The Sun.
London, England, 1864-03-29 00:00:00

THE VOLUNTEER REVIEW.

Yesterday a grand Volunteer Review upon a scale
which seems only attainable on Easter Mondays was
held at Blackheath, a wide plateau of undulating
ground ;lying about four miles, in a southeasterly
direction, from the town of Guildford. Anniversary
gatherings of this kind are always interesting to the
Volunteers and the countless grades of society
among which their sentiments are shared and spread
in the same way that a touch is communicated to
the entire nervous system. In point of facilities
for access by railway Blackheath is as advantage-
ously placed as most localities in the South of Eng-
land. By the South-Western line Guildford is only
30 miles from London, and the Common lies within
less than four miles of that town. On the South-

Eastern Railway, which almost skirts the Heath,
the Chilworth station is but three quarters of a
mile from the spot where the Grand Stand was

yesterday erected. These two separate lines start-
ing from the metropolis hold the district within
their grasp, and, worked in perfect harmony as
they yesterday were, should be capable of throwing
almost any number of troops upon the spot. The
Portsmouth and Southampton lines brought up the
Hampshire Volunteers, the Brighton line accom-
modated those of Sussex and Kent, while the Read.
ing branch opened up a ready means of access to
regiments in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxford-
shire, and the south-western districts generally,
had these been disposed to avail themselves in any
number of the opportunity. The advantages of
situation were so obvious that the Volunteers of the
metropolitan and home counties threw themselves
heartily into the scheme, but those of districts
further west, who might have benefited equally in
its advantages with few exceptions allowed the op-
portunity to pass unimproved.
There was no such apathy in the town of Guild-
ford. An unexpected piece of good fortune had
fallen to their lot, and they made up their
minds to improve it. The town draped itself
with colours in honour of the occasion, and " a
decorative committee" went to work upon the
bridge over the Wey, producing not so much a
triumphal arch as a graceful festooning of ever-
greens. There was some dissatisfaction on the
subject of prices in Guildford ; and the charges
were somewhat high perhaps. But in fairness to
the inhabitants the fact must be recognised that
the demand for accommodation very greatly ex-
ceeded the supply. Guildford is not unaccustomed
to pressure at assize time, parties of 200 men and
horses of the Royal Artillery are constantly
billeted there on the journey between Aldershot
and Woolwich, and when the Militia are em-

bodied they too can be quartered without great
difficulty. Any reasonable demand would, therefore,
have been complied with at short notice. Those
Volunteers, however, and members of the public
who made holiday from Good Friday till after the
review flocked down in such numbers on Saturday
and Sunday that the status quo no longer existed ;
accommodation of whatever kind was subjected to
keen competition, and results followed that may be
conjectured without recurring to the maxims of
Adam Smith. This strain upon the local resources
operated very unfavourably in one respect upon the
review, for it prevented the Lieutenant-General
commanding at Aldershott from sending over the
contingent of cavalry which had been looked for.
It was found impossible to procure quarters at
Guildford, or Godalming, or elsewhere; it was
plainly impossible to throw upon the railway on an
occasion of this kind such a large amount of horse
traffic; and the fatigue of a road march 13 miles
each way superadded to the labour incurred in the
review, would have been excessive. By way of set-
off, the town of Guildford experienced a sensation
of a pleasurable character on Saturday afternoon,
when Capt. Jay's mounted troop of the Hon. Artil-
lery Company arrived, having ridden the whole way
from London, and brought down with them their
two brass 6-pounders. This troop, which is unique
in the Volunteer service, and differs probably from
all the other artillery regiments in maintaining
a stud of horses of its orin, and regularly exer-
cising them every day, is modelled as carefully
upon the kindred service of the Royal Horse Artil-
lery as is the foot battalion of the Hon. Artillery
Company upon the Grenadier Guards. The march
from London to Guildford was accomplished in
little more than nine hours, including two stop•
pages for rest and refreshment, and on the comple-
tion of their journey the horses did not exhibit
any symptoms of distress. Into the details of this
march the military authorities inquired very cessely,
and the importance attaching in their eyes to the
principle represented by this troop is shown by the
fact that on two occasions the battery commanded
by Capt. Jay has been brigaded with regiments of
the Life Guards. Detachments of Sussex Artillery,
with heavy guns of position brought from Brighton,
arrived in the course of Saturday afternoon, and
the ordinary and special trains carried such an in•
flux of visitors and volunteers that the streets were
crowded with men in uniform. The quaint clock,
contributing so much to the air of calmness worn
by the High-street on ordinary occasions, seemed
out of keeping with the roistering garrison-town
look which the thoroughfare now assumed. To
judge from appearances, the publishers of the West
Surrey Times, a local journal of some pretensions,
must have passed a busy time in satisfying the gene-
ral curiosity about everything connected with the
review, The buglers of the various corps having
representatives in Guildford laboured even more
arduously, for hours after the " last post" or tattoo
ought to have sounded at the most tolerant military
station these inharmonious watchmen of the night
were flourishing wildly with their horns, insisting
upon superfluous points of war. Late on Saturday
night there was a complete gale of wind, accompa-
nied with hail and drifting snow, which gave rise
to anticipations of the most gloomy character, Upon
Blackheath itself some canvass roofing upon the
different stands was blown from the framework, and
fluttered about dismally till an early hour on yes-
terday morning, when damages were made good
before the review commenced. On Sunday morn-
ing again the streets were gay with uniforms, not
indeed to the same extent as on the previous day,
but many of the volunteers seemed to consider
it a piece of courtesy towards the citizens to
attend Divine service in full uniform, and in the
evening there was a church parade and a special
service of St. Nicholas's Church, where the sermon
was preached by the Rev. H. Huleatt, M.A., princi-
pal chaplain at Aldershott.
To facilitate the arrival of the Volunteers on
Monday morning preparations of an extensive cha-
racter had been made both by the South-Eastern
and South-Western Railway Companies. The former
laid down nearly a mile of extra siding, besides
constructing temporary platforms sufficient for the
accommodation of 14 trains of 25 carriages, and in
like manner of 15 horse-boxes consecutively. The
South-Western Railway not only imitated the
example of the other line in erecting additional
lamps, telegraph signals, &c., but continued each
of_ the platforms from the Guildford Station to the
foot of the bridge some distance down the line, over
which the main road crosses in the direction of the
Hog's Back. Mr. Dyson, the efficient representa-
tive of the company at Guildford, further caused
strong barriers to be erected, separating the Volun•
teer traffic entirely from the public, and clearing out
a llrge space generally used as a coal-yard, con-
nected this by means of a new entrance with a field,
where the brigades as they returned from the re-
view were halted near a refreshment booth. In
theory, at least, everything was thus done which
foresight could suggest to facilitate their unimpeded
debarkation or embarkation in the different trains.
The distribution of the metropolitan Volunteers
possible equalised between the two
being as far as
companies, the arraogetnents contemplated that
each should run about 12 trains with troops from
London, irrespective of trains required for the
general public, for country Volunteers, trains
with horses, Scc.
As a rule, the Volunteers leav-
ing Lender' arrived in goad time at their appointed
termini, and the suceessl7o conveyances seen
to have been pushed on as fast as possible by the
railway companies; but, nevestheless, a con-
siderable delay occurred le getting the regiments
safely landed and in motion towards the ground.
It was to this cause, at least, that the tardy com-
mencement of the review was escribed) and about

one fact there can be no doubt. A special train

with Volunteers' horses was timed to leave London-

bridge before 6 a.m., and to reach Shaltora in less
than an hour and a half ; this was still in process

of being unladen at 9 o'clock.
Probably much of the difficulty thcit presented

itself in getting the troops on to the Heath in time
arose from circumstances over which no one can be

ustly said to have had control. In their warfare
Federals have frequently experienced the diffi-

culty of advancing when once they quitted the
course of the navigable rivers. Treating the rail-
ways, for the sake of comparison, in a similar light,
the Volunteers yesterday found soon after they had
turned their backs upon these main lines of com-

munication what obstacles lie in the way of actual

campaigning. For though, as already stated, the
district is easily accessible and the route throughout

abounds with natural beauties, the Heath itself

being bat scantily resorted to has no good or regu-
lar approaches. There are but three lanes which
could be employed yesterday, all nearly on a par
in point of straightness, steepness, and sandiness.
One of them,—that leading from the Chilworth
station,—was set apart for the public, and along one
or other of the remaining passes, distinguished re.
spectively as Phillips-lane and Great Tangley-
lane, the entire Volunteer foree, guns and all, had
to make its way. The light troop of the Hon.

Artillery Company left the road as often as it
could, and went scrambling up the hills with
catlike activity. The heavy guns of position, on
the contrary, had to plough their way slowly

and laboriously over the yielding soil, find-
ing at every step the literal truth of the warn-
ing issued from the War-office—" Phillips-lane, by
which the guns will be taken, is narrow and some-
what steep, and the road leading on to the Heath
is for a quarter of a mile heavy with sand." So
steep and so narrow was the path that, although
each gun was drawn by six horses, furnished in the
1 case of one battery by the farmers of the neigh-
' bonrhood, and in the other by a large brewery firm
in Guildford, the gunners, being unable to march in

military fashion beside the limbers, were compelled
to take out their handspikes and from behind to

assist in pushing on the wheels. In this manner
Lord Truro's Artillery battalion, having charge of
six 18-pounders and six 24-pounders, and the batta-
lion of Sussex Artillery, with six 18-pounders, were
enabled to attain the summit, and to place the guns
in position shortly after ten o'clock. Both the

horse artillery and field batteries of the Hon. Artil-
lery Company reached their destination at the same
time. The Ist Middlesex Artillery, under Colonel
Creed, ought also to have made its ascent then, but
not being prepared to start at the right moment, or
for some considerable time afterwards, Colonel
NleMurdo said he could not permit it to run the risk

of choking one of the roads by a stoppage, and
tbJrefore directed it to postpone its departure till
the last of the infantry brigade had passed up. In
this latter process hours were necessarily consumed,
and the hopes of the spectators on the plains above,
which had been excited by the arrival of the ar.

tillery, sunk again as time passed by inactively
and the clouds began to gather ominously
round. Now and then a puff of music, sharp
and momentary as a jet of steam, was borne
to the ear on a current of wind more than
usually strong. Then again there was an inter-
val in which nothing was heard. About eleven
o'clock the first patch of scarlet showed itself above
the gloomy outline bounding the view at the ex-
tremity of the Heath, and from that time forward
there was a tolerably steady flow of armed men in
the direction of the further side of the Heath, some-
times narrowing to the dimensions of a riband, the
tints of which were scarcely discernible, sometimes
spreading out into a broad and brilliant sheet of
colour. As the troops arrived at two stations which
were at a distance of more than three miles apart,
it was impossible to ascertain with exactness either
the numbers or the order in which the brigades
came down. In the order there was certainly a
disruption of the programme, and in the numbers
of which the various corps were made up there
were either additions to or subtractions from the
official lists furnished to the War-office. In the
absence of the official states, however, the latter
must be taken as the only authentic return, and
according to which the defending force, under Gen.
Russell, was composed as follows :
C ,rps in First Division.—lst Sussex Artillery, six 18-
pounders-Ist Middlesex Artillery, four 18-pounders-Ist
Hants Artillery, Ist Cinque Ports Artillery, 2d Middlesex
Artillery, 2d Surrey Artillery, Ist City of London Artillery,
Ist Tower Hamlets Artillery, Ist Middlesex Engineers, lst
City of London Engineers, Ist Hants Engineers, 7th Bat-
talion Middlesex, 3Gth Middlesex, 2d Middlesex (South),
4th Middlesex, 9th Middlesex (West), 11th Middlesex (St.
George's), 32d Middlesex, 15th Middlesex(London Scottish),
19th Middlesex, 21st Middlesex (Civil Service), 38th Mid-
dlesex, 22d Middlesex (Queen's), Ist Battalion-22d Middle •
sex (Queen's) 2d Battalion-29th North Middlesex, 46th
Middlesex, 2d City of London, 2d Battalion Surrey-
12th Surrey, Ist Battalion Surrey-3d Battalion Surrey-
-Ist and 7th Surrey, 10th, 19th, and 23d Surrey, 2d Battalion
Hants—let. and 2d Hants, 3d Battalion Hants-13th, 15th,
16th, and 18th Hants—making a total of about 9,750 men.
On the other hand, the attacking force, under
General Rumley, was thus composed :
Corps in Second Division.—Hon Artillery Company,
Horse Artillery, 2 6• pounder guns—Field Battery, four
6-pounder guns. Light Cavalry, 3d Middlesex Artillery,
four 18-pounders and four 24-pounders, Hon. Artillery
Company, 2d Battalion Middlesex, 26th Middlesex, 37th
Middlesex, 20th Middlesex, `Bth Middlesex (London Irish),
39th Middlesex, 40th Middlesex, 48th Middlesex, 4th City
of London, Ist Battalion Sussex, 2d Battalion Sussex,
let Sussex, 2d Battalion Essex, 3d Battalion Essex, ht Bat-
talien Kent, 6th Kent, 2d Cinque Ports, Ist City of Lon-
don, 3d City of London, lit Battalion Tower Hamlets, 9th
Tower Hamlets, 2d and Bth Tower Hamlets, 4th and 6th
Tower Hamlets, Ist Battalion Berks—making in all a total
of about 8,500 men,
Lieutenant-General Pennefather, com-
manded in chief, and the following were the mem-
bers of his Staff ;
Lieutenant-Colonel P. Bayley, Captain A. C. Boyle,
V.C., and Lieutenant D. H. Doherty. Aides-de-Camp—
Colonel J. W. Armstrong, C. 8., Assistant-Adjutant-Gene-
ral—Captain W. G. Lockhart, Deputy Assistant-Adjutant-
General—Lieutenant. Colonel the Hon. H. H. Clifford,
V.C., Assistant-Quartermaster-General—Captain P. A. A.
Twynam, Deputy Assistant-Quartermaster-General--
Colonel Simmons, C. 8., Royal Engineers—Lieutenant A.
L. Buckle, Royal Engineers, Aide-de-Camp—Colonel
Gambier, C. 8., Royal Artillery—Captain Pearse, Royal
Artillery, Aide-de-Camp----Captain W. S. M. Wolfe, R.A.,
Brigade Major—and Colonel Buchanan, Royal Artillery.
The Blackheath of Guildford in no material re-
spect differs either in the inequality of its surface
of.the productions of its poor, thin soil, from the
large tracks of waste land like Chobham or Bag-
shot which occupy so large a portion of the county
of Surrey. In its general aspect Blackheath very
much resembles Chobham, so popular 10 years ago,
when the first of the modern encampments, and by
far the prettiest of them all, used to draw such
thousands to its reviews. There are the same undu-
lating dark-brown slopes and knolls, covered knee-
deep with tangled heather and moss ; the same long,
narrow, dusty tracks which serve as footpaths across
it, with one or two steep ridges which dominate the
whole ; and here and there, on the edges of the
Common, rough, wild thickets—for woods they can-
not be called—in which latches and firs, sparsely
intermingled with stunted underwood, just afford a
dubious cover to the skirmishers. On the northern
extremity, which the Volunteers approached by
Tangley-lane, the land was high and bold, overlook-
ing a beautiful valley well cultivated and dotted
here and there with homesteads—a perfect specimen
of rick English scenery: But the luxuriant vegeta-
tion of the valley soon gives place to the more hardy
furze and heather, the only products of this sterile
sandy region, broken at intervals with patches of
larches, oak, and fir. The light yellow sand contrasts
finely with the dark green of the pines, the purple
brown of the heather, and the blossom of the furze,
The small lane which has been ascended now be-
comes little better than a cart-track ; still it is suf-
ficiently well traced to be followed. It goes right
across the Heath in a direction north and south, and
the whole extent is traversed by footpaths in every

direction.
The little hamlet of Blackheath, which consists of
half a dozen houses, lies in a cn the east side
of the road. Beyond this again the ground rises;
but if the hamlet be avoided, and a more cvEsterly
direction taken, the depression dos not intervene,
the satno ridge of hills stretching 5•W5 across Far-
ley-heath to Hurtwond-common whara there are
thousands of acres of uncultivated land.
From this ride the heath forms a succession of

slopes more or less steep and diversified as to ruts
and rabbit holes till it terminates at Farley in the
thin belt of trees we have spoken of. It is not

exactly the kind of ground for any sport which re-
quires an exhibition of the speed of either ma❑ or
beast. The surface is always rough, uneven, and
much cut up, and in its best places is deep with
heather, in short, what any military man would term
difficult ground on which to show off the niceties of
regimental setting up. For cavalry the heath would
be all but impracticable, though, unlike Chobham,
which in other respects Blackheath so much re-

sembles, it is free from bog or quagmire from end to

end. Before the review commenced there wera no

ack of prophets of evil, loud in their prognosti-

cations that the volunteers would be unable to keep

anything like formation on such a soil. But the

. _
event proved that these dismal forebodings were
premature. Undoubtedly the volunteers would
have got:on much eaeier on downs and pasture lands,
but it is far more creditable to them now to have

achieved the magnificent display of yesterday over
a country of which even military men were afraid
than if they had gone through the same man-
oeuvres with faultless precision on a a ward like
that of Hyde Park. In mere picturesqueness the
choice of ground had everything to recommend it,
and on almost every side from the heath the valleys
below opened oat in long undulating blue vistas,
which were exquisitely beautiful, and fine scenery is

by no means an unimportant accessory in the sac
cess of these great military displays. The real faul

of the heath is one which it is almost impossible to

remedy—namely, that it is too small. A large space
is required for the proper evolutions of a force oft
18,000 men and 24 guns. Blackheath is only alb
the most a mile and a half long by a mile wide

and unless on future occasions Farley-heath, which

adjoins Blackheath, be added to that yesterday
at the disposal of the authorities, it will be difficult
to make these reviews either useful or effective.
For some reason which has yet to be explained the

-
Volunteers were yesterday refused permission to

enter on Farley-heath at all.
In consequence of the delays already mentioned in
the arrival of the various corps it was impossible to
get them all in their places on the ground by 12
o'clock, but in half an hour or so afterwards nearly
all the attacking and defending forces began mov-
ing across the Heath in great masses to the positions

assigned to each. At this time there was a grea
concourse of spectators on the ground which fringed
the woods with long irregular lines, or covered the
knolls and slopes with dense black groups. Towards
1. o'clock the whole force was stationed at their
allotted points of attack and defence, and almost
precisely as the last complete disposition was made
the weather, too, finished its arrangements for the
day, and began to rain. The morning had been
lovely, and despite the delicate attentions of a north-
east wind, which drove the thin fleecy banks of
clouds along with ominous rapidity ; despite, too,
the mores disheartening fact that it was a great
Volunteer day, and, therefore, one which, according
to precedent, ought to stand in the almanack as
"stormy, with much rain," everyone steadily ig-
nored the possibility of rain, and hoped against hope
in the fact of the fast accumulating low dark clouds,
At last, as we have said, when everything was com-
pleted, the weather threw Wall disguise and broke
in cold, sharp showers, which fell with unpleasing
frequency almost throughout the remainder of the
day. As a matter of course, no Volunteer minded
this, nor, to do them justice, did the spectators ap-
pear to regard it much, and the real business of the
day—the sham battle—went forward with as much
ardour and animation as might be expected from
Volunteers who have been used to nothing but wet
weather since the days they were first enrolled.
The actual details of the evolutions of which the
battle consisted may be summed up almost briefly,
for though the mock contest lasted at least two
hours, its most striking feature was the sustained
and tremendous fire kept up on both sides,
.as the
peculiar nature and limited space of ground forbad
any attempt at complicated or extended manoeuvres.
Major-Gen. Russell, with the defending forces we
have already enumerated, occupiei the ridge of hills
stretching across the common, facing rather to the
south, where the main attack was anticipated from
Farley-woods. The assailants, under M }j or-General
Rumley, may be said, in fact, to have been divided
into two bodies—one of about 4,000 men, with
eight guns, while the main body of 5,090 men, with
two pieces of horse artillery and four field guns,
made a flank march under cover of the woods, and
delivered the real attack on General Russell's ex-
treme left. it was this feint and real attack, and the
necessity which Gen. Russell was under to bring
his troops from his left to meet the fl ink attack on
his right, which constituted the evolution of the
day, in which, from the absence of cavalry, there
was a sameness almost amounting to monotony, as
far as the spectators were concerned. To do the
Volunteers mere justice, it is but fair to say that
they did their best by the rapidity of their move-
ments to make up for the want of cavalry, and to
them it was certainly one of the most fatiguing days
they
,have had for a long time. The great majority
of them most have been ten hours in the ranks be •
fore they started to return to London.
The movements commenced with the feint attack
on the right of the assailants, who suddenly showed
their skirmishers from under cover of the thin cop-
pices, and began a cautious advance, while their
guns were ostentatiously pushed forward to the
commanding eminences and began a heavy cannon-
Tiede. In a few minutes more and the whole of the
extreme right of the enemy showed itself, the skir-
mishers leading, the support in open columns of
companies, pouring down rank on rank in solid
lines, while the guns were slowly advanced after
them from point to point, so that the fire of the
artillery never slackened for a moment. With the
first indications of the onset all Gen. Russell's troops
were on the alert, though beyond throwing out their
skirmishers and moving forward a few corps in their
extreme right, no advance was attempted till the
numerical superiority of those making the feint
attack on the left was seen. Then their guns, too,
were brought forward, and their line of skirmishers
and supports advanced till almost their whole front
was at right angles with the concealed force of the
enemy, which lay under the ridges between the two
clumps of woodland. For some2o minutes or so this
state of things remained—a heavy artillery duel
going on from the heights, while the sputtering fire
of the riflemen in front sunk and rose and spread
irregularly up and down the slopes and ridges. All
this time the attacking force were quietly massing
brigades under cover in such a position as that when
they debouched into the plain Gen. Russell would
be completely outflanked. It was not until a move-
ment of the defending skirmishers was made against
this part of the field that the real attack was un-
masked. Then suddenly the aspect of things was
changed, and the movements at once assumed the
most animated and exciting appearance. From where
Gen. Burnley lay concealed on the right a perfect
cloud of riflemen suddenly swarmed down into the
woods, while the Hon. Artillery
Company, in spite
of the difficult nature of the ground, brought up their
guns in splendid style, and commenced a flanking
fire which enfiladed the whole defending line. The
confined space of the grouad and the woods in which
both forces met here; the rapidity with which the
real attack was hurried on, and the unforeseen spots
from which assailants kept pouring forth; the bugle
notes to recal the skirmishers from the overwhelming
force they had so unwarily provoked—all gave to
this surprise an effect which was wonderfullyexciting,
and which perfectly resembled in its haste and in
some places by no means simulated confusion all the
main elements of a real battle and a real surprise.
The defending skirmishers who had entered the
wood were for the time thrown into real disorder,
and the haste with which the recal had been obeyed
by the main line left groups of 20 or 30 intermixed
among the trees, firing desperately against the
masses that were closing in upon them, and making
the coppice re-echo with a metallic clang that was
almost deafening. Fortunately, they managed to
extricate themselves, and gain the open, though.
heel the laws of the sham contest pertni'ted, it would
not have made several companies of the defenders
prisoners of war. Almost simultaneously with the
appearance of their skirmishers the steep slopes
leading out from the wood and in rear of the guns
began to be covered as if by magic with advancing
troops, marching as closely as they could, and hur-