The National Register.
London, England, 1809-06-18 00:00:00

GENERAL ASPECT OF AFFAIRS.

There has been no event in the course of the week of a
nature sufficiently decisive to require or justify any positive
comment. The general appearance of the War, however,
has departed, and it is therefore become a matter of in
terest, whither these only, and the grand chance of the
game remains only where it was. Upon this subject there is
one point ()Nome apparent importance. We are sorry to be
under the necessity of statiug, that there is every reason to
believe, •that the former narrative, published as an Au-
STRJAN BIILLETI.', is a FABRICATION. Our Readers will
remember that we expc,..aped much surprise at its precise
similarity with the French narrative of the same affair, the
two- acCouidai only differing; in as far as the one es idently
exaclerated in the favour of the Austrians, whihit the other
:dthinished in toe same proportion in the favour of the
French. Now, it is certainly very
.possible that two per
suns, writing on the same affair, should have a strong re-
semblance to each other ; but it is neither natural,- and
scarcely possible, that in the narrative of a cemplicated
event,—of an event of a thousand parts and ten thousank,
points, that both should make precisely the same reflection.
The French Narrative aa4 the Austrian Bulletin were toe
much alle,—they were the exact counter-parts of each
other. It reminds us of an anecdote of the celebrated Dr.
Tillotson. Being at a village church, he heard one of his
own Sermons delivered by the Preacher : after the svry ice
he thought necessary to complinient the Preacher upon his
elocution,—" And as to the' Sermon, Sir, there was a learn-
ing—a research." " A mere trifle," replied the o:h:e ;
"do not mention it. Sir." " I must confess, Sir," rel. lied
" that there is w:e circumstance, which leiiticu
;larly surprises me, and tha! is, the surprising similarity ie
pen's minds—for would you believe it, that having to
write upon this same iniTiject ten years ago, I wrote word
for word, and for awl not for not, the same discourse
which you have just delivered." Will respect, therefore,
to the origin of the Bulletin, there cannot be any daub
but that was a mere fabricatiou, but ish whom this fabri.
Cation orig:pated, whether in Feiglaud or in Germany,—
whethev in the Ailey, or among the Clerks of the Ticas.r:
Chambers, we will not veeture a co:jecture. It was eii;.
toe her from the French in, and the passages in the
Harnburgh eapers and Ileli•toland Mails founded upon
that Bulletin ; and therefore had an appearance of being
confirmed by these accounts, of which, in fact, it was .only
a counter-part. A rrier,tion of i•uporfance here snp;csts
itself. Does this fahreation of the Austrian Bulietin alrect
the credit of the other accemits, and particularly of the
One last received ? Most certaiels. not ; it ouly removes one
of the alledged pr-ofs, and therefore Fetves the affair upon
its former basis. Austrian Bulietin was an attempt t.
give an official air ae..l ituthorty to reports, conjectures,
and probable accoentt;., 'I his official sanction, far as it
depended on the AuArian Bulletin, is !Zone, and the nn
documents reman, and those, in our opinioa, ace amph
sufficient to justify ihe von;.:esion, that N eonrn s has beer
most completely defeated, and that the Aec .4.,oeKE
evinced a talent, an energy, and even an actual and pos-
tive strength, whirl; promis.es the d..,liveranee of Au,:Tal.A.
There is another circumstaoce vsnich, in its must
be taken into account. Though the Austrian Luletin a

JUNE IS.

fahrication, it ti,, not appe-:c to be filse, in fact ; beim;
rov;ldt.d ari actuai intePOence, it is true, though
not Tet at!! i;eohe.

ince the publiena ion of this fabricated Bulletin, another
Austrian oflistial ai:count has-been given to the imblic. This
account, white purpoits to he all Official Dispatch, or at
leaA the sto.stance of ore, does not differ mater:aiiy front
either the French Bulletin or from :he former reputed
Austrian Bulletin. There is, indeed, no mention of the tbr-
tuitous or designed destruction of the bridges ; and (le ac-
count, on the face of it, carries an appearance of trulli,
hich very powerfully eonfirms it. There is but one onfv.-
lion, and that is, complete as the victory is stated to be,
-lees not appear that the Austrians ha.. e. reaped aay e,sential
fruit. The Freach are stated to hate ellected their retreat
inldieurhed by any attack ; no artillery, and very few pri-
soners, are amongst the Austrian aceinsitions. To say ait
in a word, the ailedged fruity of the victory bear no proba-
ble proportion to Ihe alledged ma;lii: wit! of the victory.
file French are drivea to the 13antibe, where filet ore
.„
quieily. spared to depart. in peace, and reindlark or told
the river without opposition. There cancot, as we hate
before said, be any reasoaable, any eossible doubt, but
Aral the Freud; have been most conieieiely eeleated, hut Wt•
must aAnowledge, on the other hand, that the nccotints
do net initify the assertions of our ntinistejal ietpers,
the army Of Bonaparte is annihilated, and that his retreat
is necessary. Much has certainly been dc:ne, bet nlncit
still remains to do. BoNa PARTE is not the inaa to be
overcome by one blow. Ile is a vessel which will bear
many storms : his gre;ltness, his power, have become un,
:ortunatelv too rooted to he overthrown by one tempest.
:le failed in I.'4vpt, yet how powerful were his resources.
de is beaten on be Danabe—lie must be beaten on'the
Rhine, before Germany is delivered. We do not say this'
to detract 411 v thing front the just glory of the A net:or:cf.:
CHARLES; we wish only to guard the public against a
de-
nsien, which cin end only in d:sappoint:nent• S:teh,
therefoig, appears lo he the actinti s.ate of thin4:s as far wi
regat dA the War. The French have Lee:: deteated, hut
there no actual and indisputable account that they lie te
been cemeelled to re-cross the Li:lnt:he; indeed the ac-
eounts, far as they gn, rattier for the contrar:,.
The French Bolleh.s n hid.; are ti!e only acronn;s
of:i• and r•iiich, as far as airy ;40, retice to me; e
facts, may giaiect!i‘ 1):.! de;:ended ii u, mos! pos4it eiy
state, !kit the I,rench remained ai eo:-session of the Lot
Bank 4.f t•Jil river, and that the Main' Preach wally tva.: in
the Island of latb)ti and on the Left Lank, awaiting its
reinforcement. • Under Usti slate of circumstances, the
unit of fact vents to be, hat the Freach,s in their advance
front the Left tank or the Daisial.`c, h41."-= 1%1"ft! in
every (pa ter, but that they still keep pos!iesq.op of that
Bank, and are there a•., aiti:,g for tt:e r I einftWceinents.—
The main question, them:l'or,, Tt-)w. i 9, sunder this point of
v ew, what are the apparclo eliiautte hopes of the sWar—
v.het her BoNseAnTE will probably be comp( tied to retreat,
or whether he mil yet recoter hiia..t i Under this head,
three are two importttat facts, ti Inch ItS, 110" CS Cr
into unpleasant coin:las:ons. It is stated', iia
first place, upon the authority of the l';ench belittins,
that the ltalim Army,- and the Ann:). ct It?,' t=enth, had
formed a junction with the German Arwies, nn:l that the
'no together were on their march to reinforce the Army a
:he Danube. Is it not to be apprehended, therefor e, (hal
thus reinforced, the A rinv of the Danube Iv hate
alp the vacancies created by the loss tti the battles of the
21st and 22t1. The second fact is of g;
wee. In many of our previous papers,. ye have h;iii re-
peated tvcasions to observe, that the alliance of toN,.
eatrry. and of the Exec:Hort ALEY.ANDVII, WaS a league or
co-rieest. and partition, and that therefore ty.ing rourtict:
oa mutest interest, each would zealously, and with all his
nerve, aqsiq the purposes and designs of the other. Titus
opiniop is ;low but too fatally confirmed, by the contlei.l
of E%PgßOft ALEr LN DER towards Sweden. It will be