light streaming along the horizon, in the direction of the harbour of Corunna, which probably arose from the burning of the transports driven on the rocks.

We are now in the completest state of suspense you can conceive; it having blown so hard during the night of the 17th, that we were driven much to leeward of the rest of the ships. The weather has been extremely bad ever since. There are at present two other ships in company; of these one is a transport from Corunna, and the other hailed us yesterday. We found her to be a store-ship from Gijon, which port she had left some days ago, with an intention of proceeding to Corunna. She is nearly empty, having only a few casks of rum, which, I fancy, she will now carry to England. On board of her is the corpse of our old acquaintance Assiotti, who, as I have just learnt from his servant, died at Gijon, from an illness. brought on by excessive fatigue. Poor unfortunate fellow! how extraordinary it is that I should thus casually meet with thy remains, drifting, as it were, on the bosom of the ocean! This rencontre has given rise to much reflection,, and increased the depth of that gloom, which my present situation has thrown me into.

I am myself a good deal indisposed, and not much the better for being shut up in a little, noisome, damp cabin,,

with six other officers. Four of them are extremely ill, and generally raving all night long. Their complaints are the consequence of over-exertion; and their distempered and horror-struck imaginations are perpetually pursaing some dreadful hallucination connected with the casualties of war, famine, and shipwreck. It was only last night that one of them, in a temporary fit of insanity, hurried me and one or two more upon deck in our shirts, in the rain, by screaming out that the ship had sprung a leak, and was going down. On ascertaining the cause of the alarm, we went below, and found the poor fellow himself crawling, in the utmost distress of mind, to effect his escape from the phantoms of his own bewildered brain. God knows whether we may not experience the reality before long, for one-half of our crew are so ill, as to be unable to get upon deck, and it blows so violent a gale, accompanied with thick weather, that I can write no longer. Farewel.

LETTER LIV.

AN ESCAPE FROM THE DANGERS OF SHIPWRECK.-ACTION OF THE 16TH. -FURTHER PARTICULARS.-OPINIONS OF OFFICERS AT GOSPORT ON THE CELERITY OF THE RETREAT.-UTILITY TO BE DERIVED FROM THE FREE DISCUSSION OF SUCH QUESTIONS.-LIEUTENANT-GENERAL HOPE'S ORDers.

Gosport, January, 1809.

WE are, thank God, at length landed in safety in Old England, after weathering some of the severest gales I have ever experienced. The very night we reached the anchorage of St. Helen's it blew a perfect hurricane.

The boatmen who brought us ashore, informed us of the death of Sir John Moore, and the result of the action of the 16th. In the Gazette I observe the details of the action; and from some of my acquaintance here I have learnt a few particulars, not generally known; these I shall now communicate.

UU

The French attacked in their favourite mode, by dense columns. One of these was opposed to the Guards, the fiftieth, and forty-second regiments; and the men forming the head of it being turned by the British bayonets, rushed down the hill, and were met by those of their own comrades, on which they fell in vast numbers, while, during the confusion, our soldiers, getting into the very midst of them, stabbed them at discretion. The rear of the French, ignorant of what was passing in their front, pushed on, and met nearly the same fate.

The artillery which the French made use of during the action, is said to have belonged to the Patriots, and to have been part of that sent from England. We passed it on the road, about two leagues on this side of Villa Franca, and having been seized by the French, it was thus turned against us. As almost all our guns had been embarked, our army had not the advantage of Colonel Shrapnell's shells, which is a circumstance much to be regretted, as their being used would have been of the greatest assist

ance to us.

The campaign, having now terminated, many of our officers speak very freely of the want of military talent displayed in the retreat, as conducted by Sir John Moore. You cannot expect that I should undertake to put you