The Sun.
London, England, 1861-07-10 00:00:00

.111.1Lgrgy .flannel shirt, a black wide-awake, grey
trousers, fastened by a belt, on which is a brass
buckle inscribed " U.S." His rifle is an Enfield,
and the bayonet sheath is fastened to the belt by a
thong of leather. The youthful patriot is intent
on the ups and downs of fortune as exemplified in
the pleasing game of euchre, or euker, which is
exercising the faculties of several of his comrades,
who, in their shirt sleeves, arc employing the finest
faculties of their nature in that national institution ;
but he is not indifferent to his duties, and he for-
bids your correspondent's entrance until he has
explained what he wants and who he is—and the
second is more easy to do than the first. The
sentry tells his captain, who is an euchreist, that
" It's all right," and resumes his seat and his
cigar, and the work goes bravely on."
Here is an account of seven or eight hundred
men drawn up "for inspection." What would our
military men, and our professional military critics
say to it ?—" There were few of the soldiers in
any kind of uniform, and such uniforms as I saw
were in very bad taste, and consisted of gaudy fac-
ings and stripes on very strange garments. They
were armed with old-pattern percussion muskets,
and their ammunition pouches were of diverse sorts.
Shoes often bad, knapsacks scarce, head pieces of
every kind of shape—badges worked on the front
or sides, tinsel in much request. Every man had a
tin water-flask and a blanket. The general ad-
dressed the men, who were in line two deep (many
of them unmistakable Irishmen). and said what
generals usually
say on such occasions—compli-
ments for the past, encouragement for the future."
It by no means, however, follows that many of
these men may not become very troublesome to the
regulars if they can but have a guerilla chief to lead
them. They would go where regular soldiers would
not ; and if they could not face a well-appointed
regiment, they could harrass it dreadfully in a
land of swamps and forests. More, however, de-
pends on the duration of the war and the skill of the
officers, these men are, after all, little better than
raw recruits. They will, if they have time, make
as good soldiers as others. They have probably
nearly all one grand requisite, they are by nature
good marksmen ; they have certainly another, they
hate the North. Living in a half barbarous seclu-
sion from civilisation, they know nothing of the
antagonists against whom they expect to be pitted,
but that they are a set of Northern cowards, who
will turn and run as soon as they see the smoke and
fire of the Southern muskets; when they find that
Northerns can fire also, and with better weapons,
they are yet of a race not to be easily
frightened. They live in a land of duels;
they are accustomed to the expectation of being
called out daily in time of external peace, to try
their skill against some neighbour whose ire they
have unintentionally excited, and they will have
vengeance enough in their nature to fight despe-
rately. It is painful to know that the bloodshedding
temper appears to be as prevalent as ever. " Next
day (says Mr. RUSSELL) being Sunday I remained
at rest in the house of a friend listening to local
stories—not couleur de rose, but of a deeper tint--
blood-red; how such a man shot another, and was
afterwards stabbed by a third ; how this fellow
and his friends hunted down in broad day and
murdered one obnoxious to them—tale after tale
such as I have heard through the South and seen
daily narratives of in the papers. Aceldama !
No security for life ! Property. is quite safe. Its
proprietor is in imminent danger, were it only
from stray bullets when he turns a corner."
We may suppose that soldiers from such
a country would at least fight like desperadoes.
As to drill, General SCOTT requires for his troops
as much as General PILLOW for his, and both may,
therefore, ultimately face each other on tolerably
equal terms. Arms of every kind and military
stores will be the great want of the South.

The completion as rapidly as possible of the
Royal Naval Reserve is a matter, if not of great
urgency, at any rate of very considerable import-
ance. It is an enterprise in the furtherance of
which our patriotic ardour is directly appealed to.
From the Admiralty downwards the whole of the
maritime energies of the country are influenced
appreciably by a sense of the mere fact that a
movement of this kind is actually now afoot.
Anything that can in any way tend to expedite it
either directly or indirectly possesses for us an
interest and is invested in our regard with an
attraction that every loyal subject of the Crown will
upon the instant not merely appreciate but warmly
participate in. We gladly direct attention there-
fore to the proceedings which have just marked a
public meeting of Shipowners, and of commanders,
officers, and others connected with the mer-
cantile service of the United Kingdom. A meeting
which took place yesterday at the London Tavern
according to announcement, in order to consider,
" First, the regulations issued by the Government
under which masters and mates of merchant vessels
may be enrolled as officers of the Royal Naval
Reserve; and, secondly, how the owners, masters,
and officers of the merchant service can most effec-
tually assist the Government in procuring the
number of seamen required to complete the Royal
Naval Reserve Forces." In addition to the cir-
cumstance that the meeting itself was very nume-
rously attended by influential persons connected
with the mercantile service of the country, it was
presided over by one of the most distinguished of
our great shipbuilders, the hon. gentleman the
member for Sunderland. Nothing could very
well have been more directly to the purpose
than the remarks which fell from Mr. LINDSAY
yesterday as Chairman, when inaugurating the
proceedings of the meeting over which he was
presiding.

It is now, as most of us will not fail to remem-
ber, between two and three years since this mo•
1 mentous question as to whether it might or might
not be desirable to call a Naval Reserve as speedily
as could be into existence—was submitted by the
Sovereign to the scrutiny of a Royal Commission.
Her MAJESTY in appointing this Commission was
of course acting upon the recommendation of the
Legislature. But—whatever led, mediately or im-
mediately, to the appointment of this Com-
mission—the Commission was appointed. And
the problem submitted to it for solution was
also in due course scrutinised very carefully
bywthowseasCtoomld.
mi s
stiho
ne e
rs Royalproposed
so lve it, Ho
moreover,
plainly enough at the close of their labours, through
e
the succinct medium of a report, urging upon
Government the establishment of a Reserved Naval
Force of 30,000 men. Of this commission, it
must be borne in recollection, that the mem-
ber for Sunderland was one of the most
active among the Royal Commissioners. The
Earl of HARDWICEE, first of all Lord DERBY'S
Privy Seal, and afterwards his First Lord of the
Admiralty, presided as Chairman over the Commis-
sioners. It happened, said Mr. LINDSAY yesterday,
that in some respects he differed from his colleagues
in their recommendation. He considered that the
Government "ought rather to appeal to the mer-
chant service through the masters and officers of
that service, and he was glad to find that the
Government had adopted his suggestions." How-
ever,
the Government of that day had issued
stipulations and conditions under which 1119114