Alexandria gazette & advertiser. [volume] (Alexandria [D.C.]) 1822-1824, 1823-04-26
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once of the Capt General Of Porto R'co.
MosT EXCELLENT SiR-Atnoon this
day, Just as arrived from the village
of Cagnas, where ] received at 8 o.
clock this morning, the official letter
of the kings lieutenant commandment
of this place, advising me Of the arrival
OF the squadron under the command OF
your excelIency, with disposition to
enter this port, have been inauspi-
ciously informed Of the misfortune oc-
curing in the death of the commanders
ola schooner of war belonging to the
squadron, who, it seems, persisted IN
entering the port, notwithstanding his
having been warned by the fort to de-
sist from his undertaking by dis.
charge from two cannons, the first with
a blank cartridge, and the other at an
elevation with ball. But the garri-
son, in seeing his ebstinacy followed
with an extraordinary rigor the orders
for hindering the entrance of the sqad-
ron till my arrival, according to the
determine ton formed by the said lieu
tenant of the place yesterday,
wish to persuade tbs mind of your
excelleacy into a consciousness Of the
sorrow which this event, SO mournful
and unfortunate, has caused me; SO
much the more painful, inasinuch as it
has happened in a place in the dis
triet under my command, and on an in
dividual under the orders of your ex-
cellency, and citizen Of the United
States: of nation, with whom in all
acceptations the Spaniards of both he
mis- pheres are found united.
So unexpected q misfortune, which,
it seems, ought never to be feared In
friendly establishments, appears 20 car
nv OF itselfa character of criminality,
which more and more aggrisves my
feelings.
Bat the iuncture Of the circumstan-
ces which have conspired towards the
fatality, according to the information
received by ME, is such, that if your ex-
cellency will be pleased to examine 1t
with impsrtiality. you will perceive
that, if the facts are not sufficient to mi-
tigate the regret, they are at least g.
nough to prove that there has been no
intention Of failing in regard to your
exeeileDcy, nor of offending any citi.
zen of the United States, and much
less their government,
The Lieu;enant Of the King, and com.
vuandanl of the place, grounded on various
reasons, of which it is not important to
trouble your Excellency with citation,
but of which. however, will point out
few, believed that he ought no: to permit
the entering OF the squadron until my ar.
rival. One of his motives arose from bis
recoliecliUg that, during the last year, an
expedition was armed in the ports OF North
America, against this Island. and placed
under the command OF a man named Du-
coudray Holstein which expedition actu'
ally went into the port OF St. Bsrthnlc-
new uHberthe American flag, and among
his other reasons we're the following 1t
has been reported here that another SINH
lar expedition i. this year 10 preparation:
That the schooners alluded 10 on the en-
terins Yesterday, would not receive the
pilots on board, unless they oractised with
particular plans Of the barber, and the
| leads IN their hand, OF which the captain
of the port made his complaint That
/ when the officer came on shore, a rumour
was spread that they were saying SPAN,
had coded this island & that oil Cuba 10 the
English, which relation they conil med 10
the Lieutenant of the King, as he himself
has assured me; That their not having
presented 10 him the writing nor any ex-
preston from your Exceilency, he suspec-
ted be had found something alarming in
these rurnors; and not sufficient proofs
| that these were national vessels, merely
By the uniforms in which the officers were
| dressed.
These ars some Of the reasons which
he has informed me he ha in view 10 not
consenting totbe entrance Of the squad
ron until my arrival; and in conse'
quence of them, he despatched his or
ders to the Castle of the Moro. not Tor
the purpose Of committing hostilitiss,
but merely preventive orders. He sent
an sdjutant at half past 6 o'clock In the
morning. accompanied by an interpret
or. on board one of the scbooners, un-
| der the command Of your Excellency,
to entreat her commander to be good
! as to call on the government, in order
to agree with them on the means and
, form of making known to your, Excel
| lency this their determination. Unfor-
eunately the commander Of the Ameri-
can schooner deferred, in the frat place,