that the conftables did their duty; and one night as he was walking near the bridge-foot, the conftable ftopt to know what he did with fuch an unlucky weapon at that time of the night;, upon which the king ftruck him; but the conftable calling the watchmen to his affiftance, his majefty was apprehended and carried to the Poultry Compter, where he lay confined till morning, without either fire or candle; when the keeper was informed of the rank of his prisoner he dispatched a messenger to the constable, who came trembling with fear, expecting nothing less than to be hanged, drawn and quartered; but inftead of that, the king applauded his resolution in honeftly doing his duty, and made him a handsome prefent. At the fame time, he fettled. upon St. Magnus parish an annual grant of 23/. and a mark; and made a provifion for furnishing 30 chaldron of coals, and a large allowance of bread annually for ever, towards the comfortable relief of his fellow prifoners and their fucceffors, which the warders fay is paid them to this day.

20. A large wooden cannon called Policy, becaufe, fays your guides, when Henry VIII. befieged Bullogne, the roads being impaffible for heavy cannon, he caused a number of thefe wooden ones to be made and mounted on proper batteries before the town, as if real cannon, which fo terrified the French commandant, that when he beheld a formidable train, as he thought, juft ready to play, he gave up the town without firing a shot.-The truth is, the duke of Suffolk, who commanded at this fiege under the king, foon made himself master of the lower town; but it was not till feven weeks afterwards that the upper town capitulated, in which time the English fuftained great lofs in poffeffing themfelves of the Broye; after which fpringing fome mines with good fuccefs, and the garrifon lofing Philip Corfe, their

best

beft officer, at length furrendered on honourable terms. The lower town was taken July 26, 1544, and the upper town furrendered September 14, the fame year.

21. The last thing they fhew of thefe memorable fpoils, is the Spanish general's fhield, not worn by, but carried before him as an enfign of honour. On it are depicted, in moft curious workmanship, the labours of Hercules, and other expreffive allegories, which feem to throw a fhade upon the boasted skill of modern artifts. The date is 1376, near 100 years before the art of printing was known in England.

The infcription upon it is as follows in Roman characters, tolerably engraven: ADVLTERIO DEIANIRA CONSPVRCAN SOCCIDITVR CACVS AB HERCVL. OPPRIMITVR 1379. Alluding to the killing of Cacus by Hercules, for adultery with his wife Deianira.

22. Some weapons made with the part of a scythe fixed on a pole, which were taken from the Duke of Monmouth's party at the battle of Sedgemore in the reign of James II.

23. The partyzans that were carried at the funeral of king William III.

: But what is most curious of all, is a perfect model of that most admirable machine, the idea of which was brought from Italy, by Sir Thomas Lombe, and first erected at Derby at his own expence, for making organzine or thrown filk. This ingenious gentleman made two attempts, at the hazard of his life, for the completing of this machine, which by means of a friar he at length effected; and having obtained the fanction of an act of parliament, in the year 1742, by which 14,000 pounds were granted to his majefty, to be paid to him as a reward for his eminent fervice in difcovering and introducing

the

the faid machine, he finally completed it, and brought it into ufe. The following is a brief account of it, but no words can defcribe the beautiful ftructure of it. It contains 26,586 wheels, and 97,746 movements, which work 93,726 yards of filk thread every time the water wheel goes round, which is thrice in one minute, and 318,504,960 yards in twenty-four hours. One water wheel gives motion to the rest of the wheels and movements, of which any one may be ftopt feparately. One fire engine conveys, warm air to every individual part of the machine, and one regulator governs the whole work. The above model is truly worth the infpection of the curious.

Of the SMALL ARMORY,

O this curiofity we are led by a small folding door adjoining to the east-end of the Towerchapel, the afcent to which is by a grand ftair-cafe of fifty eafy steps. On the left fide of the uppermoft landing-place is the work-fhop, wherein are conftantly emyloyed about 14 furbishers, in cleaning, repairing, and new-placing the arms. When you enter the Armory itfelf, you will fee, what they call a wilderness of arms, fo artificially difpofed, and fo admirably ranged, that at one view, you behold arms for near 80,000 men, all bright and fhining, and fit for fervice at a moment's warning; a fight that none ever beheld without astonishment, and is not to be matched perhaps in the world. Befides thofe expofed to public view, there are fixteen chefts fhut up, each cheft holding about 1200 muskets. Of the difpofition of the arms, defcription can convey no adequate idea; but as what we have to fay, may affift the fpectator to view it to advantage, and help him to retain what he fees; take it as follows: The

The north and fouth walls are adorned with fixteen pilafters (each fide eight) of pikes fixteen feet 'long, with capitals of piftols in the Corinthian order. At the weft end, on the left hand as you enter, are two curious pyramids compofed of pistols, standing upon crowns, globes, and fcepters, finely carved and placed upon a pedaftal five feet high. At the eaft or farther end, in the oppofite corner, are two fuits of armour, one made for Henry V. the other for Henry VI. over each of which is a femicircle of piftols; between these is reprefented the figure of an organ, the large pipes compofed of brafs blunderbuffes, the fmall of piftols; on one fide of this figure is the representation of a fiery ferpent, the head and tail of carved work, and the body of piftols, winding round in the form of a fnake; and on the other a hydra, or seven-headed monster, whose heads are very artificially combined by links of piftols.

The inter-columns which compose the wilderness, round which you are carried by your guides, are,

1. Some arms taken at Bath in the year 1715. These are diftinguished from all others in the Tower, by having what they call dog-locks, which kind of locks have a ketch to fecure them from going off at a half cock.

2. Bayonets and piftols put up in the form of halfmoons and fans with the imitation of a target in the center, made up of bayonet-blades: thefe bayonets, of which you will obferve feveral other fans compofed, are of the first invention, having plug-handles, which go into the muzzle of a gun, instead of over it, and thereby prevent the firing of the piece without shooting away the bayonet. These were invented at Bayonne in Spain, from whence they take their name.

3. Brafs blunderbuffes for fea-service, with capitals. of piftols over them; the waves of the fea are here represented in old fashioned bayonets.

4. Bayonets and fword-bayonets, in the form of half-moons and fans, and fet in fcollop-fhells finely carved: the sword bayonet is made like the old bayonet with a plug handle, only different from it by being longer.

5. The rifing fun, irradiated with rays of pistols fet in a chequered frame of marine hangers of a peculiar make, having brafs handles, and the form of a dog's head on their pummels.

6. Four beautiful twisted pillars, made with piftols up to the top, which is about 22 feet high, and placed at right angles, with the form of a falling ftar on the cieling exactly in the middle of them, being the centre of this magnificent room. Into this place opens the grand ftair-cafe door, for the admiffion of the royal family, or any of the nobility, whofe curiofity may lead them to view the armory; oppofite to which opens another door into the balcony, that affords a fine profpect of the parade, the governor's houfe, the furveyor-general's, ftore-keeper's, and the other general officers houfes in the Tower. This grand entrance has been newly crnamented; the capitals, irradiations, and heads of Julius and Auguftus Cæfar, are all finely gilt; and the whole armory neatly cleaned and painted, and newly fitted up in a moft elegant manner.

7. The form of a pair of large folding-gates, made of ferjeants halberts of antique make.

8. Horfemens carbines, blunderbuffes, and piftols, hanging very artificially in furbelows and flounces.

9. Medufa's head, commonly called the witch of Endor, within three regular ellipfes of piftols, with fnakes represented ftinging her. The features are finely carved, and the whole figure contrived with curious art. This figure terminates the north fide.

10. The