The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1886-09-18 00:00:00

GREAT FIELD DAY AT ALDERSHOT.
ThIPORTANT ENGINEERING OPERATIONS.

The operations conducted at Aldershot on Tuesday
morning were generally considered in the camp to be
the most important that have been held there for
several years, nothing being assumed, and all being
carried out according to the strictest military regula-
tions. The manoeuvres were chiefly with the object
of making a practical inspection of the Roy al Engi-
neer troops, and testing their efficiency. For this
purpose each department of the corps, unlike the
other troops, were ordered to parade as strongly as
possible • and it was at once apparent that so strong
a force of ;the scientific branch of the army would
have a material effect upon the result of ouerations.
Lieutenant-General Nicholson, Inspector-Geueral of
Engineers, was present, and personally supervised
the bridging operations, which were carried out in
the most creditable manner. The general idea was
that an enemy had landed in great strength of
infantry between Portsmouth and Newhaven,
and had pushed forward a strong corps,
chiefly composed of infantry, with orders to
obtain possession of the high ground at C:asar's
Camp, and to entrench itself there until a sufficient
force of cavalry and artillery 'could be disembarked to
admit of more extended operations. To check the
advance, which has already succeeded in blowing up
the crowns of three of the bridges over the canal west
of the camp, two divisions were supposed to nave been
hastily concentrated by railway at Farnborough and
Frimley from the north, and one at Woking from the
east. Ihe troops from the north were directed to
push forward and engage the enemy's attention, and
if possible obtain possession of the Co2sar's Camp and
Beacon-bill range of heights. The enemy at the latter
position was of the skeleton character, in which the
Scots Greys were taken to represent two regiments,
and the Ist Leicester and 2nd Rifle Brigade each a
division of infantry, there being in addition a horse
and a field battery, the whole under Sir Howard
Elphinstone, V.C. The Northern force was com-
manded by Major-General the Hon. W. H. A. Feild-
big, and consisted of five batteries, the Royal
Dragoons and 10th Hussars, two brigades of infantry,
and a divisional battalion, and a pontoon troop,
Telegraph Division, field pack and three companies of
Engineers. Major-General Cooper had command of
General Feilding's infantry.
The base of operations of the Northern force was
Cove-hill, and from here the attack was directed.
The batteries of artillery posted on the hill soon
descried the enemy in the neighbourhood of Cfesar's
Camp, with his infantry working through Claycart
Copses, and therefore opened fire upon Elphiestone's
advance about half-past 11. The Telegraph Division,
covered by the Royal Irish Fusiliers on the left, and
the Borderers on the right, hugging the Cove Reser-
voir, advanced in workmanlike style, and laid lines in
all directions towards the canal. These lines were
not imaginary, as is usually the case, but were really
laid, and the terminals fixed, so that nieesages could
be despatched. Flag signalling—which could, of
course, have been read by the enemy—was, therefore,
no necessary. Messages were promptly sent in to the
effect that the bridges were in every case destroyed,
and working parties of Engineers were sent forward
with the utmost speed to repair or build new means
of transport over the canal. The first water that had
to be crossed was the stream connecting the canal
with the reservoir, and every bridge was completely
destroyed. Pontoon and trestle bridges had to be
constructed, and to do this the Engineers had to
work:short handed, there being only about a dozen
men to each of the seven bridges instead of 21.
Notwithstanding this the bridges were made in an in-
credibly short space of time, and the right column of
the Northern attack passed over in safety, showing
the perfection of the work. Of the larger canal
bridges the crowns only were destroyed, and there-
fore the work of repairing them was not great, but
nevertheless, the artillery had taa much as it could do
to get over. The untrained horses, and particularly
the mules, were rather untractable, but a little
mild
persuasion got them across to the scene of further
action _ _

Of the infantry the Middlesex Regirn6nt had the
most difficult task, as their line of advance lay straight
over the broad reservoir, and to accomplish this a raft
had to be constructed, as there was no time to build a
trestle bridge of the requisite dimensions. Under
cover of the infantry, these telegraph and bridging
operations were most successfully performed, th" artil-
lery at the same time acting from the base, beeping
back the enemy's cavalry, who appeared strongly in-
clined to harass the Engineers in their work, being
themselves covered by the;r guns on Beacon- hill and
Cfesar's Camp. The work of the Engineers was, in-
deed, of the most arduous character, for the tract of
country lying between the base of operations awl the
canal was nearly two miles broad. This rendered
necessary precautions of no ordinary character, and
the 10th Hussars and Royal Dragoons worked
in splendid style, the signals from the
piekets being transforred by telegraph to the base
with the utmost promptitude. Amongst the gal!opers
on the Northern side no one displayed gm-ater zeal
than Prince Albert Victor, nearly every line of tele:

graph being personally supervised by him, and indeed
he worked as hard as any officer in the fhtd. The
most important position taken up by the Southern
force when the action became general was the line
just to the south of the Basingstoke Canal, which con-
sists of high ridges commanding the Long Valley into
Claycart Wood, left and right. From this position
a heavy artillery fire was being directed at half-past
12, the infantry, who had crossed the water on the
right, supporting it, and ready to open upon the
Southern battalions advancing under cover from both
flanks of the defence; while General Feilding's Ist
Brigade on his left, according to instructions, had
worked its way up by Ash Vale and the South eamp,
and dehouched on to the Long Valley near Clay-
cart Wood. But Sir Howard Elphinstone had
moved his infantry against Feilding's right near
Miles and Morris hills, so that this Ist Brigede was
not of much service to the attack. At one o'clock the
fight was very hot near the two hills just named, but
just then a counter movement was made near Ravine
Head, where the Methuen Artillery was strongly
posted. Owing to the tape being used instead of the
newly-devised canvas screens representing earth works,
several mistakes were made. The Irish Fusiliers
took up a position on Ravine Head, which appeared
to be very much exposed, and the enemy's artillery
shelled them for some minutes before a galloper
(Prince Albert Victor) explained that the Fusiliers
were strongly entrenched.
The decision of the umpires as to the sueeess of
eitherside was not immediately made known, bet there
was a strong opinion that the Northern fore() had
effectually stopped the Southern.
General Nicholson's inspection being completed, he
expressed the utmost satisfaction at the manner in
which all the arrangements had been carried out, not
only by the Engineers but by the infantry, who had
proved their efficiency in shelter-trench drill.