The Sun.
London, England, 1823-06-04 00:00:00

•p* For the PARIS PAPERS of SUNDAY, see the Fourth Page.

THE SUN.

SOLEJI QUIS DiCEILEFALSUM UDEAT

LONDON,
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 4, 1823.

We have received Paris Papers, with a Dis-
patch from the Army of the Duke d'ANGOU•
LtiME, announcing that General YAWN, at the
head of the advanced guard, had encountered a
Spanish corps of between three and four thou-
sand men, et Talaveyra de la Reyna, and had
compelled them to retreat with the loss of several
killed and wounded, sixty prisoners, twelve
waggons, and the military chest, containing
40,000 francs. We believe that the celerity
with which the French appear to have thus ad.
vanced from Madrid on the road to Seville, and
the resistance which they have so soon experienced,
have been equally unexpected. The advanced
guard entered Madrid on theintl, and only four
days afterwards (the 276), we find it engaged
.at Talaveyra de la Reyna, which is about sixty or
seventy miles from the capital. The vigour of
this proceeding, though no doubt the French
have exaggerated their success, proves that they
feel confident of their strength, and that the Duke
d'ANGouLEatz has been so little embarrassed by
the possession of Madrid, notwithstanding the
t anticipations which were formed of the contrary,

that he has neither resorted to negociation nor
paused for a mome►►t in his military career. As
for the resistance encountered by Gen. VALLIN,
it must have been offered to him either by the
corps of Mould.° or of ABISBAL. If by that
of the latter, which is the more probable, be-
cause previous accounts stated it to have fallen
back upon the Tajo, it would be both interesting
and important to know that the Condo DEL
ABISBAL commanded in person.
In Catalonia, the enterprising Mix:►, whom
the French supposed to be shut up in Barcelona,
has again out-generalled his adversaries by their
own confession. At four in the morning of the
26th, he made a sudden and impetuous attack
upon Vich, with 4000 men, and is represented
as having only retreated, after he himself
had been severely wounded. The garrison of
llostalrich, which is a few miles from Vich

about half-way between Gerona (the French
head-quarters) and Barcelona, and which is still
in the hands of the Spaniards, also made a vigor-
ous sortie at the same moment, but is represented
as having been repulied. These spirited opera-
tions, however, not only prove that the army of
Marshal MONCEY is paralized, and incapable of
advancing ; but that the Spaniards are sufficient-
ly powerful and active to attack it in its po,i-
dons, and even seem to indicate that the bold
design has been formed of endeavouring to dis-
lodge the veteran Marshal himself from Gerona,
and to drive him back upon the French frontier.

The French say that it has required all
their efforts to prevent the most
sall-
guinary re-actions at Madrid, and the utmost so-
licitude and vigilance to protect the Constitu-
tionalists from the fury of their fanatic country-
men. We have no doubt that the French
are entitled to the praises which they claim
for their humanity in this respect. But do
they not perceive that in proportion to the
opportunity which has been offered for the
exercise of French generosity, must have been
the disgraceful violence and ferocity, of their
unworthy Allies, the Spanish Royalists ?
Whatever may be the defects of the Spanish
Constitution, we have the highest authority
(that of Lord LIVERPOOL and Mr. CAN•
NINO, for believing that it is the fruit of
a bloodless revolution, and that it was esta-
blished by the most enlightened and honourable
men in Spain. We have now the authority
of the French for believing that a counter-
revolution, if effected by the Spaniards themselves,
would be stained by all those horrible crimps
to which ignorant zeal, religious fanaticism, and
a thirst for private vengeance giie birth ! For
their own sake, the French ought not to be de-
sirous of entrusting the exercise of arbitrary power
to such hands. They would soon render another
invasion equally necessary with that in which
they are now engaged !