The National Register. — London, England, 1809-08-06 00:00:00

46 ed your notice, that the repeal has no thereby been made of the Order of the 7th January, 18117, whi.• . according to the en gagement 1 have entered into, on the part ot Majesty, is to be abrogated with the other orders, in consequet of the adjust ment of differences between the two couotries,ao • !.e confidence entertained of a further conciliatory understanding. 1 have the honour to be, with the highest respect anti conic:Jeri, 1, Sir, your most obedient servant, (Signed) D. M. LRSK ,e• "• The Ilon. Robert Smith s &c. Z?cc. Til t• NATI ONarli EGrsTEIC ER. SMITH TO MR. ERSKINE. Department of State, June 16, 1' 9. Si*,--I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of our Note a the day, communicating the Orders in Council, issued L, 'his Britannic Majesty on the 26th April last. However well persuaded the President may at all times have been, that the arrangement, so happily effected by the late ne gociation, would he strictly fulfilled on the part of his Britannic Majesty, he has, nevertheless, received such satisfaction of your renewed assurance' to that effect, sith the further assurance, founded on official communications to you from your Govern ment since the adoption of the Order in Council of the 26th .April, that that Order was not intended to have any connection whatever ss ith the overtures w Welt y.ott have been authorised to make to the Government of the United States. I have the ho nour to be, vvith the iiii ; hust respect, )our most obedient servant, (Sig Led) 21.. SMITII. _ _ _ Hoz. D M. Erskine. t)'c: COURT MARII4I, OA LORD G.4,1181ER. FIFTH DAY. The Pri-4ident observed, that if there were any witnesses pre sent, it wa, t e pleosto e of the Court that they shuttid withdraw. Good Corlira,:e immediately came forward, and submitted to the Court. 6irtt accordln4 to thi. c , ,tahlished custom oc Courts Martial, it was not usual. to exclude witnesses during the read ing of defence. Pre,ideut —" "Nt.' Lord Cochrane, it is the with of the Court in the ptezcat instance, that the witnesses should be ex euded." Lord Cochrane.—" I hvg to, oly,Trve, that in the cafe or Ad miral Harvey, is hie!' is it) point, the vritacises were al lowed o rennlin in Court •Turrog readiog of the defence. rzibmit therefoto that, witho::: 417) irregularity, the witnc:-...ses may remain in Court." e. - eaident.—" My Lord Coritinne, the Court have deli berated upon the subj:ct, anti have reso!ve,l that the wiznes?Ts shall not he present ; your I.oE.ltip %%ill therefore have the goodness to withdraw." Lord Cochrane then retired, and .use Prer.ilent intimated to Lot d Gambier, that Ws I.ordAip was at liberty either to read bi, defence himself, sr appoint any person he pleated for that vut pose. DEFENCE. Lord Gambier being called upon for his defence, the Judg- Advocate was permitted to read it as follows Mr. President—l thank sou, Sir, and the rest of the Mem bers of this Honourahle Court, for having complied with my request, that ashort interval night be allowed toe before I en tered on my defence. I have a:so to express my satisfaction, that the whole of my conduct and proceedings in Basyae Itoads is now under your consideration, in cons, queixe of my having ap plied for this Court .Martial. Tite ncees,ity of this must be evident; either I had to adopt this measure, or !:y a tacit ac quiescence in the insinuations thrown out again:a me by Lord Cochrane, have compromised not only my own honour, but also that of the brave officers and men under Inv command. The proceedings of the Court will Chew whether any miscon duct has existed in the .execution of the service under considera tion; if any has existed, of which I am perfectly unconscious, It is right that the nation should know it ; not as resting on the unsupported opinion of an individual, but on the unprejudiced judgment of this tribunal. I was prepared, when I first came before you, with what appeare t il to me a complete justification of my conduct and proceedings as Commander in Chief o f the Channel F.' - 'ween the 17th of March 'our inquiry is directed; testimony that wits to be rge which their Lordebips been induced Oc S• AUG. 6. to make agaiostane; namely, that on the 12th of April, the enemy's ships being then on shore, and the signal having beets made that they could be destroyed, I did, - for a cooriuerable• time neglect or delay to take effectual measures for destroying them.. I was ready to admit, that from the time of my observ ing, on the morning of the 12th of April, the situation of the enemy, communicated to me also by signal &oat the lmperieuse, .ome time did elapse b' Pore the enemy's ships were - attacked ; but 1 was prepared to prove most incontrovertil*, , that no ne, elect or unnecessary delay took place in efre:.-tia; the destruction of those ships : and I have now the satisfaction to find, that Out of all the officers of the fleet who are summoned on this trial, eharnn rests on 'he-nnsn peo fled, I may say already re fitted testimony 0; hi' Ca pini . n cif the Imperieuse. I believe there isnot a precedent to he found in the naval annals of Great i;ritain, of an ()Nicer of the rank I have the honour to hold, commanding a fleet which has performed so important a servive as that accomplished under my direction—approved as that ser vice has been by the Board of Admiralty, and considered I,y his Majesty's Government as even deserving the thanks of both Houses of Parliament, being obliged, from a sense tof what is due to his own character and honour, as well as to ii)e pr;ift7s siert to which he belongs, to appeal to a naval tribunal, against the loose and indirect accusations of an officer so much ii s in ferior in rank. lam wat ranted in saying, that the execution of this service was approved by the Riead of Admiralty ; be cause in a letter from their Lordships' Secretary,dated April 22, acknowledging the receipt of my public dispatches on the oc casion, he says, he is commanded by their Lordships to con gratulate me on the !,rilliatit success of the force under my com mand, in the attack of the enemy's ships in the Isle d'Aix Roads, by four vessels, and Subsequently by detachments from my fleet, which terminated in the capture and destruction of four of the enemy's ships ; and to signify their Lordship's directions to me t to express their approbation of the great exertions of Rear- Admiral Stopford, Sir Harry IS eale, and the several other Of. ficers mentioned by me, as having been most active': employed, and having •partico!arly distinguished themselves upon this im portant service. Lord Cochrane, however, warned the Noble Lord at the head of the Admiralty, that if this measure were attempted, he should, if standing alone, oppose it so far ns re garded the Commander in Chief; thus, without specifically ob jecting to the thanks being given for the service performed, di recting his hostility personally at me, and making his attack as publicly, though not so fairly, as if he had at once exhibited formal charges. Lord Cochrane, as a Member of Parliament, may most as , surely support or oppose public measures, as he shall thilti( proper. In the pr.:..eut proceedings, however, he stands in the situation only of an Officer servi:7 under my command, as appears by the following- letter to me from the First Lord ut , the Admiralty : " ADMIRALTY, MAY, 29 JBO9, " MY LORD,—liaiiing in conversation informed Captaie Lord Cochrane, that it was the inte!:::in of his Majesty's Go vernment to move the thanks of both Houses of Parliament to your Lordship, 2nd to the officers, seamen, and marines serv ing under your command in Basque Roads, Lord Cochrane de clared to me, that 'in the event of such a measure being pro posed in Parliamemt, he should feel himself bound, by his pub lic duty, to object to the thanks, as far as they should apply to the Commander in Chief. Under these circumstances. it has been deem.ed expedient to suspend the motion for the Vote oI Thanks, and to call upon Lord Cochrane to state the ground ou which he has intimated to the First Lord of the Admiralty his intention to oppose the Vote of Thanks, as far as respects your Lordship, that the board of Admiralty may thereby bo enabled to judge how far the grounds to be stated by Lord Cochrane may be of a nature to suspend the motion in Parlia ment, or to call forany further investigation by the Board, or in any other way. I : have felt it due to your Lordship to give you the earliest informfition of this state of things, and to ac quaint you, that a letter will this day be written to Lord Coch rane, In conformity to the above resolution of the Board of Admiralty, a copy of which, together with the answer of Lord Cochrane, will be without delay .comtunnicated to your Lord ship. I have, &e. (Signed) " AftiLGßAvc." Whether Lord Cochrane supposed he might with impunity endeavour to lower me in the 'opinion of my country and wy Sovereign, Signal marks of whose favour had at this instant been exclusively conferred upon himself—whether his Lordship thought be could exalt his own reputation at the expeuce ut' . . Fleet, employed in Basque Roads, hetv and the ' '., A ,ril • st, to which y( 7 1 jj• 44 but _tit --. • . f the oral -te /11.-t. ' hr , 1 '. -- ...Z‘ the chargi i k crik )". ' „:: 4 * SF - :5 .4 ''....\. ochrane, 0, 7 ,e• i, -• .: ~. ..‘,, , .- • -1 ,) sig._ N:. ciar