Star. — London, England, 1820-04-04 00:00:00

THE EVENINU STAR. LONDON. 'TUESDAY. APRIL 4, 1820. lama TUSIDAY.—HoIiday at the Public Offices. The afilicting accounts which we gave yesterday respecting-.the Proclamation of the Spanish Consti tution at. Cadiz, are more theil Sully confirmed by a number of letters which have been received in town' from Cadiz and other parts of Spain. The extent of the massacre by the troops is stated, on several au thoritiest at about 600. killed,. .and as znaay more, griexouklir wounded. The Writers . of 'these accounts sesm generally to read this mosnierolting deed of horror as the re sult of a meditated scheine of treachery, of which Genelal. FREYRZ was the prime deviser; but, we have strong hopes the fact will turnout to have beet otherwise. The character of FREYRE has always • stood high for honour and integrity; and kis • con duct, since the first breaking out of the insurrection, has shown that lie is not without sentiments of mo deration and humanity. Fazyrts is besides a man of sense, and the scheme of treachery imputed to him has nothing but madness in it. The following extracts of letters furnish the. de tails of this melancholy event : " CADIZ, 31ARCII 14. ." On Friday last I was witness to a scene that far surpasses my power of description, and one scarcely to be paralleled for horror, treachery, and atrocity, in the annals of the French Revolution. On the 9th iastant the Captain-General of Andalusia, who, I be ll:eve, is also Governor of Cadiz, arrived here from Fort St. Mary's, and soon after a meeting of all the Naval, Military, and Civil Authorities of the place was convened, at which it was agreed to proceed the same evening to the establishment of the Constitu tion di 1 812. It was then perfectly understood that the Captain-General, in the coarse he was pursuing, acted on the King's authority ; and it has been since proved that the King's siguautre to the Constitution was actually in his possession. On Thursday night the whole city was illuminated by order of the Civil Authorities; and on Friday, at twelve o'clock, the people were invited to meet in the square of St. An tonio, to witness chi ceremony of laying down the' stone of the Constitution, at which time not less than 50,000 persons of all ranks were collected in the streets. To the horror of all, without the least notice or c rovoca:ion, between 2000 and 5000 intoxicated soldiers were let loose upon them, who began indis criminately to murder men, women, and children. To murder succeeded pillage, w ith every species of excess, and the scene of horror continued, almost without intermission, to a late hour at night. It will be wife time, without doubt, before all the conse• quences can be known, but we have already obtained returns of 119 persons killed, and upwards of 500 wounded. Just before the commencement of this tragieal proceeding, the American Consul was taking his morning walk in the same place as myself, but he quitted at eleven o'clock to go home and dress, all the foreign Consuls having mceived a special in vitation to attend the celebration in the square of St. Antonio. Soon afterwards I heard a number of shots fired, which I disregarded at first, taking them for the usual signs of rejoicing, until a ball passediVithin a few feet of the spot where I stood, and I perceived a poor fellow fall, wounded, to the ground. In my alarm at this, I took to my heels, with the intention of gaining my own house as fast as possible, and teeny others followed my example ; but we suddenly encountered a small party of twenty soldiers, or thereabouts. Thar fired upon us, when all our pasty, except myself and two others, took flight in a con trary direction. For my own part I stood still, and tilting off my hat, called aloud in Spanish, " May tl.e King live for ever, and down with the Constitu l:oll t " Even this did not prevent a cowardly fellow I: em running at me with his bayonet, which, how. eecr e I fortunately warded of will my left arm. • From that moment till I got home I continued sing rig out as above, and appealing to every soldier I met. One of the two persons who followed my e a . ample, in going up to the troops instead of running away, was stabbed through the thigh, and his coat and money taken from him. This infamous busi ness can only be attributed to Valdes and General Campana, the tormer Governor of Cadiz, ad interim, the latter Commander of the troops in Cadiz. During the whole struggle they have been abusing their power withotit reason, having at different times, and on mere suspicion, arrested upwards of 40 of the priecipal merchants. It is generally believed that, tindirg their power gone and their lives at stake, they urged on the troops, by bribery and liquor, to corn -377:t the excesses of which I have given but a faint description. The King's signature to the Constitu tier has been made public this Morning in an officiel zr.lr.ner, but the Civil Authorities refuse to attend any Neeting till the troops are removed from Cadiz. The public mind is becoming more tranquil than for several days past, but still the troops must be re caove4 from the City before any man can consider his life as secure. Tile fatal consequences of the 11:th have not been confined to the natives of Cadiz, but I arn told that several foreign Captairs lost their lives ie the confusion. The Captain of the Navagores re ceived a wound in the side, and was robbed of every elieg. It is to be hoped the different Consuls will seek satisfaction for the numbers of their country men killed and wounded, and for the risks to which t:zei have been individually exposed. Poor ./cl:i l a 1 never pmpeily represented. Our Consul, who is Lau :d to be in Cadiz, rniites in the couotty, and u onsequeatly we have no one to -stand up tor our riglys- Tee enclOse4 Prodariation WAS rUbliAlo by U. C1.5.1. - .1 - ;:c:t7;41 oa thz ziwiraitig of sere day wker, the work of butchery took lace ;in fact, many were readingit at the tiinether received their deaths : " Inhabitants of Cadis !—'iogr decided-win has pronounced for the Oaticof til e . Politiesd Cofirtitierin bf the Spanish Mo narchy. his meat has caused no tears; nor produced any of. the disorders which rarely fail to accompany political comicisiors. The people of Cadiz _have given on this occasion a new proof of their red "noes and *the virtues which form the basis of their character. But the extraordinary nature of the circtunstatnes in which we are placed obliges us to take measures to secure order, surd to prevent ill-cksigning individuals from introducing the 'monster of inarchOnto the midst of virtuous citizens and true lovers of their country. The formation of a Constitutional Mu nicipal Body must be the first of those measures. The indivi duals who composed it in 1914, were nominated by your suf. (rages. Let them return to take charge of the security of your persons, of your property, and of that public order which it is of so much importance to maintain. " Inhabitants of Cadiz i From this moment you en;cy a Con stitutional Represent:stip,. From this moment. let all Acts cease which are disapproved of by the Code whidt you have pro- cleansed. Remain peaceable! Lay aside every recollection of past hatreds, and let no other cry be heard among you but that of Long litre tine !e'en:is! (Signed) " Cadiz, March 10. Ie.TAINUIL FILETICI4" $ CADIZ, MARCH 14. 18so. " I had commenced this letter to you on the 10th—a day which will form a blot in the annals of Europe—a day which will never be forgotten—a day horrible and cruel. On the 9th, Cadiz was quiet and tranquil. At twelve o'clock at noon on that day General Freyre arrived from Port St. Mary's, and entered Cadiz by the sea-gate. A crowd of people were collected to witness his entry. On his stepping on shore, he called out in a loud voice, which was distinctly heard by numbers—' City of Cadiz ! I am come to establish your Constitution.—A great enthu siasm was manifested among the mass of people; but the step appeared so extraordinary to many, that distrust could not be wholly banished. The General, however, at four o'clock, again made his appearance in the square of St. Antonio, and in person gave no. tice to the Public, that on the following morning, at ten o'clock he would install the stone of the Consti tution, and that it should be sworn to immediately afterwards. The people, not satisfied at this, eagerly called aloud, , Now! now r General Freyre, appa rently acted on by this declaration of the public will, drew from his pocket the book of the Constitution, and kissed it, exclaiming, , Now, then, the oath is taken : to-morrow the remaining requisite solemnities shall be performed.' Immediately after a - gag was displayed, with the; emblem, Live the Constitution, and live Freyre, our regenerator: The . General then required from the people an assurance that no ani mosity or vengeance should be shewn against any body I upon which the people called out, that' in free hearts no malice existed, and that all would be ' forgiven.' At this time I was in a house that com manded the whole scene. Immediately after, the Jail and the Castle were opened, and all the persons who had been arrested were brought forth. This bustle continued the whole night, during which the city was illuminated, but no disorder of any kind took place. The following morning, in the Diarie, an order, signed by the Genera], was issued, that all the houses should be decorated • that the Municipal Authorities should farm themse lves into a procession, in order to assist at the regular proclamation of the Constitution, and that the city should be illuminated for three nights in succession. The stone of the Con stitution was carried into the middle of the square of St. Antonio, in preparation for the ceremony. A message was sent to the Isle of Loon, to invite Gene ral Quiroga and his Staff to be p?esent on the occa sion. The whole city, on the morning of the 10th, exhibited a scene of pleasure and hilarity which no thing could equal. A large party proceeded towards the land-gite, equipped with cockades of green and red, to welcome the troops from the Isle of Leon.— The hour of ten approached ; but—my Goo ! how can I express it? As the clock struck, the troops began firing upon the unhappy people, crying aloud, , Live Ferdinand, and down with the Constitution !' The greatest terror and consternation ensued among the poor sufferers, who, iu their confusion, ran against and fell over each other, not knowing in what way escape could with safety be attempted. lam credi bly informed, that brandy had been previously ad ministered to the soldiers, in largequatttities; in order to stimulate them to this deed of blood, and in order to increase their ferocity and brutality. Gen. Freyre himself, I am also assured, was seen at the head of the troops, giving orders, aid urging them on. " As soon as the assembled people had nearly all dispered, the Officers disappeared from among the soldiery, who, deprived of the little controul exer cised over them, soon lost all subordination, and the whole city resembled a place delivered over to the horrors of military assault. This scene s erf drunken violence and savage brutality lasted from ten in the morning till eight in the evening, when the Officers again interfered, and by degrees succeeded in con veying the intoxicated troops to their quarters. The dead bodies in the streets exceeded four hundred, and the wounded are without number. At the scaf folding which was erecting for the ceremony of pro claiming the Constitution, eight carpenters were at work, of whom five were killed. For hours after the termination of this horrid business we were look- I , ing at each other, none of us able to conjecture the causes that produced it, yet no man venturing to question his neighbours. The whole business, it is, now believed, WAS a stratagem, for the purpose of deceiving the troops in the Isla', and of decoying them to their destruction. Quiroga, it appears, was deceived by the proceedings going on within the city, but, by some accident, was compelled to defer his entry to twelve o'clock, by which means he had time to hear of the commencement of this horrible massacre, and guard against the consequences to himself and his troops:' CADIZ, MARCH 14. " I transmit this, merely to give you a general ijea of :he dreadful situation. into which this city has been plunged by treason and perfidy, not to be equallNl since the creation of man. The morning of thz. 10th, agreeably to nn order published in the Diario of the preceding day, was fired upon by the Governor i.nd Civil Autlitrities for the procla mation of the (2(44.:titu;ion in the Place de San An- tonio; and not for a nranent doubting the truth, an iannen-e concourse of people attended; but, instead a sileetirs with a C l itM•ittr.:ill, rgi them lost t htir as:.cl r.:11 tuo:: V .14e, C41)06V.: CVCl..kilid of ill-treatment. Soon after their ,assembling, the military, foi the major part intoxicated, entered and , fired upon the peaceable inhabitant* destroying them: without discrimination, cld' or young, women and children. The town was giveri up to pillage, and the brutality of a drunken soldiery. . " llteadful as it has been, however, I consider the horrors are not ended, and so strongly am I per suaded of the determination of the people to be re venged, that I am hourly expecting a more horrid scene than the tragedy of the 10th. I intendqUitting Cadiz, if possible, for Gibraltar, as it will be a long time before order can be re-established. All is fear and confusion, and never did I witness anything similar." “ CADIZ, MARCH 14. ” Since Friday last, we have been in a state little short of anarchy. The publication of the Constitu tion has been resisted by the garrison, who alleged that the Decree of the King had been exacted from him by force, and the morning of the 10th, ap pointed for the ceremony, was changed into a scene of massacre and confusion. The troops, of course, prevailed, as the populace were taken by surprise; but we much apprehend a repetition of the same scene, in which the result may be different. All the houses are closed, nor does any one venture into the streets." " SEVILLE, MARCH 15. " Cadiz is in a dreadful state, and we are not without apprehensions that similar scenes will be ex bitited here. Freyre proclaimed the Constitution at Cadiz on the 9th, and, on the following day, col lected nearly all the people to witness the conclusion of the ceremony, to which all the foreign Consuls were invited. In the midst cf it, without any pre ' vious intimation, the un„offending people- were fired upon,. and charged with the bayonet, the soldier y not even sparing.women and children : four hundred killed lay in the streets, and nine hundred were taken to the hospitals. Freyre, the nest day, fled to Purt St. Mary's, his head-quarters, whence he issued or ders to the Governoi,s of all the towns in Andalusia, calling on them to abjure the Constitution, although the oath, by his own (ruler, had been taken on the 9th. General O'Donoja, our Governor, received the order of abjuration on the 11th ; but, instead of com municating it to any one, sent back for answer, " that an oath once taken, must be adhered to, and that it was not to be assumed or cast off like a part of chess:' I think, therefore, that Seville will re main true to the Constitution. Valdes, Campana, and Colonel Barrotelo, are said to be instigators of the affair at Cadiz. _ P.S. We just hear that tranquillity is restored at Cadiz, and that the Constitution is to. be sworn to this day." gi CADIZ, MARCH 14, Tlnums o'CLoes At Num?. a We just learn that the troops engaged in the late massacre, are at this momeht hard pressed In their barracks, where they had barricaded themielies, by die people, and 'the other troops on their side, It is possible that they may remain a long while. in this situation, as they are by no nicaas in want of provi sions. We baiierrason to believe that the barracks in possession of the besieged troops are those of Satita Helena Ind San Rogues, which are situated within the two bulwarks so named in the front of the fortis fication of La Puerta de la Tierra," MADRID. MARCH 80. " In the several Provinces the Constitution has been pro- claimed with great rejoicings; and Cadiz, I believe, is the only point u here there have been anyinisfortunes, for the people there, oil the 11th, deceived by the idea that they w.•re going to perform the suns ceremony, as immense concourse of persons aWeenbled in the square of San Antonio, and the troops opened a sharp fire upon them, and subsequently sacked several houses, with other unfortunate acts. The Army of O'Donnel and Frsyre, vie understand, are in a state of great insubordination, and it will be very difficult to reduce them, although this can in no way influence the final result of the cause. The Galicia:is have idxty thousand "nen under arms, which they will not lay down till they see the Cortes assecolded. " The Gortes, we understand, will meet by theist of June, sad the Deputies will be-newly. elected. , The point that most perplexes the Provisional 31111ta, is the manner in which they are to act,' conformably to the Constitution, in the existing state of things in South America, and in what way they re to proceed to order the nomination of Representatives for that country. " I had written thus far, and the Cadiz Dail has just attired . The letters are of the 14th, and melancholy details they give us. The horrors committed there are greater than we had any idea el The killed are rated frcm four to five hundred, and the wooded 1000. The soldiery have plundered several houses, and the streets, from the 10th, were literally deserted. On the 14th, the Governor issue 4 a Proclamation, ordering the people to open their shops ; but, notwithstanding assurances were also given that the Constitution would be formally proclaimed, so great was the horror excited by the recent event, that ncbody left tLir houses. It is said the country people round are arming ; and if this is the ease, I would not answer for the escape clone of the garrison. It is said Freyre has played, a double game; for not being able to restrain the people of Cad's', he promised to conform to their Wishes, and then kept his premier in the way you have been informed: The dispatch which, under date of the 10th, Freyre writes to O'Donnel, confirms this,,for in it he distinctly says, the garrison of Cadiz, faithful to the princi ples of adhesion to, the august person of the King, his this day, with a noble ardour, destroyed the project opproelaiming.the Constitution, which the people la a tumultuOr manner yester day compelled me to offer them, when I - went:out to , 'appease them. " FURTHER ADVICE& ••:. Saturday evening, the Sanduiris /34," Captain SQL3RII, arrived at Bristol, bearing dispatches, villich . were instantly forwarded to London. The Captain reports; that he was in Cadiz on ;he 9th ult:iv,hen the Spanish General and Adiniral proclaimed the Constitution, amid the most enthissiastie applause of the inhabitants, the people exclaiming to Vice la Con . xtittrtioxf' The garrison and the fleet the'same even ing fire 4, a feso-dc-joie. On the ensuing day, the Constituted Authorities, *and the British and other; Constils, were invited by the General to hear the Pro clamation of the Constitution read, at twelve o'clock on a platform erected fox the purpose in the centre co the Grar.d Sc,tuar and au immense MASS. Of reerit congregated, in joyful exl7ectatlon of this cons.o.nrla tion of their liberties. About an hour before tie time arrived, a lar , e party of Royalist troops, without any possil;'.e 4ble cause except that of plunder, marched down and 'instantly comthenced- a 'nest destt uc,ive fi:c on the unarmed multitude, killing nearlyfire hi:wirer! rr . and women. From ti:is pet iud it was instant deatl , . to appear in the streets. Several instances of robbery of British individuals by the soldiers occurred. 07. Captain of a ship was deprived of a valuable. v:, ;tc . l and chain, besides a consider able .sure of mo.ley ; and another was glad to es,:;:pe -.tit's his life LI; the instant surrender of his property. The military seemed to have determined on an in discriminate slaughter; for no sooner did .ra indivi dual appear in the streets, however resr:ezzable, than he was instantly shot. The inhabitants were fired at in the balconies of their winckws; and on the 11th upwards of two hundred and fifty more fell vizzi.rns to the ferocity of the soldiers. The ilritislr Consul had retired with his family to St. Mary's, en ele other side of the Bay. - The military ware in rosses sion of the town when Captain SQUIRE sailed en the 15th ; but the gun-ho. - .ts were preparing to attack the city-gates; and on the 16th he heard a continucl firing for five hours in that quarter. The Park Papers of Friday, and Saturday arrived at a late hour this forenoon. They contain a variety of accounts nearly agreeing with those received here, respecting the massacre at Cadiz ; but they distinctly acquit General FREYREC of any share in the infamy. The outrage, it appears, was solely the act of tia: troops, who refused obedience to FREYRE, accused him of treason to the Ktin, and massacred such of their other Officers as endeavoured to restra;a them. The General - withdrew to Port Sainte Ml rie. The marine is said to have been differently disposed from the troops. Mutual salltes have passed between the ships and the troops on the Isle of Leon. Lieatcuiult-General D. RAN Pocnte:u has been named Captair.-Gcnct'al Andalu•ia ; Ad miral CAYETANO VALDZ.F, Governer of Cadiz ; and Illigadier D. MANI:EL FRANSCIS ring's Lieutenant. The most extensive powers, it is added, have been given to General ODONOJU, to ar rest and bring to justice the authors of the disturb ances at Cadiz. Some hostilities, we regret to find, have also takes place in Gallicia. It appears that General Pot., rvi:h some troops, chiefly Militia, had made some efforts -o sustain the system of despotism. The Commander -in -Chief, ACEBEDO, put himself in motion at the head of his troops, pursued and came up with Pot, at Puebla de Sanabria. After some skirmishing, FLA. was put to flight, but, unfortunately, Acitarno was killed on the spot. His command devolved upon Colonel ESPINORA, of the Artillery. The Frenchl domestic news, in these Papers, is chiefly confined to the proceedings in the Chamber of Deputies. The discussion on the Project of Law fur subjecting the Press to•a Censorship, was concluded on Friday, and the Project finally adopted by a ma jority of 27 ;, the votes being, for the Project, 136 against it, 109. The slight indisposition which the Km; lately er perienced, is now entirely dissipated. The Physicians have issued a Bulletin, stating that his Majesty's health is perfectly re-established. French Five per Cents.—Friday, 74 francs. We extract the following article from the Leeds Inteßigeorcer of yesterday, received this morning : " DISTURBANCE AT HUDDERSFIELD " For several days the peaceable, inhabitants of this town have been kept in a state of great agitation and terror, from the alarming indications in the neigh bourhood. We present the following statements to our Readers, exactly as they have been given to us; only premising, that we collected them on the spot, from the individuals to whom they refer, and that depositions to the same effect have, we believe, been made before the Magistrates: " The Civil Authorities have suspected for some time that arms were clandestinely introduced into the neighbourhood, but, notwithstanding their vigilance, they were unable to ascertain the fact in a satisfac tory manner. On Thursday last, a parcel froarßir mingbarn arrived by the Regulator, addressed to John Payne, Castlegate, lluddersSeld, which excited the suspicions of Mr. Whitehead, the Deputy Con stable, who thought it proper to wait the arrival of the person who should call for it "Xowards evening a notorious Radical, of the name of Gill, enquired for the package ; Whitehead came forward, and desired to know its contents.— The -answers of Gill were very evasive and unsatis factory ; it was opened is his Fresence, and found to contain a sword, two brace of pistols, three bayonets, three bullet-moulds, and two guti locks. An invoice was enclosed. A letter was also found, soliciting further comnianth. Gill was immediately appre hended, and the following day he was examined before the Magistrates. The account he gave of :he parcel was, that Payne, who is a higgler, and at pre , ,ent from home, liad requested him to take charge ,f it till his return. lle was held to bail to answer my charge which mszy be brought against hi:a ae next Assi:,•es. tt This, occurrence naturally excited the appreh ions cf the Ala?,istrates, and early on Friday t icy . ze,:ived infointatica that great r.t:a:hers of the la • er • • I S t S 1 I tl •