The Sun.
London, England, 1812-01-29 00:00:00

I havt the honour to be, &c.
A. K. LEGGE.

His Majesty's ship, Stately, Tatifa Day,
4th, jatittaty, 1812.

SIR,

I had the honour to write to you by the Dart
(cutter) o the 30th ult., and informed you that the
enemy had summoned the town to surrender. I
have now the satisfadion to acquaint you thit on
the 31st ult. they made a breach and desperate at-
tack with two thousand men and voltigeurs, and
were repulsed with immense loss, leaving in our pos-
session- eight officers and several men, and the valley
by which they made the attack, covered with their
wounded. Our loss is most most trifling ; two of-
ficers killed and a few men. They ,soon after re-
quested permission to bury their dead, which was
granted them. The extreme bad weather we have
had, with the deluge of rain that has fallen, has,
much impeded the enemy, and- they are dying in
their trenchei by cart-loads with wet and cold.—
The ships and vessels of war and transports under
my orders, I have the pleasure to say, all are safe;
the Druid, Thunder, and convoy are shelteted in
Sandy Bay.; the flotilla of gun-boats art.! here. with
me.

Lieutenant Jenkins has been most aEtive in placing
the Desperate in every dire&ion to annoy the enemy,
and if you can possibly spate him, Sir, to return, he
may be of ei4entiai service.
The Basilisk has had letters for you this week
past, and has been repeatedly driven back with
westerly gales, but lam not without hopes of getting
her ta'.Cadiz in a day or two. The enemy are de-
serting to us in great numbers.
. I li ive, &c.

The Hon. A. K. Legge.

G. S. DICKSON.

His Majesty's Ship, Stately, Tarifa Bay,
SIR, I.m. s, 1312.
I h d the hottour to state to you in my letter of
yesterday's date, that the enemy. had made a breach
and desperate attack with two thousand men and
voltigeurs, and had been most gallantly repulsed
with great loss, and some prisoners.
I have now the pleasure to inform you, that-the
whole of the enemy's army were observed this
morning making a most precipi!ate retreat to the
westward, leaving behind them in therr trenches
the whole of their artillery, consisting of nine pieces
of cannon and two mortars, with an immAise
quantity of shot and shells, and inttenchong tools.
And as the intention of the expedition has now been
so happily fulfilled, and the presence of his Ma-
jesty's ships and vessels under my command being
no longer necessary here, I propose joining you im-
mediately, leaving his Majesty's ship Druid at Ta-
rifa with the trtnsports, to follow, with such pro-
portion of the army as Colonel Skerrett shall deem
proper to embark.
I have now the pleasing task to state to you, Sir,
that during the whole of this little siege, the exer-
tions of Captains Searle, Pell, Everard, and Carton,
with the several Lieutenants, conmianding mortar
brigs, and gun-b. at viz Jenkins, Rook, Style,
Rittrey, Cotb, and Bisdeo, in Ming up positions,
and their t-,Ktleme perseveance io remaining at their
ditfereut aneho•ages, during the most tempestuous
we,:ther, to the great annoyance of the enemy to
currying_ their operations, and giting counte-
nance to our little army on shore, has been must
meritorious, and demands of toe toy warmest ac-
knowledgments, as also - Commodore Penrose's
First Lieutenant, Julian, who h indsomely volun-
teered his services in the San Juan's pinnace. I
should be wantitig were I not to recommend to
you, Sir, my First Lieutenant Davis, fur his inde-
fatigable exertions with a patty of seamen, in assi,t-
ip.g army in getting up guns and holding stores;
anti iodeed, the very great cheerfulness with which
every °Ulcer and seautan I have had the honour
to Omman:l has borne the privations naturally at-
tendant on the extreme tempestuous weather we
have had fo uorritend with, has been Most praise-
worthy.

I have the honour to be, &c.
(S:gned) E. S. picKsoN, Capt.
The lion. A. K. Legge, &c.

4thnirally.Office, Jan. 28, 1812.

Copies of two Letters from Commodore Penrose to John
Wilson Croker, Esq.
SIR, San ;tun, Gibraltar 1, rEzi a.
In continuation of my letter by the Conqueror,
of the 30th ult. I reqwsi you to inform their Lord-
ships that the same wind VAliCh took that ship
wit of the Streights, enabled Captain Diakson to
attempt to retain his station but a strong breeze
and heavy sea forced every ship, vessel, and gun-
boat, to leave Tarifa, and take shelter again in this
bay. In the middle of the day we had received
information that the breach in the walls zqipeared
pra6ticabfe, and that the town had been in conse-
quence summoned, and a proper answer re urned.
About 5 P. M. I had the great satistaetion of seeing
Lieutenant Cobb arrive with the intelligence, that a
storm had been attempted about 8 A. IVI. )e,terday,
by about two thousand men, aid the assailants gal-
lan,ly lepoked with considera`,)le loss, said to be
about three hundrrd men, while on our Tart, two
officers and thri.-,e men are all who have lost their_
lives in this addition instance of the steady valour
of the British troops. I have sincerely to regret,
that our ships and b•imb vessels were absent, they
would not only have been able to annoy the enemy,
but the perseverance, quickness, and skill sitewn by
Captain Dickson, and all those who have been put
under him, either by Admiral Legge or myself,•
merited to share every honour, and participate in the
cheerful sight of the enemy's repulse. Not one mo-
ment has been lost by Captain Dickson, either by
leaving Tarita beyond absolute necessity, or in re..
turning with every possibledispatch, when the wind:
had again permitted.
Two light companies are ordere'd to proceed to
assist the brave garrison, who have suffered great
hardships' and fatigue, from excessive rains, and I
have provided for General Btillester-s making a di.
vetsion, which I hope he will attempt when the
weather serves, but the rain and squalls at this mo-
ment are bulb excessive.
3 A. M.—Accounts from Tarifa agree, that the
extreme bad wea.her, and incessant rains, hare re-
duced the French army to great distress, and it is
certain that sickness prevails in a great degree, and
that they are in great want of bread and wine, but

no appearance of retreat had been. yet ind!cated
two hundred light troops are now on board the gun-
boats, which had been driven here by the late gales,
and a few boats of the country which have bten
hired, and are endeavouring to beat down. G.,re-
rai B3llasrcros, and one thousand three hunched
Spanish grenadiers, are embarked, and waiting the
first slant t wind.

I have the honour to he, &c.
(Signed) C. V. PENROSE.
1. W. Croker, Esq.

San Juan, Gibraltar, lan, 4, 1812.

I reqnest you to inform their Lordships' tliat,,af-
ter closing my letter yesterday, I received intelli-
gence from Captain' 1:otio, that fifty deserters had -
come in from the French army in the Course of the
preceding afternoon, ,all of whom give accounts of
great distress prevailing throughout it ; want of.
bread and wine, and great sickness.
Accounts from Tarifa in the afternoon stated, the
enemy appeared to be about ereEting another bat- -
tery,, for the purpose of etfeBing a breach in ano-
ther part of the wall ; but from the excellent mea-
sures taken within, I do not think any leari need
be entertained of the result of another attempt to
storm. I should, indeed, feel, in a state of the
most perk& security, if we could get the Spanish.
grenadier battalion under Ballesteros all down, in
addition to the two light companies which General
Campbell has already sent.
4 P. M. Jan. 5.—1 have now the very great satis•
fa6lion to request you to inform their Lordships,
that I have just received thp 'intelligence that the
enemy, after ,making some demonstrations of an as-
sault during last night, broke up from before Ta-
rifa, leaving seven brass eighteen-pounders and 'two
howitzers spiked, with ammunition waggons, tools,
In addition to the gallant repulse which I
have before mentioned in the attempt of the French,
and the fire from our guns, which have been most'
ably worked, both on tie land and from our ships
and boats when occasions offered, the enemy has.
had to encounter such excessive rains, attended
with want of pror;sions and every species of shelter,
that it is just to give him great credit for his perse-.
vering so long as he did.
I cannot speak to the loss of the enemy, or of ont- •
own corretly, and this will of course be detailed in
the military reports.
I have the honour to be, &c.
(Signed)
I. W. Croker, Esqs C. V. PENROSE.
P. S. Slice the date of Captain Dickson's letter,
two other guns have been discovered, which were
buried in a house; and from deserters, I apprehend
that a twenty-four pounlier is also hid at some little
distance.