Virginia Argus

From the Quebec Mercury.

We some time past, mentioned in our paper. the fate of a miser who perished in the fire, at St Thomas, and whose skeleton was said to be found extended over his iron chest. Attached to some St. Croix Gazettes, we have received from a friend, a narrative of that fire in MS. Here follows an extract:

" Amongst those who have lost their lives was an old German, who had been many years a resident, & by the dint of the usurious schemes and illegal traffic, had accumulated much wealth; when living he was a very bad neighbor, a shocking unmerciful master, and no mans friend. When any needy wretch unfortunately fell into his clutches, he always dealt with him most unfeelingly to increase his pelf, for

" His God was gold, and his religion theft."

" An hour before the fire extended to his house, one of his white companions told him that if he would trust his bags of gold and dollars to his house. he might send them with his negroes and that they should be safe, but this he refused to do. Presently after, as the fire was approaching he was requested by the same man to unbind one of his slaves, whom he had chained to a post for some misdemeanor, and this he also refused to comply with, but suffered him to be burnt to ashes

" The reptile soul, whose reasoning powers were pent,

Within the logic bounds of Cent per Cent,

Would trust no man, white or black, but stuck close to his chests in the midst of the flames, 'till reduced to a skeleton ; no doubt he had no power before or at the last gasp to beg for mercy as we are informed that the last exclamations of the sordid, soulless, cankered wretch, were,

"O my dollars! my Dollars! my darling Dollars!

" The fire is consuming me-Adieu! adieu! adieu!',

"Next day among the immensity of ruins exposed after such awful devastations, his bones were found close by a large iron chest, with the key of it clinched fast to the parched bones of his wrist. No less than 80,000 dollars were found, which were lodged in the fort, to be appropriated to the relief of the real sufferers.

" Hear this, all ye misers, and tremble; of all the filthy, carnivorous animals of Gods creating. ye are the most detestable and hateful in his eyes."