The Statesman.
London, England, 1810-03-27 00:00:00

len th. enemy, but which bad rarely happened to
us. It commonly occurred that a French army hap.
peued to be where it was wanted ; but hu could
remember few instances of our sending one where
it could do any good. .The information Ministers
had of the enemy's force was far from boing ac.
curate. They had been informed that there were.
very few troops at Antwerp, end that it would
take five or six days to assemble a considerable
force in that neighbourhood. In June orJuly they
bad been informed by a confidential servant that
the force of the enemy in that quarter amounted
to 22 or 23,000 men. From a report however
made to the Emperor of the French, dated August
Ist, the day on which we entered the Roompot
(which he here produced and read), giving an ac.
comet of the appearance of the English, and of
the means resorted to to repulse them, it appeared
that such dispositions had been previously made
by the enemy that a very considerable force could
bully be assembled in three days. They placed
'their forte at such a distance from Antwerp as not
'1" 'to leave Buulogile Open to our attacks, yet sulli-
deafly near to defend. Antwerp, when it was
known to what point (stir operations were intended
to be diteetcd, and that arrangement aecountedfor
the arrival of a French army at the point of at.:
tack just in time... Having nova', shown 'that the-
Zxpedition'agaiest Antwerp, according to the the.
wits of all those who were consulted by Ministers
°lithe subject, was morally,' if not physically
iispoasthle, he would proceed to show that if
\those theories were not preciiely correct, if it was
not originally impossible for the enterprize against
Adtwerp to succeed, it was made so by the at.
ragensents of Ministers. One division of the
Expedition was to b assembled at Bathz on the,
31st of July. He wished to kuow what General
could take the force-wider hittemmand there with.
out disobeying orders ? Was it Sir E.'Coote ? Sir
J. Hope ? or the Marquis of fleetly ? all of whom
were employed on services which- rendered it im.
practicable, as were Lord Roselyn and Geo. qros-
iiPsor. Gen. Brownrigg had stated, that whouWal.
charms was take'', the second division of the arena.
Inent it was istended should proceed to the accom.
plishinent of the ulterior objects of the Expediti-
on. It however appeared, that the ordnance, &c.
was Dot tent off from this country till the very day
on which the landing atlantrliet was iiitended. A
corps of Lord Huntly's division, as soon as the in.
vestment of Flushing was complete, and the island
of South Bcveland taken, was to proceed to
Baths,. where a conjunct operation was to l at-
tempted, with instructions how to act should the
enemy proceed to Lillo or-Lief keusbock. There
appeared to be no particular hurry to get to Ant.
weep. A change in the pion had been made in con-
sequence of the want of boats. Sir J. !lope's
corps had-teen kept-two days in the boats; end
ordered to take a positioo to observe &hen mid
Bath. General Browengg rententlserttl • that
Lord Chatham had midi* to keep the corps of
Lorditorolyn as a hotly of swerve. Sir H. Pup.
bun bad grounded his hopes of weeds-on the mo-
bs:Won of the troops in ships of the line, which
*ode of embarkation was ordered to ensure greater
expedition. That more expeditious mode of an.
barking troops was peculiarly applied to Flushing.
The Admiralty would sot suffer ships of the line
to enter the narrow and iptrioate passages of the
Scheldt. They had given orders fur collecting
any ships but those of the line to convey the troops
up to Antwerp. The troops destined to act against
Walcherea were embarked it ships of the line, but
in the ulterior operations of the armament that
mode of embarkation was to be discontinued from
the difficulties attending= the navigation of the
Scheldt. In a letter from-Sir Richard Straehan to
the Secretary of State, no mention whatever had
been made of the ulterior objects of the Expedi.
lion. Ile had merely said 44 he would lose no
time." Sir R. &radian's instructions to Captain
Owen had mentioned—[litre much noise prevailed
in the House.]—He knew, he said, the subject
was net entertaining, but as it Vas important, he
hoped they would give him their attention. The
instructions of Sir R. Strachan to Captain Ovi*
set forth, that there were two services •to be ac.l
complished—the first against Cadsand, the second
to cut off the communication with Boulogne.
Those performed, he was to pat himself under
the command of Admiral Otway. Could it pos..
sibly be thought that any division of the army
would proceed- to Santvliet, when the instructions
given did not, in the remotest degree, countenance
such a procedure, as all the officers, without ex.
, caption, were told, either to keep behind the rest,
r: or to attempt one or two things, and then wait for
further orders. Thos itsppeared no one could
ed to Santvlict without disobeying orders.
ships of the line which had been used for
aspek ims- N ensiterirttertroops; were irotl
- so used in the Scheldt, though so , much at that
' period depended upon expedition, while the bat.
• tering train had not been sent from the Downs,
till the period at which it ought to have arrived
at Santvliet. He mould -say nothing farther I
oa the • plan or policy of the Expedition.—
. He would not even make a comment, but leave
the House to judge from all the circum-
stances, whether or wet it- was possible for the
Expedition to reach Antwerp; whether or not with
such instructions it lies possible to succeed ; and
whether or not the project did teat deserve to he
cessidered as a wild romantic vision. Ile would
now proceed to the conduct of the. Expedition.--1
He imputed the blame to neither service ; he felt,
assayed that each bad deserved well of the coati.
try, and that the failure was to be ascrihed not to
hem, but to the circumstance of their valour
bads( been opposed to obstacles which were in-
surmeentable. Hitherto he had taken but a mili-
tary view of the difficulties they had to encounter
from the situation of the place, the force they
had to encounter, Om hut. be bad now to notice
evils of c more fonnidelsia nature, which opposed,
their exertions. They had to contend with ad.
verse elements, and still more with tire herroreof
disease. It was known that the climate was tin.
healthy. Lord Mulgrave well knew it, and he
might have remembered that when he was there his
men were not only unhealthy,- but that many lost
their lives. .Yet this Statement had been sent to a
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