The Sun.
London, England, 1859-01-03 00:00:00

THE ABllf Y.

The third of a series of lectures commenced a
short time ago at Woolwich by Colonel Wilford,
R.A., Governor of the Royal Military Academy,
and Colonel Eardley Wilmot, Superintendent of
the Royal Military Gun Factories, was given on
Friday last in the regimental schoolroom, and was
attended by Major-General Sir W. F. Williams of
Kars, commandant of the garrison, and a crowded
assembly of officers, non-commissioned officers, and
gunners of the Royal Artillery. The lecturer first
addressed the noncommissioned officers and young
soldiers, commenting in general terms on their
duties as Artillerymen, and cautioned them against
coming to rash conclusions from statements they
might hear in other quarters on the subject of coast
defences. He then proceeded to impress on them
the necessity of studying and acquiring a know-
ledge of the practical system by which they should
be guided in all the operations which they might
be called upon to perform as gunners, and, after
referring to the able and interesting lecture given
recently by Colonel Eardley Wilmot, he entered
into a detail of the several great conquests to which
this country had been subjected, and of the
changes which had probably established in the
people that physical character for which they
.were
renowned. He then remarked that our national
strength lay in the great power of defending our
coasti ; while our seas were guarded by thein-
domitable prowess of our navy when in a state of
efficiency, our arsenals, our great harbours, &c.,
must be defended by the great arm of artillery.
The colonel then proceeded to remind his audience
that successful descents had been made in Ireland
and Torquay in 1796, and that during the reign of
George 11. an enemy had brought his ships up to
Chatham, and burnt several of our vessels. Advert-
ino• to the great improvement in steamships, he
pointed out the ninny changes in the improved art
of gunnery which the progress of that invention
had called forth. He then described the stupend-
ous defences of Gibraltar and Malta, and gave a
brief sketch of the former fortress and its memora-
ble sieges, and. explained by means of simple dia-
grams the difference in the effect of shot fired from
vessels and from land batteries. The colonel gave a
clear and concise definition of the mode of elevation
to be studied in the art of good gunnery, and made
various remarks on the different projectiles, de-
scribing the distinction between concussion and
percussion shells, and guns of varied calibre, and
their adaptation, &c. A diagram was exhibited
demonstrating the method of protecting a river
(the. Thames) so as to insure an efficient check upon
a flotilla of the enemy, and to bring on speedy
destruction. Another diagram was produced re-
presenting a bay open to an enemy's descent with
well contrived batteries for commanding the enemy
afloat, and disembarking, as well as the means of
defending a harbour (as Portsmouth) by means of
detached forts, and effectually warding off an
enemy's advance through the medium of long range,
and so preventing a steady bambardinent. After
some observations on the utility of the mar-
tello tower as a shore defence, the lecturer sup-
ported his argument by relating an incident in
which Sir Sydney Smith had suffered severely
off Corsica, and was compelled to land his ma-
rines to assault the town. The lecturer
concluded by general remarks on fortifi-
cation, guns, ammunition, the recent inven-
tion of concussion and percussion shells, &c., and
spoke of the superiority of the late Quarter-
master Freeburn's fusees. General 'Williams
c ailed on the non-commissioned officers and gunners,
betbre leaving the room,to give him their attention
for a few minutes while he took the opportunityof remarking that he had listened with great plea-
sure to the most useful and important details which
had been given by the gallant and ; +;.c
lecturer,Se.enk

whom he cordially thanked ; he said he should be
glad on all similar occasions to present and give
his sanction for propounding and delineating for
the benefit of the Hoops the subject of the evening,
so interesting to the non-commissioned officers and
men of te regiment of artillery, and he hoped that
other officers would follow the example of Colonel
Wilford and Colonel Eardley Wilmot, whom he
thanked for the good work which they had so suc-
cessfully begun.