The National Register.
London, England, 1809-04-23 00:00:00

V3O

THE• NkTIONAL REGISTER..

way, united under one Sovereign, would be more able to coon-
terari Russia than separately . Some rely im the Wisdom of
our Government, and the strength of the nation ; some till Alex-.
antleFi expressed Pelinp,-: for tiw Swedes; and others, still inure
absurd, on the genero •ity of Bonaparte. Sweden, poor Sweden,',
is placed bet • een two fire-, and 1 hope she will not be coll-
imated to ashes by both.

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

HOUSE OF LORDS.

.41onday, April 17.
The Earl of Liverpool moved the thanks of the House to the
()dicers and men who had reduced the island of Martinique.
Lord OaExvit.t.t: did not oppose the Vote of Thanks. It
was merited by the Naval and Land Commanders, Officers, and
Ale). lie wished only not to he thought to approve the policy,
or rAther impolicy, of ohich Government had been guilty, in
sating another sugar island to those which we &heady possessed,
and the produce of which could find no market.
The Earl of LivEnrOOL vindicated the conquest of Marti-
pique, on account or the strength and position tiftfm island. Had
lite viewed it merely in a commercial light, would have pro-
bably entertained the same opinion as the Noble Lord.
The Vote of Thanks to the Generals, Naval Commander, Mi-
lers, and Men, then passed nern. di.is.—Adjourned.

Tuesday, April
SIWIISII CAMPAIGV. •
'rte. Earl of Livl ttroor. observed, that, notkrstanding it
w t, the intention of the Noble Earl (Grey ) to move for certain
papers, forwarded in the month of October last to this country
h, the (facto. of Gallicia, he had searched for the documents al-
lu ed to in the office, and they could no where be found. There
w •re page a of the 2d of October, but not of the 10th and I Ith ;
but in case thoy should be found, they would be laid before the
House forthwith.
It was insisted by Lord GREY, that the instructions sent to
Mr. Frere, connected with the advance of the British troops
into Spain, and the communications made by that Minister to Sir
John Moore, in consequence of those instructions, ought to have:
been laid before the withont reserve, and though the in-
t oloation nfl'orded the Rouse by his Majesty's "'Ministers might
he ample in Some points, yet it was not bullicient, and more was
wanted to render the information required cmplete.
Lord LI V I:ttro0I. replied generally to these and other sug-
gestions by say in;, that the information already afforded the
"louse upon the subject of the Spanish campaign was ample in
the extreme, and that his Majesty's (.; overnment meant Wrest the
justification of their conduct upon that information. Adjourned.

• •,•• •

APRIL 23.

wally led to misrepresentations of facts, or to erroneous mean
sores. .Both haditaken place during the late contests in Spain.
He recollected the glowing pictures that had been given of the
patriotism 'of the 'Spaniards, and the exaggeration of their mili-
tary force, which was said to have amounted to 400,000 soldiers,
v. ith are serve of more than 600,000 men. But after lookieg
.over the defective documents which had been laid on the table
•he found that Lord W. Bentinck, at the commencement of the•
.contest, had sent the most discouraging accounts to• this
country. As to the spirit which %YRS displayed by the Spa-
niards, he would refer their Lordships to a letter of Sir John
;More, dated the 21th of November, in which he staled, that.
it had been entirely damped by their first defeats. In Mr.
t'rot's letter of the nth of November, in. answer to Sir John
Moore, they would find that he described the provinces through
sit Mich the British army were then passing, as the Last distio-
guished for patriotic spirit. Front other testimonies, his Lord-
ship strongly suspected that that letter had sutfvred strange alte-
rations; that passages had been omitted, and that what now
scented to refer to one Small part of the country .alone, in the
original extended to the whale of Lr.tn and both C: stile'. Blake
had tt,st::t 80,,C01 men, Paiafoy 12,004 i, Castarms 'A3,000, all
badly clothed, and in e ant of arms, and the Fre,tch upwards of
100,600. It w;!- trite, t hr.? at the beginning or the campaign some
splendid feats iought he 'pointed oft!. After the Freoch had
retreated over Gas Ebra, had not the legions of Spain stalk into
spine anti careless indolence ? What had they done to secure the
italependcace of country? Fort s -ti ve thousand Freoch alone
n ere left, and they were permitted, unmolested, to possess nearly
one-third of Spain, until the reinforcements which they re-
ceived had sworn theta once more inw an invading army. The•
Governments tvitich had been formed in every province, had
weakened by dividing the ruling authority. The J tunas had lost
the confidence of the people, and all hopes of success:: must have
been giveaup by the impartial and clear-sighted. Under these
circumstances, he thought that assistance might have been Skid-.
ed, but not such a had been sent. Au army. was flu required, bat
arms, money, and provisions. Ministers ought to have followed a
regular plan, sprung front mature consideration, and tried infor-
mation. But how had they disposed of the forces of this tout
try. They had first sent Sir John Moore, with 11.,000 men to
Sweden, to assist that small kingdom against the gigantic power
of its assailants, France, Russia, and Denmark. But they had
sent Sir John Moore, scarcely knowing what he should do, and
leaving him in total ignorance of their intentions. The digrace-
' ful result of that expedition was well known. lie then coins
pared the conduct of Bonaparte, who in three short weeks had
annihilated all the Spanish artuies,who were to co-operate with
ours, and had.reached Burgos, the point where our troops were
to unite themselves, before Sir' David Baird had begun his
march from Corinn', and a day before Sir John Moore lit:cl
entered Salamanca. lie thought that the second advance of the
• British army, when not a single Spanish sword was raised in
its support, and toe greatest part of the country was occupied
by the enemy, 14110FC cavalry scoured the plains unresisted, and
raised contributions unopposed, a measure, which, although dig-
nified by the Secretary of State with the name of useful, was, as
its reshtt had proved, destrective of our best troops, and fatal to
the interests of Spain. Had Sir John Moore retired to a situas
lion where he could make a stand, the dispersed patriots might
have gathered around hint, and raised. once inure the banner of
freedom. The frontiers of Portugal or Andalusia would halt,
afforded him a Safe retreat ; and in the latter, the initireguablF
fortress of Gibraltar would have secured him a safe embarkation.
The Noble Secretary of State bad asserted that this advance had
been made in consequence of Mr. Frew:4 message; but this
was incredible. The. fact was, that Mr. Frere was miserably.
deficient in information. The Noble Earl then alluded to thd
subsequent correspoudence of Mr. Frere, to the false infor-
mation contained in which he attributed .llrno,t the whole of the
unfortunato events which betel the British Army. Having
stated the principal .reason on which he founded his charges
against his Majesty's :Ministers, he should not enter now into the
minute ramifications of this important question, in almoscall of
which, he imputed blame to his Majesty's Goverumeot. The,
N Lord concluded, after a most able weed', by moving
" That an humble Address should be presetatil to his Majesty,
mewing-that the disgrace which bas attended tine expedition
to Sp:tin was i t consequence of the want of sudi cieotinfor-
illation on the part ()fills 1.114: lay's Ministers, with respect
to the state of affairs in that, country, autt• their steAleet in not
forming a plan'of operation*, taud of those means which alone.
could have enabled tag Mritisb aoas tcs be. of itaisartasi& to the
ap.mish cause."

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