1809.] 
cattle are alike consumed.— Where’er 
we move in anger, desolation tracts our 
progress; where’er we pause in amity; 
affiiction inourns our friendship.” The 
seat of war is unavuidably the seat of 
‘woe. And though-the English, in 
general, pay honestly for what they are 
obliged to take, what recompence is this . 
to aman who is obliged to abandon the 
place he has cultivated, and the necessa- 
ries of life, which not even money Can pro= 
cure. Inthe present case, however, we 
must derive what comfoert:we can from 
the reflection, that, compared’ to the 
French, we constitute thé lesser evil, 
and that our cause, under Heaven, isjust. 
{n that cause, I think, we shall for the 
present succeed; but whether the Spa- 
niards will retain what we may aid them 
to acquire, whether in fact they are that 
loyal; brave, virtuous, and chivalrous 
people, which they are generally ac- 
vounted, I do most seriously doubt. 
More of this, however, will be seen and 
said hereafter; when, should I have 
cause to alter my opinion, I shall readily 
and gladly do it. ; 
On the 15th, we quitted Malpartida ; 
and near to Taragona hutted on the 
banks of a brook, being a branch of the 
Colrones river, over which we were 
busied on this, and the following day, in 
constructing bridges: these bridges were 
crossed on the evening of the 17th, and 
on the 18th we proceeded four leagues 
through a very extensive and beautiful 
wood, and, passing the small town of 
Majadas, hutted at night. On the 19th 
and 20th, we marched through Tullay- 
ello, and Relva, neither of them places of 
any consideration. On the 21st, we 
passed the town of Oropesa, and halted 
in a village about two miles beyond it. 
Here we found ourselves in the neigh- 
bourhood of the enemy; some hundreds 
. of their cavalry having quitted the town 
Yow 
but a few hours before we came into it; 
and, as I conclude, in consequence of 
our approach, This village, whose name 
I know not, offered nothing worth writing 
about, except that my landlord, one of 
its principal inhabitants, condescended 
to tob me. But the town of Oropesa, 
though now nearly deserted, appears to 
have been a place of considerable note,, 
and certainly contains many spacious, 
and handsome edifices, both public and 
private. On the 24th, we were treated 
vith a sight of the Spanish army, who, 
marched through the village, headed by 
Cuesta, and a respectable-looking priest ; 
they comprised a very large force, both 
English Army in Spain. 
251 
of cavalry and infantry, and were dressed 
in every colour the rainbow itself can 
boast: 
Blue jackets and green, 
Yellow jackets and grey, 
Mingle, mingle, mingle, 
Mingle as they may, 
forming, en masse, a most irregular set, 
not to be compared, éven in appearance, 
tu our rawest volunteers ; but amounting, 
it was said, to between forty and fifty 
thousand men: they moved on to take a 
position in our front; it being their ve- 
neral’s desire, that the Spaniards should 
stand foremost in the Spanish cause. 
—Risum teneatis! | / 
In the evening, we had a parade of 
the British army, for the inspection cf 
the Spanish commander, who came to 
the ground in his carriage, accompanied 
by a beautiful girl, whom I understood 
to be his daughter, and attended by his 
fac-totum Donabre.—By the bye, Lavater 
would never have confided in this said 
Mr. D, and for my own part, though 
not apt to judge from appearances, I 
could not look in his face without think~« 
ing of the caution in Richard the Third: 
*¢ Jockey of Norfolk, be not too bold, 
*¢ For Dickon thy mastez is bought and sold.* 
As for his. excellentissimo, the general, 
he has much more the appearance of @ 
parish headle, or a twopenny-postman, : 
than of a military commander. 
On the 22d, we passed through a de- 
serted village, and soon afterwards heard 
a report of musketry, occasioned by some 
skirmishing between the Spaniards and > 
French; the former were kept at bay till 
we came up, when the British army 
passed their columns, and drew up for 
action: the Spaniards contenting them- 
selves by greeting us with loud huzzas, 
and preparing to be quiet spectators of 
the conflict. We, however, were not 
the people whom the enemy was desirous 
to encounter; they accordingly re- 
treated, little loss having been sustained 
either by them or the Spaniards. Here, 
however, other circumstances occurred, 
which could not but strengthen the un- 
favourable opinion I had already formed 
of our magnanimous allies.~ They were. 
opposed, it seems, by but a small body 
of cavalry, whom they were repeated! 
urged to charge, and could easily have 
overpowered; but no persuasions could 
urge them to the attempt. This is 
loyalty, this is patriotism, this is cou- 
rage PNT yo 
We afterwards proceeded near to 
the 
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