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 order. He furnished seven of the _Relaçons_. 1676. The Narragansetts, in retreating from their country in Rhode island, drove off from one of the inhabitants of Warwick, 15 horses, 50 oxen and 200 sheep. 1696. The Royal Sovereign burnt by accident. She was the first great ship built in England, and became one of the best men of war in the world. For sixty years she was so formidable to her enemies that none of the most daring of them willingly ventured an engagement. The levies of money for building this noble vessel caused the rebellion. 1733. THOMAS WOOLSTON, an English divine, died in prison. He imbibed a fondness for allegorical interpretations of scripture from reading some of the early writers--particularly Origen. His speculations finally led to an indictment for blasphemy, and being unable to pay the fine imposed, he was retained in prison. He was a learned man, but held notions peculiar to himself, which was a high offence in those days. 1760. The ice carried away one of the dykes of the Rhine, in consequence of which the neighboring country was inundated. 1783. The British under Gen. Mathews took possession of Bednapore and Candapore, without firing a gun, and the whole country, except Mangalore, yielded in consequence. 1795. PICHEGRU made a requisition upon the Dutch for the French army of 200,000 quintals of corn, 5,000,000 rations of hay, 5,000,000 measures of oats, 200,000 rations of straw, 150,000 pairs of shoes, 20,000 pairs of boots, 20,000 cloth coats and waistcoats, 40,000 pairs of stocking breeches, 150,000 pairs of linen pants, 200,000 shirts, 50,000 hats, to be furnished within a month, and 12,000 oxen to be furnished within two months. 1800. King John's castle, at Old Ford near Bow, in England, was blown down by a storm. It was built in 1203 and afforded the king a sleeping place after signing the magna charta.