The Statesman.
London, England, 1812-11-06 00:00:00

THE STATESMAN

tore. Wo are not anxious to see the leading parte,
of the British stage tortured into the Male of
this Aspirant, but It is by such alone that he
eats establish whatever fame may be is Wait (be him.
His next effort is to be aver:ot, in Zara. How be
may triumph here by the potency of turbans arid trum-
pets, is indifferent : but the great eclat 'Must be tried
iu the characters that exhibit the human heart, and re.
quire se intellect practised and profound hi its lures.
sigation. With what hope can Mr. BetrY approach
Othello, and give life and form to that noblest por-
trait that poet ever drew of a disturbed mind?
Othello, a broad, dark, mighty spirit; torn up like
an ocean, by every straggling and stormy passion;
generous, and full of a soldier's frankiiess; fond,
and full of 3 husband's affection ; ardent, and full
of the fierceness of his burning clime ; brave
and sindictive, open and suspicious, spurning at
proofs and sinking before surmises ; loving to the
extreme of human love, and raging for vengeance
with the thirst of a fiend ; strongly persevering in
the purpose from which he shrinks by instinct, and,
that once gained, unable to endure the load of life
and wretchedness. This is but one ordeal, and
even this, not the most severe : yet, we have no wish
to throw discouragements before the progress of any
man who feels the spur of real or supposed capacity.
If Mr. Breve should succeed, surprised as we shall
be, our surprise shall not diminish our congratula-
tion : if he fails, he will have the warning of a judge
mut unprejudiced, impartial, and sincere.

MI TARY Arr Ants.

TO THK KIHTOR OF THK STATLIIMAN.
SIR,.•-It ii through the mediuti it the Public
Papers that circumstances Ire made kaistsin, which,
howeter singular in themsebrei, would otherwise be
pinked bier in silence: it is therefore that I iddress
you *ith the fondling communication : •
A transaction hat lately been admitted, inidet
high concession, in the Army, Willett I believe to
hate been hitherto unprecedented ; and as regula-
tions upon gtiestioni of this nature were, not very
long since, established by Parliament, any breach
or violatinis of which were declared to incur the for-
feiture of commission and rank, it May be difficult
to know What other dispensing authority than that
Of Parliaeleut itself; could hate warranted the trans-
action referred to:

Major-General WArreett t.r, a Saiss &leer, who
tame into our service about twe' • t y cars ago, with
the (then considered temporary) rank of Colonel,
but who has been allowed to adtance in his rotation
to that of Generil Offiters lately, specie. has by • l
grace, been permitted to name his successor to the
command of his regiment. Ile has, consequently,
given It to his nephew, who likeable entered our ser-
vice with the rank of Lieutenant• Colonel, at the
same epoch, and on the sane supposed temporary
footing with his uncle. The General is to retain
his rank, and (it is not said by what understanding)
has since obtained the permission of the French Go-
! vernment to return through the territories of that
country into Switzerland.
Lieut.-General Meneow is stated to have since
made a more direct transfer of his regiment to Major-
GRIMM' WALKER. He too retains his rank, and is
preparing also to return, by the same route and un-
l' der the same authorities, to his native country. No
1 man can be supposed to object to or cavil at the ap.
1 pointment of a veteran and deserving Officer, like"'
General WALKER, to the command of any regiment
whatsoever. But lam alluding to facts and not to
persons; and with every liberal respect for foreigners
in our service, I still cannot discover any reasoning,
why they should be allowed advantages upon so large
; a scale, while the Legislature imposes, in the very
same questions, such strict prohibitions and restraints
on the persons of British Officers. Those who ad-
vert to the impediments opposed for so many years to
the confirmation of rank to our own gallant General
GRAHAM (who certainly had raised as fine a regiment
as any in the British army), and to the mole recent
supercession of a step that had been granted by hi,
MAJESTY to the aspiring young Nobleman, Lori
livaemeasn, will readily feel some impressions upoa
this subject.
GRIM& WATTERILLIL and Mtueost, it is said,
have pot themselves upon the footing of the Colonels
of the former proprietary Swiss regiments of France,
but the similitude in no shape holds ; the Sn iss regi-
ments of France were raised and recruited by the
Cantons, from which they were hired by the former
Government; it was an affair of political compact
"between the Court of France and the Republic.—
The foreign regiments In our service, on the con-
trary, are all raised upon warrants granted to indivi-
duals, filled up by deserters, by recruits from prison.
era of war, enlisted with boenty money from our
own Government, and if any of the contracts with
the Colonels were to be produced, I believe that the
question of sale and purchase would not be found to
have made any part of the agreements.
The Regiments of Mix RON and WATTETILLE cer-
tainly were no more to be considered as transferable
commissions, than those of Roux, DILLost, the
Greek corps, the Corsicans, the York Rangers, the
several battalions of the German Legion, or any
other foreign corps in our employ—and the same au-
thority that has permitted the two first regiments to
be transferred, has established a precedent for a simi-
lar claim to all the Colonels of the British army.

I could here venture to make at the same time an
observation upon a recent grant by Royal Authority,
of permanent rank to the whole body of the German
Legion. The remark does not spring from an invidi-
ous impulse, for I am too ready to acknowledge the
conspicuous merits of that corps, not to allow the
boon to have been highly and justly merited—but in
recurring to the late proceedings of Parliament on
the subject of military promotions, might not the
validity of the above measure, without the concur-
rence of that assembly, become a question of legal
doubt?
SPECTATOR.

We have great pleasure in stating, that Mrs. Asuz
is perfectly recovered, and is about to delight the
amateurs of music at Bath, with her vocal talents.
The assertion that Mr. KEMSLE is re-engaged by
the Managers of Covent-Garden Theatre, is unfound•
ed, as no offer has been made on either side.
Mrs. JonnAN is engaged to play oselve nights
with the Portsmouth Managers.
It is said that Mr. Berri' means to appropriate
whatever sum of money he may acquire by his present
professional exertion., to the establishment of a eat.
rigs portion for his younger sister, who was left it-
provided by her father.
Mr. BiIAHAM.—The report of this admirable
singer's death, we are happy to find, is totally un-
founded; his reception in Bath and its vicinity was of
the most flattering description, commensurate with
his great end extraordinary talents. lie retnitiod to
town on Monday, in excellent health. Offers, we
underajand, have been made him from Drury-lane,;.
hut he has in preference chosen to visit the Dublin,
Theatre, at the earnest request of ldr. JOltts, the.
Manager, in compliance with ems wishes of_ thel
greater part of the Irish metropolis.

'—aLad