The Sun.
London, England, 1865-08-12 00:00:00

An Officer Shot at Chatham.

A deliberate and, it is feared, successful attempt wasmade
to murder Major Horatio De Vere, an officer of Royaf En-
gineers attached to the headquarters of the Royal Engineer
establishment, Chatham, yesterday afternoon. He was shot
through the lungs by a private Sapper of the corps, as he
was stationed on the parade-grouted of Brompton Barracks
in the discharge of his military duties. The perpetrator is
a young man named Curry, who has been but a short time
in the corps: From the circumstances connected with the
attempted murder, there is no doubt it had been planned
some time previously. The officers and men of the various
companies had fallen in
_in front of their quarters in the
barrack-square shortly after 1 o'clock in readiness to pro-
ceed to the fieldworks, and Major De Vere was at the time
standing with a group of other officers in conversation. On
moving away a few paces, and while in the act of giving
some orders, the report of a rifle fired from one of the upper
windows of the rooms occupied by the Sappers was heard.
He instantly staggered forward, exclaiming "My God! My
God ! lam shot," and fell into the arms of some of the
officers who went to his assistanca. At the same moment
the man who had discharged the rifle from the window re-
treated into the centre of the room and, putting down the
rifle, walked into an adjoining apartment, where he was at
once seized by Lieutenant Dunford and some men of the
Royal Engineers. The distance of the spot where Major
De Yore was standing at the time be was shot was between
20 and 30 yards from the window from which the rifle was
discharged. At that moment his back was towards the win-
dow, the ball entering just below the shoulder and passing
in a slightly downward direction into the lungs, and out
just below the left breast. The bullet then tore up the
gravel and bounded over the heads cif the men on parade, •
not one of whom, although there were several hundred in 1
the barrack square at the time, was struck. _ _

Major De Vere, who occupies a residence away from the
barracks, was carried into No. 5 house of the officers' quar-
ters, where medical assistance was at once obtained, Dr.
Seabrook—a private medical practitioner in the neighbour-
hood—being.promptly in attendance. An examination of
the wound made by the bullet showed that it would in all
probability terminate fatally, the internal hteorrhage being
very great. At the time Curry committed the act he oc-
cupied No. 4 room K house, and he had that dal been
doing duty as cook's mate, and the same afternoon would
have resumed his ordinary engineering duties. Major De
Vere has only within a short time succeeded Col. Lovell,
C. 8., as instructor in field fortifications at the Royal Engi-
neer establishment, and the accused has been under his
instruction for some time past. The cause which led to the
crime appears to have been that Major De Vere had caused
Curry to be confined in the cells for a period of six days
for some military offence It is also stated that Major De
Vere had refused to allow Curry to leave the fieldworks in
consequence of his incompetency. Curry seems to have
watched a favourable opportunity of being left alone in the
barrack-room when he could discharge his rifle from the
open window. On being arrested a second rifle was found
in the same room, and this had been likewise loaded by the
prisoner, the inference being either that he had intended to
discharge the second rifle at Major de Vere should the first
shot have failed in striking him, or that he intended after
shooting the officer to take his own life. The accused on
being arrested did not offer the least resistance, and made no
remark. He has been in the corps rather more than 12 months,
and was transferred to the Royal Engineers from one of
the cavalry regiments. Major de Vere is an officer who has
seen considerable service. He was employed on a special
mission in Turkey, and subsequently he served throughout
the whole of the Crimean war, from the landing of the
Allies to the fall of Sebastopol. He is a Knight of the
Legion of Honour, and is also decorated with the fifth class
of the Medjidie. He succeeded to the appointment of in-
structor in field fortifications at Chatham about 12 months
since,and was highly esteemed by his brother officers as well
for his eminent services and great ability as for the con-
scientious manner in which he performed the whole of his
professional duties.

At the time our report was despatched last night, Major
De Vere was still alive, but was gradually becoming weaker.
lie was attended by Dr. J. A. Fraser, the principal medi-
cal officer of tho garrison, and other medical officers, but
the opinion was entertained that he could not survive the
night.

Railway Traffic Returns for the Week,

Mlles Opened.

Reoelpts.

Railways.

1865.

1864. 1865 1864
E
991 2,282 2.113
49 984 870
28 2,752 2,118
121 i 7,917 7,961
4071 29,689 29,263
121 2,658 2,.:18
453
9 373 337
20 481 445
301 257
324 864 656
654 2,077 20 2
17 647 511
63 1,593 1.637
75 2,270 2.018
15 :323 247
911 4,778 3.770
39 47 458
6f 3,763 3.317
149 11,767 i 1,•. 92
663 86.632 36,393
865 40.303 37, 67
99 3,786 3,530
711 370 413
1187} 10,251 8.752
1236 75,991 76,0')8
13 237 218
1172 2,050 3,521
128 2,702 2,565
145 ;1,913 1,827
403 45,360 44.338
241 229 227
26-i 103 117
461 741 832
201 427 337
12522 127,856 123.627
61 2,229 2,214
4541 30,005 3 .882
2671 29,326 28.4 3
15,631 13,136
127 3,000 2,7.0
27 1,10 3.720
421 2,762 2,02
2.6 20,591 19,328
94 1,619 1,592
28 1,554 1.6 2
32 2,635 2,239
691 52,336 51.307
2602 4,791 4,774
44

Belfast and N. Counties 9 f 1
Belfast and County Down.... 49
Blyth and Tyne . 28
Bristol and Exeter l2li
Caledonian, Scottish Central 4071
Cambrian
Cockermouth K & Penrlth .. 311
Cockermouth and Workin
Cork and Bandon 2O
Cork, Blackrock, & Passage 65
Cork and Youghal
Cornwall 655
Deeside . 17
Dublin & Belfast Junction.... 63
Dublin and Drogheda 75
Dublin and Meath
Dub. & Wicklow and Weald lO6
Forth and- Clyde Junction
Furness, && 5O
Glasgow & South-Western
Gt. Eastern,Nrfk.,&E.Union
Great Northern 4Ol
Great North of Scotland 99
14 1. Northn. & Wes tn. (Irel.) 7ll
'it.Southn. & Wcstn.(lrind.) 3875
Great Western l2BO
Hurl & Hornsea
Inverness & Aberdeen June- 1171
Inverness & Perth Junction 1.8
Irish North-Western 145
Lancashire & Yorkshire 403
Limerick and Ennis... 241
Limerick and Foynes 265
Llanelly 46/
Llynvi Valley
London & North-Western
London and Blackwall 65
London & South-Western
Loud. Brighton, &S. Coast 272
London, Chatham, & Dover; c , „
all Metropolitan Extension /
Do. Kent toast
Lon., Tilbury, & Southend
51an.,Sheffteld, & Lincolnsh
Manch. S.J un.& A ltrincham 95
Haryport and Carlisle 2B
Metropolitan
Midland (incL N.- Western).. 698
slidland GLlVestn. of'lrind... 2i05
Monmoutlish. RaiL & Canal.. 11
North British, Edin., Perth
and Dundee
N-Eastern and Stock. & DarL 11941 11695 74,001 73.557
North London 9 9 3,607 2,411
North Staffordshire 258 258 8,530 9.411
Rhymney l9l 191 1,116 1,061
Scottish North-Eastern l3B 138 1,650 6,3,5
Somerset and Ddrset 66 63 1,128 1,020
South Devon
South-Eastern 3OB 306 81,653 30,498
Taff Vale 6l 67 5,803 5,94
Ulster
Vale of Clwyd
Waterford and Kilkenny 3l 31 474 490
Waterford and Limerick 77 77 1,595 1,511
W'haven,Cleator,& Egrmnt lO 10 6)1 771
Whitehaven Junction l3 13 970 1,116
Whitehaven & Furness Jun 35 35 8 1 1,071
FOREIGN AND COLONIAL.
Austrian B2B 823 32,689 31,107
Bahia and San Francisco
Belgian Eastern J unction 261 261 303 317
Bombay, Baroda, & e'en. India 308 1855 5,5 1/ 3,177
Detroit and Milwaukie 169 189 5,817 4,'53
Dutch Rhenish • 1081 1(.135 8,4:9 7.3.58
Eastern of France - 1176 1428 70,761 66,572
Eastern Bengal
East Indian
Grand Trunk of Canada 1377 1,135 24,5 7 21.969
Great Central of Belgium 295 295 :6,9JO 5,7 4
9 119
Great Indian Peninsula 690 5531 J 7,016 2._
Great Luxembourg 142 134 5.663 t•ai.
sst 528
Great Southern of India
Great Western of Canada 345 3 5 ",'' 6 768
Madras
Madrid, Saragossa &Aiicant (81 650 20459474 129;435772
Northern of Canada ... ..... .• 91 91 6001 J 55.585
Northern of France
44 1,546 1,555
Norwegian Trunk
481 481 562 3"
Ottomea
Paris, Lyons, & slediterrn
11067_
.1_784 127,774 132,619
65,172 62.9 5
Paris and Orleans PP!! 17%
1,091 650
Recife and San Francisco. &c. 774
... Ics 105 1,034 1,588
Somde... ....................
___
32 1,094 248
Do. Punjab, ac. ...••••• •• . 25:3
22)6 1'27 ;4,190 50,581
South Austrian. ate ...
196
13;,,
ICU 299:97642
Southern of France ...................
.. 55213
Victoria ............ 225
2.5 774 6.55
Welland .....................
,091
West d; N-Wn. of France .. . 9.1
.55,951 E 1,827

POPULATION OF THE UNITED STATES.--A census
has just been taken for the State of Winconsin, the
partial returns of which hitherto published show that the
increase of the population since the census of 1860 has been
very small. The figures given by the Milwaukie Sentinel,
for nine towns and counties selected at random, show a
gain in five years of only 12 per cent. In the preceding
ten years there was a gain of 154 per cont. The gain in
the city of Milwaukie was much greater than that which
has thus far been ascertained for the State, being 23 per
cent. in five years. In the preceding ten years Milwaukie
had gained 125 per cent. There can be no doubt that,
through the whole of the United States, the progress of
population has received a very considerable check from the
war. It is thought probable that the population of the
Union is 2,000,000 less at this day than it would have been
if there had been no civil war.

FATAL ACCIDENT. —Yesterday, between the
hours of eight and nine o'clock, while James Lucas, a boy
thirteen 3 oars of age, son of Mr. Lucas, a farrier in Rose-
alley, Dean-street, Holborn, was standing on the pavement
in front of the alley a little girl, Celina Jennings, came
running out of the court, and in a playful manner pushed
him into the middle of the road. At that very moment
one of Messrs. Day and Martin's vans, laden with empty
casks, was passing. The boy slipped and fell under the
van, which passed over his stomach. He was immediately
conveyed to King's College Hospital, but expired on his
arrival there. No blame is attached to the driver of the

van.
DISTRESSING CASE.—In March last a poor girl of
the name of Susan Johns, one of a family of eight children,
whilst working at some paper mills near Exeter, became by
accident entangled in the machinery, and was frightfully
crushed and mangled. She was, by the aid of some of the
workpeoplo (one of whom had two fingers cut off in the
attempt), ultimately rescued from her perilous position,
and conveyed to the Devon and Exeter Hospital, where
for three months she lingered in great suffering between
life and death. The medical men found it necessary to
amputate one of her arms, and ultimately her life was
saved; but she now leaves the hospital with other perma-
nent injuries to her sides and legs, maimed and crippled
for the remainder of her days.