The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1881-08-23 00:00:00

WHAT THE WORLD RAYS.

-
I am able to state, on the beet authority, that there
is not the slightest truth in the repurc which has
recently been circulated aa to Mr. Fixster's imminent
retirement from the office of Iriah Secretary. So bug
as the Coercion Act continues in force, Mr. Fonter
will remain at his place; and at the present moment
he is making all arrangements to spend the autumn in
Ireland.

The military quarrel which ended so fatally at
Chatham the other day appesrs to have had it. origin
in the recent change in regimental numbers. The
53d have become 'the Shropshire Regiment and the
Marines, meeting several fs3d men, chaffed them by
calling them • nhropattire ehoeblacks '—the latter in
allusion ta the change of facings, which have been
altered from red to dark blue. A free-tight ensued;
a Marine was kiEed, end the Shropehires have had to
be moved to Aldetehut.

Engineers in our navy have many grievance& Their
position sea class is Lolling film what it ought to be,
and they have received scant consideration at White-
bait. True it is that eume concessions have been
doled out to them; but their full equitable claim yet
await official acknowledgment. That acknow-
ledgment is not likely to be delayed by • significant
fact of which I happen to be aware. The service is
the reverse of overcrowded with them. Indeed, my
Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty have, 'owing
to engineers being much required in the navy,' had to
seta:Josh an awkward pieuedent. The Admiralty do
not, of course, use that expression. They prefer the
elastic phrase a special case,' which is, I suppose,
not at ail synonymous with • precedent' to the
official mind. Subtle distinctions are never clear to
orilin people. hut this is only by the way. The
'special case ' consists of appointusg as acting militant
engineers seven engineer students at the Royal dock-
yards, whose marks in educational subjects at • recent
examination fell short of the tired standard. IS not
this another eg for the engineers' parliamentary
friends to hang further argumeot upon?

It seems that in China, at all events, Great Britain
is properly appreciated. A newspaper, published in
the "Maul. Kingdom "—The Lek-alai Empire—
points out that .inusindid is the torsmost, rower in the
world, aud rules over the greater portion of the g.obe.
her dominions are in extent seven million square
leailleN or two millions more than those of hued*.
Even the celebrated Roman Empire, acc.rding to this
Mongolian authority, had only • million and a half.
No rand speaking Y..nglish has to submit to • foreign
yoke; whilst Englsnil rules Germans in lielig.land,
Spaniards at Gibraltar_ titeeks, Italians (surety very
few ?), and Arabs at Malta and Cyprus, Ifutc.h at the
Cape, French in Canada and the M.auritius, and
innumerable races in other possessions. Evidently in
China our national decline is not yet thought to have
begun.

These regimental quarrels are often very difficult to
heal. They are sometimea handed down in corps like
a Corsican feud in families. One well-known case was
the long-standing dissension between the Coldstream
Guards and the 87th, now know as the Royal Irish
Fusiliers. It grew, I think, out of a regimental sung,
perpetuated in the latter regiment, beginning with the
words, "The Coldstream Guards they wouldn't charge,"
and referring to some probably apocryphal incident at
the battle of Banos'. But for years, when the Cold-
stream Guards and 87th wand themselves in the same
garrison, they could never agree. There was a long-
standing faun between two other reginiente-1 believe.
the 118th, or Connaught Rangers, and the "Slashers,"
or old Pith—which originated at • sham light at Corfu.
It was soon after the war in the reninsuia, when all
regiments which had served there were proud of their
reputation. In the course of the day's manceuvres it
was ordered that one regiment should charge the other,
and that the latter should retire before the attack.
When the event came off, the regiment which was
ordered to retreat declined to move. Ths men refused
to "face about," or admit that they were compelled
to turn their backs on their imaginary foes. Eventually
both regiments had to be retired together. But after
that affair btawis and lights were incessant between
the corps, and they had to be parted like the Marines
the 53rd.

The new majors in line regiments seem to approach
minr closely to the mythical horse matine. A field-
officer on foot is distinctly a Iliberniciain, and, with
his spurs and brass scabberd, will sugost the despised
squestrian who was characterised al "the horsiest
men on foot," sod (but this less neoeaianly) "the
Laniest 11311 on • horse. Already these curious pro-
ducts of modern army organisation have been christened
"tinnier," in toe unliuity argot of the day.