Star.
London, England, 1824-01-21 00:00:00

PRESENT STATE OF SPAIN.

tERIOUS TUMULT AT A LICANT.
Letters from Alicant, of the 30th December, relate a
• *lost nefarious attempt by the Governor, Akalde,
and Military Officers of that place, to interrupt public
tranquillity, by insults to the lower orders, with the
view of representing afterwards to the Government at
Madrid, that the town was in a state of rebellion, and of
claiming the merit of having suppressed it. The object
of ;he military officers is supposed to have been that
bf ensuring the continuance of the rank they then held,
it having been rumoured among the garrison that all
those who did not hold a commission from the King,
who were by far the greater number, would be dismissed.
The soldiery began by provoking the people collected
in the-streets by insulting language, from which they
proceeded to acts of violence. The plan failed in part,
from a miscalculation of the temper of the people in-
Suited, as the greater part of thnn fled immediately
and shut themselves up in their hou,es, and the whole
was therefore reduced to a scuffle of a lew minutes with
Abont a dozen of the rabble, who defended themselves
with stones against the attacking patrol and guard of
the barrack:. The Governor, however, in order to
give impOrtince to •he affair, ordered that no one after
prayers shauld appear in the streets, on pail of being
shot, and that the gates of the city should beiinn diately
close 4. This was about four o'clock in the aft rnoon,
and in constl rence about 1500 persons were los ed out,
sync) were not allawed to enter till nearly seven, when
r‘vcry one was closely examined as he p issed,and either
permitted to proceed home or sent to some place of con-
f. --ment, at the will of the Governor (.r of the Alcahle.
Thus a number of persons, perfectly respectable, were
tied toge.her and dragged to the common gaol, the dif-
fetera guard-b,mes, er the damp dungeons under the
town-wall. Twenty eight persons were shut up in a
stab'e, with no ni,re ventilati• n or light than that oh.
taine4 th:ouli a hole in the door about two feet square.
During tie night a great many more were dragged
from their beds to prison. One merchant, who chanced
to he afflined with illness, was suffered on that plea to
remain at home, but smtinels titer e stationed in his bed-
room. One individual, by name Mariano. Piqueres, had
- been released on submitting to a fine of 300 dollars ;
aad nine others, persons of the lowest class, had ob-
tained the sane boon because no cuntributiol of that

tiature could be expected from them. Whilst theie
acts of oppression were going on, the soldiery mani-
, fisted the most violent conduct ; and a Lady of the
name of Waring; in the act of closing the windows, was
fired at by one of the sentinels, and the ball lodged in
the wall about two fret above het head. Subsequently
to the night of the pretended tumult, the alguazils had
been busily employed in arrests among the citizens;
and it was understood that lists of proscriptions bad
been prepared, in a hick every person able to pay a fine
Of two chllars was included.
The terrified inhabitants of Alicant were actually
putting up their prayers for the arrival of a Fiench
garrison, as the only means to save them from destruc-
tion. These proceedings on the part of the Governor
and soldiery have not, as it is asserted in the private
letters from Alicant, the smallest ground of justification.
No elements whatever of rebellion remained in that
place ; the known exaltados, or violent supporters of the
Constitution, had all gone abroad; and arms of every
description had long been given up by the inhabitants,
including even foreigners of every description.
The following account of this affray is communicated
in a private letter from the Spanish capital:
" MADRID, JANUARY 6.
. •• In Alicant there has been a serious disturbance
on the 26th. Some boys were playing with money,
and some soldiers passirg, either in jest or ear ne
laid hold of the pieces, and cried out " Viva el Bey
Akoluto r the boys, in playful opposition, cried
out " Viva le Constitucian r Upon this the soldiers
began to heat them violently; their parents hear-
ing the noise, came out of their houses, and remon-
strated with she soldiers words ensued, and they cut
,n both sides with their knives. The Governor was
made acquainted with it, he ordered the garrison under
arms, and the gates to he shut, it was then about four
o'clock. lie their ordered the troops to march and take
up everybody they round in the streets, which they did,
arresting above two hundred, who were conveyed to the
dungeons of the prison. The people returning from their
walk, surprised at being shut out, did not bear it quietly.
Tire Governor then ordered them to be let in one by
one, inquifing who they were, and of these about 300
were marched off to prison. Mr: Athy, an Englishman,
was one of the number; the Consul went to reclaim
hi n, but was wit listened to. When he returned home,
a s'lot was fired at his window. The next day, the Go-
er rot requested of some clergymen and friars to give
an account of the prisoners, who they were, their con-
duct, &c, they gave favourable answers; but four Al-

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Wiles asserted gibe the colitrih; an at the •eta
thirty.six hoop, only thirteen persons had been re-
leased, and those of the )west stamp, friends of the
Alealdes. We wait the publication of the Governor's
story—which will nos doubt be figurvd into a grand plot
of the Negroes—or for the private letters by next post.
• AFFRAY AT BARCELONA. ""--

. .
on their gran!, since, several days past, a number cof
military haie been assassinated by the Spaniards.
FROM THE JOURNAL DES DEBATIV MONDAY, JAN. 19.
An English vessel, coming from Quenos Ayres,which
arrived at Gibraltar about the end of December, has
brought the important news, that the remnant of the
Independent troops, under the orders of Santa Cruz,
had been entirely destroyed on the 10th of August, by
Brigadier D. Pedro,in the kingdom of Peru.

PARIS, JANUARY 19.
At one o'clock yesterday, the King received the Mi-
nisters, the Chancellor, Prince Talleyrand, the Marshals
of France, and the Ambassadors of Spain and Naples.
Oa the 11th instant, the King gave a private audi-
ence to M. le Baron Roussin, Rear-Admiral, who has
returned from cauising on the coast of Brazil, and in:
the Pacific.

The squadron under the command of Ibis Officer
was composed of the frigate Amazon, carrying his flag,
the frigate Clorinde, and the cutter Pomone. These
three vessels, commanded by able Officers, were ad-
mired by all the foreigners who 'visited them. The
Officers were remarked for their professional know-
ledge, for the excellent deportment of their Staff, and
the perfect discipline of their cress's. They rendered
important services to the French trade along the western
coasts of South America, and even foreigners have had
wore than once to congratulate themselves on the secu-
rity which they derived from the presence of the French
flag, during the successive convulsions which have been
experienced by the new Governments of Chili and Peru-
. The rumours of an approaching war between Fiance
and Spain at the beginning of the year 1823, which,
at ranch a distance from Europe, it was impossible to
reduce to their real value, bad tendered difficult the
position of the Bench vessels in these seas ; but they
were soon set at ea .e by the film and prudent measure's
of Rear-Admiral Roussin, who, after having piovided
for this first interest, set out for Fiance by the Atlantic.
On arriving at Brazil, he was informed of the prodigies
of valour exhibited in Spain by the French armies, and,
alter a short stay at Rio Janeiro, set sail for Brest,
Iwhere he anchored the 2d December, with his three
ships.—Moniteur. _

Dutch'Papers to the 17th, and llamburgh Papers tc
the 14th instant, reached us thismorning. The follow

•

ing are extracts:
SCHAFFHAUSEN, JANUARY 1.
The new Spanish Charge d'Affaires, M. de Man, is
not yet arrived in Switzerland. We hear that the first
proposal to raise a corps of four or S(X/0 Swiss for the
service'of Spain, Was made to General \Vimpfin, who
declared that no application could be m tde to the Can-
tons on the subject till suitable measures were taken to
pay the arrears still due. That General is said also to
have signified to the Spanish Government that it must
-secure to the Swiss who might enter its let vize higher
Ny than in Fiance, because in that country they have
the advantage of being able to go and:spend six months
on furlough in their own conntry,,-which they cannot
'Jo when they are in the Spanish service:.
COFENHAGEN, JANUARY 10.

•
The State Gazette of to-day annowices a severe loss
which the public has sustained, by the death of the M-
inster of S:ate, Niels Rosenkrantz.
This distinguished statesman, after having been Am-
bas odor during along series of years at Warsaw, Pe-
tersburgh, Beilin, Paris, and other Courts, was ap-
pointed, in 1810, to the Department of Foreign Affairs,
which he filled till his death, and wits invested with nu-
°Wons order' of Knighthood. He was boil) in 1757,
and married, in 1790, Princess Barbara Wiasemska•
He was of one of the most ancient and noble families of
Denmark, which has produced many great statesmen
and men of learning.
His Majesty has confided the department of Foreign
Affairs ad interim to the Minibter of State, Count
Schimmelmann.