1820. Henry Andrews, a self-taught English mathematician, died. For more than forty years he produced an almanac for a company of stationers under the name of Francis Moore, physician, and astonished the simple and ignorant by his marvelous predictions. His prophecies were as much laughed at by himself as by the worshipful company of stationers for whom he annually manufactured them in order to render their almanacs salable among the ignorant, with whom a lucky hit covered a multitude of blunders. A few years before his death he predicted that the people would soon know better than to be influenced by the prophecies which his employers required him to write. He did not live to see the publication of the British Almanac, which effected the downfall of Poor Robin (the title of one of his almanacs), which ceased to exist in 1828.
1823. Edward Jenner died, aged 74, celebrated for having introduced the practice of vaccination as a preventative of the small pox. He was the youngest son of a clergyman, born in England 1749. He commenced his investigations concerning the cow pox about the year 1776, and twenty years afterwards the practice was introduced into London hospitals. The success of this discovery procured him honorary titles, and a grant from parliament of £20,000.
1838. John O'Neil died at Havre de Grace, Md., distinguished for the resistance which he made at that place, to the British under admiral Cockburn, during the last war.
1839. Stephen Van Rensselaer died at Albany. He was born in the city of New York 1764, and graduated at Cambridge, Mass. He was the fifth in descent from Kilian Van Rensselaer, the original proprietor and patentee of the colony of Rensselaerwyck, a territory 48 miles long and 24 broad. He filled several offices, civil and military; was a man of great wealth, and distinguished for his magnificent charities and Christian virtues.
1839. Tremendous gale and heavy rain in the United States. The river at Philadelphia rose 17 feet above low water mark, and at Kenebec 13 feet above high water mark. New York and Albany were considerably flowed.
1850. Francis Jeffrey, a Scottish jurist, celebrated by his long connection with the Edinburgh Review, died, aged 77.
1853. Sylvester Judd died, aged 40; a unitarian clergyman at Augusta, Me., author of several works which found many admirers.
JANUARY 27.
438. St. John Chrysostom, one of the Fathers and archbishop of Constantinople, died.
1673. Jerome Lallemant, superior of the Jesuits in Canada, died, aged 80; leaving behind him a high reputation in his