The Sun.
London, England, 1862-10-10 00:00:00

711 E ARMY.

Major -Gen. Sir R. Dacres, K.C.8., accompanied
by Col. Sir David Wood, commanding the Horse
Brigade, Royal Artillery, at Woolwich, and Major
Reilly, C. 8., the General's aide-de-camp, yesterday
inspected the division of Royal Marines on Wool -
wich-common. The whole of the available division,
which consists of 1,700 men, now ashore was drawn
out in review order, in command of Col. Mitchell,
commandant, and, having received the General on
the ground, they were minutely inspected. On the
General retiring to the front they marched past in
open columns in slow time, and afterwards in grand
divisions in quick time. They again fell into line,
when the General ordered the junior Lieut.-Colonel
(Sather) to put the battalion through a variety of
manoeuvres. After a series of volley firing and some
light infantry movements (the General repeatedly
commending the efficiency of their drill), they were
dismissed to quarters. The parade was then closed
to the general public, and the divisional court-
martial orders were read by the field Adjt., Lieut.
Mitchell. Gen. Dacres having, in the meantime,
transacted some official affairs at the head-quarters
of the Royal Artillery, proceeded to an inspection
of the Royal Marine Infirmary, and in the evening,
accompanied by the garrison staff, he was enter-
tained at a banquet in the mess-room of the Royal
Marines.

The autumn inspection of the Portsmouth Divi-
sion of Royal Marines Light Infantry, by Major-
General Stransham, Inspector-General of the corps,
terminated on Wednesday afternoon, on Hasler-
common. The inspection lasted four days. The
first day's inspection was devoted to a strict exa-
mination of the boys' and girls' schools of the
division. The Pay Barrack, Quartermasters',
and Pay Captains' Departments were next sub-
jected to the moat searching scrutiny, particular
attention being paid to the men's accounts. The
ship gun drill battery, manned by privates se-
lected at random from the division, underwent a
lengthened inspection, and the day terminated by
an inspection of the party undergoing rifle instruc-
tion at Brown-down. On Monday a brigade of one
battalion of Royal Marine Artillery, and two bat-
talions of Royal Marine Light Infantry, assembled
on Southsea-common (as noticed in The Sun of
Tuesday), under command of Col. Ayres, Comman-
dant Royal Marine Light Infantry, and performed
a series of well-executed manoeuvres. On Tuesday
the captains and subalterns were tested as to their
knowledge of manual, platoon, and bayonet exer-
cise, company and light drills; and subsequently
the field officers were called upon to perform seve-
ral intricate manoeuvres, selected by the Inspector-
General, who afterwards lunched with the officers
of the division. On Wednesday, at 10 a.m., the
division, numbering upwards of 1,100 bayonets,
formed three sides of a square on the barrack parade.
A general examination of the kits took place, fol-
lowed by sword drill for the subalterns and non-
commissioned officers, the General selecting the offi-
cers from among the subalterns to drill. The Gene-
ral next proceeded to the adjutants' offices, and exa-
mined the various records and defaulters' books. At
3 p.m. the battalion in line, under Colonel-Com-
mandant Ayles, received the Inspector-General
on Haslar-Common, and went through the usual
routine of a field day. At the conclusion the Inspec-
tor- General expressed his entire approbation of
everything he had witnessed.

In consequence of the old colours of the 73d Regi-
ment having been worn out by a service of 21 years
her Majesty has been pleased to send a new set to
Plymouth. This regiment having been raised origi-
nally in Perthshire, the title of that county has now
been bestowed on it. The regimental colour, which
has a ground of dark green, like the facings of the
men, has its new title in the centre, surrounded in a
circle by the rose, thistle, and shamrock, worked in
gold. The upper corner is ornamented with the
Union Jack, and the words " Mangalore," " Sering-
apatam," and " Waterloo" are worked in gold on
the ground. The other colour exhibits the crosses
of St. Geofge, St. Andrew, and St. Patrick, con-
joined on a blue field, and has in its centre in gold
the Imperial crown and the number of the regiment
in bold Roman characters. These standards are
much lighter and more elegant than their predeces-
sors' }hying been duly cdnsecrated by the military
chaplain, Mr. Sykes, Mrs. Hutchinson, wife of the
major-general
commanding the forces in the West,
delivered them
Yesterday on Plymouth Hoe to the
two
l ensigns kneeling.
edged by Lieut.-001, Jones,
The gift was duly acknow-
who is in active com-
mand. The number
of the 73d in Plymouth Citadel,
the headquarters, is about%
0. A detachment of 100
is on duty at Bristol, under the command of Major
Renny.
The 11th and 21st companies um
which have been for some time
oyal Engineers,
put t .
ser,i i
vng
-ensuing
in the
Mauritius, will be relieved early
in me
spring by two of the companies now Itttached to
headquarters, Chatham.

Intelligence has been received at Chatham g
son by the overland mail that the following v-Ite4tri :
are now on their 'passage home with time-expires
men and invalid troops—The Mary Shepherd and
the Liverpool, from Calcutta; the General Caulfield,
from Madras; and the Urgent, from Hongkong.
1 he Mary Shepherd sailed from Calcutta on May
18th with upwards of 200 troops on board, and may
be daily expected at Gravesend.
Yesterday the non-commissioned officers and men
of the !loyal Engineers selected from the companies
at F.eadquartars,
Chatham, for transfer to the com-
panies engaged on the Ordnance survey of Great
Britain, were inspected at Brompton Barracks by
Lieut.-Col. Browne, C. 8., orders having been re-
ceived from the Horse Guards for them to proceed
to join the surveying companies at Southampton.
The non-commissioned officers and men selected for
transfer have undergone a complete course of in-
struction in the topographical and other schools at
the Royal Engineer establishment.
The concluding lecture of a series on " Electricity

in Military Operations" was delivered to the officers
and men of the Royal Engineers at head oarters,
Chatham, yesterday, by Capt. H. Schaw, Ihe head
of the electrical department. On Tue. day next
Lieut.-Col. T. B. Collinson will comme ce a course
of lectures on "The Construction of Barracks"—a
subject to which he has devoted considerable atten-
tion.

A further discharge of time expired and disabled
cavalry and infantry troops took place from St.
Mary's invalid establishment, Chatham, yesterday.
Since the commencement of the manufacture of
the heavier species of Armstrong and other guns in
Woolwich Arsenal it has been found necessary to
increase the weight and size of the blocks or anvils
of the huge steam hammers used in the welding
system of the coils, one of the blocks, weighing 3o
tons, having been broken under the increaFed power
required. A new block was cast yesterdayunder the
superintendence of Mr. Fraser,director of the Royal
gun factories. As the metal reached the required
heat at 1 o'clock in the morning, the whole of the
hands had to attend at that hour. The volume of
boiling metal, weighing upwards of 50 tons, was
then drawn from the various crucibles, termed
" cupolas," and was received in a capacious and
well-heated furnace, whence, after remaining
six hours, it was again drawn off and
run into the mould pit. It was there buried
up in black sand, to cool gradually, which process
will occupy no less than four or five weeks.