The English in Spain - 1877 Author:Francis Duncan Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER II. MlNA. VOTWITHSTANDING the courage, and, in a certain degree, the experience of Mina, his brief career in command of the Army of the North was ... more »by no means a brilliant one. The terror attached to his name, and deservedly inspired both by his proclamations and his cruelties, had only the effect of driving an exasperated peasantry into the Carlist ranks. His attempts at organisation were thwarted by the jealousy of his enemy at Madrid, Lauder, who was Minister of War for the first few weeks of Mina's command ; and his authority in Biscay and Navarre was not complete, a considerable part of the force not having been placed under his orders. As instances of this may be quoted the force under Col.Wyide, General Latre at Viana, and that under General Bedoya at jTMpn"' Logrono. 1834. The state of the army at the end of the year was graphically described in a letter from Colonel Flinter, an able Colonel staff-officer, and chief of the staff to one of the Christino j"'i' generals of division. " I have been for some time," he D-31. wrote, " chief of the staff, and have been for seven months " without any rest. I have traversed Navarre in every " direction, and have been particularly attentive in order to " make myself thoroughly acquainted with the state of " public opinion, and I have closely observed the measures " taken by government for the purpose of putting down the " rebellion, which rages in every part of the province with " increased violence. The arrival of Mina, much as I re- " spect him, has not produced the effect which was expected." The inhabitants seem more incensed against him than " against any former leader; very few have gone over to " him from the enemy. We can scarcely, even with onr " united forces, undertake any offensive operations in certain ...« less