The National Register. — London, England, 1808-09-04 00:00:00

THE NATIONAL REGISTER. ---.m.....,..- S discovered that the power of Russia was a mere shadow, and be declared to Europe, immediately after, the battle of Austerlitz, that it was fir inferior to that of Austria, and eve,' to that of Prussia. Hut Bouaparte has conducted himself with much greater inconsis:ency than our Jour nalists ; for immediately after this declaration, he mani fested ro small degree of disippointvnent and rage that the treat b.;tween d'Oubril and Talleyrand had not been rati fied by the Emperor Alexander. This circumstance at 11:nst affords a strong surmise that his contemptuous opi nion of the resources of that country was regulated by his int:Test at that time. Ile seems also to entertain a different ilea at present; for 4iefilsome compliments which are paid Alexander iii tke .Voniteur, ere a literal translation of those, which our Journalists SD profusely heaped on him after Cie battle of Pvlan. But their motives were diffe rent. These profound Statesmen were-perfectly well ac quainted with the weakness of tint Fovereign's means, and only prrAicted his surcescja, resistance to Gallic inva ders, in order to encourage him to srspernalnral exertions. Happy country which contains even in the obscurest its political writers, Statesmen capabie of forescriag and regniating the destinies of nations. SEPTEMBER 4. , . have felt at the inactivity of A ustria, after all the aims he and his father had made in favor of that State, but above all the indigation he must have suffered at the unaccountable remissness and indifference of the Grenville Administration, which frustrated the sanguine expectations which were formed in this country and on the Continent, of the metes ful resistance of the Russians. Under all these disad vantages, boy/ever, with an army of, about JOO,OOO, they maintained an obstinate contest of more than eight months against all the armies of France. And vs hencver the me ment arrives that she awakes from her present disgraceful stupor, her exertions will be equal to her ancient reputa tion. The character and energy of the Government halve so much influence on those of the people, that it is no nay difficult to discover why that nation has descended, during the present reign, from the eminence it stood on, under the vigorous Administration of Catherine. As soon as our friendly connexions with that Court .are renewed, and that period is not very remote, we can easily recover our for mer influence in its co:nu:ifs. The present Emperor has nlways manifested a decided partiality for this country ; and if we are happier in our choice of diplomatic than we have been hitherto, we could render the resourrN of that empire more efThctutil towards the deliverance of Europe, than it is now fashionable to suppose. FOREIGN INTELLIGENCE. The resources of the 11 ussian empire are very great: and v c risk nothing in advancing greater than those of any other state on the continent. [ter population is Cx•- treniely numerous, bold, inured to hardship, and accus tomed to privation ;—strongly tinctured with national va nity, extremely attached to their country, possessed of strong active bodies, and possessing uncommon docility and sersatility of intellect ; a proof of which is the no un common circumstance of Russian noblemen speaking the French, German, Italian, and sometimes English, with uncommon facility and elegance; and common Russians, who have travelled through the continent in the character of servants, ha , .;hewn still greater proficiency than their uristers in this respect. It is astonishing shat vivacity aad alertness they display in their national amusements; and their fidelity to their engagements and attachment to their masters, arc greater than is to be found in any other people. With such qualities, it would be absurd to deny they are qualified for war. It w ill be asked then why their exertions and success have not been proportionate to their moral and national resources t A satklactory explanation of this circumstance would cairy us further than the ex tent of a newspaper will permit. The Finances of a country, when trade and manufac tures are still in a state of infancy, cannot be very con siderable. The nobility, who possess almost exclusive!) the !muted property, enjoy, as is the case under every Feudal Government, very great immunities. This exemp ton, together with the poverty of the lower class, the tact projects of amelioration the Government has been c engaged in, and the Asiatic magnificence of the court, formed insurmountable impediments to the ambi tidt:s sicws of that cabinet. The Finances, which do not amount to 10,000,000 of our money, are consequently in adequate for the purpose of carrying on warlike operations on an extensive scale, and at a distance from their fron tiers. These observations will still have greater weight in the present reign, when we reflect on the mild and humane character of the present Emperor, who was averse to any augmentation of the ',Luther's on his people. It was this humanity on his part, jawed tv the dissatisfaction ,be must FROM THE SPANIII PAPERS. DR to, .It7G. 2.—On the '.l9th ult. about four in the even ftig, it was reported that Joseph Napoleon was marching, and that all the troops in the city were following him. This report was contivmed by the movements made by the French milliners, and nll those oho did not belong to the army. The same even. ing they withdrew from the hospitals, and conducted to Rein° all the infirm soldiers. They put in requisition all the carriages and horses that could be found, and the troops prepared to march. In fact, that very night. and on the morning of the :10th, a great part of the army, the sick, milliners, tradespeo ple, &c. of the French nation set out. On the whole day of 30th, there followed preparations for the march of Joseph, and the remainder of the army. lie dined at half-past four in the afternoon, in order to proceed, in the dusk, to sleep at ('ha martin. The carriages were harnassed,.and repaired to the Court of the Palace, but the coachmen and mule-drivers, and most of the attendants of the Royal carriages had disappeared; on which account. Joseph could not depart that night, and was obliA-ed to suspend his journey to the morning of the:llst, w hen he departed on horseback, as he was unable to put the carriages in motion. The same morning he took from the stables all the males, horses, and harness, and shamefully sold all at time lows: price. In the evening of the same day, they forced open the gates of the pnhlic Treastiry and Bank, putting the people in such terror, that we pa ss ed the most anxious night, think ing that a general pillage was about to take place. They took from these buildings above fourteen millions. At two in the morning- of the Ist inst. was heard a cannonade. which, thow:h t first it was tr ken for a fatal signal, has in fret but the pre cursor of the brightest and happiest day that ever rose over Ma drid. On this signal all the guard; were withdrawn, and all the French tiled Ml' towards the parade, whence they marched off. Scarcely did' day appear, when the people ran through the streets, and the posts of the guards, but nothing was to he fo , aI. They passed to the Itetiro, and there they found oolV a fete dying wretches, and here and there a dead body. they bAelsl with atnazement the ditches, rellisadoes, and terrible batteries, directed against this city. The gun -carriage` sere flames—above 70 cannon were spiked, and about VOW bar :els of powder thrown into'a large pond. The Madrulians, on seeing t!...eniselyes delivered from this destruetive apparato. gave thanks to the Supreme Being, npd immediately begat! . 10 :PFAsine far their badge the portrAit of Ferdipood VI V ="INNIIPr - I E~ ti f• Mr-