On the 29th of August, 1782, it was found necessary that the Royal
George, a line-of-battle ship of 108 guns, which had lately arrived at
Spithead from a cruise, should, previously to her going again to sea,
undergo the operation which seamen technically call a _Parliament heel_.
In such cases the ship is inclined in a certain degree on one side,
while the defects below the watermark on the other side are examined and
repaired. This mode of proceeding is, we believe, at the present day,
very commonly adopted where the defects to be repaired are not
extensive, or where (as was the case with the Royal George) it is
desirable to avoid the delay of going into dock. The operation is
usually performed in still weather and smooth water, and is attended
with so little difficulty and danger, that the officers and crew usually
remain on board, and neither the guns nor stores are removed.
The business was commenced on the Royal George early in the morning, a
gang of men from the Portsmouth Dock-yard coming on board to assist the
ship’s carpenters. It is said that, finding it necessary to strip off
more of the sheathing than had been intended, the men in their eagerness
to reach the defect in the ship’s bottom, were induced to _heel_ her too
much, when a sudden squall of wind threw her wholly on her side; and the
gun-ports being open, and the cannon rolling over to the depressed side,
the ship was unable to right herself, instantaneously filled with water,
and went to the bottom.
The fatal accident happened about ten o’clock in the morning; Admiral
Kempenfeldt was writing in his cabin, and the greater part of the people
were between decks. The ship, as is usually the case upon coming into
port, was crowded with people from the shore, particularly women, of
whom it is supposed there were not less than three hundred on board.
Amongst the sufferers were many of the wives and children of the petty
officers and seamen, who, knowing the ship was shortly to sail on a
distant and perilous service, eagerly embraced the opportunity of
visiting their husbands and fathers.
The Admiral, with many brave officers and most of those who were between
decks, perished; the greater number of the guard, and those who happened
to be on the upper deck, were saved by the boats of the fleet. About
seventy others were likewise saved. The exact number of persons on board
at the time could not be ascertained; but it was calculated that from
800 to 1000 were lost. Captain Waghorne, whose gallantry in the North
Sea battle, under Admiral Parker, had procured him the command of this
ship, was saved, though he was severely bruised and battered; but his
son, a lieutenant in the Royal George, perished. Such was the force of
the whirlpool, occasioned by the sudden plunge of so vast a body in the
water, that a victualler which lay alongside the Royal George was
swamped; and several small craft, at a considerable distance, were in
imminent danger.
Admiral Kempenfeldt, who was nearly 70 years of age, was peculiarly and
universally lamented. In point of general science and judgment, he was
one of the first naval officers of his time; and, particularly in the
art of manœuvring a fleet, he was considered by the commanders of that
day as unrivalled. His excellent qualities, as a man, are said to have
equalled his professional merits.
This melancholy occurrence has been recorded by the poet, Cowper, in the
following beautiful lines:--
Toll for the brave!
The brave, that are no more!
All sunk beneath the wave,
Fast by their native shore.
Eight hundred of the brave,
Whose courage well was tried,
Had made the vessel heel,
And laid her on her side.
A land-breeze shook the shrouds,
And she was overset;
Down went the Royal George,
With all her crew complete.
Toll for the brave!
Brave Kempenfeldt is gone;
His last sea-fight is fought;
His work of glory done.
It was not in the battle;
No tempest gave the shock;
She sprang no fatal leak;
She ran upon no rock.
His sword was in its sheath;
His fingers held the pen,
When Kempenfeldt went down,
With twice four hundred men.
Weigh the vessel up,
Once dreaded by our foes!
And mingle with our cup
The tear that England owes.
Her timbers yet are sound,
And she may float again,
Full charg’d with England’s thunder,
And plough the distant main.
But Kempenfeldt is gone,
His victories are o’er;
And he, and his eight hundred,
Shall plough the wave no more.
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_Strange Mode of curing a vicious Horse._--I have seen vicious horses in
Egypt cured of the habit of biting, by presenting to them, while in the
act of doing so, a leg of mutton just taken from the fire: the pain
which a horse feels in biting through the hot meat, causes it, after a
few lessons, to abandon the vicious habit.--_Burckhardt._
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The Bedouins never allow a horse, at the moment of his birth, to fall
upon the ground; they receive it in their arms, and so cherish it for
several hours, occupied in washing and stretching its tender limbs, and
caressing it as they would a baby. After this they place it on the
ground, and watch its feeble steps with particular attention,
prognosticating from that time the excellences or defects of their
future companion.--_Burckhardt._
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_Tremendous Earthquakes._--Earthquakes have caused many melancholy
changes in Calabria; and every thing bears testimony to the cruel
ravages occasioned by that of 1783. This frightful catastrophe, which
has altered the aspect of these countries in an inconceivable manner,
was preceded by the most appalling indications. Close, compact, and
immoveable mists seemed to hang heavily over the earth: in some places
the atmosphere appeared red hot, so that people expected it would every
moment burst out into flames: the water of the rivers assumed an ashy
and turbid colour, while a suffocating stench of sulphur diffused itself
around. The violent shocks which were repeated at several intervals from
the 5th of February to the 28th of May, destroyed the greater part of
the buildings of Calabria Ultra. The number of inhabitants who were
crushed under the ruins of their houses, or who perished on the strands
of Scylla, was estimated at about 50,000. Rivers arrested in their
course by the fall of mountains, became so many infected lakes,
corrupting the air in all directions. Houses, trees, and large fields
were hurried down together to the bottom of the deep glens without being
separated by the shock: in short, all the extraordinary calamities and
changes which can be effected by earthquakes were beheld at this
deplorable period, under the various forms which characterize
them.--_Calabria, during a Military Residence._
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_Age of Sheep_.--The age of a sheep may be known by examining the front
teeth. They are eight in number, and appear during the first year, all
of a small size. In the second year, the two middle ones fall out, and
their place is supplied by two new teeth, which are easily distinguished
by being of a larger size. In the third year two other small teeth, one
from each side, drop out and are replaced by two large ones; so that
there are now four large teeth in the middle, and two pointed ones on
each side. In the fourth year the large teeth are six in number, and
only two small ones remain, one at each end of the range. In the fifth
year the remaining small teeth are lost, and the whole front teeth are
large. In the sixth year the whole begin to be worn, and in the seventh,
sometimes sooner, some fall out or are broken.
⁂ From ‘the Mountain Shepherd’s Manual,’ a useful little tract on the
nature, diseases, and management of sheep, being No. 24 of the
‘Farmer’s Series,’ published under the Superintendence of the
Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge.
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_Anecdote of the late Honourable Henry Cavendish._-- One Sunday evening
he was standing at Sir Joseph Banks’s, in a crowded room, conversing
with Mr. Hatchett, when Dr. Ingenhousz, who had a good deal of pomposity
of manner, came up with an Austrian gentleman in his hand, and
introduced him formally to Mr. Cavendish. He mentioned the titles and
qualifications of his friend at great length, and said that he had been
peculiarly anxious to be introduced to a philosopher so profound and so
universally known and celebrated as Mr. Cavendish. As soon as Dr.
Ingenhousz had finished, the Austrian gentleman began, and assured Mr.
Cavendish, that his principal reason for coming to London was to see and
converse with one of the greatest ornaments of the age, and one of the
most illustrious philosophers that ever existed. To all these high-flown
speeches Mr. Cavendish answered not a word; but stood with his eyes cast
down, quite abashed and confounded. At last, seeing an opening in the
crowd, he darted through it, with all the speed he was master of; nor
did he stop till he reached his carriage, which drove him directly home.
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⁂ The Office of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge is at
59, Lincoln’s Inn Fields.