The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser. — London, England, 1809-11-22 00:00:00

r -r THE BRIT SH PRESS. • LONDON, WEDNESDAY. Novumaeit 21. It is with great regret we express' strong doubts of the victory so long reported to have been obtain.. ed in the Met:iterraiiean by Lord Cou.tenwoon, over the Toulon squadron.—Letter4, we under stand, have been received from the Warspite, of 7.1 guns, the Hon. Captain Itt.acawouto, of the date of the 7th inst. brought home by a store-ship, which suet her leagues ou thi, side Cape }'inisterre. Thee state that the Tualati fleet was at sea, and th,t Lord Cut.t.tsiii%viiou's fleet haul sw&red severely Inn terrible ; l ate of v ind, and had pit into Minorca. We believe that Mr. :4:II:till/ALM rec rived an account Rota his son, now on board IVaryite, to this yffet.t. It will be seen, on • oridE BRITISH PRESS or :Monday, that ii corrtspourls with the accounts brought by the Irar frigate, given iti this riper out that day. lo the wean tune the annexed reports are circulated as follows, and copied Irwin THE GLune. The folloaing Bull, titi- has been published by Coves ntnent, its containiii.4 such particulars as have come to their Itonwle.lge " .4 vessel trout Port NI s bun arrived at Gibraltar on the , 2ot h ult. and gave information to Capt. Fayettuan, of the Formi dable, that the rtelllb fleet, consisting of 17 sail of the line, had put to sea from TOlllOll on the 2ut of that inmith. This infuramtion was communicated to the master of the above vessel by the Tunaze frigate, off Mahon ; he was also inform ed thattord Collingsruud had left that place in pursuit of the French, with Ir, sail of the line ; two sail of the line had also passed Mahon ou the uotli to join him, and another sail of the line was stationed off Cape Sebastian, near the Bay of now." In addition to the above, w•e hhve alio to coin nattuicate the s.• Mowing extract of a letter from Cette:— 4. The 425th of this mouth ',October) we hive had the misfortune to see stranded on our shores two ships of the. line—the /Musk, of 80 gtios, Commanded by Vice-Alinit al BA CD;11 ; and . the Lion, of 74. These two ship 4, with the Berm ' s( 74. and two frigates, and two gabares. served as an escort to a convoy winch sided from Toulon a few days before, destined for Barcelona. Abreast of Cape Creus, near Rusts, 13 or 16sail of the enemy gave chase to the convoy, as well as to its escort. It is hoped, that the transports, to the • number of 20, will have reached the Bay of Reenss. The Borer's, the frigate Pauline, awl a gabal.e. en tered the Port of Cette on the same day (256). " What is most to be regretted, is, that the fed- boring dsy six of the enemy's slips of the line di- rested their course to the two French ships which were stranded, with the intention of burning them ; and Vice-Admiral B.tuotm, seeing it was impos ' bible to care them, took the desperate resolution or destroying them hituielf by lire." We have received some more Paris rapers, of the same date as those from which we made some extracts yesterday. In addition to the formation of the new kingdom of lllyris, mentioned in the late French papers, Ilanover seems destined to form a kingdom, or at least an append:l;4e to our, under the sovereignty of a favourite Member of th'e Confederation of the lihine. Austria is not the only Continental Power which N•POLEON has compelled to surrender her feeble remains of maritime commerce. Prussia is shout to be stripped of the port of 'Memel, which is to be added to the. Russian empire. It appears also that while the Bavarians have commenced operations en the northern frontier of the lyrol, and hate resetrafed to lospruck, the Viceroy of Italy, descending from' Vienna by Leolten, has arnverl at N'illach no the Eastern side. Villach is situate on the [)rate, to Carinthia, and, by it. occupation, the Tyal is completely snrmundrd with enemic., and assailed by two armies acting noun two of its sides. The Viceroy, on his arrival at I'illach, pub lished a Proclainati*ii to the Tyro!ese, (Aiming them pardon, upon their in conformity with the sh i stilatimi of the ri cent 'treaty between France and Austria. I.Ve are perms 114,1 Ca.tt cAto-trot contr . :hot; mare to thr• etste..ta;nos...t or nor r-ader4, and per hapN Ilot to ...:t:*.•oc !ion. that: whiz isoto cor. en;iceted :wilA nt vi. tkr: %%mous parti culars woich .re I. heard r , !7ille:: to it:is ce4RTE'S ;he iir..seat state of France, awl the pro. •-•-t.. ur iupirris-'4l pl,totrr of thin forint,h!do• (!surver. "I';toss. 4 ;l, f!ons n.iture of massy of :ibege eirccina s. troe.e., At' CA:11.1 no . 0-ails ccuch for their mullion- A.' cart assert tipit they are credited in Cie li..t codes ui th:s metro; 0 ! : ,, am,ol;‘, tbo,..e who have acres, 1. , III( of C.111:111..11tdi intrl ligence. or tip: fact of LUN VAL,TE'S having 'men attar kml, t. Is,:c at Schoen:winos, with epileptic ....17.1et:Pl. or a Selitre. alt.! :Curto;.o::tiem•ripttott, un thotl.t is t iitortanied. If L'orais•xfs journey to Vienna dirt not vullirirutly prove it, the return of NaPol.t:ON to France, without stoppin4 either at Nympheisborg, or at Stutgard, or at Baden, its all which places, most expensive preparations had been nia:le hr hi 4 Vros,hll Kinpo and Grand Didtrs, tor his reception, would of itself carry conviction to the most incre lo!ous mina. In ozbidion to this devia tion trim. his ottlivary U.ne t.f conduct, it is obvious that he Ivos neither visited St. Clonal, Melmsip,on. nor the Tuilleries, since his return. In order to conceal hi, saute of hadth,.,Fontalubleau has beers silectad far %is residence , where he is at the distant. of forty miles from Paris, and lag liable to general obserratton. It is positively asserted, and we believe on good grounds, that his disorder is of that particular spe cies of the nervqus class, denominated catalepsy. In this malady, we ore assured, that the whole frame is instantaneously convulsed; the b,idy and all the limbs remaining immoveable, in the attitude of the person, when seized with the at. Lassitude, la tigue, and frequently some degre of intellectual inaptitude or debility, follow the departure or ces action of the paroxysm. It is even pretended, that, since BONAPARTE'S return to Fontaitibleau, Mac aw• having been summoned to attend hire in the closet, found him, on entering it, transfixed, in a posture that indicated great emotion, standing erect, and his right *rut raised. The aspect of such a phantom, in the shape of the Corsican Emperor, it is added, threw the Doke of Rival into no small aaitixernent. Nor was it till he aPproached and touched his master, all whose limbs and blame were still and motionless, that he could be convinced of the reality and nature of NAPOLEON'S disease. We confess, that, however circumstantially related this anecdote may be, we incline to rank it with the stories of the hamlkerchitl, given some days ago, and to consider it as more picturesque than true. As little do we believe that the strength of his men tal faculties has been in any degree impaired or diminished by the disease in question. That he hunts, does business with his Ministers, and sees many individuals, principally those of his own fa mily, is unquestionable. The fable of his having determined to repudiate 111 idiinieBONAPARTE, and of the approaching arrival of the Factor of SAXONY at Paris, accompanied by his (laughter, the Princess ; who, it is well known, refused to give her hand to JESOIII. in 1807, but who, it was pretended, is soon to become his Em press ;—.all these stories, if they ever had any foun dation, are, we believe. now abaadoned and re jected.. It is not, indeed, very probable. that any man, labouring under such attache as we have described, should be willing, or disposed, to con tract a matrimonial alliance, however much motives of state-policy might seem tct dictate, or recom mend it. There is. however, another anecdote, whichseemstoiobtain belief. It is, that BONAPArre, conscious of his utter inability to reduce the Spa nish colonies to subjection, even though he should completely succeed in subjugating the Peninsula beyond the. Pyrenees to his own, or to dotterel's dominion, has determined on liberating FERDI NAND the Vllth from his prison at Valency, and on sending him out to reign in Mexico. This idea has always been regarded es probable, oor do we think it unlikely to be realised. The unfortimate FERDINAND, surrounded by tile agents of the ty raot, must become the instrument of his policy, and may serve, it is naturally supposed, to retain, in the obedience of NAPOLEON, the immense re gions beyond the Atlantic, from California to Cape norm But, even on this supposition, which is liable in the execution to many impediments and diffi culties; yet the Philippine Islands, the Canaries, as well as the Balearic Islands, and the forts on the coast of Barbary, would, probably, he beyond the reach either of FERDINAND, or of his Corsican Ruler. Relative to the internal state of France, its mi sery, depopulation, and discontent, many, and lip pirently well-authenticated, retationsare circulated. We neither believe, nor can contradict them. But, even if they are true in their utmost extent, we de not see to what important results they would lead. BONAPARTE, though lie denominated himself, in Inod, Emperor of the French, and though he has fixed the seat of Ins üblirped empire at Paris, on the .Seine, i., in Got, the Sovereign, after having bcou the Conqueror, of Europe. Ile holds all his subjects iii•awe by terror, not by love, or by venera tion, or by preicription, or by hereditary right and title. The French have nothing in common with more than the Poles or the Danes. 1-le is not even a native of the country ; and he may bay, with CatacutA, Otferint, nietwantP . Ile has, very properly, treated them as exhausted maniacs, whom he has chained to the floor. They may still, indeed, rave, nr complain ; but their menaces. or their entreaties, are equally impotent. Ile nei ther allows them to trade, nor does he even pay the very workmen whom he forces to labour ou the public edifices. fie conscribes their yonth; and even his Imperial Guards he melts down in the erui ible of perpetual war. But, Europe is just as 1131,11 Ii iii. as France ; and it is indisputable, that lie is now about to send fifty thousand soldiers into Spain ; of which number, four-fifths are Prussians, compelled to light his battles in Castile, or in An dalusia. This machinery certainly requires a urns ter-inind and hand to regulate it; hat, while it Lists, its impulse is stupendous, and almost irre sistible. Ile knows even when, how, and to what extent, to relax, nr to concede to the wants of his subjects. As a proof of it, and a recent one, he has permitted several merchants of Baurdeaux to re pair to London, in order to sell their wines. They are now here, in this Capital. The fact. is Meow testible. Such are more of the best authenticated particulars of NArot.note, and of France, which have come to our knowledge. We have been amused for some time past with . the tricks and intrigoes (donate of the daily pope's, • particularly Nose of The Courier and The Notafag Chrosiele.—The Editors of these two Printi are'the best Mends in the world, oat of doors. Indeed, we beliere, they are not ishatned to acknowledge their readiness to play into each other's hands, behind the curtain, while, to the public, they vapour, swagger, and vow vengeance, with :i fury, sufficient to alarm the police; and make honest and unsuspecting men dread, that, instead of shaking hands mnst cordially, when they meet in the Strand. they were determined to cut each other's throats. The principle, however, is not new in the history of the public [treas. Formerly The Morning Chro nicle contrived to have itself considered and called the leading print of Opposition, but it long since forfeited every pretence of claim to the title ; the mutual complaints of the leading Print of Op position and the lending Print of Government, having been bandied backwards and forwards, un til the town became disgusted with the imposture, and it was laid aside. The calling, we suppose, was a profitable one, as The Morning Chronicle ap pears, for some time past, to have greatly regretted its loss ; and accordingly an attempt has been made to resume the principle, but in a new dis guise. For this purpose, The Morning Post, which, with all its imperfections on its head, may fairly claim the title of the leading, if net the only morn ing print of Government, is passed by, and The Morning Chronicle thinks fit to single out The Courier as its opponent; a challenge which, however preposterous, the latter most gallantly accepts, and, filled to the muzzle, discharges its honest fury and indignation against The Chronicle.—We knew very well that this explanation may prove ungrateful to many of our readers, because we fear that the public are too apt to attend to the prin ciples and doctrines promulgated in the public prints; without considering their motives, and the particular circumstances which influence those who conduct them. NVe are led to tilt* remark, by an article which appeared, yesterday, in The Morning Chronicle, epon the subject of the riots which have so long disgraced this Metropolis, and deprived the public of all their usual entertainment at Coveut garden Theatre. For forty successive-nights, during which these riots have continued, in defiance of the laws, avid the opinion and judgment of Magistrates, Juries, and Judges, has Thy Morning Chronicle, pretending to be the organ of opposition, and so re ceived and understood, come forth, the daily selvo cate and instigator of those riots. And upon what grounds? Why, it says, that .. the advance of prices, although not satisfactorily explained, is the least part of the question ; but that its sense of mo rality cannot be reconciled to the private buses," and (oh! dreadful offence!) that we," the Editor cf The Morning Chroniek, told Mr. litaints., a twelvemonth ago, before a brick was laid, and be fore the ill-digested plan of the new 'Theatre was formed, we told him that Englishmen must aban don their national character, before they would sanc tion such a novelty." That is—for these are the identical words of The Morning Chronicle—that the very intelligent and disinterested Editor of that print, was deter mined ta oppose the plats of the new Theatre, be fore he knew what it would be.. Now, of the many base, elisions, and malignant motives to which the conduct of The Chronicle, in the present instance, hat been ascribed, we will not charge it with one. We will takethe case upon its own statement ; and, as to its first point, .. that the advance of prices is the least part of the question," we wish to know how this statement is borne out ? The watchword from the beginning has been 0. P. meaning Old Prices. The great ground of opposition f the beginning has been the advance of the prices. It was so un derstood by the Proprietors, and so acknowledged by their adveraarier, when the former shut up the Theatre for the purpose of submitting the affairs of their concern to the inspection of a Committee, un der the idea, that if the propriety of an advance up peered in the report, all opposition most crave of course. So much for the falsehood of the assertion that the advance of price was n minor consideration, or the least part of the question ; if, indeed, con trary to oar belief, the ostensible grounds of the riots were any thing snore than mere pretences. But let it be so : ‘Ve will suppose 7%e Morning Chronicle felt quite elitterently on the subject from the populace, that the great objection to them, the advance of prices, was none to it; that there was no sympathy whatever between them ; and that, while they kicked against the price, the morality or The Morning Chronicle was only shocked by the " Private Boxes."—A stranger might be tempted by this objection to suppose that private boxes are a novelty in a London theatre.— That there were no private boxes in old Drury lane ; in the old theatre of Covent-garden ; or even in that sanctuary of all virtue, the • Opera-house, in the liar-market. but it seems that the private boxes, which, in the late house, extended along the sides, are, in the new, continued round, so as to make • segment of a circle 4 We have heard of Mother Cole's morality, and alsw of the morality of Joseph Surface, in The School fur Scandal ; but these characters have existed only on the stage. In real life, nothing has been known ao outrageous its the morality of The Morning Chronicle. The squeam ishness of coquettes and old maids, is downright profligacy tad wantonness, when compared with the delicacy of this sensitive pleat ; and we are at ''"'W -- a loss to conjecture where it was got, unless pica.. up, along with its ideas of architecture, upon the Strand. Our readers may think, perhaps, that w e have•dwelt too much' upon a contemptible 111). feet—we mean, the, shameful attacks upois vent-Garden 'theatre, and the peril/mil alms(' bt every person v.l,n dots not join in - the Em. and-cry to run it down. Independent of au si t of justice to the Proprietora of the Theatre, wish to protect the great mass of talent, and property in this country, called the Oppositiot, from the foul attempt which has heen made to 6. grade them as partizans In the comperat,e! ; trivial controversy of a criticism upon• the mei, tectoire of Covaot-Garden Theatre. The man; we mean is the party of the GREYS and the (Mtn.. NIECES, which The Morning Chronicle deserted no' the last Session of Parliament, when it mtliNtt,l metier the banners of Colonel WAROI.V. A. u, stated, however, in the beginning• of thia The Courier, and other tools of Mr. I'ii ever ready to avail themselves of un oppoy: unity t., lessen and depreciate a set of men whom they dread, have endeavoured to implicate that most restive-- able body in the conduct of The Morning Chronich., From that degradation and disgrace we would think them perfectly free from all possible suspicioe; but The Morning Chronicle condescends to thi„k otherwise, as, in its number of yesterday, with a p.. nerous forbearance and devotion, it begs to assure its readers, that all the vile means of falsthoorh, shani advertisements, libels, &e. which it has directed for 40 days to the flagitious purpose of exciting riot in the theatre, and running down the KEMBLE fa mily. were all of its own contrivance. Whatever error nr bla tie," says The Chronicle, " there may be in our opinion upon this topic, it is certainly ail our owa, and is imputable to no party—fot we hale had so confederates on the occasion." Genera.., print! We wish now that it will inform us what potty it means; whether Mr. Wsatita's or Lord Guts- VILLE'S ?—lt certainly deserted the Gaz•vtutrt for the Waitot.r.s, and we have never yet leartivif that it has been able to regain its former ralaud. Ilia 111x.isterT is expected in town, this day, to hold a prelate Lee and Privy Council, at the QuESN'S Palace. Yesterday, Sir Det•to Dtomss held a yonlohe lay, at his Office, in the Horse Guards, and gave uudierees to a number of Military Officers. There appears to he no end to the Expeditious of Ministers. To the aninor class in that system, Tyit.g 111 weakness and imbecility with the tertian' ex peditions to Ischia and Prticids, in the Bay of Naples, we have to add that which sailed from Sicily, on the 2:34.1 of September, which is at length ascertained. The troops Lave landed, arA taken possea•ion of the islands of Zouite, Ci plialtmia. sod St. Marc, part at the late lonian Re public. The two Navel Officers lately promoted. theueh dead for some tiwe, are not the only cases of error in the new Jubilee list. We understand, that Major Ceserwritnitt, who quitted the navy forty years ago for the Fumy, is among the naval Lieute nants recently pronoottql to the rank of a Master and Commander in Mr. CaomEa's list. A correspondent at Stornoway says, .• An tnem privateer has lately made its appearance on this coast, and has greatly excited the alarm of the habitants. This news has been communicated by the Captain of a ship which has been driven an Shore at loclishiel,- being closely pursued by the privateer, which, he says, captured two VOW'S OR the same day." Though, to the high honour rind distivignhhed praise of this nation, celebrated i,efnre the late Jubilee for its philanthropy, almost all chooses have been thereby warmed with the glad dening rays of general joy ; yet it is to tic, in soma measure, regretted, that sr have not head of its extension and communication to a ciarai of men, the most nseful, laborious, loyal, and not the hest ne cessitous, fur being, the most respectable of ai y under heaven, viz. that port of the inferior Cl. : or of the Established Church of Englund, styli ii penriiary Curates, with small iucuo,es and large families. ....... The blaster and Wardens of the Bakers' Com pany waited on the Loan MAYOR, yeater4..sy, to set the assize and price of bread. His Lordship, after examining the Menlweighers' account, ordered t:.e price to he continued at ts..tirl. the Quartern La,f Wheaten, sad Household ls. Mr. l'irvat.r.," the gentleman echo had Ili% sku:l fractured by a fall from his tandem, in Wigmon• street, was last night considered in a fair way of re covery, though not pronounced by the Faculty net of thug. r. A most dreadful murder and mblitry were com mitted on the evening of Tuesday last. at hunt, mar Bridgwater: Thoina, Gage, a emu t to Mr. henry Stylimr, murder"! his master's ai:e. by cutting her head quite open with a hatchet ; then robbed the house of tan ten.pound notes, a watch. and various other articles ; afterwards I e stole his master's mare, and a ith his booty r0de....• , and has not since been heard of., . . On Friday night some thieves tore down their.% roiling which was ptsweil en Ken , inutop-sordvn wall, near Bayswater, to prevent pent's,' fr..... ing the same, and carried it oil without bring & covered: they likewise tore up the of 11 ,4 , archways which were placed there fvr the ports - •e of preventing the swans frota straying out "I the gardens. It is supposed a cart must hart. hien em ployed, as the quantity of iron taken away is vcry considerable. A tire broke out in a cottage belonging to a . pon! women in the Edgware-road on Saturday which consented the eyrie, and Mrs. HOLDING, the owner, wee burnt. The deceased was a ferias , teller of co asiderable notoriety, and it was suprr ed that the See was occasioned by her I eying left v candle burning in • chair by the bed-side, as I.#‘ was in *state of istebriation at ten o'clock, at a pub' tic-house in the•noighbourhood, tom which plats ' friendlyleaude led hoc home.