Star.
London, England, 1810-01-10 00:00:00

HENRY WOODTHORPE.

COMMON HALL.

Yesterday a Common Hall was held for the pur-
pose of receiving the Report of the Lord Mayor and
Sheriffs, on the Address voted by the Livery to his
Majesty.
About two o'clock, the Lord Mayor and Sheriffs
entered the Hall, and his Lordship having taken his
seat on the hustings, stated the purpose for which
they were assembled ; and requested that in the sub-
sequent discussion, they would give every Gentleman
a fair, candid, and impartial hearing. His Lordship
was much applauded.
The Clerk then proceeded to read the Report of
the Sheriffs, which stated, that the Remembrancer
had called at the Secretary of State's office with the
Address, and an intimation that it was intended to
present it on the Levee day. Next day he was told
that it must be left at the Secretary of State's Office,
to be presented (as was usual with all Addresses, ex-
cept those from the two Universities, and the Corpo-
ration of London), by him to his Majesty. On the
levee-day the Lord Mayor told the Secretary of State
that he then had the Address in his pocket, and
wished to present it. The Secretary said it was best
to give it to him, and he would save the Lord Mayor
all further trouble; to which his Lordship replied,
that he would not consent to present it to any one
except to the King in person ; and that it was both
the wish of himself and the Sheriffs to do it in any
way which would save his Majesty most trouble. The
Secretary said, the King's pleasure had been already
taken and expressed as to the mode of presenting it.
Mr. Sheriff Wood then demanded an audience of his
Majesty, which the Secretary replied could not be
granted, except upon some especial and expressed
reason, and that no audience could be granted on a
subject upon which his Majesty had already expressed
his pleasure. Such was the Report, to receive which
the Hall had been called.

After tlae Report had been read,
Mr. FAVELL came forward, amidst loud applauses,
and said, din the strongest feature by which despo-
tism was distinguished from a free Government, was
a free communication between the subject and the
Sovereign—an open and easy approach to the Throne.
Such was the right which they were that day assem-
bled to assert ; and without which, their Constitution
could not be distinguished from a despotism. (*-
Name). Every friend to the country must be anxious
to see that right established—every friend to the King
must have a similar feeling. And he alone was the
best friend to the country, and the most loyal subject
to the King, who wished to extricate both from evil
and dangerous councils. (ifildaure). Bad men
would, of cousre, raise a cry against this doctrine ;
and bad Ministers, as was natural, would deprecate
enquiry—they would shrink behind the Throne, and
represent those who were dissatisfied with their con-
duct, and dared to speak out, as hostile to the Go-
vernment, and unfriendly to the established order
of things. But was it, he would ask, hostile and un-
friendly to sympathise with those brave men, whose
blood had been cruelly and unnecessarily spilt ?—men
who had ever been forward to serve the interests of

their country ; and who, in no instance, had ever de-
serted or disgraced its standard. (Applause). The
man who could and would offer such sympathy was
the best friend to the Constitution. When he used

the word Constitution, he did not mean to use it in
the pair maiere sense which men were fond of who
lived by abusing it, and who were ever ready to ex-
claim against those who wish to restore it to its pri-
mitive purity. Were such men real friends to the
Constitution ? Would they have opposed the ship-
money ? Would they have established King William
on the Throne of England ? Would they have strug-
gled for the Hanoverian succession ? Would they
have shed their blood upon the scaffold on which a
Sydney and a Russell suffered ? (Loud applause:). He
would now read some of his Resolutions, but before
he began, he wished to save them and himself
some trouble, by asking whether they would wish to
have their Address presented, as usual, to the She-
riffs, and printed in the daily newspapers, or would
they have it sent to the Office of the Secretary of
State ?
To thi4 latter proposition an universal negative
was instantly given ; upon which Mr. Favell said he
should then only read the Resolutions which he judged
necessary, and was sure they would be supported by
every man who was favourable to those principles
which had placed his Majesty's family upon the
Throne. (Loud applauses.)
,Mr. Favell then read his
Resolutions, and retired.
Mr. JONES came forward to second the Resolutions.
The Livery of London had always held the right of
having their Petitions presented to his Majesty upon
his Throne. Of late, however, that right had been
foregone, and the petitions were generally presented
upon the levee days, and even this right was now be-
come a matter of discussion. He could not help de-
claring, that he thought it in the highest degree dan-
gerous to wave a right under any circumstances (ap-
plause.) If they now consented to do so, and allowed
their Address to be sent to the Secretary of State's
office, for the purpose of. being by him transmitted
to his Majesty, it was very probable his Majesty
would never year a syllable on the subject. Ministers
ought not to oppose Addresses from the People. If

. -
they had acted wisely, dig he nothing to fear from
the expression of public; switieent ; and if they had
acted in a contrary aaanaer. kin, only just that his
Majesty should be warned of their incompetency,
and rescued from the consequent evils of their ma-
nagement, (applatue.) They had heard that those
men who were most loyal were the men who sought
'to keep evil counsellors from the Throne. It was a
'most judicious observation, and needed no comment,
lus he was sure there was not a man that day in the
Hall, who was not convinced of its validity. (Mr.
Jones then retired, highly applauded.)
On the first Resolution being read,
Mr. WAITHMAN said, that he was anxious to pre-
sent himself thus early to the Hall for the purpose of
Icorrecting some misconceptions which had gone
abroad with respect to what had fallen from him on
the last occasion on which they had assembled. He
had then alluded to some Noble families who had re-
ceived muck money from sums appropriated to the
public expenditure. These sums had been certainly
much mis-stated, partly by-the reporter, and, as was
most likely, partly from misconception by himself.
He wished now to take the opportunity of explaining
that which he intended to have stated on the last day.
He intended to say, that there were certain families
in England who received 4150,000 per annum out of
the public taxes, and that the families of Hertford
and Castlereagh participated in this receipt tb the
amount of 440,000 annually. These two families
were nearly connected, and he meant to state them
at the time as one family, whereas it had got into
the newspapers that he had said each family derived
such a sum in separate profit. He had, indeed,
stated, that the families of Hertford and Castle-
reagh received for offices executed chiefly by deputy,
thirty-one thousand pounds per annum. This intel-
ligence he had derived from the public prints of the
day, and there was no one in the Hall who could not
form an opinion from the same sbnrce as himself.—
When he had mentioned the share that Lord Castle-
reagh had of such sum, he, of course, was to be un-
derstood as not imputing to him the participation in
such share after he had retired from office. He had
been also stated to have said that Mr. Perceval's fa-
mily received 860,000 a-year, whereas all he meant
to have imputed to it was a receipt of £46,000 in the
same time. He had thought proper to make this
public statement, because he could not conceive that ,
any shame could possibly attach to a man for retrac-
ting an error of which he had been convinced. He
should now proceed to the business on which they
had assembled. It had been stated, that the ques-
tion was, whether they would give the Petition a
chance of reaching the Royal ear, or whether they
would be content to let it lie with the Secretary of
State ? The right of jie Livery of London to pre-
sent their petitions to is Majesty upon the Throne
had never been denied ; it had been, indeed, waved at
their last meeting, and consented to, to present it at
the Levee. Even this, it seems, had now been refused,
and the Lord Mayor and Sheriffs had been solicited
by the Secretary of State to let it be sent through his
office ; this they very properly refusedeto do, as, had
it lain there, most probably that would have been the
end of it. He had heard from a Freeholder of Mid-
dlesex, that a petition from that county had been
offered in a similar way about four or five years ago:
nothing was heard of it for above a year, until at
last on a change of Ministry, it was found in the Se-
cretary's office with the seal unbroken just as it had
been sent there—(A laugh). The reason of this ap-
parent
neglect was asked ; and the answer was, that I
the King had now, on account of the defect of his
sight, disused public levees, and that it would be con-
trary to etiquette to have it presented in any other
way. Such, of course, would be the fate which their
petition would meet with if it was presented in a si-
milar manner. The question then to-day was, whe-
ther they would give up the right of petitioning alto-
gether ; for surely such a right would merely be no-
minal, if, when inquiry was demanded why our brave
men were sacrificed, and our treasures wasted, such
demand was to be dormant until a change of Mini-
stry, or until the men who had caused such waste
and sacrifice had totally ruined the country—(4-
plague). He could not well persuade himself that he
was not living in the reign of Charles the Second, in-
stead of that of George the Third ; such was the si-
milarity. In Charles's time, all those who wished
to petition the Crown were branded by an incapable
Ministry as enemies to the Constitution, and so they
were now. He wished to impress those facts strong-
ly on their minds, and might, on that account, be
accused of tautology ; but he would submit to the
charge, sooner than not make the impression which
he intended. In those times, indeed, the Parliament
were the staunch friends of the people ; they reproba-
ted and prosecuted all those who denied the right of
petitioning the Throne for their being convened, and
even went so far as to enact the following Resolution
against one of their own Members who had procured
Addresses to be presented, expressing their abhor-
rence of the exercise or assumption of such right—
" Resolved, That It has appeared that Sir F. Williams has be-
trayed the undoubted rights of the People, and accordingly he is
expelled the House fpr thin high offence."—(Loud iipplawe.)
That Parliament was, of course, found rather incon-
venient to the Ministry of the day, and, as was the
case with the late Parliament, was immediately dis-
solved. What a wonderful similarity was this !
Then, however; in that Hall, the Citizens of London
were staunch friends to the Country, and in their
re-election of Common Councilmen, selected those
who had served them faithfully, thanked them for
their conduct, and declared their intention to stand
by them to the last shilling of their fortunes and the
last drop of their blood ?—( Loud and general apislaue).
An awful silence succeeded—it was the silence which
forewarned the eruption of the volcano; the Revolution
followed ; a bad King was driven from his Throne,
and deserted by those very Loyalig: who would sup-
port the Throne by treachery to the People, and prop
the Constitution by nourishing its abuses—(4ftplause).
If the patriots cf those times had so much trouble to
defend their rights, how must that trouble be increee-
ed now, beset as they were by an army of tax-pp
therers, both high and low, living on the people.—
The only way was to strenously assert their privi-
leges, and establish once more their interest hi the
country, by banishing the host of tax-gatherers, and
the inquisition of the-Property-tax—(AlAmte). Let
bad men be driven from power, and a stand made by
Parliament against corruption, and then the People
might again have confidence. Let no violence cre-
ate alarm ; but let firmness unite with moderation,


and the manly independence of Englishmen tol,N
assert theirs privileges.—He gave his hearty assent
all the propositions.
The three first Resolutions were then put and car-
ried unanimously.
The Resolution was then put which declared tlL,t
those .vho had advised his Majesty to refuse to rt..
ceive their petitions, were guilty of a scandalou,
breach of their duty, and
.a violation of the Constita.
tion. (There was only one hand held up aga;nst it,
which, we understand, was that of the son of Mr.
Deputy Kemble.) This single opposition to the gt.
neral voice produced a clamour of disappr.bation,
and an universal hiss.

The-Loan MAYDR come forward, and represented
that every individual had a right to exptess his opo
nion upon every Resolution proposed, either by his
speech or by holding up his hand. lie therefore re-
quested that no individual might be impeded in die
exercise of this right. (The clamour continued how.
ever to be very great, and many called out " then let
us hear his reasons.") The obnoxious individual,
however, shock his head, and remained silent.
Mr. Quie then came forward, and sAid, that ,!;.1
not come forward as a mediator for any man, al‘Ji uch
as a supporter and warm asses ter of the rights tir.d-
privileges of the Liver:men, he would say that every
man had a right to a fair hearing. They ought not, •
however, to consider that they were contending agaivra -
one man, nor even against a thousand; and so Iv
from wishing to discourage their enemies from shevr.
inn themselves, it was necessary to give them t! ;F.' •
chance of coming forward. They had not a battle ;0
fight against individual opposers, but they had to cc:a.
tend with the Treasury, the Excise, the Tax-gatherer_;
and, perhaps, even the Army, the Navy, and the
Church, ( Here a murmur of disapprobation arose, a-.ci
a Liveryman called " Look at the University of Ox-
ford) might be pressed into the ranks of their ene-
my. A Petition which was to be delivered to the
Secretary of State, would be handed to the Clerk
of the Council, to bring before the Lords of the Cons-
cil, to consider whether it should ever be laid before
his Majesty or not. For several years past, the right
of petitioning had been frittered away. At first, up-
on account of his Majesty's infirmities, the Petitions
of the City were only to be presented at levees, and
now it was said that they were not to be delivered at
all into his hands, but to be sent to his Secretary.
Now, although he bad as high a respect as any man
for the feelings of his Majesty, and as much sorrow
for the infirmities of his age, yet he could not under-
stand how it was possible that it could give much pain
to the Sovereign to stretch out his royal band at a::
levee, to receive the Petitions of his City of Londu,
when he gave audiences to private individuals. A.. 3
to the miserable men who now filled the different
offices in the Executive Government; he considered
them upon the brink of ruin ; and that this advice
which was given to his Majesty, was merely the cry
of despair. It did not proceed from any conscious-
ness of strength, but was a presage of their destruction.
The fifth and sixth Resolutions then passed unani-
mously.
The Resolution was then read for instructing their
Representatives in Parliament. The substance of this
Resolution was, that they should move for,-or sup.
port any motions to be made for an enquiry into the
circumstances of the calamitous expeditions to Spitln,
Portugal, and Holland, wherein British blood and
treasure had been shamefully lavished—also, to en-
quire into every violation of the right of the subject
to petition ; into the improper expenditure of the pub-
lic money ; the correction of public abuses ; the mu
necessary and burdensome places and pensions, and,
above all, that they should support all measures for
shortening the duration of Parliament, and bringing
them back again to their constitutional purity.
This Resolution was also passed unanimously with
the exception of. young Mr. Kemble. (The perseve•
ring opposition of this young gentleman to the general
voice excited considerable clamour, and many persons
cried out Kemble, what do you want ?do you ex-
pect to be made a tax-gatherer ?)"
Upon the Vote of Instruction to the R epresenta-
tives being pa-sed,
Sir WILLIAM Cott= came forward. (For a con-
siderable time hisses prevailed, intermixed with the
cries of " hear the old Commodore.") Having ob-
tained a hearing, he said, that he now conceived it
his duty to deliver his sentiments. He did not non
mean to stand forward as the champion of Minis-
ters ; he had delivered his opinion against them us
another place.—(4o/aure.) He wished an inquiry
to take place on the Walcheren Expedition ; but
he believed the Noble Lord who was at the head of
it (Lord Chatham) was as anxious for an inquiry as
any other man. As to the right of petition, he
would always contend in favour of it on the part of all
his Majesty's subjects, but more especially on the part
of the Citizens of London, who had exercised that
privilege from time immemorial. He knew that the
Petitions of the Livery were formerly received at the
Levee ; because he himself, when Lord Mayor, had
presented at the Levee an Address from the Livery
of congratulation to his Majesty, for his recovery
from a dangerous illness. That, to be sure, was a
complimentary Address. ( Loud laughing.) As to
receiving instructions, they knew his sentiments. lie
would go to the House of Commons to hear the ar-
guments on both sides, and (as GOD was his judge) to
determine according to his conscience.—(i/m/aam)
Alderman COMBE said shortly that he should
into the House of Commons prepared to obey the in-
structions of his constituents; and that if ever his
conscience should not allow him toobey these instruc-
tions, he would resigns This appeared to him to be
the duty of a Representative, and this was an opinion,
which " fire would never be able to burn out of
On the present occasion, not only his duty but hi
opinion went along with the instructions which hehad
heard read, and which he was very ready to obey.--
(Loud applauit.)
Sir JAMES SHAW said, that on any subject which
regarded the rights and privileges of the City of Lon-
don, or their local interests, he would cheerfully °bey
the instructions of his constituents ; but that on all
subjects of general policy, applying equally to all
parts of the United Kingdom, he-would colasider bun*
self the representative of freemen, and a freenun
himself. (Murmur: of diregsprolvaion.)—As to the
Walcheren expedition, he was ready to declare that
he thought it had disappointed the just hopes and(/'
pectations of the country, (a general laugh) and rs
s therefore a subject of serious inquiry. As to hisopuncfn
respecting sinecure places and reversions, he conceived

al
11.
111

that they had be' s eently proved by his con uct
- •
the finance Committee, of which he had been a
attendingre-
°ll.l"- Member. As to the right of' petition-
guar reed with what had been so well said by the
:1„e
he Ag , _ House of Commons, that not only
Koko. of the
T;e doors of that House, but the ears of all publie
"- en melt to be open to petitions. He should, there-
;plc, at all times feel it his duty to present and
body
fit, not only petitions from that respectable body,
but the petition of the meanest individual who com-
01,,ined of oppression.
r (The other Resolutions were carried unanimously,
mr. Kemble having previously retired, amidst a vol-
ley of isses.)
The h
thanks of the Livery were then voted to the
LoRD MAyoa, who returned thanks in a short speech:
Mr. FAvELL then proposed a Resolution; voting the
thanks of the Livery to Mr. Sheriff Wood, for his
rdepeficint conduct at all times, and particularly
"or demanding an audience of his Majesty. (After
considetable delay, the Resolution was altered, and
ad as a vote of thanks to the Sheriffs ; but the ge..
I shout of the Hall was No, no !—Thanis to Sheriff
mod ody.)
tla
The thanksbeing accordingly voted to Sheriff Wood,
That Gentleman rose and thanked the Livery for
tan honour the,- bad done him. It became necessary
for him to answer insinuations which had been gene-
rally thrown out, that he had wished to rush into the
presence of his Majesty, in order to insult him. Insi-
rations of this sort had been perpetually thrown out
from the same quarters. If eve, there was a question
of presenting Petitions or Addresses try the Sovereign
respectinVhe rights of his subjects and their interests, 1
it was always said " Do you want to insult the grey
hairs of your Sovereign ?' This was a trick however
which was now somewhat stale. It was no insult to the
Sovereign, whatever might be his age, for the subject
to exercise their undoubted right of petitioning for
the redress of, grievances. He was certainly very
wiles to accomplish the duty which had been as-
sired to him of giving their Address into the hands
vfhis Majesty, and as it had now been resolved that
ele Sheriffs should place into the hands of his Ma-
jesty the Resolutions passed this day, he wouldagain
do every thing in his power to obtain an audience for
the purpose.—(ANdause.)
A partial cry was then raised for Mr. Sheriff Atkins.
Sheriff ATKINS then came forwar4. He said, that
be only presented himself to declare his readiness to
answer any questions which could be put to him by
those who called upon him by name. As he didnot
And, however, that they had any question to ask
him, and as they had not voted him thanks, he was
kft but little to say. He could, however, appeal to
his brother Sheriff, as also to the Lord Mayor, whe-
ther he had neglected any part of the duty which had
dercired upon him. If he was conscious of such ne-
I;lect of duty, he could not present himself to them
uit:l that conscious rectitude that he did at present.
-As he heard no reason assigned for refusing him I
thanks, he did not know what obsertmtions to make I
on the s•ti•ieet.
Mr. Sh•triff WOOD then came forward and declared,
t:7.t '.'t ?brother Sheriff had been as attentive as it was
Intsible to be to the duty which was assigned to them,
nrd had !leen as -anxious in his endeavours to procure
as ::liclie:lce.
(Several voices tried, he ought to he j lined in the
Vote of Thanks ; but the majority of voices was—
" No, on, 'ye cannot forget his former conduct.")
TIAe Re•olutiors were then ordered to be inserted
in :'ll the I\locnittg and Evening Papers, and the Court
adic,urn..d.

FRENCH PAPERS.

PAWS, JANUARY Q.
'The introduction of spun cotton, of whatever qua •
Fty or country, was prohibited by a French Imperial
Decree of the 22d December.
Colonel Burr, formerly Vice-President of the United
Stres, arrived at Hanover on the 16th December.
According to letters from Petersburgh, Count Ro-
inanzoff, Minister foe foreign Affairs, was on the eve
of setting out for Paris.
Gustavus Adolphus, late Xing of Sweden, is to
take up his residence at Switzerland, near Morat,
where an estate has been purchased for him.
By a Russian Ukase of the 9th November, the ex-
portation of grain from the ports of the White Sea and
the Baltic is subjected to a duty of 50 copecks, insteacl-
ot 6, for each measure. The Magistrates are enjoinC•d
act to allow the quantity of corn exported to ev..eed
. .-
ore quarter of the harvest.

SPANISH PAPERS.

SEVILLE, DECEMBER 13.
We learn, by various letters from Madrid, that the i '
Spanish prisoners taken by the French in the battle I
of Ocana, officers as well as soldiers, were stript of
their clothes in Arinjuet, with the design of making
itlielieced, in that capital, that the Supreme Junta
keeps its armies in excessive nakedness ; they more-
over took from the officers the commissions granted
by Ferd:nand the With and t'-.e Supreme Junta.
The prisoners reached Madrid almost dead with cold,
hunger, and beaten with the but-end of muskets and
cudgels, like beasts ; a spectacle so melancholy ex-
cited in those inhabitants all that compassion of which
they are susceptible, and their hatred of their oppres-
lots increased, when they learned that they had taken
•'*.va7 the clothes for the purpose of lessening their
mthusiasm for the lawful Government which they
adore.
DEctsiata 20.—The French have retired from
Santa Crux, El. Viso, and Valdepenas. Seven bun-
dild French Who had come out of Parnpeluna to col-
!"ct contributions in some neighbouring villages, were
Ili-rounded by two patriotic parties, and all put to the
sword, not a single one escaping. Two pieces of
Ition were likewise taken on this occasion.
BADAP3Z, DEC. 21.
On the 24th ult. an English merchant ship arrived
in the port of Cadit, with all kinds of arms and am-
311lition ; as also a vessel from the same country,
sth a very considerable quantity of muskets; and
the 29th another ship arrived with a cargo of a
Pniilar kind. This proves the groat interest which
',enerims and dear allies have taken in the success
')f our enterprize; which, if it can be effected by arms,
men, and money, must terminate gloriously. Our
esteem and affection for this generous nation, ought
therefore to be proportionate to the efforts it has made
in our favour.

•

LONDON.
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 10.
PRICE OF STOCKS THIS DAY AT ONE O'CLOCK.
3 per Celt: eons. for money, 691 ex. div.—acc. 69U.
Reduced 69}1-omnium 3; prem.
PRICE (iF STOCKS YESTERDAY.
S per Cent. Red. 69i Imp. Ann 71
4 per Cent. Cons. 681 ei div. Excbeq. Bills, 9s. 12s. pre.
4 per Cent. 841 85 841 Omnium, 21 3 prem.
3 per Cent. Navy 991 ex. div. State Lottery Tickets £22.15,.
Long Ann. 18 9-16 Consols for acc. 70ifi
India Bonds, 275. 28s. pr.

An American frigate passed DcrVer y6steiday, for
the Downs, and took a pilot fur the River:

We have this day given a'few farther extracts frOin
the French and Spahish Papers received yesterday.
Some Madrid Gazettes have since been received, but
their contents are not important. One of them says :
" Lord MACDUFF and Colonel Roche are the active
and indefatigable agents of England with the Spa-
nish armies. They had a narrow escape at the battle
of Ocana."

Accounts from Holland received yesterday state,
that it was hoped they would be able to avert the fate
with which they were menaced. Alarmed by the
threat of annexation to France, the Senate and Le-

gislative Body were understood to have represented,
through King Louts, their readiness to adopt and I
enforce any measures suggested by the French Go-
vernment for distressing this country. They also
agreed that Holland should give every aid of which
it was capable, in any way to the French finances. In
this representation, some of the principal Commercial
Houses are said to have joined. It is possible the
proposition may be accepted, but we doubt whether
it will prevent the eventual incorporation with the
French Lrtpite.

Last night dispatches of great importance were re-
ceived by Government from Lord MLNTO, relative to
the situation of affairs in India. Dispatches were also
received at the Admiralty, a Naval Officer having
arrived at the same time.

Accounts are stated to have been received from ;
Ceylon and the Capc of Good Hope, the fo mer dated
the end of August, the latter the middle of October,
which mention that the whole of the native army onl
the Madras Establishment was in a state of open mu-
tiny, and among other places, had possessed them•
selves of Hyderabad and Seringapatam. It is not
stated that any European Officers are among the re-
volters, and the mutiny was shortly expected to be
quelled, as 11,000 of the King's troops had taken the
field for that purpose. A corps from Ceylon, and two
regiments from the Cape of Good Hope, had been
sent to co-operate in restoring tranquillity. Lord
MINTO, it is added, had arrived at Madras. Other
accounts speak in terms more calculated to tranquil-
lize the minds of those who were so alarmed by the
previous reports. One of these says There have
been no disturbances of a serious nature. Lord MINTO
had left Bengal, and proceeded to Madras, to confer
with Sir GEORGE BAIU.ow, who had found it necessary
to quit the seat of his Government, though, as a mea-
sure of precaution, he had taken up his residence at
the Government House in the fortress."

Last night, at seven o'clock, circular letters were
sent to the different Cabinet Ministers, requesting a
full attendance at a Cabinet Council, to be held this
day, at two o'clock, on business of great importance.

Sir RICHARD STRACIIAN is arrived in town from
Flushing. The gallant Admiral had yesterday an
audience with the Lords of the Admiralty.
Sir S. SMITH is about to be employed upon a new
Expedition, now in contemplation.
Mr. PREVOST, Secretary to the Austrian Legation,
with Mr. AGNEAUt also attached to the same em-
bassy, sailed from Dover about one on Saturday
afternoon, in the Elizabeth flag of truce, for Calais.
The Secretary is charged with dispatches for Prince
4CHWARTZENBURG, the Austrian Ambassador at
Paris, and it will be recollected that we stated
on the 22d ult. that, in the event of the return of
MAINTZ the Messenger being delayed beyond the
limited period of ten days, this Gentleman would
proceed to Paris.
A Paper of yesterday states that Mr. Husici&soN's
retirement from office did not arise from any particu-
br attachment of that Gentleman to Mr. CANNING
The friends of Mr. H. give out 44 that so early as last
May, and when holding the office of Joint Secretary
to the Treasury, he was so acutely impressed with a
sense cf the distresses of the country, and the lavish
expenditure in those Departments, the conduct of
which fell more immediately under his official cogni-
zance, that he made powerful representations upon
these subjects to his colleagues; accompanied with
the intimation, that if certain plans of retrenchment
and check were not adopted, he could no longer har-
rass his feelings and encounter future responsibility, li
by partaking in the management of concerns conduct- i
ed upon principles so injurious to the country."
The Princess Mary packet is arrived at Falmouth
from the Leeward Islands, in 30 days from St. Tho-
mas's. The Mail by her will be in Town this day.—
The Lady Arabella packet arrived at Barbadoes 13th
November, and sailed on the 15th, for Jamaica.
The Hope, with a cargo of chesnuts, is arrived at
Portsmouth from Gijon, which place she left on the
31st tilt, She brings letters of that day's date, but
they contain no news. A boat, with letters from the
interior of the country, was chaced by a French pri-
vateer at the very moment she was shifting her course
towards the Hope, and was forced to throw her letters
overboard, but put some passeogers into the Hope.

A detachment at the 10th regimeat.embarked _
terday' at Portsmouth, arid they expect to sail imme-
diately for GtiernseY, to strengtheo that ,arritcin, as
the regiments there are nearly all embarked for
Lisbon ; amongst these regiments are the 57th, 61st;
and 94th.
Detachmerits of the jist acid 82d regiments, from
Walcheren, have landed at Portsmouth; and will,
march agreeably to War-Office-routes ; the former
to Horsham and the latter to Lewes Barracks.
Saturday and Sunday detachments of the 14th and
sth regiments of Infantry, were landed at Deal and
Dover, from Walcheren, and haste proceeded by the
coast to be embarked on the Royal Military Carial,
for their deStinations on the Sussex district, the 14th
at Steyning, and the sth at Bexhill.

Dr. FERGUSSONI Medical Superintendant-Genera
of the Portuguese Army, takes his passage on board
the same frigate with Genial STEWART.—The brig
Bell, late of Sunderland, has, we understand, been
fitted for his reception.

INTELLIGEArCE.

PLYMOUTH, AND PLYMOUTH=DOCK, JAN.*.

The CALEDONIA, ST. GEORGE, ACHILLE, CN.SAR,
and IMPETVELTX, are ordered round here from Ports-
mouth, to be fitted for the Channel service. Arrived
the CAmmEtt hired cutter, from the Eastward ; NON-
PAREIL schooner, 12 guns, from Falmouth; PHCEBE
frigate, from the Downs ; .and MI. ER frigate,
from a cruize.—A signal is flying for a fleet in the
Oiling, but the weather is so hazy, that unless they
come nearer, it will be impossible to ascertain what
`they are.