The National Register. — London, England, 1809-12-31 00:00:00

THE NATIONAL REGISTER. 834 mory of it expire; every year its anniversary ought to he celebrated with lugubrous rites. This ceremony may pre• vent the recurrence of the impotence and ignorance that marked its execution and conception. The moment may not be very distant, when a greater army for a more important interest, and nearer home, may be employed. There is not one of our readers, whose understanding is so obtuse as not to concei . e q hat we mean ; - not to be certain, before we bad concluded our sentence, that Ireland was referred to. In that event a single blunder may plunge the country in irretrievable - disaster; or the choice of an incompetent com mander sever that important province from the empire for ever. When favour usurps in one instance the rewards due t o merit and services; when a courtier is intruded where a soldier should be employed, the incongruity may be prac tised in several other instances. But the consequences may be widely different. And what at that time cost us only some thousands of soldiers, a few millions of moil: y, and a load of dishonour, might at a future period, reduce us anal our children to the dreadful alternative of perishing, or becoming the vassals of BUONAPARTE. To intrigue, or ignorance must be imputed the alarming incompetency, so visible in the choice of military com manders of late years. We will not impute to human na ture, much less to Ministers, the baseness of sacrificing the honour and interests of an entire country to so :mean a principle as the former. But, if the evil can be traced to the latter cause, to ignorance we mean, its revi val may be constantly apprehended ; and one more incapa ble Officer succeed the other; and a greater disaster follow upon the heels of the hauler. This has been, in fact, the regular order of events since the first expedition to Brabant. The misfortunes of that enterprise were ef faced by the folly and ridicule of that to Ferrol; the latter by that to Holland ; and each successive expedition, and every new nomination of a Commander in Chief, surpassed the antecedent in disgrace and imbecility. How this pro gression of folly and ignorance will terininate, whether in a change of system, or change of government ; in a 611)86- tution of intrigue far talent, or of slavery for independence, it is not in our power to determine. But, either the system or our pretensions to independence must be abandoned. There is no other ai ernative I-ft. The flag of truce that sailed for Calai s on Sunday, with MAYNE, the Austrian Courier, and Mr. PowELL, the Se cretary to the Austrian Minister, returned to Dover (m Wednesday, with the latter gentleman, who was not allowed to land. The refusal, it is said, was qualified by an assurance that he would he allowed to disembark and proceed to Paris. whenever he should present himself at that port (St. Maloes,) through which communication s between the respective Ministers of the United States at the Courts of London and Paris were generally made.— After what has been said of America, in the Bxpose, we are rather; surprised to find so little disposition in the French Government to accommodate the diplomacy of that country. What difference does it make to BIJONA RTZ, through which of his ports .provided he toleratcs it, Messrs. PINCKNEY and ARMSTRONG correspond ? This ' marked insult can hardly have arisen from mere displeasure at the breach of a capricious regulation. From the length of time Orli the Flag of Truce was on the - other side, it is probable there was sum communication by the telegraph, DEC 31. or otherwise, between the Commandant at Calais and his Government, respecting the admittance of Mr. Pownr.r. into the empire. The Flag of Truce brought over a re port that Mr. ARMSTRONG was about to return to Arierica. This, if the rumour be well founded, would sufficiently ac count for the indignity with which Mr. PriscarrEv's Secre tary has been treated. The infantry destined to reinforce Lord Wellington's aro my in Portugal, it is understood will comprise 5000 men, independent of artillery and cavalry, in which latter force, two regiments of heavy dragoons are mentioned. Besides these, a great number of British Officers are going out with local rank, in order to take commands in the Spanish army, This measure is supposed to have been adopted on the re commendation of the Marquis Wellesley, the Spanish army being extremely deficient in good Officers. The .Ipollo frigate, Capt. Taylor, which arrived last week at Portsmouth, eft Lord Collingwood only three weeks since at Minorca, with 18 sail of the line and several fri- Fates. Sir Samuel Hood, in the Centaur, with the Warspile joined his Lordship on the 25th ult. The ilpollo, on her passage to Gibraltar, spoke his Majesty's ship Y or k, 15 d ais from Plymouth, and Tigre, also going to join his Lordship, The Invincible and Triumph left Minorca on the 25th ult. ; the former for Gibraltar, to be refitted, and the latter for Cadiz. The Excellent and Montague were at Palermo; the Magnificent, and the Pelage and Halcyon, frigates at Malta; and the Hydra and Nereus were cruizing off Toulon. The lja.r had arrived at Minorca from Spiihead. The Frede rickstein and Swallow, frigates, with a convoy from Eng. land, arrived at Gibraltar, on the 26th tilt. Lord Coiling wood was about to detach five sail of the line on a cruize ()nape St. Sebastian. It. is understood to be his Lordship's intention, that a part of the fleet only shall keep the sea during the winter. The perseverance of his Lordship is a subject of wonder. The French line-of-battle ship and store-ship which escaped destruction on the 25th of Octo ber, and got into Cette, were reconnoitered there., on the 7th oft. by the Apollo and Scout, in a sittrztiou that indi cated they would never be iu a stile to go to sea again. The French fleet in Toulon had shewed no fresh disposition to put to sea. The :terrible and the Sea Horse are coming. home with the next convoy. The Pomona frigate had left Minorca to relieve the Sea Horse, oft' Leg - horn. The Hind was so sail from Minorca on the 28th ult. with a convoy of empty transports for Gibraltar and Cadiz. On the 7th ult. the Royal Sovereign, of 110 gui:s, was struck with a ball of lightning, o ff C a p e St . - Sebastian, and had two tnea killed and sixteen wounded. The Tigre was struck at the same time, and her main-mast was so much shivered, she was obliged to go to Gibraltar, to get a new one. The Persian Ambassador, on Friday, paid a visit to the Imperial residence of the Sovereigns of the East, in Leaden hall-street ; where he was received with every honour which propriety and policy could point out as becoming a person age of his high diplomatic rank. He went without anyformal train, merely like an &Wish gentleman with his carriage and servants. These were in scarlet liveries, and the coach was ornamented with his arms, a castle Or in a field Gales, with a flag displayed, as crest, a circumstance which must excite some conversation amongst the lovers of heraldry, as it has been generally thought that armorial bearings were confined to Christian Chiviilu. He was received with a guard, mounted too with the King's, as welVas the Com pany's regimental colours, an honour tantamount to a Royal Salute, and only paid in general to Sovereign Princes; we should irnlgine, however, that the hearty greetings o f John Bulk whose family was assembled in full force, were as acceptable to him as the highest military honours. Gustavus Adolphus, the late King of Sweden, is to take up his residence in Switzerland; hi? allowance has..been fixed at 500,000 francs. He is shortly expected at the fine country seat of Green, on tlnt Mertes Lake, which has been purchased for him. I