The Sun.
London, England, 1866-05-22 00:00:00

Naval and Military Intelligence.

The whole of the available officers and men of the
Royal Engineers not employed in the other depart-
ments of military engineering at headquarters,
Chatham, have been engaged for several weeks past
on the Royal Engineer field-works, in engineering
operations on a large scale, including the construc-
tion of batteries, the erection of stockades, the for-
mation of parallels, magazines, chambers, flying

bridges, and other works required to be undertaken
with an army when on active service in the field.
The scene of the operations is at the back of the
casemated barracks at St. Mary's, including the
whole extent of the lower line of fortifications,
stretching down to the Medway, which forms the
base of the operations. On Saturday, the working
party commenced the formation of the second
parallel, having previously completed the first line
of works. In order to facilitate the conveyance of
materials to and from the stores at Brompton bar-
racks, a bridge has been thrown across the trenches
surrounding the garrison, the work having been
accomplished by Sappers of tin Royal Engineers.
An extensive portion of the builaings near the north
gun-shed at Brompton barracks has been devoted
to instructing the officers and men in sand model-
ling, and in the formation of the various kinds of
batteries and earthworks on Vauban's theory. The
works now in progress at Chatham are, it is under-
stood, in connection with some military and engi-
neering operations of unusual magnitude, during
the present summer, and in which the whole of the
available military force of the district will take part.
The following detachments :embarked yesterday
morning, at Gravesend, on board the hired trans-
port Achilles, to reinforce the respective corps serv-
ing in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick—viz., two
officers and 65 non-commissioned officers and men
of the Ist battalion of the 15th Regiment, and six
sappers of the Royal Engineers, from Chatham ; 13
non-commissioned officers and gunners of the 3d
Depot Brigade, Royal Artillery, from Warley ; 73
non-commissioned officers and men, and one officer
of the 2d battalion, 17th, from Mullingar ; and 12
men of various corps—total, 168 men of all ranks,
together with the following officers :—Capt. J. Wil-
kinson, and Ensign H. B. Le Mottee, 15th Regt. ;
Capt. J. D. Travers, 17th Regt. ; and Staff-Surg.
C. Martin, in medical charge.
The enrolled pensioners of the Woolwich division,
the total number of whom amounts to 426 of all
ranks, Major Tench, late 15th Hussars, staff-officer
in command, having undergone their customary
eight days' drill, paraded on Saturday on Woolwich-
common, and were inspected, by order of the War
Department, by Lleut.-Col. Ord, sth Brigade Royal
Artillery. The greater number of the men of this
corps still capable of good service in cases of emer-
gency are stated to belong to the local division of
Royal Marines, and others are men belonging to the
Royal Artillery, the Royal Engineers, and the Mili-
tary Train, who have fulfilled their period of 25
years' service, and now receive pensions and are
employed in various positions of emolument in the
Royal Arsenal and dockyard. Their movements
during the inspection were those of well-disciplined
soldiers, and their marching past was admirable.
The inspecting officer said he felt pleasure in being
able to make a very favourable report to head-
quarters. There were absent four sick, six without
leave, and three with leave.
The pensioners and men of the Army Reserve
force of the Deptford ,district, numbering 160,
under the command of Major Richmond, were in-
spected on the previous Saturday, in a similar
manner by Lieut.-Col. Ord, who, after seeing the
men perform the usual field movements, told them
that he should have the satisfaction of reporting
most favourably of them to the War-office.
A very serious accident occurred on Friday last
to Mr. Call, a cadet of the A division, Royal Mi-
litary Academy, Woolwich, during the performance
of his riding drill. The horse on which he was
mounted had made three successive leaps, and
when brought up to the bar •a fourth time he
shied and threw his rider. Mr. Call's thigh was
fractured, and he is now in the Cadets' infirmary,
under the care of Dr. Little. He is progressing
favourably.

The Endymion, 22, new screw frigate, un-
armoured, 2,486 tons, 500 horse-power, was on Fri-
day taken to the measured mile off Malpin Sands
for the contractor's trial of her engines, which have
just been completed. They consist of a pair of
horizontal air-pump trunk engines. She was in
charge of Commander Partridge, of the Sheerness
Steam Reserve, Mr. W. W. Williamson, inspector
of machinery afloat ; Mr. G. Blaxland, chief engi-
neer, and Mr. Mitchell, assistant master shipwright
of Sheerness Dockyard, were likewise present ; Mr.
Brock, ffom Messrs. Napier, and Sons, of Glasgow,
the makers of the engines, attended on their behalf.
Six runs were made on the measured mile, but after
the first three it was found that owing to hot bear-
ings in the engines the trial could not be carried out
successfully. The first three runs gave an average
of l2i knots to the hour, but taking the average of
the whole six runs the result was only 11.672 knots.
Two runs wer6 also made at half-boiler power with
an average of 9,788 knots. The engines gave a
maximum of 66 and a mean of 61.5 revolutions to
the minute. The draught of water forward was
14ft. 3in. ; aft, 18ft. Bin. The wind was in the east
with a force of two to three. The ship is fitted with
a Griffiths' propeller, the diameter of which is 18ft.,
the pitch 21ft., length Mt 6in., and the immersion
of the upper edge lft. 6in. The trial was, in con-
sequence, not considered satisfactory, and will be
repeated in the course of a few days.