Spanish Refugees.
The Times, 1824-05-26T00:00:00

Yesterday, after the Lord -llayor had left the Mainion-house tc preside at the Court of Aldermen, dte Secretary of the Lord Ml. ville steam-npacket camue to the Jttstice-room, accompanied, by Lieutenant.tolonel Raymond Alonfa, anrd Lieuteaant .Va'teo Cam- iesino; both of the Constitutional Army in Spain, for the jmrposu of askmig theadvice of the Lord MIayoras tothemost advisablecouirse to be adopted in the deplorable state of exigency to wliich those 8panish officers, and several others, who' had foughlitb'ad andbled in the cause ef liberty, were reduced. The secretary, upon hearing officiaBy from Ilr. Hobler that his lordship had'no power to afford reliet, although, if he -were present, his advice would be given,with the utmnost ptomptitude, stated that the case was one of such extre- mity-.as not to adn)it of much delay. He then proceeded to,describe the circumstances. The two gentemen who accompaied' him had been ordered suddenlv to quit France, where they had been prisoners'of war at lontpclicr. They had been'pursued, up to the time the Lord mFeh'Wt sailed, with the most uinecessary and-unrelenting severity. The condnct of the Commissary of Po. lice at Calais, to them and to others of their unfortunate couptry men who had bled i defence of their country, had been remarked by the English, and even by the French themselves, to be rigorous to a most disgusting excess. After having been stripped and searched upon theirairival at-Calais, al'er a fatiguinlg journey, which waS not aUleviated by a single comnfort but the hope of the protection of Eng- lishmen,the Spaniards were, on bonrd the Lord illeviWe, Biaia sub. jected to an exa-nanation. Their papers and 'the scanty clothes which some of them possessed (most of them were half naked) were pulled about, by order-of the Commissary, and every muark of abhor. rence anud contempt was flung upon them by the servile group amdei the control of the civil ofiJcer. Mlr. Hobler having expressed surprise at such ungenerous cont duct upon the part ot a victnrieus enemy, 't'he Secretary assured him that the treatment to which the mtulti. tudes of those brave- soldiers who risked their lives, and lost all their property, in the struggle for freedom, were expoked, would be intolerable to any butmen who were deeplyinspired vith that feeling which was only to be tried in a conflict with an oppressor. ' But'a short time ago, a Spanish officer wan ordered suddenly to leave France. He gsot on board the L;ord M6elville, which was to sail at four o'clock- the -next morning. The Spaniard thought that he fnuy obeyed the order of tlle commissary by' taking psession of the birth long before the tine apaointed for his departure . buit lie ad made a wrong calculation. Just as the clock struck twelve, the conm. mnissary on board charged the unfortunate Spaniard with having disobeyed the order of dep3r seized - him,, dragged hibn. ashore, and-locked himn up an a dungeon. Itvwould, in fact, draw tears frrnm any Englishmlan to sec the cruel maimer us which -the u%fortu. nate Sp.aniards weretreatedn and excite his, admiration arid respect to witness the patience wid w.hich- they endured repeated injuries Lieut. Col. Raymond lonfa confirmed this statement. He and his unfortunate friends and fellow-soldiers were, he said, 'withQut alternative, except that which England presented. - 'The only occa- sion on which they could think'of a ppealing to the charitable feel- ings of any people vas that whichr had beenprodueed, by-n. honour- able strugple in the greatest of all causesw Numbers of his coun- trymen were conming over to this country in a most deplorable con- dition n many of them were persons of higlh military rank.'and all of teuem,had been engaged in the contest wehich ritined them, but wvhiclh, at, least, proved-that they had thc virtiteof loving liberty. To their.native land they could not turn their eyes; Alr. H obler said-he supposed the dominion of the priests rendered their.return impracticable. The Spaniard replied, that the power alluded to was thc most oulragedits-foe.to human improvernent. It-was a dominloii of'the basest senmualitv. Themnorals as well as the liberties of thietiiile were deisroyed by the revival of- that most detestable eigtne of arbitra,ry power,- the Inqurisition. Intelect -was completely pros- trite, and every man eyed his neighbour with suspicion-i seati- ment-encouraged and promoted --by the priests, and calcuilted to degrid,e every mnan in the eyes of every- onc around him-, and- in hlsiown. If the -unfortunate Spaniardvholldf6from suelsa state of things cou ld- not find- aHs asylim in Englasnd, where wai he to go?- - - Alr. Hobler said,.he was convineed'that the Spanish Commit- tee, if it was still in existence, would-take the-state of the un. forauiatei stifferers. into their - cosideration,' 'and -affird theii mdeafs of support until some- measure should;-bc srggested 'to the-Eftgli,sl public, vho weresureto;exhibit a stroag degree offeel. ing on sucl an occasion. - Ir. I?owFing, Alr. Roblei believed, WBs the gentinmami to whom it would beproper for the two officers to make application.i - ' ' ' The Spanish officer said lewasanxiobs to ,ee Gsneral -lIiogwbo had sent-bim upon the -eaterprite in whieh he had been- tke)di Prri solter. - Itvas to assist the fortress o0' Figueras, which ivas aLkeed. by very.numerous troops-of the enemy.- lie landed 'to tlteiclief of, the fortriss with -a detachiment of Y4500 IYen; where the FIrnch troops were thick-and all-overthat part-ofthe c6untry. The aitiwgr, was a desperate one upon thiepartlof :the SSaniards. of _w^om us,' wardq'ef dGOQwere left dead on tie fi;ld 'ic (the Lieut Cololnd) v.as deiperatelv, it was for some tirned 'tppo3edt 'mortally, wvounded, and all the rest who survived-were taken prisoners ;'tbe enemy. 'by their imrinense-numbers, having overpowered the efoksi of sthebat- ThSeSeretarg-y- the Lord ilfclvWle said, -there were-upwaxds of ?00 SpanILE SO iers. rsrany of theuof-bigh-.kah, about Dover; withb out olsefarthingg;on thair ;tocketss and-ivi-ngujon ;cbaiity.-' E*iry one of 'thesTa v;as -suf}'erer in tF.e catue of betSF- t - ; - TiSpanishO0tcr..~In -their own eimdh -lh tey:'m'egtn- - thzg stut~~~~~~~~-b eahr a,a:tllutn'dm .vt dvt:-" I,hj a.letier tq.Eel,,*cr to. c.seril Aiinsfrom atliUiy ihvtfld'61hie Io 'r3tk 'It bad'o ofeeace-teio1uzcs, bUtthe'Fte0nh riithind es ,wbjd 'ifot'pemit' We.glbte,jt written com.uzti,o th O- mrre of It.. e alre. a now houeless and; l fbb could do any tipg. .for;alive :ll od,ihwhich 6 ot,i;aS t sbouId be given me, Without:being tbe fruit ,onyi ow i 5 ''Th e Seer iarjy th,en. ccoxM,pamda tihe ti~o dfficeri,' . 1j6 eki3r~edS their tbaSni wi.-Ar ho~blet jir the waimtest kminnei, fb b n'rs hie had a'kei'ta ~thIirjii,prtuines.? o she CroWn an,d A,hho q3 ra, 'v.hete the. om, ,ht'eT ,used to si... ,4--;e ; ' ,. . tapppears d iatMlajo,r,G, eera1Cam G}rant, SiirMiIe.i' iltp:e adsolPe oherienle jlshavmgleard th^at t1eDa*rlr'cbt |aadi'ef,a Ib br*co,ntributi0n .or'the.ir teaprSnoatyzsuppdrh - .S7ANISHI REF UGEES.