The National Register.
London, England, 1815-05-28 00:00:00

MAY 28.

THE N,

The French Papers assure us that Austria and Great Bri
tain are determined to remain neuter ; that the accounts
from London are all pacific, our Government having sus-
pended all preparations for war; and that in the late action.
in Italy the Austrians were defeated, with the loss of Mono
men. At Versailles several persons have been arrested for
placarding the Proclamations of the King. The King of
Spain is stated to have declared war against France on the
9(1 inst.—Marshal Suchet is appointed Commander of the
army of the Alps.—Buonaparte still remains at Paris; the
intended review did not take place on Sunday last; and the
Champ de Mai has been postponed to the 28th.
An °Het was sent from Pat is to Calais, on Friday se'nnight,
for all the oung men drawn in the conscription to sleep in
the harracics. This was looked upon as the first step towards
their commencing actual service. On Saturday eight hun-
dred so'diers marched into Calais, and on Wednesday com-
menced their operations, by examining every passage and
othtr vessel in the harhout, and taking from them every
young man they could find. which, with those drawn, and
sent iii,o the barracks, were all marched off to the frontiers of
France

The system of Censor of the French Press has been restored.
Lucien Buonaparte is named Censor, or Director, of the
Journ de !'Empire ; Maret of the Journal de Paris ; Lava-
lette. of the Gazette de France; and Carnot. of the Journal
General. The others remain under the Censorship of
Fouche.
There is a singular story given in a private letter from
Ostend ; it is a tale of horror, about which we must he
allowed to feel a little sceptical, but we give it as we receive
it :—A Frenchman, who keeps a hovel at Ostend. had been
recently observed to make a more considerable purchase of
salt than hr could be supposed to require. It was observed
also that several of his guests, Hanoverians, had been missed
in succession, and were suspected of desertion. Some
strange circumstances, however, exciting surmises and ru-
mouis, it was thought necessary to explore the whole of his
premises, when, dreadful to say, a great number of portions
of human bodies were found to be salted down. The story
spread immediately, and a number of Hanoverians, breathing
vengeance for this horrid sacrifice of their countrymen and
comrades, rushed into the house, and literally cut the landlord
into pieces."
Signal posts, of an immense height, with tar barrels affixed
at their top, have been placed all along the line of the Allied
Armies, in order to coneey an instantaneous notice to each,
whenever the enemy may be in motion, or a general attack
upon France is to commence.

Report states that the squadron under Admiral Hotbam,
which sailed from Plymouth, on Wednesday, is to act in
conjunction with another of still greater strength, in order to
effect the reduction of the islands of Martinique and Guada-
loupe, should those settlements not preserve their allegiance
to the .House of Bourbon. I f captured, it is undetstood that
they are not to be alienated to any other Power, but are to be
held in trust for Lquis XVIII.
Another strong squadron, including four sail of the line,
sailed from Plymouth on Thursday. It is destined for the
coast of France.

The heat was so oppressive in the lobby of the house of
Commons on Thursday night, when the Apes 331 it) num-
ber, assembled there according to usage to be told—that
several membe s were nearly fainting—and many cried out
" Bleak the windows for air !" but fortunately the upoer
sash was at length forced open, and afforded the necessary
relief :—this majority was numerically the largest that has
been known since the .union with licland.

549

SPORTING.—Epsom Races commenced on We(;l.t- Ay,
when the Woodcut stakes were won by General ( %.vr's
R.vulet. zgatnst whom the bets were 5 to 4.
Thursday the Derby Stakes of 50gs. each. h. ft. fo e-
ear-old colts, Bst. 71b. and fillies. Bst. 2lb. the last mile
half; the owner of the second horse to receive lOugs. out of
t e stakes—The Duke of Grafton's Whiskey won.
This race, added to ti.o fineness of the day, attract. d the
most numerous assemblage of spectators we ever tememb-r to
have witnessed on a similar occasion Such was the demand
fur carriages in Lond..n to go to the races, that twr:lty
guineas were paid for a landau and four, fifteen for a ct.a.se,
and four and three guineas for a gig.
Friday, the Duke of Grafton's Minuet won the Oaks
Lord Foley's filly fell in running in, and broke a leg,
the jockey, was thrown a considerable distance, but he was
not seriously hurt.

Of all disorders to %%bleb the human frame is liable, tl,e,e
are none but what may be ascertained by the appearance of
the urine, nothing can be a greater proof of this curious fact
than the number of painful, lingering. and dangerous u;s-
eases that have been cured by the celebrated Dr. Cameron.
that is consulted every day from eleven o'clock till three, at
No. 84. Wells Street, Oxford Street, and who practices ea•
tirely from his observations on that period.

- ta

437. The Pel,gge.—Bv Pocock.—lt was -rather the dig-
nity of the attempt which drew our attention to this picture
than the mann....r in which it has been executed. Weare
aware that this subject can never be so well treated as In a
limitcd. and, if we may use the term, an isolated degree.
It is not therefore for Gifting so small a range, or for intro-
du: ing so few objects that we blame Mr. Pocock, but for not
flaying inure fully developed them. In prance, Girodet has
produced within the last ten years a painting representing a
• see ne, rather, we believe, of a particular inundation than of
the general deluge, which is ranked in that country among
the greatest efforts (rf modern art. l'ut it is from the horror-
struck expression of the different countenances that the
'French artist has principally derived his effect. In ?Tr.
Pocock's picture every thing is indistinct ; no faces arc
even seen, Pnd the chief attempt to interest seems to lie in
two arms (we suppose of a person in the water) which are
convulsively stretched towards as rock on which the other
figures are placed. After all it is impcissible to look at this
picture without being struck by the force of the subject, and
feeling much the same emotion that we do at reading a wild
•and obscure, but sublime passage of Ossian.
The foregoing are the pictures which we considered
Worthy of particular mention. We do not pretend to say
that some such have not been passed over, (tve are indeed
ourselves aware of several omissions) but we must pronounce.
it to be our opinion That the number of productions caku-

lated to reflect lustre upon the British School of Painting,
and to secure immortality to their authors; in the present
year's Exhibition, is indeed lamentably small. In the higher
• walks of Historical Painting there is no work of merit, and we
could scarcely observe even an attempt. The truth is, that
one half of the pictures.exhibited are portraits. That Sir.
Thomas Lawlence's fine likenesses of men of public interest •
—of his Royal highness the Prince Regent, of the Duke of
Wellington, of Blucher and of Plata; or the rich and cha-
lacterestic works of Owen, Phillips, Radium and Sir William
Beechy, should find a distingnished place on the walls of the
Royal Academy, is what, far from blaming, we highly corn-
mend ; but that every obscure limner should find admission
for the portraits of the various " Ladies" and " Gentlemen"
who have sat to him, to the exclusion of many productions
of distinguished mer it in the more noble and difficult branches
()fart (far such is the fact), is an abuse of this Royal and na-
tional Es!ablishinent, which nothing can excuse and which
calls mubt loudly for a remedy.
(I he Sculpture Room in our next.)

.DRdMAT I C REGISTER.