The Sun.
London, England, 1866-08-02 00:00:00

DIARLBOROUGH-STREET.

A PAUPER.—Mary Fox was charged with being drunk
and disorderly at the door of St. Martin's workhouse.

The case having been proved,
Mr. Knox asked if anything was known of the prisoner?
Dacke, one of the workhouse officers, said that on Aug.
28, 1860, the prisoner was brought before the late Mr;
Beadon for disorderly conduct, and sentenced to seven days'
imprisonment. On the 4th Nov. she was brought before
the same magistrate, and discharged with a caution. She
was twice before the magistrates in 1861, and once repri-
manded and once committed for seven days. In 1863 she
was charged wah taking away her clothing, and aiter be-
ing remanded seven days was discharged ; again charged
with a similar offence, remanded for 14 days, and dis-
charged; again, for disorderly conduct, committed for
seven days. In 1864 she was charged with taking away
her clothing, before Mr. Knox, remanded seven days, and
discharged. In 1865, charged with being drunk and dis-
orderly and discharged. In 1866, drunk and disorderly :
committed for 21 days ; making away with her clothing
21 days ; again, the same offence, 21 days ; and, again, the
same offence, 21 days.

Mr. Knox committed her for a month with hard labour.

THAMES.

TOBACCO SMUGGLING.—George Turnbull, a young sailor,
was brought before Mr. Woolrych charged with smuggling
511bs. of foreign manufactured tobacco.

Mr. Wm. Mallett, an officer of Customs, stated that he
searched the ship Waterwitch, from Montreal, off Black-
wall yesterday, that the prisoner denied four different
times that he had anything liable to duty concealed in his
berth. He search his (prisoner's) berth and found there
silbs. of tobacco of foreign manufacture. The value and
duty amounted to £1 10s. 3d.
The prisoner—l have nothing to say.
Mr. Woolrych— Then you must pay £1 10s. 3d. or be
imprisoned 14 days. _

CHOLERA IN COURT.—Police-Sergeant Saunders, No.
50 K, reported to Mr. Woolrych that a woman named
Mary Drummond, charged with being drunk and disor-
derly, was in the yard behind the court and in great pain.
Sho was labouring under choleraic diarrhoea.

Mr. Woolrych—Then do not bring her into court. That
will make her worse.

Police-Sergeant Smith No. 47 K, said that Mr. Horton,
the divisional surgeon of police, of High-street, Stepney,
had been sent for to see the woman. Would his worship
be kind enough to discharge her, and order her removal?
Mr. Woolrych—Yes, how are you going to remove her ?
Smith—ln a cab, sir.

Mr. Woolrych—Send her to the Workhouse, under Mr.
Horton's directions, and let ber be taken care of. As far
as I am con cerned she is discharged.

SHIPPING INTELLIGENCE—Ws Day.

LONDON, Aug. 2.—Wind this day at noon South-
Westerly ; moderate breeze and fine weather, but rather
cloudy.

BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.

GRAVESEND, Thursday Morning.

Arrived, August I.—Young England, from Montreal ;
Arctic, Miramichi ; Ann Falcon, from Demerara ; Indus,
from Calcutta ; Sarah Ann, from Guernsey.

Arrived, Aug. 2.—The Equity, from Porto Rico ; Row-
land Evans, from. New York ; Meggy,
from Sulina ; Re-
nate, from Alexandria; Reward, Emma, Triton, Zuma,
Esther, Mary Jane, Vivid, Rover, Young Louisa, and
Sarnia, from Guernsey ; Leonne, from Abbeville ; Argo-
naut, from Montreal ; Vir, from Faro ; Von llaedon
Cartlon, from Leghorn; Cato, from Archangel ; Serepta,
from Cronstadt ; Besidido, from Lagos ; Raven, from
Mait-
land, Montreal; Winsome,
Montreal ; Ilenrich, from St. Petersburgh ; Stefano Opa-
nach, from Trieste ; Anna. from Montreal ; John, from
Dunkirk ; Ledskneff, from Quebec ; Gratitude and
from Hamburg.
Sailed, Aug. 2.—The Onega, for Petersburg.
Passed. DEAL, Thursday Morning.
from Rio Grande ; Germania,
—liebe, from London,
for Miramichi; Delhi,
ship, from the west, for London; Dailey, of Chester, and
Myrtle, of Whitstable, from the north, for the west.

Liverpool Cotton Market—This Day,

.s.
Market quiet. Sales probably 8,000 or 10,000
bales.

DESTRUCTIVE
- _
this (Thursday) morning several serious fires occurred
FlRES.—During last night and
in the metropolitan district. Ono
fire took place in the
premises belonging
to Mr. Miller, a clothier, situate at No.
167, Edmonds-place, Bethnal-green: The building was
two stories high, and the shop contained a great amount of
stock. Tho discovery was made by a police-constable of
the K division, who succeeded in arousing the inmates,
who happily effected a safe retreat. Conductors 31cCul-
loch,:Beer, and Beaton promptly attended with two of the
Royal Society's escapes, and several land steamers by
Shand, Mason, and
Co. attended, under the command of
Mr. Gatehouse, the chief officer of the Eastern district.
Plenty of water having been procured, under the direction
of Mr. F. Edinger, the steamers were set to work.
Another fire took place in the premises belonging to Mr.
Gomme, a dairyman, No. 14, Alpha-place, tKilburn. Tho
discovery was mado by police-constable 188 of the X divi-
sion. Conductor Ilutchin arrived with the Royal Society's
escape, and was followed by the Kilburn Volunteer engine
and the land steamers, as well as a strong body of the
Salvage Corps. Some of the neighbours managed to save
the children, and the other persons effected their escape.
Owing to the combined exertions of all present the fire was
extinguished, but the damage done was considerable.—A
fire likewise broke out in the extensive range of premises
belonging to Mr. Bunting, wholesale stationers, No. 8,
Falcon-square. The names commenced in the basement,
and was making rapid progress when Conductors Mellott
and Shaw arrived with two of the Royal Society's escapes,
and the land steamers followed from Whitecross-street and
other stations. The fire was not extinguished until the
basement and ground floor -were severely burnt, and the
upper part damaged by heat, etc. The m;gin of the dis-
aster is unknown.

began
dfafirlom the rivers of Scot-
, a considerable supply
SCOTCH PEARLS.—It is curious that, just as our
Eastern
land. Mr. Unger, of Edinburgh, the chief dealer in
these Scottish pearls, which are very beautiful, and the
instigator of the trade in Scotland es
of
es
xt eciel i
epneta rl
pearlsh
now cahied on,
pays a great deal of money annually, chiefly to the
peasantiy in the neighbourhood of the pearl-producing
-fis e
lj
wasb
rivers, for these (jaledon!an gems, many of which are of
great individual value, the L3st lirlids ranging in price
from <£s to £5O ; as much as £lOO, •71deed, has been ob-
tained for a fine specimen. It is not unlikely, I thinl-,
from the impetus given to the fishery by the dealers, that
the streams of Scotland will speedny be exhausted,
for
mussels in Scotland are not found in beds, as in the sea, but
indil,:duelly or in vey small clusters, Which,
of con s©, are
greedny seized upon and at once destioyed in the hope of
obta; ei,-.g a few of the gems. As regards the productive-
nes:, of the Scottish pearl-mussel; a pracreal hand tells vs
that one pearl is on the average found in eveiy 13 she"s;
but as only one pearl in eveij ten is saleable, it requires
the desti action of po shells in order to find that one gem.
Of course, shells are oc asionally found that contain a
great many pearls, but these are an excapiion to the rule,
and it may be easly calculated how long the capital stock
of any river will stand out against the de he
effoi'.s
of the peasantiy surrounding it when they know that by a
little exertion they can pay their rent by collecting pearls.
—Cornhlll Magazine for August.
The Oza understands that Lord Cowley has sent
in his resignation as ambassador at Paris, and that ho
merely holds office until the Government have decided on
his successor in a post which it is far from easy to fill.
ETON COLLEGE ELECTION.--The following is the
result :—F. Armistead, C. Bryans, J. G. P. Mackenzie, J.
-E. C. Welldon, G. C. G. Milman, P. J. Tuck, C. G. Brown-
ing, H. S. Salt, F. E. Grainger, E. W. Collin, R. C. Reads,
C. A. D. Clark, J. H. J. Ellison, R. T. Richardson, J. B. T.
Hill, C. M. F. Mundy, F. Freeth, E. F. r, Gould.

Sir J. B. Lillie on Increasing the Destructive
Powers of Musketry.

TO THE EDITOR OF TIIE SUN.
Sin,—As a great waste of ammunition is oc-
casioned by infantry soldiers in engagements
with an enemy, through the want of steadiness
in the mode of firing musketry, the constant
movement of troops, loading and firing while
in a state of great excitement with fixed bayo-
nets, rendering the muskets topheavy, and with-
out that steady support so essential in the act of
firing' to keep the barrel at its proper level, the
consequences have been that scarcely one shct
in several thousands leas taken effect, as proved by
comparisons made in various armies between the
quantity of ammunition expended in action and
the returns of killed and wounded--a fact to which
I can myself bear evidence from my experience
during the Peninsular War in the different en-
gagements which took place, from the first lauding
of the British troops in Portugal, in 1808, to the
battle of Toulouse, in 1814, which terminated the
war.

The superiority of artillery over infantry in strik-
ing objects, although at much greater distances, is
well known, as, notwithstanding muskets being
generally depressed. or raised to a greater elevation
than that at which pieces of heavier metal are fired,
the bullets mostly either fall short of their object or
pass over the enemy's head ; whereas a cannon ball
seldom or never strikes the ground until it reaches
the object at which it was aimed.

Under these circumstances it occurred to me that
if musket barrels were placed on gun-carriages the
same advantages possessed by heavy guns would
be thus obtained. I consequently pointed out to
the lat?, Loris Hardinge and Herbert how easily
this could be effected, by producing by way of
example a small gun-carriage, on which were placed
six rifle barrels at intervals of eight or ten inches,
and each barrel provided with a revolving
cylinder containing twenty charges, by which means
120 shots per minute, if necessary, could be dis-
charged in rapid succession by one man simply
turning a winch handle ; but I suggested at the
same time that I considered several minutes prefer-
able for such rapid firing. On each of these car-
riages or rifle batteries, when in action, being re-
moved for reloading, they should be replaced with
the greatest expedition by others ready loaded, so
as to render it impossible for an enemy's column to
escape almost total annihilation if allowed to ap-
proach within 100 to 150 yards. To produce these
results the batteries should be masked by lines of
. cavalry or infantry unto. after the commencement
of an engagement, and the enemy's column allowed
to approach within the aforesaid distances ; then,
on being unmasked, this destructive fire should be
Portable iron-faced screens presenting
angles that would turn off every musket ball can be
folded up and carried on these gun carriages for the
protection of the men employed in firing ; and as
for artillery, no man or horse could stand within the
range of these batteries ; moreover, no field guns
could be brought to bear on them at such close
quarters without committing greater havoc on
their own troops. These batteries being
of slight construction could be easily trans-
ported from one place to another on the backs
of horses or mules, and when in the field of battle
can be wheeled about by one man with as much
facility as a wheelbarrow. The direction of the fire
can be elevated or depressed, and traversed to the
right or left with the same facility as a field-piece.
Their advantages in engagements in streets or
narrow passages must, therefore, be obvious.
Although Lords Hardinge and Herbert admitted
these advantages they replied that they considered
the approbation of the Ordnance Select Committee
indispensable for all improvements in the art of
war, notwithstanding that the batteries in question
were highly approved of by Colonel (the: Captain)
Boxer, who, though inferior in rank, in my humble
opinion far exceeded in scientific acquirements any
of the members of the special committees thus em-
ployed, who may, moreover, never have seen a
shot fired in action.

It is likewise an implied reflection on infantry
officers to have it inferred that they are less capable
of forming opinions as to the value of improvements
in the musket than officers of a different branch of
the service, who in the field of battle have nothing
to do with that weapon, and without whose assist-
ance battles have been fought, as proved when
Soult, advancing for the relief of Pampeluna, at-
tacked our forces at Roncesvalles on the 25th July,
1813, on which occasion our troops were engaged
until the 2d of August without the use of artillery,
and during the whole of which time the rifle corps I
commanded was engaged every day—three days in
retiring until the 28th, when our different divisions
having been concentrated a general engagement took
place, in which the enemy were defeated ; and the
remainder of the time in driving them back to Ron-
cesvalles, from whence they came.

It is to be hoped, under these circumstance; that
our Ministers of War will, in future, adopt all re-
cognised improvements in the art of war, more rr-
ticularly as regards small arms, without going
through the ordeal of obtaining the approbation of
any ordnance officer ; and as an instance has been
thus given of victories having been won without the
aid of artillery, it may be presumed that engines of
war connected with small arms could be adopted
without a reference to artillery officers being consi-
dered indispensable. The desire, however, to con-
tinue in the old rut of routine is so inherent in our
system that it is difficult to hope for a change un-
less a commanding mind is placed at the head of the
War Department.

As a further proof of what I have stated, I can
observe that when the late Lord Herbert came to
my house to see one of these batteries he seemed
much pleased with it, more particularly when I
showed him a letter from Major Vandeleur of the
Artillery, under whose care one of them had been
placed for trial at Woolwich, and who was so satis-
fied with the results that he said that if we had
had forty or fifty of them at the battle of Inker-
mann, where he was engaged, the havoc on the
demo column of Russians which closed on orr
troops would have been enormous, as in such a
dense mass at such close quarters a rifle ball would
have passed through several men. However, an
Ordnance officer who accompanied his lordship e-
approved of this evidence on the part of Major
Vandelen which, like that given by Colonel Boxer
on a preN:ous occasion in favour of these batteries,
was sufficient to induce the Ordnance Committee to
adhere to the.'-.• previous unfavourable decisions.
The; superiority of the rapid firing of the Prussian
breech loaders, to which the recent defeats of the
Austrians are to be attributed, may, however, in-
duce the present Minister of War to consider that
he will be rendering as great a public service by
causing an inquiry to be made as to the merits or
demerits of the engines of war adverted to, as he
rendered by ordering the conversion of all our
Enfield muzzle-loaders into breech-loaders without
consulting any Ordnance Committee ; as we know
not how soon it may be necessary to introduce
improvements of this nature to compensate for the
numerical inferiority of our army compared with
those of other Powers.—l am, Sir, yours, &c.,

JOHN SCOTT LILLIE.
Union Club, Ju'y 31, 1866.

METROPOLITAN POLICE.—The fornw:ng return
has been made of the number of each rank of police in-
jt'red drr:ng the meetings in Hyde Park on Monday, Tues-
day, and Wednesday, the 20d, 24th, and 25th of July :
E3ndered Unfit for Duty—Superintendents, 1; inspectors,
2 ; police-sergeants, 9 ; police-constables, 33 ; total, 45.
Slightly Injured—Superintendents, 9 ; inspectors, 18 ;
police-sergeants, 23 ; police-constables, 170 ; total, 220.
Total Number Injured—Superintendents, 10 ; inspectors,
20 ; police-sergeants, 32 ; police-constables, 203 ; total, 265.
The Commissioner was shack several times by stones
thrown at him ; he received a severe contusion on the side
of the head and a cut on the temple which blackened his
eye. Each of the Assistant-Commissioners was struck
several times by stones throws at them.
NEW ACT ON REVIS) VG BARRISTERS.--Yesterday
an Act of Parlirment was printed declai'ng that a bar-
rister, be;ng a commoner under the Act 16 and 17 Viet.,
c. 57, is not disqualified as a rev:sing banister. Under the
Registration of Voters Act (6 and 7 Vic. c. 18), the Chief
Justice of the Queen's Bench appoints, in the months of
July or August in every year, a revising barrister for the
county of Middlesex and Metropolitan boroughs, as well
as the City of London.