Star.
London, England, 1808-01-28 00:00:00

• t •
you attacked them' A. I cannOt•fpeak poritivelys;
perhaps 300 of the enemy—my party 'confined of
about so men. . ,„ , •
.• . Lieutenant COlonel Dove.
I commanded the tight wing of the 88tir regiment
on the morning of the attack. I feel it neceltry to
(late to the Court, that upon getting under. arms on
the morning of the attack, I felt my force In weak that
1 was convinced I would not be able to accomplith
the objth upon which I was difpatched. I fent to
head quarters and refueled to have two of my com-
panies out of the three that were there': thee two aim-
pat,i,:s joined us jult as I was marching off ; and to
my utter allonifliment I perceived they had no flints
in their arms. I Aced Major lernmonger, who
commanded them, and direfted him to give me
fome reafon for their appearing in this manner He
intimated to me that General Gower had direeted
him to take the flints out. I immediately ordered
Major Iremonger to get flints from the other com•
panies, if they could (pare them ; but I am lorry to
fay the whole did not get flints. Major Vandeleur,
who commanded the left wing, reported to me that
two men actually fell in the Itreets, in the att of put-
ting in then flint., after we advanced to the attack.
I had fa bad an opinion of the attack in my own
mind, that l left my colours at head quarters, fearing
that they might be taken. According to the fririt
of the order of art ick which I received, 1 divided
my battalion into two wings. each wing confiding of
about zag rank and file. I direCted Major Vande-
leur to lead his wing to the fpot General Lumley
ordered me, and to penetrate as near the principal
defences of the enemy as he could. I then led my
own wing to a clairch I was ordered to take poffef- I
lion of by General Lumley. I met with no oppofi•
tow or firing until I entered the gateway, when the
enemy commenced a tremendous fire of. mufketry
from the opponte bottles. Having loft' nearly 30
men in the gatew ty, and finding it impraelieable to
break open the cnurch doors with. the implements
that were given me, I deemed it prudent to leave
the flotation and penetrate the city further,.in hopes
of gaining a more advantageous pofition. On leav-
ing the entirch we %vete afTailed with continualfiring,
and I penetrated the city until I conceived I was
near the citadel. Finding that I 101 l fo many men
in the flreets—four grenadier officers being wound.d
near me ; the Major, Adjutant, and Affidant Sur-
geon killed, and having 101 l in killed and wounded
from 8o to too rank at .d file, I defiled to the left,
and rook polled-ion of three Ironies. I formed my
men on the tops of two of them, agreeably to the
fpirir of my orders. After having maintained this
p„fiti ,n about four hauls, finding that I loft a great
number of men, even here two of my officers being
wounded—the enemy facing me in all ditations,
and hearing no fire en my lett, 1 aaually concluded
that the left mutt have retreated, as I received no
Cupp:tit. After fending for the officers and taking
their opinions up or the lubjeet, I deemed it prudent
to accept the enemy's terms to furrender, on the
pr-.solo that they treated my men and officers as
,hey ought to do.
On being marched prif'ners to the citadel, I re-
j Aced to find that I had laved my men's lives, as I
found 1 was fur rounded on all fide, by at lead three
tr t:,ur thoufand armed men. On entering the
citadel, I found that Major Vandeleur had been
compelled to furrender about halt an hour before
me ; as far as my recollation carries me, out of this
(mall detachment, for it could not be called a regi-
ment, I loft about 220 killed and wounded, and
feveri officers.

• .
a ditch tit, feet deep ,by. twelve wide: I,,hur:ried
my men on as fall as cowld, and on geeing nut of
he ditch, I found that the greet terminated in a
(mall five, leading down to the river fide, and that
we were in front of the wellern fide of the city, from
which the enemy cornmeaced a very heavy fire upon
us. With the Alliance of. fame men with the but 1
ends of their firelocics, we (o;ced a large door of a j
earner houfe, which led into a fmall yard or (square,
being a houfe with four wings. I directed the houle
on the oppofite fide alto to be lor)ken open, being
infenfibly drawn there by the fit e. I directed the men
to shelter themfelves as well as they Gould, and as
an inducement, I held out to them that they would
be fupported. I polled men on the roof of the fir LI
houfe we occupied, and as I found it impoffil)le to
remain here from the file of the enemy being fo
great, I ordered the men to afcend the parapet next
them, in order to get upon the next Utile, which
was occupied by the enemy, who lay concealed behind
the wall, and every man that attempted to pet over
to them, was either (hot or knocked down. Our men
fill occupied the oppofite hcu(e alfo, but both panics
were much tended to the enemy's fire, from the
furreunding heufes being higher than ours, and we
maintained our prifitions tmtil abiut a quarter after
eleven o'clock, when I confulted with my officers
what could be done. There teemed to be.no ap-
pearance of fitpport, and we heard no fi:ing in the
direction of the Plaza; a great number of men and
officers lay around us wounded, and we agreed that
without a breach of humanity, we could not hold
out longer, on which we held out a white handker
chief, and immediately a tipanifh officer jumped up
from behind a wall. Captain Carrol, who inter-
preted, informed him that we furrendered upon
terms. He immediately atked what terms ? I
replied; we only required quarter and the care of the
wounded. He immediately put his hand to his
break and replied, that they were Sp-ruiards, and
At/ay: treated their prifoners with humanity; on
which terms I yielded, and gave him my (word. He
then gave a [hour, and an immenfe number of the
enemy came over the walls and received the arms
of the men, after which they conducted the officers
to the Citadel, and the men to feparate prifons.
(No questions were put by the Court or by General
WHITI Loexs, and the witnels accordingly with-
drew.
Brigadier General CRAWFURD called.

Being requelied to continue his narrative from
where he lett off on his former examination, he fpoke
as fo:lows :
" In the written difpofition I received for the
attack of the town, it was direded that my brigade
fhoold enter it on our right in the centre, in two
columns, the left column to confiit of five companies
rff the light battalion, and fix of the 95th, making
about 600 men, and the tight column of four of each
of thole, making about 540 ; the left column to
receive its orders from Colonel Pack, and the right
from myfell We were dilated to penetrate, if
poffible, quite down to the river, and there to occupy
any of the light houfes as near as poffible to the
centre of the town or the market place. The brigade
being formed early in the morning on the two roads
which had been pointed our, advanced upon the
ligoal guns being fired ; as we entered the town, the
left cAlumn under Colonel Pack was of courfe the
neareft the north eaft of the enemy's pofition, and
came fir ft into adion. I paired with the right column
right through the town, and arrived with the head
of it at the beach without meeting any attack, except
from (mall parties of the enemy ported on the houfe
tops or the fireets, who ocsafionally fired upon us as
we paired, but without much effed. I law that the
fort was at the dillance of 450 yards, and as in the
pofition in which I then was, I could not fulfil the
object of the difpofition given me, I determined to
advance to the fort. I knew the 45th regiment was
dire6ted to enter the town by the two areas imme•
diately on my right. I fuppofed, therefore, that this
regiment was at that time on my right, and I fent
Brigade Major Camplorll to order Colonel Gard to
advance with the 45th by the ftrcet, in the fame
diredion parallel to the beach, and informing
Lieutenant Colonel Pack at the fame time, who had
already made a very vigorous but unfuccefsful
attempt to penetrate through the enemy's principal
pofition. From what Colonel Pack had ken, and his
general knowledge of the town, he was induced to
urge me to go to the Refidencia, which is on the
extremity of the fouth fide of the town. This was
between fevers and eight in the morning, and
although I had The grealeft dependence in Colonel
Pack as an officer, yet I did not think I fhould have
been juaified in retreating at this early hour to the
Refidencia, which I might certainly have effected
without any lots or difficulty : this converfation
paired clofe to the Convent of St. Domingo, which
was one of the polls I had always confidered I was
to occupy. I therefore refolved to take this pofition
in the mean time, hoping that I might receive fame
rapport or co-operation to enable me to advance (till
further, and in this opinion I was confirmed by that
of the traly brave Major Trotter. (litre General
Crawford flied tears).
little thought, when I thus, to the ben of mj
judgment, obeyed the orders I received, that no
effort of any fort would be made to communicate
with me. I had been directed to take certain posts,
and there to wait for further orders, and this was
one of them. Almolt immediately after we took
polreffion of this building, which was very dole to the
emirs main pofition, a confiderable fire was di-
reeled from the tarrouncling houfes again(( all thole
parts of it from which we could annoy the enemy ;
and the roof of it not being flat, it was not fo advan•
TWSNTYSECOND DAY. tageous as the buildings in that town were in gene
Major Vewnrt.tva again c.zled. . rah It was about to o'clock, and I had no reafon
After explaining to the officers and men &seta as I to fuppofe that any confiderahle difafier had befallen
art of nor army ; and when about this time a
could, the object of attack, we advanced into thelown .toi any p •
upon hearing the tignal guns. We loon perceived tot bparnfh officer with a flag df truce approached the
the enemy's videt tea, who retired upon our approach, convent, I flattered myfclf
.os c
that the other columns
looking to the tops of the !routes on each fide as if .hays Rahlffhed themfelves as near to the enemy's
givir,6 direCtion,. I ordered the column to advance "on frcipal pofition as I was, General Liniers was dif-
fed capit. When he ca into the rc
in double quick time. We were infiantly affailed o- fa the to
convent,u la
hete informed me thamte the 88thp roegih with a molt tremendous fire of mufketry, grenades, men(, and tome other corps which he did not name,
thole pots, and other combufiibles, which fcorched
were prifoners—that all our attacks had failed, and
the men molt dreadfully. We pulhed on, however,
and when we arrived within fight of the last fquare that he was charged by General Linters to fummon
we frund a breastwork formed of bags of earth' ,me to furrender this I peremptorill refuted. and
built (tiredly actors the flreet, which we had fosere
{the officer went away.
difficulty The communication I have jet related, as well
in afcending, from being covered with raw
as the confideratinu that I had been above four hours
hicks. On gaining the top oktlsis, we defoessled into •
this • h
in poii
wit out any perfon from our troops