deluged its plains with blood, particularly in the reigns of Henry VI. and Edward IV. But little now avail'd The ties of friendship: ev'ry man, as led Here might you fee Barons and peafants on th' embattled field PHILIFS. Bofworth-Field, Leicester No. 48. BATTLE OF BOSWORTH. fhire, is famous in our annals for the defeat and death of Richard III. in the year 1485, when his antagonist, Henry, earl of Richmond, - was immediately proclaimed king by the ftyle of Henry VII. Great crimes have been imputed to Richard, particularly the murder of Edward prince of Wales, fon of Henry VI. the murder of Henry VI. the murder of his brother, George, duke of Clarence; the execution of Rivers, Gray, and Vaughan; the execution of Lord Haftings; the murder of Edward V. and his brother; and the murder of his queen. But Horace Walpole, now earl of Orford, has examined the circumftances of each crime, and the evidence of each of the charges against him; and has endeavoured to prove, that fome of the crimes imputed to him were contrary to Richard's intereft, and almost all inconfiftent with probability or with dates, and fome of them involved in material contradictions. It is certain, that the partizans of the house of Tudor took much pains to blacken Richard's memory; and that fufficient evidence has not been produced of the crimes charged against him; nor does it appear, that his perfon was fo deformed as it has been reprefented. The engagement in Bofworth-Field was the thirteenth and laft battle between the houses of York and Lancaster. In these fanguinary and unnatural contefts, which, as an eminent writer obferves, arofe from the folly of an attachment to certain perfons and families as poffeffed of fome inherent right to kingly power, many of the moit ancient families of the kingdom were entirely extinguished, and no less than 100,000 human beings loft their lives!! Men Men of one nature, of one fubftance bred, And furious clofe of civil butcheries; Making war upon themfelves, blood against blood, And frantic outrage. SHAKESPEARE. How long has the battle of Bosworth preceded the year 1795? Anf. 310 years. N. B. The interefts of the houfes of York and Lancafter were blended by the marriage of Henry VII. and the princess Elizabeth, daughter of Edward IV. Richmond Henry, by nuptial rites Did clofe the gates of Janus*, and remove PHILIPS. No. 49. PRINTING. The art of printing, at leaft in Europe, is a modern discovery; and who were the first inventors of European printing, in what city, and what year, it was at firft fet on foot, has been long difputed among the learned. In effect, as the Grecian cities contended for the birth of HOMER, fo do the German cities for that of printing. MENTZ, HAERLEM, and STRASBURGH, are the warmeft on this point of honour: the firft has always had the majority of voices; but the question, in reality, is not yet juftly decided. MENTEL of Strafburgh, GUTTENBERG and FAUST of Mentz, and COSTER of Haerlem, are the perfons to whom this honour is feverally afcribed by their refpective countrymen; and they have all had their advocates among the learned. The introduction of this invaluable art into this kingdom is juftly afcribed to WILLIAM CAXTON, a merchant of London, who had acquired a knowledge of it in his travels abroad. The bare mention of printing fhould fill every modern with gratitude to Divine Providence for the communication of fo invaluable an art. For, if man's intellect be the faculty which bears the principal and moft marked traits of the CREATOR's image, how ineftimable every aid for facilitating the operations, and forwarding the perfection of that power! This affiftance the invention of printing has adminiftered in a moft fignal manner, by diffufing among every clafs of men a degree of knowledge, which, previoully to the discovery in queftion, is known to have been confined to very few. Before the invention of printing, it was hardly . Janus is faid to have been the most ancient king who reigned in Italy. After death he was ranked among the gods, and worshipped by the Romans, on account of the civilization which he had introduced among the wild inhabitants of Italy. His temple, which was always open in times of war, was shut only three times during above 700 years. One of these periods was in the time of Augustus, in whofe reign, as we have before obferved, Jefus Chrift was born. lemn thanksgivings were offered to God for its fuccefs; and medals were ftruck at Paris in honour of it. The horrid maffacre of Paris happened in 1572; how long is that ago this prefent year 1795? Anf. 223 years. No. 51. IRISH MASSACRE. This tragical event took place in the year 1641. By the inftigation of the Romish priests, the perfons, houfes, cattle, and goods, of the English in Ireland were seized; an univerfal maffacre enfued; and neither age, nor fex, nor infancy, were fpared; all conditions were involved in one general ruin. "After rapacity had fully exerted itfelf," fays Mr. Hume," cruelty, and the most barbarous, that ever, in any nation, was known, or heard of, began its operations." Death was the lightest punishment inflicted by these more than barbarous favages. All the tortures which wanton cruelty could devife, all the lingering pains of body, the anguish of mind, the agonies of defpair, could not fatiate" their revenge. By fome accounts the number who were flaughtered in this maffacre are ftated to amount to one hundred and fifty, or two hundred thousand; but by other accounts they are computed at only forty thousand. How long has the Irish maffacre preceded the prefent year 1795? Anf. 154 years. No. 52. SPANISH ARMADA. There was a time When all the pride of Spain, in one dread fleet, Exultant plough'd, reflecting a red gleam, *No doubts were entertained, but fuch vaft preparations, conducted by officers of confummate fkill, muft finally be fuccefsful. And the Spaniards, oftentatious of their power, and elated with vain hopes, denominated their navy the Invincible Armada. + Lord Howard of Effingham had the command of the English navy: Drake, Hawkins, and Frobisher, the most renowned feamen in Europe, ferved under him. The English, in an engagement in the Channel, took or destroyed about twelve of the enemy's fhips, befides doing great damage to many others. Then, poffible, from the great expence of manufcripts, for the lower claffes to obtain even an imperfect knowledge of the facred writings. This fingle confideration places the importance and benefits of printing in a very diftinguifhed point of view, and with a pre-eminence fo decifive, that it precludes the neceffity of dilating on the other advantages, however numerous and extenfive, which not only derive their origin from the fame fource, but are indebted to it for stability and duration. In a word, the art of PRINTING confers immortality on heroes, patriots, legiflators, and philofophers; on the best, and greatest, and wifeft of the human fpecies! For, as an elegant poet remarks, Sepulchral columns wrestle but in vain With all-fubduing time; his cank'ring hand, Rightly then does our immortal Shakespeare exhort mankind To let their fame Live register'd upon our printed books. BLAIR CAXTON introduced the knowledge of printing into England in 1471. How long is that ago this prefent year 1795? Anf. 324 years. No 50. PARISIAN MASSACRE. The Parifian maffacre was carried on with fuch perfidy, and executed with fuch cruelty, as would furpass all belief, were it not attefted with the most undeniable evidence. In the year 1572, in the reign of Charles IX. many of the principal Protestants were invited to Paris, under a SOLEMN OATH of fafety, upon occafion of the marriage of the king of Navarre, the head of the proteftant party, with the French king's fifter. Though doomed to deftruction, they were received with careffes, loaded with honours, and treated, for feven months, with every poffible mark of familiarity and confidence. In the midft of their fecurity, the warrant for their deftruction was iffued by their fovereign, on whofe word they had relied; and in obedience to it, their countrymen, their fellow-citizens, and companions, imbrued their hands in their blood. This horrid butchery began on the 24th of Auguft, being Bartholomew's day, on which, and the two fucceeding days, above 10,000 Proteftants, without diftinction of age, or fex, or condition, were murdered in Paris alone. A butcher boasted to the king, that he had hewn down 150 in one night; and De Thou, a celebrated French hiftorian, affirms, that he had often, with the utmoft horror, seen a goldfmith, named Crucé, who boafted of having killed 400 with his own hands. A like carnage enfued in the provinces, where upwards of 25,000 more were deftroyed by thofe blood-thirty mifcreants. This horrid deed was, however, applauded in Spain; at Rome, fo lemn |