavery branch of the American party, called the Know-somethings, assembled in convention at Cincinnati.

1857. Whirlwinds occurred in several parts of the state of New York, and in other states. This was the day in which the astrologers of Europe had predicted the destruction of the earth by a comet, and much alarm existed even in this country, insomuch that deaths actually occurred from fear. The village of Pania, Ill., was wholly destroyed.

JUNE 14.

510 B. C. The Roman republic established and the first consuls elected, according to the Capitoline marbles. This noble political fabric subsisted for a period of 462 years, until the battle of Pharsalia.

1631. FRANCIS GARASSE, a French Jesuit, died. As a preacher he was eloquent and popular, but his writings were gross, and kindled a violent feud between his order and the Jansenists. He lost his life by attending the sick during the pestilence at Poictiers.

1636. HUMPHREY LYNDE, an English author, died. He wrote various books against popery, one of which was translated into several languages, and often reprinted.

1636. JOHN CAYLARD DE ST. BONET, marquis de Toiras, a French general, killed before the fortress of Fontanette, in Italy. His services were important to his country, but he was nevertheless disgraced by Richelieu, and found in Italy a just respect for his abilities and merits.

1637. BURTON, a clergyman, BASTWICK, a physician, and PRYNNE, yet a prisoner in the Tower, ordered to be pilloried, lose their ears, and be fined £5,000 each, for a libel on the government of Charles I of England.

1645. Battle of Naseby, in which the forces of Cromwell obtained a bloody victory over the army of Charles I, under prince Rupert, and obliged him to retire into Wales.

1654. Battle of Dunes; the French defeated the Spaniards under prince de Conde and don John of Austria.

1662. HENRY VANE, an English statesman, beheaded. He was vascilating in his politics, and characterized as a dangerous man.

1683. The Rye house plot to assassinate king Charles II of England, discovered by Joseph Keeling.

1704. RALPH BATHURST, an English physician, divine and Latin poet, died. He was a man of great erudition.

1710. Gen. HUNTER arrived at New York from England in the capacity of governor of the province, bringing with him 3000 Palatines, who formed a Lutheran church in New York.

1723. CLAUDE FLEURY, a French advocate, died, aged 82, greatly respected for his learning and virtues. His works are numerous and valuable.

1743. JAMES VILLOTTE, a French Jesuit, died. He traveled in Armenia, and published commentaries on the gospels.

1746. COLIN MACLAURIN, an eminent Scottish mathematician and philosopher, died. His writings are very numerous, and highly valuable for the purposes of navigation and geography.

1754. A convention was held at Albany, for the purpose of concluding a treaty with the Six Nations. It was attended by about 150 Indians.

1756. PROSPER MARCHAND, a French author, died in Holland, at a great age. He left France on account of religious views, and published a _Journal Litéraire_. He also wrote a history of printing, and published a new edition of Bayle's _Dictionnaire_.

1769. The general court of Massachusetts having remonstrated to governor Hutchinson against their place of meeting being surrounded with an armed force, and Boston being invested by sea and land, he adjourned the court to Cambridge.

1776. Americans evacuated Sorel, in Canada, and the British under Gen. Burgoyne entered it.

1776. The Americans cannonaded the British fleet from Moon and Long islands, and compelled it to leave the bay and open the intercourse with Boston.

1777. Congress resolved that their flag should consist of 13 stripes alternate red and white; that the union be 13 stars, white on a blue field, representing a new constellation.

1787. ABDULWAHLAB, an Arabian reformer, and founder of the Wahabbites, died, aged 95. He founded a temporal empire, which ceased A. D. 1818, but his religious doctrines are still cherished.

1792. Battle of Lubar on the river Sluez, in which the Polish cavalry under Joseph Poniatowski defeated the Russians.

1792. A plot was discovered in London to blow up the King's bench prison.

1792. The stockholders of the Hartford bank held their first meeting for the choice of directors. John Caldwell was the first president. This was the first bank in Connecticut.

1799. The French, commanded by Gen. Macdonald, on the Trebia, were defeated with immense loss by Suwarrow.

1800. JEAN BAPTIST KLEBER, commander in chief of the French army in Egypt, assassinated while walking in his garden, by a Turk named Souliman. He had conquered the country and was forming plans for its peaceful government and improvement.

1800. Battle of Marengo, in Italy; Bonaparte defeated the Austrians, who lost 1700 killed and prisoners. The French acknowledged the loss of 500 killed and wounded.

1800. LEWIS CHARLES ANTHONY DESSAIX, a distinguished French general, killed at the battle of Marengo. He arrived on the field of battle with a fresh battalion at a moment that decided the victory for the French, but received a shot in the breast, of which he instantly died.

1801. BENEDICT ARNOLD, the traitor, died in England. He was a brave officer in the American service, from the commencement of the war of the revolution; but some imprudent conduct subjected him to a reprimand from the commander-in-chief, after which he sought an opportunity to desert. He joined the British army, and committed great cruelties upon his countrymen during the remainder of the war.

1807. Battle of Friedland, in ancient Prussia; the Russians and Prussians were defeated, with the loss of 17,500 men and 80 cannon, by the French under Bonaparte. The battle commenced at 10 in the morning, and the Russians withstood the superior force of the French till nearly 5 in the afternoon; when Bonaparte, putting himself at the head of the army, commanded a general assault, which was executed with overpowering effect. Benningsen was compelled to retreat, destroying the bridge behind him.

1829. Battle of the defile of Pozzoy; the Turkish troops, 15,000, entirely defeated, and their camp taken by storm by the Russians.

1833. ABRAHAM BOGARD died in the poor-house, Maury county, Tennessee, aged 118; a native of the state of Delaware.

1846. Nearly 50 persons killed by the burning of the theatre at Quebec.

1848. A revolt at Hayti, and a tumult at Berlin.

1851. THOMAS MOULE died in London, aged 67; a well known writer to the extent of many volumes on topographic and heraldic antiquities.

1854. A great fire occurred at Worcester, Mass., destroying property valued at half a million of dollars, and throwing a thousand mechanics out of work.

1856. Mr. MARCY, secretary of state, formally notified the Danish minister that the United States would not make forcible resistance to the collection of the Sound dues for a year from this day.

JUNE 15.

1381. WAT TYLER treacherously killed at Blackheath, where he had assembled the malcontents in great numbers, and the insurrection was suppressed.

1467. PHILIP (_the good_), duke of Burgundy, died. His life was spent in war; and the title which he acquired seems to have been forfeited by his last act, the burning of the town of Dinan, which he was carried on his bed to witness, at the age of 72.

1520. MARTIN LUTHER excommunicated by Leo X.

1530. CHARLES V made a public entry into Augsburg, where the members of the diet had assembled. The famous decree, called the _Confession of Augsburg_, drawn up by Melancthon, was then read.

1560. The massy spire of St. Paul's church, London, was burned down by lightning.

1568. GILES CORROZET died at Paris; a French bookseller, and author of several works of merit.

1643. ABEL JANSEN TASMAN, the Dutch navigator, arrived at Batavia, after having sailed round the southern side of the globe. He started in September, 1642, and discovered Van Dieman's land and the island of New Zealand, which he called Staten island.

1735. RENE AUBERT DE VERTOT D'AUBŒUF, an elegant French historical writer, died, aged 80. He united the virtues of private life to great intelligence, deep penetration, and an elegant taste.

1744. ANSON arrived at Spithead, after a voyage of three years and nine months round the world. The treasures of the famous Acapulco galleon were conveyed to London in 32 wagons, and the booty divided among those brave men who had shared his glory and toils.

1746. Battle of Placentia, between the allies and Spaniards.

1749. The fleet of sir Edward Cornwallis, having on board over 3000 British colonists, dropped anchor in the spacious harbor of Halifax, Nova Scotia.

1756. The nabob of SURAJAH DOWLA invested Calcutta at the head of 70,000 horse and foot, and 400 elephants.

1768. JAMES SHORT, a celebrated Scottish optician, died. He was of humble origin, but became a noted and wealthy man. His telescopes were long surpassed only by those of Herschel.

1768. The commissioners of the customs at Boston requested Gen. Gage to support them in the execution of their office with a military force.

1775. WASHINGTON appointed commander in chief of the American army.

1776. The legislature of New Hampshire voted unanimously that their delegates in congress should join with the other delegates in declaring the 13 united colonies a free and independent state.

1776. The British under sir Henry Clinton attacked Sullivan's island, and were repulsed by Gen. Lee.

1785. PILATRE DE ROSIER, a French æronaut, killed. He was attempting to cross the English channel from Boulogne; but the balloon took fire soon after its ascent, and he was precipitated to the earth.

1794. A memorable eruption of mount Vesuvius.

1811. A marine volcano burst through the sea in 40 fathoms of water, at the west end of St. Michaels, one of the Azores, about three miles from land.

1815. Battle of Fleury, in which Bonaparte with 150,000 men, attacked the Prussians and English of 200,000, and drove them back, and the next day defeated them at Ligny.

1826. The sultan of Turkey defeated and abolished the ancient corps of Janizaries. This military body, consisting of trained captives, was first instituted by the third Amurath, in 1362.

1836. Arkansas admitted into the Union.

1840. FRANCIS BEAUGUARD died at Grey Nun's hospital, Montreal, aged nearly 108.

1841. The town of Praia, in the island of Terceira, completely destroyed by an earthquake. Much damage was also done to other places in the island by a series of earthquakes.

1844. THOMAS CAMPBELL, a distinguished British poet, author of the _Pleasures of Hope_, died at Boulogne, in a state of imbecility, aged 67.

1852. Queen VICTORIA issued a proclamation against "Roman catholic ecclesiastics wearing the habits of their order, exercising the rites and ceremonies of the Roman catholic religion in highways and places of public resort."

1852. ROGER JONES, an American military officer of distinction, died at Washington. He commenced his military career in 1809, and as a lieutenant of marines, and served in the war of 1812. His zeal and activity in the arduous campaigns on the Niagara frontier, and his distinguished gallantry as a major of the staff in the memorable conflicts of Chippewa, Lundy's Lane, and the sortie of fort Erie, won for him universal respect and admiration, and the marked approbation of the government.

1854. JAMES KENDLE BROWNE died in Mark lane, London, aged 82; the father of the corn exchange.

1856. JOHN DICKS ECCLES, an eminent North Carolina lawyer and orator, died at Fayetteville, aged 64.

1857. The citizens of Halifax, Nova Scotia, celebrated the 108th anniversary of the settlement of that place.

JUNE 16.

632. The Persian era began, recording the fall of the Sassanian dynasty, and the religion of Zoroaster. This famous era, as amended by the sultan Geluleddin, is now in use by the parsees of India.

1381. JOHN BALL, in order to be chancellor under Wat Tyler, gave his followers a sermon.

1487. Battle of Stoke, England. Lambert Simnel, who had been crowned in Ireland, received the king's pardon, and was made a scullion in the royal kitchen.

1575. ADRIAN JUNIUS, a learned Dutch author, died; he is quoted by the people of Harlem to establish the right of Lawrence Coster to the honor of being the inventor of printing in that city, about 1430.

1658. EDWARD CAPELLUS, a learned French protestant divine, died. He was engaged in a long and learned controversy concerning the antiquity of the Hebrew points, his adversary maintaining that they were coeval with the language, while he showed that they were unknown before the dispersion of the Jews, and were invented about 600 years after Christ. He was engaged 36 years on the _Critica Sacra_, a work of prodigious labor and great merit.

1666. RICHARD FANSHAWE, an English statesman, died. He was actively engaged in political affairs, yet found time to produce several works of much credit.

1719. LEWIS ELLIS DUPIN, a learned French critic, died. He devoted himself to a biographical dictionary of ecclesiastical authors, which was brought down to the end of the 16th century, and has been translated into English. His works are numerous.

1722. JOHN CHURCHILL, the renowned duke of Marlborough, died. He stands unrivaled among the British generals, and during several years gained a series of the most splendid victories. It has been said that he gained every battle which he fought, and took every town which he besieged.

1743. Battle of Dettingen, in which the French suffered a severe defeat, losing 6000 men; the allies, under George II, 1000.

1752. JOSEPH BUTLER, an eminent prelate and theological writer, died. He is celebrated as the author of the _Analogy of Religion_.

1755. Fort Beausejour, in Nova Scotia, surrendered to the British, the French garrison being permitted to march out with the honors of war.

1760. At Glen, in Leicestershire, England, the populace threw two old women into the water to try by their sinking or swimming whether or not they were witches.

1772. The banking house of Neal and Fordyce, in London, failed, and it was counted an extraordinary feat to carry the intelligence to Edinburgh, a distance of 425 miles, in 43 hours.

1777. JOHN BAPTIST LOUIS GRESSET, a celebrated French poet, died. His poems were elegant, lively and interesting, and obtained for him, among other honors, letters of nobility.

1779. Manifesto presented to the British court, announcing that Spain had taken decided part with France and America against Great Britain.

1789. The states general of France formed themselves into the national assembly.

1793. Unsuccessful attack of the British on Martinique.

1794. Battle of Josselies; the hereditary prince of Orange attacked and defeated the French, who lost 7000 men and 22 cannon, and were compelled to retreat across the Sambre.

1806. Total eclipse of the sun at Philadelphia and other cities in the United States.

1808. JOSEPH BONAPARTE proclaimed king of Spain. "Your princes," said Napoleon, "have ceded to me their rights to the crown of Spain. Your nation is old; my mission is to restore its youth."

1810. LEWIS AUGUSTUS PHILIP AFFRAY, first magistrate of Switzerland under Napoleon, died. He was in early life an officer in the Swiss army; and when elevated to civil office, he conducted with the ability, the intelligence and the experience of a thorough statesman.

1812. BONAPARTE joined his great army on the Vistula, destined to invade Moscow.

1813. Action off Presque isle, between the United States schooner, Lady of the Lake, lieut. Chauncey, and the British schooner, Lady Murray, laden with provisions and ammunition, for York, Canada, which was captured.

1814. The editors of the _Gazette Universal_ having said something about the constitution of the Cortes, were condemned by their monarch, Ferdinand VII, to the galleys.

1815. BONAPARTE attacked the Prussian posts of Sombref, St. Amand and Ligny, under prince Blucher. The contest was very severe, and the Prussian loss very great; they notwithstanding kept their position until after night, when they retreated upon Wavre. Blucher had a horse killed under him, and narrowly escaped with his life. Ligny was taken and retaken several times. At the same time Bonaparte attacked the British troops under Wellington, at Quartre Bras, and compelled him to fall back upon Gemappe. The loss of the allies was very severe.

1818. The village of Bagnes, in Switzerland, overwhelmed by the giving away of an ice barrier.

1818. Irruption of lake Mauvoisin, in the Alps, occasioned by the bursting of its icy mound, by which six hundred millions cubic feet of water were in an instant let loose upon the beautiful valley of the Drana, carrying before its overwhelming torrent every vestige of civilized life which stood within its reach.

1819. An earthquake near Poonah, in the East Indies, swallowed up a large district and more than 2000 persons.

1821. JOHN BALLANTYNE, the confidential printer of sir Walter Scott's Waverly novels, died at Edinburgh. He also established the _Kelso Mail_, a respectable provincial paper, yet in existence.

1830. An eruption of mount Etna, which destroyed eight villages, and buried many of the inhabitants under the ruins of their houses.

1831. The president of Hayti ordered all the French white inhabitants to leave the island before the 15th July.

1843. Died at Boston, whither he had accompanied president Tyler to attend the Bunker Hill celebration, HUGH S. LEGARE, a distinguished American statesman.

1843. Count WITTGENSTEIN, the Russian field marshal, who distinguished himself in the wars with Napoleon, died at St. Petersburg, aged 87.

1851. TOM JOHNSON, a Norwegian, died at the Naval asylum, Philadelphia, aged 100; the last survivor of the gallant crew who fought with Paul Jones, in the desperate conflict with the Serapis in 1799.

1852. The sultan of Turkey issued a firman granting new rights and privileges to his Christian subjects.

1854. The siege of Silistria raised; the Turks made a sortie, causing a complete defeat of the Russians, forcing them to recross the Danube in all haste, took several standards and a great quantity of baggage, and killed or severely wounded five Russian generals.

1857. A riot took place in the city of New York, occasioned by a dispute about the public offices, there having been two sets appointed by different authorities. Mayor Wood was arrested for assault and battery.

JUNE 17.

431 B. C. The dictator TUBERTUS POSTHUMUS gained a victory over the Æqui and Volsci, inconsiderable but noxious enemies of the commonwealth.

1081. ROBERT GUISCARD opened the famous siege of Durazzo, now in European Turkey, on the gulf of Venice.

1272. An attempt made to assassinate Edward I of England in his tent at Acre, by a messenger of the emir of Joppa. He received the blow on his arm, grappled with the assassin, and throwing him on the ground despatched him with his own dagger. The life of the prince was saved by his wife, who sucked the poison from the wound.

1458. ALFONSO V, of Arragon (_the magnanimous_), died. He made himself master of Naples and Sicily; aside from his exploits as a warrior, he was a learned man and the patron of learning, and the father of his people.

1614. WILLIAM BATHE, an Irish Jesuit, died. He was rector of an Irish school at Salamanca, and a writer on music and divinity.

1639. The king and his Scottish subjects met at Dunse, in Scotland, and agreed that matters ecclesiastical should be decided by an assembly, civil matters by parliament.

1658. Dunkirk surrendered to the French, and by them put into the hands of the English.

1673. Father MARQUETTE, and JOLIET a citizen of Quebec, employed by M. Talon for the discovery of the Mississippi, entered that noble river. They descended to within three days' journey of the gulf of Mexico.

1685. The unfortunate duke of Argyle taken in a morass.

1696. JOHN SOBIESKI, king of Poland, died. He distinguished himself on many occasions in the Polish wars but the greatest of his exploits was the raising of the siege of Vienna, by which Europe was saved from the calamities consequent upon an irruption of the Turks.

1719. JOSEPH ADDISON, editor of the _Spectator_, died. He was the ornament of his age and country, and his writings will long continue to be read and admired.

1734. LOUIS HECTOR VILLARS, peer of France, died, aged 82. He early adopted the profession of arms, and distinguished himself through a long life as a brave and efficient officer.

1740. WILLIAM WYNDHAM, an eminent English statesman, died. His abilities led to his promotion to the highest offices in the state.

1745. Louisbourg, cape Breton, taken from the French by the British and Massachusetts forces, under governor Shirley and admiral sir Peter Warren.

1761. The first English "navigation canal" opened, extending from Worsley to Manchester, 18 miles. It originated with Scroope, duke of Bridgewater.

1775. Battle of Bunker's hill, and burning of Charlestown by the British. The Americans were defeated with the loss of 453 killed, wounded and missing. The killed, and those who died of their wounds were 139, including general Warren. British loss, 1,054, of whom 226 were killed, and among them colonel Abercromby and major Pitcairn, who occasioned the first shedding of blood at Lexington.

1776. British transports, George and Arabella, captured in Boston bay by six American privateers. Among the prisoners taken was the honorable Archibald Campbell, and 271 Highlanders.

1780. Bank opened in Philadelphia for supplying the army with provisions, and £189,000 subscribed, payable in gold and silver.

1788. Convention at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., to consider the federal constitution.

1789. The tiers etat, of France, were joined by the whole body of inferior clergy with some nobles. They constituted themselves into a legislative body, and took the name of national assembly.

1791. SELINA, countess of Huntington, died. From habits of gaiety and dissipation, she became suddenly grave and pious, and was distinguished by very extensive charities.

1792. Battle of Zielime, in which the Polish army was defeated by a superior force of Russians. The action lasted from 7 in the morning till 5 in the evening. Loss of the Russians 4,000; that of the Poles 1,100.

1794. Ypres, in Belgium, surrendered to the French under Moreau. Four battalions of Austrians, 6 of Hessians, 2 of Baden, 200 horse chasseurs, 150 Austrian cannoniers, were taken prisoners, with 140 cannon.

1799. First day's battle of the Trebia, between the French under Macdonald, and the Russians and Austrians under Suwarrow. The French were compelled to fall back.

1807. Konigsberg, the capital of Prussia proper, taken by the French under Soult. Immense stores, with nearly 300 loaded vessels, 160,000 stand of arms, &c., were taken.

1810. JAMES CHALMERS, printer to the city and university of Aberdeen, and proprietor of the _Aberdeen Journal_, died.

1812. The _Decameron_ of Boccacio, a single volume small folio, printed in 1471, sold at the sale of the duke of Roxburgh's library to the marquis of Blandford, for £2,260.

1814. HENRY TRESHAM died; an Irish poet and painter of merit.

1815. The allied army under Wellington fell back on Waterloo, and Blucher to Wavre. The earl of Uxbridge made a brilliant charge of cavalry at Gemappe.

1815. British order in council, forbidding the Americans to use the British territories for purposes connected with the Newfoundland fisheries.

1825. Corner stone of Bunker hill monument laid with great and enthusiastic ceremonies; Lafayette being present.

1839. WILLIAM BENTINCK, an English statesman, died. He had sustained many high public offices, was a general in the army, and ten years governor-general of India.

1850. The steamer Griffith on lake Erie was burnt and 300 lives lost.

1852. THOMAS BUFFUM died, aged 75; an active man in the political history of Rhode Island, who had filled with credit many offices of honor and trust.

1852. JOHN TRIMBLE, a Kentucky judge, died, aged 69; having sustained the character of an able and upright man.

1852. WILLIAM KING, first governor of Maine, died, aged 84. He removed to Bath early in the present century, and his name is identified most intimately with all that relates to the separation from Massachusetts, and the adoption of the state constitution. He held various civil offices with ability and fidelity.

1852. The city of Sonora, in California, was nearly destroyed by fire.

1854. SEWARD BARCULO, a New York jurist of distinction, died, aged 50. He was chosen justice of the supreme court at the first judicial election held under the new state constitution.

1854. JOSIAH HOLBROOK, a distinguished advocate of popular education, died, aged 65. He was a native of Derby, Ct., and graduated at Yale college in 1810. He was very successful in diffusing among the young a love for the study of mineralogy and geology. He lost his life by accidently falling into Blackrock creek, near Lynchburg, Va., while on a geological excursion.

JUNE 18.

64. The conflagration of Rome, attributed by Nero to the Christians, which was the ostensible cause of the first persecution. (See 24th June.)

741. LEO III (_Isaurian_), emperor of Constantinople, died. He was the son of a cobbler, and disgraced the imperial dignity by acts of barbarity and tyranny. He was the enemy of learning and learned men, and set fire to the valuable library of his capital, by which 30,000 volumes were destroyed, besides many of the choicest paintings and medals.

1053. Battle of Civitella; the forces of the pope, Leo IX, routed by Robert Guiscard, the Norman.

1314. EDWARD II marched upon Scotland from Berwick, with his vast army.

1429. Battle of Patray, in France; the English under Talbot defeated by Joan of Arc, with the loss of 1,500 slain, and 1,000 taken. It was in this conflict that the notable sir John Falstaff, considering discretion to be the better part of valor, dropped his _thirsty lance_, and ran away.

1538. Truce for 10 years between Charles V of Germany, and Francis I of France. Hostilities were renewed three years after.

1580. The colony of Virginia discouraged with their losses and various misfortunes embarked for England.

1588. ROBERT CROWLEY, a scholar, preacher and printer, died. One of his principal works was in metre, entitled:

Pleasure and pain, heaven and hell,
Remember these four and all shall be well.

1602. The fort and store house built by Gosnold on Elizabeth island for a settlement, was abandoned in consequence of discontents arising among those who were to have remained in the country, and the whole company returned to England. The ruins of this ephemeral settlement were seen as late as 1797.

1616. THOMAS BILSON, a celebrated English divine, died. He was distinguished for his eloquence as a preacher, and his learning as a theological writer and controversialist. He was one of the two final correctors of the present translation of the Bible.

1621. The first duel in New England fought by two servants with sword and dagger, both of whom were wounded. For this outrage they were sentenced to lie 24 hours with their heads and feet tied together.

1633. CHARLES I, of England, crowned king of Scotland at Holyrood house, by the archbishop of St. Andrews.

1667. WILLIAM RAWLEY, an English divine, died. He was chaplain to Charles I and II, and also to Bacon, whose works he edited.

1675. Battle of Fehrbellin; the elector Frederick William, at the head of 6,000 cavalry, attacked the Swedish invading army under the celebrated Wrangel, and gained a complete victory.

1684. The English court of chancery gave judgment for the king against the governor and company of Massachusetts; their charter was declared forfeited, and their liberties were seized into the king's hands.

1697. RICHARD, earl of Bellomont, was appointed to succeed colonel Fletcher as governor of New York.

1718. An earthquake extended through several inland provinces of China, by which the gates and walls of cities were thrown down. The city of Yong-ning-tchin was entirely swallowed up, and several mountains were thrown over a plain to the distance of about two leagues.

1741. FRANCIS POURFOUR died; a French physician and skillful herbalist.

1749. AMBROSE PHILIPS, an English poet, died. He wrote also for the stage with some success, although his performances were ridiculed by Pope.

1756. Calcutta, in India, taken by Surajah Dowla: of 146 prisoners put into a dungeon called the "black hole," 123 were suffocated.

1756. Minorca surrendered to the French by the British general Blakeney. The British had taken it from the Spaniards in 1708.

1757. Battle of Kolin; the Prussians under Frederick II defeated by the Austrians under count Daun, with the loss of 8,000 killed and wounded. Frederick lost his battle through the rash bravery of one of his generals.

1764. Lighthouse at Sandyhook first put in operation.

1772. GERARD VAN SWIETEN, a Dutch physician, died. He settled in Vienna, where he became a distinguished practitioner, and his memory is still held in great veneration by the profession there.

1776. Gen. BURGOYNE entered St. Johns, Canada, the Americans having evacuated it, and burnt the fort and barracks.

1779. British West India island St. Vincent, surrendered to the French under Romain and d'Estaing.

1783. The volcano of Skaptar Jokul, in Iceland, which had recently become very active, poured out an immense amount of lava, which, taking a new direction, dammed up the streams, and caused great destruction of property and lives. After flowing several days it was precipitated down the cataract of Stapafoss, where it filled a profound abyss, which that great waterfall had been excavating for ages, and thence the fiery flood continued in its course.

1783. WASHINGTON announced to the governors of the several states his intended resignation of the command of the army.

1793. British frigate La Nymphe, capt. Pellew, captured French frigate Cleopatra, after an action of 55 minutes. French captain and about 60 of his men killed or wounded. The British loss 25 killed, 27 wounded. This was the first capture made after the declaration of war.

1795. Russian manifesto issued by gen. Thimothie Tutomlin, on taking possession of Russian Poland.

1799. Second day's battle of Trebia; French under Macdonald obliged to retire across the river by the Russians under Suwarrow.

1805. ARTHUR MURPHY, an English dramatic writer of eminence, died. Many of his plays still keep the stage. His translation of Tacitus is also in common use.

1811. RUTH PIERCE, the mother of sir Benjamin Thompson, count Rumford, died at Baldwin, Maine.

1812. United States declared war against England.

1815. Hostilities ceased between England and the United States throughout the world.

1815. Battle of Waterloo, in the Netherlands. The forces of the two armies are differently stated, but are supposed to have been about 75,000 each. The battle began about noon, and continued with great obstinacy till night, when the French were completely defeated with the loss of more than 30,000 men, 210 cannon, several military chests, and all Napoleon's baggage. The loss of the allies was probably upwards of 20,000. This great battle gave peace to Europe.

1823. WILLIAM COOMBE, a British author of considerable merit, died. He did not attach his name to his works.

1832. The duke of Wellington attacked by a mob in the streets of London--the anniversary of his victory at Waterloo.

1835. WILLIAM COBBETT, an English poetical and miscellaneous writer, died. He was a self-taught and self-made man, who for many years made a conspicuous figure in the politics of England, and was finally elected to parliament.

1841. The constitution of the newly constituted state of the isthmus of Panama publicly sworn to, and Dr. Thomas Herrara elected president.

1848. HENRY TOOLEY, a consistent member of the methodist episcopal church, the first masonic grand master in Mississippi, and a son not only but the father of temperance in Natchez, died there, aged 75.

1848. The city of Prague, which had revolted on the 12th, was bombarded and reduced to ruins.

1848. The Austrians defeated by the Piedmontese near Rivoli.

1848. Venice garrisoned by 13,000 Romans.

1848. Carlowitz bombarded.

1854. HENRIETTA SONTAG, one of first lyric artists of the day, died at Mexico, aged about 50.

1855. The allies made a combined attack upon the Malakoff and Redan towers, at Sebastopol, without success, and with a loss of 56 officers killed, 146 wounded and 17 prisoners; and 1,694 men killed or missing, and 2,690 wounded.

JUNE 19.

325. The first council of Nice began and continued to 25th August; present 318 bishops.

1215. JOHN, king of England, signed the famous magna charta, and the charter of the forests, in a meadow at Runnimede between Staines and Windsor. (See 29th.)

1312. PIERS GAVESTON, the favorite of Edward II, executed. In his elevation he was proud, overbearing and cruel, and the barons rose up against him, and accomplished his destruction.

1566. JAMES VI of Scotland and I of England, was born in a small room in Edinburgh castle.

1579. Maestricht, in Holland, taken by the Spaniards under the duke of Parma, after a siege of four months, during which about 8000 persons perished miserably. It was given up to pillage.

1619. The first assembly of Virginia met at Jamestown. The settlements had now become so numerous that 11 corporations appeared by their representatives to exercise the noblest function of freemen, the power of legislation.

1690. EZEKIEL HOPKINS, a learned English prelate died, aged 57.

1707. WILLIAM SHERLOCK, an eminent English divine, died, aged about 66; famous for his controversial works, in which he took sides against the dissenters, as also against Dr. South on the subject of the trinity.

1709. ISAAC PAPIN, a French divine, died. His views differed a hair from those of his sect, and persecution followed him from one country to another, till he finally took refuge with the catholics.

1715. NICHOLAS LEMERY, a French chemist, died, aged 70. He was ardently devoted to the science, and contributed much to spread a correct knowledge of it among the people by his lectures.

1720. JOHN MATTHEWS, aged about 18, was executed at Tyburn, for, while an apprentice, printing a political work.

1729. ROBERT KNELL, the compositor, and JOHN CLARK, the pressman, of _Mist's Journal_, were pilloried, but protected by their friends from being pelted by the mob.

1741. Admiral VERNON seized the castles of Carthagena, South America. The British were afterwards compelled to retire on account of pestilence.

1754. A convention of the states at Albany proposed a union for defence against the common enemy. Delegates were present from New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Maryland and New York.

1755. WILLIAM HAY died in England; remarkable for his deformity, on which he wrote an essay. He was a member of parliament, and an author of some merit.

1757. Action between British ship Experiment, 20 guns, 142 men, and French ship Telemaque, 26 guns, 460 men, in which the latter was captured with the loss of 125 killed, 110 wounded. It had been fitted out expressly to capture the Experiment, which had 12 killed, 36 wounded.

1781. Assault on fort Ninety-six, by the Americans under Gen. Greene, who were repulsed with the loss of 185. The Americans then abandoned the siege. British loss 85.

1783. HENRY LOYD, a military officer and writer, died. He was born in Wales, entered the service of Austria, and afterwards served in the armies of Prussia and Russia. On his return to England he produced several military works of great merit.

1786. NATHANIEL GREENE, an officer in the revolutionary army, died, aged 46. He was of quaker descent, born in Rhode Island. He distinguished himself at the battles of Trenton, Princeton, Germantown and Monmouth, and finally covered himself with glory at the battle of Eutaw Springs, which closed the war in South Carolina.

1794. French general DUMOURIER, arrived in London on his escape from the convention, but was ordered to depart the British dominions immediately.

1794. The Corsicans accepted their new constitution, and acknowledged George III their king.

1794. RICHARD HENRY LEE, a revolutionary patriot, died. He originated the first resistance to British oppression, and during the struggle continued to hold some important civil office, where his talents were conspicuous.

1798. BONAPARTE left Malta at the head of the French expedition which was destined for Egypt, leaving behind him 4,000 men under Gen. Vaubois, to regenerate the island after the pattern of the French republic.

1799. Third day's battle of Trebia. The French under Macdonald crossed the river and attacked the Austrians and Russians. But after an obstinate and bloody conflict they were compelled to fall back with a loss of 1700 killed and 500 prisoners.

1799. Five French frigates bound from Jaffa to Toulon, with 1340 men, were captured by a British squadron.

1800. Battle of Blenheim; the French under Moreau, after a short but obstinate action, defeated the Austrians under Gen. Starray, and obliged them to abandon Ulm and retire into Franconia.

1807. Naval action off Lemnos between the Russians and Turks, in which the latter were defeated with the loss of an 80 gun ship and two other ships of the line taken, and five burnt.

1808. Action off the Nase of Norway; the British sloop Seagull sunk by a Danish brig and several gun boats. Several of the Danes went down with her.

1809. Congress renewed the non-intercourse act.

1811. SAMUEL CHASE, a judge of the United States supreme court, died. He was a distinguished member of the congress of 1774.

1813. British landed from their shipping on lake Ontario, and destroyed the public stores at Sodus; they burnt several of the best houses and stores in the village.

1818. PATRICK BRYDONE, a Scottish traveler, died. He published a narrative of his travels in Sicily and Malta, which has been often republished.

1820. JOSEPH BANKS, an eminent English literary and philosophical writer, died. He made several voyages in pursuit of science, one of which was with captain Cook.

1821. Battle of Dragashan, in Turkey, between the Greeks and Turks. The Greeks were commanded by the brave Ypsilanti; but owing to the treachery of the Arnauts, who abandoned their posts, the Greeks were totally defeated, and the "sacred band" of the _hetaireia_, the flower of the Greek youth, were annihilated. This affair nearly proved fatal to the cause of the Greek revolution.

1829. JOHN CLEVES SYMMES, an American officer, died. He is to be remembered for the enthusiasm with which he maintained the theory that the earth was hollow, with an opening at each of the poles.

1830. Battle of Strouli, between 50,000 Algerines, Turks and Arabs, and 25,000 French under Gen. Bourmont, in which the former were defeated.

1853. RICHARD TAYLOR, second chief of the Cherokee nation, died at Tahleguah, Arkansas. He commanded under Gen. Jackson in the war against the Creek Indians.

JUNE 20.

404. The illustrious JOHN CHRYSOSTOM banished from his patriarchate to the remote and desolate town of Cucusus, among the ridges of mount Taurus, by a command of the empress Eudoxia. The day of this his final exile was marked by the conflagration of the cathedral, senate-house, and the adjacent buildings, and by the destruction of the incomparable statues of the Muses from the temple of Helicon.

840. LOUIS I (_Debonnaire_), king of France and emperor of the West, died. He had not sufficient ability to manage the conflicting interests of his large dominions, and was harrassed by the rebellion of his brothers and sons.

981. ADALBERT, bishop of Magdeburg, died. He converted the Sclavonians, and penetrated far into Pomerania as a Christian missionary.

1333. Battle of Halidon hill. The regent of Scotland, six earls, and many barons fell in the field; the fugitives were pursued by king Edward and a party of horse, and also by lord Darcy and his Irish auxiliaries. The slaughter is said to have exceeded that of any former defeat.

1472. King HENRY VI of England murdered in the Tower by order of the duke of Gloucester, afterwards Richard III, as is supposed.

1632. The patent of Maryland, designed for George Calvert, lord Baltimore, was on his decease, filled up to his son, Cecilius Calvert. When king Charles signed it, he gave to the new patent the name of Maryland in honor of his queen Henrietta Maria. Lord Baltimore held it of the crown of England as part of Windsor manor, paying yearly forever, two Indian arrows, which may now be seen at the castle.

1649. RICHARD BRANDON, the hereditary hangman, and the executioner of Charles I and the earl of Strafford, died in misery. He was interred the next day amidst execrations and vulgar insults, which he could not feel.

1698. The summit of Carguairazo, a burning mountain near Quito, 1800 feet high, crumbled together, so that nothing more than two enormous rocky horns of the crater's edge remained, and the country for nearly two square miles, was desolated with liquid tufa, and argillaceous mud, enclosing dead fishes.

1719. The Spaniards defeated the Imperialists at Franca-Villa in Sicily, with the loss of their general, Merci, and 4000 men.

1743. JOHN GEORGE KEYSLER, a German traveler and antiquary, died. On his visit to England he was admitted fellow of the Royal society, and deserved it by his explication of Stonehenge.

1743. Action near Manilla, between the British ship Centurion, lord Anson, and the Acapulco ship, the _Nostra Signora de Cabadonga_, 36 guns and 550 men, commanded by don Geronimo de Montoro, a Portuguese officer. The cutter was captured, with the loss of 67 killed, 84 wounded; British loss 2 killed, 17 wounded. The property on board this prize amounted to $1,500,000.

1747. NADIR SHAH, for some time monarch of Persia, was assassinated by his men, whom he had designed the next day to massacre.

1752. The trustees of Georgia, finding that the province languished under their care, and weary of the complaints of the people, surrendered their charter to the king.

1756. Calcutta taken by Surajah Dowla, and 145 Englishmen incarcerated in the _black hole_, including Holwell, the governor of Bengal; all of whom were suffocated but 23. (See June 18.)

1779. Battle of Stono-Ferry, in which the Americans under Gen. Lincoln were defeated, owing to the mismanagement of a part of the forces, who did not come up. Loss 146.

1781. CORNWALLIS evacuated Richmond, Virginia.

1787. CHARLES FREDERICK ABEL died; an eminent musician, whose performances attracted much attention in Europe.

1789. The national assembly of France having been refused admission into the usual place of meeting, assembled in the rain in a tennis court.

1790. Titles of nobility and feudal right abolished in France.

1791. LOUIS XVI and the royal family made their escape from Paris with the intention of proceeding to Germany, to avoid the disturbances which threatened the country.

1792. The assembly of the sans culottes appeared in Paris with their arms and colors.

1793. The negroes and mulattoes of cape Francois began an indiscriminate massacre of the whites. A company of 2000 men were sent on shore from the French fleet to arrest their depredations, but were compelled to embark again. (See 23.)

1794. FELIX VICQ D'AZIR, an eminent French physician and anatomist, died at Paris.

1798. JEREMY BELKNAP, a Boston divine, and historian of New Hampshire, died, aged 58. He also published two volumes of _American Biography_, a work which his death abridged.

1813. British made an attack on Oswego, but were repulsed by the militia under Col. Carr.

1815. That questionable monster, the sea-serpent, observed at Plymouth, Mass. Its extension above the surface of the water was supposed to be more than a hundred feet. The serpentine animal noticed in the Norway seas is of much larger proportions, with large blue eyes, "which looked like a couple of _bright pewter plates_."

1818. JOSEPH ADAMS, an eminent London physician and medical writer, died.

1819. The first steam vessel which crossed the Atlantic arrived at Liverpool.

1830. Battle between the French and Algerines, near Sidi Khalef; the latter were defeated.

1836. EDMUND JOSEPH DE SIEYES, a French statesman, died, aged 88. He long acted a conspicuous part in the affairs of France, but on the fall of Napoleon was banished, and some years previous to his death was reduced to a state of idiocy.

1837. WILLIAM IV of England, died, aged 72. His reign was brief, but was distinguished for various important measures of reform, and the abolition of colonial slavery.

1837. Michigan entered the United States confederacy.

1840. PIERRE CLAUDE FRANCOIS DAUNOU, peer of France, and eight years editor of the _Journal des Savants_, died at Paris, aged 79. He was a laborious writer, in which he was distinguished by his great learning and elegance of style.

1843. HENRY DOGGETT, an officer of the revolutionary army, died at New Haven, aged 86. He was the son of Naphtali Doggett, president of Yale college during the revolution, and was the oldest surviving graduate of the college.

1843. HUGH S. LEGARE, attorney-general of the United States, died at Boston, aged about 50. He was eminent for his acquirements as a scholar, his fine taste as a writer, and his learning and eloquence as a lawyer and advocate. He was acting secretary of state at the time of his death, and experience showed that he was amply fitted for the highest trusts, and adorned every station which he was called to fill.

1844. JOHN PINTARD died in New York, aged 87. He was one of the originators of the New York historical society, and of the Savings bank.

1848. PAREDES raised the standard of revolt in Mexico, assisted by padre Jurauta.----A portion of Washington's library, consisting of 450 bound volumes, and about 1000 pamphlets, presented to the Boston athenæum by the citizens.----A loan negotiated at Washington by the government, of sixteen million dollars, at a premium of half a million.

1852. WILLIAM BIDDLE SHEPARD, a noted lawyer and politician, died at Elizabeth City, N. C., aged 51. He distinguished himself, by his abilities, and was ten years in congress.

1854. GEORGE W. MARTIN, an efficient military officer, died at Tallahatchie, Missouri. He served in the war of 1812, and accompanied Gen. Jackson throughout the campaigns of three years, and in the Creek war.

1856. TANCRED FLORESTAN ROGER LOUIS GRIMALDI, prince of Monaco and duke of Valentinois, died at Paris. On the death of his brother in 1841 he became sovereign prince of Monaco, under the title of Florestan I.

JUNE 21.

545 B. C. THALES, a Grecian philosopher, died. He was the chief of the seven sages of Greece, and founder of the Ionic sect of philosophers. He divided the Grecian zodiac into seasons, and the year into 365 days.

1339. Battle of Laupen; the citizens of Bern, in Switzerland, defeated an army of 18,000 from its rival cities, headed by 700 of its own nobility and 1,200 knights, who were totally vanquished.

1377. EDWARD III, of England, died, aged 65, having reigned 51 years.

1529. Trial of CATHARINE, first queen of Henry VIII of England.

1529. JOHN SKELTON, an English poet, died. He wrote sonnets and satires, and was invested with the laureate.

1585. HENRY PERCY, the 8th earl of Northumberland (exclusive of Dudley), was found in the tower, dead, his breast pierced with three pistol bullets--alleged suicide, but supposed violence.

1596. Naval victory of the English over the Spaniards, at Cadiz, when the earl of Essex, in a fit of delight, threw his hat into the sea!

1611. HENRY HUDSON, having wintered in the bay which bears his name, and pursuing the object of his voyage, a north-west passage, a conspiracy broke out on this day among the ship's crew, when Hudson, his son, and five others, most of whom were sick and lame, were forced into the shallop, with a small quantity of meal, one gun and ammunition, two or three spars and an iron pot, and with the most savage inhumanity turned adrift. This is the last account of Hudson.