The Sun.
London, England, 1808-11-26 00:00:00

COURT OF INQVIRY,

SEVENTH DAY, SATURDAY, ri0y..46..
The Court proceeded immediately after assern-
Wing to examine Brigadier-General Act..Attak, or ra-
_.
ther to the reading of his examination, ifieejueritiOns
having been previously sent to him, and he having
written his answers.

A person for the Judge Advocate read over the
questions, and Brigadier-General AGLAND read his
answers. The questions were the same as those sent
to tirigadier-Gen. FERGUSON. The answers of Briga-
dier-Gen. ACLAND were in substance, that-he did not
think that the French would have surrendered pri-
soners of war on the 2ed nor, if driven back upon
Lisbori, would they, without making further effort.
To a question, as to whether the Convention did
not liberate Portugal from the French, put a stop
to the ravages of war, open the Tagus, and whether
these advantages could have been secured by any
other measure ? The answer was, that all these ad-
vantages were secured by the Convention, and could
nut havo been, he thought, by any other measure.
He was of opinion, that our army could not have
prevented the French from retiring across the Tagus.
In this latter opinion, Major General SPENCER
concutred, who also thought that the French would
not hate surrendered prisoners of war, and that had
an English army been placed in the same situation',
they decidedly would not have surrendered.
As to, whether the same advantages could have
been derived from any other theasure as from the
Convention, lie observed, that the result of military
operations being necessarily uncertain, he could not
take upan himself to assert what might have been
the event.—The artillery consisted of nine-pounders.
—The Convention was similar to that in Egypt in
1801. •

To a question from Sir A. WELLESLEY, Whether
Major-General SPENCER was aware that it had been
arranged, that the Alfred should attend' the move-
ments of the Army along the coast, from Mondego,
in charge of the Via-Wailers and Store-ships, that
Ship being armed with 24-pounders, and the ammu-
nition expealed from England being for '24-pounders,
Major General SPENCER answered, that the "lifted
was ordered for the express purpose of supplying
whatever heavy ordnance the Commander in Chief
might require.
To another question from Sir ARTHUR WELLES-
LEY, as to the situation of the Army to-attack any
fortified place, Major-General SreNcER answered,
that the Alfred joined a long time before the heavy
artillery could have been wanted.

The Earl of Alma A.-----Had you any heavy artillery
mounted on carriages ?
Major-Gen. SPENCER.—None.
Sir. A. WELLESLEY.—Was there no heavy ar-
tillery ?

, Major-Gen. SPENCER.—Mortars, but not ghns.
Brigadier-General NIGHTINGALE was nearly of the
same opinion as the other two Generals, that the
French could not have been prevented from retiring
across the Tagus,—that they would not have sur-
rendered prisoners of war; and as to the advantages
.obtained by the Convention, with respe6t to Portu-
gal, and to making our army a disposable force, it
was impossible to say whether any other measures
would have produced the same advantages.

SUA-OFFICE,

THREE O'CLOCK, P. M.

We stop the Press to add the following particulars
to our detail of the proceedings of the
,Court of In►
quiry this day:— -
Captain PluvAx„ of the Engineers, was examined,
with respcet to the defence of Lisbon. He stated,
that Lisbon was better defended by its positions
round the city, than by its works ; that Fort St.
Julien cool I not hold out a week against a storm ;
that the batteries of Cascais were very strong; and
that Pcn:cile was strongly fortified.

Sir A. WELLESLEY here proposed to put some
questions to Captain PRIVAL, as to the conversation
which be had with certain French Officers; but as
that conversation, as we understood, would atfe6t
Sir H. iILaIIIARD, they Wertl for the present waved.
Some questions were then put by the Court to Sir
H. DALRYMPLE, the answers to which sheaved that
difficulties arose in landing the artillery—that it was
impossible to land it at Masceira, and that there
was no .means of moving it trom thence. ,

Sir A. WELLESLEY was thee asked some ques-
tions, to which he replied—that the heavy artillery
could not. have been brought forward if landed at
Mondego Bay; the roads through. Portugal being
very bad, .and very narrow; that even it a large
number of horses were employed to draw heavy
artillery on travelling carriages, it could not be-et-Fe-l-
ed ; but it was, evident from his narrative and the
questions put to him before, that the horses with the
army were only in sufficient numbers to draw the
field train.

.Col. ToRRENs was again called in, and asked by
Sir A. WELLESLEY as 1 q his having delivered in a
Paper to Sir • Elm DALitymrLe on the day the
army marched from Vitneira, respthing the Russian
Fleet, which he recommended should not be mo-
lested, but allowed. to evacuate in lour days, and to
embark within seven days.
Colonel TOE RENS replied in the affirmative.

In answer to a question from Sir H. DALIIINIPLE,
he replied that he believed General SrEwatur joined
the army on the evening of the 23d or 24th of Au-

gait.
The President said that there would not be any
proceedings farther until the arrival of Sir HARRY
By ItHARD, who was hourly expelled.-- Adjo d
sine die.