The Sun.
London, England, 1806-04-07 00:00:00

FROM THE FRENCH P 4 PERS.

PARIS, Mittel! 30.—His Excellency the Minister
of Marine has received the following Dispatch from
Captain COCAULT, Commandant of His Majesty's
Corvette La Diligente, dated Port Louis Road,
March 2.6 :
."
" Scarcely at anchor in this Road, it is with re--
gret that I seize the occasion to give an account of
the misfortunes which the -Vessels under 'Vice-Ad-
miral LESSEIGUES have sustained, and of which the
Corvette I have the honour to command formed a
• part.
We left Brest on. the t 3th of December, the
wind plowing pretty fresh from the N. E. to the
-pumber of. fifteen: Shijis of the Line, six Frigates, and

lour'Corvettes.

" On the 24th, we separated into several 'Squa-
( -drums, • and I was ordered to put myself under the
command of Vice-Admiral,LEssztouas. . •
" On the call, the winds continuing N.N.E. we.
i.
Made sail to the Westward, when we disco% ered a-
Convoy of upwards of thirty Sail to the Windward
The Commandant made the signal to haul our wind
and give chace; but after a pursuit of .eight hours,
despairing of being able to come up with them, in
consequence of their position, and the great distance
they kept, he colle&ed the Squadron, and continued
his voyage.
" On the 4th Nivose, latitude 44 degrees, loogi-
tude 24 from the meridian of Paris, We experienced
a dreadful storm, the wind North. All the Vessels
LutTered much ; the Jupiter lost her main-top-mast,
and the Diomede made a great deal of water.
" The Alexandre and Le Brave separated from us
i.-43 the sth, when Vice-Admiral LESSEIGUES'
sion was reduced to three Ships of the Line, two
„kJ igates, and a Corvette.
" We dicovered the Azores oil the 2d of Ja-
ruary, and ea the 19th we were in sight of St.,
.Domingo.
• " On the 20th, in the morning, I had orders to
take the lead of the division, for the purpose of
!)t)erit)g, in the Road of St. Domingo, but the calms
.1 met with were the cause of all the Vessels lativing
and,coming to their moorings at-the same time, viz.
a: two in the afternoon. -

" The Admiral imme4ately gave orders for the
disembarkation of the Troops, to the number of six-
teftn t. 3 eighteen hundred men, with ammunition and
other necessaries for -the Colony. This was com-
pleted on the 2 1 st, and -on disembarking we were
convinced of the satisfaction the Colony would feel
.upon receiving this reinforcement ; the Colony,
however, was in a very good condition, and enjoyed
perfeCt tranquillity.
" On the following- day thaVessels were employed
taking in water, and repairing the damages occa-
sioned by, the bad weather. On the 2gth te A let-
andre joined the Vessels in the Road, and on the same
day I was ordered out upon observation to the wind-
ward ; and, favoured. by the breezes from shore,
was upon the point of fixing my cruize off the Isles
of Javna.'
- -c' Qn the sth of Februaryx conformably to my
instruCtions, I took my course to St. Domingo ; and
being off the Road at six in the morning, I disco-
'mere& several Sail in the.E.N..E. which I imme-
rdiately knew to bean Enemy's Squadron. I then
distinguished in this Squadron nine Ships of War
and several Frigates, and immediately made • the
-signal of an Enemy .of superior force to our Squa-
dron*, At half past six the Admiral answered my
pignals ; and in nearing his inoOrings, • I porceived
on board his Vessel the 'signal for slipping his cal,ilN.
At seven o'clock the four Ships of the Line, and,
the two. Frigates, were under sail, with a v.ay
light wind.; while .the Enemy's nine Ships of
Ole Line and Frigate ),vere favoured by the shift-

* The Vice-Admiral's motives for rcrriai:;ing sixteen days
it seem unaecc.uutabte, paructi,liiriy.as
iitstirt;ctions %%cre that ;:e 4K:114 ctr.t;Aut


a_---- -~

H _

;IT of the breeze fr3m the North to tb3 Eht-
ward:

" At a quarter before nine o'clock the Com-
mandant,made a signal for forming the Line, arid at
/ha same time-to ,carry all sail and prepare for ac-
tion. The Enemy, however, continued to gain
upon us considerably.
"At ten o'clock the headmost Ship of the Ene-
my's Line was engaged With; the Alexandre, and in
a quarter of an hour afterwards the fight was gene-
ral. The quickness •of the firing, and the thick
smoke which concealed the 'Vessels, prevented us
from distinguishing any, objea. Being to the wind-7
ward of our Squadron, and at no great distance from
the shore, I received a part of the Enemy's fire
which was direEted against our headni9se Ships ; and
at last, to avoid going on shore, I found myself
obliged to crowd sail, and go before the4ind ; the
Frigates La Coniete and La Felicia' praaised the
same manceuvre.

" At half past i t o'clock, the smoke having in
some measure4lispersed, I discovered. one of our
Ships disinasted, and on fire, and surrounded by se.,
'venal of the English:Vessels; the rest, notwithstand-
ing- their inferiority, maintained the contest with
great fiery; but at half-past one, overpowered by the.
Enei4's superior numbers, they bad run aground.
Our Frigates, which had, previously approached the
scene of action, now found it convenient to haul
their wind, 'and I-thought it proper to follow their'
example ; but fearing that our retreat should be cut
off, we stood out to. sea. However, we bad in the
mean while approached near enough to observe the
state of both squadron : three of our ships seemed
.to be grounded near the batteries ; the whole were
dismasted, and the fourth was in the enemy's pos-
session. Two English ships lay near our own that
were ashore, as bare as sheer-hulks, all their masts
and rigging shot away ; they had fired signals of dis-
tress, and the Frigates seemed busy in saving the
crews: two other English- ships, dismasted at the
same time, .were in the offing, and in a distressed
situation ; and the rest of the enemy's squadron
seemed to have suffered considerably. . . .

" The French ships that were aground had their
colours flying, and seemed to us to have hoisted out
their boats for the purpose of putting their ptiple on
shore. Our ships had displayed a singular share of
courage and resolution. The behaviour of • the
crews left us no doubt that, with an equal force, the'
enemy would have beets crushed. If the squad! on
had been able to get to windward, and clear the coast,
I am persuaded it would have had the advantage of
the enemy, and been able to escape. Until this un-
happy affair our cruize had all the success desired :
our misfortunes arose from our remaining too long
in the road.
.Our Corvette being chased by the Ene-
my's Frigates was obliged to bear away. After hay-
,
ing passed to the West of the Island of St. Domingo,
we entered the English Channel on the 24th of Febru-
ary. In, the 'night between the 9th and 10th of.
March, lat. 38. long. 46. we met with a violent gale
from the South‘west, and I lost sight of the Frigates
La Collide and La Felicite, with whom I kept com-
pany after leaving St. Domingo : not being able to
hear any thing of them after the late gale, I neg-
leaed.no means for hastening my return to France.
" On the 25th of March, at day-break, I discover-
ed the Isles de Glenau, and on the 26th I moored
in the road of Port Louis, • from whence I have the
honour to transmit theso unpleasant details. I have
the honour to oiler your Excellency the assurance of
my respect." . (Signed) COCAULT."

PARIS, MARCH 30. --7-We have received from
Cadiz the affliding intelligence of. the death of the
brave_Spanish Admiral Gl;AvitcA. _
Some Of our Papers contain the following transla-
tion of an Order issued on the,Gth of February by
the Grand Signior relative to the 'etiquette to be
observed in future with reSped to the. Court of
France.

" The supreme will of his Highness being, that
the articles of the Imperial capitulations which unite
the Sublime Forte, whose duration is eternal, to the
Court of France, shall be constantly put into execu-
tion, though to this day this Power lias not been de-
signated, but only under the simple qualification of
the Court of France; kis beconie indispensibly ne-
cessary hereafter to insert in tile .Barats orDiplomas,
and in the Imperial Comniandemeas, the titles of
Emperor, and Padischah of Fiance. It is there-
fore expressly enjoined, that the Barats and the
-Comroandenien:4,,.expedited iu future; shall
bear the said titles ot.. Emperor and Padischah of
France."

r .
Will-S.
ARR Iv zo t Gottenburgh, 2 Dublin, r Waterford.
Due- I Hanburgh, 1 Li4bun, i Dublin. •

T E SU N.

SULAM SLUTS DIOERE FALSUM AUDEAT?

0 N D G N,

MONDAY, APRIL 7, 1806.

ANOTHER FLAG OF TRUCE.

WE have receied, by Express, aLetter fromDo-
verr, dated at six .o'clock this morning, which states,

that at.five- o'clock this :naming a Flag of Truce from
J3ouloo-ne appeared off- the, Port ; a Man of War's
0
l)oat went along-side the French Vessel, took out

the Dispatches, and, as it is supposed, carried them
to the Downs as befqe. . .

\Va received this morning Paris and Datcli Papers,
the former to the Ist, and the latter to the sth inst.
The goniteur of the 30th contains an account of the
total,defeat of the French Squadron at St. Domingo,
hut it is given with the usual aquracy of French
stntemePts-: Admiral DuCKWORTn's Squadion is
increased to nine Sail of the Line, and the French
Squadron is reduced to four. , L'lmperiate,
;130 guns, is not mentioned in the account but
notwithstanding the great disparity of force, rapt.
Coc AUfT, 1..00 transmits the dispatches, as that
L wa; w:th the Utmost difficulty :he English obtaine
tidory, f 1.5.1 he quite sure 'that if the Force ha

-,'.~-~--~--t-- ----~

been equal the Euglish would hare been crUslted—
ecraso.
The Moniteur, in a Note upon this account,
throws out a censure upon the ,\ comity& of the
French Admiral for remaining so long in St. Do- '
mingo.

Ova Readers Will see by the Gazette that we were
perfe&ly_ correct in our statement on Saturday re-
speak% the Embargo laid upon Prussian, Ships, and.
the detention of all Vessels bound to Prussian Ports.
Having upon that occasion so fullyexpressedsour
sentiments upon Ole subje&, we have little more to
add at present. There can now remain no.doubt
but that the KING of PiltiSSIA has been forced into
an Alliance, offensive and defensive, with France ;
or, in other words, that the apprehension of im-
mediate, danger has induced His PRUSS/AN MA-
JESTY\ to adopt measures as inconsistent with his
honour as they are incompatible with his real in-
terests and permanent security. Prussia, in *mice
with Great Britain and Russia, would have been a
mostformiclable opponent te BONAPARTE; but Prussia,
in alliance with France, and at variance' .or i 4 hosti
lity- with Great Britain and Russia, can only be the
vassal of France, and must sacrifice. her best inte-
rests to. gratify the ambition, or to promote the in--
terests, of France. The recent condu& of Prussia
affords the strongest proof of the truth of this obser-:
vation, for no sooner has His Prussian Majesty,
'fatally for his own interests and for those of Europe,
decided upon an alliance with BONAPARTE, than
.the latter insisted that he should take possession
of Hamburgh, &c. and that British commerce
should,be excluded from that, and from all the Pros-
sian Ports. The obje& df this requisition was to
embroil Prussia with the Northern PoWers; particu-
larly with Russia, and consequently to throw. her
more completely into the hands of France,, and to
forward the plan which I3ONAPARTE has formed
for excluding Great Britain from any commerce
with the Continent. Now, it is Obvious that no-
, thing can be more injurious to the interests of
Prussia than shutting her Ports against Great Bri-
tain : even the acquisition of Hamburgh, an obje&
which Prussia has long coveted, is. rendered almost
useless by it. But, the great loSs which Prussia
will sustain will be the immense advantages which
.she has derived from the Trade carried on un-
der her Neutral Flag. It is perfectly well known
that all the remains of the Dutch Trade was
carried on under the Prussian Flag.- This must now
cease, and we doubt whether Prussia can do us more
injury as an Enemy than she has done us as a Friend.
The next obje& which BONAPARTE 'will attempts
and which indeed he has avowed, will be,'that of

shutting up the Sound against, us ; and he wilt en-
deavour, either by promises and menaces, or by
both, to obtain the acquiescence of Denmark to this
measure. But we have no apprehension that he
will succeed in this part of his plan : the EMPEROR
of RUSSIA we have no doubt, exert his whole
force fbr the prote&ion of Denmark ; and, indeed,
the shutting up the Sound would be almost as inju,
rious to the interests ,of Russia as to those of Great
Britain.

.Yesterday eight Vessels arrived in' the River from
Hamburgh ; they form a part of 24 British Vessels
which were in that port. Qn Sunday, the 30th
ult. an order was given to the Captains of those
Vessels to put to sea without delay. Every possible
dispatch was. used by the Captains to get out of the
Elbe : some of them sailed with their Ships in bal-
last, and others with the whole of the cargo they
had carried out. Apprehensions are entertained for
the safety of the British property in Hamburg!) ; but
we have reason to believe that great: art of it has
been removed, because tle intentions of Prussia
have
.been for some time suspeaed, at Hamburgh
and Bremen. .
, .

It is very much feared that the War with the
llahratta States is renewed. Intelligence to that
effe& is said to have been brought by a passenger
arrived from Calcutta in the Harnburgh Ship, John
Parish, which sailed from that place 24 December.
This Gentleman landed at Kinsale. He states that
SCIDIA has rejeeted in lobo all the overtures made
to him and his adherents by Sir G. liAar.ol,v, in con-
sequence of which the whole of the European forces
had been marched up the country, on their way to
the Upper. Provinces.
On Saturday; about twelve o'clock, His MAJESTY
arrived at the Queen's Palace, in his travelling car-'
riage, where he was received by the DUKE of YORK.

Soon after two o'clock Sir JOHN LUBBOCK was in-
troduced to His MAJESTY by the Earl of Mo RA, upon
his being created a Baronet; after which His MA-
JESTY held a Privy Council, which was attended by
the LORD CHANCELLOR, Earls MOIRA and CARNAR-
VON,ViSCCrUItS SIDMOUTII and ilowick (Mr.GR EY),
Lords GREY VILLE and H. PETTY, and Messrs. Fox
and WINDHAM.

The Council sat till near half past three o'clock,
when the Embargo to be laid upon Prussian Vessels
was sent off to the Gazette Office.

Yesterday morning the ROYAL FANIILY,Alccompa-
Med by Generals FrrzitOy and MANNERS,' Colonel
-TAYLOR, &c. went to St. George's Chapel, and heard
an excellent Sermon preached by the Rev. Dr. DODS-
WORTH. . After Divine Service the ROYAL FAMILY
took an airing to. Frogmore.
Yesterday morning the remains of the Dutchess
of DEvoNSuntr: were removed- from town for inter-
ment, in as private a manner -as possible, in the
tamiiyr vault at All Saints, in Derby.
Married this day, NICII. CHARLES DANIEL, of
Westbrcoke House, Dorset, Esq. to Mrs. J. CPR.
RALL, of the Co►lege, 'Maidstone, Kent.

a"'":

~~

NAVAL N E IFS.

Frain' the LONDON GAZET fE, April s, iL6.

. , Admiralty-Office, April 5, 1806.
Copy of a Letterfrom the Earl of St. Vincent, K.B.
Admiral and Commander in Chief of, His .111cliesty's
Fleet employed in the Channel, Soundings, &c. to
William Marsden, Esq., dated on board the Hiber-
nia, oft* Ushant, the 30th March, 1806.

- SIR,
I have great pleasure in forwarding to yoti, for the
information of the Admiralty, the very modest rela-
tion of a neat
_action performed by Captain Loring,
of- the Niolie, who has just joined with the Cor-
vette his prize; and as the Crescent has many de-
fe&s which require lookiag into, I -directed Captain
Carthew to receive the prisoners on boaid that Ship,
and to proceed with_ the prize to Plymouth Sound.
I am, &c. ST. VINCENT.
' His Maiesty's Ship Niote," March
1806, at Sea.
MY LORD,

His Majesty's Frigate ulider my command, on
the 28th instant, at ten in the morning, gave cliace
-to three French Frigates and a Brig standing out of
L'Orient, in hopes of getting an opportunity of at-
tacking some of them separately, and at ten at
night came [up with and took...possession of the
sternmost, the National Corvette Le Nearque, of
sixteen guns and ninetyseven,inen ; bad sailed -from
L'Orient on the same morning, victualled and stored
for five months.-
•tO I have the Honour be, &c.
J. W. LORING.
The Earl of St. Vincent, KB: e_cfc.tec.&c.

PLYMOUTH, APRlL4,—Arrived the Pickk Schood
er, of 14 guns, from the Channel Fleet.
Sailed the Brilli.ant Frigate, of 28 guns, fur Ire-