battered into one and her mainmast carried away by two of these gigantic granite shot. The Board of Admiralty, returning from a dockyard visitation, paid a flying visit to Sir John Duckworth, at, his seat on the river Exe; and we were much amused at the sight of two of these large globes of stone which crowned the gate-posts of his domain, as trophies of his late expedition, on which were inscribed the names of Sestos and Abydos.

6

"The administration of All the Talents,' which sent out this ill-fated expedition, had considered the Dardanelles to be defenceless, and the Turks ignorant and helpless; but Duckworth's report of the disastrous result, and of the granite shot, must have confounded the projectors of it, had they not been driven from the helm before the account of the disasters had reached this country. One of the party, however, derives consolation that nothing had been lost to the English character by the failure;' that no intelligent man thought that those who had burst through the redoubtable Dardanelles were intimidated by the cannon on the mouldering walls of the Seraglio.' Intimidated, indeed! No intelligent man would have applied such a word, or insinuated that the gallant Duckworth, or any other gallant Admiral, could be frightened at the walls of the Seraglio, or any other walls."

Sir John then touches, but with a gentle pencil, upon the expedition to Copenhagen, an expedition of equal policy and necessity, to get possession of the Danish fleet, by negotiation or otherwise, in order to prevent its falling into the hands of France, the which, by incontrovertible testimony, and a secret article in the Treaty of Tilsit, it was proved to have been the intention of Buonaparte to accomplish. Our Author describes it as "another feat, of a somewhat equivocal nature as to its propriety, but not as to the skill and management of its execution." It is true that this apparent outrage trespassed on the strict limits of principle; but, engaged in a deadly struggle with a Power that recognised no obligation or restraint, the measure was one of imperious exigence, and was justifiable as an act of self-preservation. The armament consisted of 20,000 troops under Lord Cathcart, and a powerful fleet commanded by Admiral Gambier. Our proposal of receiving and securing for Denmark the safe custody of her ships, and thereby defeating the object of the arch-enemy, having been rejected, Copenhagen was invested by sea and land; and after cannonade and bombardment that city capitulated. The English landed on the 16th of August, and by the 8th of September we had possession of 16 sail-ofthe-line, 15 frigates, 6 brigs, and 25 gun-boats: which, together with the naval stores, timber, and other articles of equipment found in the arsenal, were conveyed to England, with the exception of one ship which grounded on the isle of Huen, and was destroyed. But this timely and politic exploit, though very glorious to the soldiers and seamen who achieved it, was assailed by the Outs as most disgraceful to the Administration by which it was planned. The Reverend writer, who assumed the soubriquet of Peter Plymley, exhausted the vial of his wrath upon it: "they wanted," he asserts, "the huzzas of mobs, and they have for ever blasted the fame of England to obtain them." This FOR EVER is a huge mouthful!

(To be concluded in our next.)

"as is the great, malignant disease which preys upon our inancial resources. It shows at how frightful a price we have purchased a menarchy, surrounded with republican institutions and afforis a memorabe lesson to other countries of the cost of 'Citizen-Kingship." Before the Emous Jity, 1850, the budzet votei in favour of the War Department id not exceed 7,480,0007. one hundred and eighty millions of franes. Now, one of the fruits of the Revonition aforesaid was to get rid of the Gardesdu-Corps, the Royal Guaris, and the Swiss Regiments, and of a charge of 440,0001, eleven millions of franes under the head of Military Expenditure, after making allowance for the substitution of an equal number of troops of tite Line Certain temporary expenses, to the extent of between 360,000Z and 460,000l., were at that time likewise at an end. The actual basis of comparison, therefore, between the Military Expenditure under the exiled Bourbons in the last year of their rule and the actual expenditure in the seventeenth year of the present Sovereign's rule is 14,400.000% three hundred and sixty millions of franes! And this, in spite of the three millions of armed citizens, called National Guards, whom the Revolution of 1820 summoned to its defence! But there is no end to the prodigality with which the country offers up sacrifices to its consolidation by military safe guar is. Independently of the two hundred and eighty thousand firelocks which provide for our subjection to the powers that be,' we have this year granted seventeen thousand more, to provide against outbreaks on the part of our starving feilow-citizens. And yet, though the famine, if it please God, be temporary, more than a hint has been thrown out that the necessities of our glorious Kingship will require the addition to be permanent.' Are not my views confirmed by the very words used by the late Committee on the Budget? I quote them from their Report itself:- Every year records a remarkable augmentation in the War Expenses, without bringing any benefit to the positive efficiency of the Army; for increases to the service of the staff-corps, continual additions to the number of administrative appointments, ameliorations in the allowances, indemnities of all sorts, such as overload the estimates at all points, inflate the budget beyond all bounds." But the ruinous prodigality of the War Department does not stand alone. Since 1830, a new branch of the service has sprung up, the Ministry of Public Works,' whose charge for the present year amounts to 8,000,000%. sterling! In 1830, the bridges and highways, mines, and public buildings were within the province of the Minister of the Home Department, and cost the country about 2,160,0007.; their present cost is some 400,0007. Inore. We are in the days, too, of what is termed 'Extraordinary Budgets,' under which head figures a total of 5,200,000l. to 5,600,0007. (one hundred thirty to one hundred forty millions of francs) for State expenses. It is true the Chambers have knocked off this year 3,440,000l. from the Ministerial Estimates; but what relief can such a modicum afford the country and its finances against an accumulated deficit in the public revenues of upwards of 32,000,000l. The new loan of fourteen millions sterling will give some little easement to the Treasury accounts, but not as between the country at large and its resources; for corruption-wide-spread, desolating, and undenied-is the root of our monetary evils; and where is the Minister who will dare apply an axe to that root? Certainly not M. Guizot! M. Humann attempted it, and lost his place.”—Paris, July 11.

FORTIFICATIONS OF PARIS.

A report has been circulated among the Members of the Chamber of Deputies, which shows the progress made in these works up to the close of

last year. At that period, the entire cost had been 5,600,000l. (one hundred and forty-six millions of francs). When the Legislature passed the law, authorizing these works, it was stipulated that all the "matériel" required should be collected in the Park of Bourges, and that neither cannon nor other munitions of war should be introduced into the forts excepting by virtue of the subsequent sanction of the Legislature. In spite of this, the forts of Chatillon, de Vanves, and Issy are in course of being quietly armed. The cannon, carriages, and powder are conveyed into them at night in enormous waggons.

THE NAVY.

The following details are obtained from M. Bignon's report to the Chamber of Deputies on the Naval Budget for the year 1848. The lists of Inscription for the Navy contained, in 1837, 92,939 mariners; in 1846, 114,233; and in 1847, 118,403. These last comprise 11,287 Captains, Masters, and Pilots; 5440 seamen-officers; 66,507 sailors, 23,373 apprentices, and 16,796 boys or youths. Besides these, there are 11,233 artificers, and 1938 apprentices. The fleet to be kept up in 1848 is to consist of 6 ships of the line, 9 frigates, 22 sloops, 30 brigs and brigantines, 29 light vessels, and 24 transports, making a total of 120 vessels, together with 66 steam-vessels, of 14,570 horse power altogether. Hereto may be added 4 ships of the line, 4 frigates, and 4 sloops, commissioned for roadsteads, and 18 vessels, inclusive of 4 ships of the line, and 4 frigates, commissioned for the ports. The total force of the Navy for 1848 will, therefore, be 216 vessels, manned by 29,998 seamen. The iron ships building, or to be built, in 1847 include 13, which are to employ a force of 2780 horse power, besides 12 timber or iron vessels, brigs, sloops, &c.

THE MARQUESAS AND SOCIETY ISLANDS.

The garrisons to be maintained in this quarter are composed of 208 Artillerymen, 72 Artificers, 51 Engineers, 20 Gendarmerie, and 1312 Infantry of the Line: in all, 1663 men.

AUSTRIA.

There is no symptom of any reduction in the Army, such as has been long reported. On the contrary, the Conscription Lists for the year are making out, and the total number of conscripts to be raised for 1847 is 36,500. These lists are, however, confined to those provinces only which are liable to the conscription; they do not extend to Hungary, Transylvania, &c. Bohemia, which had a population af 4,400,661 in 1846, is required to furnish 10,000 out of the 36,500.

THE ARCHDUKE CHARLES.

The remains of this celebrated Commander were deposited in the Church of the Capucins at Vienna on the 4th of May, upon which occasion Count Dietrichstein was delivered of the following piece of ecclesiastical extravagance in addressing the Father-Guardian of the Capucin establishment:

"Most worthy Guardian! Receive herewith the remains of His Imperial Highness the most noble and mighty Archduke, Charles Louis of Austria, the chivalrous Prince, without fear and without reproach, whose exalted virtues have awakened universal love and veneration, and whose memory will remain indelibly engraved in the grateful hearts of his fellow subjects under the Imperial Crown, as well as in every German heart, as that of an heroic and idolized Commander. May the echo of the thundering artillery reach the higher spheres, where the hero, who feared God below, is now praying for his beloved family, the high and mighty Imperial family, and the fame of the Austrian hosts! And may this echo recal to the glorious victor's soul the remembrance of his splendid feats of arms, and the memory of his trusty and gallant comrades, who ever followed in his steps, rejoicing, into fields of battle! I deliver over this precious jewel to your custody!"

We humbly submit to the noble panegyrist that if war and battle-fields bring "sin and sorrow," the memory of them must be unfitted for the

atmosphere of heaven! But the Roman Church may have taught him otherwise.

THE JEWS IN THE RANKS.

The descendants of Israel are allowed to enter the Austrian ranks, and to hold the highest rank in the service. If there be no Jewish General in it at the present moment, it is not because of any impediment either of law or custom. The highest rank now held by a Jew is that of Major. None are required to kneel at any ecclesiastical ceremony.

PRUSSIA.

The extensive fortifications constructing at Königsberg, to render it a fortress of the first order on the Russian frontier, are vigorously progressing. At the Holländer Baum alone 600 men are employed. The necessities of the State have, however, compelled the Government to cut down one-third from the expenditure of former years; thirty thousand pounds, instead of the forty-five, which were expended last year, is the amount to be disbursed for the current twelvemonth.

FREDERICK THE GREAT.

The grand equestrian statue of this celebrated hero and monarch was solemnly inaugurated and exposed to public view at Breslau on the 27th June last. The ceremony was held in the presence of His Prussian Majesty and of an old warrior, attired in the uniform of the Seven Years' War, whose result was the incorporation of Silesia with the Prussian dominions. The old soldier was born in 1738, and was the only Silesian present who had been formerly an Austrian subject. The subscriptions for the statue began in 1839, and gradually rose to about 57507., besides the present of two hundred and fifty hundred weight of old gun-metal from the King of Prussia. The statue was designed by Professor Kiss, of Berlin, and is fourteen feet high; the metal in which it is cast is composed of 86 parts of copper, 10 of zinc, and 4 of tin. The pedestal is of Silesian marble, 11 feet 10 inches in length, 5 feet 9 inches in width, and 14 feet 9 inches in height. The entire height of the pedestal and statue, is, therefore, 25 feet 9 inches.

GENERAL CORRESPONDENCE.

ADDRESSED TO THE EDITOR OF THE UNITED SERVICE MAGAZINE.

Waterloo.-Death of Corporal Shaw.

MR. EDITOR,-In the "Story of Waterloo," by the Rev. George Gleig, recently published as part of Mr. Murray's "Home and Colonial Library," the following statement is made (p. 191) respecting Corporal Shaw of the 2nd Life Guards, who was killed in the battle :

"The common story is-and Captain Siborne, in his valuable history, has repeated it-that poor Shaw fell from a carbine-ball delivered by a French cuirassier from the flank. This is a mistake. Shaw continued with his regiment till the ardour of men and horses carried them whence few were able to return, and reached the position again so enfeebled from loss of blood that he could with difficulty creep to a dunghill beside one of the straggling houses in the rear, where he lay down. Nobody noticed him during the remainder of the struggle; but next morning he was found dead, without one wound about him sufficiently serious in itself to occasion death."

As far as history is concerned, it cannot be a matter of the slightest importance whether Corporal Shaw was killed by carbine-ball or sword-cut, or died from an accumulation of wounds. I certainly considered the incident too trivial to be embodied in my History, and, therefore, contented

myself with describing it in a note; nor should I have alluded to it in any shape, were it not for a certain degree of noteriety which the individual in question had acquired. Mr. Gleig, however, notwithstanding the remark made in his preface on "Feats of Individual heroism," has introduced it in the body of his "Story;" and as it constitutes the only instance in which my name is mentioned as an authority, I feel desirous of thus publicly explaining the grounds upon which my version of the matter was founded.

The following is the note affixed to page 24 of the 2nd volume of my 66 History of the War in France and Belgium in 1815 :”

"Among the combatants on this part of the field was one whose prowess acquired for him considerable reputation. This was Corporal Shaw, of the 2nd Life Guards, a noted pugilist, possessing great physical strength, combined with the most resolute courage. When in the midst of the cuirassiers, he rendered himself conspicuous by the bold and dexterous manner in which he encountered all who came in his way. Rapid and deadly were the blows which he dealt around him, and it is said that no less than nine of his opponents were laid prostrate within an incredibly short space of time. His career, however, was suddenly cut short. A cuirassier, who had proceeded some little distance, so as to clear the left of the 2nd Life Guards, turned round, and taking a very deliberate aim with his carbine, deprived Shaw of that life which his powerful arm and gallant daring had made proof against the swords of all who ventured to approach him."

My informant was an officer of the 2nd Life Guards, to whose troop Shaw belonged. He saw the cuirassier level his carbine in his direction, at a moment when Shaw was a little in his rear, engaged with others sword in hand; he advanced as the Frenchman fired, and he has always been under the impression that Shaw received the contents of that barrel; particularly as he afterwards learned that the latter had been wounded by ball as well as sword.

Another officer of the same regiment, who first drew my attention to the matter, and who was also present in that charge, wrote thus to me—“I have told you what he (the officer before alluded to) says about Shaw, because I have a notion that your new model will give somewhat more of panoramic detail of the popular incidents of the day*; and I do not believe it possible to gain any more certain information as to the fate of that individual. I remember making very great inquiries in the regiment at the time, but have never heard anything so satisfactory as -'s account of him."

Such are the materials out of which I constructed the above description. Whether too slight, even for a passing note, I leave others to determine. I would merely remark that they are not altogether incompatible with Mr. Gleig's assertion, that Shaw advanced still further with his regiment, and that he reached the position again in a very enfeebled state; he may not have immediately fallen, or his horse may have carried him onward some distance. At all events, the difference between the two versions of so trivial a matter does not appear to me of that importance that would magnify it into a grave error on my part. On the other hand, Mr Gleig is certainly incorrect in stating that this is the "common story," and that I have "repeated it." Were it so, it would have appeared in at least one of the multifarious accounts of Waterloo previously published. I never read or heard of it except through the before-mentioned channel.

WILLIAM SIBORNE, Captain Unattached.

Army and Navy Club, 20th July, 1847.

The Queen's and Company's Officers.

MR. EDITOR,-The press has lately been employed in advocating the cause of the Officers of the Indian, i. e. the Company's, Army, who complain of