The Sun.
London, England, 1870-08-04 00:00:00

SCOTCH PROCURATORS FISCAL.

The particulars of a very troublesome and unsatisfac-
tory case are '(riven in one . of the Parliamentary papers
just issued. John Bell, a farmer, of Glenduckie, Fife-
shire, was unjustly charged in 1865 with sending threaten-
ingletters. He was found not guilty,and one of the witnesses
at the trial, a woman named Edminston, confessed that she
had written the letters in question, an offence for which
she was afterwards sentenced to five years' penal servi-
tude. John Bell maintains that the Procurators Fiscal
of Fifeshire knew of the woman's confession, but
took no steps to ascertain the truth of the matter, being
influenced by a personal feeling of animosity against the
farmer. Mr. Bell, therefore, memorialised the Lords of
the Treasury for the reimbursement of his
legal expenses in defending himself from this un-
just charge. The Lords of the Treasury, in answer
said they had no funds at their disposal out of which to
make such payment, and that they were not aware of
any precedent for reimbursement. The Parliamentary
paper before us contains the memorial,the correspondence
and the sum total paid by the Crown agent in the several
actions in the case including the actions for damages
brought by Mr. Bell against the Procurators Fiscal.
Altogether the affair has cost £3,057 ls. 5c1., which has
been paid from the vote for for Criminal Proceedings
(North Britain), under the authority of the Lord
Advocate.

N AV. \ L AND M i LITA la INTELLIGENCE.
e - dmiral W. Ircuf,ton Stewart, superintendent of
Devouport Doelzyard, was summoned to London by
telegraph on Tuesday morning, and left by the 2.15
train the same day, to meet the Admiralty at White-
hall the following morning. The object of the summons
-is supposed to be a conference as to the capabilities of
the yard in reference to the additional work to be put in
hand.

The Audacious, Iron Duke, and Vanguard, 14, armour
plated ships, fitting at Devonport, are progressing rapidly,
but it has been found there will be a delay in their being
got ready for cea for the want of water and bread tanks,
none of those in store being adapted for these ships. It
is added that the description of tanks required were sold
a few months since by order of the Admiralty.
A detachment of Marines of the Plymouth Division is
held in readiness to embark on board the Northumber-
land, to join the Hibernia at Malta, and a second detach-

meat is to embark on board the Valiant, 18, armour-
plated ship, Captain A. Wilmhurst, for Cork. All the
non-commissioned officers and others, employed in civil
capacities in the barracks, were on. Tuesday ordered to
attend a course of musketry instruction—a novelty to a
number of those who have hitherto been kept at " non,
effective" duties.

Orders have been received by Major-General Brownrigg,
C. 8., commanding the Chatham district, directing the
7th (Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards to proceed from
Aldershot to Maidstone, where quarters are to be pre-
pared for the regiment. The troops will occupy Maid-
stone barracks, in which the Royal Artillery are now
quartered.

The officers and men of the Royal Engineers are busily
employed at Chatham in the formation of batteries, saps,
magazines, and other earthworks, preparatory to some
extensive siege operations which will shortly be carried
out, and in which the whole of the available force at
Chatham will take part. The scene of the operations
will be the 14yal Engineer depot field works at the et-
tremity of Chatham great lines. Three of the metropoli-
tan engineer volunteer corps will take part in the contem-
plated operations.

The Lord Warden (bearing the flag of the Commander-
in-Chief, Admiral Sir Alexander Milne, K.C.8.), Bel-
lerophon, Caledonian, and Prince Consort, came to an
anchor on the morning of the 23d July, at the entrance
of Valetta Harbour, after having since their departure
thence•on the 7th instant, visited Palermo and Messina.
On the 25th set about replenishing fuel, in the
expectation of weighing and proceeding without
entering port on the the 27th for Gibraltar to
meet the Channel fleet, and cruise in company
as far as the Azores, the Cabinet seeing nothing in the
present changed slate of affairs on the Continent to ren-
der necessary the abandonment of this pre-arranged
cruise ; but a subsequent telegram from the Admiralty
has postponed their departure until the 2nd of August, as
the Channel fleet will not be at Gibraltar before the 14th.
The Royal Oak will join in this cruise, having been tele-
graphed to repair at once to Malta, for the trial of some
cases of drunkenness.

The Defence will leave Malta as soon as she is out of
dock to replace the Pirmus at Athens.
In all the departments of the Royal Arsenal at Woolwich
unusual activity prevails in carrying out an order from
the War-office to place all the reserve stores in a state of
complete efficiency. A few workmen are taken on daily,
but the supply is far beyond the demand, except in the
case of wheelers, a number of whom are required in the
royal carriage department to take the place of the skilled
artisans who have been recently sent to Canada as emi-
grants. In the laboratory men are employed cleaning the
machinery of tde whitewash coating in which it has been
covered while out of use, and the steam hammers of the
royal gun factories are kept at work night and day. At
the Royal Artillery Barracks measures are being taken to
complete the equipment of the 11th Field Brigade and the
13th Garrison Brigade, being the brigades first for ser-
vice, both of which are at present short of waggons, am-
bulances, and other accessories.
In order to carry out the augmentation of the arms the
standard has been reduced from 5 feet 8 inches to 5 feet 7
inches for men, and 5 feet 61 inches for growing lads,
while artificers will be taken as low as 5 feet 5 inches.
Although there is no bounty recruits are coming in

The division of the Channel fleet, consisting of the
Hercules, the Captain, the Minotaur, and the Monarch,
all armour-plated vessels, is now at Portsmouth ready to
Proceed to sea.