Barham and Melville. He next touched on the repairs which, in Oct. 18th, 1801, were required by 120 ships; but he asserted that, according to the system upon which repairing was then conducted, they would have taken twenty years to be got ready; and added, that though the earl found 102 sail of the line when he came into office, he was not entitled to the excess of 22 over that number, as he left only 88 when he resigned. He threw upon his lordship all the blame of deficiency of timber, contended that, under his administration, the British navy was verging fast towards ruin, and deprecated the present great appointment of his lordship as one which he had by no means merited. He concluded with recapitulating his charges, and moving a resolution, "That his lordship had been guilty of gross negligence, misconduct, and dereliction of duty." M. Dent seconded the motion; but merely that the question might be put, as he was convinced, he said, that in a committee the conduct of the earl would be fully vindicated. After some remarks by the speaker and Lord Howick on the unparliamentary manmer in which Mr Jeffery had proceeded-he having read his speech from a manuscript-Admiral Markham entered upon a refutation of the various statements of the mover. He observed that the number of ships of the line built in the eight years preceding Lord St Vincent's administration would be 24; and comparing with that the period of that lord's administration, from his accession to office in March, 1801, to his departure in May, 1804, the total number was 10 in a period of little better than three years, which so far proved no deficiency. It also appeared, that when he came into office he found upon the slips building but 16 sail of the line; whereas, on his departure from office, he left 18 in forwardness upon the stocks. Besides which, he added, that the Admiralty had nothing to do with the building of ships. The earl, who had done his part in ordering the building, was not to blame for tardiness in the execution. He insisted that the earl was entitled to great credit for many parts of his conduct while in office, particularly his arrangements for providing what the country then wanted more than ships, namely, seamen to man the Channel fleet. For this purpose, he had taken the men out of the first-rates and frigates, and thereby effected a purpose essential to the safety of the country; so that at the end of an eight years' war, he was thereby enabled to man 20 additional sail of the line; while he increased the number of frigates from 183 to 195, and the total of the navy from 295 to 371. With respect to the breaking up of ships, he added that this was done in pursuance of the directions of the Navy board. As to the Dock-yards, he insisted that the papers on the table proved that not a man was dismissed capable of doing duty; many of the men, who had long received the highest wages in the dock-yards, were actually blind, and others lame, disabled, and moving on crutches; these, to the amount of 327 men, to whom, in the year 1800, £28,024 wages were paid, were superannuated by Lord St Vincent. At Plymouth 76 were discharged of a similar description, to whom, in 1800 and 1801, £10,943 wages were paid. Now, some of those were put upon allowance greater than usual, amounting to £4,529, and others superannuated, upon allowances to the amount of £2,264 11s. The usual allowance of £20 per annum had, in these cases, been increased to £24; and the allowance of £24 to £28; while to the rope-makers and others discharged, to whom no such

allowance had ever been usual, £20 a-year had been allowed. He next combated the assertion, that no credit was due to Earl St Vincent for the late victories; as it was a fact that Lord Nelson, Sir J. Duckworth, and Sir R. Strachan, had all been selected by him for principal commands. Lord Howick went over the same grounds as Admiral Markham; and stated, that among the advantages of his lordship's administration, he had formed a plan for procuring a supply of timber from Dalmatia, and 40,000 trees had actually been felled in that country; but they had now fallen into the possession of the enemy. Messrs Fox, Markham, and Banks, severally spoke against the motion, and praised the conduct of Earl St Vincent; and Mr Jeffery's motion was negatived without a division. Mr Fox afterwards declared, that from a conviction of the charge being frivolous and groundless, he should move, "That it appears to this house, that the conduct of the earl of St Vincent, in his late naval administration, has given an additional lustre to his exalted character, and merits the approbation of the house." Messrs Yorke, S. Bourne, and Tierney, supported this motion; and Messrs Wilberforce, Banks, Perceval, and Canning, opposed it, on the ground of no notice having been given. Mr Fox's motion was agreed to without a division.

In March, 1807, the earl retired from the command of the Channel fleet. In 1809, and again in 1810, he supported amendments on the answer to the address at the opening of parliament. In 1814 he was appointed governor of marines; and, on the 19th of July, 1821, when in his 85th year, was named admiral of the fleet.

He died without issue on the 15th of March, 1823.

John, Earl of Hopetoun.

BORN A. D. 1766.-DIED A. D. 1823.

THIS gallant and highly esteemed nobleman was the son of John, second earl of Hopetoun, by his second marriage with Jane, daughter of Oliphant of Rossie in Perthshire. He was born on the 17th of August, 1766, and entered the army as a volunteer in his fifteenth year. After passing through the subordinate ranks in several different regiments, he was appointed lieutenant-colonel of the 25th foot, in April, 1793; and received the brevet of colonel on the 3d of May, 1796, in which year he was elected M. P. for his native county of Linlithgow. He accompanied the expedition to Holland in August, 1799; and was appointed adjutant-general to the duke of York's army. In the following year he attended the expedition to Egypt, and negotiated the convention for the surrender of Cairo. In May, 1802, he attained the rank of a major-general; and in April, 1808, was appointed a lieutenant-general.

In the last mentioned year he accompanied the British force to Portugal; and, on the death of Sir John Moore, the command in the battle of Corunna devolved upon him, Sir David Baird being severely wounded. The following admirable report of this celebrated action was made by General Hope to his superior in command, Sir David

Baird. It is one of the most luminous and able documents of the kind which our military annals can show :

"His Majesty's Ship Audacious, off Corunna, January 18th, 1809. "SIR,-In compliance with the desire contained in your communication of yesterday, I avail myself of the first moment I have been able to command, to detail to you the occurrences of the action which took place in front of Corunna on the 16th instant.

"It will be in your recollection, that about one in the afternoon of that day, the enemy, who had in the morning received reinforcements, and who had placed some guns in front of the right and left of his line, was observed to be moving troops towards his left flank, and forming various columns of attack at that extremity of the strong and commanding position, which, on the morning of the 15th, he had taken in our immediate front.

"This indication of his intention was immediately succeeded by the rapid and determined attack which he made upon your division, which occupied the right of our position. The events which occurred during that period of the action you are fully acquainted with. The first effort of the enemy was met by the commander of the forces and by yourself, at the head of the 42d regiment, and the brigade under Major-general Lord William Bentinck.

"The village on your right became an object of obstinate contest. "I lament to say, that soon after the severe wound which deprived the army of your services, Lieutenant-general Sir John Moore, who had just directed the most able dispositions, fell by a cannon-shot. The troops, though not unacquainted with the irreparable loss they had sustained, were not dismayed, but, by the most determined bravery, not only repelled every attempt of the enemy to gain ground, but actually forced him to retire, although he had brought up fresh troops in support of those originally engaged.

"The enemy, finding himself foiled in every attempt to force the right of the position, endeavoured by numbers to turn it. A judicious and well-timed movement, which was made by Major-general Paget, with the reserve, which corps had moved out of its cantonments to support the right of the army by a vigorous attack, defeated this intention. The major-general having pushed forward the 95th rifle corps and 1st battalion 52d regiments, drove the enemy before him, and in his rapid and judicious advance, threatened the left of the enemy's position. This circumstance, with the position of Lieutenant-general Fraser's division, calculated to give still further security to the right of the line, induced the enemy to relax his efforts in that quarter.

"They were, however, more forcibly directed towards the centre, where they were again successfully resisted by the brigade under Major-general Manningham, forming the left of your division, and a part of that under Major-general Leith, forming the right of the division under my orders. Upon the left the enemy at first contented himself with an attack upon our piquets, which however in general maintained their ground. Finding, however, his efforts unavailing on the right and centre, he seemed determined to render the attack upon the left more serious, and had succeeded in obtaining possession of the village through which the great road to Madrid passes, and which was situated in front of that

part of the line. From this post, however, he was soon expelled with considerable loss, by a gallant attack of some companies of the 2d battalion of the 14th regiment, under Lieutenant-colonel Nicholls; before five in the evening we had not only successfully repelled every attack made upon the position, but had gained ground in almost all points, and occupied a more forward line than at the commencement of the action, whilst the enemy confined his operations to a cannonade and the fire of his light troops, with a view to draw off his other corps. At six the firing entirely ceased. The different brigades were reassembled on the ground they occupied in the morning, and the piquets and advanced posts resumed their original station.

"Notwithstanding the decided and marked superiority which at this moment the gallantry of the troops had given them over an enemy, who, from his number, and the commanding advantages of his position, no doubt expected an easy victory, I did not, on reviewing all circumstances, conceive that I should be warranted in departing from what I knew was the fixed and previous determination of the late commander of the forces, to withdraw the army on the evening of the 16th for the purpose of embarkation, the previous arrangements for which had already been made by his order, and were in fact far advanced at the commencement of the action. The troops quitted their position about ten at night, with a degree of order that did them credit. The whole of the artillery that remained unembarked having been withdrawn, the troops followed in the order prescribed, and marched to their respective points of embarkation in the town and neighbourhood of Corunna. The piquets remained at their posts until five on the morning of the 17th, when they were also withdrawn with similar orders, and without the enemy having discovered the movement.

"By the unremitted exertions of Captains, the Hon. H. Curzon, Gosselin, Boys, Rainier, Serrett, Hawkins, Digby, Carden, and Mackenzie, of the royal navy, who, in pursuance of the orders of Rearadmiral de Courcy, were intrusted with the service of embarking the army; and in consequence of the arrangements made by Commissioner Bowen, Captains Bowen and Shepherd, and the other agents for transports, the whole of the army were embarked with an expedition which has seldom been equalled. With the exception of the brigades under Major-generals Hill and Beresford, which were destined to remain on shore, until the movements of the enemy should become manifest, the whole was afloat before day-light.

"The brigade of Major-general Beresford, which was alternately to form our rear-guard, occupied the land front of the town of Corunna; that under Major-general Hill was stationed in reserve on the promontory in rear of the town.

"The enemy pushed his light troops towards the town soon after eight o'clock in the morning of the 17th, and shortly after occupied the heights of St Lucia, which command the harbour. But notwithstanding this circumstance, and the manifold defects of the place, there being no apprehension that the rear-guard could be forced, and the disposition of the Spaniards appearing to be good, the embarkation of Major-general Hill's brigade was commenced and completed by three in the afternoon; Major-general Beresford, with that zeal and ability which is so well-known to yourself and the whole army, having fully

explained, to the satisfaction of the Spanish governor, the nature of our movement, and having made every previous arrangement, withdrew his corps from the land front of the town soon after dark, and was, with all the wounded that had not been previously moved, embarked before one this morning.

"Circumstances forbid us to indulge the hope that the victory with which it has pleased Providence to crown the efforts of the army can be attended with any very brilliant consequences to Great Britain. It is clouded by the loss of one of her best soldiers. It has been achieved at the termination of a long and harassing service. The superior numbers and advantageous position of the enemy, not less than the actual situation of this army, did not admit of any advantage being reaped from success. It must be however to you, to the army, and to our country, the sweetest reflection that the lustre of the British arms has been maintained amidst many disadvantageous circumstances. The army which had entered Spain amidst the fairest prospects, had no sooner completed its junction, than, owing to the multiplied disasters that dispersed the native armies around us, it was left to its own resources. The advance of the British corps from the Duero, afforded the best hope that the south of Spain might be relieved, but this generous effort to save the unfortunate people, also afforded the enemy the opportunity of directing every effort of his numerous troops, and concentrating all his principal resources for the destruction of the only regular force in the north of Spain.

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You are well aware with what diligence this system has been pursued.

"These circumstances produced the necessity of rapid and harassing marches, which had diminished the numbers, exhausted the strength, and impaired the equipment of the army. Notwithstanding all these disadvantages, and those more immediately attached to a defensive position, which the imperious necessity of covering the harbour of Corunna for a time had rendered indispensable to assume, the native and undaunted valour of British troops was never more conspicuous, and must have exceeded what even your own experience of that invaluable quality, so inherent in them, may have taught you to expect. When every one that had an opportunity seemed to vie in improving it, it is difficult for me, in making this report, to select particular instances for your approbation. The corps chiefly engaged were the brigades under Major-generals Lord William Bentinck, Manningham, and Leith; and the brigade of guards under Major-general Warde.

"To these officers, and the troops under their immediate orders, the greatest praise is due. Major-general Hill and Colonel Catlin Crawford, with their brigades on the left of the position, ably supported their advanced posts. The brunt of the action fell upon the 4th, 42d, 50th, and 81st regiments, with parts of the brigade of guards and the 26th regiment. From Lieutenant-colonel Murray, quarter-master-general, and the officers of the general staff, I received the most marked assistance. I had reason to regret that the illness of Brigadier-general Clinton, adjutant-general, deprived me of his aid. I was indebted to Brigadier-general Slade during the action for a zealous offer of his personal services, although the cavalry were embarked.

"The greater part of the fleet having gone to sea yesterday evening,