The Sun.
London, England, 1865-07-10 00:00:00

PRICE 4d.
STAMPED 511

The Caledonian Challenge Shield, with gold St. Andrew's
Cross, was won for the year by Mr. Macleod, Edinburgh
Rifles, in a score of 46, at 200, 500, and 600 yards, five rounds
at each. The President's (Duke of Buccleuch) first prize
was shot for at 200 yards, seven rounds, and was taken in
a score of 26 by Mr. Arnet, Fife Artillery. The carbine
competition was headed by Corporal Carter, Midlothian
Artillery, in a score of 20, at 200 yards, seven rounds.
Numerous other prizes were competed for, and the whole
arrangements for the meeting proved highly successful.
On Saturday the prizes were delivered by the Lord Advo-
cate in a public meeting in the Music-hall.

The fourth annual meeting of the Aix rdeenshire Artillery
and Rifle Association commenced on the Links of Aberdeen
on Tuesday, and terminated on Thursday evening. The
weather was favourable throughout, and some excellent
shooting was made in the various competitions. The chief
prize of the "Wapenschaw," as the meeting is locally
termed—the Aberdeenshire Bugle, with £24 in money, was
carried off by the 4th Elginshire (Rothes) Rifle Corps ; the
secondprize in this contest, a couple of dozen of champagne,
presented by Messrs. Stewart, wine merchants, falling to
the 4th Aberdeen City Company. The Battalion Challenge
Cup, with £2O, was won by the Ist Aberdeenshire Com-
pany, and the Artillery Modal, with £lO, was awarded to
the Ist Kincardineshire Volunteers. The All Corners' prize
at the long range was divided between Major Ines and
Private Wilken, these gentlemen having made the same
scores.

The Wimbledon Meeting for 1865.

-0 ,

If anything were necessary to prove the deep hold which
the love of rifle-shooting has taken of the English people
it would be the fact that not oven the excitement, tumult,
and conflict of passions attendant on a general election can
put a stop to the great annual trial of skill at Wimbledon.
The test is a severe one. Since Volunteering first attained
anything like importance there has been no general election
in England, and the period now fixed for the electoral con-
tests throughout the kingdom is identical with the limit of
time covered by the programme of the National Rifle Asso-
ciation ; yet more men have intimated their intention of
coming into camp, a greater number of entries have been
made this year for all the valuable prizes, than at the corre-
sponding period of any of the former anniversaries. The
main features of this notable gathering aro now so widely
known as scarcely to render description necessary. There
is not a corps at the furthest extremity of the Highlands
that is not familiar with its stirring scenes by day and its
social gatherings at night, from the most trustworthy of all
sources—the reports of delegates sent up by themselves to
sustain the regimental fame in the contests for the Queen's
Prize. Competitors from distant colonies, from far away
Australia itself, have been squadded with the Queen's sub-
jects nearer home, so that to those regions also an intimate
acquaintance with the sights and sounds of Wimbledon
has penetrated. But as that lying nearest our own
doors is often passed over in ignorance of its real attrac-
tion, or, in these days of long ranges, merely because the
custom is to look beyond it at more distant objects, it
may be that there are in London itself some who have
never seen the picturesque encampment at Wimbledon. If
so, they should lose no time in repairing the error ; the site
is one of the loveliest imaginable, and the animation and
eagerness exhibited by all in camp will not fail to be com-
municated to them as soon as their eye takes in the general
outlines of the place. if they know anything of the art of
rifle shooting they will find it studied here upon a scale
such as is practicable, or at any rate practised, in no other
part of the kingdom, with a cosmopolitan taste, too, for
any novelty that enhances the stimulus or elicits peculiar
skill is tried upon an extended scale. This year, for in-
stance, the Swiss targets, which before were used, as it
were experimentally, have been introduced at many of the
ranges. If the visitors know nothing of shooting, but
merely come to view the general effect, or to regard the
British Volunteer under his social aspects, they will derive
information, and no doubt satisfaction, from a walk
through the camp. There they will find him, under can-
vas, it is true, but surrounded with many of those comforts
which the British colonist, better than any other, knows
how to extemporise, in possession of a capital refreshment
room and commissariat, a club-room, a bazaar, a library,
and, to crown all, an Industrial Exhibition. A little further
on visitors will discover special enclosures removed from
the main camp, in which watch and ward are maintained
with especial strictness. Within these enclosures two of
the metropolitan crack regiments, the Victorias and Lon-
don Scottish, spurning the comparative freedom of Volun-
teer life over yonder, "the military lodging-house," as
they call it, have come down to conduct their encampment
according to strict military regulations ; and, moreover,
volunteer for all and every kind of service that the autho-
rities may require at their hands. Tho offices of the
Association also should bo regarded attentively, lying
within a neat ring fence, where a whole department,
which in any other country would be a Govern-
ment department, compresses, by the energy and in-
dividual ability of its members, the work of months
into two short weeks. Having visited these various
points of interest, cast their eyes over the widely waving
area of flags and bannarets, particularly one range of giant
flagstaffs stretching right across the plain, and " dressed"
so accurately that, in standing close to the first of these
poles not one of the others can be seen, strangers probably
will be in a mood to avail themselves of the tramway to
and Putney stations.
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Information concerning every point connected with the
meeting will be found in those compact sixpenny volumes
about double the size of a railway ticket, which are so many
miniature libraries. From their contents it will be seen
that several now prizes have been introduced this year, and
among these conspicuous mention is due to the Challenge
Cup, value 500 guineas, contributed by volunteers in China.
The questions connected with the " International" matches
have been happily and wisely settled by the recognition of
Irishmen as legitimate competitors, both for the Elcho
Challenge Shield and in the International Enfield Match.
In the latter contest, which has been hitherto one for pure
love of country, a magnificent testimonial, value .£l,OOO, is
now being raised by a committee, under the presidency of
Colonel the Hon. C. Lindsay. A railway prize has been
instituted by the South-Western Railway Company, who
subscribe £5O for the purpose, and rewards are offered this
year, for the first time, to the 5-grooved Enfield rifle, which
is in the hands mainly of non-commissioned officers and
mounted Volunteers, but not eligible in the ordinary
Enfield matches. The carbine prizes have been largely
increased, and it may be said of the prize list generally
that it has undergone judicious and generous revision.
The rule which last year prohibited winners of one of the
larger prizes from winning a second has been rescinded,
being found in practice not to bo attended with all those
benefits which Volunteers who advocated its adoption had
anticipated. The Wimbledon Cup, however, which last
year was offered to prize winners as a solace for the re-
striction thus imposed upon them, has not been discon-
tinued in consequence of the change, but is presented again
wader conditions suited to the altered circumstances.
Some of the most interesting matches will be decided
this year at' a much earlier period than has been usual
hitherto. The Public Schools' match, for instance, which
till now has been always a prominent feature in the second
week's shooting, will bo held to-morrow, when the Inter-
national Enfield match will also take place.
In consequence of the sad accident which occurred last
year to one of the markers, a private in the Guards, it has
been thought expedient to make a change in the surgical
department. So far the proceedings of the association had
been wonderfully free from casualties, but this mishap
showed that if any serious injury happened again it was
likely, among mon following military pursuits and leading
for the time a military life, to be one of a military charac-
ter, and therefore, in the opinion of the Council, it was pro-
per that army surgeons, accustomed to the care of gunshot
wounds, should be in charge of the hospital arrangements,
and solely responsible for their administration. This deci-
sion, however delicately conveyed, was not one that could
be altogether satisfactory to the Volunteer medical officers
who have attended former meetings at Wimbledon, and it
is understood that they dissent very strongly from the
views of the Council. The working of the new system is
one that must be tested by results. As far as the military
authorities aro concerned, looking to what has already
taken place, it is not surprising that they should desire to
have upon the spot a medical officer of the standing and
experience of Surgeon Major Wyatt, of the Guards.
Wimbledon-common, apart from the business which more
immediately loads to its occupation by the Volunteers, is
sure to connect itself incidentally with something of novelty
to the public. On Saturday experiments took place there
with the object of showing that powder, without any per-
manent injury to its destructive qualities, can, at will, be
rendered non-explosive. A Mr. Gale, of Plymouth,althoug h
labouring under the privation of loss of sight, has in course
of 11 years' patient study devised the means of preventing
the explosion of gunpowder, which same gunpowder, the
instant that his preparation has boon withdrawn, may be
sct fire to and exploded. His secret consists in the admix-
ture of a sandy substance, which by separating the grains
of powder, prevents them from igniting simultaneously.
The grains iu immediate contact with the match or red-
het iron thrust into the mass aro of course consumed, and
go off in smoke, but there the matter ends. Fire is not
' communicated to the other grains, and there is no explo-
sion whatever. When tested by weighing on Saturday,
after the uninflammable materials had been sifted away, it
was found that the gunpowder had lost about a sixth of its
volume during the experiments. The remaining five-sixths
exploded instant] that they were brought into contact With
agencies similar to those which before had proved ineffec-
tual. Mr. Gale expressed his willingness to sit upon a
barrel of gunpowder on the common, and allow a red hot
poker•to be plunged into it, provided he were first allowed