The pride of the French too had been at this time abated on the eastern coast, where Suchet had hitherto boasted of success in all his undertakings. Major-General William Clinton arrived at Alicante in November to take the command from which his health had compelled General Maitland to retire; and notwithstanding the difficulties which were opposed by a false point of honour, by a jealousy as ill-founded as it was ill-timed, and perhaps by treasonable intentions, he succeeded in obtaining consent to garrison the castle with British troops. In December a reinforcement of 4000 men, British and foreign, arrived from Palermo, under Major-General James Campbell, who by seniority superseded General Clinton in the command, which he was to hold till the then hourly expected arrival of Lord William Bentinck from Sicily. But Lord William was detained by political circumstances in that island, where the hopeless attempt had been undertaken of improving a government before any improvement has been effected either in those who are to govern or be governed; and, ♦SIR JOHN MURRAY TAKES THE COMMAND.♦ as no end could be seen to this delay, Lieutenant-General Sir John Murray was sent out from England to command the allied forces in that part of Spain. Feeble as that allied force was, and inert as its feebleness had compelled it to be, it had yet employed Suchet’s attention during the autumn and winter. That general had his head-quarters for the most part at San Felippe, between Alicante and Valencia, and about three leagues from the Xucar. Some trivial affairs were all that occurred, till Sir John Murray soon after his arrival took the army out of its cantonments, apparently with the view of making the French marshal fall back and concentrate his forces on that river. After an unsuccessful attempt at surprising an enemy’s detachment in the populous village of Alcoy, he moved forward and took up a position near the town of Castalla, where in the preceding summer Don Joseph O’Donnell had sustained a severe defeat. While Sir John made ♦DEFEAT OF ELIO’S CORPS.♦ this movement on the right, General Elio with a separate Spanish corps of 12,000 men moved on the left to Yecla, Villena, and the flat country in that direction. There was an old castle in Villena, and Elio garrisoned it with 800 of his best troops. Suchet was not a man to lose any opportunity which was presented him: he saw that one of Elio’s divisions had taken post at Yecla, within reach of Fuente-la-Higuera, where his own advance was placed, and too far from that of the allies which was at Villena, 25 miles distant. During the night he collected the flower of his army at Fuente-la-Higuera, and marched with one division, the cavalry and the reserve, upon Villena, while, with the other part of his force, General Harispe proceeded rapidly to Yecla, ♦APRIL 12.♦ unseen by the Spaniards. At break of day he came in sight of them; they retreated