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Caldwell of the marines, is also a strong us further picture to ourselves (what is presumptive evidence, that he also did not assuredly the fact) that the ship was full know, or indeed believe, that the Little of men, whom by our own acts we have Belt had fired; "what is that"!! an ex- driven to detest us, and who must have clamation evidently of ignorance, as well felt much of that nervous irritation and as surprise; an explosion on board his trepidation, which accompanies every own ship! What a shot fired without my parley preceding an action; let us fancy orders? well indeed might he exclaim all this, and which is undoubtedly true, "what is that?!" and Captain Caldwell and we may easily come to the conclusion, also, may have answered with truth, she that the first shot was very likely to have has fired at us; for I doubt not it was re-proceeded from the President, either by turned, as quickly as the trigger could be accident or individual design, without pulled. Had the shot been fired from the orders. That the second and third shots, Little Belt, a ship the Commodore was and the whole broadside followed immehailing, and which at that moment en-diately from the Little Belt, is a natural gaged all his attention, he must have been an ass indeed, to have enquired of his Captain of marines "what is that?!" And this, if possible, receives additional confirmation from the evidence of Lieu tenant John Orde Creighton, on that point, who swears that the orders to fire were not given till they had received the Little Belt's broadside! What then, did they fire without orders? no doubt they did, and the whole mystery is solved; for it appears by Ludlow's swearing that the second shot was from the President, then three and musquetry from the Belt, &c.; L. B. Maddison, Lieutenant of marines, swears to the same purport. Captain Caldwell ditto ditto. Jacob Mull, sailing master, ditto. Joseph Smith, midshipman, ditto. How then, I hear it said, is this important point to be settled? I answer, not by the contradictory evidence of interested and impassioned men, but by the unerring law of facts and circumstances; the evidence is contradictory, and consequent ly militates against themselves; and that only which appears to have been extracted inadvertently and which is contrary to their own avowed interests and wishes, can be received as truth. Now for once, let us admit as a fact, that the first shot was fired from the President, and without orders; for what he dared to do, he (the Commodore) would have dared to justify; in short, he would not have so acted, without orders; but let us picture to ourselves a ship full of men, nine tenths of whom had never seen a shot fired; guns loaded, and though ordered on half cock, some of them probably on full cock; for on board our own ships of war, I have seen locks that would not stand at half cock, or indeed at full either; and, is it likely, let me ask, that an American frigate should be better found (furnished) than ours? Let

us.

and necessary consequence, and during those moments it is natural also, to conclude, that the first impulse of the Commodore was directed towards a prevention of a repetition of the shot fired by the President; and that not until the fire was so warmly returned, was the order given to fire; here, Sir, is an easy solution of the whole affair, and perfectly accords with such of the evidence as in the present case is admissible; here I should close my observations, considering them unanswerable, did I not think it advisable by proving further falshoods, still further to invalidate the testimony before With reference to the hailing preceding the fire, Raymond H. Y. Perry, jun. lieutenant, and signal officer swears, that he was on the quarter deck, near the Commodore's elbow, who hailed and got no reply; that he hailed again, and got none. Andrew L. B. Maddison, lieutenant of marines, swears to the same effect. Joseph Smith, midshipman and master-mate, ditto, ditto. Now again, Jacob Mull, sailing master, swears that he also was on the quarter deck, heard the Commodore hail, and that he got no answer but halloo! after sufficient time hailed again, but got no reply but a shot. Henry Dennison, acting chaplain, swears, that he also was on the quarter-deck, heard the hail, and the reply, though he does not say what reply, (though others swore he got none) then a hail again, then a gun; but whether it came from Heaven or Hell, he cannot tell. Richard Carson, midshipman, swears he was on the forecastle and gangways, generally a much more noisy situation than the quarter deck, heard the hail, and was answered by repeating his own words. Thomas Gamble, second licutenant, swears, that he commanded the first division of guns, that Commodore

SPAIN.

OFFICIAL PAPERS. THE WAR.-French Official News from the Armies in Spain.

Ciudad Rodrigo, Sept. 30, 1811. Report of the Marshal Duke of Ragusa, Commander in Chief of the Army of Portugal, to his Highness the Prince of Wagram and Neufchatel, Major General.

(Concluded from p. 576.)

(Signed) MARSHAL DUKE OF RAGUSA.

Ciudad Rodrigo, Sept. 30, 1811. Report of Count Dorsenne, Commander in Chief of the Army of the North of Spain, to the Prince of Wagram, &c.

Rogers hailed "Ship a hoy," was answered halloo," asked "what ship is that?" received his own words repeated in reply; hailed again "what ship is that," then a gun from the Belt! Here we have a circumstantial account of question and answer, though several of the evidences have sworn that no reply whatever was made, and although they were in the most eligible situations possible to hear; and men who will swear to one falsehood will............ I cannot, moreover, too much swear to one thousand; and are only to praise the Generals, Officers, and soldiers be believed, as I have before observed, of the army. We should have followed when their evidence is against themselves; the enemy to the lines of Lisbon, where and in these instances it is evident, that we should have been able to form a juncthese persons, for the greater part, have tion with the Army of the South, which, been governed in their replies by no other completely entire, has in its front only the considerations than the general tendency division of General Hill, had the moment and importance of the questions, as they been come which is fixed for the catasbore on the points they desired to esta- trophe of the English. blish. But as many men have many minds, so also have some of these gentlemen deemed certain points of sufficient importance to deny, which others have truly considered as of little or no importance to the question, and have therefore permitted themselves to admit; and thus have they on their oaths contradicted each other; proving to the world, that their oaths are not worth three inches of an old tobacco-pipe; and thus, Sir, may perjury and falsehood almost always (and always when a sufficient number of persons are concerned) be detected. The last record-corps. I had acquainted the Marshal ed hail is most likely the truth, because the words said to have been used, are those commonly used, on similar occasions; 1 have purposely omitted drawing any conclusion from the sizes of the respective vessels, neither our sailors or soldiers are much in the habit of calculating or reasoning on any odds of that sort; any inferences drawn therefrom would consequently be fallacious. I trust, however, that our government still holds the fair character of this nation, of too much importance to be thus trifled with in the eyes of the world or to suffer an official document of this sort to go abroad without a full and com-Ragusa having communicated to me, that plete refutation; the only mode to be pursued is obvious, and let us hope our attempts thereto will be at least as strong, and more consistent, than that before us. Iam, Sir, a friend to America, a friend to the constitution of America; but a still greater friend to truth, and your bedient servant and well-wisher,

No. 11, 1811. AN OLD SOLDIER,

MONSEIGNEUR-As soon as I was in. formed that the English army had recrossed the Tagus, and was approaching the Coa, I resolved on marching against the insurgent army of Gallicia, with the design of retaking Astorga, and driving back into the mountains these ill-organised

Duke of Ragusa with my intended movement, that, should the English army march to the assistance of that of Gallicia, he might take measures for following it; but the English army gave itself no trouble to support that of Gallicia, which was beaten and dispersed. I retook Astorga, which was repaired and provisioned. I repaired to Salamanca; I collected, thanks to the activity and the talents of the Commissary Voland, whom I cannot too strongly recommend to the favour of his Majesty, about 1,500 carriages laden with provisions for Ciudad Rodrigo. The Duke of

he was coming with a part of his army to co-operate in the revictualling of Ciudad Rodrigo, I did not think it necessary to avail myself of the latitude which your Highness gave me, to summon to my aid the army of reserve; I contented myself with sending for the division of Souham, and leaving in the cantonments marked out by your Highness the three other divisions of that army-corps.-I joined the

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Highness an account of the officers who
distinguished themselves. I beg you to
lay before his Majesty, the zeal and ardour
which animate all my troops. When he
shall pronounce the moment arrived for
commencing the grand operations for de-
finitively driving the English from the
Peninsula, his Majesty will find in no
army more zeal and devotedness.
(Signed) THE COUNT DORSENNE.

ARMY OF AKRagon.

Head-quarters at Alcala de Chiver, Sept. 16, 1811. MONSEIGNEUR,I have entered the province of Valencia: on the 14th, my head quarters were at Beni Carlo; to-day they are at Alcala de Chiver, with the view of advancing on Murviedro, which the enemy has fortified. The army is animated with the greatest ardour.

MARSHAL COUNT SUCHET.

Duke of Ragusa at Tamames on the 22d. We entered Ciudad Rodrigo on the 24th. I immediately changed the garrison, emptied the hospitals, and provisioned the place for a year.-The first object of my movement was thus happily accomplished; the second, which was that of carrying the entrenched camp of Fuente Guinaldo, has also been as speedily attained. While General Watier marched with the cavalry of the Army of the North upon Espeja, Gen. Montbrun took to the left; he came up with the enemy on the ridge of Bodon, where he had a brilliant affair, in which the enemy was overthrown. We soon arrived at Fuente Guinaldo, where we learned with astonishment that the English army had not yet collected its corps. Had we been able to foresee that the English General would have been capable of committing such a blunder, we might have taken a part of the English army in partial combats; but our infantry was not to come up till the night, and the ensuing Head-quarters at Murviedro, day, which was the 26th. I made my Sept. 30, 1811. MONSEIGNEUR,-I have already acarrangements for attack on the 27th; they could not, however, be so secret, as to quainted your Highness that I had entered pass unobserved by the enemy: by ten the province of Valencia, and was marchin the evening the English General was in ing upon Murviedro. I arrived on the full retreat upon Alfayates. On the 27th 27th, and took possession of the town. Gen. Watier came up with, at Aldea del On the 26th, six companies of the division Ponte, the rear-guard of the enemy, conHabert, and six others of the Italian divisisting of 15,000 infantry, and 3,000 horse, sion advanced in front of the ramparts of with 14 pieces of cannon. He charged the fortress, and carried all the outworks, the English cavalry with audacity, broke The enemy has in the forts 3,000 men and and put them to flight; while General 18 cannon; on the 29th the trenches were Thiebaut advanced rapidly, on the road of opened. I have also invested Fort Oropesa. Alfayates, pouring upon the enemy in dis--An assemblage of from 1,000 to 1,100 order a terrible fire of artillery.-Several cavalry-charges made us masters of the whole plain. At half-past four General Souham joined Gen. Thiebaut with his grenadiers and voltigeurs; he made an attack on the village with that vigour which characterises him; the enemy made an obstinate resistance for half an hour; but at last the village was carried with the bayonet, and the enemy precipitated into a ravine; soon after, this part of the English army was driven beyond the Coa. My army-corps lost in this affair 40 killed and 120 wounded. The loss of the English was considerable; the English General Cole was severely wounded. I was extremely satisfied with the zeal, activity, and intelligence of General Reynaud, Commandant at Ciudad Rodrigo; be had organised that place in such a way as to make the most brilliant defence, had it been necessary.-I transmit to your

peasants had collected on my right, at Val de Uxo; Colonel Milet, of the 121st, advanced against them with 300 men of his regiment and 50 cuirassiers; he routed them completely, killed 400 of them, and took the greater part of their arms.

MARSHAL COUNT SUCHET.

Camp at Murviedro, Oct. 1, 1811. MONSIEGNEUR,-Informed that General Blake had advanced a part of his forces upon Liria and Segorbe, I ordered Gen. Palombini to march against the division of Obispo, established at Seneja. Four hundred horse defended the high-road, while three thousand infantry occupied the heights to the right and left. General Palombini ordered a battalion of the 114th to charge the enemy on the left, while General Robert directed the attack on the right with the rest of his brigade. Col. Schiazetti, at the head of the dragoons Napoleon, charged the enemy's cavalry,

and pursued them to the bridge of Massana, the whole division of Obispo was assembled at this point. The dragoons took post on the bridge, and preserved it in spite of the fire of the enemy. Obispo was making every effort to surround them, when the arrival of the select companies of the 14th and the 1st of the Vistula ar-abled to cross the Guadiana, before the rested his movement; a general charge decided his route, and his flight upon Liria. The dragoons Napoleon entered Segorbe pell-mell with the enemy, sabreing all that opposed them; they pursued the enemy to within two leagues of the city. General Balathier, who commanded the reserve, caused them to pursue the enemy in good time on the road to Liria. Obispo is in a state of complete route, and has lost 300 men, one colour, 90 horses, and a great many prisoners.

was endeavouring to gain Merida, when Gen. Hill came up with, and surprised him at Arroyd dos Molinos, on the morning of the 28th. One column of the French had proceeded on the road to Merida before the commencement of the action, and although pursued, will probably be en

MARSHAL COUNT SUCHET.

ARRAGON.

arrival of our troops.-General Gerard was badly wounded, and escaped to the mountains with about three hundred men, followed by the Spanish corps under General Murillo. Two hundred French were killed, and one thousand taken, including Generals Bron and the Prince d'Aremberg, two Colonels, and forty Officers, with all their artillery and baggage.

which the following are extracts, have been this Downing strect, Nov. 18. Dispatches, of day received at Lord Liverpool's Office, addressed to his Lordship by Gen. Viscount Wellington, dated Freneda, 23 and 30th of

The band of Pessoduro, a famous bri-Oct. 1811. Freneda, Oct. 23. gand, the Lieut. of Mina, had infested for a long time the Cincovillas and the banks of the Ebro; the Adjutant Commandant Priloque pursued them for several days without relaxation. On the 20th Pessoduro escaped him in the Bardana; but on the same evening that brigand balted in the village of Biota, with his 60 horsemen. Lieut. Foison, of the 14th squadron of cavalry, got knowledge of it; he took with him two detachments of the 9th and 14th | squadrons, arrived at the village by bycroads, surrounded it on all sides, took them unawares, killed them all, and mortally wounded the ferocious Pessoduro himself; three gensd'armes only were wounded; twelve French prisoners were set at liberty.cers, and escorted by a party of about

PORTUGAL. THE WAR.-Gazette Extraor

dinary, published 18 Nov. 1811.

A Dispatch, of which the following is an extract, has been received this morning by the Marquis Wellesley from Charles Stuart, Esq. his Majesty's Minister at Lisbon, dated Nov. 2, 1811..

The enterprize of Don Julian Sanchez, to carry off the cattle from Ciudad Rodrigo, adverted to in my last dispatch, was very well conducted and very successful. During the night of the 14th he posted his troops near the places at which he had been informed that the cattle from the garrison were usually brought to graze in the morning, and he expected that they would come to the ground on the left bank of the Agueda, between the hills on the El Bodon road and the fort; and he placed two detachments of cavalry behind these hills. The Governor, General Regnauld, had come out of the fort and across the Agueda, attended by some Staff Offi

twenty cavalry: he was surrounded by Don Julian's detachments as soon as he entered the hills, and was taken with two of his escort under the fire of the guns of the place. The remainder of the escort escaped; one of the officers attending the Governor was wounded.-Shortly after. wards, Don Julian's detachments on the right of the Agueda, drove off the greatest The movement of General Gerard on number of the cattle which had been sent Caceres induced General Hill to break up to graze under the guns of the fort, on that from Portalegre on the 22d ult. He side of the river.-The enemy's troops in reached Albuquerque on the 24th, and on front of this army have made no movethe 26th his head-quarters were at Malpar-ments of importance since I addressed tida. General Gerard having fallen back your Lordship last. from Caceres on this day to Torremacha,

(To be continued.)

Published by K. BAGSHAW, Brydges-Street, Covent Garden :-Sold also by J. BUDD, Pall-Mali,

LONDON:-Printed by T. C. Hausard, Peterborough-Court, Fiset-Street,

COBBETT'S WEEKLY POLITICAL REGISTER.

VOL. XX. No. 22.] LONDON, SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 1811.

673]

[Price 19.

[674

"but he could not be heard; nothing "could be heard but the loud, the over"whelming torrent of popular enthusiasm. "As the Jurors passed through the Hall they were greeted with waving of "hats and clapping of hands."- -This shews that the people did feel upon the occasion; and, perhaps, they have seldom felt more upon any occasion.JAMES II upon hearing a distant shout that seemed to rend the air, asked what it was; and, being told, it was nothing but the army then encamped on Hounslow-heath shouting for joy at the acquittal of the seven Bishops. "And do you," said he, " call that nothing?" It was ominous of what was to follow; and though we have no such sequel to apprehend in the present day, yet these clear and distinct expressions of public opinion must be sup

SUMMARY OF POLITICS. IRISH CATHOLICS.- -Let those who do not reflect spend their joy upon the "victories" gained abroad, my readers will, I hope, reserve some part of theirs' for-the victory lately gained in Ireland in the acquittal of Dr. Sheridan. We are expending enormous sums of money in the war against France; we are undergoing hardships of every sort for the support of that war, the purse and the veins of the nation are drained by it: and, what is all this for? For what purpose do we make all these hitherto-unheard-of sacrifices? What is the object held out to us by those who call upon us for the means of supporting this war? Why, to prevent our country from being subdued by Napoleon; and for what reason should we wish to prevent that? Why, because it is pre-posed to be of some consequence; it must, sumed, that if he were to subdue our country, he would take from us some part, at least, of that liberty (be it what it may) that we now possess. Well, then, to preserve this liberty is the object of the war; and, what a beast must he be, therefore, who tosses up his cap at every cry of victory from Portugal, and yet feels uninterested at what has now taken place in Dublin, in the acquittal of Dr. Sheridan?

-The cause which led to the trial, as well as the proceedings on the trial itself, are stated in another part of this Number, and to that statement I beg leave to refer the reader.It has been said, that the Irish people had no feeling in common with the Catholic leaders. This does not apfrom the effect which this trial and pear acquittal appear to have produced in Dublin. The words NOT GUILTY," says the Freeman's Journal, "were scarce"ly pronounced when a peal of huzzaing "and shouts rung through the Court and "galleries, and shook the very Judicial "Bench. It was caught by the anxious "auditors in the hall. The Judges at"tempted to speak, the Officers attempted "to act; the enthusiasm deafened and "destroyed every attempt. The Judges "waited for some minutes, and the Chief "Justice attempted to address the Court,

by every rational man, be supposed, that
they are not to be despised.--But, what
do the ministers think of these matters? I
do not know; but, I know what the venal
prints say, and shall here quote a passage
from the Courier of the 26th instant, which
the reader will find worthy of his attention.
It is very curious, and will be a thing to
recur to hereafter." The Judges who,
"as our readers have seen in our private
"letter, delivered their opinions seriatim,
"were each strongly with the prosecution
"in point of law. The Jury, however,
"considered that the evidence was insuf-
"ficient, and brought in a verdict of
acquittal. Great, in consequence, have
"been the rejoicings of the populace, and
"with reason,
For, after having been
"told that the Constitution afforded their
"rights inadequate protection; that the laws

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were not strong enough to prevent oppres"sion; that the subject had insufficient

guards and guarantees against the Crown; "that Juries would be packed to bring ver"dicts against the liberties of the subject; "in short, that the whole system was a "system of tyranny and injustice; they "now find that they have been daringly "imposed upon; that the Constitution has "been wickedly calumniated; and that the "laws favouring no one class of society Z

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