The Sun.
London, England, 1867-11-20 00:00:00

COURT OF ALDERMEN.

Yesterday a meeting of the City magistrates was
held at Guildhall, the Lord Mayor presiding. It
being the first court in the new mayoralty, the Lord
Mayor and Sheriffs, according to custom, went in
state from the Mansion-house to attend it; and the
aldermen, who mustered in goodly number, wore
their scarlet robes on the occasion. The Lord Mayor,
on assuming the chair, invited the support he of
gentlemen of the Court of Aldermen, without
which, he said, his duties would be but irksome, and
he should feel an amount of responsibility which he
ought not to undertake single-handed, especially in
times like the present, when especial vigilance might
be required in one holding his office. Alderman
Copeland, as the senior magistrate of the City,
moved in effect that the cordial thanks of the Court
be presented to Sir Thomas Gabriel, the late Lord
Mayor, for the admirable manner in which he had
discharged his magisterial duties and the many other
important functions of his high office, during a period
rendered remarkable by the visits to this country of
his Imperial Majesty the Sultan, the Belgian Rifle-
men, and their reception by the Corporation of
London. The Court also bore testimony to the
splendid entertainment given by the late Lord Mayor
to his Highness the Viceroy of Egypt, and congra-
tulated him in reference to the distinguished mark
of her Majesty's favour which had been conferred
upon him, and which they hoped he might long
continue to enjoy. In moving this resolution, Al-
derman Copeland referred more in detail to the
events of the late mayoralty, and alluded especially
to the magnificent state observed by the Lord
Mayor and Sheriffs in Paris on the recent occasion
on which they went to present the address of con-
gratulation of the Corporation of London to the
Emperor of the French on his providential escape
from the hand of an assassin. The motion was
seconded by Alderman Wilson, the next senior
magistrate, who took occasion to say that, diring
his long recollection of Lord Mayors, he di.l not
remember one who had exceeded Sir Thomas Gabriel
in splendid hospitality, or in the manner in which
he bad maintained the ancient state and dignity
of the office. After a few words from Alderman
•;ir J. Duke, expressive of his hearty concurrence,
the resolution was put and carried with acclatna-

tion, and referred to the General Purposes Com-
mittee, with a view to its being emblazoned on
vellum. On the motion of Alderman Copeland, the
City Solicitor was authorized to take the necessary
steps on behalf of the City for prosecuting John
Veriuder for a libel upon the Common Sergeant, in
his capacity of a Judge of the Central Criminal
Court. Alderman Wilson was unanimously ap-
pointed chairman of the Privileges Committee of the
Court for the ensuing year, and after the transac-
tion of some routine business, the meeting adjourned.

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PRICE.... 4d.
STAMPED sd.

THE ABYSSINIAN EXPEDITION.

The following despatch of Sir Stafford North-
cote, which we take from the Blue-book on Abys-
sinia, 1 üblished yesterday, is the best stun.nary of
the means em: !eyed to supply the expedition against
all possible contingencies :
" THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR INDIA TO TIIE
GOVERNOR OF BOMBAY IN COUNCIL.
" Military, No. 145.
" India-office, Oct. 31.
" 1. In continuation of my despatch dated the
15:11 of October, 1867, No. 131, I proceed to in-
form you of the measures which have been adopted
in this country, since that date, in connection with
the expedition to Abyssinia:
" 2. In the first place. I have to acknowledge the
receipt of your letter dated the 14th of Sept., No.
70, forwarding further correspondence between your
Government and those of India and Madras rela-
tive to the preparations for the expedition, and also
of your letter dated the 28th of September, No. 75,
in which you reply to my despatch of the 2d of that
mouth, No. 107.
" 3. It is unnecessary to remark at length on the
various points to which you refer, but I desire in
general terms to communicate to you the approval
of her Majesty's Government of the measures
adopted by you and the several departments under
your Government for the furtherance of the ob-

ects in view. --
" 4. An extract of your letter relating to the
co-operation of Commodore Heath, and the arrange-
ments made respecting the superintendence of the
transport service under Capt. Tryon has been com-
municated to the Admiralty.

" 5. You will have learned from my previous de-
spatches that the wish of Sir Robert Napier to be
furnished with a second mountain battery has been
complied with, and that one battery was forwarded
to Egypt by the Serapis on the 16th of Oct. The
remainder of the guns and equipment will be placed
ou board the Mendoza, which will leave England
on the 4th of November for Alexandria.

" 6. Copies of a report by Col. Wray on the moun-
tain batteries were forwarded to you in the packet
by a previous mail, and copies of a further paper
respecting the equipment are now enclosed for your
information. Other copies have been transmitted
to Sir Robert Napier at Aden.
"7. The Lords of the Admiralty have been in-
formed of the desire of Sir Robert Napier that a
rocket brigade should be formed from the seamen of
the squadron under the command of Commodore
Heath, and on the receipt of your telegram dated
the 18th inst. instructions were given for the provi-
sion of the tubes and ammunition therein requested.
On application to the War-office, however, it was
found that there were no 12-pounder rockets in
store, and that it was impossible to manufacture the
requisite quantity before the time at which they
would be needed. It has therefore been determined
to send for the use of the force 1,800 of the 6-
pounder rockets (weighing 91b. each) similar to
those already sent out, and 12 machines with special
friction tubes, but only 826 of the rockets will be
ready for despatch on board the Mendoza.

"8. This steam vessel has been engaged for the
conveyance of the telegraph stores, mountain bat-
tery and equipment, pack-saddles, &c., to Egypt,
and for the passage of the medical officers and the
detachments of Royal Engineers who are proceeding
from this country to Abyssinia, for the duties con-
nected with the telegraph, signalling, photography,
and working of the tube wells. This arrangement
is found to be considerably less expensive than it
would have been to engage passages on board the
mail steamer for the officers and men, and to have
paid freight for the tonnage of stores which were
ready for shipment, while the additio3al advantage
has been gained of sending the telegraph stores in
the immediate charge of the party appointed for the
working of the line.

"9. My telegram of the 30th of September will
have prepared you for the receipt of the greater
part of these stores by a vessel leaving England on
the 25th of October, and in the 7th paragraph of
my despatch No. 131 you were informed that cir-
cumstances had delayed the despatch of the stores
for a few days. It is now determined that the
Mendoza shall start on the 4th of November, and
she may be expected to arriveat Alexandria in about
16 days from the date of sailing.
" 10. As you have been informed by my telegram
of the 24th inst., 13 medical officers of the British
army will proceed to Egypt on board this vessel, the
other three, to complete the number asked for in
your telegram of September 24th, being directed to
join the force from Gibraltar, Malta, and Aden re-
spectively, where they are at present stationed.
" 11. The medical officers of the Bombay army
wbo were in England on leave of absence were di-
rected, on receipt of your message, to hold them-
selves in readiness to proceed to Suez for duty with
the expedition should Sir R. Napier require their
services. Only four, however—viz., Surgeons Niven
and Plumptre, and Assistant-Surgeons Lalor and
Barrie—have been found available for such service.
Letters from the several officers named in the mar-
gin (Surgeon-Majors J. R. Miller, W. Campbell, J.
C. Trestrail, ti. Giraud, F. W. Harris, C. J. Syl-
vester,J. Daubeny, J. Bean ; Surgeons G. F. Brown,
W. G. Hunter, IV. E. Wood, A. Fox, C. Thomson
J. Glen, J. M. Barnett, C. G. 11. Ross, E. Butler,
W. D. T. Ticehurst; Assistant-Surgeons G. C. Bell,
C. K. Colston, R. Byramjee), or reports of the Me-
dical Board on the state of their health, are enclosed.
Surgeon Butler, having been reported to be unfit
for field service, has been permitted to return to his
duty in Bombay, and Surgeon Ticehurst has also
been permitted to return at the expiration of his
leave, under the special circumstances mentioned in
his letter.

" 12. All the officers proceeding in the Mendoza,
whether belonging to the Royal Engineers or Medi-

cal Staff (a nominal list of whom is enclosed), have

been directed to await instructions at Suez from the

commander-in-chief of the expeditionary force.

They will be brought upon the strength of the Abys-

sinian force from the date of their arrival at Suez,
and will be available for any duty on which his
Excellency may desire to employ them.
" 13. A copy of a letter from the War-office,
dated October 14th, with its enclosures, detailing the
names of the medical officers of the British army
selected for this service, and containing certain sug-
gestions respecting the employment of Deputy In-

Spector-General of Hospitals S. Currie, C. 8., is for-
warded for your information, together with an ex-
tract of the reply thereto, dated on the 17th of Oct.

" 14. With reference to the papers which accom-
panied the 21st paragraph of my despatch of the
15th inst., respecting the establishments placed on

board the hospital ships, I have to apprise you that,

as it appeared from your demand for medical officers
from this country that no reserve would be sent
from India, I have concurred in a suggestion of the
Secretary of State for War that three extra assistant-
surgeons ehould be sent out for duty with the hos-
pital ships. These officers will proceed to Egypt
by the Mendoza. .

" 15. The 30 sets of apparatus for treatment of
fractures and reduction of dislocations which were

indented. for in your despatch of the 26th of March
last had been shipped on board a steamer at Liver-

pool for despatch to Bombay via Egypt before the
receipt of your telegram of the 11th inst. They have,
however, been re-landed, and will be forwarded

with the other stores which are being sent for the
Abyssinian expedition.

" 16. A copy of a letter dated the 28th inst. from
the War-office, with accompanying memoranda of

instructions to the sanitary officer who may be ap-
pointed by your Government to attend the general
measures requisite for the health of the force, is
herewith transmitted, and another copy will be for-
warded direct to Sir Robert Napier, at Aden, by the

preseut mail.
" 17. I also enclose a letter which has been re-

<,

ceived from Staff Assistant-burgeon A. Neill, giving
many useful suggestions, derived from experience
acquired during his residence in Abyssinia, respect..
ing measures which should be adopted for the pre-
servation of the health of the troops. Copies will be
forwarded to Sir Robert Napier, for distribution to
the commanding officers and medical officers of the
force.

" 18. Your telegram of the sth of October, asking
for the services of one Staff veterinary surgeon and
three veterinary surgeons from this country, having
been transmitted to the War-office, I have been in-
formed that, after consulting with the Fie! l-Nlarshn. 1
Comma r, Sir John l'Aki:igton has .e.
termined on meeting the demand from among the
veterinary surge ,ni who are now employed in the
East in the pirchase of mules ; and Colonel Clark
Kennedy will be insf.rtic'ed to &dee!: that number oE
offs !ers for service in Abpsin,a so soon as he sl--4,11
1,,, enabled to do so by th delivery of mine; at
Alexandria by the transports.
" 19. The number of men of the Royal Engineers
who are about to be sent fur duty in Ahys:tinia lAng
in the aggregate grelter than it appeared d._sirable
to the hiell-Marshal Commanding-in-Chief to place
under the charge of a subaltern, his Royal Highness
has caused the several detachments to be reorganised
and formed into the 10Lh company of Royal En-
gineers, under the command of Brevet-Major
Pritchard, Royal Engineers. The duties devolving
upon this officer will not, however, interfere with
the special employment for which Lieutenants St.
JoLn and Le Messurier have been selected. A copy
of the correspondence on this subject which passed
between this office and tho War-office and Horse
Guards is forwarded for your information.
" 20. In the 24th paragraph of my despatch, No.
131, I stated that I had sanctioned the provision of
50 of Norton's tube wells for use Abyssinia. The
number has since been increasJd to 100, in accord-
ance with the recommendation of the director of the
Engineer establishment at Chatham.
" 21. In the 15th paragraph of the abovetnen-
tioned despatch, which was written the day before
the receipt of your telegram of the 15th inst., you.
were informed that Col. Clark Kennedy had beea
instructed to extend his purchases of mules to the
number of 8,000, provided that they could be ready
within the specified time. In connection with this
subject I telegraphed to you on the 22d to inquire
whether you could manage with the 5,000 pack-
saddles already under provision. To this I have, as
yet, received no reply. •

"22. At the suggestion of his Royal Highness
the Field Marshal Commanding in Chief, I have
sanctioned, as an experiment, the construction of
five pack-saddles on the principle invented by Lieu--
tenant M'Mahon, Royal Engineers, which will be
sent for trial with the force, and I shall be glad to
receive a report on their efficiency for field service
in comparison with the Otago pattern.
" 23. Your Secretary's letter, No. 31, enclosed a
copy of a telegram asking for the supply of 500
McGwire hammocks, respecting which you ware
informed in the 12th paragraph of my despatch, No.
124, that they were packed and would be for warded
as soon as possible. Your subsequent telegram of
the 18th October has also been received asking for
an additional supply of 1,500 hammocks of the same
pattern. The 500 first ordered and 350 of the re-
mainder will be sent to Suez by the Mendoza, and

the rest, which will be ready on the 18th November,
will be forwarded by an early opportunity after

that date. In order to avoid delay, a slight devia-
tion from the original pattern has been permitted
in the second supply ; it is, however, believed that
in all essentials they are not inferior to those pre-
viously ordered.

" 24. The telegram, of which a copy was for-
warded with your secretary's letter, No. 32, respect-
ing the weight of packages, was noticed in the 13th
paragr mph of my above mentioned despatch, No.
124 of 1867.
" 23. The stores required for the Armstrong guns
asked for by a telegram of 23d of Sept., of which a
copy was receivel with your secretary's letter of
_ _ _

that date, No. 33, were despatc'►ed to Aden by the
vessel of the Peninsular and (Mental Steam Navi-
gation Company which left Southampton on the
4th of Oct. Subsequently, your telegram of the
11th of Oct., correcting your previous demand, was
received. The fuzes therein asked for, which had
not been previously supplied, were forwarded to
Aden by the mail steamer of the 27th inst.
66 2G. A detailed list (No. 5) of the stores or.
dered up to the present time for the purposes of the
expedition forms an enclosure to this despatch.
" 27. In continuation of the papers which were
forwarded with the 13th paragraph of my despatch,
No. 131, respecting the aid granted by the Ottoman
Government for the purpose of the expedition, I
transmit a copy of a letter from the Foreign-office,
dated the 19th inst., with its enclosures, respecting
the facilities afforded for the passage of the British
troops through the Egyptian territory.
" 28. You were informed, in the last paragraph
of my despatch, No. 124, that a request had been
made by the Ambassador of the King of Italy
that permission might be granted to the officers of
the Italian army to accompany the expedition to
Abyssinia. Similar applications have been made by
the representatives of the Swedish and Netherlands
Governments—and I enclose a copy of the reply
with which the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs,
with my concurrence, has caused to be addressed to
the several Ministers. A similar answer will be given
to applications of a like nature in future.
" 29. A copy of a letter addressed to me, on be-
half of the Committee of the Church of Scotland
for watching over the interests of her Majesty's
Presbyterian soldiers and sailors, is forwarded for
your information, together with a copy of the reply
which I caused to be sent.
" 30. The enclosed work on the Falasha and
Kamants in Abyssinia, with a vocabulary of the
Falasha language, composed by the Rev. Martin
Flad, and edited by the Rev. Dr. Krapt, having
been brought to my notice, I have obtained 200
copies, which will be forwarded to Sir R. Napier.
" 31. I forward a copy of a letter from Colonel
Claremont giving an interesting account of a con-
versation which he has held with M. Galinier, one
of the authors of a French work on Abyssinia.
" 32. With reference to your telegrams of the sth
and 15th of October and to my reply of the 18th
(of which a copy is enclosed), I am desirous that, as
stated in my telegraphic message of the 10th, you
should use your own discretion in the matter of the
construction of a railway from the coast to the
highlands. Should you decide on adopting it I
shall be prepared to co-operate with you by the
speedy supply of such stores and materials as you
may require from this country.
" 33. In addition to the various papers which
have been already transmitted to you on this subject,
I forward a letter from Mr. Haddon, C.E., with its
enclosures, respecting a pontoon railway which he
proposes to lay down. As he states that a copy of
the papers was sent to you by the last mail, the
drawing, of which only one copy was received, will
be forwarded direct to Sir Robert Napier.
"34. An extract of a letter from Mr. Manby,
which has been forwarded from the War-office, re-
specting an engineer named Jeffrey Bey, is also en-
closed, for your information.

" 35. In continuation of the papers which accom-
panied the 17th paragraph of my despatch of the
15th of Oetob2r, I forward a copy of the letters
noted in the margin (Oct. 7, 1857, issue to detach-
ment of Royal Artillery ; ditto, Military 'Tai❑ ;
16th, ditto Royal Engineers ; 18th, ditto, ditto),
respecting the issue of articles of clothing, &c , to
the detachments proceeding to Abyssinia.

" 36. The services of Lient.-Colonel Milward,
R.A.., the Assistant-Director of Ordnance, have
been placed at the disposal of Sir Robert Napier by
the Secretary of State for War, with the concur-
rence of the Field Marshal Commanding-in-Chief,
for employment with the Abyssinian Expedition, in
compliance with the special request made in his
Excellency's telegram of the 19th instant.
" 1 have, &c.,
"STAFFORD H. NORTHCOTE."

TILE CIIASSEPOT RIFLE.—A competition between
the Carter and Edwards rifle and the French Chassepot
rifle is about to take place at the Hythe School of Mus-
ketry. Tho competitors will be Sir Francis Clayton, Bart.,
and Lieutenant Lecky, R.M., assistant-instructor at the
School of Musketry. The result is looked forward to with
considerable intend.