The Sun.
London, England, 1809-10-16 00:00:00

•

POLICE.

',BOW-St R ET.--De following are the particulars
Mat occurred before Mr. GR AH AM on Friday night

re;ipeetingCoveut gar den tteatre:--
Mr.
Morris Thomas, a Gentle Mar, of respeetabi-
lity, residing at hhu-court, Temple, was brought up
on a-charge of disturbing the peace and quiet of the
Theatre, by hooting, hissing, and kicking against the
netition which . separates the dress-boxes from
;he basket, during the performances.
Mr. Thomas submitted' to the consideration, of
/he Magistrate the injustice and arbitrary interpoil-
lion of the Police Officers, to preVent the exercise
• 'of the fair .optnion of the audience, respeCting the
: ear f e-mancea in the Theatre, as a Waal& whiCh was
iaeepletely subversive of the rights of Englishmen in
is !Mesh Theatre. Hi did not deny that he 'had
bi,:s,.:fd and hooted at -the performance, oa the
sty,con-
tia he a:vo ed that he did 'so,' from e principle of
bi,biassediudgtnent. As; however, the charge was
brought torward, he must insist on meeting it in the
open-,day. He had been dragged ignominiously
out of the Theatre; in a manner so ruddy, that the
most outrageous coneuCt on his part would not' have
warranted. Bail w any 'amohnt he was ready to
put in, and trusted the Magistrate would not com-
promise the at sir.
Jr.A GRAHAM seid, that ire his capacity of Magi-
strate, he was Merrly ministerial, and therefore it was
toe his, province to enter into a colisideration Of the
just ;c: et injustice of the conduct hi the Proprietors
of Covent Garden Theatre. • All he hada() do
,t-rrai.e upon the charge presented before
him. From evey 'attention he could give it, he -saw
pa ground for- chat eim with-any unlawful ex-
e„aje of his seatt,rnenis,d the Theatre, and there-
-fere intimated to him that hi- was now discharged.
Jolter Doane, of .Liacoln:s liiii-tieh!s; was charged
by Geor.;e White, jun. of Park-street, WeStrnio:
leer, who stated, that soon after half-pries; had cram-
menced, and during the .performance of the fourth
AA, he observed the Prisoner staniling up in one of
the basket boxes makinget great noise by scratching'
and knocking with his stick, aud, on a placard be-
ing stuck up to the pit, he called out, "turn it
mutts ;" the placard was, 114)WeVer,. soon struck
dawn by same person who was near it, when Mr.
Soaue called out "knock hire down—turn hire
Out," and he, continued to make a great noise and
. disturbance till the witness got- round to the box;
and he was then taken into custody. , Ordered ter
',find bail.
omas fligh,adn, a servant to Mrs. Ross, of W ey:.
rnouta-street, was brought by Taunton, and charged
by George Ytes, one of the box-keepers of Covent-
garden Theatre, who said, that during' the perform-
ance he saw the Prisoner in the front row of the
two-shilling gallery waving his hat, and after some
time saw bins exhibit .a paper over the railing of the
gallery, with the words " Jew or Gentile" written
-upon it, and in a short time after he exhibited an-,
other Farr with the words," Covent-garden -Syna-
gogue," and otherwords upon it, and on his exhi-
bi ing each of these papers, a great number of the
audit nee shouted out and made a great noise. A wit-
ness, who sat close to the Prisoner, swore positively
War the Pi isoner was not lie than who did the alts
with which Johes charged 'him, upon which Mr.
Graham discharged him.
.Robert llinduld, a youth of abocrseventeen years
of age, of poiliddress, was charged with making a
, disturbance in the pit. He declined saying who he
was, but that he resided in Greenwich.
Mr. Henry Bennett, of Carey-street, said, that
about half past nine o'clock, he- was in the pit, at.
which time the performance was going on, when
he observed the Prisoner, who was sittink next to
'him, stand upon the Stll, and exhibit a paper to the
audience, %kith the fellowing words upon it " Co-
ventagarden BAIA," at the same time holding up
his hat and buzzaing, which induced many of the
people in the pit, and other parts of the house, to.
'in it, and created a great- disturbance for
more than five minutes. rater thise:the Prisoner
called to the persons in the two-shilling galleryao
rescue a ser•eut who the officers -were then endea-
, tiering to take into custody. Shortly after, the
Ft ieer exhibited another paper, with-the words
• " laid Pikes" upon it, and which produced nearly
the same disturbance as the former. The youth de-
clivad Making any reply to the charge, observing,
• that ha should deter that till he. was advised, lest
he should commit himself; but that he could refute
the pencipal part of the charge, by' his friends who
lett the'Theatre when he was taken jute custody:—
" He expressed his surprise, to find the witness mak -
ir4a charge, as he had been -making as much noise
as himselta and ardanded all he did, and appeared
mere with him, He gave bail himself in 1001. dud
two sureties-in 501. each.
• The MaePistrates sat-till near twelve o'clock.
On haturday evening, the following Gentlemen
were brought, front Covent Garden Theatre, before
- Mr. READ :•-•-•'
Thomas Smith and !Pm. Smith, of the Chapter-
house, St. Paul's Church 'ard, were charged by
Mr. Bennett, of Carey-streel, who said,- he was in
the pit, and during the performance he observed
both the prisoners-in company together in the lower
dress boxes; when one ,ot them held up a placard
upon a , stick, whichaimmediatelyprod-uced a gene-.
:al huzza from different parts a the house, partice-
• lady the boxes and pit; he observed some writing
apon the plecard, but what the words were he
could not tell ; he endeavoured to snatch the pla-
card troni him, but could nut obtain it, when he
who held up the placard struck him with his stick ;
the witness then went into the boxes, and had him
secured ; the prisoner, Wm. Smith, assisted the
tither in holding up the placard, and afterwards held
tiv a placard himself,' with the words' written on it,
Nu new prices," and which produced huzzaing,
and a great noise and tumult in the pit.
Mr. Hewetson, of Betters:a, said, he was in one
of the lower
,boxes, and after half price, the two
gentlemen charged,, in company with others,
,came
faro the box where he was; they soon began to
make a great noise, by calling out " Off, WY, ,no
Jews." While the -witness WAS endeavouring to
tear down a placard which was held up in the pit,
they abused him very much; Mr.- Thomas Smith
anu another Gentleman then held up a placard, and
Mr. Wm. Smith holdup a small one, on which were

source that it could not be doubted. The letters
were offiimal, and trona the highest authorities;

and M. Cfiarinilly, who. was deputed' by the
British Minister, had been.an eye-witness of the
utferveseence ot Madrid. The General was thus
persuaded that a great and unexpected improve-
ment in the public affairs had taken place ; and
he judged that he ought 'nut to pursue the plan
which he had devised previous to these events."
" We must here stop to observe, that if General
Clinton was to be credited, it was not troM defer-
ence or attention to Mr. Frere or to the Spanish Go-
vernment" that Sir John Moore relinquished his
plan. Indeed, Mr. Moore himself tells us, " that
neither the arts of Morla, the news of Charmil-
ly, nor the , arguments and requisitions of the
Junta and Mr. Frere,, could induce the General
to march to Madrid ;" neither did he-adopt 'Any
other of their suggestions. We are told by General,
Clinton, that " accounts were received from va-
rious other channels, as well 'as. froarMr. Frere,
that the Spaniards Were. resolutely . defending
themselt ea in Madrid ; and although none-. of that
enthusiasm, of Whieh so' much , had been said,
•
was apparent in any, part of Spain through which
Sir J. Meer& had passed, it was 'represented to
him ,by ' British Officers, upon. whose. judgment
he knew he could rely, that the spitit.which had
manifested itself at Saragossa, and in other parts
,of Spain, was by no means extinct." . •_ •
" This indeed seems perfectly conformable to the
language or the. Journal. flour .whiCh we transcribe
with pitiasnre the foliowing extract •
" After Castanos' defeat, the French marched to
Madrid. The inhabitants flew to arms, barn-
cadoed their .streets, and swore to die rather than
submit. This has arrested the progress of the
French% and "Madrid still holds out This is the_
4FA. instance of ~enthusia,;m shewn. There is a
li chace* 'that the example may be followed, and_
the. people saved. I have stopped Baird's retreat,
and taking• measures to form our •jundion,,
whilst the French are wholly occupied in Madrid.—
We are bound not to abandon the cause as long as
there is hope. - But the courage of the poptilaCe
of Madrid may fail ; or at any rate, they may not
be able to resist. In shore," in, a moment things
may be dad as ever, unless the whole country is
animated, and .flocks to the aid of the capital.
—ln this part the people are passive. • I have
,sent
:Colonel Graham to Madrid, to let ..me know ex-
actly what is passing ; for we find the greatest dif-
ficulty to get people to bring us information.".
Still, however, the 'principal difikUlty remains
to be. explained ; since it was not the French army
then occupied at Madrid, but the corps in the vici-
nity of Burgos, whose cavalry had so long levied
contributions in the plains of Leon, and which,.
after receiving its reinforcements, was expetted to
adviince and interpose itself between Salamanca and
Astorga, that formed the supposed impediment to
the Junction of our _divisions; and concerning this
corps, it does' not appear that,erther- the Junta or Mr.
Frew, had been able to furnish any satisfattory
tehigence.,
" Be this, however, as it may, Sir John Moore
sent off to Sir David BL'ird, who by this time had
retreated as far as Villa Franca, two dispatches dated
on the sth and 6th of December, in the latter of
winch, alter ordering hint to return to Asiorga, and
explaining the principal motives for this change of
cond9,a, be -12.8 CS this melancholy and prophetic
phrase. " mean to prOceed bridle in hand ; for
" if the bubble bursts, we shall have a run for it."
He alsd began a direct correspondence with the Mar.
quiS Romana : and, our historian iutortns us, for -
ed and executed " 'a plan for stopping the pro-
gress' *a" the French, and relieving Spain, which
has been highly admired by masiers in the art of
War:' Sir Join Moore, • himself, indeed, in his
letter of the sth,- ioth, and 12th, to Lord Castle-.
reagli, professes that his object was blinply tu atir
ranee by Valladolid towards Burgos, in conjunction
'ith Sir D. Baird, and with or without the army of
Rotnana, for the pbrpose of threatening the, cow mu-
nications olthe French:" a plan which certainly- was
not quite rieW ; which as certainly he did. nut exe,
cute; and from Which, whatever be- the opi-
nion of other masters in the ait ot war,' he de-
clares himself to have entertained very slight hopes
of success.-
"
Notwithstanding these feelings of despondency,,
However, on the t2th of December lie marched
from Salamanca to AlaejoS„ on his road to Vallado-
lid; and the cominenceinent of his enterprize was.
signalized by the 'capture of a small corps of the
enemy at the vill'age of Rueda ; an event of little
importance, except as it was highly honourable to,
the skill and enterpqing spirit tit the cavalry under
the orders of Brigadier General Stuart. .•
" On the 14th, be received, at Macias,. an inter-
Cepted letter from Bertbier to Soulr, by which he
learnt trig strength and situation of the different
visions of 'the French army; and in consequence of
this information, wished to attempt an attack on.
800, who was then posted at Saldanba, changed
his route, and marched to Torii, for the purpose, of
forming an earlier junction 'with Sir D.' Band,-who
was' on his way to Benevente.
We are here compelled, to stop, that 'we may in-
sert an extract, the last which is afforded to us troth
Sir John's Journal, •
" I halted at Toro on the 161 h, when Mr. Stuart
came to me from ,Mr. Frere, accompanied by a
member of the Junta, to request I would connect
_myself with the Marquis ot Romana. This I
told them I was about to do, and that I had
written to the Marquis from' Salamanca. I ex-
plained Mr. Stuart Mr. Frere's extraordinary
conduct to me,' and I shewed him his letters,
which surprised him. He was not much pleased
at having been sent upon a mission .with only a
half conhdence.
" It appears that Sir John had dismissed Colonel
Charmilly on the 6th, without any answer to the
two letters* from Talavera that, on the Mr.
Frere had thought it his duty to repeat his expostu-
' lations from Trimilloi that the central Junta, alarm-
ed at the retreat of Sir D. B hrd„ ot winch they had
received intelligence from the Marquis de la Ro-
wena, deputed to Sir John Moore, one of their
Members, with a written remonstrance; and that
Mr. Stuart, who was the bearer of Mr. Erere's
let-
ter, had undertaken to support their solicitations - by
leis personal influence with the General.