The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1809-08-26 00:00:00

THE BRITISH PRESS.

LONDON.
SATURDAY. AI:GUIT 26.

The report of the renewal of hostilities between
France said Au.tria was repeated yesterdwy with hi-
' *eased confidence. It was farther ',toted, in the Mi-
. tkiitterial Circles, Last night, that Prince STA IIIICM•
arkolowleUge6l the receipt of private let-
'tit's, announcing an actual engagement, in which
French were defeated.

We have received ilandeurgli Papers to the 13th
instant, from which we hare made come este:sets.—
The question of peace or war beitween France and
Austria, is the great point to which all eyes are now
directed. but that point remains undecided. At
the saute tune, we must admit, that the Foreign
Journals are more of a warlike, than pacific charac-
ter.

In the hatte of Tel the English Army, of
le,ooo men, feebly supported by the Spaniards,
for two days withstood a French Army of 45,090.
in three successive attacks, directed by the ablest
Generals or France, and • finally trimnplied over
the enemy. British valour never was put to a
severer proof, nor ever came more gloriously out
of the trial. Neither ancient nor modern history
can boast a more splendid victory; and Time, the
destroyer of all earthly greatuess and glory, will,
through many a revolving yell., preserve the names
of those heroes who greatly fought. and greatly
conquered, under Sir ARTHUR WELLS:SLIER', at
Talavera. In saying this. we admit only what is
their due. It is only what British valour had al-
ready proved in many instances ; and, however
dazzling and flattering the character may be, that
establishes a superior race among men. it required
no new sitar& es of British blood and British valour
to maintain our claim to that high place in the
scale of hunts° nature. The hateful and wretched
panders and parasites of Minister,, who 'Assure
their readers, is their prostituted columns, that the
victory of Tabivela was cheaply won, and most
prove highly beneficial, as a demonstration of the
vast superiority of British valour, affect to be ig-
norant of the high name vrhjeb,England already
enjoys. Disowning the inheritance derived from
our anereitors, met rtatischly iwanseaineit up to the
present hour, they would still contend that our
huildrerls should he still oppost4 to thousands. and
mill conquer. to prove that Britons never inquire
the "lumber of the enmity. but only ask where the
•caesay is to be found. To such weft, the victay

of Talavera opens • most remote vi.w. 44 The
French," say they... will never invade that country.
of whose population they experienced such • wimple
at Talavera ; and, if no other gam' were to he the
result, the victory, htevever great the loss of livery,
would have been heeply won."—We contend, on
the contrary, that this lesson was superfluous; and
that it was not necessary for Lord CASTLEREAGH
to have sent an army into Spain noon a Quixotic
errand. The battle of Talavere was not fought nor
won under any such circumstances. It pleased our
wi.e Ministers to think that a British force of
30,000 men, under Sir ARUM& WELLESLEY, es-
silted by the native force of Spain, would be able
to march to Madrid, and drive the Freuch out of
the country. What was the consequence ? Sir
Annum ‘VELLESLET, after a considerable time
spent at Placentia, organising his means for the
completion of his expedition, marched forward ;
but as soou as he arrived at Talavera. be diacove.ed
that Iris ways and means were at an end, and
that he was unable to pursue VICTOII, who was
retreating before hiru. This is no light and
unauthorised assertion. We have the atithority
of Sir ARTHUR'S disindclice for the correctness
of the statement. Had Sir ARTHUR bees able
to follow hien farther, there is not the least
doubt that VICTOR would have continued his re-
treat, end led hien on. 'Fhe traitor, MuahA, and
Monsieur CHARMILLY, were not more anxious for
the presence of Sir JOHN MooRE at ..Madrid, than
VICTOR was desirous to coax Sir ARTHUR hewer&
the capital. Finding, however, that the British
army had gone the length of its tether, anti, from
an ignorance, perhaps, of the reel cause, suspecting
that the British General had penetrated his views,
Victoit stopped short, auti, returning with the
force which he had ecciumulated in his retreat,
hoped to overwhelm the British army at Tala-
vera, at the moment when lie feared it was on the
point of attempting its retreat, and that the prey, of
which he had made sure, was going to he saved
from his clutches. This is the real progress of
events. VICTOR, not WELLESLEY, was the as-
sailant for two days at Talavera. The British army
did not idly or vainly court the contest with such
greatly superior odds. It had no alternative but to
conquer or die ; and, as we have already stated, it
has come gloriously out of the contest. But this
praise will not satisfy the, minions of Ministers.
They will have the world consider it as an affair of
choice, a great exertion of wisdom, in furtherance
of the plan for he deliverance of the Peninsula
from the Gallic yoke. One of their most servile
parasites, in his paper of yesterday., alluding to
this action, turns challenger, and throws down the'
gauntlet in the following terms :
Come, all yea who are so fond of considering every
thing as so wisely planned, and so well estimated, on the poet
of the enemy' who can nod no terms sudivielitly strong to
express your admiratwe of Bonaparte 414 his Generals,
come and behold a contrast !---conspare the achievements
of fuer French Marshals w;th 11:e achievements of one Bri-
tish General ! Behold, es one side, under one of Bona-
parte's Wet Marshals, between so nod 50,000 men advatic-
tug against the British General in hunt, and, en the other,
three Marshals, equally celebrated, Nes, Sault, end Mertier,
adsanciug with giros() iu his rear—a total force of 70, ,00
men ! To have merely effected a retreat would base been
thought a singular merit ; but the British General, confidant
in the British hearts and arms which he commanded, risks a
battle with more than double his force, and gains a brilliant
victory ; disappoints the project of placing him between two
flea, Red effects his retreat in the best order"
Suchare the words of the Treasury Bobtail, and
such the false view that he would give of the circum-
static.. under which the battle of Talavera was
fought. lie would have the worlsl believe, that Sir
A el HU R WELLESLEY having heard that SOUL? was
approaching, was resolved, before he commenced his
retreat, to demolish VICTOR ; whereas, that battle
was fought on the trade and allt of July, the British
army acting. on the defensive' ; and the dispatches
from Sir ARTHUR WELLEOLEY are dusted the ist of
August, at which time, en far from being apprised
of the approach of Sou LT, and precipitating a bat-
tle in consequence, he does not appear to have
dreamed that Son LT was within 100 miles of him.
—lt is astonishing how accurately informed the
Treasury Scribes appear in every thing that can
tend to serve their employers. In matters of this
description, their knowledge is co-extensive with
their +fertility, and bounded only by their fancy—hut
here their information ends ; and where ungrateful
truths are to be told, they are as Wind as moles,
sod ignorant :is fools. With this feeling they would
contradict the report, that the sick and wounded
were left behind at Talavera, and fell isito the
eneiny'le hands. This certainly is not in any of the
Bulletins issued front the Treasury ; hut such
ebanduninent, we believe, must be the necessary con-
sequence of the sudden retreat of en army destitute
of means of transport, in which state Sir ARTHUR
WELLEstEV's army was officially announced to be.
e can, however, assure them, with regret, hat
with still more confidence, that above GOO sick
fell into the hands of Sou LT, at Plersencis ; that
General CRAVIYURR'S Brigade, which was advanc-
ing from Lisbon, to join the main army, had, in
consequence of the Interposition of the French,
slept short at Castel Brunet:, and that ell 'thermal.-
phes, of ever ydeecrifition, on their way from Porta-
gal, had been cut off by the same olistructiou at Pia-
sencis. The force there, under SOULT,Was estimated
at between 15 and 30,000 man; anti it was general':
auderstood, that all the isitereepted item': letters,

describing the wretched state of his nrmy, anh hit
quarrels with Marshal N EY. urn it !lie!' P.I lunch
le hence was placed, were written aid eirculated far
the purpose of misleading mail deceiving the. Bri-
tish army, in which attempt they too well succeed-
ed; as it it well known that the descent of Sourer in
such force to Plasencia, was a surprise upon Sit
Acruca Witl.l.6ll.EY. Under nil. se circutustalices
he acted wisely in, crossing the Tagus and
treating soetiiward. We have already stated, th 4
General CalierUaD is stopt short at Cartel Branco;
and as a proof lime little stay great force stood iu
his way, that he had actually sent back to Lisboa
for artiliery to force his passer. Whatever Rommu'i
and BERESFORD'S force may be on the northern
frontier of F.stremadure, it may descend and
threaten the French rear ; but, unable is contend
with the united French army, it is equally cut off
hero S.r ARTHUR WELLESI.I.Y. The Armistice
upon the Danube was alas, at the date of the lest
accounts, very well known, and certaitily was not •
tin encouraging piece of intelligence. It was, there-
fore, according to all private accounts, not only the
opinion of Sir ARTHUR Weehenev's jmniediate
friends, but of all military men in Portugal, aim
had a ureter view of his situation than that alines
we possess, that he not only acted wisely in crossing
the Tagus, but that he must retreat still farther, is
the direction of Merida end Seville; by which, is
the event of his cave becoming desperate, be Call
effect his escape by Cadiz and the nitighboariug
coast.
The capture of Flushing, the redaction of Wet-
followed by that of Schowen, an island of
still larger dimensions, and the disble)/ of paved
skill, tactic., and resources, which hurt been ma-
nifested in the passage through the iiareew eusnrrels
that separate the isles composing the provineo. of
Zealand ; all there circumstances are mulls, snore-
ably calculated to produce a deep, perhaps a beat,-
ficial impression in our favour, on the people of the
Dutch, and of theci-devaiss Austrian Neekerhatithe,
IVe may perceive, even in the expressions, sod the
reflections of the detni-official Parts Paper,:, the
seusation which oar Expedition shine has excited
wa the French capital. The surrender of Fleshing,
and the preparations made for attacking the Beet
stationed in the River Scheldt, will not tend to
diminish that sentiment. More than all, the si-
lence foam Austria, the apparent delay, if not the
unsuccessful termination of the pending negocia.
tions at Schoeubrunn, and the consequi.tit neces-
sity for NAPoLEoN's stay in the vicinity of Vienna.
must tend to weaken and to diminish the energies
of the French Government. If we ?effect on, se
review, the great events which have altered the form
of Europe since the commeucensent of the Me-
teenth century, we shall and that the personal pre.
sence„ flee energies, and the asasier-mind or leo.
warmers, have uniformly been found necessary to
produce these changes. Italy, before the conclu-
sion of the last century, was subjected by him.—
The battles which led to the three Treaties of Leo.
hen, of Luneville, and of Presburg, were his
work. At Tilsit, and at Erfurt, he moulded.
timidated, and subdued to all his purpose& the mind
of ALZIANDEII, after veneuishing the Russian and,
the Prussian armies in the field. Lastly, thetrato-
fer of his efforts to :he other side of the Pyrenees. •
liecoplislied the reduction of that Monarchy, die.
per. 4 and annihilated the Spanish armies. dime
out the English force, placed his brother in this •
capital, and on the Throne of Cusates IV., and.
for a certain time reali,ed, the subjugation of the
Continent, either by actual possession, or by tee-
ror and aubinisnon, to the Corsican Dynasty.
If, however, his policy and ability have affected
these vast, and hitherto unattainable objects, his
superintendance and. fostering care alone, it is
highly probable, can sustain and perpetuate them.
Neither is the held, nor in the Cabinet, can any
substitute be found fur his talents. He may be
esteemed the animating principle and soal of hie
own political creation, and we may say justly of
him—
" elm agitse mates, et suss as tarpon wisest."
Ile has shakeu off successively, and consigned is
insignificance or oblivion, all timers Ministers and
co.-Auto:o, who were considered as so necessary to
the support and development of his vast plans.—
What is become, in fact, of the %BYE% and as
TALLITRARIDI, whore names occupied 90 large a
space only a few years ego ? Does any wian sup.
pese that CAMIIMARRI or La Baua, that CUA/IF
PatinT or Da Cass, are indispensable to NAJta-
Ltotet greatness? Even among his Generals.
whom would we select, as capable of filling his
piece? MAISIIIIA, La FRaVita, HaRTHIER, BEV-
DIADoTTS. which of these, do we *oppose, conk.
have extricated the French army at Aspern, on the
22d of May? could* have repesed that digester.
subdued the Danube, repassed it. and. finally, hart
compelled the Archduke, at Wagrain, to abandiste
his fortified camp, and yield to him the advantage
of the day? We must render justice to his sublime
and universal eu.lne mem., while we execrate his
crimes, sad hold up to just detestatiou his enor-
mities,
:lute vast as is the compass of his mind, he is,
total confined within the limits of humanity ; and
ni.ver, since his seizure of the supreme authority, in
1799, has he be. it assailed, as at the present ma.
client, in three different portions of the Coatiuent—
we might say, nu hour, if we include the attack,