The National Register. — London, England, 1809-12-10 00:00:00

DEC.. 10.- THE NATIONAL REGISTER. Biers in Europe. There is no nation upon earth which combines more of the qualities requisite to constitute a regular army, than they do—ardent, and at the same time grave ; combining enthusiasm with perseverance; possess ing undoubted courage, an ardent love of their country ; the' germ of the most daring enterprise ;—should they weather the present storm, and expel the enemy from their territory, they become, in less than ten years from that event,' the first soldiers in the universe ! The Spanish soil is the nursery of heroes. In every age her sons were not only brave, but the first among the bravest. The Cartha ginians and Romans, in the zenith of • their power, found more difficulty in taming the fierce spirit, and -break ing the generous sense of freedom of her inhabitants, than they did in any other country. The Romans, after hundred and fifty years unremitting war, were scarcely Masters of the country, and, for five hundred years, they resisted the Moors, and finally expelled them. , The last accounts from the Spanish armies lead us to ex pect speedy intelligeeee of the most decisive nature. The Spaniards have abandoned their defensive system, and re sumed offensive operations. We know not whether to congratulate, or not, the friends of their sacred cause on this change. A system of dilatory warfare had been pressed upon the patriots by the provincial junta of Andalusia, in the commencement of their insurrection ; and well would it have been for them, had they listened then to the voice of wisdom, issuing from the mouth of an assembly, which, du.ing its short existence had left a never to be forgotten monument of its capacity. But men are doomed never to acquire experience but by misfortune; and this is, probably, a salutary ordonance. But the expedient alters with tune and circumstances ; and so high minded a people. as those of the Peninsula, are not condemned to move within too narrow a circle of action. The offen sive must have been resumed ataome period of the war; and this is, perhaps, as good a moment as any other for the Junta to try the proficiency of their countrymen in discipline, and the pulse of the enemy. Unparalleled in juries on one side—on the other, intense hatred, will con tribute to make the operations of the next campaign, tre mendous and sanguinary in their consequences. The of fender is generally more acrimonious and unforgiving than the offended ; but the latter, in the present instance, have fortunately a series of complicated injuries and insults to resent. We wish them a degree of success proportionate to the justice of their cause, and their honourable charac ter, as a people. May they obtain the independence they so justly merit ; and anxiously do we look forward to the time when we can congratulate them upon the re covery of, their ancient freedom, institutions, and internal prosperity. • - Their armies of the South and West have made a rapid movement forwards; and their respective Commanders possess, and seem to deserve their highest confidence.— The greatest enthusiasm prevails in the army of La Mancha; and when the order was issued to advance ; the general exclamation was—" To Madrid"—" Never back again to the Sierra Morena." These are good symptoms, and the first occurrences give us reason to hope that they are no momentary ebullitions, but the strong expression of reso lute feeling. They overwhelmed every opposition which the enemy made to them in the beginning of their march ; and their General completely defeated . th e - French at their own weapon, and was near destroying a large division, which boldly threw itself into his rear, in the hope of cut ting off his retreat, or embarrassing his movements. His whole army, we are informed have passed the Tagus, amounting to 50,000, of which 8000 are cavalry, with a train of 50 field pieces, and were in full march upon Ma drid. The French were, in the mean time, entrenching themselves in the neighbourhood of Toledo ; but a gene- Tal engagement was copsidered as inevitable. May victory follow the train of justice! and 'thus take from the sceptic his strongest armour. A Mail troni Malta and Gibraliai•, it► fourtevo days frGra the latter, arrived at Falmouth on Monddy. A letter from Palermo, under the date October 28, states, that Mr. Ba. siLico had arrived there on his way from Constantinople to England, and that he was understood to be the bearer of very unpleasant intelligence respecting the state of the war in Turkey. The Russians had passed the Danube, and were expected to advance upon Adrianople, after the sur. render of Silistria, to which they had hid siege. A report prevailed at Palermo, at the date of this letter, that Con• stantiuople was taken by the Russians; but it is discre dited by more recent intelligence received by way of Vicuna. Sir ALEXANDER BALL, the Governor of Malta, is dead. The following is an extract unit letter received from Walcheren: " FLUSHING, DEC. I.—The English are nll preparing to leave us, and all correspondence will be at end with this island. Many of the' inhabitants of this town are packing up, and going to Holland, dreading the inundations during the wil:vr, as the different basons have been destroyed. Toe dock is ruined, and the arsenal is undermined to be blown up. The sluices are also to share the same fate. The damage which will be done to this town will at least require the labour of ten years to repair again. All the baggage of the soldiers, as also General Don's, have been shipped, and but few troops are left in this city. Provision begins to he very scanty, owing to the quantity shipped and taken from the storehouses All the carriages belonging to the artillery.are on hoard; the Admiral has condescended to allow four transports for the use of the merchants. The day of the departure of the English, will, perhaps, be on Thursday or Friday next. In the mean time a Proclamation was issued ou Saturday last, desiring all who had claims on the Government to bring in their accounts. The following account of the causes which led to the late arrests at Seville, has appeared in an Evening Paper. Front the circumstantial nature of it, we presume it is derived from the noble person by whose interposition the J:lnta was preserved : " When the Marquis Wellesley was at Seville, information, we understand, was communicated to him, that a plot had been formed to seize the whole of the Junta, in the middle of this night, while they were engaged in Council, to put to death some, and to send off others fa South America, to declare $ Regency, and to place at its head the old Cardinal Bourbon s the Duke Del Infantado, the Marquis De Roraima, and two others; that the Duke's Regiment of Guards, then at Seville, were to be the principal actors in the plot. The Marquis could 'not, of course, suffer such a design to be carried into execution without giving notice to the Junta, which he did immediately. The Junta were in a dreadful state of alarm, and threw them selves upon the protection of his Lordship, who promised to go instantly to the Duke Del lufantado, but urged the imperious necessity of their attending to the popular wisizes, convok log the Cortes, and making several reforms in the Administration of Affuirs. This was promised, and the Marquis had a (-infer , ease with the Duke Del Infantado, who exerted his influence so effectually with his Regiment of Guards, that the design was not carried into . execution. The Junta, relieved from the dati ger that had alarmed them, contrived !0 remove the Duke's regiment, and to introduce other troops upon whom they co ild depend.—They then spewed a reluctance to fulfil :.he promise they had made.—The greatest indignation wa, :44:iin excited. [ against them, and the Marquis of Romans is tiiilerstood to have made a lung speech to them, in w Inch he upbraided them in the most cutting terms.—Fearful of the p.ipula: veageauce, the Cortes were at length agreed to be convoked." An Act of Parliament, authorising the importation of foreign wines in neutral bottoms, and also awhorising the exportation of the same to other countries, upon paying a certain duty, having expired since- last Session of Perna ment, the loss to the Crown front the neglect to renew it, previous to the breaking up of Parliament, has, we under stand, been very considerable ; and though, from the non renewal of this Act no duty can beJevied, still the same proceedings are adopted, at same of the out-posts at least, as if a duty could be enforced. The wine is landed, the Custom-house officers guage it, excisemen are kept is pay; as well 'as labourers, tor this purpose, at much . expence„ and the wine is again exported, wlthout a 444* of by. lAA to Government. • • • •