The Sun.
London, England, 1812-01-21 00:00:00

ANOTHER LETTER, SAME DATE.

General BALLESTEROS wishing to reconnoitre the
position taken up by the French troops which lately
retired from St. Roche and los Barrios, in a westerly
direaion, set himself in motion on the 17th inst. and
on the next day, after driving in the enemy's out-posts
at Ojen, came in sight of their main body, which he
found encamped between Vejer and Medina. Upon
bis approach the French came out to meet him, but
the General having obtained his end, fell back in
the afternoon upon his former position at Los Bar-
rios, highly pleased with
,the conduct of his regular
troops, but rather dissatisfied with some of the Guer-
rillas, which, having cowardly given way, en-
abled the French to intercept the direct road
by which he was retreating with the vanguard, and
laid him under the necessity of going a great way
about to rejoin the remainder of the division. His
loss was inconsiderable, no more than six or eight
/tilled and wounded. The General has since been
in the garrison upon a visit to his Excellene)), the
Lieutenant-Governor.
From Tariffa we learn, that the small body of
our troops stationed there also marched out on the
morning of the 18th, pushed as far as Puerto Llano,
and returned about one o'clock P.M. It is. added,
that the enemy have advanced towards the pass of
La Pena, and that, in the evening of the 17th,
they fired upon our gun boats from a small piece of
cannon which they had brought with them.
Yesterday and last night a most heavy firing was
beard in that direaion from the garrison, supposed
to have proceeded from oar shipping, which being
enabled by the easterly wind to resume their station
off the Pass, have probably attempted to dislodge
the enemy from that position.

Several letters have been received ' from tlee
neighbourhood• since the retreat of the French :
they bring very dismal accounts of the havoc made
at St. Roche by their troops. Algesiras experienced
a milder treatment, probably owing to the inconsi-
derable number of the detachments which entered
it (200 foot and 40 horse), and to the proximity of
Green Island, and of several ships of war. All the
provisions in the town, however, were plundered
and carried off—the Officers taking a more aetive
part in the operation than the men themselves, and
accordingly the latter bitterly complain of the for-
mer, whom they are not afraid of calling plunderers
and freebooters. Upon the whole, both Officers
and men appear heartily tired of this war, on ac-
count Of the great hardships they have to endure,
constantly in the field, without being allowed one
moment's test, and never able fairly to bring their
enemies to action, although constantly surrounded
by them, and exposed to their sudden attacks.

The following is stated in those letters to be a
correct return of the forces which LAVAL and BAR-
ROES had at St. Roche and Los Barrios, during their
stay there, viz. 3500 foot, and 400 horse, under
LAVAL ; and 4500 foot, and 200 horse, under
BARROLs. Their line extended as far as Pedrigosos
end territory of Tarifa, which the General of Bri-
gade, Ptnsuaa, occupied with 1500 men, when
they retreated, and on reaching the environs
of Veges they eti-eaed a junction with the division
Of 5000 men, which was there ; 6Ut LAVAL is re-
ported to have subsequently proceeded to Iqualeja,
on his way to Granada or Malaga.

The extra ship Carmarthen, froril nombly, dfA
rived in the Downs the 213 t instant : sailed from
St. Helena the 20th November, in company with
the country ship Blieemoolah, from Bengal, and the
Mary, WHALER, which ships are also arrived.
The Biteenzoolah touched at the Isle of France,
in consequence of having sprung a leak.; sailed from
thence the 1 Ith Oaober, and arrived at St. Helena,
1 5I h November.

The Union, FRANKLIN, arrived at Bombay the
24th July.
The Princess Amelia, Taunton. Castle, and Hope,
sailed from Madras, for China; the 4th of Sep-
tember. The ships from Madras had arrived in Sau-
gur Road, viz.:—Castle Eden, Carnatie, Rose, and
• Metcalfe.

The faculty of writing and publishing falsehoods,
through the channel of the Monileur, is become
so habitual to BUONATARTE,.and so familiar to his
slaves, that scarcely a creature in Paris now believes
one iota of those tirades which are known to-be the
produ6tion of this person's elegant pen. It is not
for them, therefore, that any contradietion to his
effusions is necessary; but as there are not wanting,
in our own country, a certain description of persons
who atieta to believe whatever this ignoble and un-
dignified Barbarian may think fit to publiih, pro-
vided it be injurious to the honour and the interests
of Great Britain, we feel it ourdoty to expose the
malignant and diabolical falsehoods contained in the
Moniielir of the 91h of January.

BUONAPARTE there says, " that 3000 soldiers, mu-
tilated in the British Service, have received, for their
recompence, banishment from England, a guinea,
some tattered clothes, landed on the Continent, or
precipitated in the water up to the middle; that
these men bad abandoned their flags, to serve in
England ; that the greater. part of them are Aus-
trians, Bohemians, Prussians, Westlibalians, Hano-
verians, and Rusilans," &c.

We have taken some to ascertain what the
real faas are which have Occaiioned those repeated
and angry paragraphs in the French and Dutch
papers on this subject, which evidently haVe given
great annoyance to the Tyrant ; and we pledge our-
selves for the, truth of the following statement.
The immense number of deserters from the
French armies in Spain became so embarrassing to
the Spanish Government, that they requested to
send a part of them to England. Among these de-
serters were about 400 native Frenchmen, BUONA•
PARTE'S own conscripts, who were perfectly willing,
but, very properly, not allowed to enter into the
British service. They could not in justice be.con-
sidered as prisoners of war. They were, therefore,
at !their own particular and urgent request, set cn
shore on the coast of Holland, where they hoped to
meet with more kindness than if landed in France.
There was not among them a single German, or
Bohemian, Prussian, 'Westphalian, Hanoverian, or
Russian. We repeat, they were native Frenchmen,
deserters from the French armies in Spain,
where hundreds are every week following their
example.

The Corsican threatens to publish the interroga-
tories put to them ;—to be sure he will, and publish
also his own answers to those interrogstories.' The
faCt is, we have no doubt, that the greater part of
these (not quite 400 men, which he magnifies into
3000), have escaped from his grasp, to tell upon the
Continent the miseries and deprivations of the French
armies in Spain. This, we firmly believe, is
the cause of BUONAPARTE'S annoyance.—lt is a
source we can always command : and-Vve hope 'and
trust that, by the vigilance of our Government, it
will continue to flow in upon him, in a constant and
plentiful stream, until the swarms of Frenchmen
set loose in this country shall have been drained to
the very dregs. The insolence of these fellows is
unbounded, and nine-tenths of them are vipers
which we are cherishing in our bosom : but, unless
we are much deceived, their reign is nearly at
an end, and the skirts of the Metropolis will
speedily be freed from French Spies and French
Traitors.
It now and then happens that a 'soldier rtr's'ea-
man, or marine, when discharged from the service
from age or infirmity, wishes to be sent to his
friends in Hanover to pass the remainder of his days
with them ; but his departure is a voluntary aEI ; he
is equally entitled to, and hundreds of them equally
enjoy, the benefits of those noble Institutions,
Greenwich and Chelsea Hospitals. Every person
so discharged receives, in faa, an annual pension for
the remainder of his life, from 81. to 181. a-year,
according to length of service, or wounds received
therein, and every possible measure is taken for the
payment of these pensions ; but it is trot those half
dozen of men ; it is the Frenchmen that stir the
bile of the Despot of France.

Yesterday the Duchess of YORK arrived at York
House from Oathinds, where her Royal Highness
had a select party to dinner.
,-- The account from Windsor yesterday of the state
of the KING was, that he continued in the same
state.
A principal clerk in an eminent house in the
West end of the town has absconded with property
to a very considerable amount since Saturday last,
and has nut yet been heard of.