Hide Article Text (OCR)
from the Richmond Enquirer. FROM COM. PORTEK’SSQUADRON.COaRESPONDBNCE.To hit excellency the Gov. of Porto Rico.U. S. Snip Peacock, March 4. 1823.Your ExcbllbNCT—I hare the honor to inform you, that in pursuance of orders from my government, I have taken command of all the United States' naval forces in tbeae sea*, for the protection of the commerce of the United States against all unlawful interruptions, to ,uard the rights both of property and person of our citizens when-ever it .hall become necessary, and for the suppression of piracy and the slaveAs great complaints have been madeof the interruption and injury te our commerce by privateers titled out troin Spanish ports, I must beg your excellency to furnish me a descriptive list of vessels legally commissioned to cruise from Porto Rico, with s set of the blank forms of their papers, that I nny know how and when to respect them, if 1 should meet with any of them, I must slso beg your excellency to inform me h'tv far they have been instructed to interrupt our trade with Mexico and the Colombian Republic, and whatever matructions or authorities they may have affecting our cons. Oserce generally. *As the suppression of piracy, the principal motive for ray visit to these seas, is an object that concerns all ns • ions, (all being parties against them, Bnd mav be considered as allies,) 1 confidently’ look to all for co-operation whenever it msy be necessary, or at least their favorable and friendly cup-pert ; and to none more than those most exposed to their depredations.1 therefore look with confidence to vour excellency for the aid of auch means as may be in your power for their suppression. and in tbo absence of means, I beg to assure your excellency that whatever course may be pursued by me to destroy those enemies of the human race, it will have no other aim ; and 1 shall observe the ut-nmat caution not to encroach on the rights, or willingly offend the feelings of others, either in substance or in form, in all the measures which may be adopted to accomplish the end in view.It will afford me smcere pleasure should I be so fortunate as to fulfil the j expectation of my government, and at | the same time preserve harmony and a i good understanding with those with whom 1 may be so unfortunate as to tome in eollisi n or discussion in relation mereto; indeed.il will add much to my happiness if it can be avoided al. together.That such is my sincere wish, and that the objects set forth by me are the only ones which brought me to these seas, i beg leave to assure your excellency m the most positive and unequivocal terms.With the highest respect, I hav the honor to be your excellency’s very o-bedienl humble servant.L. POUTER.Sir Thomas Cochrane, which had several times communicated with me, andwell knew the vessels arrived there the day previous to the lsst mentioned vessel, and on the day of my arrival off the port. . .I know not whether my suspicions are oorrect, but 1 have, iD the event of their being so, directed the senior officer tc sbandon the vessels, and leave the island of Porto Rico as soon as possible, leaving it to my country, to whom I shall make known the facts, to resent the outrage as it may think proper, and which it will no doubt do promptly and effectually.Your excellency must be aware that it is always in my power to retaliate, and even in this place; but it would be a poor return tor the friendship *nd hospitality 1 have received from its »*-habiiants, and I cannot reconcile 't to myself that the innocent should be miide to suffer for offences not their own.With great respect, I have the honor to be your excellency’s ino.t obedient humble servant,1). PORTER.[TBAN8LATION.]Office of the Capt. General of Port1' Rico. Most Excellent Sin— At noon thisTo hit.Excellency the Gov. of Porto Rico.U. i*. Slfip Peacock. Aguada, ( March 8, 1823. j Yon. Excellency—On the 3lt;1 of this month I despatched from the squadron under my cotnmond. Ike I. States' schooner (JreyhoundjCommsnd-eu by capt. John Porter, of the United States’ navy, who was the bearer of a letter from me to your excellency, written in strict conformity with instructions which I had received from my government, propounding certain inquiries te enable your excellency to put me in possession of such information at would place it in my power to fulfil tho benevolent intentions of the government of the United State*, without infringing on the rights of Spain as a belligerent.The commander of the Greyhound was directed to remain in St. Johns two days for your excellency's answer and then to join me off the port, or at tins place, where 1 proposed watering the squadron under ray command.On the second day after hi* arrival at St. Johns. 1 directed the commander of the United States’ schr. Fox to proceed there with his vessel, to ascertain what lime it was probable your reply would be obtained, with orders to return immediately, and apprize the commander of the United States' schr. Beagle, another of my squadron, of ray intention to come to this place.On the arrival of the Fox within gun shot of the castle, I was much surprised to observe that 6 guus were fired at bar • but knowing of no cause tojustify such an act of violence, 1 should have thought that perhaps 1 mighthave been mistaken, had not the commanders of all three of those vessels failed to obey my instructions, which could not have happened but for some violent detention by the authorities at St. Johns.Until I ani better ss'isfied of the fact however, I shall refrain from the expression of my sentiments on the subject, and shall, for the present, merely observe, that their character coaid not have been misunderstood, as my squadron, at the time of the departure of tbe yox, was lying in full view of the castle, with their colors dying, aud a llri* tick squadron under the command ofday, just as 1 arrived from the village of Cagnas, where 1 received at b o’clock this morning, lie official letter of the king’s lieutenant commandant of this place,advising me of the arrival of the squadron under the command of your excellency, with a disposition to enter this port, I have been inauspi* ciously informed of the misfortune occurring in the dea«h of the commander of a schooner of war belonging to the squadron, who, it seems, persisted in entering the port, notwithstanding his having been warned by the fort to desist from his und«*i taking by a discharge from two cannons, the first with a blank cartridge, and the other at an elevation with a ball. But the garri-sen, in seeing his obstinacy followed with an extraordinary rigot the orders for hindering the entrance of the sqsd-ron till my arrival, according to the determination formed by the said lieutenant of the place yesterday,I wish to persuade tho mind of your excellency into a consciousness of the sorrow w hich this event, se mournful and unfortunate, has caused me; so much the more painful, inasmuch as it has happened in a place in the district under my command, and on an in dividual under the orders of your excellency, and a citizen of the United States; of a nation, with whom in all acceptations the Spaniards of both hemispheres are found uniied.5o unexpected a misfortune, which, it seems, ought never to be feared in friendly esiablijhmenig. appears to carry on itself a character of criminality, which more and more aggrieves my feelings.But the juocture of the circumstances which have conspired towards the fatality, according to the information received by ate, is such, that if your excellency will be pleased to examine it with impartiality, yon will perceive that, if tbe facts are notsufficii'iit to mitigate the regret, they are at least e-nough to prove that there has been no intentionof [ailing in regard to your excellency, nor of offending any citizen of the United States, and much less their government.The Limtinsnt of the King, and com-mandani of tbe place, grounded on various reasons, of which it is not important to trouble your Excellency with a cilation, but of which, howev.n, I will point out a few, believed that he ought no’, to permit the entering of the -quadron until ray arrival. One of his motives arose from bis recollecting that, during the last year, an expedition was armed in the ports ot North America, against this Island, and placed under the command ol a man named Du-coudray Holsiein ; which expedition actually went into the port of St. Bartholomew under the American fl -g. and among his other reasons were the following : Ithas been reported here that another simi lar expedition is this year in preparation : That the schooners alluded in on the entering yeslerdav, would not receive the pilots onboard, unless they practised with particular plans of the harbor, and ihe leads iu their hand, of which ihe captain of Ihe port made his complaint •' I'hat when tbe officer came on shore, a rumour was spread that they were saying Spain, had ceded this island A that ot Cuba to the English, which relation they condimed to the Lieutenant of the King, at he bimsell has assured me : That ibeir not having presented to him the writing nor any expression Irom your Excellency, he suspected be had found something alarming in these rumors; and not sufficient proofs that the«e were national vessels, merely by the uniforms in which the officers were dressed.These »ra some of the r*a«on* which ho has informed me ho had in view in not consenting tojtbe entrance of tho squad ron until my arrival, and in consequence of them, he despatched hi* orders to the Castle of tho Moro, not for the purpose of committing hostilities, but merely preventive orders. He sent an adjutant at half past 6 o’clock in the morning, accompanied by an interpreter. on board one of tbe schooners, under the command of your Excellency, to entreat her commander to be so good as to call on the government, in order to agree with them on the means and form of making known to your Excellency this thair determination. Unfortunately the commander of the American schooner deferred, in the first place,hie teeing the Lieotenant of the hint until one o'clock in the afternoon; and provoked by the adjutant te view it es an unjust case, end to consider duly the cause of his being disturbed, and ol which he was fuily informed, the commander promised the adjutant that he would go to the government as soon as be cooM dress himself.By an unheard of fatality, he didnot accomplish their promise until after hit hearing the firing of the cannon at the Moro, which might have been a-voided had he only presented hiuiself for an interview with the commanderof the, place.The remivsnese of this officer, and the pertinacity of him who commanded the schooner in his uot suspending his entering in spite of the cannon that wat fired without a sho . and without waiting for a pilot; tut notwithstanding this, and the seccrd discharge ot a gun, at an elevation, »lt;- ciowd sail, in order, at all events, to gain the port—these acts, most excellen; sir, have been the means of depriving the United States of a citizen, your Excellency of an officer, of filling Puerto Rico with mourning, and mysell with inexpressible sorrow. 1 feel it to be my uuty to assure your Excellency that the orders issued by the lieutenant of the king and commanding general of the place, were, by no means, intended to commit hostilities or offences against the vessels but I as the firing was made at an elevation, i either the tumbling of the sea, or perhaps some bad pointings must have been ! the cause why the fourth discharge should produce such a fata! effect.Immediately on my return to this place, 1 gave orders that ail the veisels under ’he command of your Excellency, of whatever description, may enter freely iuto this harbor, as into a I port of friends, where they will meet 1 that reception which the law of nations assigns to those who claim a title in civilization and othei privileges,secured by the treaiies of friendship existing between tho two nalions. In this act, I anticipate for mysell the satisfaction of being able to manifest personally all the consideration which yonr person merits, from me, and my regret for so mournful aud disagreeable an event.May God guard your Excellency many years.Puerto Rico, March 6,1823. k Excelmo- 8’or^MIGUEL DE LA TORRE The M’st Excellent Commander in Chief of the Angto American squadron in the olhug of Puerto Rico, D. David Porter.Tbe very im^orlint 'object to which your mission into these seas is directedyour good intentions and views, afford me tbe greatest satisfaction, and hasten me to ii anileri mysell to your Excellency, as at tbe instant 1 now do,in order lo assure you that all within tbe scope of my authority and faculty in tbis island, as one of tbe places most interested in tbe flourishing of commerce, and the revival, if possible, of good faith, and due respect lo tbe property of the citizens.Trusting that your Excellency may he able to fulfil tbe desires ot your government in this important, charge, and that they may be ever more and more happy in tbeir election, 1 bare the honor of being, with great respect, your Excellency’s most attentive and sure servaBt—C^ue sus manos bese.Puerto Rico, March 8, 1823.Eicellentisiuno SenorMIGUEL DE LA TORRE. Most excellent sir, commandant of the squadron of Ihe U S. ol America, m tbe offing of ibis pari, D.D. Porter.Card.DR. FAR’-SH will, in future, devotebis pt lt;-*ional services to the citizens ol the country as well as town, apr 10 GtBENCH I DKPIANCHE,;French Dyer and Scourer,HAS ihe honor to inlorm Hie citizens of Alexandria, that he has opened his j[translation.]Office of the Captain General of Porto lltco.illost Excellent Sir: I this moment received the very estimable letter of your Excellency, dated the 4th of the present moi*«h, in which your Excellency haa bren pleased to communicate to me the important commission which has been entrusted to you by a government that claims the respect of all the territories within its influence.1 have the satisfaction of forwarding to your Exeelleney a nominal report of the privateer vessels which have bean armed and despatched, for the purpose of cruising by the competent authority in this island, agreeably to the request which your excellency has made me in the letter of that date; and 1 am extremely sorry to find myself so situaied that 1 cannot comply with the wishes of your Excellency in regaru to my transmitting you a set of blank forms, for Lite purpose of enabling your Excellency Low and when to respect their ! commissions. The diplomas which they receive come from our court already : signed by his Most Catholic Majesty,I and the Minister to whom this office 1 pertains, leaving in these cases the uaval authority here limited ouly to the filling of the blank spaces in them with the name of the captain and the vessel. Thus situated, it is impossible for me to accede to your circumspect views in this particular object. But, nevertheless, if it siiould, on occasion, appear requisite lo your Excellency, the said diplomas or commissions can be examined, together with a blank siguature of the captain of this port, in order that a sufficient ground may be established for comparing this signature with those which may be presented, keeping in view the prospectus of those with which the said privateers arecruising.I am likewise asked by your Excellency for information how far my in structiona are extended for interrupting the commerce of the United States with Mexico and the Republic of Colombia; and for your gratification, it is my duty to declare, that I find myself sufficiently instructed to state, that the blockade which was established on ail the coasts and ports of the provinces of Venezuela has been raised. Under these circumstances. I consider the commerce of the United States to be in free capacity for an intercourse with that of the places formerly blockaded; reserving, however, for lawful capture the vessels of any nation which shall be found conveying implements of war to the in curgent*—or peopls disposed to co-operate with them in their military resist-ance. I can give yeur Excellency no certain information concerning Mexico; but its my opinion that the circumstances and condition are to be found the same as those of Venezuela.establishment on Prince-?!- Iwtween U-nion and Waterct*- The experience w hich j be ha' acquired in hit-trade, both in Paris and London, raaki-s him lully confident that the persons who will honor him with their custom. will be completely satisfied. His entirely new process in scouring, leaves nothing to wish, both in preserving the primitive color ot the cloth, and in giving to it its brilliancy-BLACK COATS,particularly when they become reddish by wearing.will be restored to the finest black, without the inconveniency ot blacking the linen The ladies arc pariic.ularly notified, that MERINO SHAWLS will be bleached and pressed in the finest style.Also, LEGHORN HATS will be cleaned, dressed and dyed of the finest black.april 24_ tfBottles. White Lead, etc.QfjHamper’s porter and wine bottles, just received per sloop Adelia, Irora New York, and fortjale bvSAMUEL MESStRSMITH. Who has in Store,200 kegs Eng. and American white lead, ground in oil 100 mats cassia 4U00 wt St Domingo coffeeJ8 M -uperior Havana segars in whole, half and qr boxes 16 halt chests imperial and gunpowder teaBoxes do do120 I wo lb canisters do in boxes containing 20 canisters 2 bhds Antigua rum 4 tierces ctoverseed 15 or casks Malaga wine 10 do do Canary do 14 boxes Sicily lemons in prime orderJO bbls new prime beef 20 do whiskey40 bundles sugar loaf paper,£c fccapril 5_______Withers Washingtonare now opening a veiy neat assortment ofSPRING GOODS:consisting of •Irish linens and long lawns Russia and Irish sheeting Superfine and low priced calicoes Plaid aud stripe Cambric Ginghams Plain and figured book muslins Jaconets A swiss do Book iniislin hdkfs Cambric and common Dimities Striped levantines and Grosde Naples Linen cambric and cambric hdkfs Plain and figured Canton crapes Merino points and Zelia hdkta Flag and Bandanna hdkfs 4-4 A 6-4 cotton cambrics Jaconet doapril15_j£_Five Dollars Reward,(And no questions asked.)STOLEN irnm my stall yesterday morning, TWO SMALL ROOKS— one with a leather cover, with weights ot cattle and the person purchased Irom.— The other with charges in it, ot the different persons that purchased beef, lt;t-c.LAWRENCE HOOF, Jr. april 19___FORTRESS MONROE,;Norfolk, April 15. $WANTED,AT Fortress Monroe, Norfolk, to be employed by me, 30 or 40 first raleStone Masons,Tbe wages will be One Dollar and Fifty Cents per day. BOL1THA LAWS.03“ Tbe Editors of the Baltimore Federal Gazette, I’oulson’s Philadelphia Daily Advertiser, and the New-York Commercial Advertiser, are requested to publish the above advertisement, until the expiration of this Monthj and send their accounts to this Office for payment. april 15__*30 A
Newspaper Details
Alexandria Gazette and Advertiser
Alexandria, Virginia, US
Sat, Apr 26, 1823
Page 4
Full Page
Clipped by
Aurore E.
NH, USA 22 Nov 2023
Other Publications Near Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria Daily Gazette Commercial And Political
Alexandria Gazette Commercial and Political
Alexandria Gazette
Alexandria Virginia State Journal
Alexandria Soldiers Journal
