The Sun.
London, England, 1810-12-31 00:00:00

" Constitution."

We trust that we shall not be.suppoled to mean
any thing like disrespect to the Royal Dukes, when
we contend, that. In .a Constitutional point of view
all Peers of Parliament are *equal, and that the rights
of the junior B.tron arc equal, as a Peer of Parlia-
-tueut, to !he •first Duke in the Kingdom. We ne-
ver till now heard a contrary doarine advanced, and

,wc certainly aid not expect to. hear it controVerteJ,
fur the first time, in" a Paper which always Pro-
fesses `its' admiration of what are called Whig
Principles. But the ' part of the above paragraph
to .which we object most
,strungiy, as being
most indecent .as well as unconstitutional, is, the in=
sinuation, or rather the assertion, that the decision
of the Majority of the House rot Peers on Friday,
strikes at the first principles of the Constitution. It
is not new, we confess, to hear the Oppos:tion
Writers-and Sppakers contend in tavour of Minori-
ties, but we re-assert, that it is neither decent nor
constitutional to state, ilia; a Majority of the House
of Lords, consisting of one hundred Peers, at.‘ting,
. upon a most `solemn occasion, and following an esta-
blished prece,ient, have, by their vote, strt.ck
diteEtly at the first priori; les of the Constitution.—
We should' be glad to know upon whato+ grounds
this bold assertion is madek for none are stattd, ex-
cept' that the dissentient Peers hare entered .a pro-
test against the decision of the Majority. We wish
the Morning Chronicle would favour us with argu-
ments, instead of assertions, upon this subject.—
Candour or itistice tdwards the present Alini,teis we
have ',nu right, to expect from that Paper, but -.te
we should have expected that it would have conde-
scended, at least, to.unswer Lord GREN VILL E'S argu-
tnent4,betore it passed so heavy' a censtife upon' his
conduct. In the 'event of a change of Ministers,
LbrctGatNv.lLLE, we piesurner would be -recOnr
mended by the Chronicle as the fittest. person•to
put at the head of the newAdarinistratioil ; and yet
we'are told by'that very Paper, that,upon one of the
most important questions that ever occupied the at-
tehtion of Parliament, he has concurred in a y,ite
that 'Sr strikes directly 'at the first principles of 'the
Constitution."

The Morning Chronicle'ot Saibrday thought pro-
per to assert, that Lord BuRGHERSH bad arrived frtim
Portugal, and that, according to report, he .bronght
an account of the'distressed state of cur army for
want of succour:l; it also 'added,—" We have also
" reason to believe that Lord WELLINGTON IS cort.
" vinced of the utter zmpraaicability (f the Oa
of his, expedition.''--The same Paper of this day
. .
corvains the following paragraph :—" We Are happy
" to learn, upon inquiry, that the report of the
.• Allies being distressed for provisions, by the non-
" airival of supplies from England,: is 'nut true.
" Lord BURGHERSII was not charged with any con-
fidehttal communication to that effect ; and the
" Noble Lord continues to entertain the 'most son-
guinellapes of Ultimate 'sticcess.—

After this arne?ide honorable, Nye shall only express
our, hope that. in future that Paper will condescend
to inquire, before it circulates suet' glOOrny and un-
founded-reports reipeairil otir'artny,in Portugal.
The acc.-ennti brought by the a/alsing ham packet
say;that one artily is ricitie best state of health
and spirits, and are abundantly supplied with provi-
sions. _-The.'kiwo armies remain nearly in their
former positions.,, ' `'4

The QUEE.N and Princesses ELIZ NnEvrti and MARY
did ilot leave :Windsor Castle on iSaturcjay.
incesses AvoosTA and, SopulA,
.atkended by
Lad) ELY, General,CAaTwRIGHT, Colonels TAYLOR,
and DESBROV, .ro*Oe' on horseback in. Windsor Park
on Saturday. -

Tile Dukes of YORK and CAMBRIDGE arrived at

Windstir ,on, Saturday, and went on a Shooting
party. •
On•-Satuiday Connt`GoTTOtt'r, Sir .StnNEY' SMITH,
and Mr. COCKBURN, had a long interview with the •i
Marquis of.,\VELLEst.EY at Ansley House-.
Yesterday. Count GOTTORP Jett town. on•a visit to
the. Marquis of BUCKINGHAM,•at-his noble mansion,
Stow, in BuckingliarrOnre...

The WEEN ,and RoyAl, FAMILY heard-Divine
•
Service performed io Windor Castle Yesterday ;
afterwards they went to Vrogcnore,. anal returned to
the palace at two o:clock.. „.
It iy with sincere regret we state the melancholy
loss of his Majesty's sloop of war the Satellite, of
16 gnus, commanded by the 'Ron. 'WmioUoußY
BEHTIE, with all`the crew. She saiksifrqui Spit-
head on Monday, the i 7th in,t. to join the ships
that were cruizing off Ca Hogue. On the Wed;
nesday following,' at six o'cloCk in the evening; she
• was in company with the Vnutour,:C,iptaid •
Luss. It was then' brci,,OPg. ',very hard; an:i in 'tjie
course of the niglit,,i4,e gale increased excessively,;
blowing in most tetripestuons ' one of
these sudden gusts (which have be: U. eNperiericed,
both at sea and 'on shoe, in a most extraordOry
degreethis'w,i,n!er),,,She, it-is supposed, upset, and
everysoul on board perished ! The
,next Morning
her boats, some spars• Sze. which.were upon her
deck, were picked up by the Vautour ; • but'no other
sestige:of her has ever been seen. The,following
Officers were on board her on the 30th ult. when
she was last mustered i—Caplain Willoughby_ Bertie;
Lieutenant R. S. Farquharson; Lieutenant Thomas
Nicholar; Rd. Cornby,_ surgeon ;. Jas. Sampson;
purser; John Pearse, master; R. S. Kempster,
master's mate ; John Hendeison,' carpenter ; Ben,
jauhin BrOwd, gunner; GeO. Prout, boatswain;
George Campbell, clerk ; A. G. Babington.and'Wm.
Brooke, .midshipmen.

Tile Hon. Capt. 13t/ITIE was son of the late, and
brollter of the present Earl of ABINGD9N. He mar-,
ried Miss Fistivit, late •of the Plymouth Theatre :
.and what increases the 'distressing event of hiS
death is, that. Mrs. BEitTIE (now .in,,Portsruouth)
expects daily to be confined.—Captain ButtTo Nino
41114 29th year,.

NAVAL NEWS.

From: the LONDON GAZETTE, Dec. 2g, !no,

• Admiralty Office, Dec. 29, 1810.
Covy of a letter from Admiral Sit Roger Curtis, 134 t: Corn.
Chief at Portsmouth, -addressed to loliniViiwn
Croker, Esq. dated the 13th instant.
SIR,

I inclose a lever which I lia• e received from Cap-
tan Giant, of the Diana, infdrming me that the
boats of that. ship, under vie Command of Lieu-
t-nant Rowe, had succeeded in setting fire to the
enemy's frigate L'Ele4e, which was reported in his
letter, transmitted .with mine yesterday, as having
run ott shore to•the northward of Taiihou in at-
tempting to escape from La Hogue.
I cannot avoid expressing my extreme satisfad-
(ion that Captain Gant, atter having so rt.% and
arduously watched this, frigate to prevent her escape,
has by his perseverance 'and judgment at length ac-
complished her desouCtion, it' appears by his
report 'that— theconduCt of Lieutenaot Rowe, and
the other officers and men employed wider him on
this occasion, bas been highly meritorious.
. I. am, Sir, &c. •
• (Signed) Roon CURTIS.
- His Majesty's Ship Diana, alfi.a Hogue,
SIR, ' zith December
Since I bad the honour ot.addressing.you by the
Vautour, I have ascertained that the enemy's frigate
was sofar'embayed and protected by Taiihon, and
the batteries on the north shore, that nothing could
It...dotte with the ship to prevent the enemy from
working during the falling tide to save the stores,
kalif that the ship was 'so comp:etely bilged that
there appeared little chance of their heiog able :o
save the hull ; hoW ever, as I once already had brea
dcc'eiVed itt my expeciati,ais'of her being.destroyed,
I determined to risk the coance of the boats being
atile, to Set hen on fire, which set vice wes generally
volunteered, notwithstanding the 'ship was com-
pletely under the fire of heavy batteries, and three
armed brigs lying Within hail of her, anchored
itninediatedy after. dal k, and gave. the,charge -of
.the
boats to Lieutenant Rowe,, of the Diana, in the
barge, (who I knew would execute it if pOssible,)
Mr. Bean the gunner, and Mr. Noble.the buatswia,
who Illways ;volunteer ;:.Ltemeuatit Sparrow went
in the gig to reconnoitre aed watch the brigs, to pre-
vent surprize, atid„ Mr. knoLker, Mustees,mate,
went in the cutter, and, as the serv;ce requtred the
least possible. )oss of time,. they 'took no oilier ma-
terials but rwo kegs of the combustible •matter re-
ceived from the Roman, and I aMb.ppv to say
that, thitught.he waL%- was nearly-dp to her guar-
ter7deck, we had the. s,tti&iaction.in -au. hour from
the tiwe they, left- thiSship to 'see her corripletely on '
fire.: The hattet-le
~brigi hotoethately opeoed
a very heavy fire ef_roood grape, artst, as .our
peoPle did not leave the, frigate until the fire took
effect, it,is with. extreme pleasure I informlyou that
not a single-mad W,is Emit; ,•
Lieutenant Rowe speaks ha the strongest manner
of 'all employed ui.der hiM, and I hOpe yob; will
agree with ..we in thinkitig that: this service was
most gallantly and well. executed ;, they have, brought
.off with theiu the colours the frigate and two
other ensigns. . , ,
Captain Collier very handsomely offered the, boats •
olthe Cyane to assist, but as it was not to 14it done
by force, I deemed it best to send the boats of this
ship Only.
.„ .
Although there had. been. boats constantly em-
ployed, about . the enemy's frigate since .she .sati ,
on shore; they, had not cleared any 'part of the
wreck.-

I have; &c.

• (Signed) CHARLES GRANT.
Admiral Sir Roger Curtis, Bart. Commander
itt Chief,-etft;. Sec. &c.
Dec. e9, 1810.
Copy of a I,..!tter 'from Rear Ailintral Sir Richard coodwitt
Kg.tts, K. B. acl„tlresed to tldnriral Sir Charles Cotton,
and transmitted to johp Wilson Croker,Esq.. .
SI It,
• liar, November 24, aio.
Having, observed
..the:. enemy ..have eolle.Cted
several gun-boats in the River of Santa Maria,-in a
situation -st.r*tt to bombardment; -ar a -proper time
of.tide yesterday, I placed the mor.ar'and' howitzer
bOati ftrider 'the able direCt.on;zOt`C;plain"flill,
which,(whilst the Dev'estation, Tfitinder, -and iEtna,
with one division' of Spanish and two, divisions of
English gun-boats under the zealous•Ceturnauct- of
Captain Thomas F,Alo,ves and Lieutenant W. F.
Cafrolli, successfully drewq.he attentien'and fire- of
Fort Catilina,) threw, semingly with considerable
etied,
.sorde hundred shells among the gun-boats
and abbut the place of construction, until.the wind
coming' in trom the westward, made it necessary to.
nhove.them out: '
We have not yet ascertained :what lias:been thei
damage or loss on, the part of the enemy, 'but Wei
have unfortunately on occasion to` ament the'
death of esteemed arid,.respaale-young:
officers, Lieut. Thos. Worth and Lieut. John Buck-,
1,,nd.,‘ of the Royal Mantic -Artillery, whos-e loss is
tlitl,theme of. universal regret:, Mr: Samuel Haw-
kins, midshipman of the 'No'ge, also fell gallantly,
which, With tbur ;Spanish and font .Englist seamen
woithded, constitutes our loss in killed and'woun4ct,
on-a service, the execution of _merits. my,
warmest.preaise. ,
• • I have the honour-to be, 'BO. -7--

(Signed) •

'R. G. k,EATS.
. ,

4dmirally,Oilice,.Dec....2.9, 13 0..

Rear Admiral -Otway has transmitted to John
Wilson Croke'', E4a letter he had, received-Capt,
Manke, of his Majesty's late ship the Pallas, giving
am account of the boats of that ship, having on the
13th instant, under tlie dire6tions of
.Lieutenant
M'Curdy, captured, in the cove of Siveraag, on the
coast of Norway, two Danish cutter privateers, ono
or four guns, and the other of two.

FALMOUTH, DF:C. 28.—Sailed his Majesty's ship
L'Aigle with the Portuguese and Mediterranean
convoys ; Curacoa on a cruize ; and Prince Ernest
packet' for Jamaica►.

PLYMOUTH, DEC. 28.—Arrived the Walsingham
racket, Captain ROBERTS, from Lisbon with Mails,

which have been landed and forwarded to Lonacti,
12 days passage ; she teas off tills Port yesterday
afternoOn, but the- wind blowing strong from the
Northward,- prevented her working into the Sound
until this morning ; she brings intelligence that the
armies remained in the same position, as per last
. _
accounts. Title packet spoke -on her passage the
Amerioan ship Boston, all well, and the fol-
lowing are the passengers arrived here in her, viz.
Capiam BROTHERTON,and Lieutenant TURNER, of
the 14th Light Dragoons; Lieut. MacKwoaTu,
Royal lAzileer4; and Sm;eon WHIT.II, Of the 88i:a
•
Rtgitnent.

Arrived the Dart cutter, of and. from Gth.rnsey,
BANFIELDII)3Ster, bound to tlie Brazils.

DEC. 29.—Passed down Channel the Humber
•
hired. armed ship with a cotlvoy.
Arrived his Majesty's ships Unicorn, of 3(.; gunl,
from a crOize off Nantes ; of 38 'guns, Capt.
&Luc:m.lu, float Lisbon ; Tafturus and Wu/verities
of. 18 guns each, from. Portsmouth; and Scylla, of
18 guns,. Capt. ATCHISON, from •a' ctuize in this
Oliannel.

Also arrived the Portuguese brig Integra frotit
the, Brilzils, with a cargo, consisting t,t cotton,
hides, -and tobacco, bound to London ; wa4. cap-
tured by the -Fiend) privateer Lu &gatelle, and re-
captured by his Mje,ty's ship buldiaigable, of 3S
guns, Capt. 4itououToN. . '

Sailed-the following packets, 'viz,. Duke Mini-
trose, BLEwETT, with Mails for Cadiz lown,send;
COCK, for the Leeward Islands; and the li-indsor
Castle, surfoN,. MailS for Detnerara ; also
sailed his- Majesty's brig Virago, of 14 guns, Cap,'
Lieutenant PITTMAN, with a fleet of transports
some nf wine!) hive on bOard troops for Corh, and
were driven in here some days since by c(inirary
winds; -the ille:'usa, of 36 guns, with.bulloi;ks toe
the squadron in -Basque Roads; the cutter Lori,
BA FIELD, Fiftin, for
Cadiz • and Gibraltar ; the "graham, COBDEN, for
Gibraltar ; the George, 'GEORGE, for Tiristoi ; th
4/4 for Stint Thomas's Ste-
phetz, ThuLsoN, for Martinique; the Ainericari
:Jury, DAVIS, for Ireland ; the Good intent,
for Bri:tol; and the cutter Miranda, BLYTH, for
inutit h.

AiliVcd yesterday a transport, with. French pi'
snners, from Spain.
Came down from Earnpool and anchored. in.tht%
Sound his Majesty's ship Korth Star, of i 8 gong/
Capt. Cos : this vessel, was to have sailed this d:
with a 'fleet of merchantmen for the Downs, but
, -
is -now appointed convoy to Lisbon, and will
sail next Tuesday, the Ist January, provided•the
the wind is fair; his Majesty's ship iiomuhts, of 44
guns, takes convoy to the Downs, in,tead of the
Alotrth Stcir, the former is' expected `ox sail to-rnoi rovi

morning.

'''Arrived the Union, BRowtl ; Christian,' Coos;
and C 0772771'67; C , FooT, from London ; Indust, !I,
SMITH, from Arbildel; the Pembroke,—M-onKi',
from Cowes,. with the remaining part of the carg°-
of the sloop Tiger, COATS, wrecked there,

Sailed his :Majesty's shtps Sc4tre for the statioa
61f*: Brest 3. and Favourite on a cinize.
His Majesty's ships Armada and ilaliant are or`
dered to the 'Downs.
Arrived his Majesty's schooner It eaze! from I'•-1'
ritOut)t.

Sailed "the itlul'le4. schOoner for Milford, and ill°
Kiting schooner fur Basque Roads..

. .

Went into Baropool his Majesty's ship Spar"
tan, to tepair the damage she sustained by rinntiog
foul of a vessel...
The Rhin frigate arrived bete thitrMorning
has lost her main-topmast, main-yard, and furetor
~sail-yard. Arrived his
‘Majesty's ship Ganges, of
74 guns, from Portsmouth ; and his,D4ajestA.6llll)
_Tartarus, having on board a number of AguCli

prisoners..
DEAL, Dec. 30.7—Pasied through the Downs tbe!
= •. .
Essex East-Indianian:'
• Bailed his' Maje,ty's ships Bellona and Fisg!!"''
•to.the:Wi!st•ward 3 and the Raniagenef, for Pod''
trimith. . •
Arrived the Tribude'from the Baltic. •

' BRISTOL, DEC. 29.1—.
rtte,iday a dreadful ,stort7),
accompanied.withAunder and lightning, visitej•thii
-• ,•
ei
citzandneighbOnthood: l'he waters of the_Fii..9lll
overflowed its bankgs;, -and the valey,hetween
city and Stapleton; was one continued .sho'!i °
water.

The Welch snails- were prevented by the te111;
pestuous Weather from crossing tfit. paisage, -
several letters trmtion, that an inundation 1:05 bcea

general in the surrounding country.

LEITH, Dec. 28.—The Fancy gram-brig arrived Jt;
Wednesday frornDun bar, ith part of tire oiticcrs
men of the Pallas and. Nilnfpke frigates, which 1J
now gdno to pieces. We 'uuderstmd that forty

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deavc
Nym
seam
and

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the u

terist

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of,

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than