The Sun.
London, England, 1858-02-24 00:00:00

NAVAL AND MILITARY INTELLIGENCE.

Yesterday upwards of 200 recruits arrived at
Chatham from the recruiting districts of London,
Bristol, and Liverpool, for the purpose of joining
the various East India depots at that garrison. The
number of recruits and volunteers joining at
Chatham now averages nearly 500 per week.
The reinforcements for the 18th Royal Irish, 51st
Light Infantry, 83d, and 86th Regiments, to the
number of 150 men of all ranks, left Chatham yes-
terday•morning for Southampton, to embark on
board the Peninsular and Oriental Company's
steamer Sultan for Alexandria, from which port
they will proceed by the overland route to Kurra-
chee. The number of troops at Chatham still under
orders to proceed to India exceeds 1,500 men of
all ranks.

The Commander-in-Chief has ordered a reorga-
nization of the depots, comprising the three batta-
lions of infantry at Chatham, which are now com-
posed as follows-Ist Battalion, under the com-
mand of Col. 11. Jervis, 7th Royal Fusileers, 24th,
27th Enniskillens 32d, 35th, and 53d Regiments ;
2d Battalion, under the cernmand of Col., R. N.
Phillips, 10th, 20th, 23d Royal Welsh Fusileers,
29th, 52d Light Infantry, and Gist Regiments ;
3d Battalion, commanded by Lieut.-Col. C. E.
Fairtlough, Bth, 70th, 75th, 81st, 84th, and 94th
Regiments. The folowing alterations have been
made in the staff appointments of the battalions—
Capt. R. H. Travers, 24th, to be Instructor of
Musketry to the Ist battalion ; Capt. J. M. Lyle,
29th, to the 2d battaliOn ; and Brevet-Major W.
Radcliff, 84th, to the 3d battalion—each being
assisted by a subaltern officer.
Thewhole of .the olfacereltndiroops belonging to
the 3d battalion at Chatham were yesterday assem-
bled on their parade ground for the purpose of
witnessing the ceremony of degrading a nen-com-
missioned officer, in obedience to the sentence of a
district court martial. The offence with which the
prisoner—Lance-Sergeant Reed, of the Bth
(King's) Regiment—was found guilty, was
that of being drunk and guilty of conduct unbe-
coming a non-commissioned officer while on duty in
the barracks, for which serious breach of military
discipline he was adjudged to be reduced to the
rank and pay of a private soldier. The sentence of
the Court having been read by the Adjutant the
prisoner was marched to the front of the battalion,
where he was publicly degraded and his stripes cut
off his arm. The accused has been a great number
of years in the service, and has hitherto borne a
good character, having two good conduct badges.
He served some time with his corps in India.
The Racoon, 21, screw corvette, Capt. Paynter,
arrived at Spithead on Monday night from the Nore,
to await further orders.

The Lord Raglan convict ship has embarked her
allotment from Portsmouth, and sailed for Western
Australia, calling at Portland and Plymouth.
The Marlborough, 131, screw three decker,
Captain the Right Hon. Lord F. H. Kerr, is being
rapidly fitted out at Portsmouth for the Mediter-
ranean flag, and men come forward for her briskly.
Vice-Admiral Fanshawe has not yet hoisted his
flag to succeed Lord Lyons.
The steam fleet in reserve at Portsmouth is being
got ready for equipment at the shortest notice. The
ships composing it, especially the line-of-battle
ships, are being tried almost daily, and the staff of
the steam reserve are indefatigably employed in
getting the ships' machinery into reliable working
order. The Duke of Wellington, Cresar, Victor
Emmanuel, and Algiers are the most forward, and
are expected to be the next large ships commis-
sioned. The gunboats at Haslar are also under
course of overhaul.

A letter from a private of the 94th, received at
Plymouth, states that the regiment left the Sound
on the 18th of Nov., and arrived at Madras on the
26th of Dec. They landed at Alexandria at five
o'clock on the evening of the 2d of Dec., and pro-
ceeded by train to Cairo, where they breakfasted
on the banks of the Nile at one o'clock on the morn-
ning of the 3d, and at 10 the same day dined in the
desert. They wont in vans to Suez and waits3cl four
days for the mail. From Suez for 20 days the men
were exposed on the weather-deck to the wind and
rain ; the sea was howdver calm as a river.
The writer says that all was peaceful at Madras ;
the Sepoys are sorry they ever turned out;
and many are dying of hunger and want, The 94th
were daily expecting the route to Rangoon.
His Netherlands Majesty's paddlewheel steam-
vessel Ardjoeno, 8, Captain J. A. Van Hasselt,
four days from Helvoet, for Batavia, put into Ply-
mouth Sound on Monday, for fuel.

BILL FOR TEE BETTER GOVERNMENT
OF INDIA.

Whereas by an Act of the Session holden in the
16th and 17th years of her Majesty, chapter 95, "to
provide for the government of India," the territo-
ries in the possession and under the government of
the East India Company were continued under such
government, in trust for her Majesty, until Parlia-
ment should otherwise provide, subject to the pro-
visions of that act and of other acts of Parliament,
and the property and rights in the said act referred
to are held by the said company in trust for the
crown for the purposes of the said government, and
whereas it is expedient that the said territories
should be governed by and in the name of her Ma-
jesty : be it therefore enacted by the Queen's most
excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and con-
sent of the Lords spiritual and temporal, and Com-
mons, in .thispresent Parliament assembled, and by
the authority of the same, as follows : that is to say,
TRANSFER OF THE GOTERNMENT OF INDIA. TO THEE

MAJESTY.
I. The government of the territories now in the
possession or under the government of the East
India Company, and all powers in relation to go-
vernment vested in or exercised by the said com-
pany, and all territories in the possession or under
the government of the said company, and all rights
vested in or which if this act had not been passed
might have been exercised by the said company in
relation to any territories, shall become vested in
and be exercised on behalf of her Majesty; and for
the purposes of this act India shall mean the terri-
tories vested in her Majesty as aforesaid, and all
territories which may become vested in her Majesty
by virtue of any such rights as aforesaid.
11. India shall be governed by and in the name
of her Majesty, and all rights in relation to any ter-
ritories which might have been exercised by the
said company if this act had not been passed shall
and may be exercised on behalf of her Majesty as
rights incidental to the government of India ; and
all the territorial and other revenues of or arising
in India, and all tributes and other payments in
respect of any territories which would have been
receivable by or in the name of the said company
if this act bad not been passed, shall be received
for and in the name of her Majesty, and shall be
applied and disposed of for the purposes of the go-
vernment of India, subject to the provisions of this
act.

111. Real and porsonal property of the company
to vest in her Majesty for the purposes of the
government of India. _

IV. The appointment of Governor-General of
India, fourth ordinary member of the Council of
India, and governors of presidencies in India, now
made by the Court of Directors with the approla-
tion of her Majesty, and the appointment of Advo-
cate-General for the several presidencies now made
with the approbation of the Board of Commissioners
for the affairs of India, shall be made by her Ma-
jesty by warrant under her royal sign manual ; the
appointments of the ordinary members of the
Council of India, except the fourth ordinary mem-
ber, shall be made by the Governor-General of
India, subject to the approbation of her Majesty,
and the appointments of the members of council of
the several presidencies shall be made by the gover-
nors of such respective presidencies, subject to the
like approbation ; and all such appointments shall
be subject to the qualifications now by law affect-
ing such offices respectively provided always, that
it shall not be lawful for the Governor-General of
India, or the governor of any presidency, to ap-
point a person provisionally to supply any vacancy
which may subsequently happen in the office of
member of council, unless the pleasure of hrr
Majesty be previously signified for that purpose ;
but any person appointed by such Governor-Gene-
ral or governor respectively, subject to her Ma-
jesty's approbation, to fill an actual vacancy in such
office, shall be entitled to sit and act as a member of
the respective council, and shall have the emolu-
ments and advautagt s of such appointment in the
meantime until her Majesty's pleasure may be sig-
nified in relation to such appointment.