Star. — London, England, 1811-12-26 00:00:00

NAVAL INTELLIGENCE. persed. The two Catholic. Noblemen pledged their honour to give bail, upon which (as we are informed by a private letter,) they were suffered to depart. Not the smallest manifestation to riot or irregt. laxity appeared among the populace, several hun dreds of whom were in the vicinity of the Theatre. Upwards of one hundred Protestants of rank, fortune, and talent, attended the meeting. After the Catholic Meeting had deen dispersed in Fishamble-street, a number of Gentlemen re paired to Mr. D'Ancy's, the Crown and Anchor Tavern, Earl -street, for the purpose of signing a Re quisition to call an Aggregate Meeting of the Catho• lics of Ireland. " While the Requisition was preparing, Counsellor HARE, accompanied by Alderman DARLEY, went into the room where they were assembled, and asked whether that meeting was a meeting of individual gentlemen ? Being answered in the affirmative, and being abcut to make a speech, Lord FFRENCII told him they did not want to hear any of his speeches, nor would they listen to them ; if he came there for the purpose of acting, that he must proceed without delay. " Mr. HARE said, that he merely wished to say, that as they had acknowledged themselves to be a meeting of individual Gentlemen, he would not molest them. 44 A Catholic Requisition, for an Aggregate Meet ing, to be had on Thursday next, at the Theatre, lishanzWe-street, has been drawn up, and signed by upwardsof three hundred persons." FALMOUTH, DECEMBER. 23. Arrived the Mary packet, from the West Indies, last from Plymouth ; the WHITING schooner, from a cruize; and the MULLET schooner, from Plymouth: the latter has sailed again for New York, &c. with mails. —Sailed the MORRISTON gun•brig, for Plymouth.— It is reported that the Carteret packet, from Surinam, is off the harbour.—Wind N. PLYMOUTH, DECEMBER 24. The report of the BLOODHOUND sloop of war belng on shore at Padstow is confirmed, and the ALPHBA is this day sailed hence to her assistance. Arrived the NISIROD cutter from L'Orient ; AMIDE, 38, and BAN JOSEPH, 112, from the Itochefort station. Came up harbour, the AMAZON, 38, MELAMPUS, 38, CAno rus, 74, and GIBRALTAR, 80, to refit. Passed. by for the Eastward the RAPID, 16. Sailed the PHEASANT on a cruize. This day the DIANA and LAUREL fri gates received on board a number of live oxen, with which they are to proceed to the Channel fleet. PORTSMOUTH, DECEMBER 25. Sailed his Majesty's ships HAVANNAH, VOLCANO; and SPITFIR4 with a convoy for Cadiz, Gibraltar, and the Mediterranean ; and his Majesty's ship Ti- MAW, with a convoy for Cork.—Wind Westerly. DOVER, DECEMBER 25. His Majesty's sloop BARBARA, Lieut. Douai,As, is on shore at Cock Point, near Folkestone, and it is feared, notwithstanding her masts are cut away, that she will not be got off. DEAL, DECEMBER es. Sailed this morning his Majesty's ships SPECTLAtOR and NYMPH, with the whole of the outward-bound This day tietttenant-General Baron Dart:ensuescoasters and colliers for Portsmouth ; also sailed for very fine corps, the 7th regimemt of the line of the Portsmouth his Majesty's ships ARSHDA, HANNIBAL, German Legion, who lately returned a skeleton from and MARLBOROUGH.—Wind N.W. The on h ß y ro h t e h r e e rs re , w ßo , y an d, d f s n t a a nr ce Lond r:aa to sMhaorentraosare, Arbroath. been de. Portugal, but who have quickly recruited to 800 sorted strong, in a high state of discipline, embark for Si- The James, Bryant, from Dublin to Portsmouth, struck on Wi t ck sh lo e w m ßanks . on har th g e e l6th inst. Ind received so much damage, icily% They are commanded by Major TIIALSIAN, and go to relieve a corps which goes to Lord WEL. WATERFORD, DECEMBER 16. LINGTON ) S army, and which they hope speedily fol- On Friday evening, the Jason, Capt. S. HARVEY, lowing, and a second time enter the lists with the arrived at this port from St. John's, Newfoundland, French in Portugal. which place she left on the 25th ult. under convoy of It is ex his o Majesty's ship Jason, the Hon. Captain pected that very soon the Horse Guards, n the 7th day after sailing, she parted convoy in a 6th Dragoon Guards, 7th, Greys, battalion of Foot heavy gale, and was taken on the 9th instant, about Guards, a reinforcement of Artillery, the old 37th, ten leagues to the eastward of Cape Clear, by the 42d, Ist battalion, .53d, a battalion, and 59th, with French privateer le Gran d Jea n Bart, Capt . Depont. the 6th, 38th, 20th, 76th, and some other corps from The French officers were very civil, but the crew, a motley groupe of foreigners, plundered the passen- Ireland, will very soon be sent out to Lord W gers of several articles. During the intercourse be- LINGTON. tween the two vessels, a boat was unfortunately stove, We are sorry to hear that Dr. FnAwcx, the Physi. by which accident two of the crew of the privateer, 4= General of the Army in Portugal, who conducted and one young man belonging to the Jason perished. himself so ably, has suffered much by the diseases of As the passengers were very numerous, the French Captain allowed the Jason to proceed, after taking a the country, and is obliged to return to England. receipt for the number of prisoners. The privateer is A detachment of the 9th Light Dragoons is or- a British-built vessel, mounts 14 guns, and has a crew dered to Plymouth to embark for Portugal. of 130 men. She was but a few days from Morlaix, BATAVIA. was on her first voyage, and had taken three prizes EXTRACTS bROSS A LETTER, DATED HEAD-QUARTERS, before she fell in With the Jason ; one of which, the WALTEVREEDE, ISLAND OF JAVA, SEPT. 4. brig Mariner, of Kincardine, with a cargo of Spanish Finding a vessel is about to be dispatched to England, I lose and cotton wool, from Lisbon, has been recaptured Dot a moment in giving you a short account of the operations o f by the JASPER, Captain HUNLOKE, and carried into the Army under the command of Sir &sweet AUCIIMUT Y. Portsmouth. "On the 9th of August we took possession of Batavia, with- The following letter has been posted at Lloyd's : out the least resistance; and, on the 10th instant moved on with " COR U N NA, Nov. se.--During the unsettled state of affairs the main body of the army to Wejtevreede, where an obstinate in the ls N h orthrn ports of Spain, I presume to recommend, that sany a o rt f er th m e a r nd Gallicia eo should, but short resistance was made on the part of the enemy to our vesse ls first inst ance ports g in th Ast e lan d, utias advance. The result was, the loss of six pieces of cannon on their to enquire what ports may be entered wrth safety; by rt w i h n i l c a l: part, and a complete defeat; being driven Into their very strong means considerable risk will be saved to the Underwriters, and fortifications at Cornelis, which formed a complete line of regular the commercial interests of Great Britain much benefited." DISTRIBUTION OF PRIZE-MONEY. works of five miles in extent, each fort with a strong cheveanx• de-frize round it, and a ditch upwards of 20 feet deep. Finding f or Raleigh, h for the Lo uisa .ih and Admiral Youill ; and Banterer, very little impression could be made on it by our battering train,: p t u e nta F g o e rt net un aa a, t rl 3 l aph e a p e air f l ar an t d he ricall ai t a n t , 2F2hidAterti.malaerli Amy street. it was determined we should storm their works. This dashing son, for le Baton, le Cupidon, and Speculation, on In ' aard, on Sa enterprise took place on the morning of the 26th. Our brigade, ' I turday, if in port ; recalled on Tuesdays and Fridays. Princess ot Wales, for the Dragon, Emanuel, and Haabet, on consisting of about 2000 men, under the command of Colonel beard, on Wednesday next; recalled at 14, Clement's Inn. GILLESPIE, formed the advance, and began the attack about half an hour before day-light. In the course of two hours, I every position they held was carried by the bayonet, when they retreated very preciptately, leaving two thousand killed andl wounded, and more than 6000 prisoners; among the number .500 Officers and several Generals, nod about 250 pieces of can non ; since which we have taken possession of a fortress, about 20 miles off, called Bittengorf, which General Jansen has retreated from, and I believe had only a few cavalry with bins, the re mainder of his army having deserted him. The morit.:4 we stormed we had not above 6 or 7000 troops, and only half of them Europeans; the enemy, we know, had 15,000. " The battalion of marines, consisting of 240 rank and file, em ployed in conjunction with the advance under Colonel Gillespie, behaved with their accustomed bravery and gallantry, in proof of which I send you a copy of the Brigade Orders of the 27th of August, with the Address of Sir Samuel Auchntaty to the Com ' risertsllng pincer, who baked there previous to their easbarting forsooth& service with a part of the army. Their loss on this woke, besides detachments. was two officers wounded, and 20 rank and file killed and wounded." BRIGADE ORDERS, AUG. 27, 1811. Colonel Gillespie feels extremely happy to have again tbess tisfaction of expressing his thanks to the troops of the advarlat whom be had the honour to command, for the bravery and gal lantry they displayed in the action of yesterday at Cornelis, the high sense and admiration he entertained of their conduct in the action of the 10th, was fully upheld in that of yesterday. " He has made a faithful report to the Commander-in-Chief, of their heroic conduct; where all behaved with such distin. subbed bravery, and praise is equally due, it is ddfieult to men tion individuals. requests every Officer com- " Colonel Gille s p ie, therefore, •snanding corps and detachments belonging to the advance; Capt. •Sturce, commanding the Royal Marines; and capt./VPLeod, commanding the Company of his Majesty's 75th regiment, who were attached, to accept his warmest acknowledgments for their -zeal and gallantry, which has been displayed by them all ; said to communicate W the Officers and men ender their respective eornmanda,aeituesple grateful sense be entertains of their merits. " Colo begs they will accept a soldier's tribute , h is s incerest thanks a nd heartfelt gratitude." THE ARMY. The Crane, 28, Captain COLLIER, is appointed convoy for the West Indies, and remains now at Portsmouth with the Acasta and East India convoy; and the Havannah and Mediterranean convoy. . In obedience to the dictates of NAPOLEON, the KIN of PRUSSIA has issued an Edict, suppressing a pamphlet, entitled, 6 , The New Jacobins in the Prussian States," in which the measures of the French and Prussian Governments are obliquely censured. It is reported that the French threw fresh supplies into Cuidad Rodrigo, on the 24 December. But the advices from the army do not warrant that statement. There seems not to be any foundation for the reports that the army would retreat ; but some accounts mention that Marmon was collecting his forces for another advance. The Duke of YORK Will remove to-morrow from the Hone Guards to York Howe. The German papers say, that Madame BLANCHA RD was not killed by the accident she experienced in the balloon in which she was attempting to ascend at Rome. She was much bruised ; but, It is added, she had completely recovered. Saturday night between eight and nine o'clock, a low house in Blair's Close, Castle-hill; Edinburgh, opposite the city's reservoir, suddenly blew up with a great explosion, and the inhabitants in the floor above were instantly precipitated along with the falling ruins, into the cellar below. A room in the second floor was also blown up ; in which there was luckily no person at the time of the accident. The house immediately caught fire, which, however, was son got under when the persons who had fallen along with the rubbish were taken out. The house above ' , the cellar is [inhabited by a man of the name of Camp bell, his mother, and three women lodgers, with three children. Campbell was much scorched; his mother was killed—one of the women had her thigh bone broken and was much scorched. The other two were also greatly scorched and bruised. The children were not much hurt. The unfortunate sufferers were all sent to the Royal Infirmary. The Magistrates, po lice, and firemen soon attended, and the fire was got under in a short time. The gunpowder which occa sioned the explosion s was, it is supposed, concealed in the cellar. MALTA SEPTEMBER 21, 1811. A LETTER TO A MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT IN THE COUNTY OF DENIM SlR—After 4 sojourn on the Continent for about five years, I had at last the rood fortune of extricating myself from numberless dangers and difficulties, and took accordingly my passage at.N iples in an Ameri can vessel bound to Malta—from which place I have the pleasure to address you. • As my private concerns will probably detain me for some time in this island, and consequently my 'I arrival in England may perhaps be postponed for' some months, I do not hesitate availing myself of the first opportunity to write to you ; and, in the mean-time, to inform you of some facts which daily happen in this part of the world, and which I must look upon as in the highest degree detrimental to the honour of our country. I am a private individual, and have been travelling only for my pleasure, which you are not ignorant of; and as an Englishman, 1 think myself entitled to the right of representing to our distinguished characters at home, the many abuses which occur continually in our foreign possessions, and which will inevitably disgrace our national character, if not speedily re moved and abolished. The abuses I allude to, Sit, are attributed to the great number of privateers, apparently English (at least carrying the British flag), but in great part really belonging to foreigners, or to a set of adven turers, under the name of mercenary Englishmen, who are base enough to sell the honour of our coun try for a despicable sum of money, and to depredate the property of our countrymen, in order to share it with some foreigner, and very often to enrich with it an enemy.—ln short, Sir, I wish to allude to the equi vocal tenor of many licences granted to American and other merchants, who are well-disposed towards the English, but who, being totally unacquainted 'with the severe laws of our Admiralty courts, have unfortunately lost their property, owing to a mere de ficiency of form, which in justice ought to have been . explained to them at the time such licences were granted. I allude also to the shameful correspondence held by many of the proprietors (whose names I can men tion) of privateers, under the name of English, with those on the Continent, by which means they get in formation of every ship that is about to sail from one port to another, and render its attestation unavoid able. The captured ship is generally plundered, and the passengers ill treated, by a set of rapacious vaga. bonds of all nations, who carry the vessel into some port to which it was not bound, where in all proba bility its condemnation follows (owing to some trifling omission), when the captors sell and share the con demned property for the mutual benefit of them arid their informers. The owner of the vessel and cargo then makes an appeal to our Admiralty court at Lon don, where the cause is perhaps decided in his favour. 'He ten calls upon the captors to refund the money, which is probably less than the original cost ; and the only satisfaction he obtains is, that they are become bankrupts, and have absconded. I do not mean to enlarge upon politics—but our Government are little aware of the useful intelligence conveyed to Bonaparte by means of these dastardly privateers. These are facts, Sir, of which I am well informed, I and which cannot but diminish the high opinion foreigners entertain of English honour and loyalty. These abuses are so striking and so frequent, that , not only strangers, but some respectable British mer chants themselves, established in this Island, feel the necessity for the vindication of our national honour, as well as for the benefit of trade in general, of apply ing the most efficacious remedy for their total re moval. I have often heard many unfortunate foreign mer chants, at the Exchange and other public places, most bitterly complain of their having been totally ruined in consequence of the unlimited confidence they have placed in British licences. "We thought (said they) of securing our property from French rapacity, by conveying it to a place under the English protection: but in extricating ourselves from the - paws of the Tiger, we have fallen into those of the Lion. We have been bereft (continued they) of all our pro petty by that very nation we were ever used to look upon as the most loyal and most generous on earth— We are now plunged into the horrors of distress, owing to the smallest and most insignificant defi ciency of form ; but, if the danger of overlooking these forms is of so great a consequence as to cause the ruin of many innocent individuals, why were we not informed of it at the time we iiurelsarell those li cences ? Why are those licences couched in such equivocal words, as to be liable of a double and con tradictory interpretation ?"—ls this the nation which boasts so much of her high sense of honour, libera lity, and justice ? What, in the name of humanity, must be the feelings of a liberal minded Briton, on hearing such just reproaches from those very persons who fell vic tims to the honour and integrity they placed in our nation !—These reproaches pierced me to the very soul, and urged me without loss of time to trouble you with these few lines. have pointed out to you the evil ; let our Repro. sentatives become aware of the necessity of diminish. ing not aboliihing entirely) the number of privateers, and our Government of couching all licences in the most clear and unequivocal words, so as not to be liable to a double interpretation. Let our Govern ment, instead of issuing letters of marque in favour of individuals of an equivocal character, employ rather some young officers of our navy, who will prefer being appointed to the command of small armed ves sels (of which we have numbers) in order to protect the trade of our countrymen and neutrals, to the idle life many of them are condemned to lead in tier dif ferent sea-port c. On the Continent I became acquainted with many respectable merchants, who, under the apprehension of falling into the hands of" the privateers, keep at a distance from our ports, and 'who would, in spite of all Bonaparte's peremptory decrees, carry on with our possessions a commerce mutually beneficial.— Commerce, the glory of England, in spite of Bona parte, would flourish, and our national character, which has of late suffered so much in the eves of foreign nations, which ought to ke our first and most political object in these criticallkimes, would be re established on the most solid basis. 1 am, Sir, your 'obedient bumble servant, s. o. MURDERS AT SHADAVELL Yesterday Mr. CapperMagistrate of Shattwel, Office, attended oh Mr: Vermilloe (and not. Vermil lion, as before stated) in Newgate. Mr. allderm is Wood, and Atkins; waited i.n the Magistratn in the m"rning, and stated information which was c.f great importance. The ripping chitsel which was found it son's housewas conveyed to Nengate, in order to be identified by Mr. Vermilloe. 'rive conference was private, and continued until four o'cl ick in the after noon. Mr. Vermilloe gave testimony to the irstru ment, called a Ripping Hock, being among the chest of tools deposited in his house. We must here remind our Readers that the said Riming Hoak, about two feet in length, was found by the side of Mrs. William son, and it is the same which Mr. Vermilloe has de. posed that he knew perfectly well. Mrs. Vermilloe, who was so much affected on Tuesday night, that her evidence was very inconclusive, gave in an un embarrassed manner, the decisive ii formation as to the identity of the blood-stained instrument. The unfortunate person in confinement has lik:wise given information of an( ther man, wliom he conceives must be conc. reed in the late inhuman murders. _ The Magistrates immediately forwarded directions to the different officers to go in pursuit, and late last night every exertion was used to find out the man al luded to, and we have the pleasure to state, no doubts are entertained s of his detection. As far as can he officially learned, there were onl7 ' two men concerned in both of the atrocious murders. The fact of Williams having been seen running up the alleys by the side of Willtamson's house after the alarm was given, w.ll, it is said, be proved by a per son of the name of Johnstone on the next examina tion of Williams. _ _ The public now feel some consolation in the hope that a clue for the detection of the villains who have' committed the recent massacres, ss ill be accomplished with the assistance of Mr. Vermilloe. We give the following description of his person : Williams, previous to the murders, had large red whiskers, which seem to have been cut off very re cently, before his apprehension ; and his hair is cut in a different manner to what it was before ; he is about five feet nine inches in height. • It turns out, that he has gone by another name be sides Williams, and that, instead of being a Scotsman, as he represented himself to be to the Magistrates of Shadwell Office, he is a native of Ireland. Vermilloe, the landlord of, the Pear-tree public house, at which the supposed murderer lodged, was liberated from the debtors' side of Newgate, this day, and will be further examined to-morrow. John Williams, in custody on suspicion of being ooe of the murderers of the Marr and Williamson fa milies, is now heavily ironed, and confined in Cold- Bath-fields House of Correction. The Magistrates of the County residing at Ham mersmith, have sworn in thirty-two of the inhabitants as special Constables, to act during the present alarm ing period. 'Tuesday morning, as Mr. Sturges, a Bigler, was coming from Romford, with his cart to the London markets, with poultry, &c. he was stopped by three fellows, near Ilford, armed with bludgeons, who de manded his money ; but being armed wi th pistols. and a blunderbuss, be told them if they did not de sist, he would fire ; on which the villains decamped without their booty. The house of the Rev. S. R. Saltere, at Hitching, near Beaconsfield, was broken open on Sunday night by four armed men, who, after assuring Mrs. Saltere, who was alone in her chamber, that no violence was meant, they ransacked the house of some articles of plate amounting to about A'3o, and the like sum is notes, when they retired. There were only two sere rants and a little boy in the house, Mr. S. being in town. A Shrewsbury Paper says—" In addition to the murders and depredations nightly and even daily committed in the metropolis, the provincial Papers that have reached us during the week, announce an almost unparalleled catalogue of robberies ; and be sides those mentioned in our last, many others have occurred in this neighbourhood. The house of Mr. Tranter, of Colnbrook-dale • the corn-mill of Mr. Weaver, of Buildwas ; the dairy and poultry-house of Mr. Cherrington, of Kemberton ; the work-shop of Messrs. Parsons and Firmstone, of Wellington ; the workshop and counting-house of Mr. Perry, cur rier, of Kidderminster ; also the premises of Mr. Hill, baker, of the same place, have all been plundered by nightly depredators. A few days ago Mr. Howard, of Burslem, was stopped by two footpads on the Drayton-road; who dragged him from his horse, and rifled his pockets of about £9. A person of the name of Wight was recently brought before the Judge of Police, charged with endeavour ing to steal a dead body from a house in the north back of Canongate, Edinburgh. It would appear, that a poor man having breathed his last, the pri soner, who formerly had been acquainted with him, called upon the widow, and offered his services in conducting the funeral. He brought a coffin to the house on Friday evening last, into which the body was put, and the cover screwed down.- He then pr railed on the widow to leave her own house, and ac company him, with her family, to his all night. Having got possession of the key of the house, he re curved at an early hour in the morning, accumpanie by two other men, with a deal box filled with sand and was in the act of removing the corpse, in orde to substitute the sand in its place, when the neigh bours having been alarmed, he was caught in th fact and secured. When called upon by the Jud to account for his being in the house, he confessed hi motives, and that it was his intention to have sold the body to the surgeons ; alledging, that as the widow was a poor woman, and unable to defray the ezpences of the funeral, the sum he would have got for the body would have ',enabled her to do so. He was committed for triaL The following persons were last week committed to Winchester gaol, viz. W. Fielder, charged with having, on the 25th ult. at Portsmouth Dock-yard, stolen siz pieces of copper-bolts, and 18 pieces of can. die; A. Ferguson, 'l'. Cassidy, and T. Crompton, privates in the 25th foot, for breaking open the lon tine Inn, in Newport, and stealing a quantity of cop per coin, some spirits, &c. g and Jean Mercier, a French prisoner of war at Alresford, for breaking hi , parole. M p oi ' . ...... , ki 'Ail*l:v,y