The Sun.
London, England, 1828-09-13 00:00:00

LITERATURE.

MEMOIRS OF GENERAL MILLER.-2 VoLs.
LONDON, 1928. 7'
The Memoirs of General Miller,which, so far
as biography is concerned, are a series of mere
rambling unconnected sketches, are made the
vehicle of some ably digested details respecting
that important. feature in the history of the
world, the revolution, and separation from
their mother country, of the South American
States. Though the subject be just now some-
what hacknied, though volume after voline,
pamphlet after pamphlet, has for years been in
the habit of being published, for the purpose, as
it should seem, of illustrating this great event ;
still a correct, and above all, an impartial analy-
sis of the, circumstances that preceded -and, im-.
mediately followed it, is a desideratum in our
national literature. This desideratum, the
volumes before us, though in miniature, abund-
antly supply. In them we read many strange
facts, with which we were before—though not
altogether unread on the subject,—unacquainted ;
new traits of characters are introduced to us—
strange heroes,
.such. for instance as Benne-
vides, the Royalist assassin and murderer, ap-
pear on the scene ; in short, every where
an impartial estimate is formed of nation
and individual, Liberal and Royalist. As
in all cases where an enslaved nation becomes
too strong for its oppressor, the cause alleged
for the separation of South America from Spain
is the dreadful and increasing tyranny exercised
by the latter over the for.ner. Proscriptions—
assassinations—contempt of all justice—igno-
rance of all right,.save that of the sword—appear
just previous to the Revolution, to have been
put in daily force against the Colonies. This was
not to be borne ; and accordingly first one rebel
started up from the patriot ranks ; then a second,
then a third ; until at length Bolivar obtained the
supreme command, and as a reward for his having
conquered the Spaniards in many a hard fought
battle, was most courteously allowed by them to
drop the title of rebel, and even to assume the
rank of an equal, though an enemy. Of course
Lord Cochrane—of whose well-known exploit
with regard to the Esmeralda. frigate, we have
a copious though scarcely novel account—con-
tributed materially to the success of the pa-
triot cause ; we have accordingly some interest-
ing details respecting his Lordship, as also
respecting an individual now it seems almost
forgotten, but who nevertheless established the
independence of Peru, and had a great share . in
promoting the eather movements of the revolu •
tion ; we mean Gen. San Martin, whom Capt.
Basil Hall has introduced with such picturesque
effect in his South American Travels. Benna-
vides—another of Captain Hall's heroes, to
whom he devotes the most romantic chapter in
his entertaining volumes—is also here brought
upon the tapis : the following is the account ,of
this celebrated thief—assassin—rebel—and m ur.
serer

" Benavides was born in the province of Concepcion ;
and, together with his brother, had served in the Buenos
Ayrean battalion, No. 11, the first as a sergeant, the se-
cond as a corporal. In 1814, both were sentenced to death
for some crime, but escaped from their condemned cell,

and passed over to the royalists, having, as was strongly
rapposec:, set n're to the held depot, which was burnt on
the night they absconded. Both were made 'prisoners of
war at the battle of Maypo, but were not recognised an•
til after the government of Chile had published a general
pardon to all military offenders, in celebration of the vic-
tory. The Supreme Ditector could not then except the
brothers from the amnesty ; but ha ordered them to be
sent out of the country, as dangerous and enterprising
criminals, and to be placed at the disposal of the govern-
:neat of the united provinces of La Plata. On ibe march,
;he commandant of the escort was informed by two-of his
soldiers that the men in custody had offered bribes to con.
Dive at their, evasion. The oillicer stated that, upon
charging them with this proceeding, the prisoners ac-
knowledged the truth of the accusation; that seventeen
doubloons and a dagger were found about the person of the
elder brother. Upon which the officer, acting, as he aid,
in conformity to his instructions in the event of his pri-

sonere attempting to escape, ordered them to 14 shot, and
they were executed accordingly.

" On General San Martin's return from Mendoza to
Santiago, a stnnnch patriot, nearly related to the wife of
Bertavides, apprised the General that the unfortunate man
was still living, and that be felt an unconquerable desire
to have an interview with his Excellency, not only to corn.

municate upon subjects of high importance, but also to
manifest the sincerity of his wishes to re-attach himself to
the cause of independem.-e. lie, however, stipulated for a
guarantee in writing, and the concealment of the fact of
his existence, . particularly from the Supreme Director.
These conditions were acceded to, and the first meeting
took place at midnight in the chapel porch of the Con-
ventillo, a country.seat about a mile from Santiago.
" The following is the account which Benavides himself
gave of the transaction to General San Martin. He said
that, upon leaving Santiago, neither he nor his brother
entertained any suspicion they were to be executed on the
road; that if they bad apprehended any such design, it
would have been easy for them to have absconded before
they left the capital ; but feeling satisfied on the score of
personal safety, they ;postponed the attempt until a fa-
vourable opportunity should occur in the course of their
march, and more particularly as they wished to avoid
compromising their friends of the royalist party then resi-
dent at Santiago ; that on the evening of the second day
the officer of the molt ordered a halt for the brothers to
be 'searched, and seventeen doubloons being found in the
lining of the bouts of the elder, the officer asked if they
bad attempted to bribe the 'soldiers, which was answered
in the negative ; that the party then left the road, mid
having arrived at a lonely gnat at nightfall, the officer or=
epare for instant death. pr
-tiered them (the two brothers) -to
They were made to kneel, with eivs unbound, and a volley-
was fired. Benavides received two halls, pm, of which
passed through his right shoulder, the other tbrnugh his
left side. He fell, but, prewving his preseoe,Aof 141,10,
he feigned himself dead, in the hope of ultimately effect.
ing his escape. The serjeant of the cocoa; as ao 800.
posed, drew his sword, and gave him a hell cut acerase
the throat'", saying, at the same time, Tette that, iri!.
lain, for the murder of my family 1' The soldiers then*
threw a quantity of earth and stones over the two bodies,
and withdrew. Benavides remained motionless for some
minutes, when, fiseling that his executlouers had finally
left him, he immediate+ set to work.to disengage himself
from the load of earth with which he was encumbered; be,
then with great difficulty untied thee-oral with Which !i.e was
bound, and having stripped off the jacket and ahlit of his
deceased brother, to bind tap his wounds, he q.nitted the
fatal spot. He walked the greater part of the night, atife
faring acutely from the pain of his evounde, and from the
still less supportable agonies of thirst. Baring reached
the hovel of a good old man'and woman, the took pity
upon him ; anti although poverty confined their meane of
cure to the constant washing of his wounds with water
from a neighbouring rill, Benavides found himself suffi-
ciently recovered, at lire end of sixteen days, to greep un-
perceived into Santiago, where he, remained concealed.
" General San Martin and Benivides had several sub-
sequent meetings, which were held at night near the foun-
tain in the great square of the city. Benavides revealed
the names of those who were still inimical to the patriot
cause, and also the means they employed to carry on their
correspondence with the royaliSts, and to remit subscrip-
tions to promote the restoration of the ancient order of
things. Pe reiterated the offer of his serviced to the re-
and a plan of operations for
public; they were accepted,
,
the ensuing campaign in the south of Chile was determined
upon. He was soon afterwards sent, in charge of an
officer, who was kept in ignorance of the name of,*per-
son he escorted, to General iblcarce, at' that time com-
manding the troops in the province of Concepcion, and
who was minutely informed of the character and Conduct
of Benavidem, and of the circumstances which rendered_ it.
expedient to place such a person pitig 44 staff. 13a) c.arrt
was instructed to observe tire 4 utmost circumspection in
carrying into execution plans suggested by Benavides ; and,
taking care not to betray any aigna of mistrust, to keep a
watchful eye over that • extraordinary man, whose local
knowledge and prior connexions with the royalist chiefs, As
well as his influence over The Araucanians, gave value and
weight to his opinions,
.and rendered him a desirable in-
Benavides carried his laced awry ever afterwards,

strument a the prosecution of the war. There can he no
doubt that to his counsel was owing the conquest of the
island of Lajas and of the fort Del Nacimiento, and the
successful issue of that campaign Indeed, General Bal-
carce distinctly attributed it to the advice of Benavides,
whose adhesion-to the cause of the country became un-
doubted.
" Unhappily General' Baleares imparted his secret to
Colonel Frey re, Governor of CcincepciOn, who, at a con,
fereace at which all 'three were pMient, had the indiscre-
tion to tell Benavides, in a moment of warm discussion,
that a man of his species was not to be trusted. Fired at
the insult, the stern Benavides disappeared within eight-
and-forty hours, and speedily commenced a desolating war
with fire and sword, committing unheard-of barbarities
upon the helpless and unoffeading inhabitants f."
The narrative of this scamp's life ; his strange
adventures—theatrical appetite for murder, and
above all his queer looking Indian satellites
would, we think, make a capital melo-drame ;
we accordingly solicit Mr. Planche's attention
to the subject, convinced that he will find
his account in it. Captain Hall, however, not
Major Miller, must be his guide. In his ac-
count 'of the progress of the revolution, our
author has not neglected the geographical por-
tions- of his work ; as a proof of which, we give
the following striking account of the coast of
Peru ; Captain Hall, we remember, has described.
the same scene, but his description was from the
sea :

" The coast of Peru may be said to consist of a line
of sandy desert, five hundred leagues in length, the breadth
varying from- seven to above fifty miles, as the several
branchea of the Andes approach to, or recede from,
the shores of the Pacific Ocean. It presents great inequa-
lities of surface, and has the appearance of having once
formed a part of the bed of the adjoining ocean. Were it
not for the stupendous back ground, which gives to every
other object a comparatively diminutive outline, the sand
hills might sometimes be called mountains. The long line
of desert is intersected by rivers and streams, which are
seldom less than twenty, or more than eighty or ninety
miles apart. The narrow strips on each bank of every
stream are peopled in proportion to the supply of water.
During the rainy season:in the interior, or from the melt-
ingof the snows upon the Andes, the great rivers upon the
coast swell prodigiously, and can be crossed only by means
of a balsa, which, is a raft or -frame-work, fastened upon
four bull-hides sewed up, made air-tight, and filled with
wind. A few of the large rivers reach the sea, but most
of those of the second order are consumed in irrigating the
cultivated patches, or are absorbed by the encompassing de-
sert, where it never rains ; where neither birds, beasts, nor
reptiles, are ever seen, and where a blade of vegetation
never grew. Sometimes a rill of water bubbles up, and is
lost within the space of a hundred yards. Very often
the banks of rivers are too steep and rugged to admit of
the water being applied to the purposes of irrigation ;
consequently the surrounding country cannot be cultivated.
No stranger can travel from valley to valley, as the in-
habited strips are inappropriated called, without a guide ;
for the only indication that the desert has been trodden
before, is an occasional cluster of bones, the remains of
beasts of burden that have perished. The sand is fre-
quently raised into immense clouds by the wind, to the
great annoyance of the traveller, who generally rides with
his face muffled up. The obstacles to moving a body of
troops from one point to another in this country can only
be appreciated by military men who have had to contend
against them. But description, unaccompanied by a state-
ment of facts, will fall short of conveying even a faint idea
of the horrors of the desert.

" It is not a rare. circumstance for the most experienced
vaquinos, or guides, to lose themselves. In this case,
terror instantly reduces them to a state of positive insanity.
Unless they recover the path by chance, or are fortunate
enough to see other travellers loom about the horizon, they
inevitably perish, and their fate is no more known than that
of a ship which founders unseen in the distant ocean. In
the desert, a puff of wind obliterates the footsteps of a
column of soldiers."

Our limits press us to a conclusion : suffice to
say,.that the volumes before us are fraught with
information of the most important events that
our times have witnessed; and that, in order to
render them more explanatory, they are illus-
trated with geographical and military maps.

$ Benavides remained with the Araucanians until, find-
ing himself cut off trim& most"of his followers, be embarked
at the end of two years in an open launch, and sailed for
Arica, intending to join -the royalist party in Peru. Being
in want of water on the passage, the launch put into a
'null cove near Valpiraiio. One of his men betrayed
him, and Penavides closed his career on the scaffold, at
Santiago, on the 23d February, 1821

The town is full of company, and the arrivals
daily are very numeroul.—Brighton Gazette.

.UNUSUAL OCCURRENCE.--a gentleman of

this -city went over to the Scarborough Musical Festival,
and.took up his' quarters at DONNER's Hotel. All the
beds in the inn were engaged, and he was provided with
one at a neighbouring house, where his sleep was by no
means refreshing, owing to an unusual and unpleasant
Smell in the room. On the following day, he perceived
that a coffin was concealed under' his bed; and in the
course of the same ►lay, the silent companion of his slum-
bers was carried forth to burial.— York Chronicle.

The whale fishing in the Greenland seas has
almost totally failad this season, from the packed or close
ice. Most of the ships had left Greenland fur Davis's
Straits—the dernier resort of an unlucky season—in May.
—Scotsman.

The herring fishing in the West Highlands
generally has now fallen off considerably ; and fewer ar-
rivals at the Broomielaw are consequently taking place.
The fishing in Lochfine continues brisker than any of the,
other stations, and a greater number of boats are constantly
employed there, Salt herrings are sold in town at 2/. and
21. 2s. a barrel.— Glasgow Chronicle.

The scarcity of partridges is not, generally, so
great as was predicted. There are a great number of late
broods, not yet fit for the bag. On the Ist, Mr. GiFFARD
and roar friends killed, on the Walton Estate, Staffordshire,
partridges, 13;1 brace--harc,, 27.—Worcester Journal.

Some excellent aftermath crops have been se-
cured in this neighbourhood.— Worcester Journal.

N:p less than ninety-six potatoes were taken
up from ore root in a garden at Bury, last week ; the stein
measured seven CET:. -- Cambridge Chronicle.

Harvest is drawing to a close in this quarter,
and will be completely finished before the Rood Fair—the
.al period assigned for its termination. In Galloway
and Dumfries-shire a great number of farmers have already
celebrated Lai-ygst home, and from all we can learn, but
little grain is left LArtit, though a considerable portion
?mains to be carried.—:/uLifrjes Courier.

A awn time since we informed our readers
that two aabb,4a had been cut in a garden, at Aberyatwith,
. one 161b5., aAd thß i*,er rilbs., which we thought ex.
traordinary ; but we have aim been informed (for the truth
of which we can vouch) that cr.,l,l4ges have been cut at
Narbertb, weighing not less than 2414, each, end there are.
many of an eyisi tize growing in the same garden belonging
to Mr. TRomns, tailor? Narberth.—North Wales Chron.
It is remarkable. that 64 summer birds of pas-
sage, of which the swallow is the first, )ave already con-
gregated proyiwsly to their migrating. They;;'e full one
month earlier in their 4n-wafture than last year. On the
ather"hand, the, throstle, the red-wing, and the field-fare,
which iFtt us in March, have returned, as well as the ring-
ouzel, to winter in our sheltered situations...—Porset
County Chronicle. -,
1

the various prints
GRAVE IDEA.'-'"`ArtiLMB
arid nrichtgres that are now to be seen In the print-shops
we have lately t; ,;deed one of a coffin, on which
written
" An apartment for a".iingle gentleman ;" and underneath,
" A grave idea."
carriage-roadDollbaldlaernr!afdwk.lanberis Lakes
is
nosy
Carnarycni to
laid
.open to the pub-
Th.!. Mr. PARRY of the Uxbridge Hotel, sent .a large patty
up oil Tuesday morning in a coach and four. Tourists
will be rejoiced to hear they can now gain access to this
beautiful spot withent being jolted to pieces in a rugged and
dangerous road, or compelled to cross the lakes whether
they wished it or not. —Nort4 Wales Chronicle.
On Friday, as W. PREECE, of Hereford, was
in a boat fishing for eels in the River Wye, opposite the
Castle Green, he distiovenid the body of a female floating
in the water. On the wrist of the left arm of the body
was a cord tied, ;bout a yard in length, with a noose at
the other end. The deceased proved to be Atirt AwDREws,
who, on the preceding Saturday morning, had left her
service in a respectable family in that city, and had not
'ince been heard of; and nothing has vet transpired to ac-
count for the melancholy situation in which the body was
Cheltenham Chronicle.

FOREIGN INTELLIGENCE.

FRENCH PAPERS.
(From the Gazette de France, dated Sept. 11

ODESSA, AUG. 20.—The timiof the departure of the
Emperor for the army is not yet known, but it is sup-
posed that it will not be before the end of the month.
It seems certain that his Majesty will return by sea to
Kovarna, or, as we flatter ourselves here, to Varna,
the siege of which is pressed with great activity. It
is said, that Count Nesselrode will remain here with'
the diplomatic body, and that only those among the
Foreign Ministers who are military men will accom-
pany. the Emperor to the head-quarters. The Grand
Duke Michael, who left us yesterday, will take the
command of the Guards, whom he will conduct to
Varna.

It appears. to be the intention of the Emperor to
carry on operations beyond the Balkan during this
campaign, after the taking of Varna, and to content
himself during that time with keeping Shamla in-
vested by a considerable corps. The army before
that place endeavours to blockade it more closely
every day ; but this is attended with great difficulty,
for a corps of Turkish cavalry of 2,000 men lately
made a sally, and attacked a Russian convoy.. They
killed many men belonging to the escotirt, and
carried off about 100 oxen.

PARIS, SEPT. 10.—We have reasons for not be-
lieving what :the Courrier Francais said yesterday,
of the overtures made by Lord Heyteshnry to the
Emperor Nicholas.
(From the Messager des Chambres of Sept. 10.)
(EXTRACT OF 'A COMMERCIAL LETTER.)

CONSTANTINOPLE, AUGUST l4.—The campaign
which the Russian armies have commenced against
the Turks may be of longer duration than Was ex-
pected by more than one European Cabinet, and if
the Porte sinks under forces so colossal as those
which its principal enemy brings against it, and the
intestine dissensions by which it is torn, at least it
will not be without glory. According to the, ac-
counts which are received from all quarters, it is in-
credible what bravery and perseverance are daily
shown by the Mussulmans at Varna, Shumla, and
Silistria, either in repeated sallies, in partial attacks,
or in defence of their intrenchments; only it is de-
plorable for humanity that the animosity with which
both parties fight should assume so ferocious a cha-
racter. The Russian fleet before Varna is still obliged
to keep at a distance from the port.

If the Turkish naval force had not been destroyed
at Navarin, Russia would have met with a resistance
at sea equal to that which it now experiences at
every foot of land which it attempts to invade. The
immense army which is assembling on the heights
about the capital, and along the Sweet Water, is to
amount to 200,000 infantry and 80,000 Asiatic
horsemen, according to the hopes of the Turks, who
are fully resolved to shed all their blood in defence
of the walls of Constantinople ; in fact, for several
days past, a great number of troops, and parti6ularly
cavalry, has been arriving from Asia, The Sultan
rema►ns firm in his r6irlution to put himself at the
head of this army. All the Rayas are arrested in
the streets, to make them work at the entrench-
ments, which are to he defended by 300 pieces of