Star.
London, England, 1812-03-25 00:00:00

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fetertio the Petition, Because the Petitioner suffered
in his character, and Wai precluded from every other
:node of • .btaining just►ce.
The SPEAKER said, the rule of the House Might
always he evaded, if a Petition, praying for pecu-
niary remuneration, could be received, because othtr
ocher things were included in it.
Lord FOLKSTONE replied, that Sir H. Popham
having hoisted a broad pendant on board ►he Diadem,
didonkr this Officer to command under him as Cap-
tain; and it there was any thing illegal in the act, the
loss occasioned by it ought to* made good by Sir
popliam, who committed theillegal act. The pe-
6tioner did not now pray for compensation.
The SPEAKER said, he would, in such case, pin
tile question for receiving the petition.

Mr. ROSE said, this case had been heard several I
dap very deliberately before the Privy Council, and
ma/rough the case was a very hard one, the decision
was, that Captain King could not share as a Captain.
Be bad heard thit Otlicer spoken 'ef in terms of the
highest praise ; and he believed him a most merit°. ;
nous officer. Therefore there was no occasion for a
petition to remove a slur upon his character, f.r there
weer was any such slur thrown upon it.
Mr. STEPHEN stated the fact to be this. Sir H.
Popham had been ordered, when sent out on the re-
Pe• '
di,ion to hoist a broad pendant ; that he did so,
and in order to entitle him to the rank of a flag offi-
cer, lie appointed his First Lieutenant (King) to be
Captain of his ship. It afterwards appeared that Sir
H. Popham had no right to assume the rank of a flag
officer, and therefore, though the case of Capt. King
was very hard, the Council decided that he had not
it legal claim to share as a Captain, the appointment
not having been a legal one.
Mr. WHITBREAD asked, if there was to be a
sufferer in this case, whether it ought not to be the
person who had misconducted himself ? Captain
.King was, to all intents and purposes, a field officer.
Bin because Sir H. Popham had misconducted him-
sell, he was to take advantage of such misconduct ;
and Captain King must be made a victim, tor the
purpose of entiching Sir H. Popham. He wished
then, to know why a- petition, complaining of such
grievances, should be rejected by the House, especially
when the petition did nut pray for a sum of money ?
Why did not Ministers advise the Crown to do the
act ofjnstice now reqyired?
The CHANCELI,OR of the EXCHEQUER
could not construe this petition in any other light than
as requiring pecuniary relief. If the Noble Lord
wished to proceed in this question, the proper mode
would be, to move for all the papers that could give
information upon it. The Privy Council had, after
a solemn deliberation, determined that Sir H. Pop-
ham had lone an illegal act, in making himself *
flag officer, and making his Lieutenant a Captain.—
The Lieutenant did share as such ; and being only a
Lieutenant at the time, he was not entitled by law to
share as Captain. He asked, would that House coun-
tenance an appeal from the decision of the Privy
Council, which must be the case if the petition was
received.
Mr. PONSONBY observed, that if every Petition
taight,ln its remote consequences, produce to the
Petitioners a remuneration in money, the House must
be at a loss how to protect the' rights of the People.
Be would, however, recommend to the Noble Lord
to withdraw the Petition, arid move for a Copy of
captain King's Memorial to the Privy Council. Cap-
tain King had a claim upon the public, and he hoped
as opportunity would be afforded the House to judge
of the case.

Sir C. POLE said, Captain King, before the af-
fair in question, had been appointed Captain of the
Espoir, and did share prizes as such at the Cape of
Good Hope. He, therefore, thought his claim a very
!air me.

Mr. YORKE admitted the hardship of this case,
but said, that Captain King had received what he
was legally entitled to. He highly respected Captain
King as an officer, but he could not consent that the
Petition be received, because the relief prayed for
could be nothing else than that of having his pecu-
niary loss made up to him. Sir H. Popham had no
power to promote any officer at all. Here was not
the least motive, or pretence, for charging the Go-
vernment with injustice in this case.
Lord COCHRANE contended, that this Officer
ought to have shared in the rank in which he was
serving ; and, by the decision which took place, an
injustice was done to the Lieutenants in the expedition.
he conceived that the Privy Council had committed
a great error in the decision they gave ; and for that
reason the House ought to take the question up.
Mr. PETER MOORE contended, that the Peti-
tion did not contain any application for public money.
Admiral HARVEY was against receiving the Pe-
tition, because it 'was an application for public money.
Mr. CROKE R was against the Petition.
Mr. BASTARD maintained, that, as Captain
king had been paid as full Captain, he was entitled
to ail emoluments belonging to such rank. It was
ease of great hardship and oppression.
Lord FOLKESTONE was willing to comply with
the hints given hint respecting the Petition. As to
Captain King, he repeated his assertion as to the
hardship and injustice sustained by that officer, who
bad all the responsibility. of a Captain; and therefore
%*as entitled to all the advantages. He then proposed
to withdraw the motion, and that was done accor-
tngly.
Lord FOLKESTONI then moved for all Memo-
rials presented by Captain King to his Majesty, &c.
respecting the capture of Buenos Ayres.
Mr. YORKE would vote against this motion, on
'the. ground of no notice being given, and the House
1)"11$ taken by surprise.
Mr. WHITBREAD moved that this debate be
adjourned to the Bth of April.—. Ordered.
CAPTAIN TOMLINSON'S ciisr.
Mr. WESTERN called the attention of the House
to the prosecution that had been carried on against
til:s officer an a ch.r.ge of forgery, and moved for
t° Pies of all the documents connected with that trial,
sncluding the indictment, etc. He said his motive in
doint; this was to vindicate the character of as brave
and honourable an officer as any in the service ; be-
cause Captain Tondinson had had no other way of
removing the stigma thrown upon his character.—
lien Mr. Western entered into a history of the case,
and stated that Captain Tomlinson had done no snore
than sign certain papers made out by his officers, for
whose conduct be could not be held responsible. He
contended that the prosecution was instituted from

THE EVENING STAIt

LONDON.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25.
LADY-Dar.—.-Holiday at the Exchequer and Bank.

THE FRENCH SQUADRON.

" PI.YMOUTH, MARCH 43.

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Monday last, and states, that on the 14th, in lat. 4. Si
16. N. long. 6. 13. %V. he passed a fleet standing to
the S. W. which he took to be the outward-bound
East Indiatnen; and at Lloyd's the Indiamen under
convoy of the ANTELOPI are supposed to be those
seen by the Nvituuts frigate.

ar6otts Motivet totter& Capin Tomlinson, who
had been appointed to the command of a fleet of tire-
ships against the French fleet in the Scheldt. It did
appear that he had not been supplied with those stores
that were absolutely necessary to ensure the success
of his enterprise, and the safety of the men tinder his
command. He wrote a very strong representation to
the Navy Board on _hat subject, and he did believe
that that representation had led to that prosecotion ; The ENTREPRENANT schooner has arrived at Ply-
which followed ;this he could ahnost pledge himself
mouth from the Mediterranean, and has been put
to prove, if the papers he was about to move for wet e
granted, which atone were necessary to enable Captain under quarantine. She brings dispatches from Ad-
Tomlinson to justify his conduct. He concluded by miral Sir E. l'etasov.
moving for copies of the correspondence, and other j When the ENTREPRENANT called at Gibraltar on
documents, upon which the prosecution against Cap- the 21st ult. it was understood that the French were
taro 'lsomlinson was founded.
Mr. CROKER said, the Hon. Gentleman had' preparing to attack Tariff.' again, with a division of
done no more than right to impute neglect and ma- 15,000 men, but the brave garrison was well peva-
lice to the Navy Board, since, according to his own ' red for them, having been reinforced.
statement, without such groynds being laid, the
The ENTREPRENANT put into Cadiz on the 23J.
fii the would not entertain the present motion. He,
General BALLAST EROS, with his division, returned to
however, would state to the House, that no delay
—no neglect—no malice—had ever been displayed St. Roche on the 20th ult. from the vicinity ot Malaga,
on the part of the Navy Board towards Captain where he had an action with the enemy, in which
Tomlinson. The Hon. Secretary said, he would • 300 were killed and 80 taken prisoners.
state to the House the circumstance which led to his
prosecution. Captain Tomlinson had for several years LISBON MAIL.
been concerned with Mr. Tanner in a sort of mercan-
tile dealing and ship.bailding ; Tanner ultimately A Lisbon Mail arrived this morning Active pre-
became a bankrupt, and demands were made on Cap. parations are making for the siege of Badajoz on the
taro Tomlinson. Captain Tomlinson denied having part of the British. On the other hand the French
any connexion with Tanner so far back as the time have succeeded in throwing abundance of provisions
this demand went. A trial at Guildhall was the
consequence ; a document was called for from the into it, but they have no me as of relieving it by re-
Navy Board, to prove the connexion so far back as inforcements. The head-quarters of the British have
1795 and a blacksmith was brought up from Dart- been removed to Elvas.
mouth, to prove the hand-writing was his ; but, on ; The dispatches from Lord WELLINGTON are dated
the document being put into his hand, he denied all
at Freynada, on the 26th
knowledge of it, and said his name signed to it was ultimo, but they contain no
a forgery. This circumstance, thus singularly dis-news•
covered, was stated to the Navy Board, and they 4
delivered the document to Mr. Jervis, their legal ad-
viser, who was ordered to proceed as he thought
proper upon it. No other instructions had been given
to him by the Navy Board. The Hon. Gentleman
then, at considerable length, answered the other
points of Mr. Western's speech, and contended that
no part of the proceeding against Captain Tomlin- !
son, had originated in malicious motives on the part •
of the Navy Board, but that the Board was actuated
by motives of public duty. He concluded by op-
posing the motion.
Lord HENNIKtR alluded to the trial, in which
the Attorney General had stated, that he had nothing
on which to impeach Captain T. who was, therefore,
acquitted in the most honourable manner, on a charg-
, for an offence said to have been committed 15 years
before. Captain T. conducted the fire-ships to Wal-
cheren, and behaved remarkably well, and his recep
Lion at home was this prosecution. The Secretary ;
the Admiralty had gone into details on the subject,
and yet refused the papers asked for, in favour at A
gallant and Honourable officer, whose honour and ,
teelings were wounded, and who had been in 7`2 en-
gagements fightiog• for his country. (Hear.) Surely
there was no Naval Commander in that House who !
could think of refusing him the means of justification. !
A long discussion then took place, in which Mr.
Brand, Mr. Wm. Smith, Mr. Whitbread; and bit
Francis Burdett, supported the motion ; and Sir
J. Thompson, Mr. Robinson, the Chancellor of the
Exchequer, and Mr. Yorke opposed it.
Mr. WESTERN shortly replied.
When the House divided—For the motion 31—
Against it 53—Majority 22.
COLONEL Ii'MASION.
On our re-admission, we found Mr. C. WYNNE on his legs,
moving for a copy of the appointment of Colonel AVMahon as
Secretary to the Prince Regent.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER. said,he was nut
aware of ahy opposition there could be to the production ot this
document ; but before he gave his assent, he wished to know on
what grounds the Hon. Member asked for it
Mr. WYNNE observed, if such was 'the Right Honourable
Gentleman's wish, he would postpone his motion, and name a
thy to-morrova.
The.other orders of the Day were then disposed of, and the
House adjourned at half past Our.

'The intelligence from Spain conveyed through the
medium of the Lisbon papers is gratifying. The new
Government at Cadiz gives universal satisfaction, and
the various partizans who support the patriotic cause
are still actively employed in the field, and the French
troops seem to be returning towards F►'ance.
The Government has published an extract of Blake's
dispatches relative to the fall of Valencia. He en-
deavours to extenuate his m;sconduct by blaming the
unfortunate inhabitants, whose timidity and conster-
nation, forsooth, were such as to induce him to sub-
mit to his disgraceful capitulation : it is evident, in
short, from the length of his justification, that he is
; ashamed of his conduct.

The following are extracts from the Lisbon papers
brought by the above mail :

" LISBON, MARCH 1 .

" Head-quarters were at Freynada on the '26th
ult. but if we are to believe reports, they are to be this
day at Elvas. Badajos is very strong, and no doubt
will make a most vigorous resistance ; but unless a
very powerful army comes to its relief, it must sor'n
fall. The ordnance, &c. as well as all the army, are
in full march for the Alenteio ; two divisions are
this day crossing the Tagus at Villa Velba and
Abrantes."

" LISBON, FEBRUARY 2s.

" Letters from the Alentejo, state, that the Trench
are collecting in Badajoz all the provisions which they
can plunder the country of, and that they are forti-
fying it as much as possible—desertion still continues.
A letter from Portalegre, received by the same cou-
rier, says, among other thingc, that fifty deserters,
with their arms, had entered that city."
" The accounts from Cadiz of tlle ISth instant,
are very satisfactory. Th:.! new Government has
displayed an energy hitherto unknown. Its orders
and their effect have been extended from Catalonia to
America. They are decisive and promptly executed.
Many useful reforms have been made in the Isle of
Leon, where the English General, Doyle, so well
known to the world by his ardent patriotism in the
cause of the Peninsula, is employed in disciplining
the Spanish recruits in that island. All the disposa-
ble Anglo Spanish troops have marched to reinforce
General Ballasteros, who is equally vigilant and for-
tunate in his enterprizes. General O'Donojou has
gone to take the command of the troops in Murda,
which appear to require organization."
" FEBRUARY 29.—1 n the Corunna Diary of the
19th instant, it is officially announced, that Espoz-
mina attacked, about the end of January, the strong
position of the bridge of Lordosa, which he forced,
taking 632 prisoners and as much grain 25 loaded
500 beasts, and also three pieces of artillery."

Our readers will see by the subjnined letters that
the French frigates which escaped from L'Orient
have been seen in the direction of Lisbon. We trust,
however, that their career will not be of long dura-
tion. Their main object seems to be the capture of
our homeward or outward-bound'lndiamen :

w Came in, the NYADIN frigate, from a cruize. On the 14th
instant, k lat. 47. long. 6. fell in with five sail of the line and a
brig (French), and 111414 so near as to exchange shots with one of
them. The NYADSM escaped by superior
ANOTHER LETTER, SAME DATE.

" VALENCIA DE ALCANTARA, FEW IL
" According to the last accounts, the French wbo
evacuated the Principality of Asturias have collected
in the vicinity of Leon.

" Arrived this morning, the NTADEN frigate, Captain
WOVEN from the Westward. On the 14th instant, in lat. 47.
long. In. she fell in with a French squadron of five sail of the line'
and a brig, which chased her, during which three large ships ap-
peared to windward; tlicy proved to be East-Indiamen. The
NTADEN fired guns, and made signals to the Indianian, and they
took the alarm. '1 he NTADEN then stood towards the enemy,
under a press of sail, with a view of making them believe they
were line-of-bottle ships, which bad the effect, as they wore
and stood away ; but, the lndlamen having made sail to escape,
the enemy hove about and again chased the Reapers, but she
escaped by superior sailing.
,4 It is she opinion tithe °Scene( Oh^ frigate that the Inifiamen
got clear off..-1 be Namsais did not fall In with a single
battle ship, after losing sight of the French squadron, but die-
patched a brig to warn the squadron of Brest. It was blowing
very hard at the time, and but for the NTAIIIIIT the Wench aqua-
then would have been In the midst of the ladhunen in a few-
hours."

" It appears that General Conpigni is going to
command in Majorca, where the legions of Doyle
and Whistingham are organizing with the greatest

activity.

" The French ht Badajoz are greatly afraid of the
approaching siege of that place, and are making dis-
positions which indicate the dread they have been in-
spired with by the recent catastrophe that has befaaen
their arms at Ciudad Rodrigo."

L,o JANUARY to.

La PIQUE frigate sailed from Portsmouth on the'
Ist of March, with five nail of East Indiamen and a
whaler. The ANTILLOPt man of war sailed from
Portsmouth 10th March, With nine sail of East India.
men and two whalers. Captain How.tau, of the
Monarch East lidigman arrived at Porumouth on

se The enemy continue to *have their head-quarters'
is Zafra, occupying the ground from Estremadura
to Atalaga, and Valverdis, where 700 Poles of the
garrison of BA dajoz art quartered, who lately arrived
at Zara.

" On the 26th passed through Almonaster from
Hnrloa, for Badajoz, a convoy of meal and biscuits ;
to-day will enter in Freyenel 800 barrels of meal,
likewise proceeding to Badajoz. On the 22c1 the
English took another in St. Martha, whscb was also
on its way to that tortress."