The Sun.
London, England, 1867-08-28 00:00:00

Naval and Military Intelligence.

VALETTA, Aug. 23.—We are again without any
mail from the fleet, which is supposed to be cruising
somewhere in the neighbourhood of the northern
coast of Italy. It was last seen off Genoa, but I be-
lieve did not communicate, owing to that town
being in quarantine, with Malta. We have at pre-
sent here only the Hydra, surveying vessel, Cept.
Shortland, which returned into port on the 18th
inst. from Gozo, where she had been engaged fix-
ing the latitude and longitude of the lighthouse.
Her Majesty's screw transport Simoom, Capt. Leth-
bridge, having on board the headquarters of the 10th
Brigade Royal Artillery from Canada, which was
expected here on the 18th inst., has not yet made
her appearance ; but a telegram, received by an
officer of the garrison, says that she may be looked
for about the 24th or 25th inst., from which it is
presumed she left Gibraltar about Tuesday last.
We also expect here soon the Himalaya, with the
14th Foot. This regiment is to relieve the 60th
Rifles, which are to proceed to Canada in that ves-
sel. According to a telegram received by his Excel-
lency the Governor she will prpbably arrive at
Malta about the 28th inst. A good deal of fever has
prevailed of late among some of the regiments in
garrison. The Ist battalion of the Bth has espe-
cially suffered, and lost a considerable number of
men. Scarcely a day passes without witnessing
one or more funerals. There were two the day be-
fore yesterday, two others yesterday, and I believe
there will be others to-day. The insalubrity of many
of the barracks at Malta is well kacwn. Most of
them have been long since condemned by a sanitary
commission, and yet we see no active steps taken to
improve their condition. The barracks of St. Elmo,
from their low situation, bad drainage, and want of
proper ventilation, are notorious for their insalu-
brity, and it is precisely here we see again this hot
season men dying off so rapidly as to create almost
a panic among those who are left. The mortality
has become so serious that it has been determined to
remove the troops from the lowerportion of the bar-
racks, and pat them under canvas on Fort Manoel.
This will do very well as a partial and temporary
measure, but until the whole question of barrack
accommodation at Malta is gone into, and healthy
quarters provided for the troops we shall continue to
hear of high death-rate. Three fast steamers for the
Turkish Government--the Rctimo, Candia, and
]Baines—have lately touched here, en route to Con-
stantinople. One passed some days ago, and the
two others left yesterday. They are said to be in-
tended to- be used against the .Greek blockade run-
ners, which have been causing so much annoyance
to Turkey in her endeavours to quell theinsurgents
at Crete. A serious outbreak of cholera having
taken place at Bona, that port and the rest of the
coast of Algeria have been included in the common
term of 30 days' quarantine.
The First Lord's levee at Devonport will be held
in the office of the Admiral Superintendent of the
dockyard at 3 p.m. on Saturday.
The following named freight ships have arrived
at the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich, and have com-
menced shipping war stores : —Mr. Carr's Aginoria
with Palliser shot (60 tons), for ships in commis-
sion at Portsmouth, and the War Department
vessel Sir George Murray, for Dover. The Alma,
from Leith, has commenced discharging a cargo of
mall-arms' chests for conversion.
The Bomarsund, from Chatham, with 150 arm-
chests, containing arms for conversion, and 14
32-pounder guns to be strengthened on Major
Palliser's principle, went alongside the gun wharf,
Woolwich, to discharge.

The shipping shed, appropriated to the tempo-
rary storing of cargoes for foreign service, on the
wharf at Woolwich, is stored with an enormous
amount of Palliser 7-inch, 8-inch, and 9-inch shot
and shell, destined for Quebec, Montreal, Halifax,
Bermuda, Malta, and other of our possessions
abroad.
Yesterday Major-Gen. G. J. Murray, who was
accompanied by members of the divisional Staff,
inspected the officers and men of the depot of the
Ist battalion of the 14th Regiment, which arrived
at Chatham garrison, on Sunday, from Ireland.
The depot was formed on the general parade
ground, where Gen. Murray inspected the arms,
kits, clothing, and accoutrements of the non-com-
missioned officers and men, with satisfactory results.
The following are attached to the depot companies
of the Ist battalion of the 14th Regiment :—Capt.
A. A. Le Mesurier, in command, Capt. J. B. Frizell,
Lieut. J. Laing, Lieut. R. Hull, and Lieut. W. T.
Blois. Major-Gen. Murray likewise inspected at
the same time the depot of the 2d battalion of the
22d Regiment, under the command of Capt. J. W.
Trevor, which is shortly expected to leave Chatham
garrison for Newcastle, there to await the arrival of
the bead quarters and service companies of the
battalion, shortly expected to arrive from the Mauri-
tius. In consequence of recruiting for the 2d batta-
lion of the 22d Regiment having been for some time
suspended--the regiment being under orders to re-
turn to England—the strength of the depot com-
panies has been reduced to considerably less than
100 non-commissioned officers and men. The bat-
talion embarked for Malta on the 11th May, 1859,
and subsequently proceeded to the Mauritius, where
it has since been serving.
The Ist battalion Scots Fusiliers, commanded by
Col. Hepburn, will leave the Infantry Barracks,
Sheet-street, Windsor, next Tuesday, it is expected,
for London.

A new rifle musket, the invention of Messrs
Carter and Edwardl, has undergone an official trial
in the Woolwich Marsh, in competition with the
Snider-Enfield rifle, with the following results :
The Snider rifle was fired by Lieut. Lecky, assistant
instructor of musketry to the Royal Marine division
at Woolwich ; the time two minutes, when 16 rounds
were fired, 14 hits were made, and 34 points were
obtained. Carter and Edward's rifle was fired by
Sergt. Bott, 27 rounds, 24 hits,- and-54 points. The
object was a 3d class target with a Wimbledon bull's
eye. The superiority of the Carter and Edward's rifle
over the Snider in rapidity of fire appears to be fully
established, as the rifle, which is on the bolt system,
cocks itself in the withdrawal of the cartridge. The
lock is entirely concealed, and the weapon is fired
with a needle through the centre of the bolt. An-
other advantage, equally important, and also an
entire novelty in small arms, is, that a line or party
of skirmishers, in the event of their being taken pri-
soners, or surrounded by the enemy at a disadvan-
tage, can, with a turn of a screw, take out the bolt
and cast it away, leaving the arm as totally useless
as the Armstrong field-gun without its vent-piece.
For simplicity of construction it surpasses the Snider,
as there are fewer springs.' In, fact, the only springs
it contains are the main-spring of the lock and the
rear spring. The inventors, it is stated, arc fitting
up a spacious manufactory in Birmingham to con-
struct arms on their principle, in order to fulfil a
large contract which they have entered into with a
foreign government. They were disqualified from
contending at the late competition at Woolwich by
not having sent in their arms in time, according to
the regulations. The new rifles above named arc
adapted equally with the Snider to use the Boxer
ammunition, Enfield bore.
Gen. J. di Elorza and three other officers of the
Spanish Artillery, who lave been furniAed with
permission to inspect the departments of Woolwich
Arsenal, have been in attendance there for the last
three days. They were each day accompanied in
their visit by the respective heads of offices, as
dire 001 The [Atka of their inquiries appea.s to
have been speci tlly to ascert:,,iu the nature of ti.te
guns and projectiles used for penetrating armour-
clad ships, &c.
The officers of the Woolwich division Royal Ma-
rines Light Infantry who have been promoted by the
new scale,. and have to be transferred to other divi-
sions, ha,fe obtained leave of abience until Sept. 1.
The standard for recruits ID! the Royal Marine
Light Infantry will in future be sft. 6fin.
The following appointments were made yester-
day at the Admiralty :—Wilfred W. Glanville, mid-
shipman, to the Liffey ; Edward F. Tyacke, naval
cadet, to the Phoebe ; Thomas 11. L. Bowling and
Thomas N. Prith, paymaster, additional to the
Octavia, for transport service in the Indian Seas ;
George Metcalf, Robert Crosthwaite, and W. Kelly,
engineers, to the Bristol, W. Side, engineer, to the
ludas, for Skipjack ; George Fabian, first-class