Ambition to ravage the Country, in a manner in fight of the Portugueze, made a Motion with the whole Body of his Horfe toward Fort St. Chriftopher, near the Town of Badajos. The Generals of the Portugueze, difdaining that fuch an Insult should be offered to their Arms, took a Refolution to pass the River, and oppose the Defigns of the Enemy. The Earl of Galway reprefented to them, That the prefent Posture of Affairs was such on the Side of the Allies, that there needed no more to be done at present in that Country, but to carry on a defenfive Part. But his Arguments could not avail in the Council of War. Upon which, a great Detachment of Foot, and the whole of the Horfe of the King of Portugal's Army, paffed the River, and with fome Pieces of Cannon did good Execution on the Enemy. Upon obferving this, the Marquis de Bay advanced with his Horfe, and attacked the Right Wing of the Portugueze Cavalry, who faced about, and fled, without ftanding the firft Encounter. But their Foot repulfed the fame Body of Horse in three fucceffive Charges, with great Order and Refolution. While this was tranfacting, the British General commanded the Brigade of Pearce, to keep the Enemy in Diverfion by a new Attack. This was fo well executed, that the Portugueze Infantry had time to retire in good Order, and repafs the River. But that Brigade, which rescued them, was itself furrounded by the Enemy, and Major General Sarkey, Brigadier Pearce, together with both their Regiments, and that of the Lord Galway, lately raised, were taken Prisoners.

DURING the Engagement, the Earl of Barrimore having advanced too far to give fome neceffary Order, was hemm'd in by a Squadron of the Enemy; but found means to gallop up to the Brigade of Pearce, with which he remains alfo a Prisoner. My Lord Galway had his Horse shot under him in this Action; and the Conde de St. Juan, a Portugueze General was taken Prifoner. The fame Night the Army encamped at Aronches, and on the 9th moved to Elvas, where they lay when these Dispatches came away. Colonel Stanwix's Regiment is also taken. The whole of this Affair has given the Por tugueze a great Idea of the Capacity and Courage of my

Lord

Lord Galway, against whofe Advice they entered upon. this unfortunate Affair, and by whose Conduct they were rescued from it. The prodigious Conftancy and Refolution of that great Man is hardly to be parallel'd, who, under the Oppreffion of a maimed Body, and the Reflection of repeated ill Fortune, goes on with an unspeakable Alacrity in the Service of the common Caufe. He has already put Things in a very good Pofture after this ill Ac cident, and made the neceffary Difpofitions for covering the Country from any further Attempt of the Enemy, who lie ftill in the Camp they were in before the Battle.

LETTERS from Bruffels, dated the 25th Inftant, advise, That notwithstanding the Negotiations of a Peace feem fo far advanced, that fome do confidently report the Preliminaries of a Treaty to be actually agreed on; yet the Allies haften their Preparations for opening the Campaign; and the Forces of the Empire, the Pruffians, the Danes, the Wirtembergers, the Palatines, and Saxon Auxiliaries, are in Motion towards the general Rendezvous, they being already arrived in the Neighbourhood of Brufjels. Thefe Advices add, That the Deputies of the States of Holland, having made a general Review of the Troops in Flanders, fet out for Antwerp, on the 21st Instant from that Place. On the fame Day the Prince Royal of Pruffia came thither incognito, with a Design to make the enfuing Campaign under his Grace the Duke of Marl borough.

THIS Day is published a Treatise, called, The Difference between Scandal and Admonition. By Ifaac Bickerftaff, Efq; And on the first of July next, you may expect. A Prophecy of Things paft; wherein the Art of Fortune-telling is laid open to the meaneft Capacity. And on the Monday following, Choice Sentences for the Company of Mafons and Bricklayers, to be put upon new " Houfes, with a Tranflation of all the Latin Sentences, that have been built of late Years, together with a Comment upon Stone-Walls, by the fame Hand.

No 18. Sa

N° 18%..

Saturday, May 2.1. 1709.

IT

From my own Apartment, May zo..

T is obferved too often that Men of Wit do fo much employ their Thoughts upon fine Speculations, that Things ufeful to Mankind are wholly neglected; and they are bufy in making Emendations upon fome Encliticks in a Greek Author, while obvious Things, that every Man may have Use for, are wholly overlooked. It would be a happy Thing, if fuch as have real Capacities for publick Service, were employed in Works of general Ufe; but because a Thing is every body's Bufinefs, it is no body's Bufinefs: This is for want of publick Spirit. As for my part, who am only a Student, and a Man of no great Intereft, I can only remark Things, and. recommend the Correction of them to higher Powers.. There is an Offence I have a thousand times lamented, but fear I fhall never fee remedied; which is, that in a Nation where Learning is fo frequent as in Great Bri tain, there fhould be fo many grofs Errors as there are. in the very Directions of Things, wherein Accuracy is. neceffary for the Conduct of Life. This is notorioufly ob-. ferved by all Men of Letters when they first come to. Town (at which Time they are ufually curious that way). in the Infcriptions on Sign-Pofts. I have caufe to know. this Matter as well as any body; for I have (when I went. to Merchant-Taylors School) fuffered Stripes for spelling. after the Signs I obferved in my Way; though at the fame. time I must confefs, ftaring at those Infcriptions firft gave me an Idea and Curiofity for Medals; in which I have fince arrived at fome Knowledge. Many a Man has loft his Way and his Dinner by this general want of Skill in Orthography: For, confidering that the Painters are ufually fo. very bad, that you cannot know the Animal under whose

Sign

Sign you are to live that Day, How muft the Stranger be mifled, if it be wrong spelled, as well as ill painted? I have a Coufin now in Town, who has answered Under-Bachelor at Queen's College, whofe Name is Humphry Mopftaff: (He is a-kin to us by his Mother.) This young Man going to fee a Relation in Barbican, wandered a whole Day by the Miftake of one Letter, for it was written, This is the BEER, instead of This is the BEAR. He was fet right at laft, by inquiring, for the House, of a Fellow that could not read, and knew the Place mechanically, only by having been often drunk there. But in the Name of Goodness, let us make our Learning of use to us, or not. Was not this a Shame, that a Philofopher should be thus directed by a Cobler? I'll be fworn, if it were known how many have fuffered in this kind by falfe Spelling fince the Union, this Matter would not long lie thus. What makes these Evils the more infupportable is, That they are fo eafily amended, and nothing done in it. But it is fo far from that, that the Evil goes on in other Arts as well as Orthography; Places are confounded, as well for want of proper Diftinctions, as Things for want of true Characters. Had I not come by the other Day very early in the Morning, there might have been Mischief done; for a worthy North Britain was fwearing at Stocks Market, that they would not let him in at his Lodgings; but I knowing the Gentleman, and obferving him look often at the King on Horfeback, and then double his Oaths, that he was fure he was right, found he mistook that for Charing Cross, by the Erection of the like Statue in each Place. I grant, private Men may distinguish their Abodes as they please as one of my Aquaintance who lives at Mary-bone, has put a good Sentence of his own Invention upon his Dwelling-place, to find out where he lives: He is fo near London, that his Conceit is this, The Country in Town; or, The Town in the Country; for you know, if they are both in one they are all one. Befides that, the Ambiguity is not of great Confequence; if you are fafe at the Place, it is no Matter if you do not diftinctly know where the Place is. But to return to the Orthography of publick Places; I propofe, that every Tradef

man

107 man in the Cities of London and Weftminster, fhall give me Sixpence a Quarter for keeping their Signs in repair, as to the Grammatical Part; and I will take into my Houfe a Swis Count of my Acquaintance, who can remember all their Names without Book, for Difpatch fake, setting up the Head of the faid Foreigner for my Sign; the Features being ftrong, and fit for hanging high.

St. James's Coffee-boufe, May 20.

THIS Day a Mail arrived from Holland, by which there are Advices from Paris, That the Kingdom of France is in the utmost Misery and Distraction. The Merchants of Lions have been at Court to remonftrate their great Sufferings by the Failure of their publick Credit ; but have received no other Satisfaction, than Promises of a fudden Peace; and that their Debts will be made good by Funds out of the Revenue, which will not answer, but in cafe of the Peace which is promifed. In the mean time, the Cries of the common People are loud for want of Bread, the Gentry have loft all Spirit and Zeal for their Country, and the King himself feems to languish under the Anxiety of the preffing Calamities of the Nation, and retires from hearing thofe Grievances which he hath not Power to redress. Inftead of Preparations for War, and the Defence of their Country, there is nothing to be seen but evident Marks of a general Defpair; Proceffions, Faftings, Publick Mournings and Humiliations, are become the fole Employments of a People, who were lately the most Vain and Gay of any in the Universe.

THE Pope has written to the French King on the Subject of a Peace, and his Majefty has anfwered in the lowlieft Terms, That he entirely fubmits his Affairs to Divine Providence, and fhall foon fhew the World, that he prefers the Tranquillity of his People to the Glory of his Arms, and Extent of his Conquefts.

LETTERS from the Hague of the 24th fay, That his Excellency the Lord Townshend delivered his Credentials on that Day to the States General, as Plenipotentiary from the Queen of Great Britain; as did alfo Count Zinzendorf, who bears the fame Character from the Emperor.

PRINCE