194] ANNUAL REGISTER, 1813. 



port of the good cause of the li- 

 berty of the United Provinces of 

 the River Plate.'* In this, how- 

 ever, they seem not to have gone 

 further than the principles gene- 

 rally professed in popular govern- 

 ments, and particularly by the Spa- 

 nish Cortes. 



The Chilese at their principal 

 settlements are said to have de- 

 clared themselves independent, and 

 to have opened their ports to all 

 nations. 



Ey further accounts from Car- 

 thagena, it would appear, that the 

 insurgents were gaining ground in 

 Venezuela. They had taken the 

 town of La Guayra, with public 

 property to a large value. The 

 royalist commander at San Carlos 

 had evacuated it on the approach 

 of the Carthagena troops, and be- 

 ing pursued, was entirely routed. 

 General Bolivar had entered Va- 

 lencia on August 2nd, without op- 

 position, and found in it a large 

 park of artillery, and a great quan- 

 tity of arms and ammunition. The 

 troops of the royalist general Mon- 

 teverde were dispersed, and he 

 had taken refuge at Porto Cabello. 

 The war still bore its vengeful 

 and sanguinary character ; for it 

 is mentioned that all the Europeans 

 lately arrived at Venezuela had 

 been put to the sword by the 

 union army. A letter from Trini- 

 dad in September states, that the 

 whole control of the Spanish main 

 was in the hands of the insurgents, 

 who carried on their trade chiefly 

 with the island of Grenada. 



From Peru nothing has been re- 

 ported, except that the conse- 

 quences of a victoiy of Belgrano 

 over the troops of Lima, were, that 

 the royalist general Goyeneche had 

 retreated from Potosi, and the peo- 



ple in his rear had joined the re-» 

 volutionists, and that the whole of 

 Peru was expected to follow the 

 example of La Plata. It is indeed 

 evident from the circumstance of 

 the coinage above mentioned, that 

 Potosi was under the influence of 

 that party. Though much confu- 

 sion seems still to prevail in the 

 different provinces, the general 

 state appears to be, that the inde- 

 pendent cause is gaining ground 

 to the south of the isthmus, and 

 that of the mother country in Mex- 

 ico. The day of trial as to the 

 final event will not, however, oc- 

 cur, until Spain, liberated from her 

 French war, and settled under her 

 new constitution, shall have leisure 

 to give her full attention to the af- 

 fairs of her colonies. 



The Spanish West-India island 

 of Porto Rico, which had hitherto 

 laboured under many impolitic re- 

 strictions on its commerce, expe- 

 rienced the benefit of the liberal 

 and enlightened sentiments pre- 

 vailing in the cortes and regency 

 of Spain, upon the arrival of its 

 new intendant-general, Alexandre 

 Ramirez. In a proclamation issued 

 by him on March 13th, he ac- 

 quaints the inhabitants, that in the 

 orders of the regency for the es- 

 tablishment of this intendancy, he 

 is strictly charged " zealously to 

 devote himself to promoting all the 

 improvement of which the rich 

 soil of this island is susceptible; 

 and that by giving a strong im- 

 pulse to its internal and external 

 commerce, the supreme govern- 

 ment may soon have the satisfaction 

 of seeing that affluence and pros- 

 perity brought to its height, which 

 it desires may be the portion of 

 such worthy subjects." In conse- 

 quence, he promulgated a set of 



