In the “Mercury” of November, 1733, his death is thus announced:—“Last Tuesday night, Mr. Thomas Makin, a very ancient man, who for many years was a schoolmaster in this city, stooping over a wharf-end to get a pail of water, unhappily fell in, and was drowned.” [28] Watson’s Annals. [29] This building, known for many years as “The London Coffee-House,” stood at the southwest corner of Front and Market Streets. It was erected in 1701 by Charles Reed, and was first used as a “coffee-house” by William Bradford, the printer. [30] On very meagre authority it is stated that there was a “play-house” in New York in 1733. In an advertisement in “Bradford’s Gazette” of that period, a merchant gives his place of business as being “next door to the play-house.” This reference is all that has been found respecting it. What kind of a play-house is alluded to here remains a secret to those who take an interest in dramatic reminiscences. [31] This gentleman was mayor of the city in the years 1750 and 1755. [32] The play on this occasion was “George Barnwell.” [33] This lady was drowned, together with her maid-servant, in the winter of 1767. [34] A manuscript note in the file of the American Mercury, preserved in the City Library, says that Franklin wrote the first five numbers and part of the eighth of this series. The rest were written by J. B., probably Joseph Breintnail, a member of the _junto_, whom Franklin describes as a “good-natured, friendly, middle-aged man, a great lover of poetry, reading all he could meet with, and writing some that was tolerable; very ingenious in making little nicknackeries, and of sensible conversation.” [35] As an improvement on the above, cartridge-paper of a peculiar kind was used in 1778. When the American army entered Philadelphia, in June, 1778, upon the evacuation of the English troops, there was a want of paper fitted for the construction of cartridges. It was advertised for, and but a small quantity procured. An order was then issued demanding its instant production by all people in that city who had it. This produced but little, and most probably on account of its scarcity. A file of soldiers was then ordered to make search for it in every place where any was likely to be found. Among other places visited in July, 1778, was a garret in a house in which Benjamin Franklin had previously had his printing-office. Here were discovered about twenty-five hundred copies of a sermon which the Rev. Gilbert Tennent had written (printed by Franklin) upon “Defensive War,” to rouse the colonists during the French troubles. They were all taken and used as cases for musket-cartridges, and at once sent to the army; and most of them were used at the battle of Monmouth. The requisites in cartridge-paper were, of course, thinness, strength, pliability, and inflammability; and such paper was necessarily scarce then.