The Sun.
London, England, 1845-12-08 00:00:00

MONDAY
DECEMBER 8, 1845.
7%7: ' G 4. -A. 9

ASSAULT AND CAPTURE OF

PUBLICATION .

CIUDAD RODRIGO IN 1812.

.Tust publlshed. frolscap Bvo.,
THE ROUND PREACHER; or REMI-
NISCENCES of METHODIST CIRCUIT LIFE.
Loudon : Sinipkin and Marshall.

ELEGANT PIZEiA ENT.
On the II t.h of De.,2eniber will be published, price 165.,
TFTE ANNALS OF - HORTICULTURE,
handsomely hound in araliesqui..s, richly gilt, containing I:38
enqravings,. a heautif4lly-colenred frontisp!ece, and 580 pages of
information on Gardening and Planting, including the
culture and management of all popular Flowers, and Flowering
ifotilstcn and Stoneman, rptcrnoAer-row ; W. Whyte and Co.,
Edin'air4h ; W. Curry and Co., Dublin.—Orders received by all

First Number ready Dec. IG.
TOPELES : Journal of Satire
31E1PVIitT,S U
and
Wisdom, published every Saturday, price 3d.,
Stamped, 4d., consisting of Twelve Quarto P:,:es,.;ize of the " Medi-
cal Times" and " Atheuaum," and lavishly illa,trated.
*345 The best Authors and Artists known to rng,hsh literature will
concur in giving MENIISTOPIIELES as many readers as there are
thinkers. He seeks no other.
Fora Prrspectus, apply to the Office, 49, Essex-street, London.

Elegant l'ee-,et Edition, price Is:, by post Is. 6d.
1) R. CU LYE RWELL ON MARRIAGE.
its HINDRANCES and OBLIGATIONS.
" To be or not to be, that is the question."—Shakspeare.
Contents :—On Matrimonial Eligibility and Unfituess—Laws
raternity—Phenemena of Gestation—On Maternal Influence—On
infelicitous and nriprothictive Unions—Curiosities of Medical Emperi-
ante, Cases, &e. &c.
Also Companion to the same, price Is., by post is. 6‘.

. _
CIIASTITT ; its ATICSES and DISEASEi (72 Engravings).
Those two interesting little volumes are not intended for idle or In-
discriminate perusal, but they are earnestly offerei to the attentive
consideration of those who may be more legitimately' and perhaps
painfully interested.
gherwood, t 3, Paternoster-row ; Carvathe, 147, Fleet-street
Mann, 39, Cornhill, and all booksellers, of direct from the Author,
21, Arundel-street, Strand. At home daily till 2 ; Evenings, 7 till 9.

FOUT‘TEENTH EDITION Of the SILENT FRIEND on Human
Frailty, with Coloured Engravings.
Jest published, price Is. 6d., free by post (in asealed envelope) 33.6 d.,
THE _SILENT FRIEM); a Medical Work on
Use infirmiides of the System n both sexes ; and on the loss
of the reproductive powers, veltis mesas of restoration. The baneful
effects of indulge- cc, dee., are fully pointed cut. Illustrated by En-
gravings ; followed ley observations on Marriage.
By R. and L. PERRY and Co., Consulting Surgeons, tendon.
Published by the Authors, and may be had at their residence
19, BERNERS-STREET, OXFOIM-STREET.
Sold by Strange, 21, Paternoster-row ; Hannay and Co., 63, Ox-
ford-street ; Gordon, 146, Leaaenhall-street ; Purkiss, Compton-
street, ; and all Booksellers.
"We regard the work before us, the Silent Friend,' as a work
embracing most clear and practical views of a series of complaint,
hitherto little understood, and passed over by a majority of the me-
dical profession, for what reasen we are at a loss to know. We mu= t
however confess that a perusal of this work has left such a favourable
impression on eur minds, that we not only recommend, but cordially
wish every cue r; ho is the victim of past folly, or suffering from iulis
oretion, to pre.? by the advice contained is its pages."—Age and Axons.
The CORDIAL BALM of STRIACITM is exclasively directed
to the cure of nervous debility, irregularity, weakness, loss of ap-
petite, indigestion, consumptive habits, and debilities arising from
excess, &c. In bottles, price 11s., er the quantity of four in one
bottle f,or 331., which 1 Is. are saved. The Live-pound cases may
be lead as usnal.
The CONCENTRATED DETERSIVE ESSENCE, a remedy
far searching out and purifying the blood from scurvy, blotelies
en Via head, face, and body, ulcerations, and those paltdul
affections arising ftom laiprwper treatment or the effects of mercury,
removing secondary symptoms, and all eruptions of tha skin. Prier
I Is. and 335. per 'oottle.
PLII itY'S PURIFY ENG SPECIFIC PILLS, price 2s. 9d., 4.5.
and I Is. per box, are the most effectual remedy for strictures, inflam-
mation, Inc. without hindrance to business.
Consultation fee, if by letter, 1/. Minute detail of cases necessary.

Mew;-7.3. R. Pnd L. Perry and C:=.,; surgeons, may be consulted, as
usua', a! It, 13Prners-street, fixflrd-Ktreet, London. da ly. a,d at
106, Duke-s eat, Liv pool, very Thursday, Prid.y, and Sa*urd,y ;
and at 10, St. Jo n-stre..t, Deansgate, Man heater, on Mondays,
Tuesdays, and Wednesdays.

THE TWELFTH EDITION.

Just Published, Ina-s4mtled enyt I,pe, price 2s. 61., And seat free, on

W
receipt of a Post-ottlee Order for 3s. 6d.
I-lEALTE-1: a Popular inquiry into
the Concealed Cause of its Decline, with Instructions
for its Complete Rest,-zation. Addressed to those suffering from
the destructive consequences of excessive indulgence, terminating in
Mental and Nervous Debility, Local or Constitutional Weakness, In-
digeLition, and Consumption. Including a comprehensive Dissertation
on MARRIAGE. Illustrated with Cases, &c By C. J LUCAI
and Co., Consulting 'Surgeons, London.
CA CTlON.—Complaints having reached us that several persons
wishing to purchase o 'r work, entitled " Manly Health," have had
placed in their hands a fraudulent intringemmt of our copyright, pre-
duced by Illiterate and dishonourahle men, and which, though bearing
a close reseinlauce of title, is utterly valueless; we deem it a duty,
by way of protection, to caution the public against being duped L y
such base imitation,. _ . .

Persons desirous of obtaining the above work, and rot wishing to
apply to a bookseller for the same, may, to insure secrecy, have to
direct from the Authors, by enclosing 3s. 61.; or Postage Stamps
to that amount. _ _ .

.....
May be had of the Authors, No. 60, Newman-street, Oxford-street;
and sold by Brittain, 11, Paternoster-row; Hannay and Co., 63,
Oxford-street: Noble, 114, Chancery-lane; J. Cordon, 146, Leaden-
hall-street; G. Mans•ill, 3, King-street, Southwark, London; T.
Sowier, Courier-office, 4, St. Ann's-square, ; W. Howell,
75, Dale-street, Liverpool; W. Wood, 7s, llighstreet, Birmingham;
W. and 11. Robinson, 11, Greenside-street, Edinburgh; T. Price,
Dame-street, Dublin ; and all Booksellers.
" The best of all friends is the professional friend , and in no El-ape
can he be consulted with greater safety and secreey than in Lucas
en Manly Health.'—The New Bell's Weekly Messenger.
Messrs. Lucas and Co. are to be consulted from Ten till Two, and
from Five till Eight in the evening, at their residence, N.). 60, New-
man-street, Oxford-street, London, and country patients may be
successfully treated, on minutely describing their case, and enclosing
the usualfee of 11. for *Arica.

FOR STOPPING DECAYED TEETLI,
Price 2s. 6d.

Patronised by her Majesty, his Royal Highness Prince Albert, and
her Royal Highness the Duchess of Kent.
MR. THOMAS'S SUCCEDANEUM for
stopping decayed Teeth, however lare the cavity. It is
placed in the tooth without any pressure or pain, and will remain
firm is the tooth for many years, rendering extraction unnecessary,
arresting the further progress of decay. All persons can use Mr.
Thomas's Succedeneum themselves with ease, as full directions are
inclosed. Price 2s. 6d. •
Sold by Savory,t2o, Regent. street ; Sanger, 150, Oxford-street ;
Butler, 4, Cheapside ; Trout, 229, Strand ; Johnson, 68, Cornhill ;
Hannay, 63, Oxtbrd-sreet ; and all medicine venders.
Mr. Thomas continues to supply the loss of teeth upon his new
system of self-adhesion, without springs or wires. This method
does not require the extraction of any teeth or roots, or any painful
operation whatever.
Mr. Thomas, Surgeon Dentist, 64, Renters-street,,Oxford-etreet.

FIDDLE AND PRINCE ALBERT'S PATTERN PLATE.
/41i. B. SAVORY and SONS, Manufacturing
• Silversmiths, 14, Cornhill, London, opposite the Bank of ,
England—The best wrought SILVER SPOONS and FORKS, Fiddle !
Pattern, 7s. 2d. per ounce ; the Prince Albert's Pattern, 7s. 6d. per
ounce. The articles may be had lighter or heavier, at the same price
per ounce :
The Fi iddle. oz. s.d. £s. d. Prince Albert's. oz. s.d. Xs. d.
12 Table Spoons 30 at 7 2.• 10 15 0 12 Table spoons 40 at 7 6..15 0 0
12 Dessert ditto 20 at 72. • 7 3 4 12 Dessert ditto 26 at 7 6.• 9 15 0
12 Table Forks 30 at 7 2..10 15 oil 2 Table Forks 40 at 7 6..15 0 0
12 Dessert ditto 20 at 7 2 7 3 4112 Dessert ditto 26 at 7 6.• 915 0
2 Gravy Spoons :0 at 7 2.• 3 11 8 2 GravySpoonsl2 at 7 6.• 4 10 0
4 Soup Ladles 10 at 7 2.• 318 8 1 Soup Ladle 12 at 7 6.• 410 0
1 Sauce ditto 10 at 7 8.. 316 8 4 Sauce ditto 12 at 8 0.• 416 0
4 Salt Spoons (gilt strong') 1 0 0 4 Salt Spoons (strong gilt) 2 2 0
1 Fish Slice 2 10 0 1 Fish Slice •• • • ••.• •• • 3 10 0
12 Tea Spoons 10 at 7 8.• 316 8112 Tea Spoons 14 at 8 0.• 512 0
Pair Sugar Tongs 015 01 1 Pair Sugar Tongs.• •• •. 1 5 0
Messrs. Savory and Sons recommend the Prince Albert's pattern.
It is very novel and of unexampled beauty

Give The rineeeeantdrfiorep
of
ft
wMaetsserrs.”. ConompenirenandoWeneltloaordk's,u
faintly,
tneht
oldley
Commercial- road. East, which occurred on the morning of
on Friday last, was attended, happily, with no fatal re-
sults; but the preservation of Mrs. Lea, an aged and blind
woman, who lived on the first-floor, was most remarkable,
she having been missed for upwards' of two hours after the
outbreak, and given up for lost by all the inmates who
escaped from the burning building.
It appears that between two and three o'clock, when the
ruins were cooled, Mr. Braidwood, the superintendent of
the London fire-engine establishment, having heard that the
C 0 PY of a LETTER from old lady was missing, ordered his men to ascend by
means of the fire-ladders to the interier of the nearly
COURTNEY, Esq. I consumed building that they might explore the fragmental
To Mr. THOMAS PROUT, 229, Strand, London.
Church Farm, Barton Stacey, near Andover Railway parts of the flooring which remained untouched by the fire.
Station, Hants, October 26, 1544. i Upon entering one of the upper rooms, the firemen discovered
moveb
lind upon
creature,the
Sir,—l cannot help expressing my astonishment in the effect I have ' that it was only partially -burned, and the bed was still
experienced in taking your Pills f►r the Gont. I was taken on Thurs-
day night so severely with it as to be with difficulty able to get out standing in a cornert.hatPietremeiviighntg
bsoemtheethpinoogr
bed,
of my bed, and atter I arose I had severe pains, followed on with in-
flammation of the foot increasing. I took three of your Pills, and an effaOlratiwniaasgtineg.e to reach. it, but this was found not to be
within two hours I found the pain to entirely cease. I afterwards a human being, but a cat in the agonies of death, which had
took two Pills at a dose twice in the day, and I am, thank God, this crept down the bed-clothing obviously to escape the suffo-
morning able to walk without the slightest inconvenience. I found in eating influence of the smoke. The firemen then descended
a previous very severe attack very great relief; I had the pains in .
ON the ladder to the first floor front, the back part of which
my knees and thighs so very severe at that time, I thought I must ;
was completely . burned through, and here a singular
have died, and that it must have gone into my stomach. At that
time I had resort to your Pills, and they relieved me—within two scene presented itsen.:. The firemen, upon entering the
hours I was quite easy. The use of these Pills ought, really, to he window, turned on their lamps and were startled on seeing
known all over the world. I have a brother, a young man, that
suffers horribly with it, and his greatest relief and preventive has something move. This was the poor creature of whom
been your Pills. Make what use you please of my report.—oursthey were in quest. On hearing them, she saidpi
1 "O11, dear, here I am; lam very poorly. Is the fire out?
truly and respectfully, WILLIAM COURTNEY.
Among the many discoveries that characterise the present age, none
have contributed so much to the comfort and ease of the community, lady, brought her down the ladder, and took her into a
nor conferred such a boon upon suffering humanity, as the impor-
tant discovery of BLAIR'S GOUT AND RHEUMATIC PILLS,
the efficacy of which has been tested by the approval and recom- able how she endured the extreme heat to which she must
have been subjected during
mendation of many of the greatest men of our day. They are eftec- , ,
tive for gout and rheumatism, in all its various forms, including uurni g.
sciatica, lumbago, pains in the head and face, frequently treated as working, and the ex
tooth-ache, &c. They require neither confinement nor attention of firemen were undourtelidellt,
any kind, and invariably prevent the disease attacking the stomach,
brain, or other vital part.
Sold by TliontAs Prout, 229, Strand, London ; an by his apeolnt-
ment, by all respectable ro.dieine , .-eders throughout the United
Kingdom. Pri•ce 2s. 9d. per box. the two hours which the fire was
n The prompt arrival of the engines, their effective
preserved, for had t‘h4 fietompe'a'bpsut to the firs by the
the portion of the floor fallen upon which
she was b I into the street in the arms of
roug it
Ask for BLAIR'S fires AND HitaTmATic PILLS, and ob- effected. The whole of the o
serve the name and address of " Thomas Prout, 229 Strand, London," most extraordinarily
neighbour's house. She was not injurecbl,yawnhdiciht
hiserrelimfeawrkas-
she sat, she must have perished in the burning ruins. When
the firemen,
the crowd appeared amazed at the rescue which had been
blat happily no oue wall injured.
preservetaber parties in the house were
by a variety of stratagems,
impressed upon the Government Stamp affixed each box Of-the
0011111 he Xed.icti%

I not until I:ien that Major Mackie saw it necessary to in-
terfere. Then it was, that he expressed to myself and
ether friends, his determination to give to the public a
statement of facts as they actually took place, clearly to
prove that this claim of Colonel Gurwood was incon-
sistent with the truth. Of this determination I need
not say that I most cordially approved ; and I will still
maintain, that to have acted otherwise in this respect,
w,uld have been, on his part, a most uncalled-for, as
well as pusillanimous. abandonment of what was justly
due, not to hitnsclf alone, but also to the gallant men
who supported him so nobly upon this memorable
occasion.

Gurwood was not satisfactory, whereas that gallant in-
dividual has stzted publicly in a letter to yourself, that
this was a subject on which he had not answered Col.
Gurwood at all, leaving the defence of my brother's
claim to me.

COLONEL GURWOOD AND THE LATE MAJOR
MACKIE.
(From the United Service Magazine.)
Mr. Editor,—ln the number of the United Service
Magazine for August, 1843, you did me the favour to
insert some observations, and also various letters corro-
borative of the narrative of my late brother Major
Mackie, relative to his services at the assault and cap-
ture of Ciudad Rodrigo in 1812, which was inserted by
Major-General Napi, r in the Appendix to the sixth
volume of the " Ilittory of the Peninsular War," and
the accuracy of which had been impugned by Colonel
Gurwood in the pages of- your journal? The substance
of thalnarrative may be state'd'thes: "That having en-
tered the main breach; the storming party of which he
headed, he passed into the town, and following with his
party a portion of the enemy retreating from the walls,
-
first gained the citadel, the gates of which the enemy in
their haste had neglected
to
tower or keep where the Governor and his officers had
taken refuge." . fasten, then reached the
On reaching this tower be solemnly asserts that he
found the door of it shut, that he summoned those
within to surrender, that the door was then opened and
a sword delivered up to him in token of submission,. In
his narrative he further solemnly declares, that he no
sooner got this sword into his hand, than two French
officers laid hold of him fir protection, one by each arm,
ard being thereby prevented, stepping forward at the
moment, clearly, however, after the surrender of the
tower, Colonel, then Lieutenant, Gurwood came up, and
passing him hastily while thus encumbered, got to the
Governor end received his sword; but, as these facts
most clearly prove, not until the Governor and all
within were prisoners of war to Major Mackie and his
party. Among the letters which I allude to as corrobo-
rative of this narrative of facts, is one from Sergeant
Brazil, who was of the party'on the occasion, and who
sow the door opened, and the sword received in token of
surrender, and who expressed- his willingness to verify
on oath the evidence he gives. The character- of Ser-
geant Brazil f,r ability and integrity, and therefore his
perfect credibility as a witness, is in the very strongest
terms vouched fur by the officers of his former corps.
Expressing, as you did, a wish that the controversy as
to the respective claims of Colonel Gurwood and Major
Mackie should be considered at a close, so far as the
pages of your journal were concerned, I learned with re-
gret, a few months after that you had inserted another
article, further to impugn the justice of my brother's
claim, and that from a correspondent who withheld his
name. As being anonymous. and no way entitled to
weigh against the evidence of witnesses that gave their
names, and whose credibility could not possibly be im-
peached, I willingly yielded to the opinion of those
friends who considered that lucubration as unworthy of
notice. The case, however, is entirely changed, finding,
as I do, that the article in question has been reprinted
with the writer's name, in a pamphlet, now in the course
of private cireulation by Colonel Gurwood, among his
military and other friendsagiving it thereby an import-
ance to which, when anonymous, it was not entitled.
That Lieutenant Thornton, the writer of this letter,
formerly of the 94th R giment, is a man of honour, as
being a British officer, I am not permitted to express a
doubt. That he .is a man of sense and judgment, I most
pointedly deny, vouching, ae of his own knowledge, for
what took place at the assault and capture of a city, at
which assault. I am credibly informed, he was not even
present. This information I have the stronger reason
for believing to be true, that in Hart's " Army List,"
his being present at the capture of Ciudad Rodrigo is
not among the services to which he can lay claim. Wil-
ling as I ase, to make every apology, if he was actually,
there, and more over in a position to enable him to con-
tradict the testimony of those whe were, Lieut. Thorn-
ton must feel the more my debtor for the opportunity. I
have givers him of vindicating himself, that while con-
cealing his name most carefully from the public, be was
at the very time disclosing it in secret to the individmal
in whose behalf he volunteered; making a merit of the
evidence he had given. . •
Lieutenant Thornton :in the simplicity of his heart,
may have concluded he was thereby taking the most na-
tural method to satisfy Colonel Gurwood of the purity of
his motives. I tell him he has stumbled on the very
means which give him most the appearance of being
actuated by those of a very opposite description. This
appearance he mar do away by making known his means
of information. Until he does so, Colonel Gurwood is
welcome to all the support his testimony can give. him.
"Valeat quantum."
- In adverting further to Colonel Gurwood's pamphlet,
I beg to call attention to the difficulty he has experienced
in rebutting the evidence adduced against him, as shown
by the futility of the arguments he employs. Thus, in
speaking of the narrative of my brother, and endeavour-
ing to elude its force, irs.regard to the manner in which
the latter states ha got from the rampart down into the
town, Colonel Gurwood is pleased to make the following
remark: "Sixteen feet in depth, at the foot of which had
been ranged a variety of impediments, such as crows'
feet, chevaux de frise, iron spikes, &c.; the whole being
encircled with the means of maintaining a barrier of
burning combustibles."
Does Colonel Gurwood mean seriously to assert it .is, e
his own belief, or that he would have others to belleVe,
that any individual who had the slightest•ret-zard to his
character as a man of veracity and honour, that any one
not altogether stultified and void of common judgment,
and moreover, one who had a perfect knowledge of the
city and its defences, could have wilfully destroyed the
whole credibility of his subsequent narrative by asserting
as a fact what he knew to be untrue, and if untrue, what
he must have known could be so easily disproved? What-
ever the height of the wall, or the means defence might
elsewhere be, it most be the conviction of every candid
mind, that at the spot referred to by Major Mackie, im-
pediments to his descent did not exist to the extent
which Colonel Gurwood wou'd- represent them to.have
been. The height, according to my brother's statement,
carrying with it the greater weight as being given in the
course of his narrative, and not to obviate objection, was
from ten to twelve feet only. As such it presented no
very great, certainly no insuperable obstacle,
to a young
man of great personal activity, and as nearly as might
be, six feet high.,
But, whatever the obstacles might be, or however over-
come, as doubtless, .haddio now been Spared to answer
for himself, he could most easily have explained, no can-
did and unprejudiced mind could for a moment entertain
a doubt, on the perusal of his statement, but that he
effected a descent at the place and in the manner he
describes.
"To mount under the fire of the defenders was the
work of a moment, but when there, difficulties of a for-
midable nature presented themselves. On each flank a
deep trench was cut across the ramparts, isolating the
breach, which was enfiladed with cannon and musketry,
while in front, from the ramparts into the streets of the
town, was a perpendicular fall of ten or twelve feet;
the whole preventing the soldiers from making
that bold
and rapid onset so effectual in facilitating the success of
such an enterprise. The great body of defence being
from the houses, and from an open space in front of the
breach, in,the first impulse of the moment I dropt from
the rampart into the town. Finding myself here quite
alone, and no one following, I discovered that the trench
on the right of the breach' was cut across the whole
breadth of the rampart, thereby opening a free access to
our troops, and rendering what was intended by the
enemy as a defence completely the reverse. By this
opening I again ascended to the top of the breach, and
led the men down into the town."
The same remark, as to the weakness of the arguments
to which he trUsts, applies to Colonel Gurwood's ob-
servations on Major Mackie's ignorance of the French
language, as being inconsistent with the fact of his sum-
moning the enemy .as he solemnly asserts. Here he
greatly exaggerates, and only weakens his cause by over-
anxiety to bolster it up. My brother, I can positively
assert, had, for a short time at least, studied French in
his youth; but granting that he neither spoke it nor had
kept up the reading of it, to give Colonel Gurwood the
full advantage of his argument, we shall suppose that the
other had not picked up the very few words necessary
for the purpose, in the course of the service in which he
was then engaged. Summoning then, as he solemnly
asserts he did, of what.consequence could it be, whether
this were done in English or in French, since the enemy
were only awaiting the appearance of a British officer to
be assured of safety to surrender, as was proved, when
his pointing to his epaulettes being sufficient to convince
them that my brother was such, the door was opened to
him, and the sword given up in token of submission ?
The same nervous anxiety to grasp at every shadow
of an argument for support, applies to the attempt of
Colonel Gurwood to throw doubt upon this fact, on the While in the act of concluding the preceding observe-
was present on the occasion. tions a letter was put into my hands, purporting to be
ismveeduPnder the circumstances stated, written by Captain Hill, formerly of the 88th Regiment,
pAle
sword
that
being no aide-decamp dre e-cdee
what difference can it make upon the merits of the case, the object of which is to impugn my brother's claim, and
whether that of an aide-de-camp, or in what other ea- to give decided support to that of Colonel Gurwood. In
pacity the officer had served, by whom it was delivered? doing this he fallsibto mistakes that may not only be
What Colonel Gurwood states relative to his making easily exposed, but what are also in palpable contradic-
application to the late Sir Henry Torrens in my brother's tion to himself. In the letter in question Captain Hill
behalf, is altogether new to me, and to the best of my has stated, "It was always admitted by the officers, and
belief was unknown to the subject of it, while, as an ar- by Mackie himself; that Colonel Gurwood took the
gument. it goes for nothing. General and got his sword." Now, Sir, Captain Hill
Equally irrelevant to the matter in dispute, is the im- may, if he pleases, stultify himself, but let me ask him
portaece -he attaches to his being in garrison at Ports- by what right he can presume to do so, by the other
mouth with my brother, without the latter laying claim officers of the gallant 88th? A moment's reflection
to the sword of the Governor. might have brought to his remembrance that not only all
However just he knew it to have been, in what way of these in private, but many of them publicly, in the
was Major Mackie to enforce his claim? Was he to pages of the United Service Magazine, have borne testi-
wrest this sword from the hand of its possessor? Was
mony to the very contrary of such .dmission; a testisit a case that could have been carried into a court of law, mony, not less honourable to those that give it, than i.
or was he to ask for a court of military inquiry to decide is, along with the other evidence adduced, decisive of the The Court is expected to return to Windsor Castle
to which of them it ought in justice to belong? Consi • justice of the cause which they support, This, however, from Osborne-house on Tuesday next. Her Majesty will
dered as an argument, his observations on the subject is nothing to the confusion of ideas with which his letter hold a Privy Council on Thursday or Friday, when a prods-
are altogether futile. My brother had been deprived has otherwise been penned. That man's mind must be mation will he agreed upon, appointing a day for the meeting
of the substantial advantages that ought to have in a state of "most admired disorder," who can gravely of Parliamentnfwdo re
a?tthmileidagisescipahtteocrhtphoietfeorbauupssiindgresostres.anams.
accrued -to him from the capture he had made, put on record, that " Mackie himself always admitted Pertieous SITUATION.—On Saturday evening last
privation of that Colonel Garwood had taken the General," when an ltforuarnida.Whsahtelaiys,noofwWvieltroyni,na._sinsgi,leerirn womanejo,untwasarescued from
Liketnhoetst
hyaemmnb man of
of
fef
hisprudence,me aitriumph.ed, so hf far
rloasstbtoy submittedtahne taoe getting
intdoxicYateedrel
accidentthe that could attempt to refute the statement of Major Mackie, giving alnveal,eeret)gwraavteer,alt Laverstock, by two men, named Lambert
generally supposed, from the position
she was found in, 0:3
never ceased to claim it as his right. It was not, until and only, object of the very letter Captain Hill was
of the sword itself. though On all fitting occasgiopno
as possession the
itnheqemeoastitepuoienatecd
ealnedneelmGpehrawtiecocdo,nBtpraard‘icviti.own
tthoethaevecwlaeimd,
two deep .at she must have been dragged across
, Colonel Gurwood, taking undue advantage of the con- writing at the time, and in which this extraordinary as-
placed, not merely to After this, it may
Di
pats position in which, as editor of the "Wellington sertion has been inado I We regret wShheerewasshamu:
Dispatches," be happened to be be matter of surprise that to hear that the house of Robertson and
parade himself before the army and the public as the the writer should have fallen into thefurther contradiction
CO., of Watling-street, and also of Manchester and Dunferm-
fortunate possessor of the sword in question, with the of stating the impression made upon his mind
in Colonel ' line, have intimated that they •
are obliged to suspend their
payments, consequent on the failure of Messrs. and B.
honours and emoluments its possession had secured him. ' Gurwood's favour, by the perusal of a document that grown and Co. They state, however, that they have taken
but also expressly arrogating to himself the credit of never had existence. I allude to the opinion expressed , stock; andexpect to be able to exhibit a satisfactory account
haying made its former owner prisoner of war ; it was by Captain Rill that General Napier's answer to Colonel to their creditors in a fsw dam—amnia.
scarcely

AS mibht indeed be expected, from the specimens
given, the only tendency of this letter of Captain Hill
is to obscure the case which he professes to make clear;
as if the only point to be determined was whether or
not Colonel Gurwood got the sword of the Governor,
a fact that never was disputed by my brother and his
friends. It is his having captured the owner of that
sword that has been, and is, most positively denied.
Giving the decision, however, which, in his letter,
he has pronounced, I beg to ask Captain Hill at what
time he came to be of that opinion, which has enabled
him to do so? Did he ever, let me ask him, during
the three-and-thirty years that have elapsed since the
event which it refers to, hint to one of their fellow-
comrades that he had, himself, a suspicion of its being
otherwise than as my brother represents? Has
since the writing of it, ventured to broach the subject
with any of those officers that were present at the assault,
in support of the view which he professes to entertain?
If he answer in the negative, as I know he must, I need
not further ask if, during his lifetime, he ever hinted to
my brother, that he was claiming to himself the credit
of an exploit which he, Captain Hill, believed to be
another's,—a charge he has not hesitated to bring against
his memory, now that he cannot answer for himself, pro-
fessing, while he does so, that he writes, not as an indif•
ferent spectator of the contest, but as one that was his in-
timate and chosen friend.
Consequent upon some private communication with
Count D'Orsay on the subject, as Captain Hill admits,
couched, as it is, in terms studiously calculated to give
support to Colonel Garwood, at the same time intended
to convey an impression that the bias of his feelings is
on the other side, the writing of that letter must, I am
persuaded, be even to himself a source of deep regret.
Not, I am aware, from any injury he has thereby. done
to the memory of my brother, for that remains Intact,
but the injury, which, in seeking to inflict on it, he has
unhappily brought down upon himself.
August 15.

- - A portion of his nr.”rative which, as not appearing at
the time to bear upon ills claim, was omitted by General
Napier, agreeably to the intention which he had in-
timated to my brother, will, I apprehend, obviate the
inference which Colonel Garwood would seem to draw
in favour of himself from the time and circumstances at,
and under which, he met Lieutenant Uniack on tlio (Ily of
the essault.

The extract I allude to is to the following purport:—
" The manner in which the great breach was cut off by
trenches cut across the rampart, and the depth from the
rampart in.o the town, caused, as I have stated, consider-
able difficulty, and some delay in consequence, after the
breach had been carried. I can assert, however, that this
was done, and every obstacle overcome, without any flank
attack on the enemy defending it, by the light division,
end without any assistance rendered by them or any
other, short of that which must take place. in every
similar instance, where more than one breach has been
e&cted, necessarily dividing the attention of the enemy
for the defence of each. Lieut. Uniack and others of the
light division being killed by the same explosion which
killed General Mackinnon is in no way inconsistent
with, but, on the contrary, corroborates this assertion.
The magazine, by the explosion of which General Mac-
kinnon, as also Lieutenant Beresford, of the 88th Regi-
ment, as well as others of the 3d, were killed, was
situated upon the ramparts, some way to the left of the
breach, and the mangled remains of the former vet re
found some distance from the rampart, in the open
space between it and the houses. This was after the
enemy had abandoned the defence, and I had myself,
with the advance of the storming party, advanced con-
siderably along the street, leading from the breach into
the town, when I heard the explosion, while, by the
time it took place, the troops of the 3d division were
established both to the right and left of the breach.
From the whole of this it follows, first, that Lieutenant
Uniack was not killed at the breach or close upon it ;
and, secondly, that there was ample time for that
officer, and those of the light division with him, to reach
the spot where he was killed, after the great breach was
carried; as was in fact the case."
Now, Sir, I believe I am justified in maintaining, that
not the presumption merely, but as far as it can now be
given. the proof of priority of advance towards the
citadel, will, on comparing the two accounts together,
be found decidedly in favour of my brother. From the
point which he had gained when he heard the explo-
sion
by which Lieutenant Uniack lost his life, it would
manifestly appear, that he had that advantage, as to
priority of advance over his opponent, which, meeting
afterwards with no serious obstacle, gave him the op-
portunity of stating in his own emphatic language,
copied from his narrative now before me in his own hand-
writing:—" In bare justice to the right brigade of the
3d division, and as a member of it, to myself, I feel
myself called on to declare, that though I do not claim
for that brigade, exclusively, the credit of forcing the
defences of the main breach, the left brigade having
joined in it, contrary to the intention of Lord Welling-
ton, under the circumstances stated, yet Ido declare, on
the word of a man of honour, that I was the first indi-
vidual who drected the descent from the main breach into
the streets of the town ; that I preceded the advance into
the body of the place; that I was the first who entered the
citadel, and that the enemy there assembled had surrendered
to myself and party Wore Lieutenant Gurwood came up."
The words in italics were underlined by himself.
The inference Colonel Garwood is inclined to draw
from what he represents as the lateness of Major
Mackie's claim, as compared with his own, is entirely
without foundation. The latter dates itself from a letter
written to his friends after the first assault, while the
claim of my brother dates likewise from the first, but
under very different circumstances indeed. The affair
is no sooner over, than it is stated openly to all the
officers then present with the regiment, who see the
sword received by him, with a detail of the circum•
stances which alone prevented his receiving that of the
Governor along with the one denoting the surrender,
while these officers have ample opportunity of question-
ing the soldiers present on the occasion, and from whom
they did receive a full corroboration of the whole of his
account.
With regard to the evidence, now for the first time
brought before the public, I would willingly express
myself with all the delicacy which a regard to substan-.
tial justice may permit, in defending the memory of a
brother no longer here to speak in his own defence.
But let me state the ease as borne out by facts.
Not until two years after my brother's narrative ap-
peared in the Appendix to General Napier's work, a
work, ai he was well aware, circulating not only among
military men, but throughout the whole of the reading
portion of the public, whose opinion is of any value,
does Colonel Garwood set about a refutation of the
statement it contains. Ineffectual for the purpose it was
meant to serve, in counterbalancing evidence directly con-
tradictory of the fact it was adduced to prove, the letter
I have referred to was at the time the mainstay of his
case. Is it not then matter of surprise, that two years
t han argument
five
years with
was
supie
after the publication of this letter, with the meagre
to the
statement ofrorratye'd, a
nd evidenceno
an d
less
statement it was intended to refute, a detail of circum-
stances is at length brought forward, so exceedingly
minute that it is difficult, if not impossible, to account
for their escaping his memory, at the time he was mus-
tering evidence on his side ?
The testimony' oF the witnesses Colonel Gurwood now
brings for beard, labours under a similar disadvantage, if
intended as a counterpoise to that of Sergeant Brazil,
coming as it does so late into court, two years after
Brazil's clear and distinct account was laid before the
public.
Of the circumstances referred to I may remark, that
with those that attended his getting possession of the
sword of the Governor, everything indeed that passed
within the tower, including all that Colonel Hinson
speaks to as coming under his own observation, I have
nothing whatsoever to do. The only object that can be
gained by the detail of these, is to confuse the careless
reader, and turn bis attention from the real point at
issue. This, be it remembered, is not what passed after
Colonel Gurwood got within the tower, but what had
previously passed without. In other words, was the
door of the tower, where the Governor and his officers
had taken refuge, opened to the summons of Colonel
Garwood, after the very considerable delay that must
have been required to allow time for all the incidents he
states to have taken place, after he reached it, and before
he entered ? or, when he came up, did he find that door
presenting no obstacle whatever to his' entrance, having
been already opened to the summons of Major Mackie,
and the place surrendered ? as the latter solemnly avers,
and Sergeant Brazil has expressed his readiness to cer-
tify on oath.
Most reluctantly, as for my part, I have been forced
into this controversy again, let me express a hope that
it is now brought to a close. The claims of both the
parties are before the public, though under circumstances
by no means equal. The one, having been deprived of
the whole of the advantages that should have attended
his success on this occasion, no longer lives to vindicate
the justice of his claim—a loss which my own imperfect
acquaintance with military affairs permits me so inade-
quately to supply; the other, happily for himself and for
his friends, still lives to enjoy the honours and emolu-
ments that have deco] ved upon him out of the circum-
stances that led to the dispute. As editor of the " Wel-
lington Dispatches," he occupies, moreover, a conspicuous
position, giving him a personal acquaintance with the
leading members of his own profession, and personal in-
terest with many others. Theso means of influence he
has not hesitated to use in circulating ex parte state.
meats of the case, apparently in the hope that those by
whom be is opposed, being kept in ignorance of his
moving in it, he may as it were get judgment by default.
With all the disadvantages under which I labour in
advocating the cause, which a conscientiouaoonviction of
its justice, no less than fraternal feeling, leads me to sup-
port. I leave most willingly the army at large, and, so
far as it can have any interest in the subject, an impar-
tial publie, to decide between them.
CHARLES MACKIE.
Quarley, Hants, August 16, 1845. _ . .

C. M.

Iu revising the preceding observations, after perusing
the paper of Colonel Gurwood, which appears in the
October number of this journal, I see little requiring to
be added to them.
Lipra seripta manet, Plera impressa is still more in-
delible; I am therefore entitled to the full force of my
argument, founded on the intention of Colonel Gurwood
to restrict his pamphlet to private circulation, as is ex-
pressed in his preface, and followed up by him, as well
in other respects, as in leaving it without a publisher's
name upon the title-page. This I may remark, notwith-
standing his giving the substance of it in your pages,
subsequent to the time my observations were written, as
shown by the date they bear.
Of Capt. Hill and his evidence, bearing in no way on
the point at issue, were it not rendered even more utterly
valueless for Colonel Gurwood's purpose by the nature of
the circumstances under which he gives it, I had hoped
most sincerely to have taken final leave. lam forced,
however, to allude to them again, Colonel Gurwood
attaching so much importance to the alliance of that
gentleman, as again to quote his testimony to the effect,
that " neither Capt. Hill nor Dr. Arthur, intimate with
Major Mackie at the time, ever heard him say that he
had got the sword."
Now, Sir, I am bound 0 believe that the statement
here attributed to Capt. Hill was actually made by him;
moreover that it was so made, without any actual violation
or the truth. How then, may the truth be shown to be
consistent with this apparent contradiction ?
There is one way, and but one way only, that this can
be done.

Independent of the others who were present at the
assault, the testimony of Mr. Grattan is to this effect :=
" I pressed forward with the crowd towards the citadel,
and I met Mackie returning from it, with the captured
sword in one hand, and his own sword in the other. I
asked him if all was right, for there was still an odd shot
hen and there. He replied, 'All is not only right, but
over. Look at this,' said he, as he held up the sword,
I was the first man at the citadel ; and the Governor
has been sent off to Lord Wellington.' "
Colonel Oates, in his letter, says, " Not being present
myself at the assault of Ciudad Rodrigo, but joining
very soon after, the general conversation among the
officers of the regiment was the very intrepid and
gallant conduct of Lieut. Mackie, in volunteering the
forlorn hope of the great breach, and being the first
officer at the citadel ; receiving, as ho thought, the
Governor's sword in token of surrender, but which
sword proved afterwards to belong to an officer of the
Governor's staff."
Does Captain Hill, then, mean to assert by the state-
ment quoted by Colonel Gurwood in your journal, that
he. undoubtedly present at the assault, and of all the
officers of the regiment, even by his own showing, my
brother's most intimate and bosom friend, was the only
one of these who was left in total ignorance of the cir-
cumstances detailed by Major Mackie in his published
narrative, and so amply borne out by the unexception
able witnesses that were upon the spot ? Though not
the first to hear of it, as is shown by Mr. Grattan, is it
possible to suppose that the matter could remain a sub-
ject of conversation among the officers of the regiment
for any length of time, and, to the best of my remem-
brance and belief, it was not till six weeks after the
assault that they were joined by Colonel Oates, without
the subject having reached the ears of Captain Hill, and
without his curiosity being so far awakened as to lead
him to inquire particulars of his brother officer—that
brother officer his most intimate and bosom friend ?
In other words, for this is the impression which the

publication of this statement is intended to convey, w
he solemnly declare that the fact of a sword being re•
ceived by Mgjer Mackie under the circumstances de.
tailed therein, were by him, Captain Hill, unheard o
and unknown until my brother's narrative appeared ?
This is a declaration which, I am confident, he never
made ; what is more, one that he will never venture upon
making. It follows, therefore, that when Captain Hill
assures Colonel Gurwood he never heard Major Mackie
say that he had got the sword, there is soma mental re-
servation ; and the loophole of retreat whereby he
escapes colision with the truth is, and can be only, that
he never heard him say that he had got the sword of the
Governor. It is, in fact, a mere following up of the
attempt at mystification pursued by Colonel Gurwood,
and fully exemplified by Captain Hill in his letter to
Count D'Orsay, whereby it is sought to keep out of
view the sword delivered up to Major Mackie in token
of surrender, and to make it appear that the only point
at issue is whether or not Colonel Gurwood got posses-
sion of the sword of the Governor. This sword, Captain
Hill may with a safe conscience aver, he never heard
Major Mackie say that he had got, the gist of whose
complaint, as I have again and again had occasion to re-
peat, was this—that Colonel Gurwood did get possession
of the sword of the Governor of Ciudad Rodrigo, but not
till the Governor and those that were with him were
prisoners of war to Major Mackie and his party.
Dr. Arthur and his evidence I may dismiss in very
few words. I may safely assert that with that gentle-
man my late brother was never at any time on intimate
terms. That he was at head-quarters of the regiment at
the time of the assault I believe to be more than doubtful.
If he was there present, against his negati is evidence
I place the positive testimony of so many others, and I
loffer him, moreover, a share of the salvo which must be
found so useful in the case of Captain Hill.
Quarley, Hants, 18th Oct., 1845. C. MACKIE.
In alluding to the conjoint testimony of Captain Hill
and Dr. Arthur, as given by Colonel Gurwood, I regret
to find that, inadvertently, I have fallen into an error as
to the terms in which it is expressed, though one that in
no way affects its substance, or the force of the argument
I have rested on it. C. MACKIE.