 Supposedly left for dead after one such attack, he was subsequently permitted to keep a Newfoundland dog to protect himself.I leave for the public to decide how far the treatment I have related deserved acknowledgements...my judgement told me I could not with sincerity return thanks [and] my feelings would not allow me to give vent to reproaches.These claims were recorded in "The Reading Mercury" (a British local newspaper) on 30 December 1782, pointing out that Asgill (newly returned home following imprisonment in America) was at the levée for the first time since his arrival in town.