The Sun.
London, England, 1863-01-05 00:00:00

THE ARMY.

It is seldom at this season that a divisional field-
day takes place at Aldershott ; nevertheless, ,on
Wednesday last, owing to the extreme mildness of
the weather, the whole division was ordered out by
Lieut.-Gen. Sir John Pennefather. The place of
rendezvous was a portion of Cove-common, which
had been recently drained, and on that account
affords great advantages for evolutions of troops in
winter. The troops were formed up in line ofeon-
tiguous columns, facing eastward,—C and G batte-
riesy
right;
12th
eavalr
Royal Horse Artillery on the r
Brigade, consisting of 6th Carabineers,iog
Royal Artillery
Lan-
cers, and 15th Hussars; A battery
Brigade, 3d In-
fantryitlst Infantry Brigade, 2d Infantry Artillery form-
ing the extreme left.
Brigade ; B battery Royal
The troops marched past,
cavalry and artillery in open column of batteries
and troops at a trot, and the infantry in quarter-
distance column
in double time. After march-
ing past, the troops took ground to the left,
and formed in the same order as before, parallel
with the Farnborough-road, the right resting on
Cove Pinewood. The rifles were then thrown out '
in skirmishing order ; the infantry wheeled to the
left by brigades, opened out to deploying distance
from the left regiment of each brigade, and deployed

PRICE..... -..1d.
'STAMPED ....5.1.

into line. They thus formed three parallel lines
facing southward, and covered by the Rifles. The
cavalry advanced in open - column of troops from
the left, and the Carabine-ers and 13th Hussars
threw out pickets and videttes in the direction of
Fleetpond. The artillery had taken up a position
on the summit of a hill on the north-west, where
the troops first formed up covered the movements
of the other arms. After a brief interval the videttes
were recalled, the Cavalry Brigade formed line in
the valley, retired by alternate squadrons, and re-
formed line on the right flank of the infantry, which
now changed position to the right. The right was
thrown back, bringing the rear of the Ist Brigade
parallel with and close to the Farnham-road, with
the 2d and 3d Brigades at equal distance in front,
also in line. The Lancers advanced from the cen-
tre, and charged to the front, halting on the hill
where the first formation took place. Two squa-
drons then pursued, corresponding the whole of
Cove-common, the xegiment being supported dur-
ing this operation by the 13th and Carabineers.
The right squadron of the Carabineers then
pursued to the right of the 12th, covering
the front of the infantry. The pursuing squa-
drons next re-assembled, and the 12th advanced
at a gallop, halting as the 6th and 13th
came up and formed line upon their left. The
infantry advanced in echellon of et giments from the
right of each brigade, halted and formed squares,
eventually reforming into column. This closed the
day's proceedings, and, after a short delay, the divi-
sion marched homeward. The movements through-
out were exceedingly well executed.
The 10th company of Royal Engineers, now sta-
tioned at Aldershot, is under orders to hold itself in
readiness to proceed to Chatham on Thursday. The
10th company will be replaced at Aldershot by the
2d company from Kensington.
The Deputy-Adjutant-Gen. Col. C. Bingham, in
a general regimental order of the Royal Artillery,
dated the Ist inst., makes the following announce-
ments :—Second Capt. J. N. Portlock Dadson, 7th
Brigade, to be Adjt., Depot Brigade, vice Lieut.
H. Brackenbury, appointed to a company of gentle-
man cadets ; Second Capt. F. L. H. Lyon is ap-
pointed to the Royal Horse Artillery, vice
Brevet Major Goodenough, who has resigned his
appointment therein, and is posted to G Battery,
Bth Brigade, in place of Lyon; Cart. De Moleyns
is appointed Gunnery Instructor to the 7th Brigade,
and Capt. Tupper to the 2d Brigade. Second Capt.
A. W. A. Ogilvie is transferred from the depot to
No. 6 battery, 7th Brigade, in the room of Captain
Dadson. Lieut. R. D. E. Lochart, 13th Brigade,
is raised to increased pay, vice De Moleyns, pro-
moted. The officers commanding Royal Artillery
at the stations and in the districts concerned will
obtain the sanction of the officers commanding the
troops to the following removals :—Capt. Carey,
from Woolwich to Corfu; Second Capt. De Moleyns.
from Dover to Woolwich ; Second Capt. Lyon, from
Ireland to Woolwich; and Lieut. A. J. Saunders,
from Woolwich to Portsmouth. The following
officers have been posted as under—viz., Quarter-.
master Robinson to the 18th Brigade ; Quartermas-
ter Parkes to the 21st Brigade; Quartermaster New
to the 4th Horse Brigade; Veterinary-Sur. Mar-
shall to the 4th Brigade; and Veterinary-Surg. Wal-
ters to the Bth Brigade ; Lieut.-N.M. Burt is trans-
ferred to G. Battery, 11th Brigade; and Lieut. A.
J. Saunders is transferred to No. 7 Battery, 6th
Brigade. The following appointments and removals
of master gunners have been approved—viz., Ser-
geant J. Agnew, of the Depot Brigade, to be master
gunner of the 3d class, at Shornmeade, vice Skelton,
pensioned ; Sergeant George Kerr, of the Coast
Brigade, to be master gunner of the 3d class, at
Broughty-castle, vice George Alexander, whose
appointment is cancelled.

The examination of candidates fvr commission in
the Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers for admis-
sion to the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich,
under the Horse Guards regulations, dated May 5,
1862, will commence at Chelsea Hospital this morn-
ing before Major-Gen. F. W. Hamilton, C. 8., Vice-
President, and the members of the Council of Mili-
tary Education. The examinations will occupy
the whole week.

Recruiting for the depots of those East India
and British depots at Chatham, the service com-
panies of which regiments are below their proper
strength, has proceeded rather more actively during
the past month, and a number of fine young men
have been sent up to Chatham from the various
recruiting districts. It is, however, a remarkable
circumstance, and one which has caused no incon-
siderabie surprise among the military authorities,
that although there are at present several thou-
sand young men in enforced idleness in the cotton
districts in the north of England, the number of men
offering themselves for military service from the
towns and districts in Lancashire has hitherto been
exceedingly small, the recruits who have arrived at
Chatham from that neighbourhood, which may
be taken as a fair index of the numbers join-
ing at the other large military stations, being
little, if at all, in excess of those entering the army
from those districts in ordinary times. It is observed,
too, that nearly the whole of the recruits who have
recently joined the Royal Marines have been sent
up from the central and eastern districts of England,
comparatively few having joined that branch of the
service from the North-western counties.