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TVIK .MI'.SSVAHiV.U. t’OURKSPI )N DKNX’ K BETwr.rv com. sorter and Tin. GJV aNO a OF PORTO RICO. j Com luilod.] ‘l'u hi* K.xrellenry the Governor of I Porto Hico. U. S. ship Peacock, March 11, 1823. Youu Kxci.i.i.k\cy : 1 have the hon or to acknowledge t!ie receipt ol your several favors of the (>th and “, ill oi t! is month. ’l’liaf which is in reply to the letter 1 had the honor to address you on the dih is perfectly satisfactory in all its details, and the promptness with which you hare been pleased to attend to it, as well as its contents, will no doubt be highly gratifying to the government of the United States. i know not how to touch on the me lancholy subject of your other letters, without giving vent to some of those feelings which operate at this moment on my mind. I shall endeavour how ever to treat it coolly and dispassion ately, and hope by a few facts to con vince your excellency, that there was not the shadow of an excuse for inter dicting the entrance of my squadron into the liar or of St. Johns : That no thing can justify the order issned by your second in command, to lire upon any of the vessels composing it, and i that the act of firing was, to say the least of it, an act of the most unpardon able cruelty and oarbarity. It is painful to me to see that your Excellency lias laboured to justify the act: and to throw the blame on the commander of otic of the United States vessels then in port. A statement in the Echo of the Bth, drawn by the same hand that penned your letter to me, is given to tiie public with the same ob ject in view. Your excellency may have reasoned yourself into a belief of the inferences you have in both cases drawn from the information given you, or both may have been considered as i necessary and proper to prevent ex-. citeinent; but 1 must be excused fori saying to your excellency that the charge is only an aggravation to the outrage which had already been com mitted. it was not the duty of that officer to move at the beck and call of the king’s lieutenant, or to leave the duty unexecuted which 1 had sent him o perform, to communicate tome the hostile intentions of a subaltern, which, had they been fully explained to him, he never could have believed he would have dared to nave carried into effect; but t >ey never were ex plained, and no such conversation took t place between the king's lieutei.niit ( and the American officer, as is related bv your excellency. Your excellency lias been misinformed on the subject, and had it been the duty of the Amer ican officer to have communicated to me the intention to prevent my com ing into port, it would have been im practicable for him to have executed it, as the sea raged with such vio lence at the time, that no vessel or boat, could possibly have left the har bor. It is not magnanimous in your excel lency to resort to such means to ex cuse the bad conduct ol those under your command. 1 he officer you would implicate was the bearer of a dispatch from me to voui excellency, apprising you of the henevoient intentions of my govern ment in fitting out the squadron l have the honor to command. lie had been two days in your port, and was possessed ol a copy ol my let ter to you, which had been seen by your second in command, at die mo ment ol Ins presenting himself to him, which, was on the day of his arrival.— And it any doubts existed as to his character or the character of the ves sel unucr Ins command, being in the power of the authorities ol Porto Rico, they coulu easily have satisfied them selves. But he had \r cn received ami treat ed as an American officer, ami it is only to endeavor to palliate, or excuse the conduct of the oilcmiing individual, that voiir excellency has sought for farts, which would never have been brought into notice, but for the lainen tabb circumstance which gave rise to these painful remarks. lie iufoimed your second of the cha racter of my squadron:a British squad ron was thru King in the port which knew me, uml there cannot beailoubt had communicated intelligence of my intentions to visit Porto Ktco. ‘1 lie sloop of war 011 board which ray pendant was flying, with some small vessels ol my squadron, were ly* ing m full view of the Castle with their colours hoisted; the schooner which v.as fired into was standing directly into port in open daj ; she could not have escaped alter the first shot was fired, or have given up her intentions of going into fct. Johns, had she been so disposed, or had she understood what was intended by the firing. But let me ask your excellency, who for an | instant could have supposed that a -mall schooner of scarcely forty tons burthen, mounting only three guns, with a complement of twenty-five offi cers and men, would have occasioned anv alarm to the city of St. Johns, sur rounded as it is by fortresses rendered as impregnable as nature and the art i of man can make them : as it not i more natural to believe that the tiring was intended to compel her approach ? | ami even if, the intention was not com , plied with, ougiit not her feeble condi tion to have claimed from those in your fortress some mercy ? Hut no! the vessel after the death of her lamented commander was compelled to anchor between (lie forts, where a tremendous sea was running which jeopardised the lives of every one on board, to send the small boat on shore, where the young midshipman who commanded her, was insulted by having a heavy j gun pointed into the boat, and threat ened with destruction if he attempted j to move from iiis position ; lie was then taken as a criminal and placed under guard. These arc facts, your excellency 7 , and incontrovertible ones, bet me ask your excellency what better proofs you have of the character of my squadron I now than was produced on the first j day of the arrival of tiie officer you i wish to implicate! W’liat further ex- j animation has been made that the ail- 1 tlioritics of I'orto Rico are better satis- 1 fied of our being Americans now, than tiiey were before? None. 1 repeat it that the character of my squadron wjs well known in St. Johns ; even in tins obscure place I found American newspapers containing all the details respecting it, and at St. 1 liomas’s 1 saw persons direct from St. Johns, who informed me that its equipment and object was well known there. There has in Tact been a de gree of publicity given to the expedi-i ti.ni, and an interest felt in it, that have been rarely equalled. The wnole of the civilized world j was interested in its success —It is f vain then to say, that we were taken ! for lawless invaders, and it is unjust to endeavor to stain the character of my country by a charge of frequency of hostile expeditions against the Span-, ish possessions, or otter them as CX* t cuse for the conduct of the offender.— Had men escape sometimes the vigil- 1 ance ot the most rigid authorities, and liogovernment deserves reproach when it does its utmost to detect and bring them to punishment. Hind your coasts lined with troops 1 since my arrival here. 1 find rein- > forceinects daily coining in, as 1 am ; informed by your order to protect the inhabitants from mv resentments. 1 ‘have lounu evei v |* otauitvs** c. ; keep me in profound ignorance ot the i lamentable occurrence; but these things were ail in vain, i saw the in sult olferecl to the flag of my country —I have satisfied your military ioiii- i nmuders that their force is despicable j when compared to that at my disposal, I and 1 have convinced tbe iniiaoitants, that although they are at my mercy, j tiiey will nut be made answerable tor the offences of an individual. Ins not then becoming to the char- i acter of your excellency to resort to J subterfuge in older to divert the odium ‘ of the act from one officer to attach blame to another, 1 will further ask, why a rigor should be exercised towards vessels bearing the American flag, that was not exten ded to the British squadron or to the i trench frigate, which arrived subset quent to tiie attack on lieui. com’dtJ Cocke? in the one case there was only a small schooner to lire at, in the ; other there were vessels of force. llad lie fallen in battle and bv the hand ol a declared enemy, we should j have been reconciled to ins late by tue i proud satistaction tout he died m the performance of his duty to Ins country ; but to be thus cruelly torn from us, and by the hand ol a dastard, whose aim was the more sure from a confidence in Ins own safety, ami the defenceless condition of las object, admits of no consolation. Your excellency in conversation with the ollicer you wish to implicate, adverted to the aflair of the Paucliita assume palliation for the olfence ; and there is too much reason to apprehend that the officer who gave tbe order to prevent the entrance of my squadron, as well as those who executed it, thought this a fair opportunity to reta liate. Otherwise, way heat shot in tiie furnaces to destroy my squadron ? \\ hyooen two batteries on the schoo tier, and why lire round shot and lau gnige, while the lamented victim was hailing the fort, ami why the remark of the man who pointed the gun, that the shot was intended to avenge the Punch itta ■? Your excellency will recollect that in the Panchita, there was an equality of force. Such an occurrence would not have taken place had there been a great a disparity as in the present in stance. The cases are not therefore parallel, and if the satisfaction of rcta ! Ration was sought lor, the offenders have failed in their object; it is yet to be obtained. 1 shall leave the Island tomorrow morning with a heavy heart, and shall without, delay communicate to my Go ! vernmeut the melancholy result of my visit here, which was intended for the benefit of the civilized world in general. t With great respect, l have the linn jour to be, your excellency’s most obe dient humble servant. Signed. I). PORTER. To Captain Sir Thomas Cochrane. “ U. S. ship Peacock, > Aguada, March 12, 182.3. } Sin: The officers commanding the ; vessels of the squadron now with me, j have conjointly in behalfof themselves, land those under their command, re ! quested me to inform you, that they feel most sensibly the kimi attentions lof yourself and all the British officers at St Johns, to the remains of their highly esteemed, and much lamented bro.her olficer and friend lieut. coin’dt. Win. 11. Cocke, and they beg that through you their sentiments of grati j tude uiay be made known to the officers ! under your command. To their wishes on the subject allow me to add my own, and ttxsay that 1 feel no less sensibly than they, the delicate attentions that, have on this melancholy occasion been mani fested by the officers of the Riitisli squat ron. With sentiments of the highest re spect, I have tiie honour to be, your very,obedient servant. Signed. J)- PORTER. New York, April 22. A letter written on hoard the Decoy, Capt. Kearney, says—lt was mere ac- Icident that others did not meet the fate of the lamented Lieut. Cocke, as it was understood the fort had prepa i red hot shot to be made use of in case ! other vessels attempted to enter the port. —That she had scoured the south coasts of St. Domingo and Cuba. Off Cape Antonio, boarded the British fri gate Tamer, and was informed of the particulars of the capture of tiie La Cata, piratical schooner, by the Gre cian cutter. TheLaCata was 90 tons with a crew of 69 men—the G. pursu ed her until they both run aground within gun shot. The pirate returned her fir'* with great spirit for some time, under the bloody Hag, (a red flag with a death’s head,) when she suddenly blew up, supposed from accident, and destroyed a number of their iraiiar. — The survivors swam ashore, where they were met by the boats of the Hyperion, U:ul I•) niltd j n -*• ‘- 1 -- on the oeach as tfiey came out of the water—where they were cut down, and with the exception of a few, put to death. The commander of the iri -1 gate was present in his gig, and had to • revoke an order he had given to shew ! no quarters, the carnage being so great as t® excite commisseration, even for J pirates. By an arrival at Baltimore, we learn | that the pilot boat schr. Pilot, Capt. J Banks, recently retaken by Com. Por ter's squadron, was captured on the 29th ult. about 30 miles to the wind- I ward of Havana. On hoarding, the piratical commander gave orders that all hands should be murdered and thrown overboard; but a Spanish pas i stinger on board begged for quarters in ! his native tongue, and the orders were {countermanded. The crew and pas sengers were detained four days, and ; then put on shore. Captain Banks, in i passing through Matan/.as, recognized a great part of Ids cargo there, ottering j for sale, but was strongly advised .by i h.s friends to be silent, as Inside might Lie the forfeit. From .Matanzns. —YVe learn by the arrival of the schooner Harriet, that two days before she left Matan/.as, lour or five Pirates arrived there, and informed, that they were the only ones who had escaped, from a considerable 1 body which had been located on one of the Keys, about 40 miles to the wind ward ot that place* It was under stood, that Commodore Porter had obtained information of their situation, and dispatched ins barges along shore, wnilc the steam galley, and some of the small vessels, approached the Key. On discovering them, the Pirates made lor the Cuba shore, when they were intercepted in their flight, and taken prisoners, with the exception of the four or five which had reached Malan ias. It was reported, that the Pirates had erected huts on the Key, in which was deposited their ill-gotten plun der; all of which, it was supposed, had fallen into the hands of our gallant tars; but as the barges, or larger vessels had not returned, no other particulars were known. We also learn, by this arrival, that the Pirate who commanded the recap tured schooner Pilot, returned to Mu tan/.as a fewiiours after sbs was ta ken, in company with two ot his crew, who, with the exception of the one ta ken prisoner, were the only survivors of his whole crew, amounting to 40 or 50 men. He was talking publicly on the subject, and lamenting the disas trous result ol his cruise. The following is an extract from the log-book of the brig Bclisariu.s, re cently commanded by Captain Per kins, whose barbarous murder by the Pirates has been before men tioned. “ Sailed from Campcachy, February 27th, 1823 for Laguna, and arrived off that port in the night of the 28th.— On the Ist of March the wind being ahead, we continued plving to wind ward until 10o’clock, when a sail was descried bearing down fur us from be tween flic Island. She proved to be a sellr. of 40 or 50 tons, manned by about as many men, who hoisted a tri-col oured flag win l # close aboard and or dered our captain to come to them with his papers. On liis going 10 or 12 of then^ apparently Spaniards, jumped into me boat, and came immediately on board the brig armed with cutlass es. At first ti.ey were sociable, asked for some liquor, and drank very friend ly witUail hands. Our captain was j still on board their schr. After having been on board about an hour, they dis covered tiie American colours in the main rigging—cursed them and puiled them down. The one who seemed to hold command, went with the mate into the cabin, and questioned hint 1 about money. The mate answered he j knew of none but some little of his ! own, which lie immediately delivered j up, but this did not hinder the others from beating the mate severely with his cutlass. They immediately order ed two of the brig’s crew to take the boat and bring the captain back. No sooner was he on board than they de manded money of him ; he replied there was none. T hey then com men menceil beating him with cutlasses, and pricking him with knives, when still denying the money, they order ed him in the hold. In the act of go ing: down, he called to his crew, (who had been repeatedly threatened with death and were then forward) and told them to search in snch a place amongst the ballast and they would find money. This was done and the money deliver ed up to the pirates. The captain was by this time down in the hold, with one of his arms broken and his flesh much cut: there they began to torture him bv steeping oakum in oil, then setting fire to it and applying it to various parts of his body. After doing this for some time, one of them stabbed the unfortunate man with a kntre in tne inroat. v/ur crew urn,, were ordered to make a rope fast round him and he was dragged upon deck, where bags of stones were tied to his arms, and he was thrown overboard.— In the meantime some of the pirates were abusing the mate ; they stabbed him in the hip, and threatened to serve him as they had don.e the captain, if he did not find more money. Believ ing at last there was no more on board, they resolved to set fire to the brig and send the crew on shore in the long boat ; but with many entreaties, they gave us the vessel, taking off both boats, hedge anchor, camboosc and part of our light rigging and most all our ship stores, charts, and nautical books. The schr. Gleaner, Saunders, ar rived at New York, from New Or leans, was boarded on the 10th inst. off Key West, bv a boat from the U. S. ship Peacock, then lying there dismantled, with the steam vessel and 4 or 5 other vessels of the squadron—their boats cruising round the coast. Was informed that a Dr. sloop of war, (name not recollected) had been boarded, when disguised, by about 60 pirates, commanded by Lafitte, and succee ded in killing them all. They also informed that a Dutch brig had been captured about 15 miles from Matanzns, and all on board, in cluding two women, were murdered. From ilu• Paris Consiitutionel. VICTORY OF TKK GREEKS. In the uncertainty which prevails on the question of war with Spain, great events happen almost unnoticed. Thus we have not announced with all the interest which it deserves, the new and splendid victory of the Greeks over the. Turks. The capture of Na poli di Ilomana is one of those deci sive triumphs which in ennobling a people, consolidate its ideas, and fur nish the must glorious evidence of its independence.” >\ bat a noble sight is that ot a Christian people bursting the tetters of a slavery of four centuries, and proclaiming its freedom in the lace ol those Christian governments who have abandoned it to its own re- Sources ! lias not the lejiii'ii try of (!• Grand Turk been loudly insisted u.i by men who call themselves chiis tians? Would that we could cost a veil over litis disgraceful period of oar history, and shield it lroni the re proach of posterity. IONIAN ISI.AXDS. Jan. 7.—Napoli di Ro mania, after an obstinate struggle, which the pride and obstinacy ot the Mttssulmen have prolonged to the utmost, fell about the middle of December. Thia plc* contain® about (iO,OOO inhabitants, and is the strongest in European T urkey. It is protected by three fortress’s — the first is at the angle of thtudnpe and defends the entrance ol the port ; the second is placed nr the bottom of the bay, which it com mands, and covers with its ram parts what may be properly called tbe city ; and third, the citadel of Palameds, built on an eminence, controuls the vast extent ot Napoli di Romania. Tbe Greeks had pos sessed themsclve3 of the first ol these forts in June last. On the 12th Dec. they carried the citadel by assault, by singular good for tune, a great part of the officers be ing in attendance at the moment ol the assault upon a council cl war which the Pacha and Beys were holding at Verossa. The Turks wiio escaped retired to the remain - ing fortress, (Verossa.) Here they endeavoured to treat, but the * Greeks finding that their overtures I were merely for the purpose oi j gaining time, were, after an acldiess from their commander, Stoicos, led to the assault —it was bloody and obstinate—the Turks, alter being driven from their ramparts defend ed the batteries with great tury—of 500 combattants only 40 were taken prisoners—the famous Ali Bey is among the number. By the cap ture of this chief the Porte is w ith out and Turk of the Morea capable of directing an enterprise against it. The Greeks took 400 pieces of cannon, a great quantity of other arms and stores. The place fur nishes a harbour for their navy, se cure against all hostile attacks. FROM FRANCE AND SPAIN. On the sth March the king of Spain signed a decree confirming |tbe authority of the ministers, whom he had twice displaced and and restored, and issued a procla mation announcing that war was *■ solved on, and that die Oj) tIH 1S 11 gO X. iit rr ... . . #• to adopt the most efficient means to repel every aggression on its lights. No doubt existed in France that war must ensue, and the period for opening the campaign was various ly stated from the Ist to the 12th jof April. A moderate royalist pa- I per, says, “ The ill consequences i necessarily consequent on a war | with Spain are too generally known i and too well appreciated to peimit us to announce without extreme regret, that the last hopes of peace are almost entirchj extinguished.''' — In consequence of the certainty of war the Trench funds had fallen two francs. From the Y. Fork Com. Advertiser. Yhe royalist papers contain cir cular proclamations of some of the different commanders of the Na tional guard in Paris, reprobating the conduct of the detachment which refused to use force in the Chamber of deputies for the expul sion of M. Manuel. The Consti tutionel observes that officers “ may entertain and express what opinions they please on ahe subject, it will not prevent others from thinking the reverse.” ‘Lite sub officer com manding, M. Mercter, was to he tried by a court martial, in com pliance with orders of the Count ‘Clermont Tonnere,’ commandant of Paris. Nothing of importance had trans pired in the Chamber of Deputies immediately previous to, or on the Bth March, when it adjourned to the 14th. YVe perceive no ferment in the public mmd except at the re ception of Gen. Foy (one of the li beral members) at a public exami nation at die Sarbonne, where the scholars saluted his entrance with acclamation. lhis trifling circum stance seems to have given ground for complaint to the royalists. A subscription was open 111 Paris for the purpose of assisting the Greeks. Accounts from Spain are to the sth March. By a decree of that dale the scat of government was transferred to llajadoz, whither the