commenced, every man fancied that a new era of prosperity was begun, that nothing more was wanted to remove those evils which the lapse of time, the exercise of tyranny, the unblushing practice of corruption, and the indolence of priestcraft had accumulated in the country, than a supreme representative government; and then, it was supposed, all would be instantly changed. This expectation has been of course dissipated, and those who entertained it, instead of blaming their own sanguine temper, accuse the Junta because they have not effected impossibilities.

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Without dwelling on the fault in the original constitution of the body, a number too great for an executive and too small for a legislative power, yet combining both, it is natural to suppose that the Junta would participate in those habits which the state of society, to which they were accustomed, unavoidably engendered, and were consequently ill qualified to advance the mighty undertaking they were chosen to accomplish their popularity is now totally lost, and it is the universal wish that they may be removed, and an individual, or small council of regency, be appointed with full powers to succeed them. The Archbishop of Toledo, the only member of the Bourbon family remaining in Spain, has been mentioned as a person worthy of being intrusted with the executive government: but he is a young man of neither talents, nor character, and is said to be governed by his sister, who is the wife of Godoy, and possesses considerable energy of mind. The Archbishop's high rank might possibly have given him considerable influence had he been surrounded by ministers of talents and virtue. This idea however is now abandoned, and as the Marquis Romana is expected at

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Seville, all eyes are fixed on him, in the hope, that he will overturn the present system, and either assume the supreme power himself, or place it in more able hands.

I am sorry to observe that there does not appear to be any leader in the government, nor any one man of talents, sufficiently eminent, to give him the necessary preponderance; there is no unity in the operations of government, and unless some man of powerful mind should arise and be elevated to a commanding station, I see no chance of improvement in the affairs of Spain. Many accuse, and perhaps with justice, the most opulent and elevated members of the Junta of disaffection to the cause of their country, and a disposition to aid the views of Buonaparte. Men in their situation, with large estates in that part of Spain occupied by the French, may very naturally wish to return to their homes and their ease, even though submission to the enemy should be the necessary consequence.

The Marquis Wellesley, it is said, keeps aloof from the parties and factions of the Junta, and interferes in none of their internal squabbles. This neutrality is by no means pleasing to the people of Cadiz, who say that the fate of Spain is in his hands, and that he ought to remove the Junta and establish an energetic government; not duly considering the very delicate nature of his situation, and his present unfitness to judge of what may prove most salutary for a country, with whose customs, feelings, interests, and prejudices, he is yet but imperfectly acquainted.

I have thus given you a slight sketch of the state of politics in this place it is somewhat at variance with the ideas generally entertained in England, but I have endeavoured to be as accurate as the

short time I have been here will allow. The determined spirit of hostility towards France, which is felt by a large proportion of the inhabitants of this country, would make the conquest difficult, even if

the very name of an army had ceased to exist; they are so much accustomed to individual revenge that the enemy would be daily cut off in small parties, and literally would possess little more than the ground which his armies might occupy. Some measures are now taking of great importance, evidently suggested by Lord Wellesley. The fleet at Ferol, which the French obtained possession of in January last, is on its way to this port; four sail arrived this morning, and the remainder is shortly expected. This important part of the naval force of Spain is thus out of the reach of Buonaparte. The Duke of Albuquerque leaves this city to-day, and is to have the command of a corps of ten thousand men; report says he is to act under Lord Wellington, who, as well as the other British officers, places more confidence in him than in almost any other of the Spanish generals.'

Nothing can shew in a stronger light the indolence and want of combination among the Spaniards than the state of the manufactory for musquets in this city. The Government can raise as many men for the army as it desires, and very little food is requisite to subsist them; but musquets are absolutely necessary, and the demand for them is considerable; for like most raw levies, the troops when defeated are too apt to ensure their safety by throwing away their arms. This, in spite of the great assistance derived from England, has occasioned their present scarcity, and the establishment of manufactories of this important article has been in consequence most strenuously and frequently urged as indispensible: but it is now more than

fourteen months since the commencement of the manufactory, and not a single musquet has yet been produced. They are erecting a handsome building, when plenty of others might have been appropriated to the purpose: and the time lost in the new building would have enabled them to finish and send to their armies thousands of arms for the men enlisted and ready to use them.

They have in this place a large train of artillery, mostly brass battering twenty-four pounders, and they are the most beautiful I have ever seen. These in the present state of Spain are of little use; but of field ordnance, of which they particularly stand in need, there is a great scarcity.

I am now going to embark, and hope to be at St. Mary's in an hour or two, where the coach is waiting for us; and I expect to reach Xeres this evening, whence I shall write to you again.

WE left Cadiz about noon, and passed to the Mole with our baggage: it was only slightly searched at the gate, on account of our being Englishmen; but that of several other persons who were going out was rigorously examined. There is a law prohibiting the gold coin from being carried out of the city; a law easily evaded, when the price of gold, relative to that of silver, is very high.

Previously to our setting out, we called on board our ship, took a slight repast, and procured some provisions to refresh us on the road to Seville, on which we were informed they could not be obtained at the inns. We landed at St. Mary's about two o'clock, and found our equipage waiting for us; it was a coach solidly constructed, resembling in shape those which we see painted in pictures two hundred years old; it had no iron springs, but was suspended, by large leathern straps, from upright pillars before and behind, and lined with yellow plush. Mr. Ridout, Don Ramon, myself and my servant, were tolerably accommodated in the inside, and our three drivers sat on the trunks before; we had six mules, and rattled over the stones of the city at a good pace.