Star. — London, England, 1812-08-29 00:00:00

THE ARMY. THE GERMMI LEGION. r i ne we firmly believe -Slut there is no person in the E mp i r e who will withhold that just aced of fa ,e from the gallantry and skill displayed by the Germ , n Legic,n, in the Plains of Salamanca, our kegs, as Englishmen, will not permit us to pass art, wit hout Animadversion, the manner in which g reat, and certainly meritorious services on that wa g o n, have been rewarded. B y a single paragraph in the Gazette, twelve todiee i foreign Officers are placed above several 6„„„i, of, British in rank, and our brave fellow. cowme n, are consequently, to that extent, shut frea promotion. W e know the generous spirit of a British Officer to e well, to suppose that if the German Officers, " r ho signalized themselves at Salamanca, had been oeete d f or promotion, any jealousy would have ken excited. But to 'put the whole Officers of the German Legion on permanent rank, by which many o f th e m, with only two or three years of service, fill get the rank of Colonel over the heads of gallant isglishmen who have served many years (aye, and purchased their commissions besides), does appear vi vacious to the native army. But the mischief does not end here. In a constitutional point of view, sremust regard the measure as objectionable.— T i ftive hundred foreigners are thereby natarairad, without resorting to the wise and salutary precau tions of our Constitution, which direct a severe par. ismentary scrutiny. before an Alien is admitted to the proud and enviable distinctions of a British Citizen• _ _ _ We shall be happy to see the subject taken up in Parliament; but are far from participating in the in vidious classification attempted to be given to the w's German Legion by a writer in a Morning Paper. We would tell that writer, that the compa rison between the loyal and expatriated Hanoverians wing with the British army, and the stipendiaries attached to the Roman Legions, is unfair and illi beral. The latter were mercenaries in the strictest sense of the term—the -fruitier are brave and unfor „lnnate men, who are fighting for the paternal isle *nee from which they have been driven by the Tyrant of Europe, and to which a Continental Peace ought tithe to restore them, or provide an equi valent. before dismissing the subject, we cannot refrain iron boldly delivering our sentiments on another topic connected with our invincible army. The Marquis of WILLINGTON ought instantly tote made *Field Marshal and no consideration of etiquette whatever aught to be permitted to drown the unani. wows voice of the Army, and of the People, who loudly calkfor this distinction to their darling Gene. The Gazette which announces this appoint. meet will be hailed with rapture, and the precipitate elevation of Twelve Hundred Foreigners to the rank t 4 Englishmen, will be forgiven, with the generosity peculiar to our national chiracterl • MAJOR•GENERAL LE MARCHANT. Tee late Major-General Ln MARCHANT, Who gal hotly fell at the head of his brigade in the battle of Salamanca, was a native of the island of Guernsey. embraced the military profession-at an early period of life, and served principally in the cavalry. He was considered as an officer of great aetivity, and striftly attentive to all the duties. connected with his station. In the British army officers hitherto have been seldom furnished with a sufficient field adapted to the display or perfection of their military talents ; and, ih common with many officers of acknowledged tactical skill, the subject of this bio kraphical sketch may be said, in the common army expression, not to have sees much :ervice or an active End. He appears to have served his 'first campaign lathe continental expedition of 1793 and 1794, under his Royal Highness the Duke of YORK. It was While employed on this service that he witnessed the rat advantages to be derived in action from the skilful use of the cavalry sword, long practised! by the Hungarian hussars ; and became convinced of the decided superiority of this skill over the awkward ' sad unscientific mode of their using the sword by the canirTi whether as a'vreapon of offence or defence. On his return from the continent, he employed him aelf with great assiduity and perseverance in im- Pmviegt and reducing into a system, all that his "re experience had taught him on this useful and 14 Porrant point, as well as what additional informa tion he was enabled to derive from other sources.— ie accomplishing this great object, he is said to have received no inconsiderable assistance from the Adju- kg of the 16th Light Dragoons, who, we believe, l'es the Officer firbt selected for initiatiot into the Austrian-Sword F4ercise, with a view to its future introduction into the British service. Major La biAlcualtr bad, however, the honour of fast per fecting and digesting that system which was publish ed at the War Office in 1796, by his Majesty's cow. sand, and has since been adopted by the British ea. F. The public spirit anciperseverance of Lieut.• Colonel Lz MARCHANT Were !Mgtlisted in FraileB,Arhiels, AO de4l)4tire origin to the idea of an establishment of a somewhat similar Academy in England : but regulations adapted to the genius of the French,. were inapplicable to Bri tain; and therefore peculiar laws became necessary. In this great undertaking he is supposed to have availed himself of the friendly observations and ex perience of officers capable of affording useful infor mation on a point of so much importance. As a re ward for his zeal and exertions, manifested in the foundation of this great National Academy, he was raised to be its Lieutenant-Governor, a situation ' considerable honour and emolument. The direct) military services of - Lieutenant•Colonel La MAR. CHANT may now be said to have ceased for a pe riod of many years, his attention being entirely devoted to the duties of his new appointment.— In October, 180.5, he was promoted to the rank of a Colonel, Red in 1811 to that of a Major-General.— This last promotion, in consequence of an existing regulation, rendered it incompatible for him to retain the situation of Lieutenant-Governor of the Royal Military College. In return for this lose, however, he was appointed to a command no less honourable, namely, to that of a brigade of cavalry, then on the ‘ eve of embarking for service in Portugal, for which country he immediately set out. In a field so ex tensive, and at a period unexampled in British his tory, the services of such an officer could not belong unappropriated. Major-General Ls MARCHANT was soon distinguished assn active and enterprisingofficer ; and on several occasions, besides that on which he so gallantly fell, he received the public approbation of, the Marquis Wratatiorow, commanding that army. He had been but a abort time in Portugal when be received the afflictive and most unexpected news of the death of Mrs. La MARCHANT, whom the General had been obliged to leave far advanced in pregnancy. His grief at so deplorable an event was now only to be soothed by the bustle and activity of a fatiguing and protracted campaign, involving the most impor tant consequences to European politics; and fortu nately he was not long in obtaining opportunities to distinguish himself, no less honourable to himself than useful to the service in which he was engaged. The PRINCE or WALES, 98, Captain DOUGLAS; ALYRICD, 74, Captain HoureN ; TYRIAN, 18, Captain BALDwix ; CB.ANE, 18, Capt. STEwART ; have sailed from Portsmouth, with a large -convoy for Lisbon, the coast of Portugal, Cadiz, and the coasts of Spain, and islands of the Mediterranean. The reinforcements going out to the cavalry regiments, serving under the Marquis of WELLINGTON, amount altogether to about 800 men and horses, being about 50 men and horses for each of six regiments. The First Commissioner of the Barrack Depart. ment is now alone charged with the receipts and is sues of the Public Monies, and is the sole Accoun tant for the same, at the Audit Office. The signature of two Commissioners of the Bar rack Department is required for any draft on the Bank of England, for any sum exceeding five hun dred pounds. The 23d Regiment of Light Dragoons has been ordered to march from Hounslow to Coventry with out delay, and to be under the command of the Hon. Lieutenant-General MAITLAND. A detachment of Officers and men, belonging to the Royal Staff Corps, is at present employed at Sandhurst, in surveying, draining, and improving the grounds adjacent to the new Military College; the edifice has a very commanding appearance. We understand that a new regiment is immediate ly to be formed in Canada, from the Scotch emi grants, to be called the Glengary Fencibles ; to be commanded by Colonel BAYNIGI4 Adjutant-General of Canada, and Commander of the Nova Scotia Corps. The Lord Lieutenant of Lancashire has received orders for.the immediate reduction of the Local Mi litia. Those of Manchester, the Trafford, the Hulme, the Newton, and Failsworth regiments, will, after the 245th of September, consist of only 643 men each. A letter from an Officer, dated Camp near Cuellar, August 4, says—" The position of our division, pre vious to the attack on the 22d, ult. was along the top of a ri, l .ge of hills, but so exposed to the cannonachm #cof the enemy (who were on a ridge parallel to us, on the other side of a valley, as wide as just to be within range of each others artillery,) that we were obliged, to lie on our bellies, while they plied us most lustily with round shot and shells, but luckily threw most of them too far. In this state we were kept 20 minutes, till the columns which were moving to the right (to prevent our right being turned, which was the view of Marmont) had got their several stations. All then being ready, the attack commenced by the sth divi sion standing up, and advancing in line down the hill, across the valley, and up their hill, at the bottom of which we met their sharp-shooters, who kept up a very sharp fire upon us during our advance, because we never condescended to fire a single shpt. From the moment we rose to advance the fire from the enemy's guns increase/I upon us, and when we got to the bottom of our own hill they began to send showers of g rape and cannister amongst us, and continued tilliii we got across the valley and about half way up their hill, when I suppose, 'seeing nothing could stop. us, they thought it prudent to remove their guns, for fear we should get hold of them, and allowed its to , come in contact with their infantry, which, on reaai ing the top of the hill, we found in contiguous close columns of battalions, at six paces interval, consisting of the 6th and 7th divisions of French infantry. Till within 40 yards of them we never, but for a moment, 011114 %saw them. At the above di i sance we gave them three cheers, receiving their fire (one of their ranks kneeling,) returned it, and direcily charged; upon which they-immediately faced about and act off, but rallied again for a short time, when finding us incli ned for nothing but the bayonet, they set off before us alr tether, and our cavalry daybed in amongst in the share which he had in the, frAming and institution of the Royal Military College—a public seminary, founded on a plan similar to that 9f th; Academy at Woolwich, but more extensively applicable to the education of every rank and description of army dß vers. It is well known that a Military School d rthesn. 'Jew! &&e Akin Ow gallant General (Leith), who led ns en in the most brilliant style, lb doing well, aid we hope will soar join us. We do seit expect to advance to Burgos w i t ho u t h ea vy art a which we can never get up in this sandy. country.— Marmont died of his wounds on the 31st of July, at a short distance from this place." In a former letter from the same Officer, he states, that his regiment (Ist battalion of the 38th) marched from Lisbon, a distance of 350 miles, in 17 days, and joined the army of Lord WZLIJNOTOI4 on the 21st of July, the day before the battle. . AVERIC4N . PdPILES. DIEW - YORE, Win IST. tam.AND TILATIIIIINO.A Cifeinglinee occurred en board the frigate Essex, this 'Doming. having .excited considerable anxiety in town, we have taken the pains to ascertain the facts at this Navy Yard, and detain the press to give them to the public. John Irvin, who was the man tarred and feathered, has been known, by his account, before and since ha belonged to the Navy, as a native of Salm, (Mass.) in which town, he says, be served hii apprenticeship with Mr. Lane, a sail-maker. He entered on board the Essex, at oston, about ten months since, signed I the articles, and took the oath of allegiance. Having I behaved well in the service, he was made sail-maker lof the ship. On Sunday last, Capt. Porter called his crew together, communicated to them the De ' claration of War against England, and requested that any man among them, who wished to leave the service, would hand in his name, and receive his discharge, to which he received, in answer, three cheers from every man of the crew. This morning, in consequence of three or four men having straggled from their work, and returned, Cap tain Porter called all hands again, and addressed Ithem on the subject of war; repeating his wish, that any manwho was unwilling to continue in the service, would give in his name and receive his discharge. To which the crew, as before, replied with three aria. nimous cheers. Shortly after, lie ordered up the I men in their respective gangs, and tendered them the Oath of Allegiance ; which was cheerfully taken by every man on board excepting Irvin, who refused, and declared himself an Englishman. Upon this, the petty officers and crew of the ship, to whom Captain Porter has uniformly submitted the sward of punishing offences committed in his ship, request ed permission to inflict severe corporal punishment on the offenders which the Captain, with his charac. teristic humanity. refused, and suffered them to 'ifs. miss him with a coat of old-fashioned Yankee maul'. facture, with appropriate labels ; in which he ap peared in our streets, where he excited so much cu riosity, that the police interfered, and took charge of him, to prevent a not. PRINCE REGENT'S VISIT TO WOOLWICH. At an early hour on Tuesday morning a vast con course of people were assembled round the Reposi tory on WoolwiCh Common, in expectation of the arrival of his Royal Highness the PRINCE whose intended visit had been generally reported fur some preceding days. A party of the Flintshire Militia formed a line from the road, and kept the space clear from the crowd, assembled in all direc tions round the Repository ; where a guard of ho nour, commanded by it Major and three subalterns, of the royal artillery, were drawn up to receive his Royal Highness. Numerous groupes of Fashionables enlivened the `scene, attracted as well by the beauty of the day as the expectation of the illustrious Runner's visit, and 'the novelty of the scenes prepared for his inspection. Ten troops of Horse Artillery were sent to line the 'road, who waited the arrival of his Royal Highness in order to escort him to the Repository-gate. The appearance of his servants with his orderly, leading Ibis Royal Highness's horse; preceded aboirt half an :tour his own arrival, which was announced about three by a royal salute fired from the battery, and " God Save the wing," from the Flint Band. At the gate he was received by General LLOYD and other General Officers of the Royal Artillery, and Engi neers, among whom were Generals RAMSEY. BOOTH WICK, HUDEILESTONE, FADE, &c. Bcc. Colonels GRIP I/ITIIR, BINGIIAM, CUPPAGE, &c. Majors LLOYD, BUCKNER, WEST, &c. His Royal Highness proceeded through a lane formed by crowds of Ladies, Officers, &c. to the Guard, and, after returning their salute, mounted his horse, and proceeded to the inspection of the different objects. The PRINCE was in full uni form, looked extremely well, and was accompanied by their Royal Highnesses the Dukes of Comma- LAND and CLARENCE, and attended by Colonels M , MatioN, BLOOMFIELD, &c. A representation of the attack of a bastion, and various other military manoeuvres, composed spectacles with which his Royal Highness expressed himself highly pleased. A cold collation was preparing ; however his Royal Highness 'declined partaking of ir. After leaving the Repository, he proceeded to the review of the Horse Artillery, and declared his satisfaction of their discipline to the Commanding Officer. He then saw the Foot Artillery march past in review order, and expressed himself particularly satisfied with their dis cipline also. His Royal Highness departed about half past five, to dine with General CONOREVE, at his house at Charlton. A letter from Gibraltar states, that the American Consul had arrived in the Bay from Algiers, in • consequence of the commencement of hostilities between the Dey and the United States. It seems that the Consul had taken out presents from his Government, according to the custom with those employed on missions to this African Prince, but they were not sufficiently valuable to satisfy the avarice of the latter, and his disappointment was ea. pressed, as is usual with him, by a Declaration of War. —This rupture will have a beneficial effect on one commerce with the Mediterranean. In spices mid numerous other commodities the Americans have cars tied on ar successful competition in that sea with out own traders ; and by the obstruction they will now meet with, we shalt, in several articles, be enabled ten supersede thentin that extensive market. Extract from the Journal of the ship Fairy, front Bahia to Liverpool, dated F,:day, June 19, 1812; —At six P. M. saw a wreck to the Eastward of ' us ; bore down for it and boarded it, found two men Thursday, at a Special Court of Directors, held (one of them the Captain) still alive : they infoimed at the East India House, Colonel the Honourable ut that they made 191 days since they left Boston, ARTHUR SANTLBGER was restored to his rank in the bound to Santa Cruz ; the brig (called the Polly) Madras Army : and it is supposed that the other had upset on the third day, but being laden with officers, who have been under suspension, will also lumber, and some provisions, would not sink . 4 11 be reinstated. soon as they had cut away the masts she righted ; In consequence of the great Events of the Times, they had existed during the rest of the time partly on one popular phrase ,earns now used in all Questions, the beef and pork they could fish up from the cargo, —if you ask, what will be the issue with the Ameri- and afterwards on fish they caught—they had even cans ?---the answer is,—'Tis all a Lottery.—What been obliged to eat some part of ohe of their ship think you of Bonaparte and the Russians ?—'Tis all mates, who had died, and had cut up the rest of his a Lottery. —Who do you think will get 50,000 the body, and put it into pickle, to serve in case of ne -Bth SEPTEMBRII ?—'l'is all a Lottery,—nobody can cessity ; the two we found were all that remained of a crew of nine. The main deck was covered with tell, arybody may, therefore retry body should try. water ; they had raised a temporary place in the tore. EXTRACT OF A LETTER FROM ON BOARD THE NORTHUM castle to keep them dry and cook their provisions; !tenuous, 74 GUNS, LYING IN BASQUE ROADS; they produced fire by . rubbing violently together two " We are lying at anchor within three gun-shots pieces of shingle ; when it did not rain they procured of the enemy's squadron, consisting of l'Ocean, of fresh water by distillation from salt water, by fising 130 guns, with a Rear-Admiral on board ; Fou- a piece of board in the top of a pan, and caulking it droyant, 80 guns; Regulus, Triumphant, and Je. air tight; underneath (in the middle of the board) they cut a hole, of su ffi cient size to receive the mouth mappe, Of 74 guns ; Sol and Circe frigates, of 44 of a tea-kettle, which they inverted it, and caulked guns ; one of 28 guns, six large brigs, and a great likewise, after filling the pan with salt water—they number of schooners and gun-vessels. Our aqua- boiled, and by keeping the spout of the tea-kettle dron at present consists of the Butwetur, Flag-ship, open (the only vent) cool, the steam dissolved, aqd Admiral DURHAM ; ROYAL SOVEREIGN, NORTHVM. , trickled down into a vessel to receive it ; by this BERLAND, HANNIBAL, and STERLING CASTLE, of 74 means they could make about eight quarts a-asy.—. The Captain's name was Wm. Leslie Culiacan. guns eack; MACEDONIAN frigate, and PIERCER gun- HEHOLSM OF AN IRISH TAR.-•.- Naioll/1 bravery has . brig. Our boats row guard every night near the never been more strongly exemplified than in the late enemy's squadron. The Northumberland's guard. sanguinary contest between the French &mot,' and boat picked up a French boat last night, with five his Majesty's ship Vicroaious. Amongst niany pthers we shall only select the following, which deserees Italians in her, who had made their escape from be held up to public admiration, although the inalis le Jemappe. They informed us that there are not vidual, the subject of it, was not endowed by mew above 200 native French on board each ship—the re- with high birth or fortune, nor adorned by education vejth those acquirements indispensably necessary toriptions, riptions, ,principally Italians, who are marched, mainder are a motley crew of foreigners of all de the "great avals." JAMLS DALY, an Irishman, pc ra., fit *common seaman on board the Vicroaious, about (,overland from Toulon. They also informed us, that eh hour before the cessation of the action, was struck there are a great number more determined to make at his quarters on the main-deck with a snot, winch their escape the - first opportunity. The great Napo. carried away the entire of the left thigh, so high up ed shat. leon gives them only ten shillings per month, which that a portion of the hip was 'attach to it, and tared the right to pieces ; on his way to the cockpit, accounts for the French seamen having almost no. be observed that one of the guns close to the hatchway 1 thing but rags to cover them, and vermin to eat.— was run out, and that the men were nearly in the act , The GOLDFINCH brought us the accounts of the great of firing ; he immediately desired the seamen who victory by Earl WELLINGTON on the 11th inst. The were carrying him down to stop, which they did, w he begged oithe men to let him fire it, " and h • squadron immediately made the Frenchmen stare, they would allow him to have one allot more ate by giving them a salute of 17 guns each ship. The i f renchasen before he died, after doing which" enemy thought it was on account of the loss of 10 i added, "be would die content." His request p ita of the line, which they bad feared had been granted, when he very contentedly permitted biome j,taken in a sea-fight off Toulon, until we hoisted to be carried down, exclaiming on the ladder, ".Fig • Spanish colours at our maintop gallant mast heads.. mo t m fight on, for your King and Country To-day our Admiral caused to be painted on sail lunayyto ou b° d y ie ss ~. On his serious the Cockpit, :he as a kind return for past favours--" French Arm , said tne burgeon, " Sir, I know you will& all you , can for me, but I also know, there is nothing sa t i or t io in Spain defeated by Earl Wituntorow, with the power."-- In less than half an hour after, has `loss of 22,000 men—Menstotrr wounded"—and set spirit left this for another world. it in a boat we bad taken, and sent her to the French I A distribution of Books of Devotion ir to Admiral as a present. We saw one of their frigates take place in the Royal Navy, in portions, via.—One copy of the New .) Tama.- co= pick up the boat—a very area* piece of bacilli , Prayer-books, and two Psalter*, for S pus for the Dimmed!" tub 9ms pe Bible to"' tw Platt is!' • - i -.• , • r•