Star. — London, England, 1812-11-21 00:00:00

TO TAR BDITAR OP VW P. en --I enclose an extract from a manuscript, en. titled" The Wanderings of a British Sailor in the Mediterranean, during the years 1810, 1811, and "—lt will shew the opinion ) one who had polar demonstration, to judge from, had formed of the Spaniard nearly two years ago. Sorry lam that the censure of apathy is still merited by that na tion, It is in vain and unfair to calculate any thing upon Spanish aid, either in the reverses or successes of the great WELLINGTON, It will also shew the unexampled barbarities practised by the French in that unhappy country, from which we may form some j u dgment of that lender mercy, which trod over gasp ing thousands to the'ruins of Moscow, and exclaims, tinder the retrograde gloom of adversity—A , Spare the Russians !" - Happy am I to see Russia stand ing forth as the destined avenger of the human race; end happy shall I be to see you shortly announce—. the termination of the destroyer's career. I am, Sir, your sincere friend, BERTRAII. Waasbeck Vale. to The Medas Islands are a cluster of rocks without verdure or water upon them, situated half a mile f ro m the cape which forms the western arm of the B a rd 'Resas, on the coast of Catalonia. They were d e fended by four pieces of cannon, mounted on an old ink strong tower. Colonel Green, and 400 Spa niards, were landed bn the principal island, and with the assistance of the marines and seamen of the squa dron, a battery was erected, which soon compelled the French Commandant to surrender. This place was of importance only as a link of the chain of tele graphic communication from Barcelona : we there lore blew up the tower, and embarked the troops-- There was some danger in this little enterprize, as the enemy detached 400 men from Figtieras, who, during the attack, kept up a well-directed fire of shut and shells from the cape—though illy men fell, it gave me an opportunity of observing the demeanour of the Patriots—some of them seemed indifferent to the shells bursting amongst us, but the major part were so alarmed as to be of no use i 0 removing the ertillery, and only anxious to get away themselves. e The squadron proceeded to Orensa with the t r oops, where the Spanish General affected to be much offended by our evacuating the Medas, and de termined to repossess them. Captain Thomas offered him the assistance of the squadron, although convin ced of the inutility of the scheme. Accordingly, on the following day, we put .500 patriots, field-pieces, and implements fin constructing a battery on shore at the large island, The conduct of this Don Quixote of a General was quite at variance with hes poles :ions, and ill calculated to promote the cause in which lie was engaged : he shewed every disposition to quarrel with his allies, and his followers, living upon our country, openly avowed their hatted of us. te Two of the cannon, Ulown up in the tower of the Medas, fell. in the water, Captain Stewart, of the Blossom, succeeded in raising them ;—they were spoiled, bent and split, but being ancient pieces, Cap tain Stewart had a desire to preserve them. The Spanish General sent him an order, in King Ferdi nand's name, to desist, and there, no doubt, they :t -rain to this day, of use to nobody. 1 ". Our boats attacked the French in a village on the main land, where they were entrenched, and droVe them from the place. A vessel, laden with knit anti live stock, became a prize ; she was towed to the island, and the Commodore, (Thomas, of the Undaunted frigate) intended giving her to the Spa niards—however, there was no occasion for this ex ercise of generosity— ,ran: error:or:le, Don Quixote laid his claim open the vessel—coolly tibet ving, ." she was King Ferdinand's right, having been captured in a Spanish port I" Even this insult was passed over unnoticed, and to put it out of this man's power to cove/ us into a quarrel, we left his part of the coast. " it is a familiar and true saying—‘ , convince a man 'that you have obliged him, and he will ever after be your enemy." The Spanish officers were jealous of our's-413e men hated us as heretics—aye, bated us, for they repeatedly told us so in our own ships. Whatever policy there may be in Gazetting the cordiality that subsists between the two nations, I affirm, that as far as my obseryation extended, it isuntrue, and I have been fi ghting amongst them mote than twelve months.—Yes, this mighty nation, strug tling for Freedom, of which I have read—l have seen bigots fighting for an Inquisition, slaves to supersti tion, envy, and pride—despisers and contemners of the country that upholds them—Facts speak for themselves—a fool can judge from them. " At this eeriocl, %%nen we mete protecting their , towns, aiding them by money, at ms, tee. &c. their teal dispositi( ns were shewn in many little acts of , meanness and revenge.— At Orensa the Quixotic Ge neral claimed from Captain Stewart an Englishman, alledging that lie was a deserter from his troops—the boy came hem England in the Blossom. Laptain , Stewart was not of a temper to put up with duect insult, this the haughty bianittrd sc.on found, and I apologized for his wilful mistake.—The Commander I of his Majesty's sloop Bustard• was invited to an en tettaiun,tut, at a ti,wn he had long deTended from /etuniing to his boat, he e as stabbed in the breast, luckily not of setlicient depth to endanger his life. The assassin was never enquired alter, nor did the ncbk Patriots tlrltsS the least concern at a ciremnstarce seat irut to have roused even national feeling. 1 could 'elate many more instances, but to `rt unprejudiced n.ind, the preceding are molt than !efficient. The .general feeling in Spain is against its—the general interest leads them to disguise it.— The Eng4ll Are only hided— the French are alke,rred! " In spite of the bi:v..t.• which the pen of a General r;,n throw round the name of a Spanish Patriot, he is still, in the nor name-sued language cf truth, an in dolent, eowardly, vindictive being : his , eevrage has been so of ten an d hi g hl y exto ll e d, t h at i t is dangerous to question it. Of individual instances of cum age, I have st itnessed many, collective instances—not one. No vniTerral spirit ever animated their ranks— *lmre we could exclaim, "their sa ords are a thousand, their bosoms are one !" A frenzied vindictive spirit in exercising the jut talionis, never can be mistaken for true coinage —yet it is the only thing like it, I ever • discovered in the Spanish Patriot. " These remarks, so widely different from what are daily made to the public, may startle—they are stubborn truths that cannot be refuted. I will yield tia no man is loyalty, in love to my country, in re spect for her allies--but I will never descend to Batter either, by running in a stream, polluted with legion Whoever memo May /*matter. . attend the *at in Spain, I dare boldly predict that it will be achieved Without any emideralle assistance from the Spanierds themselves, and ill will it b e f a l t h at British General, who presumes to rely upon their aid. Orensa, where we are new anchored, possesses a good roadstead and watering-place. It is situated about 20 miles eastward of Barcelona. The town is handsome, and, in better times, had a good deal of trade—fifty large vessels are now lying useless on the beach. Want of society cannot be complained ' of here—with the dress of seldiers, they have put on a soldier's freedom, and the Ladies participate in the general emancipation. It is net a remark of levity, when I say that we were chiefly favourites of the wo men. Next to my own peerless countrywomen, I have seen none superior to the Catalonian. • Some of our officers boasted of favours which I doubt they I ever received. I passed many hours, in Spanish fe- male society—l sa w muc h to a d m i re , an d not hi ng to 1 condemn. I abhor that vile reputation obtained by the failings, the tenderness of a weaker sex—let me boast of other triumphs than those which degrade the man, and lessen that affectionate respect I bear to every. woman, of every nation. " Every day brought us information of the suc cesses of the enemy before Tarragona, and at length we sailed unders order to proceed to that port. " Few scenes can be more pleasing to the eye than those observed during a voyage along this coast— abrupt rising hills, mouldering on whose rifted sum mits tremble the last remains of Moorish towers— fertile valleys, swept by noble livers and skirted by . lofty extended forests--convents and monasteries looking from the clouds, now bright with the sun's rays and now lost in the gloom et pines —gay nor.' dern villas and towns, whose spires, decorated with streamers, rise and disappear in such rap'd sticces- 1. as to give it the air of enehantmei;t ; add to l these a serene and blue firmament, unsullied by even the shadow of a cirud ; below, a smooth and trans parent sea, unmoved, save by the pressure of the ves• sel's bow, across which, at intervals, the shark, albi core and dolphin, rustle with the rapidity of light ning—days of joy, scenes of delight, ever dear to me :Dory, in contemplating which, have I forgot all my 1 ,, sort ows and poured forth praise to the GOD of nature, who thus dressed the world in glory, for me, for me an ungrateful murmuring being ! " We displayed our colours to the town of Matra, and we scudded past, and as evening advanced the heavy turrets of Barcelona appeared, from which:, the numerous bells bidding adieu to the day, sounded pleasant and mournful along the shore. The pier was crowded with ladit s, whose rresence saved the fort, on which the Gallo. Spanish fl ig fluttered to the breeze, a broadside of ten:club n •e which we had prepared ro leave it, en passant. " [leak lug nearer to Tarragona we discovered his Majesty's ship Blake, a squadron of frigates, and more than 200 sail of polacres, settees and fishing boats, anchored at random on different parts of the coast, and we were tel-graphed—" Tarragona taken by storm."-.--We soon learnt that the sick had been burnt in the hospital, and every person massacred t who could not escape in the boats, and which!' could not contain half the fugitives; hundreds were, i immolated on the beach, drowned and ekSes in the 1 1 wa:er : the miseries endtired by those who iscaped, crowded together in open vessels, without food or p clothing, exposed to a high wind, a turbulent sea and perilous anchorage, on an enewy's lee-shore, caused' them to regret escaping the fate of their friends, so! recently dismissed from every human woe, ar.d whose lot they now envied as fortunate. Ever y attention I was paid to those wretched beings, and a frigate had it in charge to see them safe to Minorca. " A division of the French troops that had occu pied Tarragona at this time two in the afternoon), were advancing rapidly along the shore, pursuing the flying Spaniards, and burning towns, villages, and churches, as they passed. Every ship of the squadron took a station for annoying the enemy ; clouds of dust crested with:flame announced their approach at many miles distance : the frigates Apollo and Volon taire opened a destructive fire or: their van, within range e f grape shot, and the Blossom sloop, age ounci before the town of Villa Nova, considerably impeded their entrance. The enemy had mere than 4000 ca valry and ten field-pieces, advancing at a brisk trot, they closed up the ranks as if on a parade-ground wherever a vacancy appeared, by the fall of men and horses; every few minutes a portion of them halted, unlimbered their artillery, and gave us a few shot, ill directed ; the cfficers, distinct to the naked eye, on horseback, with drawn swords, faccd the the of the ships, the men passing zs at a review. " I never witnessed greater firmness and soldier-1 like behaviour : would to Heaven I could say as much' upon a nearer acquaintance. Their entrance into Villa Nova did them credit as soldiers— their conduct in it disgraced them as men. Tl.e churches were im mediately wrapped in flames and the houses quickly followed in succession as they were plundered ; cannon and musketry were heard going off in every street, and against whom ? old men,wounded helpless women and innocent children; many crawled on their hands and knees to the beach, pursued by ruffians,dripping blood, who shot some, beat out the brainsof others with the but ends of discharged pistols. I saw one woman raised by' the hair of her head and stabbed twice in the breast, she.clasped her child in her arms, from whence, as she fell, the villain tore it, and hurled it into the waves, reeking with its parent's gore. Whenever we could fire wi theut injuring a friend we did. Calmly and deliberately did they examine the pockets and waist belts of the dead, for money ; inone instance, where, I suppose, the ornaments were too valuable to be broken, we saw the plunderer severe the ear from the head with a knife, and cram it into his bosom, with more than savage rapacity—more than fabled bruta lity. My heart beats with a warmer glow, my pen trembles with joy, to record—that while viewing this through cur glasses, a shot from one of the frigates sent to another world, a monster, whom, I would fain hope, has not • left his fellow in this. Drums, trumpets, cannon, and musketry, crashing of fall ing houses, and dying groans, cheers of drunkenness, and execrations of blasphemous rage, were heard by' our guard-boats issuing from the flames in which these demons of hell seemed to revel with delight... By eleven at night the noise decreased ; at twelve, af ter discharging a few shot at the desolation they had made, laden with plunder and steep'd in, blood, these monsters of iniquity rode off towards Barcelona. 6 , Os laudiug, upwards of 180. old men and women; young amen and children, were stretched on the beach, mangled too shocking for description ; 13 the :houses--the sick—the wounded and many cripples lay murdered in their beds I several of their hands Iwere cut to the bone, by grasp i ng , i n t h e strugg l es o f death, the swords of their mei cikss murderers. In one house a young woman,' some months gone with Child, lay on a couch, the bayonet had entered her back, near the loins, and passed out below the breast,. her ear-rings had been torn away. In a corner of the Ichurch, where she had evidently fled for protection, rbeautiful woman lay stabbed to the heart, with every Mark of her person having been violated, by her side were t young Spaniards, perhaps her brothers, her vain defenders. But what avails it to harrow up the feelings of the reader by such dreadful relations ; enough has been said to arouse the indignation of the I most passive ; he that can read these damning facts, and not feel a j ust abhorrence for the'ryrant from whom I they elicit, is fit only to be a slave. But this, even this, is a minor massacre to many that have occurred in Spain, wherever the hordes of France appear in an ger. This, even in Spain, is passed over in silence, • lost in the contemplation of more gigantic atrocities, which my countrymen in their fields of peace cannot reach even in thought, and which rests with them selves never to experience in reality. " Can we wonder that the Spaniard should think of revenge, of bloody retaliation —no,—but I can wonder at that supinent , ss which, in scenes like these, slum bers over the body of the m art y re d d ea d, an d starts • not with the spirit of immortal hatred, one and all, by .the side of a gallant Ally, to sweep the land of their destroyers. " There may be some friends to humanity, W not to France, who miry think I have overcharged this picture of Gallic int amy, but I solemnly assure them' on the wsud of a lltitish seaman, theft I have not done justice to so hideous a subject, anxious to get rid of i horrors so shocking to humanity as soon as posssible. 1 " I have heard much amongst feather-bed warriors of the Frenchman being a gallant and generous ene ' my : long excerierce has taught me he has no claim to tl.e title : insolent in conquest—mean in defeat.— In engagements I have known his courage— five times his prisoner I never benefit. d by his cle mency. I trust I speak the sentiments of thousands —may I never hear of a Frenchman but in the Ga zette, or meet him unless un the field of battle." LAY 11+111LLIGENCE. • COURT OF KING'S PENCIL NOV. 20. THE UNIVERsITIE.S ENTITLED TO COPIES OF ALL BOOKS PRINTED. THE KING AND THE UNIVERSITY OF CANIBRIDGE 9. BIiYA R. This was an acte; brought against the defend int by the Un verrAy of Came ridge, f r hasr;ng pub. lis':ed a bra (hi.x'r History; we believe) without sending a copy for die aforementioned University, operably to the' provOoos ni the bult Anne. The plaintiffs obtained a ver.lit I r t 6. ss. that is, £5 penalty, and £l. ss. she sa:ue of the bi)ok. The action was, in fact, brought to try the right of the several Universities and ptsbliE Libraries, (11 in number) to a copy of entry b th it comes from the press, whet er entered at Stationers Hallo: , not, fur the pte)lication in question had not been entered at St itit.ners'k Hall, and, on that ground the defer. dant contended, that he had no tight to give a copy, as by the non-entran c e of the well, he did not take the benefits of the several Acts fix the protection of literary property. 'the verdict, however, was entered for the plaintiff, but the Judge who presided at the trial, suffered this point to be reserved for argument before the Coon, and it was this day argued. Mr. LITTLEDALE Appeared for the plaintiffs, and argued in support of the verdict. He commenced his argument, by•alluding to.the Act of the 13th of Charles 11. (the first Statute passed on the subject of literary property), which previded, that a copy . of every book that might be published, without saying every book es entered at Stationers' Hall," should be forwarded to the Warehouse-keeper of the Stationers Company, pe doubly to publication, f.n. the King's Library, and for the two Universities (those of Ox ford and Cambridge.) The next Act that passed on the subject, was the Statute of the B.h Anne, which secured to the authors or proprieti.rs of new works, for a given period, the sole and exclusive right of pub'ishing them—a tight which w a s not before se caned to them. By that Act it was provided, that all books entered at Stationer? Hall should adduce that proof, to show their claim to exclusive publica tion, and to the pi otecti.n of the Statute; and it I went on to enact, that nine copies of every book, on the best paper, should he st et before publication to the warehouse-keeper of the Company of Stationers, for the use of the Royal Library, the two Universi ties in England, the four Universities is Scotland, the Library of Sion College, and the Lbrary belong ing to the College of Advocates, -in Edinburgh, to be delivered to them on requisition. On this Act, the University founded its right, urged in the present in stance, for it evidently w.es intended to promote the cause of learning, that backs should be thus forward ed to the public libraties for the use of the students. Mr. L. argued from hence, that as the right of the Universities to a copy of each new book was not before shackled, it never could have been the inten tion of the Legislature, by this Act, so to shackle I them, while it at the same time gave to authors and printers immunities and privileges which they before! did not enjoy. The 15th Geo. }vas the next Act relied upon, which m a de further provisions respecting literary pi operty, as the former Acts had in sonic way been .. eluted." It alltuled to books .4 published as aforesaid," which allusion did not mean such books as mig!st be entered at Stationers' Hart, hut referred to those who might possess the exclusive right of pub lication, either' from authorship or proprietorship. The next Act adduced in support of the general ar gument, was, the 41st of the present King, passed after the Union with Ireland; and the object of it was, to extend the privileges enjoyed by the English ,iJniversities, Scotch Colleges, &c. to Trinity College, 'and King's Inns, Dublin. Thus there were to be 11 copies of each new book to be forwarded to the Sta tioners' Company for the eleven public libraries, on , pain of forfeiting the value thereof, and also £5. for each omission. This Act of the 41st of the King re ferred to the former Acts on the same subject; and its preamble set forth, that the Statute related to " Woks entered at Stttioilers' Hall. Now as 0,4 • •K.• •:‘ I former Acts did not eozinne their provitions to book* leg entered at Stationers' Hall," the erroneous preallls ble to the 41st of the King certainly could not mind • the clauses of former Statutes. The misconception of any previous Act in the preamble of a subsequent Statute could not do away the benefits resulting . from such former Acts, for to do that would be in fact to render them null and void. Those former .1 Statutes distinctly enacted that copies of all books should be sent to the several public libraries therein :. specified; and the 41st of the King was merely for the purpose, after the Union, of extending the sitni. `, l Jar privileges to the two public libraries in Dublin.—. .. Such former Statutes required copies of all books that might be printed to be forwarded for the Universi. . ties, &c. previously to publication, for some books - might be ;entered at Stationers' Hall without being 1 published, and, v i ce Ivrea , b oo k s m i g h t b e published 1-1 without having been entered at Stationers' Hall. n Such a misconception in the preamble of the 41st of l, the King could not operate so as to do away the be. i I nefits resulting from former Statutes, and therefore 1 he humbly maintained, that the verdict in this case ought to be confirmed. I Mr. BROUGHAM argued contra. He contended, d that the property of aut h ors cou ld b e d e f ended by 1,1 common law, as had been proved in " Beckford v. Hood," a case respecting literary property which had 1, not been entered at Stationers' Hall ; and those p I f•• I ticular Statutes on whiCh Mr. Littledale relied, with _ the exception of the 41st of the King, gave to authors 1 the protection of Statute-law, the benefit resulting from entering books at Stationers' Hall. But if au. ' thors or the proprietors of works did not choose to put themselves under the protection of Statute-law, by entering their books at Stationers' Hall—if they ; were content to stand on the Common Law, by not making the entries required by former Statutes, then ought they not be called upon to abide by the provi. sions of those Statutes. That seemed to be the spirit I of' those Acts, as appear e d f rom t h e l ast Act passed' i on the subject of literary property, namely, the 41st of the King, which in the preamble specifically stated 1 the Act to regard only those books " entered at Sta. I tioners' Hall."—lf authors did not shield their pro- I petty by those Acts, surely they were noC bound to do what they required from those who had the benefit of their protection. The Act of Charles was distinct from that of Anne, therefore, would he not touch on it. He began with th e B t h A nne , an d the 15th Geo. I,' 111. and argued, that they were in some degree üb. i scure on the pint now at issue, and that the Legisla. titre had acknowledged such obscurity in the 41st of .the King. That obscurity was not only recognized, but actually done away in the very preamble of the Act last alluded to, it professing to refer to books i " entered at Stationer,' Hall."—The meaning of all the Acts on this point was set forth in plain terms; and 4 he therefore submitted, that as it left no doubt, the verdict ought not to stand. I Mr. LITTLEDALE having replied, the judgment of I the Court was delivered. Lord ELLENBOROUGH held, that the Bth Anne, on the subject at issue, was not susceptible of a doubt; its meaning was plain and obvious, and clearly re. quired the delivery of a'certain number of copia is the warehouse-keeper of the Stationers' Company foe the King's Library, the English and Scotch Univer sities, &c. That Act of Anne seemed to have had two distinct objects in view : Ist, the protection of lite. nary property; 2dly, the advancement of literature, in providing the public libraries with copies of all new books, for the use of the students, &c. Thus literary works would be accessible to the students at a more easy rate than might otherwise have been the case; and at all events, for the advancement of lite rature, to'secure a deposit of all books in those libra ries. The subsequent Acts were intended to promote, secure, and extend those benefits; aad the Act of the 41st of the King, notwithstanding the misconception of its preamble, merely extended the benefits enjoyed by the English and Scotch Universities to those of Ire land. But that misconception, or rather the erroneous • description given of former Acts in the preamble of the 41st of the present reign, could not overcome and do away the strong and potent meaning of the Bth Aline, c. 14. He therefore was of opinion, that the plain tiffs were clearly entitled to have their verdict cons firmed. Mr. Justice LE BLANC, and Mr. Justice BAILEY, coincided in the judgment of the LORD CHIEF Jua. Tics • but Mr. Justice GE M was absent on account of ill ness, we believe. The verdict of the Plaintiffs was accordingly con• firmed; and it is thus decided, that eleven copies, on the best paper, of every book that shall be printed. previously to publication, must bo forwarded to tho Warehouse-keeper of the Stationers' Company, whe. ther entered at Stationers'-Hall or tint, to be tretiver ed, on requisition, to the eleven public libraries, spe. cified in the 42st of the present King, namely, " the Royal Library, the Libraries of the two Untversito in-England, the four Universities in Scotland, this Library of Sion College, the Library belonging to the College of Advocates in Edinburgh, the Librarl of Trinity College, Dublin, and the King's Inns, Dublin, on the pain of forfeiting the value thereof, and also 115 for each book.' —(/ride Mt Act). . - . In consequence of the uumerotii robberies Ltd, committed at Liverpool, a plan was laid by the po lice for the detection of the offenders. Friday seat night last, about nine o'clock, a party of the police officers and special constables proceeded, in a hackney* coach, along the road leading i from Everton towards Low•hill ; when they-were 'attacked by five men, armed with a blunderbuss'and pistols, who with dreadful istrecations, broke the coach wind.iws,open. ed both the doors, and demanded their money. Upon finding that the party in the inside were armed, the robbers fired the blunderbuss and pistols into the coach ; and one of the constables having suffered hi-mselt to be robbed (agreeably to the directions he had received), a desperate affray took place:—three of the constables smite disabled very rally, one by a slug through his arm, another by several cuts upon the head, and a third by a very severe cat toter the eye : fortunately two of the footpath were secured. Last Sunday night, as three boys of Bath CV were attempting to steal poultry in one of the gardesis which had been robbed before, at the bottom of dui ' Crescent fields, the eldest, about 17 years ut age, was, , shot by a spring gun, and his lea dieadfully m a n. gled, that he Was conveyed in great agony ,o the Casualty Hospital, where it was cut off to - save hi. life.