The Sun.
London, England, 1855-03-13 00:00:00

CHATHAM BARRACKS.

Mr. STAFFORD asked the Under-Secretary for War
whether it was the intention of the Government to
continue St. Mary's Casemated Barrack, Chatham, as a
receptacle for soldiers returned from the East ; and
whether it was intended to convert the whole, or any
additional portion, of Brompton barracks into an hospi-
tal for our sick and wounded soldiers ?

Mr. PEEL was unable to answer either question, as
he was not aware of the changes referred to.
PASSENGER ACT AMENDMENT BILL.
The order of the day for the committal of this bill was
read, for the purpose of being postponed.
ORDNANCE SURVEY.

On the motion that the report on the Ordnance Esti-
mates be agreed to,
Lord ELCHO called the attention of the house to the
present state of the Ordnance Survey of Scotland. At
the close of the last century it was thought that a one.
inch survey was quite sufficient to suit all purposes,
but in course of time a six-inch scale was substituted in
the case of Ireland for the one inch. In 1851 a committee.'
investigated the subject so far as Scotland was concerned,.
and that committee reported that the old one inch to the'
mile scale would be sufficient for Scotland ; but the
people of Scotland were dissatisfied, and they had since
memorialised the Goverment to have the survey made
on a scale of 24 inches to the mile, a scale which has
been approved of by several eminent scientific
men although the Board of Ordnance were opposed to it.
' The scientific and professional men of Scotland were then
polled upon the subject and they were required to state
which they preferred, a 6 or a 24 inch scale. Thirty de-
cided in favour of a 6 inch, and 120 in favour of a 24
inch scale. These same authorities were afterwards re-
quired to state which they should prefer to be adopted,
a twenty-four inch scale or a decimal scale,
giving 25 and a third inches to the mile. The majority
were in favour of the latter. Accordingly, in Julys
1854, a Treasury minute was issued in favour of the
larger scale, and its cost was now being tested by con-
tract and piece work. In the meanwhile it bad been
estimated that the survey of half of Scotland, which
would embrace the whole of the cultivated and improv-
able
while
the w hol e
o
in thef larger
Scotland scale,o
on th woulde
612,0001. De-
() costne-i neh 498,0001.,5ca1e
would cost 114,0001.,
making a total of
De-
duct from that total 90,0001., which had already been
expended in some of the works, and the cost of the sure
vey which Scotland mostly preferred would be 522,00 W.
Lord SEY*OUIt said this was a very important
question, because they were called upon to make a sur-
vey of Scotland that would render it of no use to the
public; besides, they had insufficient ground to deter-
mine as to what would be the cost of the survey, and he
objected to putting the nation to enormous expense when
the cheaper one-inch scale would satisfy all public pure
poses. If private parties, such as railway or drainage
companies, required a large scale let them pay for it.
Colonel DUNNE said it would be very unadvisable
to resort to the larger scale, but he should certainly
prefer a four or six inch to a one inch scale, speaking
for military and ordnanze purposes. The one would
cost no more than the other.
Mr. COWAN doubted that ; indeed he believed the
increased cost between the two would not be six times,
but thirty-six times, more. He thoroughly concurred in
the whole of what had fallen from the noble lord the
member for Totnes.
Mr, RICA bald it might be all very well to talk about

t i