The Sun.
London, England, 1836-07-21 00:00:00

THE BRITISH LEGION IN SPAIN.

(From the Madrid Correspondence of a Morning Contem-
porary.)
In several of the articles I have read in the London pa-
pers of the latter end of last month it is sought to convey
the idea that there is in Spain a general feeling of hostility
against the British Legion ; that it is viewed with jealousy,
and that its reverses would be agreeable intelligence to the
Spaniards. This is a most misiakea notion. The welcome
given to the Legion by the whole of Spain was of the
heartiest and most sincere description ; itt; successes have
been uniformly hailed with delight ; and the opinion enter-
tained of its military prowess is as flattering as aey Eng-
lishman could desire. By many it is considered as the main
prop oF the Queen's cause, and all seem to look upem it as
that part of the army upon which most reliance mav be
placed for fidelity and unquestionable efficiency in the field,
If jealousy exist anywhere, and I am far from meaning to
deny its existence—it is of an isolated character. The na-
tional sentiment is not chargeable with it.
After the action of the sth of May the popular voice re-
ferred to Evans as Commander-in-Chief, and had that Ge-
neral been enabled to follow up the success of that day by
active measures, gaining further triumphs, the Government
would have been forced, whether its inclinations concurred
or not, to offer him the command in chief. It is still the
favourite project with many Spaniards.
The early history of the Legion in Spain is a melancholy
one. It was neglected by the Government, and fell into
the lowest state of poverty and distress. Containing in
itself many elements of disorder and disease, these were ra-
pidly brought to maturity by irregularity or rather stoppage
of their pay, their scanty and often pernicious food, the im-
perfect means placed at their disposal for procuring commis-
sariat, hospital, and other stores. This state of things was ag-
gravated by drunkenness and excesses of various descriptions,
not unnatural under such circumstances in a corps composed
as this was, and a species of plague broke out amongst them.
Candour,indeed, compels the admission that the Legion, more
by the fault of others than their own, were on the point of be-
coming a disgrace to the British name. The acts of a few,
individuals, the ragged condition of great numbers, and,
above all, the wild and uncouth appearance, and equally
wild and uncouth conduct of the shoals of women who hadl
been permitted to embark with the Legion, gave currency
to various stories and calumnious reports, which, communi-
cated in letters from the inhabitants of Vittoria, and re-
peated in conversation, gradually combined to throw the
whole corps into a growing state of discredit.
The General complained bitterly of the treatment of the
Legion, and forwarded remonstrances to the Minister of the
violation of all the engagements contracted with it ; but
Senor Mendizabal was himself surrounded with difficulties,
and driven to every description of shift to procure money,
and was able but very imperfectly and very irregularly to
supply the necessary and stipulated funds. He aggravated
the evil by promises, which he no doubt hoped to fulfil, but
which, when broken, exasperated the disappointment of
the unfortunate men, who found themselves in a foreign
land, neglected, starving, in rags, and visited by a tre-
mendous epidemic. All the blame of this state of things
must not he laid upon the Spanish Government. There
were faults on both sides. The most was not made of the
supplies of all kinds sent from various quarters to the
Legion. Scenes of robbery and confusion took place which
baffle description. Stores have in many instances been
utterly sacrificed, and there is reason to believe that even
some of the legionary stores found their way into the
enemies' hands. When, therefore, the Legion demanded
more money and more supplies, it was natural to ask for an
account of what had been done with the money already
paid, and with the supplies already furnished. The Legion
has not yet been able to render such an account. Neither
Senor Mendizabal's Government, nor the present, has yet
received a single figure of account from the Legion ; and
at this moment there is a dispute as to whether the Go-
vernment is in debt to the Legion, or the Legion in- debt
to the Government. The fault in this matter attaches to
every responsible officer of the Legion, from the General-
in-Chief downwards. The rule of the Legion seems to
have been hitherto, that accounts were troublesome and
unnecessary. It was probably not foreseen that the day
would arrive when, presenting itself to the Government
as a creditor, the absence of a clear account, establishing
the claim, would be made the plea for postponing its liqui-
dation. When a debtor is known to be in straits end
driven to shifts and expediencies to keep up appearances,
a clear indisputable account is more than ever necessary.
Senor Mendizbal did not hesitate to urge the absence of
an account when pressed upon the subject of money
and supplies. The British Minister here, insisting upon
the necessitous state of the Legion, prevailed upon the
Government to make every effort to forward them money
and supplies, and at the same time to consent, that whilst
the investigation of the accounts was proceeded with, a
new starting point should be taken from a fixed day,
better accounts and greater regularity being observed on
both sides for the future. This agreement was made
with Senor Mendizabal by Brigadier-General M.Dougall
and Col. Wylde, the British Commissioners, who were sent
up from the legion to Madrid with that object. Senor
Mendizabal did not keep the engagement ; neither
were the terms of it strictly adhered to by the Legion.
Previous to Senor Mendizabars leaving office, a mate-
rial change for tho better had taken place in the con-
diton of the Legion. The disease to whose ravages it had
been so long a prey had considerably abated, and at the
pressing instance of Mr. Villiers, the Legion was removed
from the idleness, destitution, and local jealousies of Vit.:-
toria, to the coast. Here it entered upon a new career.
The day of its departure from Vittoria was, as it were, the
day of its regeneration. The presence of the enemy, with
the consciousness that they were upon independent ground,
left to their own guidance, and secure of wearing the laurels
they might gather, seem to have operated a miraculous
change upon the minds of the men. They seem suddenly
to have recollected that they were Britons, and that they
owed something to the character of their country, if not to
their own, and they formed the resolution of wiping away
at a blow a long arrear of reproach the justice of which they
could not altogether deny, although they might complain of
the ungenerous severity with which it was urged. The con-
duct of tho Legion from this point is fresh in all minds, and
needs no comment. Mr. Villiers had been from the first
the steady and powerful friend of the Legion, but in no
instance has he employed the influence he possesses with the
Government and Cordova so beneficially as in procuring for
them a sphere of independent exertion, and the benefit was
nut clearer for the Legion than the advantage accruing to the
cause of the Government ; for, with the main body of the
army acting under Cordova's plan of blockade, the Legion
was more than useless ; while, taking the coast for a
basis, it was able to act upon the rear of the enemy in a
most formidable manner, without changing or disturbing
the system which the Commander-in-Chief had adopted ;
and had General Evans had a stronger force, whether of
Spanish or English, the results obtained from the plan
would hive bean by far the most useful of the whole war.
The want of additional force was very early felt by Gene-
ral Evans. He applied for 2,000 men. The British Mini-
ster in Madrid, in spite of the reluctance of Cordova to
part with his troops, and of the Government really having
none at their disposal, procured him 5,000 men, including
recruits. Even yet lie has not enough ; and there is no
doubt that, for any apparent good the troops now with the
Commander-in-Chief are of, that he might spare more, or
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cient for its object.
M. Isturiz came into the Government ten days after
the brilliant action of the Legion before St. Sebastian. The
Legion was still distressed for money, threatened with an im-
mediate cessation of supplies, and at the same time crying
out for reinforcements. M. Isturiz has scarcely been in
the Government two months, under circumstances, perhaps,
the most difficult under which a public man ever took office,
and the Legion is now better supplied with money than it
ever has been. Arrangements have been made for its re-
gular payments, and, from M. Isturiz's well known punc-
tuality in the performance of his promises, there is ample
reason to believe that these engagements will be met. The
supplies are also placed upon a regular footing, and no ex-
ertion has been spared for reinforcing the Legion. It is true
that all these results have not been obtained without difficulty,
that it has been necessary in M. Isturiz's situation, embar-
rassed as he is by a multitude of rival claims, all paramount
in their way, for his mind to be fully impressed with the im-
portance of the Legion to his cause, and with the gratitude
that Spain owes to a people who have so generously come
forward in her defence, together with various other power-
ful arguments that have no doubt been urged upon him.
Thus, while the Government of M. Isturiz has in point of
fact paid a more ready and efficient attention to the Le-
gion than had ever been previously done, it unfortunately
happened that the distress for want of provisions, and the
stoppage of pay, and the bitter disappointment arising out
of broken promises, were all at their height during the first
weeks of an unparalleled difficult administration, utterly
destitute of money, and scarcely possessing any credit.
These circumstances, though they ought not to have pre-
vented, or perhaps even to have abated, the demands of
General Evans for immediate redress, contained in the let-
ter to M. Isturiz, of which so much has been said, greatly
relieve the present Spanish Government from the burden of
blame.

With regard to the return of General Evans to England
with the Legion, so frequently asserted in the London
newspapers, it is a project that has never been entertained
by that officer. It is not true, as asserted in the Courier
of the 29th June, that General Evans intimated to the
Spanish Government that, if his remonstrances Were not
attended to, he might be forced to claim the protection of
his Government, with a view to the return of the Legion
to his own country. General Evans, among the arguments
he would use to
_show the necessity of attending to the
claims of the Lezion. would point-out that tha _r