The Sun.
London, England, 1870-11-08 00:00:00

VOLUNTEER ARTILLERY.

Rear Admiral Paynter has submitted to the Secre-
tary of State for War a plan for raising and drilling
a national force of Volunteer Artillery, to be exercised
upon the system adopted in Tier Majesty's navy, ,for
marine field guns. These guns, which are Armstrong
6or 0 pounders, weighing from 3 cwt to 6 cwt,
are worked on a - light field carriage and
limber, carrying about 20 rounds of ammunition, are
drawn and worked with great facility, by the
men themselves, no horses ever being used, can be
carried, if necessary, across hedges and ditches, and
thus be placed in positions which it would be im-
possible, from the natural obstacles of the ground, for
artillery moved by horses to approach. Ilie Admiral
Would have every town in the kingdom with a bat-
tery of artillery of this description, and every village
even its gun, manned by thoroughly - trained
volunteers. In England alone there are
12,000 parishes. If one - tenth of these ap-
plied for guns it would give. a force
of 1,200 guns and 24,000 experienced artillerymen
to the country, and the gallant author of this scheme
believes that such is the patriotism of the people
that in two or three years we should have no fewer
than 3,000 guns and 60,000 volunteer artillerymen
as an addition to our reserve forces, and twenty-four
hours would be sufficient to concentrate a mass of
field guns on any heights overlooking a possible
landing place. These guns, skilfully handled, should
render an invasion of our coasts hopeless from the
first, and would, at the same time, secure to the
country a useful and cheap artillery for home defence
whenever the royal army might happen to be called
abroad.

'THE Loss OF THE CAPTAIN.

Captain Scott, R.N., stoutly champions the late
Captain Coles. The "Captain," he contends, being
one among many lost under similar circumstances
' is no proof that Captain Coles' system is a failure,
nor does if follow that the implied difference in her
from other ships should baffle the skill of any expe-
rienced seaman in handling her, as sailors are aware
that vessels differ widely in the management needful to
keep them afloat and from sustaining damage. Captain
Scott says he has seen some vessels under whole top-
sails and courses, while others, in the same breeze,
could only bear double-reefed topsails and reefed
courses, yet both got safely along. Many a good
ship, under the command of brave men like Captain
Burgoyne, have been made to carry sail until too
late, and this was the case with the Captain. There
is not a vessel afloat, says Captain Scott, which he
could not throw on her beam ends by a pressure of
canvass, and when once water gots into the sails of a
ship in such a position, she will never
rise again unless the masts are cut away. If Captain
Burgoyne had been governed by his weather-won
experience in handling his ship she would have been
afloat now. But his attention was chiefly directed
to the heeling indicator, as if, when it reached a
certain degree, the heeling could be stopped by some
thumb-screw as easily as a watch. The construction
of the Captain had nothing whatever to do, in the
opinion of Captain Scott, with the disaster.

TIIE POPE AND AN ARMISTICE.

A correspondent at Florence informs us that the
news of the capitulation of Metz produced much
excitement among the friends of his Holiness in Rome.
The intelligence was telegraphed to the Vatican by
Monsignor Chigi, and a council of Cardinals was
summoned to discuss what policy it would be wisest
for the authorities of the Catholic Church to adopt.
Finally it was resolved to- despatch an eminent
member of the French confraternity in Italy
to the Prussian camp, with instructions to
plead for an armistice. It is stated that
the Pope explained in his letter that his
mediation would have to be considered apart from
that of the neutral Powers, and with the con-
currence of the Council Monsignor Chigi was
requested to propose to Count Bismarck as terms
for an armistice " that the siege of Paris should be
suspended; that the Prussians should retire from
Lorraine and leave 100,000 men between Alsace,
Metz, and Strasburg; and that as a guarantee the
French should deposit in the hands of the Prussians
three milliards of francs, pending a general election
to take place immediately." It is not improbable,
the writer says, that the Administration at the
Vatican, should an armistice be brought about under
such conditions, may endeavour to direct the influ-
ence of all the Roman Catholic clergy in favour of a
Bonapartist restoration.