The Sun.
London, England, 1809-12-01 00:00:00

~-~-

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.

SIR,

1 have read with due attention the various publi-
ciltlons which the disturbed spirit of The 'limes has,
of late, poured forth against the Royal Dock-Yard
of'MtUord, and which have met with such fair cor-
remon from The Sun. Your liberal readiness to
undeceive the public, respeaiing many uncandid
misrepresentations which have been advanced on
this subjeCt in The Times, inclines me to solicit your
insertion ,of a few observations conneaed with these

details, and which seem not to have been sufficient-

ly noticed. hitherto.
/t is unnecessary to point out, that this attack,
emanating from The Times, against the itoyal Dock-
yard of ilford, has not been introduced as a plain
ciliclosure f fad, discussed with temperate reason-
iog, but it has been offered to the 7ublic with pre-
meditated, and not unpratised asperity, by a disap-
pointed p:ofessional fadion, in the hopes of agitat-
ing the public mind. Let those who regulate The
Times answer for these deceptions, be it mine to as-
sist in their detection.

The manner in which Mr. Barrallier's appoint-
:rent has now been introduced to notice, has been
so stated, as almost to appear the aa of the present
First Lcrd of the Admiralty but it should be more
plainly stated, that Mr. -Barraliier received his first
appointment in Milford Dock-yard from Lord
Spencer, when he so ably filled the situation of the
First Lord at the Admiralty Board. When Lord
Spencer quitted the Admiralty, Mr. Barrallier was
continued in the same employment under Govern-
ment, and received the encouragement due to his
superior talents from Lord St. Vincent, while he
presided at 'the Admiralty, and afterwards be was.
continued in the same employment in the Milford
Dock-yard throughout the subsequent changes in the
Admiralty, viz. under Lord Melville, Lord Barham,
Lord' Howick, and Mr. Grenville, and from these
Lord Mulgrave received Mr. Barrallier, and conti-
nued him under his protection..
These have been the long periods of Mr. Barral-
lier's service; apd. during which he has added much
to the scientific improvement of the British Navy;
and has furnished models worthy of imitation in the
Aautilus, the Lavinia, and the .Milford.
Wandering from inveaiyes so abundantly launch-
ed against' fir. Barrallier and the Royal Dock-yard .at
Mtifoid, the !earned man is deteted next in the ho-
' pourable occepation of colledino- leading paragraphs
agiiiist the shores of Milford-Haven, and returning
his saunter, he indulges the public with the
following exposition :—" It is notorious that of-the
I.jhOle coast of the British Empite, that near
" Miltord4laven is the most dangerous to ap-
proach from the sea, and it is one to Which no
" ships in distress could venture to run." _ _ _

, .
Hal-such infornintion been derived from the Leda
frigate, which was so unaccountably lost within
.-Milford Haven, by altering her course, and steering
her on the shore, and which calamity has, among
ithers, continued the list of its im2-linary dangers ?
While thus warning the trade of the British Empire
from these dangerous coasts, would it not have been
a pious .at to have pointed out the shelter of safer
shores, and more favoured harbours, and who could
have ;tven more ample information as to theselm-
yeant voints, than the. Leader of the Leading Pa-
ragraphs of The Times?
Let ine coniut, hiai, ssisti,a,at .totes, to promul-
gate the advantages and security of Falmouth, as
like'svise the expectations to be derived from that
embryo 'asylum for shipping, amidst the Scilly
islands, which is now under the alive consideration
of his friends,- and should the public ex.penditure
have. been,great, to defray the improvements of the
former situation, let its advantages reconcile, if pos-
sible, the recolleaion of those early risks which at-
tended some of our bestline.c.)l battle ships on their
fist expe:imental visit to this harbour ; and prepare
the public mind for the next unavoidable expence
which must attend so monstrous an undertaking as
that of rendering the Scilly Islands a retreat of safe-
ty, and a permanent station for the British Navy.
These details are within the reach of the Leader
q9`. the Leadinr, Paragraphs in The Times, and as
they have been put in active progress by his Leading
Friends, they may becoine fair set olfs against so
foul a job, and so foul an expenditure of public money"
113:q which he states to have taken place at the
Royal Dock-yard at Milford.

OBSERVOR.

MAILS.
Gotter.burg!t, 2 Dublin, 2 Waterford.
Liston, t Waterford.

PRICE OF STOCKS
THIS Da Y AT TWELVE O'CLOCK.
Cc.tlSo;s -69 i 70 Red. Ann.

69 ;'s

E S UN.

,j();.1.74 QUIS DICZRE. FAL:;I2I`,I RUDE 1T ?

LONDON,

FRIDAY, DECEMBER. 1, 1809.

Last night letters and papers. from Portugal to the
17th, reached Town. They in general 'Confirm the
pleasing accounts which hate reached Es of the ad-
yance of the SPanish Armies. Some of the letters
ct~ntain a report of the, defeat of General BLAtiE,
but the date is not, mentioned, nor any particulars
siren, so, that we are inclined to hope, that this is
merely a repetition of the old report in the French
papers. The accounts from Gerona arc rather con-.
tradidtory; according to some, it was relieved on the
apth; but others state, that it is reduced to the ut-

ino.t extremity for want of provisions.

The Proclamation for assembling the Cortes,which
the Spanish Papers contain, forrnS one of the most
inte;:eoing appeals to the
,peoplewbom it immediate!.
yy concerns,' and to every lather State, that has ever
'peep submitt.: .1 to mankind. That it will have a

forcible operation upon the :SpaPi4t4§ cannot be
doubted, atAl though of course a
_will with difficulty
y. ~3y over the Continent, yet the scrit4efits

it contains, and the principles it inculotes, are too
important and too interesting to mankind in general
to be wholly concealed from the Nations now under".
the dreadful yoke of France. This Manifesto is not a -
mere declamation ; it points out the necessity of an
improvement of the political system at hotne,as well
as of an energetic and persevering resistance of the
attempts of foreign usurpation ; and above all things,
it recommends submission to the laws, and a re-
liance on the wisdom anti virtue of men who have

made too many s.icrifices, and have too strong an
interest in the welfare of their country, for any
doubts to take Place respe&ing their talents, recti-
tude, and patriotism. We Dave reason to believe
that the Spaniards are
„animated by the strongest de-
termination to support the independence of their
country ; and the Assembly of the Cortes, which
this Proclamation announces, will, no doubt, con-
firm their enthusiasm, and give it the most effica-
cious diredtion for the national defence.

The Viaory, Sir JASIES SAIMIAREZ, has arrived
in the Downs from the Baltic, and passed on to
Portsmouth.

Official accounts have been received by Govern-
ment that the Islands of Zante and Cephalonia
have been taken possession of by the Expedition
which sailed from Sicily.

The following is an extras of a letter. from an
Officer on .board one of the ships of Admiral MAk•
TIN'S Division in the late gallant enterprize.

Bay of Rosas, Nov. I•

"I am happy to inform you, that, on the 25th ult.
the Anniversary of the Accession of our August
King to the Throne, three ships of the line were lost
to the enemy, though not added to our force in this
quarter. The Ponione had joined us on Sunday, the
22d ult. thebsignal flying for an enemy's fleet at sea,
On the 23d, the Canopus )signal was made to chace
to the E. N. E. the :wind being N.E. Chaced to
windward all night, on the starboard tack, carrying
a heavy press of sail and, although we sprung our
main-top-mast, we still kept company with the
Renown, Tigre, Sultan, Leviathan, and Cumber-
land, which ships were found near us at day-light.--:
With these; the wind now ,at S.E. and the weather
very hazy, with a heavy head swell, we pushed on,
under an extraordinary sail, on the starboard tack,
till the evening, when we bore up in chace of four
sail, which we pu.shed into shoal water, near the
mouths of the Rhone. Kept our wind for the
night. Tacked and stood in again, early on the
25th.: at 7 a.m. bore up again after the same four
ships, and drove them on shore, under all sail, near
Frorriaunn. in sight of Montpellier; and under the
batteries of Cette, being ourselves, when we hauled
off, in less than six fathoms water; and a strong
breeze right on the shore, and within point-blank
shot of the enemy. Providentially none of us got
aground. A'shot from Cette struck the Tigre, and
a shell burst alongside, but did no damage.
In the afternoon, the mizen mast of one, and
the main and mizen mast of the other, on shore near
Frontignan, went by the board. The former an 84-
gun-ship, bearing a Rear-Admiral's flag, and the
latter a large 74. It was now evident that they
were lost to the enemy, but to make certainty
doubly sure, the boats of the squadron were sent in,
when the wind and swell moderated on the evening,
of the 26th, to sound for a channel towards them.—
At ap. 7/Z. however, we had the pleasure to see
them in flames. At eight minutes after ten, the 74
blew up, and at twenty minutes past ten, the 84-
gun ship, with a horrible explosion, was destroyed
entirely. As to the 74 and frigate near the•batte-
ries of Cette, there can be no doubt of the former
being lost, and the latter must have been very ma-
. terially damaged.

I cannot positively say, but we have reason to
believe that the ships thus destroyed were the Robu:t,
of Ro, Rear-Admiral Baudin, and the Lion, of 74, .
burnt, and the 74 at Cette is the Boreas. They bad
come out from Toulon, with a convoy for Barcelona,
five of which have been destroyed by the Pomone,
one taken by the Redwing, and several of them
with a store-ship, and, I believe, two'nrien of war
brigs taken refuge in the Bay of Rosas, were at-
tacked last night by the Tigre, &c. The result we
do not yet know entirely, but four sail of them are
now coining out of the Bay with our little squadron,
and explosions were heard during the night, so that
the defeat has been general, and as far 33 I have yet
learnt, without any loss on our side, which is, in my
opiniOn, almost equal to a double victory."

The more we contemplate our late success in the
Mediterranean, the higher we are inclined to ap-
preciate its value. It has all the advantages of the
most decisive vicaory, without any of the disadvan-
tages. If an engagement had taken place between
the two Fleets, many of our ships, of course, would
have suffered severely in their hulls and rigging, and
must have been sent home to be repaired ; but now
a great service is, performed, and a great object of
the Enemy has befu ff.ustrated, 'vy;tlf9ut any of cLAtr

ships having had even a rope yarn injured. We
deeply regret the brave men who fell in the attack
in the Bay of Rusas,‘ but when we consider the
force of the Enemy, it becomes a matter of astonish-
ment that our loss was not greater. Upon the
whole, we may state, without the hazard of con-
tradi6tion, that no service was ever more eteaualiy
and completely performed, nor was there ever so
important an advantage obtained with so small' a
los-%

From the movements of the Toulon Fleet, there
is every reason to believe that it was intended that
the whole of it should put to sea, and we are
strongly inclined to think that a considerable part of
it was destined for an attack upon Sicily. The
French Admiral, probably, supposed, that the whole
of our force would have gone after BAIT D I N'S division,
and that the remainder of the Fleet might, in safety
have pushed for Sicily. If this was his plan, the
lance of Lord COLLINGWOOD defeated it.

Wednesday morning bAng very tine, his MAJESTY,
and Princesses. AuGusTA and SOPHIA, ..with their
attendants, took their usual rides in Windsor Great
Park ; but yesterday morning being very unfavour-
able, his MAJESTY did not ride, but the two Prin-
cesses took a ride in the Park.

'Wednesday night a Messenger arrived to the KING,
at Windsor, with the news of Lord COLLINGWOOD'S
destroying some of the French fleet.
The four Officers of 13th Light Dragoons, whose
trial commenced yesterday at Chelsea, are charged
with, insubordination and impi-oper condnEt, at
Hounslow Barracks.—A fifth, who was an a4.-lor in
the same scene, made an apology.
Yestesday being St. Andrew's Day, the Royal So-
ciety held their Anniversary Meeting at their apart-
ments in Somerset-place, when the President, the
Right Hon. Sir JOSEPH BA-As.s, Bart. K.B. the
name of the Society presented the Gold Medal
(called Sir GODFREY COPLET'S) to Mr. EDWARD
TROVGHTON, for the account of his method of divid-
ing Astronomical Instruments, printed in the last vo-
lume of the Philosophical Transa6tions. Afterwards
the Society proceeded to_ the choice of the Council
and Officers for the ensuing year, when on examining
the ballots it appeared, that the following Gentlemen
were elec=ted of the Council

Of the Old Council : the Right Hon. Sir Joseph Banks,
Part. K.B. ; Edward Ash, M.D. ; Sir Charles Blagden, lint;
Samuel Goodenough ; Lord Bishop of Carlisle ; Henry Ca-
vendish, E.'sq. ; liumphry Davy, Esq. ; William Marsden,
Esq.; Rev. Nevil Maskelyne, 0.D.; George, Earl of Mor-
ton; Sir John Thomas Stanley; Bart.; William Hyde Wol-
laston, M. 0. •

, .
Of the New Council lames Brodie, Esq. ; Robert Lord
Carrington ; 'Richard Chenivix, Esq. ; Thomas Lord I)un-
(l,is ; Rev: Henry Fly, D. D. ; Mr. Stephen Lee ;. William
George ',:atop, M.D. ; George Shaw, M.D.; lames Smith-
son, Esq. ; George Holme Sumner, Esq,
And the Officers were —the Right Hon. Sin Joseph Banks,
Bart, K.B. President; William Marsderi,'Esq. Treasurer,
William Hyde Wollaston, M. D. Humphry Davy, Esq.
Secretaries.

' Afterwards thb Members of the Society dined t 0...
gethe, as usual,-' at the Crovin and -AnchorTavern,
•
in the Strand,
The munificence of the Duke of Northumberland
has beeri.lately manifested upon Tyne
Anderson, his Grace's tenant at .I\:Tewburn-f-lell,
ing suffered severely by the flood id September last,
the Duke's agents represented it • to his Grace, who
was pleased to order 8001. to lee paid to him, in con-
sideration of the losses he had sustained'. •

THE THEATREg.—.-The tragedy of the Roman 'Fa-
ther was again presented last night, at Covent Gar-
den Theatre, and was very well sustained in the prin-
cipal charaeters; but, the play itself is of so heavy a
nature, that we cannot wohder..it • p!Qved but little
attractive. `There wasbut a. scanty audience. They,
lowever, received all the gratification which the
drama, such as it is, and the abilities.of the per-
formers, could afford them, for' the party hostile to
the proprietors were fewer than they nave ever been
since the opening of the'Theatre. Indeed, except-
!ng now and then, some marks- of those voluntary
infirmities which are indicated by coughing, sneezing,
and hemming, there was no sign of the 0. P. squa-
dron, and there were but two or three of this invalid
corps. The after-pi;:Le of Don Juan, as welt as the
Play, therefore, passed off without interruption, and
the theatre was cleared a: an early hour without any
disturbance.
THE LYCEUM.—Mrs. FORBES, who appeared in,
the Comedy of The Dill, al ;his Theatre, last night
assumed the character of Cicely. Homespun, in Mr.

CoLmAN's very pleasant and interesting comedy of
'llte Heir at Law. Mrs. FORB,ES is evidently pos-
sessed‘ of plain good sense, and she, does not attempt
too. much. Her aeling was marked by feeling a 4
well as judgment, if there was no striking display of
theatrical genius. DOWTON, MATHEWS, and Pow-
ELL, in Pangloss,- Lord Daher and Stecfast, ac-

quitted themselves ably. The 7 forriret two were
highly diverting, and the last played with his usual

•
sententious earnes.ness, and expression.

Mr. AtioeD read a new Comedy in the Green
Room, at the Lyceum, on Wednesday., The.naille
of the Author has not transpired, but suspicion
lights on the Manager himself. •
•
Mrs'.SIDDONS has returned ;o her cottage at West-
bourne-green, from Southampton.
Gage, supposed to.be the murderer of -Mrs. Sty-
ling (as mentioned i❑ our Paper of Wednesday), has
been apprehended. He was discovered near his fa,
ther's house, at King's-Brompton. His name proves
to be Tarr, not Gage. He ran away from his appren-•
ticeship at King's-Brompton about Midsummer last.
On being apprehended, no part of the property
whatever was found on him. After undergoing se-
veral stria examinations before the Magistrates, he
persists in his innocence. Nothing appears against
him except his elopement, which he accounts for by
asserting that he saw two men come into the court-
yard, on'which he left the barn, and ran away, being
afraid that those persons came to apprehend him tor
lately riding a horse, and throwing it down, which
base is since dead.

Saturday last a man was apprehended in White-
haven, charged with poisoning a young woman at
wigtotm, in Galloway. He was taken off in cus-
tody th next day,