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44 J- H. Rose Asturias ; while the men of Leon were furious at the retreat of Blake. He further inclosed a letter sent by Bessieres to Blake after the battle of Rio Seco, in which the French marshal urged the Spaniard to insure harmony between the Spanish and French troops, and invited him " a rentrer dans I'ordre ". Blake took no notice of this ofifer.^ The news of Dupont's surrender, which reached Corunna on August i, did not facilitate the task of union of the three provinces of the northwest. In vain did Stuart urge the des- patch of Blake's army southward to the Portuguese frontier in order to prevent a possible union of Bessieres with Junot to the detri- ment of the British force which had just landed near the mouth of the river Mondego. Blake remained inactive; and Stuart's des- patches show the reason for his inaction, namely, that his army had no cavalry and was composed almost entirely of raw recruits, who would have been crushed by Bessieres but for the retreat of that marshal, necessitated by the news of the French disaster at Baylen. As for "civil affairs, Stuart reported that they were more and more entangled. The intriguing bishop of St. Jago had come to Co- runna and was found to be in secret correspondence with Blake, whereupon he was ordered to leave the town. The junta tried to induce the able and popular bishop of Orense to join it, but he for some time refused ; and his refusal (wrote Stuart) imperilled the very existence of that body. On August 7 the British envoy summed up his opinions on the situation in the northwest of Spain in terms which deserve quotation almost in cxfcnso : Corunna Aug. 7. 1808. . . . The government of every part of Spain is at present without exception in the hands of the provincial nobility, or more strictly speak- ing the gentry of the country, aided by a few persons, who, having formerly held situations in the Ministry at Madrid, had for various reasons retired long since to the provinces. No individual distinguished in the capital for rank, power, or riches has stood forth in support of the cause of Ferdinand VII. Some general officers of merit and repu- tation are indeed employed in the patriotic armies, but we look in vain for the names of those who have hitherto held the highest military com- mands ; they have been happy to remain tranquil, though many have embraced the party of Joseph Bonaparte, and many have fallen victims to the ferocity of the mob; the names of Solano, Helos, Filangieri, are among the latter; while Campo d'Alanze, Negriti, O'Farrill and Mas- saredo, have joined the French. The Provincial nobility naturally feel strong local attachments, and are less interested in the general cause than in the welfare of their own particular province. Hence difficulties have arisen impeding the assem- bly of a general Cortez : those who have enjoyed the advantage of ' Blake was of Irish descent, but his family had long been domiciled in Spain.