The Sun.
London, England, 1862-09-25 00:00:00

VIE ARM.

His Royal Highness the Dake of Cambridge ar-
rivd eat Portland on Monday evening in the Admi-
ralty steam yacht Vivid, from an official visit of
inspection to the Channel Islands. His Royal
Highness remained in Weymouth all night, and
returned on Tuesday morning. The Vivid, after
taking in coals at the breakwater, will leave for
Portsmouth immediately.
The following circular memorandum has been
promulgated at the head-quarters of the Royal En-
gineers' establishment, Chatham :
" 1. The Secretary of State for War has, with the sanc-
tion of the Lords Commissioners of her Majesty's Treasury
and the concurrence of his Royal Highness the General
Comthanding-in-Chief, approved the following regulations
in regard to the future arrangement and designation of the
Department of the Inspector-General of Fortifications.
" 2. The present office of Inspector-General of Fortifica-
tions to be in futnr: designated Inspector-General of En-
gineers and Director of Works.
" 3. This officer to be considered as a General officer on
the staff of the army, holding the position of a Divisional
General as regards his own special corps, at the same time
that he conducts the department connected with barracks,
fortifications, and other works.
" 4. In his capacity of Inspector-General of Engineers
he will be in direct communication with the General Com-
manding-in-Chief ; in his capacity of Director of Works he
will be under the immediate authority and control of the
Secretary of State for War.
i 4 5, The duties connected with the War-office will be
conducted by two assistants, heads of branches, under his
supervision, the one for barrack buildings, the other for
fortifications and civil buildings.
" 6. The duties connected with the General Commanding-
in•Chief to be carried on as follows:—All orders issued to
the corps to be in the name of the General Commanding-in.
Chief, by, the Adjutant-General of the army, as at presentneral
;
but inasmuch as it is essential that the Inspector-Ge
as military officer and
of Engineers, in his double capacity
as a functionary of the War Department, should have On

fullest power of dealing with the officers of his corps as may
appear most satisfactory to himself with reference to the
public service, the Deputy Adjutant-General of lt, yal En-
gineers will, in the first instance, confer with the Inspector-
General of Engineers on all selections and trau-'era of the
officers of the corps; and the recommendatio•. of the In-
spector -General of Engineers respecting such , i lections and
transfers will be attached to the Deputy-Adjutant-General's
papers before coming to the General Commanding-in-Chief;
the latter will then forward the recommendation to the
Secretary of State, who will concur in them or reject them
as he may think desirable, without the necessity of again
referring them back to the Inspector-General of Engineers.
The Inspector-General of Engineers to be empowered to
make the departmental inspection of his corps whenever be
may think proper, and to make any recommendation, at all
times, he may think desirable to the General Commanding-
in-Chief.

"7. In accordance with the above arrangements, the
Secretary of State for War has appointed General Sir John
Burgoyne, G.C.8., as Inspector-General of Engineers and
Director of Works, upon the salary which he now receives as
Inspector-General of Fortifications, with the duties described
above. The appointment of Deputy-Inspector-General of
Fortifications is abolished. The Secretary of State has ap-
pointed Lieut.-Col. Jervois to be Assistant-Director of
Works (for fortifications and civil buildings), and Captain
Belfield to be Assistant Director of Works (for barrack
buildings), with a salary of £7OO a year in each case. The
Secretary of State has also appointed Capt. Martindale,
R.E., to be Director of the Barrack Department, upon a
salary of £5OO a-year, the duties of this office to be sepa-
rated from those of the Inspector-General of Engineers,
and formed into a distinct branch.
"8. These appointments are to be held for a period of
five years, subject to re-appointment by the Secretary of
State, in the event of his considering it beneficial for the
public service. " G. C. LEWIS."

A review of the troops in garrison at Portsmouth
took place on Southsea-common yesterday by Lord
W. Paulet, C.B. The force on the ground com-
prised the J and R batteries of the 4th brigade of
Field Artillery, commanded respectively by Lieut.-
Col. Barstow and Capt. Marten, the whole under
the command of Lieut.-Col. Anderson, C.B. The
2d battalion 2Uth Regiment was under Col. Rad-
cliffe ; 53d Regiment, Col. English, C.B. ; 55th
Regiment, Col. Hume ; 2d battalion 60th Rifles,
Col. Muter; Royal Marine Light Infantry, under
Col. Haines, giving a total number of 121 officers,
2,620 non-commissioned officers and men, 12 guns
(Armstrong 12-pounders), 157 horses, and 12
ammunition waggons. The force first marched
past, and then went throught a series of move-
ments incidental to an attack on Southsea Castle.
To-morrow the garrison and field artillery will be
officially inspected on Southsea Common by Lord
Paulet.

Yesterday Col. Nedham continued his inspection
of the Royal Artillery in the Chatham district. In
the morning he examined the kits, arms, and
accoutrements of the non-commissioned officers and
men, together with the horses, Armstrong guns,
carriages, &c., of the field battery, 9th brigade, all
of which were found to be in a thoroughly efficient
state. After exercising the battery in a variety of
evolutions, all of which were exceedingly well per-
formed, the inspection terminated with an exami-
nation of the .books, accounts, and documents of the
brigade.

7HE LORD CHANCELLOR'S LAND
TRANSFER ACT.

As the Ist of October—the period at which it is
announced that the Lord Chancellor's Land Trans-
fer Aet is to come into operation—is now close at
hand, it may not be unacceptable to those of our
readers who arc interested in that measure to be
presented with a succinct outline of its provisions.
The object of the Act, as stated in the preamble,
is threefold ; first, to give certainty or security to
the title to real estates ; secondly, to facilitate the
proof of such title ; and thirdly, to render the
dealing with land more simple and inexpensive than
it is at present.
First, as to giving certainty or security to the
title to land. This certainty or security is effected
by rendering titles indefeasible or unassailable.
With this view the Act establishes a registry of the
title to landed estates, which registry is not to ex-
tend to copyhold estates, but only to freeholds and
to long leaseholds.

In order to obtain an indefeasible title to free-
hold estates, persons who, whether beneficially or
as trustees, are individually or collectively owners
of or entitled to the fee simple, or who are owners
of the first estate of freehold and first vested estate
of inheritance, or who have contracted for the pur-
chase of land and are authorised by their contract to
do so, or with the vender's consent, may apply for
the registration of their title as indefeasible; but
the registration of a title as indefeasible can be
effected in those cases only in which there is shown
to the registrar appointed under the Act a market-
able title—that is, such a title as a court of equity
would, in the absence of special contract, enforce
upon an unwilling purchaser.
The title presented for registration will be inves-
tigated by the registrar and examiners of title, who
will be either the conveyancing council of the Court
of Chancery or such other conveyancing counsel
and persons as the Lord Chancellor may appoint,
and questions of doubt upon any title may be re-
ferred, by way of summons in chambers, to such
judge of the Court of Chancery as the Lord Chan-
cellor also shall appoint ; so that in very exceptional
cases only, if, indeed, ever, will proceedings in the
nature of a snit be necessary.
If the title shall be approved the applicant for re-
gistration must furnish to the registrar,-
1. An exact description of the lands to be regis-
tered.

2. A statement of the several persons interested
in such lands, and of the nature of such interest ;
and

3. A statement of the charges and incumbrances
(if any) on such lands, and of the persons entitled
thereto.

When the description of the lands has been
settled and the registrar is satisfied with the title,
notices are to be given by public advertisement of
the intention to register the lands. Such notices
are to contain copies of the description of the lands
to be registered, and of the names and descriptions
of the applicants for registration, and they are to
be served on every adjoining occupier and the per-
son to whom such occupier pays rent, and also on
every person who shall appear to have any estate
or interest in the lands, and on such other persons
as may be deemed necessary. The notices must also
state the period and place at which cause may be
shown against the proposed registration.
Thus, the notices are not to be given until the
title is approved ; so that the rejection of any appli-
cation to register a title on the ground of its not
being marketable, will not be a matter of publicity
aor
title notoriety
a
conveyancer.
anymore than is the rejection now of
If, at the expiration of the time stated in the
notice no objection shall be made to the registra-
tion, the registration will be completed, first, by
an entry of the description of the estate in
a book to be called " The Register of Estates
with an Indefeasible Title ;" secondly, by an entry
in another book to be called " The Record of
Title to Lands on the Registry" of the persons
entitled to the lands mentioned in the first-named
book ; and, thirdly, by an entry in a third book to
be ealled "The Register of Mortgages and In-
cumbrances" of the mortgages and incumbrances
(if any) affecting the lands named in the Record of
Title.
When the title is registered as indefeasible,through
no
person will be admitted to inspect the books of
registry except the owners, or mortgages, or incum-
brancers, or their solicitors or agents, or except
under an order of the Court of Chancery. Thus
publicity, one objection to a registration, is guarded
against, and the books of registration will be as
private as a landowner's title deeds.
Tne title deeds also which shall have been sub-
mitted to the registrar will not be kept by !him,
but they will be returned to the owner, and if the
title should be registered they will be stamped, to
indicate that the land to which they relate has been
registered under the act. After the title has been
registered, the registrar will peirsevere in his office
printed copies of all deeds dated subsequent to the
registration relating to the lands registered.
It should here be observed that when speaking of
indefeasible titles under the act, titles will in reality
only be indefeasible in the hands of mortgagees and
purchasers for value, and persons
them. So that a person in possession of lands ac-