When the artillery was silenced, the garrison thought the best way of saving the town was by flinging it at the heads of the besiegers; accordingly they poured volleys of brickbats at the French, whose commander, Monsieur Flobert, was mortally knocked down, and his troops began to give way.  However, General Jennings thought it most prudent to retreat to the castle, and the French again advanced.  Four or five raw recruits still bravely kept the gates, when the garrison, finding no more gunpowder in the castle than they had had in the town, and not near so good a brick-kiln, sent to desire to surrender.  General Thurot accordingly made them prisoners of war, and plundered the town.

End of the siege of Carrickfergus.

You will perhaps ask what preparations have been made to recover this loss.  The, viceroy immediately despatched General Fitzwilliam with four regiments of foot and three of horse against the invaders, appointing to overtake them in person at Newry; but -@is I believe he left Bladen’s Caesar, and Bland’s Military Discipline behind him in England, which he used to study in the camp at Blandford, I fear he will not have his campaign equipage ready soon enough.  My Lord Anson too has sent nine ships, though indeed he does not think they will arrive time enough.  Your part, my dear Sir, will be very easy:  you will only have to say that it is nothing, while it lasts; and the moment it is over, you must say it was an embarkation of ten thousand men.  I will punctually let you know how to vary your dialect.  Mr. Pitt is in bed very ill with the gout.

Lord George Sackville was put under arrest to-day.  His trial comes on to-morrow, but I believe will be postponed, as the court-martial will consult the judges, whether a man who is not in the army, may be tried as an officer.  The judges will answer yes, for how can a point that is not common sense, not be common law!

Lord Ferrers is in the Tower; so you see the good-natured people of England will not want their favourite amusement, executions--not to mention, that it will be very hard if the Irish war don’t furnish some little diversion.

My Lord Northampton frequently asks me about you.  Oh!  I had forgot, there is a dreadful Mr. Dering come over, who to show that he has not been spoiled by his travels, got drunk the first day he appeared, and put me horridly out of countenance about my correspondence with you—­for mercy’s sake take care how you communicate my letters to such cubs.  I will send you no more invasions, if you read them to bears and bear-leaders.  Seriously, my dear child, I don’t mean to reprove you; I know your partiality to me, and your unbounded benignity to every thing English; but I sweat sometimes, when I find that I have been corresponding for two or three months with young Derings.  For clerks and postmasters, I can’t help it, and besides, they never tell one they have seen One’s letters; but I beg you will at most tell them my news, but without my name, or my words.  Adieu!  If I bridle you, believe that I know that it is only your heart that runs away with you.