The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1836-03-01 00:00:00

NI 60.1 C Il 1. Sf 6

opposing party, because he had received positive orders nut to
do so. He found himself beset on all sides, and then came the
question to his mind, how was he to rescue himself and those
under his command in a situation of so much difficulty ? He
retrograded his force, and returned into a mountain-pass, which
took him over a very extensive range of country, a country of
a most difficult nature and character, ilea here it was that the
fatigue of the British legion first took place. What was the
object, he must stop to inquire, of the British legion crossiug
this dreadful line of country—for such it was well known to be
by those who were acquainted with its description and charac-
ter? Why, he could state that the object was to gain a parti-
cular road from the coast towards Durango which opened to
Vittoria. The British legion, under the command of General
Evans, came out with three days' provisions, and they were so
improvident as to consume those three days' provisions in one
day. (Loud laughter.) The consequence, as might be na-
turally supposed, was, that on the second day hunger made ra-
pid strides, especially in a country unprovided with every ne-
cessary of life. The third day the result was still worse; but
General Evan's, like a good soldier, and in conformity with the
character he had earned for himself, gained with his troops the
road he (Sir J. Elley) had already described, and by a forced
march of 35 miles preceded the course of the force designed to
have also intercepted that passage. General Evans, however,
succeeded, and he entered Briviesca—a strong place, and fully •
equal to the reception of the troops under his command, and
where, from fatigue, it was absolutely necessary for them to halt.
So great had been the fatigue and hardships the men had expe-e
rienced, that many threw away their knapsacks on the march.
The anxiety of mind,, added to personal fatigue, on the part of
General Evans, was such as to confine him to his bed for six, sr
seven days. ( Hear, hear.) 'When the legion was, however,
again prepared to move, they succeeded in gaining the high
road to Miranda del Ebro. On crossing the Ebro, the Carlists
occupied one of the banks of the river near the bridge by which
the passage was to be effected; General Cordova came up with
the Spaniards, and covered the movement of General Evans's
troops. Eventually, however, General Evans arrived at Vit-
toria, and there he (Sir John Elley) understood he and his
troops were well accommodated, but unhappily the march from;
Bilboa, to which he had adverted, had then laid the foundation
of succeeding and consequent sickness among the troops, and,
however reports which had gone forth might be supposed to be
exaggerated as to the state of General Evans's corps, yet be
(Sir John Eiley) much feared that the hospitals were now much
more crowded than the ranks. (Hear, hear.) He lamented to
state this, because his ambition was that British troops—he cared
not under whose command, he cared not for what object they
might serve—(a laugh)—should always succeed in any impor-
tant undertaking that might call for their best exertions. He
confidently believed that British troops would never leave this
country without realising the fond wishes of their fellow coun-
trymen. (Hear, hear.) Sir John then, in a digression from
his subject, animadverted with great severity upon some obser-
vations of Mr. Roebuck on a former debate, in which he had
stated that the French distinguished themselves on the field of
the slain, the English soldiers by' the stripes on their backs.
This, he said, was a libel upon the British army ; and that a more
unfounded statement had never been uttered from the mouth or
pen of man. (Loud cheers.) The French, and he spoke from
'experience, never stopped to examine either the rear or the
frontof their enemies. (Loud cries of " Hear, hear.") The
Spaniards, though a brave, were a jealous nation; they bad
never shown any affection for their best friends—they tergot
that they' owed their country as a nation to the success of at,
British army, and, as in most cases of ordinary life, they, as a
nation, were regardless of gratitude for favours conferred.
( Hear, hear.) On the 16th of January last, it appeared, how-
ever, that the British Legion moved from Vittoria for the pur-
pose of joining 'in the attack upon the Carlists. Now out of
Vittoria there were three roads towards Madrid. He- spoke
from personal knowledge of the district, for he knew every inch
of the ground, inasmuch as out of Vittoria he had followed with
the British army, during the war, the French, who retreated
with such. expedition, that so far from stopping to strip and
examine the backs of the English (laughter,) that they left
between 600 and 700 carriages behind them near the town, con-
taining the great portion of the plunder they had taken in it.
(Hear, hear.) He spoke therefore from his local knowledge,
and repeated that there was three roads, two of them leading
towards France; and the other towards Durango. The right
and centre roads were occupied by the Carlists, and the road to,
the left by Generals Evans and Espartero. General Evans on
that occasion succeeded in every part of the duty he was ordered
to execute, and with his force crossed three bridges, and took
up a good position; but, strange to say, the right and centre
columns, the one under Cordova on the Tolosa road, the other
under rF'spartero on the road leading be the left to Villareal,
both retreated without any communication of the fact being
made to General Evans; and what was the result? Why nearly
the loss of his entire corps. (Hear, hear.) This was no fault
to be attributed to General Evans. He, however, remained in
the position he had taken until the 20th of January, without
the supplies that were absolutely necessary to the forces under
his command—those forces exposed to bad weather during a
most inclement season—without any covering under which the
men could go; and eventually he fell back, and reported to
General Cordova what he hOci. done. This was the first corn-
' munication that passed bettkeen General Evans and Cordova.
Here it was that the seeds of future schisms were sown, and to
this these schisms might be traced. He was sorry to find that
unpleasant feelings bad arisen on this point in the mind of
General Evans, who, he was sure, left, with his companions in
arms, this country with perfect honour to themselves, and with
the best wishes for success in the breasts of their fellow country-
men. (Hear, hear.) Those officers under General Evans who
had served in the regular army had had a must severe task to
perform, inasmuch as another person, besides General Evans,
a Spaniard of some rank, had appointed other officer's to the
British Legion, without General Evans's sanction or concur-
rence ; indeed, some individuals had been appointed who
were so unaequainted with military matters as scarcely to know
on which side their Seoul was to dangle. (Hear, and laughter.)
As to the effect on Spanish affairs of the efforts of the British
Legion, and the subject in that respect generally, he left it to
others to deal with that question. He should, however, have
wished, that if any interference in the affairs of Spain had been
made to stop the effusion of blood, and to lead to the determina-
tion of the mute—if, in a word, the interference was justifiable
—he should haveieoned that it would have been made in a way
calculated to makteese n impression. (hear.). The hon. and-
learned gentleman opposite had paid a high compliment to the
English army, by saying that three battalions of British regular
troops would set all at rest in Spain. Now he, (Sir John Egey),
after some experience would say that ten times three battalions'
were necessary, for he was satisfied, that without a great pre-
ponderating force, no good could be effected. In a word, if, by
the scale of assistance afforded, that assistance only played sec-
ond in the concert of arms, the British troops would be para-
lyzed for want of accordance on the part of those of Spain.
(Hear, hear.) He had hoped that the government would in-
terfere in a vray becoming that dignity which the world admitted
this country to poeiese amongst nations, and that thus this san-
guinary war would have been brought to a termination. (Hear.
hear.) He trusted also that General Evans Would not be
reinforced by mere dribblets, by which no beneficial result
could possibly be attained. On a former occasion, during the
last session, he bad told his hon. and gallant friend to look well
to the sinews of war—in other words, to, look to six months'
pay welt secured in the Treasury chest. a His hon. and gallant
friend said thereon smilingly, that two months' pay would an-.
swer every purpose, for that at all events he could look to Spa-
nish treasure. He (Sir John Elley) had responded, that as
soon as blood could be extracted from a post, so soon the mir-
acle of reaching Spanish treasure would be worked out. (A
laugh.) Results had occurred in confirmation of his views, for
he found that in November last, the estimates sent for a month's
pay then due, amounted to £l3OO and that all advanced to
liquidate that amount from the military chest was £250. (bear.)
He feared he had been too diffuse on the present occasion,
but he trusted he had not made a single observation at all
calculated to give pain to any individual. He had no such
intention when he rose, and he hoped he had not strayed
so as to hurt the feelings of any person in the. world. (hear.')
Sir ROBERT PEEL in answer to Lord Palmerston, contended
that there was nothing in the quadruple treaty requiring the re-
peal or suspension of the foreign enlistment act. We had sup-
plied the Queen of Spain with 150,000 muskets, 10,000 swords,
3,000 rifles, 900,0001b5. of gunpowder, with a variety of other
stores, amounting to about £400,000, no part of which had been
paid for. In a speech of great length he deprecated the inter-
ference on the affairs of Spain, by permitting EngliSlitnen to
enlist in her service as mercenaries, unprotected by the crown.
In conclusion he said :—For my own part, 1 doubt the ultimate
result of the war which we are now assisting the Queen's-go-
vernment to carry on. (Cheers froth the opposition.) If we
succeed in establishing her dynasty by the assistance of our troops
the Queen's government cannot repress a mountain insurrec-
tion without the aid of a foreign force, I cannot bring myself to
believe that a government which rests for support on foreign
intervention, can be permanently successful. (Cheers.) Again,
let us look to our interference, or rather to our mode of interfer-
ence, as it bears on the domestic policy of England. For my
own part, I doubt the policy of letting a large force of British
soldiers enter into the service of a foreign power in the way in
which the British legion has entered into the service of the
Queen of Spain, (Cheers frome the opposition.) If it is de-
feated, it injures the national character, and damps the national
spirit. If, in consequence of that defeat, you increase its num-
bers, and raise it to 20.000 men, and if upon that increase its
exertions become triumphant, and it returns to England
flushed with feelings of victory, I will not conceal from you the
apprehensions of danger which I entertain from your -having
two different armies in your dominions, both belonging to the
same country, but connected with their officers by different ties.
At twelve o'clock the house and the debate was adjourned.