The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1859-06-28 00:00:00

Ilrmu nub /dabu.

A Continental contract for 00.000 bags of ship's bread
is being executed in this country, we hear. This would
suffice for thirty sail of the line for six mouths.
Major-Gen. Cuninghalue, C. 8., will command the 2nd
Brigade in Dublin. which will consiet of all the troops
etationed in that city, and he will at • later period re-
lieve one of the Major-Generals at the Curragh.
The Government will shortly augment the corps of
Royal Engineers by the addition of ten more companies,
each of about 120 non-co 'ssioned officers and wen,
which will mime this branch of the service to forty-six
companies, the present thirty-six companies doing duty
in nearly every part of the world.
Major-General Gascoigne. in command of the Northeni
Division of Ireland, has taken up lois quarters at the
Curragh. The camp will consist of between 9,000 and
10,000 men. Major-General Gough, C. 8., will command
the lit Brigade ; Major-Gem Shirley, C. 8., the 3rd
Brigade ; and Major-Gun. Parlby, the Cavalry Brigade,
stationed there. . _ .

The number of new gunboats for which the Govern-
ment have just made a contract is 18. They are under-
stood to have been taken by six builders at the following
prices :—Green, two at L'24 Ds. per ton ; Wigram, four
at £2l 10s. ; Mare, three at £2l 10s. ; Russell, four at
£2O 10s. ; Miller, (Liverpool). two, price not stated;
Langley, one at £24; Pitcher, one at £25; and White
(Cowes), one at CZ. _ .

•
SEAMEN'S BOUNTILL—An order in Council has been
issued in reference to the proclamation offering a bounty
0(130 to able seamen, and Ll to landsmen, directing
that from the 15th inst. the offer be limited to able and
ordinary seamen, and extendii.g the period during
which it will be payable until the 31st July.
An Admiralty order bra been received at Chatham
dockyard, directing that the whole of the mechanics and
artisans who until lately have been employed working
overtime in order to expedite the completion of the
It hips in dock and on the slips are to discontinue work.
Mg extra hours after Saturday. This order does not
apply to the ropeniskers and spinners, who, in conse-
quence of the arrears of work in that department, are to
continue working overtime until the lit of March
nexs.

The mammoth mortars invented by Mr. Mallet, one
of which was last year submitted to a number of
unsuccessful trials in Woolwieh-mansh, are at length
ordered to be removed and placed in • conspicuous
position in the centre of Woolwich Arsenal. The
smaller of the two, weighing about 50 tons, was on
Tuesday mounted in its bed, and erected on an open
site midway between the platform of the landing pier
and the Royal Military Store Department. The second
ix to be raised in • position near the proof department,
each mortar to be surrounded by • frame•work of four
of the huge shells, It; inches in diameter, intended by
the projector to be fired by the monster invention.
V. lien the Urgent screw steam troopship, nOW just re-
turned to Portil, th and docked for repairs, was at
Gibraltar, his Royal Highness the Prince of Vales went
ou board and requested to see the quarter-boats
lowered at a moment's notice
This Clifford's new system,
as fittcal in all troop-ships. is was instantly done,
and Capt. Hire had the honour of proving to his Royal
Highness that a boy of 15 years of age had (single-
, handed) perfect control over the lowering, lie had in
the Prince's presence lowered the boat half way down,
then stopped it, then lowered away again and cast it off.
When in the Bay of Biscay, the ship going 11 knots, a
mat was thrown overboard, representing • man, and a
boat WWI lowered and the mat picked up in 1 minute and
40 seconds. His Royal Highness was much pleased with
the simplieity and efficiency of the system as practically
demonstrated to Into by Captain Hire.
EXTRAMIDI A KA CoNTRACTS F. olt SMALL ARM6,—On
Monday the Secretary of State fur War issuml an order
to the Storekeepers Department at the Tower that
contract, should be entered into with the
London guninakers for the manufacture 0f942.5.40,tands
of sniall arms (Enfield rifles), of which 150.0110 are to be
naval anus. On the 30th of May there were 255',000
stood of small arms in tile Tower. The new order is
exclusive of the rifles which are being made at Millhank,
Birmingham, Liege, and Springfield, Massachusetts.
The hired East India troop ship Barham, 1,149 tons,
A. Consit, commander, arrived in the Thames on Wed-
nesday from Madras, with • party of sick and wounded
troops on board, most of whom were disabled in the
recent conflicts with the mutineers in the North-East
Provinces. The troops, to the number of seven men of
the Royal Artillery, and 92 non-commismoned officers
and men of the 74th HighlandeN, with "amen and
children, under the command of Lieutenant Richards.
sth Fusileers. embarked at Madras on the 22nd of
February. The Barham was 130 days at lea, during
which time one birth and one death occurred on hoard.
She touched at the Cape of Good Hope on the 15th of
April. Major Baldersen, Major Clark, and Captain
Smith, of the East India Company's service; and
Ensign Barber, 15th Native Infantry, have come home
as passengers. A private of the Rifle Brigade named
Coleman was brought home a prisoner in irons, hav-
ing been tried by general court-martial in India and
sentenced to 14 years' transportation for striking an
officer. After the invalid troops had disembarked at
Gravesend they were conveyed to Fort Pitt Hospital,
where nine men were ordered into hospital for surgical
treatuient, and the remainder went to St. Mary's invalid
depilt, to await an order for their discharge.
In addition to the tents erected at the Spur battery,
Chatiuun, for a portion of the troops belonging to the
2nd battalion, • number of tents have just beta pitched
in the grounds attached to the Garrison and Fort Pitt
hospitals, in which the convalescent troops now in
thee* establishments are to be encamped. These tents

are very commodious, etch one being capable of acoom- I
modating 10 man. The whole are furnished with every
requisite for the comfott of the convalescent men who
are to be quartered in them. During last summer the
experiinent of encainping a portion of the inmates of
the military hospitals at Chatham was attended • ith
much success, the men placed under cauvars liaa;sig
recovered their health slid strength much more speedily
that those mem ying the hospital wards. During the
Past few days • nuiiiher of the invalid non-counuisaioned
officers end men whim arrived from India in the Emitern
Monarch Ii se lmem forwsnltal f Fort Pitt to the
maivaleseent estsblishinent at Y:iriliouth, where they
w.ll remain until discharged from thu service. li. s
feared that the men all receive no compensation (mu
the Government fur their losses by the hunting of the
astrnm Monsrcli, and although loony of then, hive
lust considerable sums if money— the saving of nearly a
lifetitne spent in India—the only sllowatio• they hove
yet received from the Government is a free kit, which
has been supplied to each man. The tnost urgent cases
of distress have been attended to by the co tttttt itteo of
the association for relieving the wives and families of
soldiers and sailors, wit( have placed a sum of money
in the lisnds of Capt. Pepe, of the Invalid Ltepdt, to
be distributed among the sufferers.