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1835.]

CORRESPONdence.

body of well-posted infantry, covered by guns, but that Schulemburgh had caused a part of that infantry to exchange their firelocks for pikes, and that it was to those pikes he was indebted for the escape of a portion of his discomfited foot from the Swedish sword. So far was Charles from deeming it possible for bayoneting in level ground to resist horse confident in their own prowess, that he had resolved not to allow the use of fire at all in his projected attack upon the Russian chevaux-de-frise covered army at the Pruth. Carleton's Memoirs, on which my skilful adversary has appuyed his rifle, will prove but a tottering rest, for they form one of the amusing novels written by the author of Robinson Crusoe. Folard is my authority for asserting that British Foot in square, steadily reserving their fire, were, and that not once alone, charged through and sabred by Spanish horse.

The improper distance at which the square trampled down by the Mamlukes gave fire was, I believe, twenty paces; several horses, mortally pierced, fell dead, after passing through both faces of the square.

The fact adduced respecting the affair at Alba of itself disproves the "Old Soldier's" theory. If many horses were bayoneted, it is evident that the face of the square first charged must have met the charge unflinchingly; that unflinchingly meeting the charge, it did all that foot soldiers can do; and that if doing all that foot soldiers can do, it was overborne, every other body of foot charged under similar circumstances, with equal impetuosity, must be destroyed. Had the German heavy dragoons carried lances of sufficient length to reach over the bayonets, it is evident that neither men nor horses could have received bayonet wounds, and much fewer would have been shot, as the consciousness that they had nothing but a single volley to depend upon must have rendered that volley equally harmless with most of those fired by the British squares at Waterloo.

I remain, Sir, yours, very obediently,

Regimental Dinner Dress.

HASTA.

MR. EDITOR,-Presenting, as your Journal does, such an excellent medium for suggesting everything beneficial to the service, it is singular that no individual of the number interested should have availed himself of it, to denounce a practice at once expensive and easy of alteration,-viz., that of For though an officer has every proper dining daily at the mess in coatees. respect for etiquette, and a custom which time has associated with strict ideas of discipline, still he surely has reason to reflect, somewhat discontentedly, that his coatee, though not made for this purpose expressly, is hardly worn more than once a-week for any other; whereas, if the same indulgence was granted to the head-quarters as to the depôts of regiments, most of which wear shell-jackets, and to the cavalry, who perhaps with no exception dine in their stable-dress, a considerable saving would be effected, and his character and conduct as an officer and a gentleman would remain in a shell-jacket essentially what they were in a coatee.

In expectation, then, that my humble suggestion may find favour with the higher authorities of the service, and that the infantry in consequence will no longer have this single instance to adduce in which their regulations regarding dress could be improved, SHELL-JACKET. I remain, yours, very truly, and with good economy,

October 2, 1835.

Barrack Economy.

MR. EDITOR,-The late cheese-paring economical regulation perpetrated As a by the Board of Ordnance in regard to the issue of the barrack allowance of coal and candle to officers who do not occupy quarters in barracks, has done more to disgust our military circles than any other recent occurrence. mean of economy it will entirely fail, and only have the effect of engendering disputes, and setting the wits of those interested at work, to enjoy by

subterfuge what they ought to do by right. Can it be justified on any principle, that when an officer's quarter in barracks is not sufficient for the accommodation of his family (for those only with families are placed in such a predicament)-I say, can it be justified on any principle, that permission to live out, which would not be granted were it in any way to inconvenience the service, should be coupled with the deprivation of his barrack allowances? This is pressing on the already overladen horse with a vengeance. Why should he not be permitted to receive his fuel, &c., and to retain his quarter in such circumstances, and be allowed, if inclined, to accommodate a brother officer similarly circumstanced, with its use, who on some other occasion might in return, by relinquishing his quarter, afford him similar accommodation? Why, when the service does not suffer thereby, are officers to be debarred from reciprocally assisting and obliging each other? Why, when an officer performs his duty, is he to be deprived of any part of the recompense allotted for his services, more especially under such cruel circumstances when his necessities are actually greater, why should his advantages be curtailed? Why place stumbling blocks in the way of the officers commanding, in regard to the certificate attached to the barrack returns, and impose on them the unpleasant office of spies and inquisitors in regard to the domicile of their officers? And why allow of the temptation on their part to deceive the commanding officer in that respect?

I trust, Mr. Editor, the exposure of this most illiberal, beggarly, unjust, and unneccessary measure, will speedily be the means of occasioning its rescindment. SENEX.

The Rival Roses.

MR. EDITOR,-Under the still latent hope that our services as militiamen may be in some sort made useful to our country, I will venture to intrude upon you, in offering the following remarks. Though a reduction has taken place, it yet appears that our gracious Sovereign has still a feeling of respect for the service, and I trust will not see us utterly annihilated. I allude to the special mark of his favour conferred upon the Militia and Yeomanry of Lancashire. The Red Roses are honoured by being exempt from the late act, which confines their services to the silver lace. They are ordered to wear gold, and thus placed more upon an equality with the regular service. Why, may I venture to ask, are the White Roses of York forgotten? Does any stigma attach to the large and opulent county of York, comprising many of his Majesty's wealthiest and most loyal subjects? Can the history of olden times affect us? Surely not. Read that most interesting portion of the history of England, when our country was deluged with our noblest blood, spilt in the faction of the Roses. Does one party deserve better of its country than the other? Take the Lancastrian party, headed by the noble and unfortunate Margaret of Anjou, and her equally unfortunate husband Henry VI., were they more cautious of spilling the best blood of their country, or more merciful to their enemies than the party of York, headed by Richard, who gallantly fell at the battle of Wakefield, or by his gallant son Edward, who ascended the throne of England? As an instance of the little difference of feeling that existed between either party, as to the real good of their country, I will quote what the historian Hume says in regard to their treatment of Henry VI. "This weak prince was sure to be almost equally a prisoner, whichever faction had the keeping of him; and scarcely any more decorum was observed by one than by the other, in their method of treating him." These fierce struggles have happily long since ceased, and the Roses are united in the closest bonds of friendship. They comprise a most opulent and powerful portion of his Majesty's dominions. Let the White Roses flourish under his Majesty's special favour, as well as the Red. Their views are now one and the same-" to support our King, our Church, and our Constitution." Your obedient humble Servant,

W. R. Y.

CORRESPONDENCE FROM THE PRINCIPAL PORTS AND STATIONS.

Portsmouth, Nov. 20, 1835.

MR. EDITOR,-A day or two after the Court Martial on the Honourable Captain Rous, and Mr. Wm. Hemsley, the Master of the Pique, had taken place, of which I sent you the sentence, orders arrived for the frigate to be paid off, it being ascertained that the repairs she required would occupy some weeks, (a large party of shipwrights are at work on her, and have already made great progress ;-she is very much strained below; her decks must be unbolted and re-laid, numerous bolts drove and clinched;) and the Admiralty considered the pay and victualling of the people might be saved to the Crown for that period. Their Lordships also desired some questions to be answered by Captain Rous respecting the lead and the charts. It appears, however, from what has happened subsequently, that they were most satisfactorily replied to; but one would have thought that a full acquittal by sentence of a court-martial was quite sufficient; the officers composing it having doubtless sifted the matter-but so it was. However, the day before the Pique was paid off, the officers, seamen, and marines, were called on deck, and Captain Rous read the following letter from the Port Admiral :

"Britannia, Portsmouth Harbour, Nov. 3, 1835. "Sir,-On the paying off of the Pique, the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty are desirous of expressing their approbation of the conduct of yourself, and the officers and crew under your command, in extricating the Pique from the perilous situation she was in when on shore on the coast of Labrador, and on her subsequent voyage home under circumstances of great difficulty, and such as required skill and exertion of no ordinary kind; and you will therefore receive and communicate their Lordships' sentiments to the officers and crew of His Majesty's ship Pique under your command accordingly. "I am, Sir, &c.,

(Signed)

"To Capt. the Hon. H. J. Rous."

"THOS. WILLIAMS, "Admiral and Commander-in-Chief.

Now, why could not this meed of praise have been put into the sentence? How cheap is approbation when justly merited! Instead of the ship's company separating with a growl, they, in consequence of this commendation, all moved away like so many harlequins, and would, there is no doubt, volunteer to be placed in similar circumstances. While on the subject I should mention, that at the earnest desire of the officers, a series of four sketches illustrative of various situations of the Pique on her homeward passage from Quebec from the moment of her coming off the rocks on the coast of Labrador, until her being docked at Portsmouth, have been drawn on stone, and are about to be published by Mr. Schetky, of the Royal Naval College, Marine Painter to his Majesty and the Royal Yacht Squadron; and from his well-known talents they will no doubt be most able delineations of her perilous state. Great numbers have been subscribed for at the charge of a crown for the four.

A party of gentlemen arrived at Portsmouth a few weeks ago in a yacht, with a machine for purifying sea-water, and rendering it available for cooking, drinking, and washing linen; and considering the bad time of year selected for such an excursion, and for persons to move on the water to inspect the apparatus and taste the liquid, a great number were attracted on board the Dauntless; and what is of more importance, expressed their satisfaction and approbation of the invention of such a machine, (some of the water, when compared with that issued a few days previous from Weevil to one of the ships in ordinary, was pronounced equally good ;) for most naval people have been in situations where fresh water was scarce for domestic

purposes, putting out of sight the want of sufficient to drink. With this newly-invented and patent machine of Mr. Stothert's, a considerable quantity of palatable water can be obtained, sufficient to supply a moderate ship's company for purposes of personal purification and for washing linen, thus saving the tank-water. I think continued use inwardly might produce stomach complaint; but under all circumstances, the invention is highly beneficial, and the Government should be requested to try one or two machines on board cruizing-ships; the expense is of no moment compared with its advantages-the cooking for the crew and roasting for the officers can be accomplished at the time the steam is condensing. Such vessels as the Etna and Sulphur might have them issued, as the cost of the machine is not equal to that of a ship's hearth. The one on board the Dauntless was neat and compact, and adapted for 120 men.

The Harrier has sailed for the South American station, taking Captain George Willes, to go in the Dublin as her new captain. The Linnet and Pantaloon to be employed on packet-service. The Snake came in from Sheerness, and after being here forty-eight hours was dispatched to the West Indies. The surveying ships Ætna and Sulphur, with their tenders, the Raven and Starling, are the only vessels fitting in the harbour, excepting the Britannia, rigging in the basin for the Flag. We have had a convict ship called the Surrey docked and repaired in consequence of having drove from her anchors when lying in the Downs and getting on the Brake, and being nearly lost during the storm of the 25th October. Luckily the gale moderated, and with the assistance of Deal boatmen and some pilot-vessels, the Surrey was got off; and the wind being more favourable for her to come to Portsmouth than to return to the river, the underwriters got permission for her being set to rights in a Government dock. This circumstance, of such trifling importance, would not have been alluded to if it were not to mention, that it is understood this vessel among her stores has for the use of the convicts a large quantity of cocoa-powder, intended to be issued to the prisoners. You may recollect that representations were made of the sickness which prevailed among a great number of those unfortunate people who were drowned in the George the Third, being sick and unable to exert themselves, and it was in some measure attributed to powdered cocoa being supplied in lieu of oatmeal or flour. It is poor economy to resort to such savings. Why not supply them with the cocoa-nut? the prisoners having plenty of time to pound it. Mr. Grant, of the Victualling Department at Gosport, once caused some to be heated and pressed between iron plates, and afterwards made into cakes, but then there was some goodness left; a similar plan is now adopted at Deptford Victualling Office, as the cocoa for the fleet is made into squares, stamped and packed in boxes for his Majesty's ships; but the stuff that goes on board the convict-ships resembles the powder of timber affected with the dry-rot, and must be refuse and husks. Mr. Grant has had a most complimentary testimonial from the King of the French, being a letter from his secretary, expressing his approbation of the biscuit-baking machine. It appears that the plan was furnished to a French agent who went to inspect the Victualling Department at Weevil, and from it one has been erected at his Majesty's expense at Eu, near Dieppe. The biscuit made has been highly approved, and is to be generally adopted, and the Minister of Commerce is directed to prepare and send a gold medal to Mr. Grant as a mark of his Majesty's esteem. The French Government intend to have a baking-apparatus built at Toulon and Brest for the navy, and in some of the interior garrisons in France for the army.

I find Captain Wauchope is indefatigable in getting the Signal-ball erected for denoting Greenwich time. It appears, since he has been out with Rear-Admiral Campbell in the Thalia, he has had one put up at St. Helena, that the masters of ships may regulate their chronometers and adjust them at one o'clock, and the residents on the island set their watches and house

clocks at twelve. This plan originated at Portsmouth while Admiral Sir Robert Stopford was Commander-in-chief, upon Captain Wauchope's suggestion; and every day (Sunday excepted) the hour of one by Greenwich time is denoted by a ball being dropped from the signal tower in the DockYard, the exact time being made from the Observatory of the Naval College. This ball can be seen by ships at St. Helen's, or the Motherbank; and last winter, when the wind hung so long from the westward that the American packets even could not start, the masters of ships found it very useful.

Commander Belcher, in the Carron steamer, has been surveying round the Isle of Man and the deep-water soundings near Carlingford and Dublin; but the steamer was such a rickety affair, and the winter setting in very boisterous, the Admiralty have ordered them to Woolwich to refit. The Carron called in here on her way to the eastward to fill up her coal-hole; her engine and boilers are very much out of order, and scarcely worth the expense of repairing. The Trinity House steamer, Firebrand, would be the best vessel possible for the service.

The Vanguard and Madagascar are not ordered to be commissioned yet, notwithstanding the reports that Captains have been appointed; the internal fittings of the former are not completed. By way of trying the stability of the new dock-yard sheers, directions were given yesterday to ship some iron steam-boilers, weighing about ten tons each, in a lighter for Woolwich, and they were got on board exceedingly well. Chains have been substituted wherever they can be, in place of rope, and made tight by screws, affording a better purchase than hauling taut with a capstan. The sheers are very complete, and look remarkably well. The adoption of chains' was the recommendation of Mr. Blake, the Master Shipwright of this dock-yard, who is constantly producing something novel and beneficial in the shipbuilding and naval department. There is a very feasible report that the Rear-Admiral Superintendent is to have his flag in the St. Vincent or one of the demonstration-ships, and that the captain, commander, and the officers composing the staff of the ships in ordinary, will be borne on her books. In the first place, considering the very important duties which that indefatigable and zealous officer (Sir Frederick Maitland) has to execute, his flag should be flying in a ship of the line instead of the old Pay-Office yacht; and by putting the Captain of the Ordinary in commission, his services will be made available for surveys, courts-martial, examination of midshipmen, and a variety of other duties. The commander and lieutenants might still reside in different ships, and be responsible for their divisions. The order for the change has been expected all the week, but probably the Admiralty will defer it to the commencement of the new year.

We have no alteration in the troops of the Garrison since I last wrote to you. The depôts of the 59th, 68th, 70th, and 97th, are in Portsmouth, and the depots of the 7th, 61st, and 99th, at Gosport. Some weeks ago there was a breeze or two in one of them, and every probability of a court-martial; but fortunately an amicable arrangement took place, and the matter was settled without resorting to that disagreeable alternative.

In consequence of some of the soldiers of the depot deserting to the mercenary force in Spain, a new duty devolves on the Town-Adjutant; he has to search every vessel loaded with these people before she leaves the port; no joke-for a gentleman to have to thread his way among such an anointed race. Although numerous individuals from this town have joined General Evans, it is extraordinary how few communications are received from them by their friends; it is suspected that a restriction is placed by the commanding officer on letter-writing, or the facilities of sending are not plentiful or certain. A vessel is here to embark horses, but it appears the volunteering for men is at a discount, for placards are about the town requiring more hands, and, among other advantages, a free passage home is mentioned among the good things held out. Can it be possible there is a decrease of

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