Star. — London, England, 1809-09-14 00:00:00

THE EVI,NING STAR. LONDON.' THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER !IC PRICE OF STOCKS THIS DAY AT Oiii Ci'CLOcKs ' S per Cent. Coos. for money Siiii—far ace. SM. Ontehisi f poimar—Excheq. Bills, 611. 14s. peen'. ' PRICE 9F STOCKS YESTERDAY: INA Steck ;dint ~. India Bonds ?A s. in: S per Cent. Red. shut Esoheg. 1310 v 45.. 14s. pre i ,, I per Cent. Cons. 68iii Omniwn it prem.., . • 4 per Cent. shut • State Lottery Tickets allii - 17S. I per tent. Nary Vatf • t'City ditto £8 lilsi" Il• - • Lopg Ann. shut I Coss. for ace. 6sf It has been very currently .reported for.these two days, that changes are about to take place in the Cabinet. The extent of the change is not yet accu rately known, but we have reason to belieiO that die Duke of PORTLAND is certainly to resign his place of First Lord of the Treasury, at the head of the Cal bir.et. Lord CASTLEREAGH, it is also also expected, will resign the office of Secretary of State for the War Department. Lord BATHURST is talked of as the successor , of the Duke of PORTLAND; and Marquis Wzza.r.sLET will, it is said, succeed Lord CASTLEREAGII in the War Department. Lord CHATHAM is also expected to resign,. and Lord LEI-p..ON GOWER, who is now Secretary at War, will probably be promoted to a higher office. That the late events in Spain and Holland are the proximate causes of these changes cannot be doubted; but whether such undertakings could have prospered in any hands, may be questioned. In fact, the people at large have been accessary to all the misfortunes that have happened, particularly in Spain. The nation has been mad, and while the phrenzy shall continue which excites us to prosecute objects that are morally unattainable, our Ministers may quarrel, and the people may split themselves into parties, but nothing except confusion, disaster, shame, and ruin can be expected, wjioever may have the management ofsotir public affairs. Those who have been in the habit of reading our columns cannot misconceive our object, in speaking thus plainly.—lf the public shall allow themselves to be blinded to the true causes which produced the present distressing crisis, they may expect from the resigna tion of certain men an improvement of our circum stances—but their expectations will be fatally disap pointed.—We repeat it, and we call upon Ministers and the Country at large to attend to the melancholy truth ; that our present distress has arisen, in a gteat measure, from the indulgence of feelings highly honourable to our national character—a desire to help the weak, and to free our inthralled fellow crea tures from the most atrocious tyranny and oppression. Our error was not in making the attempt, but in allowing our judgment to be blinded by our feelings ; and we assert again, that the whole nation partici pated in this folly—and so cordially, that no admi n:s..ratioa could have kept its place that would have dared to oppose, or even to moderate an ebullition of public feeling, that was 'absolutely tinctured with insanity. Why should the truth be disguised ? Why should any one refuse to participate in the common shame of common infatuation arising from a feeling that was common to all ? It is our duty to speak the truth— we hay e spoken it—long have we spoken it, bu t our voice could not be heard !—Our error was in sending men to Spain !—A country pcssessing a respectable popu-' lation, and determined to be free—is virtually free ! Such a people cannot be subdued by any power upon earth ! Nor can a nation, in such circumstances, stand in need of any thing but arms, and military stores. But it was soon manifest that Spain was not de termined to repel the invader ; that the system was rotten at the core ; and that her leaders possessed none of those virtues which ever display themselves among a people worthy to enjoy the blessings of freedom, and without which they can never submit to those privations and sacrifices, or call forth those energies whick eiM alone secure success i►n such a • • struggle.' All.this was manifest; yet we:ientured tOcommit one act of folly by sending an army into Spain under ,General Moons. The result might honoured us of ; our insanity, had we been curably, and yet - we instantly sent a second army to thrust its services on . the most contemptible race of mortals in .Europe. •__ The• change of a few Ministers cannot remedy theivils that haie been brought upon the nation. —A change of public sentiment—a change of mea• sures—a change in the objects of our pursuit, may in time permit us to recruit the fatal waste that has been incurred in the prosecution of folly. But if we shall still talk about " the brave Spaniards"—" the mag nanimous Spaniards !"—if we shall still shut our eyes, nor venture to look at these wretches in their true character, we shall go on blundering and floun dering, till we are completely ruined. . t The dispatches received from Lord WELLINGTON __-------- . : Jotrunday, were dated the 25th ult. and . contain. ,„;,. li ' information which hi s L or d s hi p h ad b een a b le , vd - in, as well as the results of his personal obser- V; ion; respecting the- military resources of that king- Arun, the present condition r,f its armies, the proba . . hility of. their increase and improvement ; and, in s hort, every argument which could be offered either f or (4 against the further prosecution of the contest. After duly weighing these, Ministers have s it is af firmed, determined to confine our operations for the' present, to the defence of Portugal. The troops which have sailed, and are under4i.i ders to reinforce the army of Lord WELLINGTaN, are, in consequence, to be landed at Lisbon. Lettersfrom Holland repeat the report that peace has been concluded between Austria and France. The date .now mentioned is the 22d ult. but had such an event taken place at the time mentioned, we should, proba bly, before this time, have heard of rejoicings along the French coast.—We have no doubt, however, that great progress has been made in the negotiation, and we naay expect soon to hear of its being concluded. At twelve o'clock yesterday his MAJEsry arrived from Windsor, at the Queen's Palace, where he was received by the Dukes of YORK, KENT, and CAM BRIDGE. At two o'clock his MAJESTY held a private levee. The following had the honour of being presented to his MAJESTY : Major-General PAGET, on his return from Portug9l. Lieutenant-General GROSVENOR, on his return from foreign service; and Capt. SPARROW, and Capt. BISHOPP, his Aides-du- Camp. Sir HCNRY HALFORD (late Dr. VAUCIIIAN), On being created a Baronet. Sir JAMES Slum', on his being created a Baronet. General Rom NSON, en his promotion; and General DISPARD, on his appointment to the Bth Garrison Battalion. His MAJESTY afterwards held a Privy Council, and gave audience to the Duke of PORTLAND and the rest of the Cabinet Ministers. At six o'clock his MAJESTY left town for Windsor. Major-General PAGET, who had the honour of being presented yesterday to his MAJESTY, recently lost his arm in Portugal. Yesterday her MAJESTY, the Princesses AUGUSTA, ELIZABETH, and SOPHIA, accompanied by the Dukes Of YORK, CUMBERLAND, and KENT, Ladies ILCHES TER, 1. THYNNE, and several Ladies in waiting, pro ceeded in the carriages of the Dukes of YORK and KENT, to inspect the new Theatre, Covent-garden. The Royal party arrived at the grand entrance in Bow-street about two o'clock. They were received by Colonel DESBROW, Messrs. HARRIS, jun. KEMBLE, SMIRKE, the architect, COPLAND, the builder, and Mr. BRANDON, and were conducted up the grand staircase into the Boxes, from whence they proceeded to the Stage, Pit, Gallery, and through all the different apartments of theTheatre. The painting, decorations, and striking objects of the house, were particularly described by Messrs. SMIRKE and COPLAND. The Queen and Princesses appeared highly gratified with the beautiful and elegant style in which the whole is fitted up, particularly the Green-room, which, in point of taste and elegance, is entitled to the greatest adMiration. The Queen took a seat in the Pit, and the Princesses explored the front seat of the Gallery ; in short, every part of the Theatre was subject to their inspection.—Her MAJESTY expressed surprise at beholding so fine a structure raised in so short a time, and after the illustrious visitants had satisfied their curiosity during an hour, they left the Theatre at three o'clock, and proceeded to the Duke of YORK'S house, Stable-yard, St. James's, where an elegant dinner was provided on the occasion. At a quarter before six, the QUEEN, PRINCESSES, and suite ) left town for Windsor. The public will rejoice to hear, that the enlightened mind Of the present LORD CHAMBERLAIN, has em braced the views of the numberless patrons of the Drama, and accorded his sanction for the establish ment in this vast metropolis of a third Theatre, whose chief characteristic is to be English Opera. Colonel GREVILLE is the person who has obtained the licence for the above purpose; and he, aware how necessary it was to have the co-operation of some coadjutor. well versed in Theatrical business, proposed the half of his licence, in the first instance, to Mr. ELLISTON, with this proviso, that he should both manage and perform. Unfortunately, that Gentleman, from his prior engagement with Mr. SHERIDAN, could do nei ther ; in consequence of which, Colonel GREVILLE offered the management of the concern, together with the half of the licence, to Mr. ARNOLD, who, in the uncontrolled management of the Lyceum Summer Opera, has proved how capable he is of conducting a theatrical establishment. We further learn, that there is an intention of pub licly convening together all the Patrons and real lovers of the Drama, and who are desirous of pro moting this undertaking ; but what the public will learn with the greatest satisfaction, is, that the ad• mission prices will be the same as those of the pre ceding season ; that the size of the theatre will be adapted to the eyes and ears of the audience, and the voice of the performer ; and that no foreign actor or actress, or instrumental turformer, and composer, will form any part of the new establishment. As a party of French prisoners were last week con ducting past Plymouth Dock-yard, in order to be put on board a prison -ship in Hamoaze, one of them, on seeing the UNION and other vessels on the stocks, re marked, " You English male much shifts—you male no more Lord Nelsons !" On Monday the Officers of the garrison of Dover gave a Concert at the Assembly Rooms, at that place, for the laudable purpose of contributing towards the Fund for the Relief of the Widows and Children of the Non-Commissioned Officers and Soldiers who so nobly fell in the late actions in Spain and Holland. It was hilly attended, upwards of 501. having been collected, after deducting expences. It is to be wished that this laudable example may be generally followed. Saturday a grand sailing match took place at Tor bay between eleven sail of the Torbay fishing smacks, in consequence of three handsome presents given by Lord COURTNEY ; they all assembled round his Lord ship's beautiful yacht Dolphin, and by a signal-gun from her they all started ; great skill was performed by the crews of the different vessels ; and after sailing several leagues, with a fine breeze, in sight of many spectators, the first prize was won by the Six Sisters, John Wheaten ; the second by the Samuel and Mary, Samuel Gorky ; and the third by the Phcenix, Bar-1 nabas Green. The whole concluded with the greatest' harmony, and . without any accident. We regret to state that the house of Sir MATTHEW BLORIIAhI and Co. Bankers, Gracechurch•street, Lon don, has stopped payment. . 1. ' THE LATE EXPEDITION. • . PROM TILE ARGUS. [lt will b , een from some passages in the following articl2, that it was written before the intelligence of the surrender of flush ing lira reached the French capital. " The news of the armistice, which arrived at Lon don on the 26th of July, has spread' a consternation over the Ministerial party, which the hope of the suc cess of the Flushing Expedition could not efface.— The opinions of the English Opposition Papers on this subject appear to us sufficiently curious to ofttr it to our readers. " At London, as at Paris, the issue of this Expe dition may now be foreseen. The letters which are every moment received from the North of France, the zeal which is manifested every where against the English, who fancied its coast without any means of defence, have already caused their speedy flight to be presaged. The delay alone of their first attacks was a defeat. They could only hope to succeed by a sur prise, or by treason. They have lost the first by their timid procrastination (des lenteurs timides). They have seduced but one traitor, and soon found thousands of heroes. Flushing, and the French fleet, might pos sibly have been taken, by an unexpected coin-de-main, but all the vessels are now in safety in the Scheldt.— Flushing is vigorously defended : succours have been sent in under the cannon of the English ships ; and, if this fortress had yielded to an unforeseen attack, it would have been a short conquest, and produced only useless disasters. The glorious epoch at which we live, is far distant from the days when the enemy held a garrison in Calais. If they have now the power to destroy, they have not to occupy. Their whole marine could not prevent Flushing from soon falling again into the power of France. " It is notorious, that the British Government wit nessed, with profound regret, the opening of the Scheldt, and the cession of Flushing to France. Mr. Pitt said, in the House of Commons, that if France were permitted to retain that maritime and commer cial position, they might even abandon to her also the mouth of the Thames : to which a favourable wind might in 24 hours transport a French expedition, pre pared with security in a vast bason, so well protected by art and nature.' But victory jias, nevertheles s, secured this fine conquest to France ; which the poll-1 tical faults of Mr. Pitt contributed to, and which all the genius of his successors will never take away.— Thus the expence of their immense expedition will be lost. The Island of Walcheren will be one of the bulwarks of France ; the Scheldt will be free for the felicity of her rich northern provinces, and to the per petual terror of the Mistress of Me Sear. " Already national honour calls Frenchmen to the defence of their insulted coasts. These of the neigh bouring departments have not waited the summons of the Prince and Senate to fly thither. The tempest thickens round the English: they will stayon the shore with their sails unfurled, if they do not wish to pay dearly for the temptation to which they have yielded, of setting their feet on the French territory. " We did not wait for events in order to judge concerning this expedition. It has been ill conceived and ill executed. As an ally of Austria, it is not possible that England should not have flattered her with this diversion. Why then has it been so tardy ? But if Flushing has been always the object of this en terprise, we may infer from it, that the greatest dis asters will never cure the British Government of its incurable selfishness and jealous cupidity, since the desire of catching a few ships has been more powerful than the possibility of effecting a diversion more use ful to her ally, either in Spain or the North of Ger many, in aid of the robbers whom it has in pay there. On the other hand, if it be true that the knowledge of the Armistice has deranged the first plan of the English Ministers, the precipitation was imprudent, and the changeimay be fatal. " Certainly it is an affront to the British arms, that an Expedition prepared at so enormous an expence, composed of numerous And select troops, trumpeted forth as one that was to effect a rev:ilution in Euro pean affairs, should terminate in the bombardment of a town ; leaving the field- of battle .to a few garri son troops and national guards, without experience in war. Is it not matter or scandal, that in opposition to so mighty and costly an,effort, France should:not, (in spite of the assertions 06 the Englisk i papers) be' under the necessity of detaching a single man from her grand armies, and .that the conquerors of the Danube, should, at the same time, hear of the insolent attempt of the English and their defeat ? It is thus that we may judge of thq relative power of the two nations, and see at what price England purchases ' • that maritime superiority, which is raised on the Ca lamities and divisions of Europe." The Duke of BRUNSWICK OUR is 'ncrof itt . Fiewport in the Isle of Wight, where he inived *Monday afternoon. About 1500 of his brave folfoweis are in that neighbourhood ; 800 more are on their march thither; these being all, out of 8000 men, who were able to effect their escape from the Elbe. . The re mainder, after reaching the water-side, fen Into the enemy's hands for want of transports. '• • When the Duke of BRUNSWICK OEra arrived at Newport, he was immediately greeted by all the offi cers of his legion, and saw a part of the men from the windows of the Bugle Inn. His Grace is a great favourite with both men and officers. They continued huzzaing him for a considerable time, he entering familiarly into conversation with all ranks, many of whom, literally, kissed his cheek and chin—a custom very frequent among the Germans in all manifesta tions of affection. A gentleman who arrived yesterday, after a short voyage of three weeks from Riga, has supplied us with some very recent information on the state of that port, respecting which accounts so very inaccu rate were received. There were about 150 ships in the harbour, laden with Baltic produce, which it was presumed, from, the advanced state of the season, would in a few weeks set sail. There was no diffi culty about American shipping, nor any disposition in the public Agents to obstruct American interests, and therefore a great many vessels of other nations were consigned to the Consul of the United States, as the most advantageous means of recommending them to favour in the offices where their papers were to be examined. This gentleman, off the coast of Sweden, met with 20 transports, accompanied by an English frigate, which, it was supposed, -were conveying _the' Russian seamen to their own country ,who were brought from the Tagus. AMERICA. Th 2 Amelia Matilda, Captain GRAtrAlf, had cleared at New York, to Liverpool, was stoplit.d, with several other vessels thitt were leaving that pori, on 12th August, and compelled to give bond that thee would not go to Great Britain or her dependencies. A letter from New York of the 12th ult. contains information, which, if correct, is highly impr.,:rant.—.. It is stated positively that a Treaty between the U 1;. ted States and France had been concluded, and thi,t the American sloop the Wasp, was to leave Arn2rica on. the 16th ult. having on board a Messerger, with dispatches for the American Charge-d'Affaires at Paris. We have considerable d ou b ts o f t h e truth cf this statement. The New-York Papers which have been rece i ved to the 13th ult. contain the Proclamation of the p re. sident, and the instructions to the Collector s of Cus. toms at the American ports, which we have ahead; given. The following extract from one of pers serves to shew the asperity of party feeling i ll America. " The conduct of the British Ministers has capped th e t u nist of atrocity towards this count.aryn.iiss'iFolniewirafisrsiLatictit:etdhe, wobutzeet: the Chesapeake, was an injury of the deepest dye, and inst ea d m a in m at a iVa a dd itl e:inst "pa lt rat t i o o l n njury. Close upon the heels o f t hi s 'mission fonowed.the celebrated Orders of November 1 Ithirhi c h proditeed, with other causes, the Embargo an d Non-intercourse with England. This, co-operating with the disasters of her art% produced the arrangement made by Mr. Erskine with ow Verntnetit " After this negotiation Congress adjourns in security, wise; to the astonishment of every honest man, these engagements, i t scilertuily executed as any engagements made by man, aredis. avowed and annulled, not in part, but altogether, as well tkosi relative to the Chesapeake as those relative to the Ordersin Council, in the language of Lord Bathurst, " as wholly maths, rised !" " How can thlt he ? Is Mr. Erskine a traitor to his Govern ment, a fool, or a madman, thus to commit himself, and to have acted in a way (in the language of Lord Liverpocl) not only un authorised by his instructions, but in direct opposition to them._ We all recollect the language of Mr Erskine, and if we believe him a man of common honesty, and of the meanest understandi::;;, we must conclude that he was authorised to make the overtures he proposed. They were not extorted from him : he was the first to propose them, and as proposed, .ecrbatim ct litcpdays, th e y were adopted by our Government." The following is considered as an official article; .) distinctly s t i e oe i m u l g ae e t n es c e e o r nr o .ti f ice July f e 8 . t f w e m a a t si t a ; y r in e g b s t o o in ' o r f tl n notice : gg 1. The arrangements made by Mr. Erskine, it is said, are not such as were authorized by h;s Majesty's instructions, " or such as his Majesty ota approve." g g Here is an avowal by the British Governme4 of an inflexible purpose, unlimited by time or circum. stance, either net to make a proper reparationfe the outrage committed on the Chesapeake, or not to re. scind the principle of her Orders of the 7th January, of jah ( T F : r r o et h m aa il e e and IltkoNovember. qo The temporary relaxations of the old Orders in Council are all coupled with one sweeping condi. tion, viz. a withdrawal of protection from any vessel that shall attempt to enter any port " actually block. aded by any of his Majesty's ships of war." 44 IS there not reason to fear that the whole of the enemy's poets will in this way be blockaded by a na. val force altogether insufficient for the compkte vestment fequisite to a legal blockade, and that ves. sels leaving ports thus " blockaded" will, on theirre turn. voyage, be seized on the high seas by British cruizers, and carried into British ports for adjudica p.tion, for a violation of the blockade ? There is the more reason to apprehend that the species of block. ade here referred to is not that recognized by the law of nations ; as, if it were, there would have been no reason for such a provision. " 3. The Order professes to indemnify American merchants, indeed to avoid any interference with their adventures under the arrangements with Mr. . Erskine. But this will be found on investigation to be an idle pretext. The larger number ci American vessels were destined fur and will have entered Er iti,i: ports,with conimodities in part meant for consumption in England, in part for consumption On the Conti nent. :The value of their commodities must mateti -4111. depend on a sale for them. on the Continent.— r'rhlti being almost totally cut off by the Order of the 26t1t April, - sribstituted in the room of the previous Orders, the prices of those commodities in British ports have actually sunk, and may be expected to fall much more; and the American merchant, instead of making a profit, will incur a ruinous loss. A large portion of these shipments to England were, doubt less, meant to be deposited in that country, with a view to future transportation to the Continent. This resource being now almost entirely cut off, a great and steady depression of prices will be inevitable. 44 By the disavowal of the British Ministry, the Order of April last comes into operation in lieu of the Orders of January and November, 1807. Now the Order of April, although otherwise represented ,a most of the public prints, will be found even more rigorous and oppressive to our trade than the preccd• ing Orders. Under these Orders, the direct trade be tweak the United States and the Colonies of the ene mies of Britain, and from the United States to the Continent of Europe through a British port, and the transportation of American produce, cotton except ed, through a British port to enemies ports, under certain conditions were allowed. By the Order of April they are, with trifling exceptions, interdicted. The principal trade authorized with the Continentby this Order is to the ports of the Baltic, allowed, no doubt, by Britain, for the express purpose of obtain ing naval supplies through American bottoms --a trade which will be likely to be inhibited, as soon as it is seen to have this effect, and which, independerlO . of this circumstance, would be of very little value to us, but a small portion of our produce wi,uld there find a market. Besides this trade, the Order allows a trade to the Southern parts of Italy, comprising ad. a part of the territory of the Church, the whole of but inconsiderable importance, compared with the ports of Genoa and Leghorn, in the Northern part of Italy, with which all trade is interdicted. To ties may be added a qualified trade to certain parts of Spain and Portugal, dependent upon their e.ssessio:t by England, which are, however, too truing a nd precarious to be of much value to us. Under this view of the subject, the arrangements made with Mr. Erskine, attended by their recent disavowal, will be found to operate as a mere decoy, the emollient leni tives of the Order of May '24 to the contrary no:- withstanding." ii ~. 1 ~ Y