2nd. A Portable gig-boat made of wicker for the advantage of extreme lightness. This boat is rendered unimmergible by air, and is made to stand upright on the ice running upon rollers*. It is to be used when at the breaking of the ice the distance is too great for throwing the rope, or when the means at present in use are insufficient to afford relief. The weight of a boat of this nature, will not, I conceive, be more than 16lbs. 3rd. A small light jolly boat †, intended for the same purpose, but which from its being formed of stronger materials, may, in some particular instances of danger, be preferable. *The roller in the fore part of the boat might easily be made to regulate the direction of the boat, but the sprit answers this end, and all unnecessary complexity is avoided. + The rullocks or vacaneies on the gunwale of this boat are not for the purpose of admitting oars; they are made to receive the frame of the ladder to prevent its slipping. ト 4th. Sprits armed with iron points, which, by sticking in the ice, are used for impelling the boats forward. 5th. An Elongatable grappling rod, which in cases where the body has sunk beneath the ice can be instantly adapted to any common depth of water, for the purpose of grappling for and bringing the sufferer to the surface. 6th. Portable ladders for communicating with the boat from the ice, in cases where the current may have carried the body from the place at which it first sunk. These ladders may be lengthened by unfolding or fitting in, and made buoyant as may suit the occasion for which they are intended. (To be concluded in our next.) Mr. Mr. URBAN, IN Chelsea, May 9. N the Eighth Volume of the "Literary Anecdotes of the Eighteenth Century," is an interesting Memoir of the late Granville Sharp, esq. The last time I saw him was, in the month of April 1812, at his brother's house in Fulham; having then occasion to consult him upon some particulars respecting the History of Fulbam, at that time in progress for publication, the plan of which he highly approved, observing" that Parish History served to embalm the memory of the great and good, and to cherish a love for our country, our relatives, and our friends." Among other topicks, he expressed his firm conviction that Protestantism and the doctrines of the Church of England would daily gain ground; and that the fallacy of the dogmas of the Romish Church would gradually be more apparent, not only in this country, but likewise on the Continent. The late happy and glorious events will, in all human probability, accelerate the completion of his prophetic views, as by the twenty-second article of the new "French Civil Code," toleration and liberty of conscience is granted to all. This illustrious Scholar, after irradiating the literary hemisphere for more than half a century, by talents and learning ever exerted in the cause of true Religion, Liberty, and Justice, took his final departure from hence on the 6th of July 1813; and was deposited in the family vault in Fulham Church-yard, on the Eastern side of which is engraved the following inscription to his memory: "Here, by the remains of his Brother and Sister, whom he tenderly loved, lie those of Granville Sharp, Esq. At the age of 79, this venerable Philanthropist terminated his career of almost unparalleled activity and usefulness, July 6th, 1813, leaving behind him a Name that will be cherished with affection and gratitude as long as any homage shall be paid to those principles of justice, bumanity, and religion, which for near a half a century he promoted by his exertions, and adorned by his example." Yours, &c. T. F. tries, for the young Deacons, in providing abridged copies of their duty, and a selected body of Divinity for their instruction. This idea was most admirably brought into bearing by Wesley's leaving by Will a copy of the Sermons, or, in other words, the digest of his Divinity, to every Preacher; while one of our own Prelates recommends Students in Divinity to purchase to the amount of seventy pounds, thus sinking at least a sixth of their future Curacies. These ideas most forcibly struck my mind upon reading the letter signed T. R. (p. 231) asserting, "that although he has been forty years in orders, he has not until lately ever heard it asserted that Marriage by Banns might be celebrated at any hour; but that, having examined the case, he does not find any thing in the Canon, the Marriage-Act, or Burn's Law, to contradict the assertion." Now, Mr. Urban, had T. R. examined the books alluded to, he would have been referred from the Marriage-Act to the Rubrick, and from Burn's Law to the 62d Canon, where the expression "so licensed" applies in such a direct and unequivocal way to the preceding substantives, Banns, Faculties, and Licence, that it is not possible to misunderstand it. Now, Mr. Urban, I copy the Canon, lest you may not have it "at hand,” as I had when reading your Magazine; and Í am sure you will not grudge this Letter a place, if you think that it may save a young Clergyman either from forming an erroneous opinion upon the subject, or from litigation. From Gibson's Codex Juris Ecclesiastici Anglicani, vol. I. pp. 430 to 521. 62 Canon. Page 517. No Minister, upon pain of suspension for three years, shall celebrate Matrimony between any persons without a Faculty, Licence, or Banns; neither shall any Minister, upon like pain, under any pretence whatever, join any persons so licensed in marriage at any unseasonable times, but only between the hours of eight and twelve in the forenoon, &c. This Canon is copied out entire by Burn, in his second volume of Ecclesiastical Law, p. 430. Yours, &c. CLERICUS * We should not have "used the pruning-knife," had we not known the respectability of T. R.-Edit. Mr. Mr. URBAN, THE April 16. HE facts in the following brief account of the Island of Elba are extracted from a Statistical Description of France, a work of authority, published at Paris in 1803. The Island of Elba is situated in the Mediterranean, between the coast of Tuscany (called by the French Etruria), from which it is distant four leagues, and the Island of Corsica, from whence it is distant ten leagues. Its form is nearly triangular, and its extent about 20 leagues. It contains about 12,000 inhabitants, distributed in several towns and villages, of which the principal are Porto Ferrajo, Porto Longone, Capolibri, Rio, Marciano, and Campo. The climate is warmer than that of Tuscany, but by the sea-breeze the heat is rendered more supportable. There is no river in the island,but an abundance of springs. It contains a celebrated iron mine. The island is covered by a number of mountains, but has also several plains of considerable extent, amongst which is that of Lacona, which offers a vast field for agricultural speculations, as the soil is very fertile, and there is great room for improvements in cultivation. It produces grapes, citrons, oranges, and several other fruits, and is supposed to be capable of rearing almost any of the products of other countries. The mountains are also covered with trees, and the island is peculiarly rich in mines of every species, Nature appearing to have accumulated here all the treasures of mineralogy. There is likewise a fish ery on the coast, from which the inhabitants derive much advantage, and the island possesses the means of carrying on or becoming the entrepôt of a lucrative commerce. Porto Fer rajo, which is the capital, has a har- AN OBSERVER. Mr. URBAN, Manchester, March 29. SEND you herewith a specimen of an antient theological Poem on the Five Wounds of Christ. It is finely written on a roll of parchment 23 yards in length. The style appears coeval with Chaucer's. I shall be Mr. URBAN, VERITAS." May 19. deem the following Scheme of T the present crisis, should you the great Lord Nelson for conserving British Seamen in time of Peace wor thy insertion, you will infinitely oblige PALMAM QUI MERUIT FERAT. Extract from Southey's Life of Nelson, vol. II. p. 187. "He proposed that their Certificates should be registered; and that every man who had served five years in war, should receive a bounty of two guineas annually after that time, and of four guineas after eight years. "This," he said, "might at first sight appear an enormous sum for the State to pay; but the AVERAGE life of a Seaman is, from HARD SERVICE, finished at 45!!! he cannot therefore enjoy the annuity many years; and the interest of the money saved by their NOT DESERTING would go far to pay the whole expence." *Qu. if any relation to Sir Thomas Billing, mentioned by Weever in his Funeral Monuments? Mr. |