The Sun.
London, England, 1854-03-06 00:00:00

LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, MARCH 6, 1854.

racy, has no greater range than the old musket. We
are about to range them side by side with the
French troops, all of whom are armed with the Minis
rifle, where the inequality will be more glaring,
and we are about to oppose them to troops,
who, it has just been ascestained, are armed with the
deadly needle-gun, and who can, if well drilled in its
use, pick off our officers and men with the greatest
safety to themselves, at twice the distance to which
their own weapons will carry. We fear we can dis-
cover the source of this egregious and most culpable
blunder in a passage in Capt. Jervis's little treatise.
He says when the merits of the rifle in use among the
Chaeseurs de Vincennes and of the Prussian needle-gun
had been ascertained, the public cried out loudly that our
troops should be equally well-armed, indifferent as to which
of these two weapons should be selected ; but this was
what no man entrusted with the charge of a public de-
partment could listen to. When the percussion cap had
been substituted for the flint, it was merely an alteration
of the lock, at a trifling expense. Here, however, was a
change which involved an outlay of nearly half a million
sterling, without reckoning the dead loss arising from the
consequent uselessness of either the muskets in use or the
enormous quantity in store. The Government, it appears,
did not like to cast aside the old muskets, and, if
our information be true, those in store, amounting to a
great many thousands, are now being converted into
rifles, and the weight of the piece thereby lessened,
while the heavy ounce ball, and the large charge
of powder, is still retained, and the range, with
•f course more accuracy, retained at 300 yards!
We believe this is a case in which, from mo-
tives of false economy, or from respect to the
old Duke's predilection for the large bore and
heavy ball of the old " Brown Bess," or perhaps from
some little stickling for old habits and conventiona-
lities, or still more unworthy motives of jobbery, a
great mistake has been committed. The great bulk of
the German, French, Belgian, and, as it now appears,
the Russian and Turkish, troops are armed with the
modern improved weapons, and we are sending out
troops to cope with them armed with an inefficient
adaptation of the old musket, and, after voting millions of
money to raise, recruit, and equip the finest soldiers in the
world, we are able to say that we have economised our
old fire arms and saved a few hundred thousand pounds,
while with a refinement of cruelty we place them under
disadvantages which no courage or determination can
successfully compete with. We hope the committee
upon small arms, which has just been appointed by the
House of Commons, will inquire fully into this matter.
Let the officials of the Enfield factory and the officers of
the Beard of Ordnance be called upon to explain what
are the real advantages we have gained by this Enfield.
Prtichett rifle, of which the public have now heard for
the first time.— Observer.

where they are taking on board oats and hay for the
horses that havebaen taken up to be conveyed to the
Mediterranean.

Nine of the transport vessels have arrived at Deptford
for the conveyance of horses, the Allipore, the John
Masterman, the Earl of Shaftesbury, Her Majesty, the
Palmerston, the City of Carlisle, the Pyrenees, the Mer-
cier, and the Resolute, and workmen have been actively
employed in fitting mangers on board of each of them
while the oats and hay were being put on board. Eight
naval officers of the rank of lieutenant have been ap-
pointed as agents for transports—Henry P. Dtcken
(1815), Thomas James (1821), Thomas Atkinson Butler
(1827), St. Ledger: Aldworth (1831), Richard Hoops
(1840), James Yule (1826), Delbceuf B. Bedford (1830),
and John S. Keatley (1828).
Lieutenant Thomas A. Butler, Senior Lieutenant of
the first division of horse transport vessels, hoisted his
pendant to-day on board the Pyrenees, and the Monkey
steam-vessel, Second Master Syndercombe, was waiting
to tow her down to Woolwich, where the horses are to
put on hoard in the basin, but she was not ready till
a late hour, and as the tide did not then suit, she will be
taken down and into the basin at Woolwich on Monday.
Four of the other vessels will be ready to be towed to
Woolwich in two or three days, and the horses will be
swung on board by the aid of the shears.
The Egmont storeship completed taking on board
stores, and left Deptford for Malta on Tuesday last with
supplies for the use of the troops on that station.
Quartermaster Oliphant and Serjeaut-Major Weare,
of the Royal Horse Artillery, have attended daily at
Deptford during the present week to inspect the pro-
vender put on board the transports for the horses,
Butchers have again commenced killing cattle for the
purpose of being salted at the west end of the victual-
ling yard, for the use of the navy, and about 100 head
of cattle have been killed and salted during the present
week.

SUNDAY, March 5.
Lord Raglan is expected to arrive at Woolwich at 11
o'clock a.m. to-morrow, for the purpose of inspecting the
Royal Artillery now ready for embarkation, and his
Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge is also expected
to be present with a number of distinguished officers.
Major C. Dickson, of the 10th battalion, proceeds to
the East on the staff of Lord Raglan, as interpreter,
Major Dickson having a most perfect knowledge of the
Turkish language, and having acted as interpreter to
Ibrahim Pasha when he visited this country.

DUBLIN, MARCH 4.
The 46th Regiment, at present stationed in Kilkenny,
has been placed under orders for service in the East. On
Wednesday last a communication was received by the
commanding-officer of the 46th applying for 15 volun-
teers from that corps for the 33d, then on the point of
embarking for the seat of war. Immediately upon its
transpiring that volunteers were required the orderly-
room was beset by crowds of applicants for the honour
of joining the Eastern expedition, and the most enthusi-
astic eagerness for the much-coveted position of forming
one of the 15 was manifested almost universally by the
privates of this gallant corps. Fifteen fine young fel-
lows were selected from the crowd of applicants, and a
few hours afterwards they were inspected by Colonel
Williams, K.H., and proceeded to Dublin by rail,
taking their departure amid the warm cheering of their
former comrades.

The head-quarters of the 27th Regiment will leave
Enniskillen for Dublin on the 6th, and may be expected
to arri►e here on the 9th.

ROYAL ARTILLERY.

The troop of Royal Horse Artillery under the com
mand of Captain Levinge received an entire new
battery, consisting of four six-pounder brass guns
and two twelve-pounder brass howitzers, made on
the most approved construction and mounted on
new gun-carriages. These field pieces of ordnance,
with their ammunition waggons, with every neces-
sary article for field service were brought up from the
grand depot on Thursday to the east orlßoyal Horse Ar-
tillery square of the barracks, and are all ready packed
for immediate! embarkation. Three entire new field-
batteries, each consisting of four 9-pounder brass guns
and two 24-pounder brass howitzers, were brought up
front the grand depot on the same day to the barracks,
and they are at present in the gun-park at the west end
of the barracks, all packed and ready for immediate em-
barkation. The other two batteries under orders for
foreign service will only take out horses with them, as
the one is to be supplied with a Turkish field-battery on
arrival in the East, and the other will be converted into
a small-arm brigade and be supplied with Minie rifles.
Captain Swinton's company, 11th battalion, recently
returned from Dover to head-quarters ; Captain J.
Turner's company, 11th battalion, recently returned
from Eastbourne to Woolwich ; Captain Wodehouse's
company, 11th battalion, at Woolwich ; and Captain
Maude's troop of Royal Horse Artillery, at present sta-
tioned at Dublin, are to be brought forward for service
in the East on the departure of the troop and batteries
at present under orders for foreign service.