The Sun.
London, England, 1854-11-17 00:00:00

THE MILITIA.

The City Limerick Militia is fast filling up, and the
requisite number of 300 will before long be enrolled.
Arrangements appear to be at length in course of
being carried out fer enrolling and embodying the Kil-
kenny Militia.
The contingent 'which Down furnishes to the 30,000
men of which the Irish militia will consist is 1,472, and
this force .is divided into two regiments—the Royal
North Down Rifles (800 strong), of which the Marquis
of-Londonderry, lieutenant of the county, is colonel, and
the Royal South Down Regiment, 672 strong, of which
the• Marquis of Downshire is colonel. The Marquis of
]4ondonderry has already nominated Major Montgomery,
late of the 45th Regiment, as lieutenant-colonel, and
Captain Stewart, late of the Essex Rifles, as adjutant of
the Royal North Down Rifles, and has referred to Lord
Downshire, as colonel of the South Down Regiment, the
selection of the officers bf that regiment.
It is the intention of the Government to direct the im-
mediate enrolment of the two militia regiments of the
county of Mayo ; accordingly the adjutantcies of the
regiments have been filled by the Earl of Arran, the
noble lord having appointed Captain Bouebier, late of
the 12th Foot, to the South Mayo, and Captain Butler
to the North Mayo. The noble lord has also appointed
Captain John Palmer to the lieutenant-colonelcy of the
.South Mayo, and Mr. Thomas H.. Bourke, M,D, to
-the purgeency of the anti regiment.

The monsoon this season has been-unusually pro-
tracted, the rains continuing nearly three weeks
longer than ordinary ; betwixt the sth and 6th of
October, four inches fell in the ;course of sixteen
hours. The fair season has now set in, and we shall
probably not have a single showerfor the next Right
months. The expedition sent out for the destruction
of the villages on the Peshawur fiemtier appear to
have finished their work successfully, and they have
now returned to camp. Overtures 4re being made it is
said by the Ameerof Cahill to reg4in our friendship
—the fatal error committed by hide of invading the
Punjaub in 1849 has destroyed oui• confidence in his
judgment as well as in his influence amongst his
own people, and half a century *ill not be suffi-
cient to restore us to the terms in which we stood
with Affghanistan up to 1837, if such a thing should
ever indeed be possible. A party of the Russians
are said to have taken Kokan, petty and bar-
barOus principality on the borders of Bokhara.
Whether they amount to ten, a' hundred, or ten
thousand does not appear, and the matter in no
way concerns us. The reports otßussian intrigue
and aggression obviously
emanate from the Rus-
sians themselves—they increase their importance
by alarming the timid and credulous—they gratify
the appetite for the marvellous and obtain employ-
ment for the native politicals and spies who dis-
seminate them. Ne one would have greater cause
than the Czar to deplore an advance of the Rus-
sians upon India, which would dispel the-delusion
he wishes to maintain that we are vulnerable and
that he could harm us. There have been consider-
able disturbances in the Nizam's country. About
a thousand Rohillah mercenaries had been taken
into the. employment of a refractoryshief,who sup-
ported by this force bid defiance IT:the orders 'bf
GoVernenent. Brigadier Mayne, with Capt. Abbott
as Brigade Major,and a detachment of the Hydera-
bad Con tingent,consisting of 300 troopers of the 2nd
Nizam's cavalry, two light field guns, two pieces of
heavy ordnance, and 400 infantry, marched out
from Aurungabad on the 20th to disperse the
enemy. Captain Macintire commanded the cavalry,
Captain Hare the infantry. The Rahillahs on
hearing of their purposes took possession of a strong
mud fort, with gates and bastions, at a place called
Sailoor, and thither their assailants marched, a dis-
tance of forty-five miles, without-halting. On ar-
riving, instant submission and surrender of their
arms was demanded of the :enemy ; this they de-
clined, on the plea that they were waiting for pay
from their employer, on receiving which they would
disperse. They were then informed that as they
had been in arms against the Government, had re-
fused to obey orders, and committed acts of vio-
lence against the people, no alternative would be
allowed them. Every effort having been in vain
tried to avoid bloodshed in bringing them to terms,
the field-pieces opened their fire, and this was re-
turned by . matchlocks from within the fort,
when as night approached it was found indis-
pensable to wait for the arrival of the heavy
guns. Picquets were, carefully sat, and the
villagers agreed that should the Rohillahs
attempt to escape over night, the cottages
should be set fire to in the direction in which
they fled. About half-past 9, accordingly, Brigadier
Mayne was informed that they were on the move,
and immediately afterwards the nearest village was
seen to be in flames. Mayne's force was immedi-
ately in motion. The brigade major, Captain
Abbott, took command of some 20 troopers whom
he found harassing the rear of the enemy, who were
retiring rapidly and in excellent order. He twice
cut his way through them and back again, till dis-
abled by a wound which severed the bone and ar-
tery -of his bridle arm. The slaughter was Neu
severe, and the dispersion complete. Every mem-
ber of the force seems to have behaved with the ut-
most gallantry and with all the humanity circum-
stances allowed, but these wretched cases of insur-
rection and slaughter must continue to be of
incessant occurrence so long as the Nizam's Go-
vernment is carried on as at present. The ceded
districts are tranquil, and the resident, Mr. Bush-
by, proceeds early next month on a tour of inspec-
tion through them. Colonel Outram is about to
be transferred from Aden to succeed Col. Sleeman
at Lucknow, one of the most lucrative and im-
portantet ; and h
appointments
teofficer wh
undere
the
threea r BengalGs sinceovr n
Govern-
ment
was pronounced by Lord Falkland, and his coun-
sellors so imprudent, intemperate, an ignorant
of his duties as to be undeserving of political
employment, has within ten months had
conferred on him -by the hands of the Governor-
General three of the most distinguished offices at
his disposal—that of Resident aCßaroda, at Aden,
and in Oude. It is reported that the Governor-
General intends to visit Madras and the Neilgher-
ries in December or January, and retire early in
spring from an office he has administered so greatly
to his own honour and the public advantage. It
is said he will be succeeded by Lord Elgin, of whom
the highest hopes are entertained. Lord Harris
has issued a second manifesto on the detection and
suppression of torture which is admitted to be
practised under the police at Madtts, so that if
those who moved in the matter in Parliament did
not obtain a commission, they have through the
vigour and impartiality of Lord liarris, not 'the
less secured their ends ; so much forthe denounce-
ment of these rumours as slanders. The sittings
of the Sarawak Commission have closed : Sir James
Brooke has been fully and honourably acquitted of
all the charges brought against him. His slan-
derers refused to appear as witnesses, and soma of
those who subscribed the petition confessed that
they knew nothing as to the truth or falsehood of
the statements contained in it. This bottle of smoke
will cost the country some 10,000/. or 15,0001.
It is now affirmed that the Court's educational de-
spatch, of which so much has been made both
here and at home, is likely to prove a pure piece
of claptrap to catch popular applause, the whole
being stultified by the clause which jobs the office
of minister of public instruction into the hands of
civilians, who whatever their abilities and excel-
lences, and they are many, are utterly disquali-
fiied by the imperfections of their early education
and peculiarities of their subsequent occupation
for the office. The Bengal appointment is said
apparently
from the outset to have been meant by the Home
authorities for a son of Mr. B. Bayley, at present
one of the lndia
thefu nwctaioynf or
Governor-General. The Friend of India, usually
understood to express the views of Government,
and p Houseaving directors, formerly acting
who will receive from 2,000/. to 4,000/. a year, as
simply that of register of suggestions for the use
of Government and the transmitter of Govern-
ment instructions on. the subject, a sinecure which
any formalist of mediocrity could fill. We have
sefththee Lneea wdeenffiheaelr:
l
job,
street describes the
on former occasions stated that there is no man
belonging
to the services at present competent pro-
perlyestr
uteot
ide discharge
suchthe daurtriaens
goefe
aMe
ei nt i s a
at e r t ohfa
tPauc
pbpl
ai
rently in contemplation will stultify the whole
scheme, and it is to the people of England alone
we look for deliverance from the danger now im-
tpieonndsifnogr-
thSecopreeast omf ma
yen b
eofhat hd me
fromh highest he
homest q ufaolri fitchae-
price proposed to be given to those rendered by
circumstances inevitably unqualified. Let those who
may think such jobbery as this impossible, remem-
ber that it is not yet three years since the Gover-
nor-General was snubbed by the Court of Directors
for proposing to select postmasters on the ground
of qualification, and paying them in proportion to
theirafwrthnt eniiemhspi 2ermotytohehi
ocnaai services.
s knf
not
tr
wouldpp perform,
efher
have
nsvi2en
restricted to members of the Civil Service receiving
eo yearutl da
formed to perfection at one-third or
s.twtruoahe Tihi
ne4heh:eoapotpi 'hot
000 e:
.ryndtt
ashmcoe of Ltse aa
sd etnbhe as lel -ssbt ro euel td in-
timated
b t
part of the price—these things will be found set
one-fourth gpaentr_
de
forth in the printed official papers bearing date
r and i
De-
cember, 1852. The government of Madras have
ertoadkuec t
place s fm
il
e t hxet
presidency
just published an intimation of an exhibition of
raw
mr i e
and ne man
ufacturedtpe
year.—The School of Industrial Art at Calcutta
appears to be prospering, that proposed to be
in part
endowed at Bombay by Sir Jamsetjee J eejeebhoy
is under the consideration of a committee expected to
give in a report some years hence. At Bombay a
Photographic Society has just been established
under very promising auspices, and a Joint Stock
Company is being brought into existence for the
purpose of establishing a Picture Gallery, Museum,
and Zoological Gardens, also with good hope of
success. In India such things depend entirely
upon the smiles of Government, on which the
public watch and wait, and at present, fortunately,
the heads of all our Governments are disposed to
foster as far as possible whatever tends to the public
, god, A petition has just beau forwarded, by a

large body of the most respectable native inhabi-
tants of Bombay, praying that on the „approaching
vacancy the office of senior magistrate of police
shall be conferred on a barrister, or on some one
possessed of some acquaintance with the law he
administers, the salary being 3,0001. a-year. The
office for the past thirty years has been con-
fined to ,members of the Civil Service, wholly
unacquainted with English law, whose average
tenure of office has during that period been
considerably short of four years ; the blunders
into which they otherwise might hare fallen
have for the most part been avoided through
the intervention of the Court of Petty Sessions,
the assess )r of which was until of late a barris-
ter. This ollice was some months since abolished,
when the parties now petitioning remonstrated
against its abolition. The junior and third magis-
tracies have always been considered perquisites of
the Governor to be conferred on any party not able
to secure a livelihood by other means—they have
never been held by any one possessed of the slightest
legal knowledge or judicial experience ; and this is
a fair specimen of the attention paid to the admi-
nistration of justice even in those places which are
immediately under the eye of Europeans. If such
things happen at the Presidency, the state of the
districts may be conjectured. The deposits to the
Western India Irrigation scheme are now being
paid up, and should there be any defaulters, of
which there is little prospect, the applicatiOns for
shares in excess of the whole amount-of the capi-
tal are more thou enough to make up tke defi-
ciency. Government are understood to be most
heartily in favour of the scheme. The Governor-
' General is at Calcutta, and Lord Harris at Madras.
Our own Governor leaves Bombay for Mahablesh-
war on Monday afternoon, returning to the presi-
dency in the third week of November. The state
of the money market remains unchanged, and the
business in the general market is steady and pro-
mising.