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Title: The history of the 1st Batt. Wilts volunteers, from 1861 to 1885
Author: Robert Dwarris Gibney
Release Date: June 3, 2023 [eBook #70903]
Language: English
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*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE HISTORY OF THE 1ST BATT.
WILTS VOLUNTEERS, FROM 1861 TO 1885 ***
1ST BATT. WILTS VOLUNTEERS.
THE HISTORY
OF THE
1ST BATT. WILTS VOLUNTEERS,
FROM
1861 TO 1885.
BY
ROBERT DWARRIS GIBNEY,
MAJOR, INDIAN ARMY (_Retired_),
_Late Adjutant 1st Battalion Wiltshire Volunteers_.
LONDON:
W.H. ALLEN & CO., 13 WATERLOO PLACE,
PALL MALL, S.W.
1888.
LONDON:
PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED,
STAMFORD STREET AND CHARING CROSS.
WITH THE CONSENT OF HIS LORDSHIP,
AND
WITH THE HEARTY CONCURRENCE OF THE MAJORITY OF
OFFICERS AND MEN, PAST AND PRESENT, COMPOSING
THE 1ST WILTS RIFLE VOLUNTEERS,
I HAVE MUCH PLEASURE IN
Dedicating this Work
TO
THE EARL PEMBROKE AND MONTGOMERY,
COMMANDING THE BATTALION.
ROBERT DWARRIS GIBNEY,
MAJOR, INDIAN ARMY (_Retired_),
_Late Adjutant 1st Battalion Wiltshire Volunteers_.
PREFACE.
It may be asked, What can be the history of a battalion of infantry
not thirty years old, which has never seen a shot fired in earnest or
done garrison duty? None, would be the reply, were the said battalion
raised, officered, instructed, and regulated for, as are all its
predecessors; but when this battalion is one of many created suddenly,
without any well-arranged system for its continuance, and left at a
time of great emergency to make its own arrangements, and sink or swim
as it might, it must have a history, and the history of it is the
history of every corps or company of which it is composed.
Rifle corps were raised anywhere, everywhere, anyhow, and nohow. War
was imminent; the country was unprepared, terribly vulnerable, and
the army and navy far too weak to afford protection. Influential
gentlemen proposed rifle clubs, others were for arming keepers, and not
a few anxiously inquired into the system pursued by the Victoria and
Devonshire Rifles. To arm the people was a leap in the dark, and yet it
had to be faced; and by May, 1859, the Government saw the "propriety
of permitting the formation of rifle volunteer corps," and issued a
circular accordingly. Beyond this sanction no assistance was offered,
and according to the patronage of people of influence, or the length
of their subscription list, so did these rifle volunteer corps get
into existence and continue to live. Arms, accoutrements, ammunition,
uniform, drill sheds, practice grounds, armouries, magazines, &c., &c.,
everything had to be found by the corps, and to country corps, those
afterwards forming part of an administrative battalion, the expense
was ruinous; far more expensive than to companies raised in large town
or cities. There they could hire sheds, &c., and men attending drills
could do so without losing a day's work and perhaps having to hire a
trap. At the end of some months arms were furnished by the Government,
and as no harm had yet been done by this show of confidence, at the
end of the year the little independent corps were further favoured
by being made part of volunteer battalions, an attendance at the
headquarters of these battalions for so many drills in the year
being directed, and a travelling allowance, most mean and unjustly
arranged, being offered to cover expenses. The battalion had for its
officers a lieut.-colonel, a major, an adjutant, a surgeon, and perhaps
half-a-dozen retired sergeants as drill instructors, the adjutant and
drill instructors alone receiving pay.
It was a time of great difficulty and doubt, but of course chiefly so
at the commencement of the movement. Indeed, had it not been for the
patience and perseverance of men and officers of the force, and the
grand generosity and confidence in them shown by noblemen, gentlemen,
tradesmen, and especially by ladies, the whole would have fallen
through. The Government Order, as given below, will show the amount of
assistance received therefrom.
"War Office, Pall Mall,
"_May, 1859_.
"Her Majesty's Government having had under consideration the
propriety of permitting the formation of volunteer rifle corps, under
the provisions of the Act of 44 Geo. III. Cap. 54, as well as of
artillery corps and companies in maritime towns in which there may be
forts and batteries, I have the honour to inform ---- that I shall be
prepared to receive through you, and consider any proposal with that
object which may emanate from the county under your charge.
"The principal and most important provisions of the Act are--
"That the corps be formed under officers bearing the commission of
the lieutenant of the county.
"That its members must take the oath of allegiance before a deputy
lieutenant, or justice of the peace, or a commissioned officer of the
corps.
"That it be liable to be called out in case of actual invasion, or
appearance of an enemy in force on the coast, or in case of rebellion
arising out of either of those emergencies.
"That while thus under arms, its members are subject to military law,
and entitled to be billeted, and to receive pay in like manner as the
regular army.
"That all commissioned officers disabled in actual service are
entitled to half-pay, and non-commissioned officers and privates to
the benefits of Chelsea Hospital, and widows of commissioned officers
killed in service to such pensions for life as are given to widows of
officers of Her Majesty's Regular Forces.
"That members cannot quit the corps when on actual service, but may
do so at any other time by giving fourteen days' notice.
"That members who have attended eight days in each four months, or
a total of twenty-four days' drill and exercise in the year, are
entitled to be returned as effectives.
"That members so returned are exempt from Militia ballot, or from
being called upon to serve in any other levy.
"That all property of the corps is legally invested in the commanding
officer, and subscriptions and fines under the rules and regulations
are recoverable by him before a magistrate.
"The conditions on which Her Majesty's Government will recommend to
Her Majesty the acceptance of any proposal are:--
"That the formation of the corps be recommended by the lord
lieutenant of the county.
"That the corps be subject to the provisions of the Act already
quoted.
"That its members undertake to provide their own arms and equipments,
and to defray all expenses attending the corps, except in the event
of its being assembled for actual service.
"That the rules and regulations which may be thought necessary, be
submitted to me in accordance with the 56th section of the Act.
"The uniform and equipments of the corps may be settled by the
members, subject to your approval; but the arms, though provided
at the expense of the members, must be furnished under the
superintendence, and according to the regulations of this department,
in order to secure a perfect uniformity of gauge.
"The establishment of officers and non-commissioned officers will
be fixed by me, and recorded in the books of this office; and in
order that I may be enabled to determine the proportion, you will be
pleased to specify the precise number of private men which you will
recommend, and into how many companies you propose to divide them.
"I have only to add that I shall look to you, as Her Majesty's
Lieutenant, for the nomination of proper persons to be appointed
officers, subject to the Queen's approval.
"I have the honour to be, &c.,
Your most obedient Servant,
J. Peel.
"_To Her Majesty's Lieutenant
for the County of ----._"
Much less could not have been offered, or regulations made by which an
useful force to be relied on in the event of invasion might turn out to
be worthless. Members were to find their own arms, only the gauge to
be equal, smooth bores or rifles; equipments, uniform, and quantity of
drill to be at discretion of members, and all rules and regulations to
be left to the decision of each lord lieutenant of a county, thereby
certainly ensuring a variety of systems. Out of such confusion it is
wonderful that the present disciplined and reliable force has come; and
it speaks well for a nation, with such encouragement as is showed by
this letter to the lord lieutenants of counties, that the volunteers
held their own so long, and did not throw up in disgust.
The battalion of volunteers to which I was attached as adjutant on
its first formation in 1861, and whose history I have been invited to
write by the officer now in command, Lieut.-Colonel the Earl Pembroke
and Montgomery, and the officers serving and served, laboured under
many disadvantages. The corps composing it were much scattered, and
communication with outposts or headquarters difficult. A wild county,
with villages and towns few and far between, making attendances at
squad drills, and much more battalion assemblies, not only very
laborious to the majority of corps, but a great source of expense to
officers and men.
Probably some eight or ten thousand of all ranks have passed through
the hands of the author during the twenty years he served as adjutant,
and chief drill and musketry instructor; and he here willingly bears
testimony to the ever-ready obedience given by all to his directions,
and the exhibition of a general desire to lessen troubles and
difficulties. These were a little heavy in the beginning, and it was
some time before all could be got to see that the wish of individuals
must yield to the general welfare, and that such things as breaking up
of companies or corps must be done if instruction in battalion drill
was to be effectually imparted.
Robert Dwarris Gibney,
_Major (Retired) Indian Army,
Late 1st Wilts Volunteer Battalion_.
HISTORY
OF THE
1ST BATTALION WILTS VOLUNTEERS.
THE BATTALION.
According to the information received from officers connected with the
corps or companies of which the battalion is or was composed, and also
according to records kept of matters bearing on the earlier formation
of these separate corps, is the account given. These corps may be said
to have possessed an independent history for somewhat over one year;
after that the battalion was called into existence, and with that
individuality was lost. They were still termed corps as composing a
part of an administrative battalion, and were numbered in the battalion
as in the _Army List_, according to the date of their services being
accepted by the War Office; but they could no longer attend reviews, or
even mere local gatherings for mutual instruction in drill, unless with
the authority of the officer commanding the whole, and were to submit
to be instructed by the adjutant. Of course on the first amalgamation
of corps into a battalion, and in the lessening of authority over them,
hitherto entirely in the hands of captains, many difficulties presented
themselves; and it required tact and temper in all concerned to carry
out necessary discipline. A battalion drill, for instance, was often
the cause of no little heartburning. One corps, after much expense
and trouble, would bring to the place of muster probably two-thirds
of its strength; but this very strength required its being partially
broken up for the purpose of equalizing companies, and perhaps many of
the best drilled men being amalgamated with very ignorant volunteers
detached from another corps. This did not help to render the captain
of the corps, or the men transferred, in a state of satisfaction with
the day's work. Some corps too were more clannish than others, clinging
very vigorously together; and being of superior clay disliked such
moulding. The men required were, of course, given over to the adjutant
and sergeant-major, but they were a selected lot, chosen for their
incompetence and quality, and came as ordered, but in the sulks.
Before the corps were formed into a battalion and designated the
1st Administrative Battalion Wilts Rifle Volunteers, all of them,
more or less frequently, had attended at various large reviews of
the Volunteer Force. The Royal Review held in Hyde Park in 1860 was
alone attended by the 2nd or Trowbridge Corps of this battalion, and
for smartness of the men in marching, and altogether for its really
soldier-like appearance, received the commendations of both military
and civilians. On passing Her Majesty a prolonged shout of "Well done,
Wiltshire; well done, Trowbridge!" from the crowd, proved that this
determination to be present and show their loyalty was not lost on
the multitude. Indeed they were worthy, for it had necessitated their
leaving Trowbridge soon after midnight by horse breaks, so as to arrive
in time to catch the train leaving Chippenham station at daybreak with
passengers for London. Arriving in London they were at once marched to
their position in the Park, and after passing, returned to Paddington
to be off again by the rail, but this time homewards, not arriving
there until about midnight. Again, at a review held in Clarendon
Park, near Salisbury, with Major-General Lord William Paulet, C.B.,
in command, the various corps put in good musters; but the making up
of the battalions consisted of rather a scratch lot collected from
the various corps present; these being North and South Wilts, Hants,
Dorset, Somerset, Oxford, Cambridge, and Middlesex. The whole were
formed into two battalions and worked as a single brigade; but as these
battalions were commanded by such men as Hume and Mansel, and the staff
were not selected for their shouting or galloping powers, but knew
their duties, the whole was a complete success; and doubtless much
more of the duties of a regiment, either acting alone or as portion
of a brigade, was learnt by the volunteers on this occasion than is
usually done. The 1st Wilts, Salisbury, attended as two companies of
thirty file each. The 2nd Corps, Trowbridge, the 6th Maiden Bradley,
the 8th Mere, the 9th Bradford-on-Avon, the 10th Warminster, and 14th
Wilton were the corps attending from South Wilts, and this they all
did in full numbers. Small reviews of this sort, where not only those
commanding the whole were regulars, but where regulars took command
for the time being of both brigades and battalions, were far more
useful, more especially at this early stage of the Volunteer Force,
in teaching officers and men what was expected from them, than when
the command devolved on the officers of the force--new men, mere
learners, if civilians, and if from the line, as a rule but retired
captains, or even subalterns, whose knowledge of manœuvring extended
not beyond company drill, and yet these were made brigadiers and
lieutenant-colonels to command regiments.
There was yet another review of volunteers at which every corps of this
battalion was represented, and which came off before the whole were
formed into a battalion. The review took place on Durdham Down, near
Bristol, and at the time was considered as one of some mark in the
volunteer movement. The reviewing officer was Major-General Hutchinson,
and in his somewhat laconic address to the troops at the conclusion
of the manœuvres, he expressed himself willing to make a favourable
report, as the day had been successful. He also observed that he gave
them all credit for having taken much pains to become efficient, more
especially as he was aware that many had had little battalion drill,
and some none at all.
The day was showery, the ground cramped, and spectators here, there
and everywhere, and little, if anything, was learned or gained by the
volunteers in attendance. But it could not have been otherwise with so
few on the staff who knew anything about manœuvring, and some thousands
of volunteers commanded by learners only. Here, as elsewhere, beyond
the volunteer inspectors, two in number, the staff was composed of
young gentlemen from the yeomanry, militia, or line, whose chief
recommendation for the appointments of A.D.C., galloper, &c., consisted
in their being able to ride fairly well and roar out orders in a loud
tone of voice. The object of such orders was no affair of theirs, nor
were they supposed to know the correct wording. It was a way we had in
the army in those days, and did no great harm as long as playing at
soldiers at Brighton, Salisbury, York, &c., was supposed to be lessons
in real warfare; but the volunteers were in earnest, and putting away
childish things gradually became nearer what soldiers could be; and by
pressure on the authorities, and using common sense, helped very much
to raise not only themselves to a higher standard of efficiency, but to
make the regular army what it is now--a thoroughly useful force, second
to none in Europe or elsewhere for scientific and well-taught officers,
steady and smart non-commissioned officers, and men who do and know
their work.
It is plain to a military man that a body of men so constituted,
subsisting almost altogether on the liberality or length of purse
of its officers and supporters, somewhat independent of authority,
and held to duty by the provisions of the War Office letter to the
Lord Lieutenants of Counties dated May, 1859, or by rules founded
on the same, could have little stability; and that however much
inspector-generals or assistant-inspectors might exert themselves, and
endeavour to bring the force into forming an useful adjunct to the
regular army, it would result in failure. It was impossible to have a
single system pervading the whole, or indeed to make corps equally or
even nearly equally fit to take their places in battalion or brigade
drill. Enthusiasm was on the wane, and it was plain enough to any but
those holding out for some Utopian idea of the advantages to be derived
in having only well-to-do men for volunteers, that a diminishing
subscription list and inability of officers to continue the constant
drag on their purses was not only a serious factor in attendances
at squad and company drills, but was undermining discipline, and
eventually would bring the majority of corps into little else than
shooting clubs; an organization not at all desirable or in any way
meeting the demand for which the volunteers were raised. The few
officers on the volunteer staff worked with a will, never sparing
themselves in any way; and to these, from the inspector-general to each
assistant-inspector, the volunteer force is much indebted. They did not
expect or demand impossibilities, or even an approach to the mobility
and discipline of the regular army. They knew the officers and men;
and, making allowances for the difficulties under which they laboured,
offered them support and advice, combined with instruction; but the
system was beyond their capabilities, and failure must have resulted
had not the authorities suddenly awoke to facts, and besides organizing
corps into battalions, with the proper complement of field officers
to command and an adjutant to carry out a fixed system of drill and
interior economy, agreed to meet some of the expenses incidental to
clothing, attendances at drill, &c., by issuing a capitation grant,
payable by results.
In Colonels Hume and Bruce the volunteers of Wiltshire had officers
not only of known merit, but such as spared no pains in trying to make
those under them learn their duties. Inspecting was no easy-going
affair in these early times. It was no pompous parade in a park or in a
comfortable camp, with a good luncheon and the best of the county for
guests and spectators. It was far more of a reality than at present,
and both officers and men felt that in the inspector they had almost
a personal friend. To the inspecting officer visiting corps was often
a matter of difficulty, and necessitated exposure in all weathers and
at all hours. Meeting the adjutant at some railway station, the two
started off across country roads or over wild downs and moors in a
dog cart, or not improbably, a hired shandederan fast falling into
firewood, with horses none of the steadiest, to the rendezvous, which
might be a village, a hillside, or country inn, and there, in all
the glories of a cocked hat and feathers, he is both instructor and
inspector; probably not returning to his own residence until very late
at night, and this frequently. To work under such officers as these
made difficulties light, and not a little aided adjutants to persevere
in what at times would appear to be an almost hopeless task. To Colonel
Gustavus Hume--now Major-General Sir Gustavus Hume, K.C.B.--and to
Colonel Robert Bruce--now Lieut.-General R. Bruce, lately commanding
the Northern Division--I hereby offer sincere thanks for support and
timely advice; and in using these terms "support and advice" as being
most kindly offered and willingly accepted, I believe I only echo
the sentiments of most of the adjutants, on whom fell nearly all the
brunt and difficulties in working volunteer battalions on their first
formation.
The junction of a certain number of corps together and calling the
whole a battalion, and giving some miserably inadequate sum towards
meeting expenses, but with no alteration in regard to rules for the
better observance of discipline, did not do much towards improving
matters. The officers commanding these battalions were almost
powerless, and their adjutants not only disgracefully underpaid,
but left without any defined position or authority. In fact the
amalgamation of corps into battalions did little, if anything, towards
encouraging or improving squad or company drills, and added very much
to the already very heavy expenses of officers and men in becoming
efficient. The travelling expenses were doubled. The railway fares
being the full conveyancing charges for soldiers, and as the usual
daily train service on lines could be the only one obtainable for
men coming to battalion drills, it often resulted in a day's work
being lost. Besides this, to corps scattered all over a wild extent
of country where no railroads existed, and waggons or carts had to be
hired, attendance at the head quarters of the battalion for united
drill was easier ordered than performed, and so gradually attendance at
the same fell off, or was made up, or said to be made up, by an extra
quantity of squad drills at home.
It must have been through complete ignorance of these facts, and of the
true condition of volunteer corps, that the War Office, in granting a
travelling allowance of four shillings per head, should have exempted
all corps at the head quarters, or within five miles of the same, from
any participation in the boon. The War Office could not possibly be
expected to know anything about the fitness or accessibility of these
head quarters as places for general assembly, of the strength of the
companies there, or within the five-mile radius, and of the costs
incidental to corps few in numbers, much scattered, and far distant
who would have to put in an appearance thereat. Applied to South Wilts
it meant that the travelling allowance drawn for about three hundred
and sixty men should cover the expenses of the whole battalion, then
probably nearly seven hundred strong. It also meant that all corps
within the five miles should give a whole day, walk the distance out
and home, and do all that was required at the parade; besides all this,
it supposed that the men composing these corps, whose head quarters
were within five miles of the battalion head quarters, were all close
at hand, instead of being nearly if not quite as much scattered as
corps further away. Altogether, it was unworkable. The corps on the
spot came in full strength, and others according to distances, and
funds in hand; so that keeping men of the same companies together, and
thus avoiding heartburnings and a motley appearance, was impossible,
and did much to make battalion drills disliked and useless for
instruction.
The punctual attendance of corps was not to be thought of, so the
volunteers came and went as trains fitted in; hanging about the
headquarter town until the assembly sounded, or marched on to the
ground some time after the parade had begun: their train being late
or time inconvenient; thus necessitating retelling off and confusion.
Then, just as the object of a manœuvre was being understood, and some
steadiness showing itself in the ranks, the commanding officer was
reminded that "It is train time," and men of the corps about to leave
were recalled from the various companies into which they had been
numbered off for drill purposes, and the whole parade collapsed.
It was in the year 1861 that the 1st Administrative Battalion of
Wiltshire Rifle Volunteers was formed, at that time consisting of eight
corps, and were thus designated in the _Army List_:--
1st Corps, Head Quarters, Salisbury.
2nd " " Trowbridge.
6th " " Maiden Bradley.
8th " " Mere.
9th " " Bradford-on-Avon.
10th " " Warminster.
13th " " Westbury.
14th " " Wilton.
Salisbury being the head quarters, and at the furthest removed point
from any of the corps excepting Wilton: Lieutenant-General P. Buckley,
M.P. for Salisbury, an officer of the Guards, and a subaltern at
Waterloo, being appointed lieutenant-colonel; Captain J.H. Jacob, of
the 1st Corps, major; and Captain R.D. Gibney, of the Indian army,
as adjutant; Charles Bleeck, Esq., F.R.C.S., as surgeon; and William
Fawcett Esq., quartermaster; the Marquis of Bath being honorary colonel.
1st Corps, Salisbury.
Beverley Robinson, _Captain Cmt._
E.D. Fisher, _Lieut._
Geo. Smith, _Lieut._
Wyndham Pain, _Lieut._
James Brown, _Ensign_.
C. Brown, _Ensign_.
John M. Cardell, _Assist. Surgeon_.
Revd. Robert G. Swayne, _Chap._
2nd Corps, Trowbridge.
Thomas Clark, _Captain_.
W.P. Clark, _Senior Lieut._
Graham Foley, _Ensign_.
E.P. Stancomb, _Ensign_.
W.J. Mann, _Ensign_.
G.C. Tayler, M.B., _Assist. Surg._
Revd. J.D. Hastings, _Hon. Chap._
6th Corps, Maiden Bradley.
Lord E. Percy St. Maur, _Captain_.
Henry B. Festing, _Lieut._
Thomas K. Harding, _Ensign_.
W.N. Marshall, _Assist. Surgeon_.
Revd. R. Rowley, _Chaplain_.
8th Corps, Mere.
W. Chargin Grove, _Captain_.
E.A. Card, _Lieut._
John White, _Ensign_.
, _Assist. Surgeon_.
, _Hon. Chaplain_.
9th Corps, Bradford.
W. Pickwick, _Captain_.
G. Forster, _Lieut._
A. Beavan, _Ensign_.
William Adye, _Hon. Surgeon_.
Revd. W.H. Jones, _Hon. Chap._
10th Corps, Warminster.
The Marquis of Bath, _Captain-Commandant_.
William Davis, _Captain_.
John Ravenhill, _Lieut._
John Scott, _Lieut._
Herbert Ingram, _Ensign_.
Philip Grubb, _Ensign_.
L. Flower, _Assist. Surg._
Revd. Sir J. Erasmus Philipps, _Hon. Chaplain_.
13th Corps, Westbury.
H.G.G. Ludlow, _Captain_.
J.W. Gibbs, _Lieut._
H.W. Pinniger, _Ensign_.
14th Corps, Wilton.
Charles Penruddocke, _Captain_.
Geo. Lapworth, _Lieut._
Alex. Powell, _Lieut._
I. Woodcock, _Ensign_.
A. Graham, _Ensign_.
Revd. R. Chermside, _Hon. Chap._
Soon after being made into a battalion, all the corps were present at
the reviews held at Bristol and Salisbury, and did not add much to
their fame in the performance. The volley firing carried on by some
battalions at the conclusion of the review at Bristol was joined in by
the 1st and 2nd Administrative Battalion, Wilts, and drew upon them
the terrible reproof of the staff. However, as hard words break no
bones, no great evil or good resulted, and the mistake was not worth
the fuss made about it. Each battalion declared that they were not
the one commencing the fire, but simply took it up as supposing it
to be part of the orders in three cheers for the Queen, and as loyal
subjects blazed away, to the horror of the cocked hats, and their own
everlasting shame. The next day the local papers were filled with
letters from warriors of all countries, anxious to explain that they
had nothing to do with it, refused the temptation to join in the "bad
example set by their neighbours," and were assured that it began with
a volunteer on the extreme right wearing a green uniform and plumed
chaco. It was not long after being made into a battalion on the 24th
of August, 1862, that Major Jacob of Salisbury was removed by death.
A slight accident in stepping ashore from his boat produced a serious
illness ending fatally; to the great grief of many friends, and to the
whole of the volunteers, among whom he had become very popular, as
knowing his work well, and doing it. The vacancy in the battalion was
filled up by the promotion of Captain T. Clark of the 2nd Trowbridge
Corps, who at once attached himself to the 55th Foot, so as to acquire
a thorough knowledge of his new duties. There were various occasions
in which the whole corps assembled beyond these reviews; such as
inspections by district inspectors, or where anything of moment was
likely to draw a multitude to any place of note. Trains ran more
conveniently on such occasions, and it was an opportunity to get off
one of the required battalion drills. For example, there is an assembly
of the battalion at the Earl of Pembroke's beautiful park at Wilton.
It is a great occasion, and Lord Palmerston with no end of the quality
are to be present; so the muster is good, and all are anxious that not
only the Prime Minister, but all the multitude shall see, that neither
time nor money has been spared in making the flamingo-coloured regiment
assembling before their eyes, thoroughly efficient, and able defenders
of their country.
There is the usual difficulty and delay in equalizing companies; as
local corps have come in full strength, but the ones further away in
lesser proportion. However, at last, the adjutant and sergeant-major
between them have squared the circle, and all being ready, the same is
reported to the lieutenant-colonel in command by the adjutant.
Lord Palmerston, with the Lady Herbert of Lea on his arm, followed by
the future heir to Wilton House and the Earldom of Pembroke, move away
to the saluting point, and the lieutenant-colonel directs the regiment
to "march past in slow time."
A shuffle, a halt, and as the dressing of companies is deranged, the
adjutant moves out to explain that "slow time" is not required to
be performed by the volunteers, and that they only know "quick and
double," passing always at the "quick."
The dressing corrected, another essay at starting is made, and the
battalion is directed to pass in "the _usual way_."
This not being part of the drill instruction, was not well understood,
and in a very _unusual_ manner the battalion commenced the march past,
the _profanum vulgus_ offering advice and following with shouts. A
few trees, and paths intervening, and concealing the wheeling points,
did not add to the steadiness, but on the wheel of the leading two
companies into the saluting base being completed, the climax was
reached--the band ceased to play, and whilst the rear companies
endeavoured to get themselves together, the cause of its sudden silence
was briefly explained: "We've played our two companies past." The band
was the private property of the Salisbury corps. ("N.B.--A battalion
band an absolute necessity, and the musicians attached to corps to
appear at battalion drills as riflemen only.") A slight sprinkling of
rain coming on hastened the fulfilment of the programme of manœuvres,
and whilst my Lord Palmerston, Lady Herbert of Lea, and the spectators
generally ran for shelter to the house or shrubberies, the volunteers,
careless of consequences, deployed into line among the oak trees.
"Is no one going to dress the points?" asked the junior major, as the
adjutant waited patiently at the distant point for orders, the rain
meanwhile descending in torrents.
There was no one to dress. The companies on the right had been
dismissed (where to was not known), and as no order was received, each
company in turn took upon itself to seek shelter, and thus commenced
and ended a battalion drill of the 1st Wilts Rifle Volunteers at
Wilton Park. Still it counted towards the required number. This was
not learning battalion drill. There was no one in authority on the
spot who could teach; moreover everything was against officers and
non-commissioned officers willing and fairly able to instruct. The
drill itself, subject to constant changes by circulars from the
War Office, was patched, altered and amended until red books, were
useless, and adjutants and sergeant instructors knew not what to teach;
uniforms so varied in colours and cut, as to make a battalion, when
equalized, appear ridiculous, and the whole drill hurried over and
generally smashed up by corps having to leave in order to catch trains.
The uniform was a matter that should have been arranged by the Lord
Lieutenant, as was done after some delay, and no little correspondence
between lieutenant-colonels, adjutants, captains of corps, and small
authorities in which it was shown that each preferred his own colour
to another's, considering such as exactly adapted for the battalion's
adoption. The Marquis of Ailesbury, as Lord-Lieutenant, settled
the matter by desiring the officers commanding both battalions of
Wiltshire Volunteers (the 1st Administrative Battalion represented by
the adjutant, and the 2nd Administrative Battalion by Lieut.-Colonel
M.F. Ward) to meet him at the clothing depôt in London, and there
after consultation with the officer in charge, dark green with black
lace, similar to that worn by the Rifle Brigade, was decided upon. It
was a wise decision, necessitating a general change, and an expense
which would be shared in by all; and though extinguishing the supposed
utility of the very lengthy and somewhat Noah's Ark cut of tunic, much
approved of by the Salisburian, or the glittering loveliness of the
grey and silver of the Wiltonian, or the light blue and white lace,
with the wondrous solar topee, a rough ill-shaped pith or coarse felt
helmet, of the Bradleyan, yet helped very much in one way or another
to overcome the clannishness of corps, and to make the battalion look
better on parade, but also to cause them to drill and work together
better.
Improvements were very gradual. At their respective head quarters,
and drill grounds, corps certainly improved in squad and company
drills, and in single ranks with ropes learnt something of the theory
of combination movements; but the whole was unsatisfactory. There was
a want of unanimity, discipline, and cohesion, and it was not until
some time after Lieut.-Colonel Everett, late captain in the 25th
King's Own Borderers, had assumed the command, that any change for the
better was generally visible. Captain J.F. Everett, having resigned
his commission in the Borderers and settled down on his property at
Greenhill near Warminster, had been selected by the Lord Lieutenant
of the county to succeed General E.P. Buckley in the command; and
to his untiring energy, perseverance, and foresight, the battalion
is very much indebted. It was a great trust to impose on so young
and untried an officer, this command of a battalion, composed of a
class of men totally different from those he had been accustomed
to, and worked on a system certainly not to be found in the Queen's
Regulations; but which nevertheless was authorized, was rather looked
upon as a "valued right" by some officers and men, and was composed
of corps, each having its own head quarters, its own officers and
non-commissioned officers, and difficulties to contend with. Doubtless
the lieutenant-colonel brought with him numerous line ideas, which he
afterwards found to be unworkable; and an inspection of corps at their
own head quarters, with one or two general assemblies for battalion
drill, revealed unsuspected facts. However, be all this as it may,
the lieutenant-colonel set to work with a will, and by looking up
single companies, interesting himself in prize shooting, commanding
the battalion at autumn manœuvres, and establishing a regimental
camp, gradually raised the whole tone of the battalion, causing
both officers and men to see the necessity for greater punctuality,
strict discipline, and the advantages to the service of cohesion and
collective energy. To the diary kept by Lieut.-Colonel Everett of
occurrences from the date of his joining to his resignation in 1885, I
am indebted for much that is told about camps and incidental expenses,
the remarks of inspecting officers, and other matters.
On the 20th April, 1866, John Frederic Everett, late a captain in the
25th King's Own Borderers, was gazetted as lieutenant-colonel, and on
the 11th July following, the battalion was inspected by Colonel R.
Bruce, lately commanding the 2nd Royals, and assistant inspector of the
district at Salisbury. The drill was fairly well done, and met with the
approval of the inspecting officer.
On the 25th July the battalion took part in a review held on the
racecourse, Lansdown, Bath, but were under the command of the senior
major, Major T. Clark, Lieut.-Colonel Everett commanding a brigade on
the occasion.
The review was about as useful and successful as such gatherings
usually were, or could be under the circumstances of their management.
A few yeomanry collected together from the troops of adjacent counties,
some local artillery, horsed from cabs and drays, and three or four
brigades of infantry, under the command of volunteer officers. Bands
very plentiful and manœuvring space limited. Each battalion on its
arrival at Bath was marched away to the racecourse, and all felt that
the beer and sandwich given by the citizens of Bath to each volunteer,
was well earned as he reached the summit of the terrible Lansdown hill.
It was a trial for many, unaccustomed to be dressed up in tight-fitting
tunics, wabbling chacos with gaudy plumes, cross belts, and haversacks,
to say nothing of a heavy rifle and some rounds of blank ammunition,
toiling up that hot and dusty road in the hottest part of a day in hot
July; but few fell out, and panting upwards, they could afford to smile
at the greetings offered in honour of their coming, "Welcome!" "Our
brave defenders!" &c. &c., were civil and perhaps flattering; but when
half way up was reached, and strangers asked how much further it might
be, the answer "Excelsior," inscribed on a banner crossing the highway,
said the end was not yet.
The corps attending from the 1st Administrative Battalion were as
follows:--
2nd Brigade.
Lieut.-Colonel J.F. EVERETT, Commanding; Captain Max, Major
of Brigade.
1st A.B. Wilts Rifle Volunteers.
Major Clark (in command), Major Penruddocke, Captain and
Adjutant Gibney.
_1st Corps, Salisbury._--Captains Pinckney and Smith; Lieuts. J.
Brown and Payne; Ensigns Wilson and Kelsey; Sergeants, 7; Rank and
File, 51; Band, 26. Total, 90.
_2nd Corps, Trowbridge._--Captain W.P. Clark; Lieut. Stancomb;
Assist.-Surgeon Seale; Sergeants, 5; Rank and File, 76; Band, 16.
Total, 100.
_6th Corps, Maiden Bradley._--Lieut. Festing; Ensign Harding;
Sergeants, 4; Rank and File, 40. Total, 46.
_9th Corps, Bradford-on-Avon._--Lieut. Beavan; Ensign Adye;
Sergeants, 5; Rank and File, 46. Total, 53.
_10th Corps, Warminster._--Lieuts. Scott and Ingram; Ensigns Grubb
and Smith; Rank and File, 50. Total, 54.
_13th Corps, Westbury._--Lieut. Gibbs; Ensign Pinniger; Sergeants, 4;
Rank and File, 40. Total, 46.
_14th Corps, Wilton._--Lieut. King; Ensign Powell, Sergeants, 3; Rank
and File, 32. Total, 37.
Total of all ranks, 430.
The idea was that the enemy were advancing from Bristol on Bath, and
in the defence of Kelson Round Hill, the Bath battalion, supported by
some artillery, covered themselves with glory; and doubtless would have
been annihilated had not the whole of the force, accompanied by several
thousand spectators, moved forward to their assistance. It was late in
the evening before the review ended, and still later ere many a corps
reached its head quarters.
The annual prize-meeting of the Wilts Rifle Association was held this
year at Warminster, and proved to be a great success. The excellent
range and the more central situation of the town enabled competitors
from both battalions to enter the lists in goodly numbers. The custom
hitherto had been that the meetings should be held alternately at
Salisbury and Devizes, but it was considered advisable to alter
this arrangement, and owing to the judgment and decision of the
local committee, consisting of Lieutenants Scott, Ingram, Smith,
Quartermaster Toone, &c., all went off admirably.
The 1st Administrative Battalion Wilts Volunteer Rifles possessed very
many good shooting men, but in this respect were certainly inferior
to their companions in No. 2 Administrative Battalion. One thing, the
2nd Administrative Battalion were several corps and many men stronger,
and on the whole possessed greater facilities for target practice. The
President's prize, a prize of thirty-five guineas given by the Marquis
of Bath in certain portions at various distances to the best shots, was
taken chiefly by competitors belonging to the second battalion; but Mr.
Poynder's grand prize of a piece of plate value fifty guineas, open
to all Wiltshire volunteers and yeomanry, was won by Colour-sergeant
Jefferys of the 6th Maiden Bradley Corps, after making a tie with
Private Martin of the 10th Warminster Corps, the scores being:--
300 yards. 500 yards. 700 yards. Total.
Jefferys 13 11 14 38
Martin 16 13 9 38
The score at the longest distance deciding the prize.
Mr. R. Long, of Rood Ashton, M.P., offered a prize to be given to the
best shot of either battalion: each corps sending one competitor, when
Sergeant Baker, 7th Wilts, 2nd Administrative Battalion, was declared
the winner. Lieut.-Colonel Everett and Major T. Clark gave prizes,
but these went to the 2nd Administrative Battalion, as did similar
prizes given by Lieut.-Colonel M.F. Ward and Major Perry Keene; but the
prizes offered by Lieut.-General Buckley and Major Penruddocke fell
to Sergeant Graham, 2nd Corps, Trowbridge. The challenge cup, value
£50, with a piece of plate valued at £25, given by the inhabitants
of Warminster, was unfortunately lost (after tie shooting) to the 1st
Battalion, being given to Corporal Nott, 5th Corps, 2nd Battalion,
whose score of 41 was equalled by Lieutenant Wakeman of the 10th Corps
and Corporal Purton of the 1st Corps, whilst Sergeant Butler of the
1st, and Sergeant Harris of the same corps, came next in order, and
this out of eighty-one competitors.
The prizes were given away by the Marchioness of Bath, and the
opportunity was taken advantage of to hold a battalion drill, but
it was rather a failure--very few attended. The officers afterwards
messed together at the "Bath Arms," and a plan was hastily sketched
out for a camp to be held for the whole battalion in the coming year,
it becoming only too evident that these spasmodic battalion drills
were useless, and that each corps would be better for a continuous
and systematic course of drilling and discipline, either at Aldershot
or in a regimental camp. The usual annual prize-meeting between the
officers of both battalions, to compete for a challenge cup of large
value, and a very beautiful silver claret jug, to be retained by the
winner, came off at Chippenham, and was won by an officer of the
1st Battalion. These valuable and most desirable prizes were given
each year by Mr. Poynder, whose liberality in supporting the Rifle
Corps and rifle movement generally was unbounded. Perhaps the terms
on which this officers' prize was to be shot for did not encourage
good shooting, or prove that the winner of a silver claret jug was in
reality a terrible man at the targets. Each year saw the challenge cup
held by a new officer, who was somewhat heavily handicapped for the
next year's competition: so much so, indeed, as to render his chance,
or the chances of his predecessors, in the prize holding from repeating
themselves almost impossible. Under these circumstances, it appeared
but a calculation of time as to how long it might be before each
competing officer in the two battalions possessed an embossed silver
claret jug.
These massive or fragile pieces of plate being offered as prizes for
excellence in shooting, to the volunteers, were a mistake. To many of
the men money prizes would have been much more acceptable, as these
cups, mugs, salvers, &c., were of small advantage to any but the
silversmiths, who, seizing the occasion for emptying their shops of
all the ill-shaped rubbish accumulated by time, charged the donors a
price far beyond the real value of the article. Experience has made
all wiser, and old pint pots, and drinking cups, almost transparent in
their absence of metal, have been relegated to the melting-pot. The
year 1867 was a marked epoch in the history of this battalion. It was
a year of preparation for more systematic arrangements generally, and
for drawing tighter the cords of discipline and unity. It was very
desirable that the two battalions should form regimental camps, and by
these means ensure a knowledge of combined movements being more general
throughout the battalions; but proposals fell to the ground, and the
oft-repeated hasty assembling, and more hasty departure of portions of
corps for train-catching, were continued for yet another year.
Lieut.-Colonel Everett and Lieut.-Colonel Ward, with their respective
adjutants, met together at Warminster for the purpose of organizing
a camp for both regiments at Devizes, and it was hoped that if this
camp were held during the training time of the county militia and
yeomanry, good would result; but after much correspondence with the
Lord-Lieutenant, the Marquis of Ailesbury, commanding the yeomanry,
and various officers, the scheme had to be abandoned. It was evident
that an encampment of the battalion in its own district, and under
the sole control of the commanding officer, could alone be brought
about, and not improbably would meet all that was required. There was
a meeting of officers commanding battalions in the three counties of
Hampshire, Wiltshire, and Dorsetshire, and the neighbouring counties,
held at Bishopstoke Station, at which meeting it was determined to hold
a volunteer review on a large scale at or near Salisbury, on the 29th
May. The review took place accordingly at the date specified, on the
downs, a very hard three miles' distance from Salisbury. It may have
been satisfactory to some of the performers in it; but as to any real
knowledge of how troops should be handled in absolute warfare there was
none given. The infantry, divided into three brigades, numbered nearly
5000 men, of which this battalion yielded 500; the artillery, 228 men,
with six guns, being two guns per brigade, and 180 sabres; yeomen,
serving in the Wilts and Hants Yeomanry and Mounted Rifles; Colonel
Erskine, Inspector-General of Volunteers, being in command, assisted by
Colonels McMurdo, Bruce, and Colville, assistant inspectors.
After passing in review order, the supposed enemy had to be dislodged;
but as this enemy were short of cavalry, and we, being well off in
that respect, as the returns showed, it was resolved to lend him ours,
so, halting the infantry, these gallant troopers passed through the
openings left between brigades, and in the four-deep formation, to
disappear in the valley where the enemy lay concealed. We re-formed,
unsuspicious of their treachery.
Advancing once again, the battle began; but success was not to be the
portion of the attackers. They retreated, and were followed up in
this retreat and harassed considerably by the cavalry so kindly lent
to them but a short quarter of an hour previously. The firing was
great, the confusion greater, but the damage was unappreciable; the
proportion of cavalry to the retreating infantry, about one horseman
to thirty infantry men, not being overwhelming. Besides, the bravery
of these cavalry in riding within a few feet of the muzzles of groups
of riflemen must have led to heavy casualties. However, all is well
that ends well, and at the termination of the manœuvres the authorities
expressed themselves satisfied with the day's performance.
The Hampshire Mounted Rifles under Colonel Bower exhibited some pretty
skirmishing at this review. Men and horses were all well trained and
thoroughly understood their work. Colonel Bower here showed how useful
an adjunct mounted infantry would be in the event of invasion.
The annual inspection of the regiment took place at Warminster Down in
the month of August., Colonel Bruce being the inspecting officer.
* * * * *
On the 1st January 1868,--the officers of the regiment appeared thus in
the _Army List_:--
The Marquis of Bath, _Honorary Colonel_.
J.F. Everett, _Lieut.-Colonel_.
T. Clark and C. Penruddocke, _Majors_.
R.D. Gibney, _Adjutant_.
Charles Bleeck, _Surgeon_.
John M. Cardell, _Assist. Surgeon_.
J. Fawcett, _Quartermaster_.
1st Corps, Salisbury.
Wm. Pinckney, _Captain_ (_Comdt._).
G. Smith, _Captain_.
W. Pain, _Lieut._
W.J. Wilton, _Lieut._
E.F. Kelsey, _Ensign_.
F. Hodding, _Ensign_.
J.M. Cardell, _Assist. Surgeon_.
Revd. R.G. Swayne, _Chaplain_.
2nd Corps, Trowbridge.
W.P. Clark, _Captain_ (_Comdt._).
E.P. Stancomb, _Lieut._
,_Lieut._
W.P. Clark, _Ensign_.
R.S. Seale, _Assist. Surgeon_.
Revd. J.D. Hastings, _Hon. Chap._
6th Corps, Maiden Bradley.
H.B. Festing, _Captain_.
Thos. K. Harding, _Lieut._
E.S. Jefferys, _Ensign_.
W.N. Marshall, _Assist. Surgeon_.
Revd. R. Rowley, _Hon. Chaplain_.
8th Corps, Mere.
, _Captain_.
E.A. Card, _Lieut._
J. White, _Ensign_.
Chas. Rumsey, _Assist. Surgeon_.
Revd. C.H. Townsend, _Hon. Chaplain_.
9th Corps. Bradford-on-Avon.
, _Captain_.
William Adye, _Lieut._
E.M. Davis, _Ensign_.
W.H. Jones, _Hon. Chaplain_.
10th Corps, Warminster.
John Scott, _Captain_.
H. Ingram, _Lieut._
P. Grubb, _Lieut._
J. Smith, _Ensign_.
H.J. Wakeman, _Ensign_.
J. Flower, _Assist. Surgeon_.
Revd. Sir J.E. Philipps, Bart., _Chaplain_.
13th Corps, Westbury.
W. Knapp, _Captain_.
H.W. Pinniger, _Lieut._
W.H. Laverton, _Ensign_.
14th Corps, Wilton.
Charles Penruddocke, _Captain_. Fred King, _Lieut._ , _Ensign_. P.J.
Bennett, _Assist. Surgeon_. Revd. D. Olivier, _Chaplain_.
The year commenced with a meeting of the officers at Warminster,
followed by a mess dinner, at which it was settled that a regimental
camp should be held at Warminster the first week in August, and that
the commanding officer of the battalion should apply to the southern
division of the county of Wilts for subscriptions so as to defray the
expenses. Accordingly a circular letter was sent out by Lieut.-Colonel
Everett, a copy of which is given:--
"Proposed Camp for the 1st Battalion of Wilts Rifle Volunteers.
Greenhill, Warminster,
_February, 1868_.
"----. The Lord-Lieutenant of the county has given his sanction
to the forming of a camp for the 1st Battalion of the Wiltshire
Rifle Volunteers, which it is proposed should take place in the
neighbourhood of Warminster in the month of next July.
"Such a camp, it is considered, would tend considerably to the
efficiency of the volunteers, by giving them an insight into camp
life, and some experience of the requirements of actual service, in a
way that cannot otherwise be obtained.
"It is felt that, as the volunteers freely give their time in the
service, they should not be called upon for a further sacrifice in
providing the necessary funds, and it is to be hoped that the county
will readily and generously come forward in assisting this object.
"Contributions will be received by me or by the Secretary, Ensign
H.J. Wakeman, of Warminster; or can be paid into the camp fund at the
following banks:--Messrs. Pinckney Brothers, Salisbury; the North
Wilts Bank at Warminster, Trowbridge, Westbury, and Bradford; as
also at the Wilts and Dorset Bank, Mere. Such contributions will be
acknowledged in the county papers.
"I have the honour to be
"Your obedient Servant,
"John F. Everett, _Lieut-Colonel_.
"_Comdg. 1st. A.B. Wilts Rifle Volunteers._
"P.S.--As arrangements must be completed speedily, I should feel
obliged by your informing me at your earliest convenience the amount
you may be willing to contribute to the above object.--J.F.E."
It was very necessary that the regimental camp should be a complete
success, and to ensure this much anxious thought and time was given
to details by the lieut.-colonel commanding the battalion, as also by
the committee. Meetings of this committee were held at Warminster on
the 5th February, 4th March, 1st, 8th and 13th of April, 13th May,
3rd, 10th and 22nd June, and on the 13th July. The committee had no
precedents to guide them; and the more the necessary arrangements
were considered, the greater appeared to be the difficulties. To make
contracts where there was little certainty, in itself was a hard task,
and it showed how much care and trouble had been given to the subject,
when the camp proved a complete success.
The prospect of a regimental camp, however, did not prevent the
battalion putting in an appearance at the grand review held at
Portsmouth on Easter Monday, where some 25,000 men assembled, the
regulars, and gunboats of the Navy, taking part in the proceedings.
The part in the performance relegated to this battalion was neither
instructive nor interesting. It rather imitated the army of a certain
King of France, by walking up a hill and then walking down again.
Some gunboats took up a position to its front, to drive away which
the battalion descended from its perch to the railway embankment; but
as the tide was receding, the gunboats receded also, doubtless their
departure hastened by the appearance, if not by the fire of the gallant
1st Wilts, which being delivered at something over rifle range would
have been harmless. Then the regiment itself retired and resumed its
position on the hillside, sitting down comfortably awaiting further
orders; which eventually directed them to "fire away" at some supposed
enemy; and having emptied their ammunition pouches, the whole returned
to Fareham station, to be taken homewards.
What possible good to any branch of the services could have arisen
from this Easter Monday review is hard to see! It appeared to be only
a waste of time and money; and by encouraging the volunteers to go
to such, and to join in a general scramble called manœuvring, was
prejudicial to discipline and respect for authority. If the reviews
are held in large towns, such as Brighton, Dover, Portsmouth, &c.,
whole brigades of volunteers hang about, often for hours, from the time
of arrival until the general assembly shall sound, meanwhile none the
better for public-house entertainments and want of occupation; then
are marched through streets to the ground selected--a march past, and
a sham fight, in which firing and confusion are prominent features, as
instruction could not there be given, and utter ignorance of the very
outlines of skirmishing and attack by the majority of men, are only too
visible. This done, and the enemy defeated, the majority, hot, dirty,
and probably very hungry, resume their places in the train to return to
London or far further away, perhaps wondering for what purpose they had
been brought so far, or if real war was thus conducted! The minority
obtaining leave of absence remain behind, and many, now free from all
supervision and control, do the grand service to which they belong no
little injury by drunkenness and debauchery.
On the 20th July the battalion assembled for their first encampment
on Warminster Down; the ground selected being between the old coach
road over Salisbury Plain leading from Bath to Salisbury and the
town itself, perhaps about two miles from Warminster--a magnificent
undulating spot with room for manœuvring on a large scale, but
waterless, thereby necessitating every drop of that precious liquid
being brought up in carts from the town, making a huge item in the
expenses of holding a camp on the healthy and somewhat lofty downs of
Wiltshire.
The camp was pitched and struck by old soldiers from the regular army,
and the catering both for officers and men was undertaken by Messrs.
Fort of Bath, the men messing together in a very large tent. It was
well done, albeit costly, but there was not sufficient experience as
yet gained by the committee of management to allow them to venture on a
less expensive method of providing for the wants of so many.
A very excellent selection of standing orders was compiled by the
officer commanding the battalion, and these with a few additions have
yet remained in force. The following extract from them as referring to
the camp about to be established is herewith given:--
Standing Orders for Camp.
The 1st Bugle will sound at 5 0 a.m.
" 2nd " " 7 0 a.m.--Morning parade, setting-up drill, &c.
8 0 a.m.--Men's breakfasts.
9 30 a.m.--Pickets and guard-mounting.
10 0 a.m.--Officers' instruction in mess tent.
10 45 a.m.--Comdng. Officer's parade.
1 0 p.m.--Men's dinners.
3 0 p.m.--Comdng. Officer's parade.
7 0 p.m.--Men's supper.
9 0 p.m.--Tattoo.
10 0 p.m.--Lights out.
The officers messed together, taking their meals at about the same time
as those ordered for the men.
To the battalion generally the camp proved to be a kind of perpetual
picnic, good eating and drinking, with very little sleeping, but
plenty of hard work. It was not intended to be child's play, but a
lesson in drilling and discipline, and so far as volunteer rules and
regulations, combined with tact and temper, allowed, this was carried
out; but it was beyond human skill to make all obedient to one will,
to insist upon punctuality on parade, that lights were out at the
time ordered, and that strict silence reigned throughout the camp
until the rouse sounded. Men might mean well, and doubtless did not
intend to defy authority, but with a canteen ever open, and the liquor
to be had almost for the asking, no little injury was inflicted on
discipline. It may be necessary for a certain amount of drink to be
purchaseable where large bodies of men assemble, but when these are
brought together to do a special work, and to learn obedience to all
orders received from those in authority, drinking booths, whether
termed canteens or clubs, are destructive of discipline, and tend to
incapacitate the men from doing that which was intended they should
do. Moreover it is not good, either for the man himself--only too
often a mere lad of 17--that when not on duty he should find no other
recreation provided than is afforded by a huge public-house with its
rows of tables and seats, where the drink, the song, the profanity,
and the uproar grows faster and more furious as the day advances. It
is not in the canteen that respect for officers and authorities is
learned. The best non-commissioned officers, and men who are wide awake
and cautious, on picket or sentry, are not from canteen frequenters.
The canteen in the regular army and militia is a fruitful source of
misery to the many, however well conducted it may be, but when open
at all hours, from daybreak to last post, in a volunteer encampment,
subject only in reality to the mere licensing laws of the country, it
is little else than a curse. If necessary for merely supplying beer,
&c., let the canteen tent be at least one mile from the camp. Of course
there were very many amusing incidents occurring in the camp, few more
so, perhaps, than those in connection with guard and sentry duties.
These had to be learned _ab initio_, and as the learners were often
utterly ignorant of the rudiments of drill, the explanations as given
were scarcely understood. "Your front" was a tremendous difficulty,
and to challenge properly perhaps more abominable. The reliefs were
not carried out quite regularly as the night advanced, and posts were
deserted by sentries to know the reason why relief did not arrive.
Sitting was found to be as cheap as standing, and a pipe on the sly in
the pale moonlight a great relief to the monotony of sentry go.
Mr. Calvesfoot, generally useful man at Baredown Farm, having walked
about the magazine tent until tired, orders his arms, and lounging in
an easy and not ungraceful attitude, awaits his relief; being quite
happy with himself and the world in general, beer and beef agreeing
with him immensely.
"Hallo! Is that what you call doing sentry?" suddenly demands a voice,
which arouses him from his reverie, and in which he recognizes that of
Squire ----, the captain of the day, and the officer commanding the
corps to which the delinquent belongs.
"I was a looking after ye, captain. I thought you'd come some time and
look I up," was the reply, said with charming naïveté.
"What are your orders?" asks the subaltern of the day from a youthful
volunteer, supposed to be guarding the precious water-carts, but
occupied in quarrelling with the cook, who had neglected the men on
duty in the guard tent to which he belonged.
"To watch them waterbutts, sir, but seeing this'un I came away for a
minute to let him know as we aint to be forgotten," replied the sentry.
There were, besides these, various tales told of out-of-the-way
occurrences, such as tricks played off upon sentries, and the very
queer views the men had of a sentry's duty. Going on sentry to the
Wiltshire man was not the like of going to drill. There, at drill, he
had to hold his head up, hold his tongue, and turn right or left at
a moment's notice, whenever somebody shouted out a word of command;
but here, after the corporal had left him, and said some stuff about
looking after the camp, observing his front, and saluting officers, he
had only to walk up and down a certain distance or stand still should
he prefer it. After all, it was only a make believe, and "he warnt
goin' to be made a vool on."
"Why don't you look sharper, sentry? Not one of those fellows to your
left have passes; coming into camp at this time of night!" said an old
hand, drawing the attention of the sentry to some few men leisurely
passing across his beat into camp.
"Aint they though?" inquires Johnny, and proceeds to stop them and to
demand the passes which each produces; meanwhile a goodly multitude of
young rascals without passes, slip in among the tents unknown to our
sentry, and have dodged being absent at roll call.
Another sentry story will suffice. It is a pouring wet night and the
corporal starts on relief duties.
Corporal to relief, on approaching the cooking department, where are
carts and ovens scattered about, "Relief, halt. Where's the sentry?"
"Doan't know. Doan't zee un," said the man whose turn to be relief had
come. "Didn't ask you," savagely retorted the corporal, and raising
his voice, shouted out to the missing sentry, adding, "Where have you
got to?" "Here," said a voice from under a waggon, a few yards inside
the beat. "Here! Call under a waggon, here! Come out this instant. The
colonel will let you know about this to-morrow," exclaimed the angry
corporal, as the dripping man crept from under the shelter of the cart,
and humbly apologized for being there; giving, as an excuse, "That he
hadn't no greatcoat, that it poured 'wuss' enough to wet him through;
and that them 'chimbleys and things' could be seen just as well from
under the cart as 'where you said I was to stand.'"
Allowing leave to be absent from camp was always a difficulty. Tommy
Vol is pretty nearly as bad at shirking parade and exceeding leave as
Tommy Atkins. Getting up at cockcrow and doing extensive motions, or
drilling without arms under the adjutant, is not to his taste, and
if he can have a sick parent or a fair excuse for asking that his
attendance in camp may be excused for a day, he quickly avails himself
of it.
To show the difficulty the following is given. The captain, with
orderly-sergeant and colour-sergeant, very busy over company books and
registers, as the morrow is to be the inspection of the battalion, and
all books and returns in the adjutant's office by 10 a.m. Private Smith
darkens the tent doorway and, respectfully saluting, asks if he might
have leave for to-morrow to go home.
"Certainly not. Couldn't think of it. Inspection to-morrow. Why do you
want it?" asks the captain, and knowing the man, feels assured there
must be good cause. "Please, sir, the missus writes and says as how
the young heifer has calved and be mighty bad, and there beant none
thereabouts as can do her any good, and so she wants me to come at
once." Of course the leave must be granted and the column "absent with
leave" enlarged.
Adjutants, fresh to the work, young lieut.-colonels, and probably
martinet inspecting officers, watch this column with great dislike and
think it unnecessarily large; but after they have served some time,
and become acquainted with the officers and non-commissioned officers
of companies, and learn that men whose retention of a situation, daily
subsistence, and domestic calls, are often dependent on their being
present, will not be so ready to condemn those giving leave for being
too easily persuaded.
The weather was magnificent during the whole week, and on the 24th
the battalion was inspected in camp by Colonel R. Bruce; the honorary
colonel, the Marquis of Bath, being present on parade, and a very
large number of onlookers from the county families and neighbourhood
generally; the officers giving a handsome luncheon to some two hundred
guests at the termination of the review, and having a camp fire later
on.
The muster at the inspection was 532 of all ranks, and the following
remarks were made by the inspecting officer: "I find you much improved
in steadiness on parade, your drill has been well performed, and having
a camp has improved you in every way." Colonel Bruce then added that he
hoped next year to inspect them again in a regimental camp, either at
Warminster or elsewhere, and that as these camps were very expensive,
but most useful, he hoped that the necessary funds would be forthcoming
somehow. After the inspection the hon. colonel, the Marquis of Bath,
gave a dinner to the officers and men, and next day the camp broke up,
and all returned to their various head quarters. This year an officers'
mess and wine fund was formed, and on the 20th, 21st, and 22nd August
the annual meeting of the Wilts County Rifle Association was held at
Salisbury, Captain Knox, V.C., being umpire. On the 27th August the
prizes were given away in the Palace Grounds at Salisbury by Miss
Bathurst, daughter of Sir Fredk. Bathurst, who was president of the
association for the year.
The annual returns of efficients and non-efficients of the corps
comprising the battalion for the year ending November, 1868, were as
follows:--
+---------------------------+------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
| Corps. | A | B | C | D | E |
+---------------------------+------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
|Staff | 16 | 15 | 1 | 16 | 15 |
|1st Corps, Salisbury | 200 | 109 | 18 | 127 | 102 |
|2nd Corps, Trowbridge | 159 | 127 | 2 | 129 | 108 |
|6th Corps, Maiden Bradley | 100 | 70 | 1 | 71 | 67 |
|8th Corps, Mere | 100 | 55 | 12 | 67 | 44 |
|9th Corps, Bradford | 100 | 74 | 8 | 82 | 52 |
|10th Corps, Warminster | 159 | 102 | 32 | 134 | 90 |
|13th Corps, Westbury | 100 | 71 | 12 | 83 | 63 |
|14th Corps, Wilton | 159 | 50 | 30 | 80 | 48 |
| +------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
| Grand Total of Battalion | 1093 | 673 | 116 | 789 | 589 |
+---------------------------+------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
A Maximum Establishment.
B Efficients.
C Non-Efficients.
D Total Enrolled.
E Total Efficients Extra.
The year 1869 commenced with a meeting of the officers of the battalion
at Warminster, and it was therein settled that the regimental camp
should be held this year at Salisbury, in the first week of August.
Meetings were subsequently held to consider details, and to ascertain
how far it was possible to make these camps less costly.
The Mayor of Portsmouth having intimated a wish that a field day
in conjunction with the regular army on Southsea Common should be
organized, a meeting of officers commanding volunteer battalions in
the neighbouring counties took place at Portsmouth, which resulted
in a field day on some scale being held at Southsea Common on the
26th April. There were present about 3000 of the regular army, and
perhaps 5500 of the Volunteer Force; to which the 1st Administrative
Battalion Wilts contributed nearly 500 of all ranks. After a march
past, an attack on the forts and outworks round the town (which do not
now exist) was made; but probably it was unsuccessful, as guns were
conspicuous by their absence on the part of the attackers, and no fire
being returned from the embrasures showed that either there was no one
at home, or that we as an enemy were held somewhat in contempt. It
spoke well for the stuff of which volunteer battalions are composed,
that on the 1st Wilts Administrative Battalion assembling at the place
appointed for them in the town of Portsmouth, they were proved and then
dismissed, with orders to reassemble at the same place and in the same
order two hours later, the arms being piled and a few men detailed as
caretakers over them. Before the expiry of the two hours, each man was
in his place, sober, and brushed up, and after a while was marching
towards Southsea Common.
On the 2nd August the Second Regimental Camp commenced at Salisbury,
or rather on Homerton Down, ground very inferior for the purpose to
that at Warminster. The local companies pitched the camp, thus saving
some small expense, but the catering both for officers and men was
contracted for as at Warminster previously, Mr. Ward, of "The White
Hart," being the contractor. The weather was not all that could be
desired, and the proximity of two towns, such as Salisbury and Wilton,
no advantage: however, good resulted, and at the inspection of the
battalion by Colonel R. Bruce, on the termination of the camp, he
expressed himself satisfied with the steadiness of the men, the way
the drill was performed, and attributed the general improvement in
discipline and drill to this camp, which he hoped would be every year
repeated. The camp was struck and packed soon after daybreak next day,
and after breakfast all returned homewards.
The expense of this camp was £543, and was partly met by subscriptions
amounting to £458--the travelling allowance of 4_s._ per man,
sanctioned by the War Office to all corps not within a certain distance
of the head quarters, being taken to make up the difference, thus
creating an additional expense to the officers and supporters of
corps coming from a distance, as having to meet their own travelling
expenses. The muster at inspection showed 554 of all ranks.
It was determined by the committee for camp management, assembling at
Warminster on the 4th March, 1870, that the regimental camp should be
held in the first week of August at Warminster, on the downs, but that
as a means of lessening the expenses several important alterations
should be made. The time spent in camp should be less. The volunteers
to enter on Tuesday, and break up on Saturday; that they should be
supplied with rations, and each corps make its own arrangements for the
cooking of the same, and that the pitching and striking of the camp
should be done entirely by themselves.
On the 3rd August the battalion assembled in camp, and without further
aid than that supplied them through the knowledge of camp details by
the commanding officer and regimental staff, succeeded in a very short
time in pitching the camp most correctly. The rations consisted of
1-1/4 lb. of meat, 1/2 lb. of potatoes, 1 lb. of bread, some tea and
sugar, and six-pence the day beer money. All were satisfied, and the
arrangement was found to answer far better than formerly.
On the 5th, the battalion was inspected by Colonel Peel, who, after
pointing out a few faults in the keeping of distances, both in line
and skirmishing, expressed himself as being very well pleased, not
only with the way the drill had been performed, but with the camp
generally, and should make a favourable report. The numbers present at
the inspection were 507 of all ranks.
The officers gave the usual luncheon to the county families at the
termination of the inspection, and the next day, very early in the
morning, the tents were struck, blankets, palliasses, pegs, &c.,
counted and packed, and by 8 a.m. very little beyond straw, paper, and
débris marked where 500 men had been so long encamped.
The expenses of the camp were £230, and the subscriptions towards
meeting this but £161, making the normal deficit.
The novelty of camp was beginning to wear out, and the attendance daily
at parades less numerous than could have been wished. The regiment was
not in reality getting all the good anticipated. The canteen, as ever,
broke in upon punctuality and discipline. Beer and boon companionship
showed themselves at afternoon parades, and at roll call. Silence and
lights out after last post were not preserved. Leave was too often
applied for, and far too many only put in an appearance on the day of
inspection.
The _Army List_ for 1871 was as follows:--
The Marquis of Bath, _Honorary Colonel_.
J.F. Everett, _Lieut.-Colonel_.
T. Clark and C. Penruddocke, _Majors_.
R.D. Gibney, _Adjutant_.
William Fawcett, _Quartermaster_.
Charles Bleeck, _Surgeon_.
John M. Cardell and _J.S. Seale_, _Assist. Surgeons_.
1st Corps, Salisbury.
William Pinckney, _Captain_.
George Smith, _Captain_.
W.J. Wilton, _Lieut._
E.F. Kelsey, _Lieut._
F. Hodding, _Ensign_.
, _Ensign_.
T.E. Lee, _Assist. Surgeon_.
Revd. R.G. Swayne, _Hon. Chap._
2nd Corps, Trowbridge.
W.P. Clark, _Captain_ (_Comdt._).
E.P. Stancomb, _Lieut._
W.P. Clark, Junr., _Ensign_.
G.C. Tayler, _Assist. Surgeon_.
Revd. H. Meyer, _Chaplain_.
6th Corps, Maiden Bradley.
, _Captain_.
T.K. Harding, _Lieut._
E.S. Jefferys, _Ensign_.
Wm. N. Marshall, _Hon. Assist. Surgeon_.
Revd. R. Rowley, _Hon. Chaplain_.
8th Corps, Mere.
G. Troyte-Bullock, _Captain_.
E.A. Card, _Lieut._
, _Ensign_.
C. Rumsey, _Assist.-Surgeon_.
Revd. C.H. Townsend, _Chaplain_.
9th Corps, Bradford.
, _Captain_.
William Adye, _Lieut._
E.M. Davis, _Ensign_.
Revd. W.H. Jones, _Hon. Chap._
10th Corps, Warminster.
John Scott, _Captain_.
H. Ingram, _Lieut._
H.J. Wakeman, _Lieut._
T. Ponting, _Ensign_.
J. Flower, _Assist. Surgeon_.
Revd. Sir J.E. Philipps, Bart., _Hon. Chaplain_.
13th Corps, Westbury.
R.L.H. Phipps, _Captain_.
, _Lieut._
Samuel T. Stafford, _Ensign_.
14th Corps, Wilton.
, _Captain_.
C.R. Clay, _Lieut._
William Allen, _Ensign_.
P.J. Bennett, _Assist. Surgeon._
Revd. D. Olivier, _Chaplain_.
The usual regimental camp was entered this year (1871) on Homerton
Down, near Salisbury, assembling on the 4th August, and to a certain
extent answered its purpose. The battalion being divided into wings,
one half battalion, under the command of Major Clark, was detailed
to make a night attack on the camp protected by the remaining half
battalion, under Major Pinckney, Lieut.-Col. Everett being umpire.
The attacking party were successful; as the camp, extending over a
wide space on the top of a hill, with corn fields, thick gorse, and
bye-paths surrounding it, could not be defended against or repel
a combined attack on any face with so weak a garrison. A feint,
ultimately turned into a real attack, succeeded, and numbers decided
the victory.
On the 9th the battalion was inspected in camp by Colonel Peel, who, as
before, expressed himself satisfied with the progress all were making
in drill, and attributed the proficiency shown in acquiring the new
system of drill to the battalion being altogether in a camp, and to the
zeal of individual members.
As before, a luncheon was given by the officers to the county; and next
day having struck tents, packed stores, &c., the battalion was marched
to Salisbury, and was dismissed to its various head quarters.
This year, Mr. Poynder, of Hardropp Park, Chippenham, in addition to
numberless other prizes given to The County Rifle Association for the
annual competition, offered the sum of £10 to the best drilling and
really efficient company of each battalion: No. 1 Company and No.
10 Company alone entering for competition in this battalion, Major
Hallowes and Captain Collis of the 25th King's Own Borderers acting
as umpires. After a prolonged competition in drill, in which both
acquitted themselves wonderfully accurately and evenly, it was decided
in favour of the 10th Company, Warminster, that company having a larger
number on the parade ground.
The Expenses of the Camp were £399.
Subscriptions £253.
Camp Allowance £93.
Leaving a large deficit to be met by the travelling allowance. By
the resignation of the commission of junior major, held by Major
Penruddocke, Captain W. Pinckney was promoted to the rank of field
officer, and W.H. Laverton, Esq., was appointed captain in the 13th
Corps at Westbury.
There was a battalion parade held at Warminster on the 1st April, 1872,
and the officers dined together at the mess afterwards, when it was
agreed that the battalion should join the autumn manœuvres, to be held
in the county and in Dorsetshire in August. It was plain that a short
space of time spent in camp with regulars would be of great benefit to
all, and the system of punctuality and implicit obedience to orders
demanded in such a camp would produce corresponding results hereafter.
There were very many arrangements to be made, as the assistance from
Government, beyond promising rations such as were served out to all
the troops, was nothing at all. Some old great-coats were to be lent,
but little else. A committee, working under the lieutenant-colonel
commanding, and having the advice and assistance of one of the most
energetic and far-seeing of men, in Quartermaster Wm. Fawcett, brother
of the late Mr. Fawcett, M.P., left nothing undone, and on the
departure of the battalion from Salisbury for Blandford, where they
detrained and marched into camp, there was not found to be anything
omitted.
Early in the year the vacancy in the command of the 14th or Wilton
corps was filled up by the appointment of the Earl of Pembroke as
captain; and as that officer immediately attached himself to the
Guards, and afterwards to a regiment of the Line, so as to learn his
duties, the addition of his lordship to the officers of the battalion
was a very great advantage.
The battalion mustered at Blandford nearly 400 of all ranks, without
the band (this luxury not being brought), and they were met a short
distance away from their camp by the band of the 50th Foot, brigaded
with them; the men of which regiment had previously pitched the
battalion camp. Thus by their forethought, and desire to be friendly
and helpful, relieved an inexperienced lot from what would have been an
irksome job, and most probably not done at all according to regulation
or to the satisfaction of the authorities.
Whether the exigencies of the service required it, or whether the
marching in of the battalion from Blandford, the attendance at church
parade next day, or the smartness of guards and pickets, satisfied the
officers in command, is unknown; but without any test as to knowledge
or fitness, the regiment joined in a field day early on Monday, the 2nd
September, under the command of Colonel the Honble. Arthur Hardinge,
C.B., commanding the 2nd Brigade, 1st Division; to which brigade the
1st Administrative Battalion Wilts Rifle Volunteers was attached. In
the afternoon the whole southern army marched past the Prince of Wales
and the Duke of Cambridge, and next day the battalion, as forming part
of the brigade commanded by Colonel Hardinge, took part in the defence
of a position at Critchell attacked by a much larger force. The victory
was unmistakeably gained by Colonel Hardinge, and apparently was
obtained by the simple expedient of allowing himself to be attacked in
front, the only vulnerable point; his flanks being protected by rising
ground and dense woods, previously considered to be impassable by
either party. After some hours of skirmishing, short advances in line,
and refusing tempting opportunities, the attack was brought to an end,
and umpires declared the victory to have been gained by the officer
commanding the 2nd Brigade.
Not improbably, if the services of the volunteers were hastily
required, whole battalions would be at once called into action, and
there would be as little testing of their knowledge of manœuvring,
or even of the use of the rifle, as in these instances. A fortnight
of these divisional and brigade drills might make such men handy and
tolerable skirmishers, but nothing more. The steadiness required in
a retreat, deployments under heavy fire, or when suddenly attacked
by cavalry, would be wanting, and a victorious army on the slightest
check become thoroughly disorganized. Instructions as to any drills,
more especially in those touching upon the defence of positions,
guard duties, pickets, and individual action could not be given on
service; and the absence of a fair knowledge of such matters might
entail ruin on the whole force employed. One thing it most certainly
would do--bring a great diminution of strength in battalions. The
very bravery, contempt or ignorance of danger, and incapability of
self-defence, would decimate the half-taught volunteer battalions.
The 1st Administrative Battalion, Wilts, saw much bloodless service
whilst attending these autumn manœuvres, and learnt how wars were
won, but whether the future tense can be used is not for the writer
to say, he only thinks not. The Battle of Codford was a terrible
battle on paper, and doubtless, with the aid of good district maps,
admirably contrived so that both sides should win, or that defeat was
unlikely. Science and skill were to be the deciders of this great
battle, not murder and panic. Trout streams of varying depths, from
inches to feet, were to be considered rivers, with bridges here and
there broken down by artillery or blown up, so as to delay progress.
Walls and roadside buildings, loop-holed, demanded either delay,
or a detour through fields or swamps to recover the high road, and
artillery were so artfully posted as to be unknown and unseen until
the hail of shot and shell swept away at least a brigade from among
the many advancing, heedless of consequences. These contretemps have
occurred in real warfare. There was a surprise at Moodkee, something
worse at Ferozeshah; bayonets and bravery versus entrenchments and
mistakes at Subraon; and a defeat at Chillianwallah, all in India;
but these happened in days when skill was not so much considered, and
when weapons of destruction and arms of accuracy were quite in their
infancy. The Crimea had taught us something; the Mutinies, China and
Cape wars, more; and the result of the short, but cruel war, between
France and Germany, too recent for its lessons to be forgotten. Besides
all this, what were these autumn manœuvres got up for, but to teach
troops how to fight skilfully, and their commanders to practically
acquire a knowledge of strategy and tactics?
The valley dividing the great ridge, or Grovely Wood, and through
which valley somewhat lazily meandered the Wiley Brook, was the scene
where much of the conflict occurred. Farm houses, cottage gardens, and
water-meadows, half concealed in alder bushes, and low jungle, well
aiding the attack of the bold northern army on the position behind
Grovely Wood, and the great ridge taken up by the southerners. In vain
did the enemy's artillery vomit forth smoke and imaginary shot and
shell from copse and half-hidden points of advantage. The southerners
were not to be scared, but commencing the offensive, poured down upon
the devoted enemy through the paths of the Great Ridge Wood, and
covered by a cloud of skirmishers, drove the enemy from the valley,
dividing the positions of the two forces. Artillery answers artillery,
and cavalry, careless of consequences, chase skirmishers over the
meadows. Now the strategy, or _previous_ arrangements of the south
begin to tell, and gradually the attackers withdraw to their stronghold
across the great river Wiley, there in their turn to be attacked.
Perhaps the strategical part was over, and tactics required
modification; or, it may have been that the lessons in the "New
Primer," reduced to greater simplicity from the German edition on the
subject of warfare, were omitted for the occasion; however, what-ever
was the cause, the minor matters of "bridges blown up," "this part
of river unfordable," "this house is loop-holed," &c., were treated
with the contempt deserved, and men, flushed with victory, risked
their all in running through "unfordable" streams, passing over
"blown-up bridges," or hugging highways whose sides were lined with
"loop-holed" cottages or outhouses. It was no time to stop and consider
these trifles, losing valuable half hours over the restoration of a
bridge, or moving far away to a flank so as to avoid the discharge
from loop-holed barn or house. The heights of Codford, crowned with
artillery and armed men, bid defiance as they rose above the high road
leading to Salisbury, and to take these was to gain the victory.
"Deploy! Deploy!" was the word of command, and brigades extended into
line at the base of the steep hillside, firing volley after volley into
it, preparatory to commencing the ascent. Then came the storm, and,
amid a hail of bullets of imagination, a smother of hot powder, hotter
and thicker from its uncommonly close delivery, a jeer as from an
over-confident enemy, the brave 2nd Brigade struggled up the slippery,
moss-grown chalk hill, and staggering with over-exertion, breathless,
and disorganized, on reaching the summit, fearlessly attacked the
defenders' right, and claimed a victory. There was a pause. The bugles
rang out the "Cease fire," and whilst north and south were wrangling
among themselves as to blunders made, the umpire's decision was given
for the southern army, and parting company, both forces returned to
their camps.
The war ended not here. Yet another encounter took place between
the northern and southern armies before the time arrived for the
1st Administrative Battalion, Wilts, to return homewards. It tried
the marching powers of the volunteers, and appeared to have in it a
definite object and a definite plan; and so far as opening out the
road to London, or to somewhere in that direction, it was decidedly
successful. The flank of the northerners resting on Wishford, was
turned, and there could be no doubt of the inability of the centre and
right to share the glory, even had they come to the aid.
The Grovely Wood, or Great Ridge as it is termed, was an advantage
to the southern force. It extended for many miles continuous with
their right flank, and enabled them at any time to use its various
openings for the purpose of raiding the valley of the Wiley, or for
obtaining information of any changes occurring in the camp of the
enemy, posted on the higher ground between Codford and Wishford. On the
7th September, the battle of Wishford took place, and was commenced
by a large portion of the southern army (using the Great Ridge as
a screen) making a detour to the eastward, and then, when clear,
crossing the Wiley lower down at Wilton, and attacking in force the
left flank of the enemy at the time resting on the undulating ground
above the village of Wishford. The attack was irresistible, and to
all appearances unexpected; the numbers of the attackers being in
excess of the defenders, and no help from centre or flank being given.
Indeed this portion of the northern army had been kept fully employed
during the time occupied by the flank movement of the southerners, by
frequent attacks on it made by the troops holding Great Ridge and the
intervening valley of the Wiley; so that probably their being attacked
in force on the left was a surprise, and doubtless a defeat.
It was a very hard day's work, beginning any short time after daybreak,
lasting until nearly sunset, and it required a man to be the sternest
of disciplinarians not to enter fully into the satisfactory feelings of
H.M. Guards, when, some time before the finish of the day, they were
told by their commanding officer to lie down. "Smoke, if you like,"
added the hardened man, as he expressed himself grateful to the cocked
hat putting him and his regiment out of action till the battle was
over. Misguided man; he had perhaps despised his enemy, or on some
hill, somewhere, artillery were massed, and would play havoc among his
men, and for these he had not allowed. "You should have reduced your
front, sir," said he of the cocked hat, with withering sarcasm in his
tone, adding, "You are out of action until the battle is over."
"Thank God! Lie down, my men," was the impenitent reply of that
colonel.
Tired, hungry, and footsore, the battalion marched back again to
Wilton, and there, whilst the train was preparing by which they should
return homewards, they were hospitably entertained by Captain the Earl
of Pembroke, a proceeding certainly not anticipated earlier in the day,
by the noble host, or his hungry guests.
The following extract from Battalion Orders, dated 21st September,
1872, is given:--
"Lieut.-Colonel Everett has much pleasure in notifying to the battalion
under his command, that he has received a letter from Major-General
the Hon. A.E. Hardinge, C.B., lately commanding the 2nd Brigade, 1st
Division Southern Army, in which he desires the Lieut.-Colonel 'to
express to the regiment his entire approval of its discipline, and his
appreciation of the zeal and efficiency shown by all ranks during the
time they were under his command at the late autumn manœuvres.'"
Thus ended the one week attached to the regular army, and more good
was obtained from it by the battalion than might have been expected.
In no regimental camp can the same strict obedience to any order be
insisted on or carried out. The absolute and complete silence in camp
after "lights out," and that lights are out, is a great point gained;
the clipping of the wings of those rejoicing in proclaiming dawn, and
forcing such early birds to remain all still within their tents, until
the bugle note gives freedom; the punctuality on parade, fitness of
arms and uniform, respectful salute, and self-respect, are among the
many things acquired by being brigaded with regulars.
There was a regimental camp held the next year, 1873, on Warminster
Down, at which the attendance was not so large and continuous as could
be desired. It commenced on Monday, 4th August, breaking up early on
Saturday, the 9th, but much was against work and discipline. The first
two days were bitterly cold and wet, preventing parades, and either
detaining the men in their tents or filling the canteen marquee. A
moment's cessation of the downpour and the bugle summoned a parade, but
there it ended, and once again tents and canteen were occupied. These
two days' wet undid much of the good received from the camp with the
regulars, of the previous year.
On Friday the 8th, the battalion was inspected by Colonel Parish,
C.B., commanding the 38th Depôt at Devizes, who expressed himself
as satisfied; and after the usual luncheon given by the officers to
the county and visitors, the prizes won at the Wilts County Rifle
Association were given away by Lady Folkestone on behalf of the Earl
of Pembroke, who was president of the association for the year.
The field state at inspection only showed a total of 484, but the
reason for this falling off is not difficult to discover. One company
situated at Mere, on the borders of Dorsetshire, had great expenses
entailed upon them in attending camps or battalion drills, and were
to a great extent dependent on one large landholder for support, and
as expenses increased and supplies decreased, so was it with numbers
and efficiency, and twenty-five, all told, was now the strength of
the 8th Corps. No. 6 Corps, a body of men second to none for regular
attendance, fair knowledge of drill, discipline, and general set up,
were also conspicuous by their absence. They were almost entirely
composed of tenants on the estate of the Duke of Somerset at Maiden
Bradley, having been raised and commanded by the eldest son of his
Grace, and on his resignation, again were commanded by another son,
Lord St. Maur; whose untimely death, near Bombay, in an encounter
with a wounded bear, created a vacancy, which vacancy was filled up
by the promotion of Lieutenant H.B. Festing, agent to the Duke of
Somerset. The influence of this officer latterly was not favourable to
the support of the corps; and being agent to the Duke, gave him both
influence and power. Gradually the attendance at squad and adjutant's
drills diminished, and on this occasion of a camp and inspection, none
put in an appearance, consequently the corps was ineffective, and
ceased to exist, not only to the regret of the officers and men of the
battalion generally, but to many of the company.
The Expenses of the Camp were £190
Subscriptions £120
The _Army List_, for 1874, was thus:--
The Marquis of Bath, _Honorary Colonel_.
J.F. Everett, _Lieut.-Colonel_.
T. Clark and W. Pinckney, _Majors_.
R.D. Gibney, _Adjutant_.
W. Fawcett, _Quartermaster_.
C.J. Bleeck, _Surgeon_.
L.L. Seale, _Assist. Surgeon_.
1st Corps, Salisbury.
George Smith, _Captain_ (_Comdt._).
, _Captain_.
E.F. Kelsey, _Lieut._
F. Hodding, _Lieut._
T.E. Lee, M.B., _Assist. Surgeon_.
Revd. R.G. Swayne, _Hon. Chap._
2nd Corps, Trowbridge.
W.P. Clark, _Captain_ (_Comdt._).
E.P. Stancomb, _Lieut._
W.P. Clark, Junr., _Lieut._
J.H. Foley, _Lieut._
W.J. Mann, _Lieut._
G.C. Tayler, M.B., _Assist. Surg._
Revd. H. Meyer, _Hon. Chaplain_.
8th Corps, Mere.
G. Troyte Bullock, _Captain_.
E.A. Card, _Lieut._
W.N. Marshall, _Lieut._
C. Rumsey, _Assist. Surgeon_.
Revd. H.B. Townsend, _Chaplain_.
9th Corps, Bradford.
William Adye, _Captain_.
C.M. Davis, _Lieut._
T.W. Dunn, _Lieut._
Revd. W.H. Jones, _Hon. Chap._
10th Corps, Warminster.
John Scott, _Captain_.
H. Ingram, _Lieut._
H.J. Wakeman, _Lieut._
T. Ponting, _Lieut._
J. Flower, _Assist. Surgeon_.
Revd. Sir J.E. Philipps, Bart., _Chaplain_.
13th Corps, Westbury.
William H. Laverton, _Captain_.
J.P. Hall, _Lieut._
14th Corps, Wilton.
The Earl of Pembroke and Montgomery, _Captain_.
C.R. Clay, _Lieut._
William Allen, _Lieut._
T.J. Bennett, M.D., _Assist. Surg._
Revd. D. Olivier, _Hon. Chaplain_.
Easter Monday was fixed upon for a battalion drill, on the high ground
above Warminster, and the attendance was fairly good. There being no
hastening away to catch trains, or any sufficient reason for the parade
being otherwise than really instructive, advantage was taken of the
circumstance by the lieut.-colonel in command, and it was the fault of
those who were so patiently and carefully drilled, if some knowledge
of manœuvring was not acquired. It was bitterly cold, but dry. The
officers messed together at the "Bath Arms," preparatory to the various
companies entering the train for their respective head quarters.
On Friday the 31st July, 1874, the battalion assembled at Salisbury,
and marched to its camping ground on Homerton Down, and after one
week's good honest work, were inspected by Colonel Parish, C.B.,
commanding the depôt. The inspecting officer expressed himself as
gratified with the way the drill had been performed, and of the
arrangements in camp: but he was extremely so at the result of a sudden
alarm, given at 9.45 p.m. on the previous night, when he happened to
be in the camp, no previous intimation of such being likely to occur,
having been even hinted to any officer or man.
Within ten minutes of the "alarm" every officer and man was in his
position, and the roll call was answered faithfully. It spoke well for
the discipline of the battalion, and elicited the following remarks
from the inspecting officer in the order issued to the battalion on its
inspection next day:--
"A sudden alarm in camp last night showed the effect of good
discipline; the whole battalion turned out most creditably and took up
their position as well as any regiment of regulars or others could have
done. This is a good proof, if any were needed, of the benefit of camp
life. The inspecting officer will be able to make a most favourable
report on all he has seen, and congratulates the regiment on having so
admirably exerted itself and so well upheld the credit of the county
forces, &c., &c." The numbers on parade at inspection were 457. The
expenses of the camp amounted to £292, met by subscriptions, letting
canteen, and Government camp allowance to the extent of £232.
In the year 1875, Major W. Pinckney resigned the position of major in
the battalion, and Captain the Earl of Pembroke and Montgomery of the
Wilton Company accepted the vacant commission; Assist.-Surgeon Bennett
of the Wilton Company being appointed junior assistant surgeon to the
battalion. In No. 1 Corps, Salisbury, Lieut. Kelsey was promoted to be
captain, and A.H. Lush and G.W. Hamilton Gordon appointed lieutenants;
Captain Troyte Bullock resigning his commission in the 8th Corps, Mere.
On Easter Monday a battalion drill was held at Warminster, but sleet,
hail, and rain were against much being done. The attendance was good.
At the mess dinner afterwards held, previous to the time of departure
of the battalion, it was arranged for the annual camp to be held
on the downs as usual, and this took place on the 2nd August; the
regiment marching in only 177, though each day showed an improvement in
attendance.
At the inspection the field return exhibited 553 of all ranks, and the
way the drills were performed, and increased steadiness of all, called
forth much commendation from the inspecting officer.
This year saw the extinction of another company attached to the
battalion--No. 8 Corps--its head quarters at Mere. It was raised in
1859 through the influence of the Chafyn Grove family at Zeals, and
commanded for some time by Captain Chafyn Grove, Grenadier Guards, and
at his death supported, or rather kept efficient, through the influence
and pecuniary support of Miss Chafyn Grove, of Zeals House. This being
withdrawn, the numbers making themselves efficient became gradually
less, and this year saw the battalion reduced to six corps, with their
head quarters at Salisbury, Trowbridge, Bradford, Warminster, Westbury
and Wilton.
If proof were wanting of the value of influence and support from
county families to corps forming part of what was then termed an
Administrative Battalion, this and Maiden Bradley are good instances.
Had it not been for help both personally and by money from the nobility
and gentry of counties, few, if any, county corps could have been
raised at all, nor could they have existed six months. To prevent the
total collapse of the Volunteer Force the Government of the day came
tardily and unwillingly to their assistance, giving with a niggard
hand, but demanding much in return. To meet these demands always was,
and ever has been, a source of difficulty and expense to officers
and men; and where these had not the command of funds there was no
possibility of the corps becoming sufficiently efficient. A capitation
grant, insufficient to cover the expenses of uniform, accoutrements,
rents, practice grounds, targets, and fair wear and tear; a camp
allowance very far below the expense incurred, and limiting the
numbers attending; travelling expenses calculated on an idea that
giving up a day's work and performing walking feats worthy of the
best professionals was a common pursuit among country folk--made the
support of corps such as Mere and Bradley a difficult matter, and
resulted in their extinction. In both these corps, good officers and
non-commissioned officers, added to a great number of men, and these of
a very valuable class, have been lost to the State.
A summary of annual returns ending 1st November, 1875, is herewith
given:--
1st Administrative Battalion Wiltshire Rifle Volunteers.
Summary of Annual Returns, 1st November, 1875.
KEY TO COLUMN HEADINGS:
No. of Corps. A
Maximum Establishment. B
Efficients. C
Non-Efficients. D
Total Enrolled. E
Officers. F
Sergeants. G
Percentage of Efficients to Total Strength. H
+---------------+-----------------------------+---------------+-----+
| | | Certificates | |
| | | of | |
| Head Quarters | | Proficiency. | |
| of +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-------+-------+-----+
| Corps. | A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H |
+---------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-------+-------+-----+
| Salisbury | 1 | 200 | 162 | 11 | 173 | 3 | 8 | 94 |
| Trowbridge | 2 | 200 | 168 | 20 | 188 | 4 | 8 | 89 |
| Bradford | 9 | 100 | 59 | 6 | 65 | 2 | 4 | 91 |
| Warminster | 10 | 159 | 100 | 16 | 116 | 3 | 6 | 86 |
| Westbury | 13 | 100 | 60 | 5 | 65 | 1 | 3 | 92 |
| Wilton | 14 | 100 | 77 | 6 | 83 | 2 | 4 | 93 |
| Staff | | 13 | 12 | 1 | 13 | 3 | | 92 |
+---------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-------+-------+-----+
| | | 872 | 638 | 65 | 703 | 18 | 33 | 91 |
+---------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-------+-------+-----+
(Signed) Robert Dwarris Gibney, _Captain,
Adjutant 1st A.B. Wilts Rifle Volunteers_.
The Expenses of the Camp for 1875 were £208
Subscriptions £67
Camp Allowance £59
On the 17th April, 1876, a battalion drill took place at Warminster,
and afterwards at a mess dinner arrangements were made for holding
the usual annual regimental camp on Warminster Down, and accordingly
on Monday, 7th August, the various corps assembled at Warminster. The
"marching in" state was 228. The weather being threatening, no time was
lost in getting tents up, and this was done none too soon, for the rain
fell heavily and continued to do so more or less during the encampment;
Captain Hume, of the 45th Regiment, acting frequently as adjutant owing
to the ill health of Captain Gibney.
A wet camp is never very satisfactory--the canteen takes too much the
place of the parade ground; and it was so now: the lessons in "lights
out" and silence in camp from that time until the first bugle, taught
at the autumn manœuvres, being forgotten.
The inspection return showed 553 on parade, the same number as in
the previous year, but the attention given to orders and general
movements of the men on the parade ground was somewhat below former
years. Certainly the camp this year was decidedly not quite a success.
The cold squally weather drove many home on leave, and kept all from
work; so that the day of inspection saw numbers crowding in from the
district, and not a few, although they had been present all the camp,
very ignorant of their duties. However, the inspecting officer was
satisfied, and repeated his observations of previous inspections.
At the conclusion of the parade, the battalion formed three sides of a
square facing towards a dais, when the prizes won by members of corps
at recent competitions were presented to the successful competitors by
Mrs. Everett, wife of the lieut.-colonel commanding the battalion.
The usual Easter Monday drill for 1877 was held at Warminster on
the 2nd April, and the usual annual camp was held at Homerton Down,
Salisbury. The day of entering being a Bank Holiday, the afternoon was
given to sports, and many a hard struggle at the tug of war came off
between companies during the course of the afternoon. Perhaps, at this
particular exhibition of strength or pulling powers, the Wilton Corps
won oftenest, though Warminster run them very closely.
Next day work began in earnest, and with it the rain; thereby making
everybody useless and uncomfortable. The inspection took place on the
8th, conducted by Colonel Parish, C.B., commanding the depôt; but as
continual hail-storms and rain broke up the parade very frequently,
and necessitated the inspector and his aide taking shelter in the
Grand Stand, it was somewhat hard for him to say how evolutions were
performed; however, Colonel Parish was satisfied, and said so.
After some hours the weather cleared, and the prizes won at the
County Rifle Meeting were given away by the Countess of Pembroke and
Montgomery.
The Expenses of this Camp were £362
Subscriptions £10
Camp Allowance £57
Leaving a very serious deficit to be made up somehow among these
would-be defenders of the country or their friends.
Among the officers resigning their commissions, or lost to the
battalion through the age clause or some other hard and fast rule
being applied, was that of Captain J. Scott, commanding the 10th, or
Warminster Corps, the _Army List_ for 1878 not having that among the
number of names as belonging to the 1st Administrative Battalion Wilts
Rifle Volunteers. To this officer's generosity, zeal, and shrewd common
sense, the Warminster Corps were much indebted, and he was one who
could be ill spared from the battalion. John Scott, of Warminster, was
well known all round, and had become a feature in the battalion, more
especially in the regimental camp. Hard-working, genial, though rough
of speech, doing his own duty thoroughly, and decidedly interested in
such being done by all--Captain Scott was very much missed by being
absent from the camp assembled at Warminster on Friday, the 2nd August,
1878.
The inspection took place on the 7th, the field state showing 637 as
being present, and the attendance throughout the week having been each
day fairly equal. The result was decent drilling at the inspection. The
officer performing this duty was Colonel Jordan, C.B., who expressed
himself as being altogether very much satisfied with the way the
battalion executed the movements it was called upon to perform. Colonel
Jordan said that he "had seen many battalions of volunteers, but a
prettier little battalion than this of Wiltshire he had not seen. The
smart and tidy appearance of the men, and the condition of the arms and
accoutrements, reflected the greatest credit on all the officers and
non-commissioned officers of the battalion, &c."
The rain setting in before nightfall prevented the usual al-fresco
entertainment of singing round the great camp fire. It poured in
torrents, making the camp wet and miserable, and as the tents were
too wet to be struck, and expense was a consideration, the battalion
later on marched down to Warminster, leaving the camp standing, and
each corps proceeded homewards. To strike these tents, pack stores, and
guard the ground during the continuance of the deluge was a new source
of expense to the battalion.
The Expenses of the Camp were £300
Subscriptions £30
Camp Allowance earned £106
Leaving more than the usual deficit.
There being a war scare, and it appearing probable that the country
might be engaged, the following order was issued by the commanding
officer, as being a subject for the consideration of a committee of
officers assembled for another purpose:--"The committee will consider
in what manner the battalion could best offer its services to the
country in case of its being engaged in a foreign war, and to ascertain
what might be the average strength of the battalion available for
permanent garrison duty."
The result was, that it should offer its services as a battalion; and
that, provided pay and the usual allowances were passed, about 150 men
could be permanently guaranteed for general duty. The annual return, as
made up from the returns of corps, showed the effects of the war fever.
In 1877, the total efficients were 598, but in 1878 they rose to 704.
Early in the year 1879 there was the usual Easter Monday battalion
drill at Warminster, and later on the officers messed together and made
arrangements for a regimental camp, to be held at Warminster on the
4th August. It was a wet camp--almost every day rain--thereby limiting
the duration of parades, and the attendance; but discipline was well
preserved, and good resulted to the battalion at large.
On Thursday, the 7th August, His Royal Highness Prince Leopold, at
that time living in the neighbourhood, honoured the officers, and
their wives and friends, with his company at luncheon. He was received
by the commanding officer and the other officers at the entrance to
the mess tent, a guard of honour being on duty meanwhile. His Royal
Highness afterwards attended the afternoon parade, receiving a royal
salute, followed by the marching past him of the battalion. On the 8th
August, the battalion was very closely inspected by Colonel Bythesea,
commanding 38th Depôt, showing a total on parade of 589. The battalion
did fairly well, but the constant wet was against their working smartly
in any loose formations, where individual knowledge, or really common
sense, is brought into play. The "attack" would not have hurt any
but the attackers. Colonel Bythesea remarked that it would be gross
flattery on his part to say that everything which he had witnessed on
that occasion was perfect, and he need hardly tell them, that in many
particulars there was ample room for improvement. The unfavourable
state of the weather, of course, had interfered considerably with the
work of the camp, and might account for one or two of the shortcomings
which he had noticed. He was especially pleased with the state in which
he found the camp, and great credit was due to the battalion on this
account.
The Expenses of the Camp amounted to £318
Subscriptions £30
Camp Allowance £117
This year brought with it the retirement of Major T. Clark, an officer
of very long standing, not only in the battalion but in the Volunteer
Force generally; he having held the commission of a captain in the
Trowbridge Rifle Corps from the latter end of the year 1859 until
promoted major in the year 1862--at that time there being only one
major in the battalion. The long connection of this officer with the
battalion, his constant attendance at battalion drills, camps, and
reviews, and the frequency of his being in command of the battalion,
had made him so thoroughly a part of it that it was some time before
his absence could be fully realized. His genial hospitality, kindness
of heart, and willingness to overcome difficulties, made him loved
and respected by all knowing him well. At an age when most men begin
very much to appreciate the comforts of home, and indeed to whom it
is necessary that exposure to sudden changes of weather be none too
frequent, Major Clark joined the volunteers, and from that time for
twenty years did he give not only his time but very liberally from his
means to the furtherance of the movement. Major Clark knew and did his
duty, and endeavoured to make others do the same. It was through county
and other gentlemen, such as Major Clark, taking commissions which
helped so much to make the Volunteer Force not only respectable, but to
respect itself, and it ever will be so. The Volunteer Force, excepting
when embodied and directly under the command of a general officer,
can never be held together by the rules and regulations of the Army.
The position of the non-commissioned officers, often large traders,
shop-keepers, men of business, &c., and of the rank and file, fathers
of families, small farmers, shop assistants, school-masters, attorneys'
clerks and small tradesmen, preclude their being all governed by
one hard and fast rule and managed accordingly. If the Volunteer
Force, more especially that part of it, whether artillery, cavalry or
infantry, where the majority of the men are country folk, are to be
kept up in numbers and to be an inexpensive but useful addition to the
army generally, then the officers, especially the field officers of
battalions, must be selected men--men of fair wealth and good county
position. W.H. Fowle, Esq., was appointed to the vacant majority.
Head Quarters, Warminster,
_1st November, 1879_.
1st Administrative Battalion, Wiltshire Rifle Volunteers. Summary of
the Annual Return.
KEY TO TABLE HEADINGS:
No. of Corps. A
Maximum Establishment. B
Efficients. C
Non-Efficients. D
Total Enrolled. E
Officers. F
Sergeants. G
Percentage of Efficients to Total Strength. H
+---------------+-----------------------------+---------------+-----+
| | | Certificates | |
| | | of | |
| Head Quarters | | Proficiency. | |
| of +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-------+-------+-----+
| Corps. | A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H
+---------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-------+-------+-----+
| Salisbury | 1 | 200 | 152 | 1 | 153 | 5 | 11 | 99 |
| Trowbridge | 2 | 200 | 192 | 15 | 207 | 4 | 10 | 93 |
| Bradford | 9 | 100 | 59 | 3 | 62 | 1 | 4 | 95 |
| Warminster | 10 | 160 | 84 | 0 | 84 | 2 | 7 | 100 |
| Westbury | 13 | 100 | 91 | 7 | 98 | 2 | 4 | 93 |
| Wilton | 14 | 100 | 79 | 2 | 81 | 3 | 5 | 98 |
| Staff | | 15 | 10 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 100 |
| +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-------+-------+-----+
| | | 875 | 667 | 28 | 695 | 18 | 41 | 98 |
+---------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-------+-------+-----+
(Signed) Robert Dwarris Gibney, _Major,
Adjutant 1st A.B. Wilts Rifle Volunteers_.
There was no Easter Monday battalion drill for 1880, but a committee of
officers assembled on the 12th April at Warminster to audit accounts
and to make arrangements for the year.
On the 31st July, 1880, the battalion mustered in Salisbury and marched
to the racecourse, there to be encamped. The muster was good and the
weather favourable, so much was learned, and none could complain that
spare time hung heavily on them. The battalion was closely inspected
by Colonel Bythesea, commanding 38th Depôt, on the 6th August, and
certainly did well, though the roughness of the weather and high wind
rendered "orders" difficult to catch. The numbers on the parade were
559 of all ranks; not a few of these, selfish as to what might result,
or wrapped up in the belief that they were sufficiently well-drilled
to pass inspection, had not put in a previous attendance during the
whole encampment. At the conclusion of the inspection Colonel Bythesea
remarked "That he had had an opportunity of seeing them unofficially
the day previously, and was then very much pleased with their drill,
more so indeed than on the present occasion. He might tell them that
this was owing to the fact of the men in camp yesterday having been
there since the first day, thereby continuously learning, and making
the battalion to appear to greater disciplinary advantage than it did
to-day. Many of the men who were on the inspection parade this day
only arrived in the morning, not having attended previously." After
a pause he added, "A week's camp did them undoubted good, and next
year he hoped to see an appreciation of this fact in a larger and
more continuous attendance thereon, under their able and energetic
commanding officer, Colonel Everett, than whom none was more earnest
in the welfare of the battalion." The inspecting officer concluded his
remarks by pointing out how well the "attack" drill under Major the
Earl of Pembroke had been carried out, and trusted that more attention
might be given to "individual efficiency." The camp was struck and
despatched early on the morning of the 7th, and all returned to the
various headquarters.
The Expenses of the Camp were £401
Subscriptions received £35
Camp Allowance from Government £349
The Capitation Grant obtained for Efficiency for
the Battalion was £1133
In aid of the battalion funds a grand bazaar was held on the 6th and
7th October, 1880, in Wilton Park, by the kind permission of the Earl
and Countess of Pembroke and Montgomery. The opening day was worse
than wet--a heavy downfall of rain, such rain as precluded the hope of
purchasers, much more distant visitors. Amidst the damp and gloom the
various stalls, laden with really very beautiful, rare, and valuable
articles, were decked out in their brightest, and stall-keepers peered
through the downpour for customers. Here and there damp people showed,
and if not only intent on using the large sale tent for shelter, might
invest a trifle; but it looked bad for the disposal of saleables, and
the bargains were much confined to mutual dealings. His Royal Highness
Prince Leopold and the Marquess of Bath were amongst the patrons.
The patronesses were the Marchioness of Bath, the Marchioness of
Westminster, the Countess of Pembroke, the Countess of Nelson, Lady
Arundell of Wardour, Lady Antrobus, Lady Gertrude Bouverie, Lady Ellen
Gordon, Lady Theodore Guest, Lady Doreen Long, Lady Lilian Paulet, Lady
Octavia Shaw Stewart, Lady Trafalgar, Lady Charles Wellesley, Mrs.
Moberley, Mrs. Penruddocke, Mrs. J.P. Edwards, Mrs. M.K. Marsh, Mrs.
Fane Benett Stanford, Mrs. Fane de Salis, Mrs. Alfred Seymour, &c. The
stalls were held by the Marchioness of Bath, Mrs. Everett, Mrs. Gibney,
Mrs. Kelsey, Mrs. Hadding, Mrs. W.B. Clark, Mrs. Stancomb, Mrs. Wakeman
and Mrs. Ponting; Major Gibney undertaking the gallery of illustrations
and shooting gallery.
Towards the latter part of the day the weather somewhat improved, and
fair faces and importunity relieved the visitors from being embarrassed
with riches. Raffles, shooting galleries on a small scale, were in full
swing, and helped to swell the day's receipts. Next day, as regards
rain, there was not any; fine, but very wet under foot. Nevertheless,
the company of sightseers were numerous, and stall-keepers did a good
business; but it was evident that many had come to buy, and spent their
money without stint. The object was a good one; and at inspections and
other times few there were of any position in the county who had not
accepted hospitality from the battalion. Altogether, thanks entirely to
the generosity and consideration of the Earl of Pembroke, the bazaar
was a success; and with the amounts received from the two bazaars
subsequently held at Warminster and Trowbridge, realised the very
handsome sum of £400.
The _Army List_ for 1881 no longer recognised separate corps. The whole
volunteer force was consolidated, and the 1st Wilts Rifle Battalion was
thus, January 1881:--
_Honorary Colonel._
Bath, Marquis of.
_Lieutenant-Colonel._
Everett, J.F.
_Majors._
Pembroke and Montgomery, Earl of.
Fowls, W.H.
_Captains._
Clark, W.P.
Laverton, W.H.
Adye, W.
Kelsey, E.F.
Stancomb, E.P.
Wakeman, H.J.
Hodding, F.
_Lieutenants._
Clark, W.P., Junior.
Mann, W.J.
Ponting, T.
Hall, N.P.
Allen, W.
Gordon, Hamilton G.W.
Flower, T.
Clark, T.H.
Wilson, R.A.
Wilson, G.N.
Pinniger, H.D.
_Adjutant._
Gibney, R.D. (_Hon. Major_).
_Quartermaster._
Fawcett, W.
_Surgeons._
Bennett, T.J.M., M.D.
Tayler, G.C., M.B.
Lee, F.F., M.B.
_Acting Surgeon._
Hinton, J.
_Chaplains._
Jones, Revd. W.H.
Philipps, Revd. Sir J.E., Bart.
Olivier, Revd. D.
Meyer, Revd. H., M.A.
Cowley-Brown, Revd. G.J.
The officers met at Warminster on the 30th March, 1881, to make
arrangements for the year, auditing accounts, and to consider how best
it would be to act so that the battalion might attend at the Royal
Review to be held, later on at Windsor.
On the 9th July the various companies left their headquarters at some
unearthly hour in the morning, and marching to various stations on the
Great Western Railway, between Salisbury and Trowbridge, were picked
up by the special train and proceeded onwards to Slough. Here they
detrained, and were hastily proved and equalised; no time being lost
in this, as each company had brought with it a "present state," which
was given over to the adjutant on entering the train, and numbers of
companies with their strength, arranged by him previous to reaching
their destination; the strength of the battalion on the occasion being
599. The total number of volunteers present were 52,000.
There were a good many difficulties to contend with previous to the
battalion leaving for Slough. The railway company appeared to be
undecided as to their charges, and somewhat exacting as to where
trains should stop so as to pick up companies. To these magnates,
railway directors, it seemed but a little matter whether a volunteer
regiment or company marched a few additional miles out and home to
join a train which could, but would not, pull up at a nearer station.
Then the feeding arrangements were decidedly precarious; and as men
leaving home about 3 A.M., and not returning until about the same hour
next day, all wearing tight uniforms with little room to stow away
provisions, would be hungry, it was necessary to ensure a supply of
food. Contractors in London had agreed to meet the want, but something
at the last moment occurred to upset the arrangement, and on the day
previous to starting this battalion found itself unprovided for. It
was a very serious consideration. The men, scattered all over the
county, had been given to understand that provisions would be found on
the ground, and there was no time to alter previous arrangements; but
Quartermaster W. Fawcett was a man of resources, and between travelling
and telegraphing overcame the difficulty.
It was necessary to have meat and drink for six hundred hungry men on
the morrow by noon in Windsor Park, and Mr. Fawcett met the difficulty
by hiring a medium-sized furniture van, in which beer, wine, bread,
cheese, and pasties of pig's flesh (said to be) for about one thousand
individuals were stowed away (the pasties making were the night's work
for half the cooks at Salisbury), and the van with its contents placed
upon a truck and conveyed with the regiment to Slough. Here horses,
previously telegraphed for, were found, and when all was ready the
feeding van followed the battalion into the Royal demesne of Windsor,
causing it to be, after all, far better provisioned than many hailing
much nearer home. Hungry men are not very particular, but the pasty
was----
The day was very fine, and the review a complete success. Among the
thousands of volunteers wandering about the Park (being dismissed on
arrival until the assembly should sound) not one case of the slightest
impropriety occurred. It was a grand sight; so many citizen soldiers
drawn up in column, and afterwards marching past their sovereign; held
together, as her defenders, by no stern military codes. The love of
country, respect for law and order, had made these, and four times
these, study the art of war; and now one quarter of the whole, drawn
from all parts of her kingdom, assembled to do her honour. God grant
that their services may be never required for sterner purposes.
The following general order by H.R.H. the Commander-in-Chief was
published:--
"Windsor,
"_10th July, 1881_.
"The Field Marshal Commanding-in-Chief having received the Queen's
commands to express the gratification and pleasure with which Her
Majesty yesterday reviewed so large a force of her volunteer troops
in the Great Park at Windsor, and Her Majesty's entire satisfaction
with the soldier-like appearance and bearing of all ranks, His Royal
Highness desires, without delay, to notify Her Majesty's commands to
the forces.
"The troops reviewed consisted of 96 battalions, besides the Royal
Naval Artillery and the Honourable Artillery Company, the whole
composing upwards of 52,000 officers and men, representing the
volunteers of England and Wales.
"The concentration and subsequent disposal to their homes of so
large a body in so short a time would have been impossible without
proper subordination and strict obedience to orders, and judging
by the punctual performance of the railway service as well as
by his own observation of the battalions from the time of their
arrival to the close of the Review, His Royal Highness is satisfied
that the discipline and endurance of all ranks would do credit to
troops employed on permanent service, and are worthy of the highest
commendation.
"The Field-Marshal Commanding-in-Chief was most favourably impressed
with the military bearing of the officers and men, both on and off
parade; and His Royal Highness begs to thank the volunteers of
all ranks, the general staff officers of the force, the medical
officers attached to the field hospitals, and the staff officers
for railway service for the accurate and successful performance of
their respective duties. His Royal Highness's thanks are also due to
the railway authorities for their hearty co-operation and untiring
exertions, without which so large a concentration of troops could not
have been effected.
"By command,
"C.H. Ellice, _Adjt.-General_."
On the 23rd July the Lord Mayor of London entertained the commanding
officers of all the volunteer battalions represented at the Review at
Windsor on the 9th July, at a banquet in the Mansion House; Colonel
J.F. Everett, as representing this battalion, was among his Lordship's
guests.
Notwithstanding the battalion having been present so recently at
the Review in Windsor Park, the usual regimental camp was held. It
commenced on the 30th July at Warminster, and the annual inspection
took place on the 5th August; Colonel Bythesea, commanding 38th Depôt
Brigade, being the inspecting officer; the numbers present on parade
being 573. After the inspection Colonel Bythesea made the following
remarks to the battalion. "He was glad to have an opportunity of
meeting them for the third time, and was very much pleased at their
appearance and the creditable way in which they had performed their
duties. They had turned out clean and in good order, all their
appointments and clothing being very good." After saying it was not his
duty to always complain, the inspecting officer proceeded to remark on
the want of attention to little things which should be amended. "In
yesterday's drill, as also to-day, there was shown to have been a want
of attention to both company and squad drill, and yet for the correct
execution of manœuvres a knowledge of these drills was essential;"
adding that he was the more anxious to make this known as he felt
he was "addressing men who had sacrificed a great deal of time and
convenience in attending these camps, and had turned soldiers to help
their country."
The usual luncheon was given by the officers, and the evening being
bright and clear, the assembly round the great camp fire was numerous,
and song after song continued until the bugle-note recalled the many to
their tents.
At daybreak all were astir, and after packing the camp and a hasty
meal, the men were marched to the station, in time for the early trains
taking them homewards.
The age clause was brought to bear on Honorary Major and Adjutant
Robert Dwarris Gibney, and on the 23rd September that officer ceased to
be connected with the battalion. He had served with it somewhat over
twenty years, and had been the first adjutant appointed. A marvellous
change had come over it and the whole volunteer movement during this
period. Battalions administrative had become consolidated, and officers
and men lost much of their individuality. In most instances it was for
the best. The want of cohesion and system in battalions meeting their
component parts for drill everywhere and anywhere was injurious to the
service. The commanding officer of such a battalion was only so on
parade, and had but little authority. To adjutants first organising
these battalions the trials were numerous. Officers and men could and
did differ from him on matters of discipline, and could be at times
as contrary as agreeable. A man of camps or just off from Crimean and
Indian campaigning, albeit somewhat of a martinet, and of quick temper,
accustomed to obey and be obeyed, doubtless often found himself in
difficulties in the new state of things. However, these adjutants as a
rule not being very young men or exacting fools, learned how best to
adapt themselves to the change, and it is to the tact and common-sense,
but more especially to the support given to these officers by the
inspectors first appointed, commanding officers of battalions, as also
of companies, that much of the efficiency of the volunteer force is due.
Major R.D. Gibney had served for many years regimentally, and on the
staff, in India, and raising the 7th Company of Rifle Volunteers
(Gloucestershire) at Cheltenham in 1859, commanded the same until
appointed adjutant in Wiltshire, May 1861, and was among the senior
captains of volunteers in the service. The following farewell order was
issued:--
"Head Quarters, Warminster,
"_23rd September, 1881_.
"The colonel commanding the battalion cannot allow Major R.D. Gibney
to retire from the active part of the service without publicly
expressing on the part of the battalion their best thanks to Major
Gibney for the active, zealous, and satisfactory manner in which he
has always performed the onerous duties of an adjutant during the
twenty years which he has served in the 1st Wilts Rifle Volunteers."
On the 15th October a testimonial, in the shape of a silver tea-urn,
was presented to the late Adjutant-Major R.D. Gibney on his retirement,
at a dinner held for the purpose at the Bath Arms, Warminster.
The Honorary Colonel, The Marquis of Bath, the Honorary Chaplain, Sir
James Erasmus Philipps, Bart., and the officers of the battalion being
present, the chair was taken by Colonel Everett, the vice-chair by
Major The Earl of Pembroke and Montgomery, and after the presentation
had been made by the colonel commanding the battalion in words both
generous and kind, a suitable reply was given by Major Gibney. A long,
long farewell, with many heartfelt good wishes were exchanged on both
sides, and the connection with the regiment was severed.
Captain John D. Hume, of The Sherwood Foresters, was appointed adjutant
23rd September, 1881, vice Honorary Major R.D. Gibney, retired.
The Expenses of the Camp were £396
Subscriptions £40
Camp Allowances £166
The Expenses of the Battalion attending Windsor
Review were £194
Review Allowances from Government £59
On the 6th December the battalion paraded at Warminster at 5.30 P.M.,
so as to line the streets on the occasion of the visit of the Prince
and Princess of Wales to Longleat House, and the town was illuminated.
The weather was boisterous and wet, entirely spoiling the effect.
The Summary of Annual Returns showed a total strength of 650, of whom
629 were registered as "efficients."
The capitation grant earned amounted to £1140. Water-bottles and new
belts were purchased for the whole battalion.
Early in the year 1882 a meeting of officers took place at Warminster
to audit accounts, and to make such arrangements as might be considered
necessary for the twelve months.
On Easter Monday, 10th April, the battalion took part in a review and
sham fight which was held in the neighbourhood of Portsdown Hill, near
Portsmouth, afterwards marching past His Royal Highness the Duke of
Cambridge, who received the salute. The number of men engaged on the
day exceeded 27,000.
The battalion detrained at Fareham, and proceeded at once to occupy the
position assigned to them. The weather was fine, but cold.
The troops were under the command of Prince Edward of Saxe-Weimar,
and were divided into an attacking and defending body, the former
consisting of 15,085 men, commanded by Major-General Higginson, and the
latter of 12,486 men, under Major-General Packenham, and to this latter
force the 1st Wilts Battalion was attached. The sham fight took place
in the country to the north of Portsdown Hill, and was not decisive.
The battle was brought to an end at 2 P.M., and at 3 P.M. the march
past commenced. His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales was present, but
the salute was taken by H.R.H. Field-Marshal the Duke of Cambridge.
The following General Order was issued by H.R.H. the
Commander-in-Chief:--
"It is very gratifying to the Field-Marshal Commanding-in-Chief, upon
each fresh occasion when His Royal Highness has an opportunity of
reviewing large bodies of volunteers, to witness on the part of all
ranks a greater steadiness under arms, and an increased attention to
drill. Upwards of 20,000 volunteers took part in the day's operations,
and the manner in which these were carried out reflects great credit
upon all concerned. The soldier-like bearing of the men, their prompt
obedience to the orders of their officers, and the silence with which
the movements were effected was most satisfactory.
"The good conduct of the volunteers on the march from Petersfield, and
of those who for the last two days have been quartered in and about
Portsmouth, does honour to the great National Force to which they
belong.
"It has afforded Field-Marshal His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales
great pleasure to take part as a Colonel of Volunteers in the day's
proceedings. The Field-Marshal Commanding-in-Chief begs to thank
General His Serene Highness Prince Edward of Saxe-Weimar for the
excellence of his arrangements, which conduced so much to the success
of the operations; and His Royal Highness congratulates the General
Officers, Brigadiers, the Staff, and all the officers of the regular
forces who have given their assistance, upon the efficiency with which
they performed their respective duties."
On the 7th August the battalion assembled at Warminster for the annual
camp, marching-in strength being 353, and present at inspection 510.
After the inspection Colonel Bythesea, Inspecting Officer, and
commanding 38th Depôt, addressed the following words to the battalion:--
"It is the fourth time I have had the pleasure of inspecting you, and
on looking over the returns I find that whilst many have attended
squad drills, a large number have been absent from them. I am pleased
with the accoutrements and clothing, as also with your cleanliness and
smartness, and on the examination of the camp was glad to find the
tents all kept neatly and in good order."
This year, 1882, an ambulance corps was formed, consisting of four men
per company. They were instructed by Staff-Surgeon Bennett and the
medical officers of the battalion.
The Expenses of the Camp were £324
Subscriptions received £30
Camp and Travelling Allowances £227
The enrolled strength of the Battalion was 629
Total Efficients 590
On the 23rd February the annual meeting of the officers was held at
Warminster to audit the accounts and to make arrangements for the year
1883.
The usual regimental camp was held on Homerton Down, near Salisbury,
the battalion marching in on Tuesday the 2nd August. On Monday the 6th
August, by the kind permission of the Earl of Pembroke and Montgomery,
a concert and regimental fête was held at Wilton Park, in aid of
the Band Fund, and a sum of about £80 was realised. On the 8th the
battalion was inspected by Colonel Brett, the number at the inspection
being 530. The inspection was held under considerable disadvantages,
the weather being very inclement. At the conclusion of the inspection
Colonel Brett informed the battalion that "he was pleased with the way
officers and men had turned out, with the way the tents were pitched,
and camp kept, and also was glad to hear that the conduct in camp had
been good. The movements on parade might have been executed smarter,
but the march past and battalion movements were well done, the 'attack'
being very well carried out. He should have liked to have heard a
little more command from company and section commanders given while the
firing was going on, as, in the attack, ammunition should be expended
with very great discretion, it being of more importance that the aim
should be accurate and true than that the firing be delivered quickly.
The guards and sentries wanted smartness, for though guard duties were
irksome in camp, too much attention could not be paid to having them
carried out correctly and smartly. The responsibility and care of the
camp devolved on those guarding it."
The Expenses of the Camp were £386
Subscriptions £30
Camp and Travelling Allowances £333
The camp was broken up on the 9th August.
The Summary of Annual Returns showed a total enrolled, 615, efficients,
587.
The officers met at Warminster early in this year, 1884, to audit the
accounts, and to make arrangements for the year.
On 16th May the battalion, in conjunction with the yeomanry, took part
in a field day on the downs between the race-plain and Salisbury, near
the village of Barford, Colonel Everett commanding the attacking force
and Major Fowle the defending, Colonel Brett and Lord Arthur Somerset
acting as umpires; the field day ending with a march past on the
racecourse.
As there was no camp held this year, the battalion assembled for the
purpose of inspection at Warminster on Saturday 9th August, at 3.30
P.M., and were marched to the down, there being present on parade 467,
made up into 8 companies of 21 file each, under the command of Colonel
Everett, the inspecting officer being Colonel Brett, commanding the
depôt. The afternoon was intensely hot, and all things were not so
satisfactory as could have been wished. The whole, after partaking
of some bread, cheese, and beer, eventually returned to the railway
station, and from thence homewards.
This year Honorary Major and Captain W.P. Clark, commanding the
Trowbridge companies, resigned his commission, he having with his
brother, Major Clark, raised the 2nd Corps, and been the officers first
appointed, Major T. Clark as captain, and Honorary Major W.P. Clark as
lieutenant. To both these officers all connected with the Trowbridge
Rifle Corps are much indebted, and to their example and tact is due
much of the invariably good behaviour of the men under them. Honorary
Major W.P. Clark will be missed from the battalion. A genial and
obliging officer, knowing his duty well, and setting an example to all
in camp or elsewhere, in the way he carried out all orders, received in
unhesitating obedience. On the 6th October a meeting of the officers
was held at Warminster, and it was there arranged that a regimental
camp as usual should be formed in 1885 at Warminster in the beginning
of August.
The Summary of Annual Returns showed 541 efficients, and the capitation
grant earned was £1079.
Extract from _Army List_, January, 1885:--
_Honorary Colonel._
Bath, The Marquis of.
_Majors._
Pembroke and Montgomery, The Earl of.
Fowle W.H.
_Captains._
Adye, William (_Hon. Major T_).
Kelsey, E.F.
Stancomb, E.F. (_Hon. Major T_).
Wakeman, H.J.
Hodding, F.
Wilson, G.N.
Clark, W.P.
_Lieutenants._
Mann, W.H.
Hall, J.P.
Clark, T.H.
Farebrother, H.J.L.
Pelly, Sir H., Bart.
Kelland, J.
Pinckney, A.B.
Smith, S.
Curtis, P.F.
_Adjutant._
Hume, J.W.T. (_Captain, Derby Regiment_).
_Quartermaster._
Harris, G.
_Surgeons._
Bennett, T.J., M.D. (_Honorary Surgeon-Major_).
Tayler, G.C., M.B.
Lee, F.F., M.B.
_Acting Surgeon._
Hinton, J.
_Honorary Chaplain._
Olivier, Revd. D.
_Acting Chaplain._
Doyle, The Very Revd. C.D., M.A., Dean of Salisbury.
On the 1st May a special meeting of the officers of the battalion was
convened at Warminster to consider the proposal of the general officer
commanding the district, Sir George Willis, K.C.B., with regard to the
formation of a Volunteer Transport Corps. After some correspondence
the movement was abandoned, and this principally from the War Office
refusing to assist with the necessary funds.
On Saturday the 1st August, the annual camp was held on Warminster
Down, the men marching in on the Saturday afternoon, their strength
being 419, when they immediately proceeded to pitch tents and establish
the camp. The next day could hardly be considered a day of rest for
the battalion, inasmuch as the early morning found the men employed
on fatigue duties, the forenoon at an instruction drill under Colonel
Everett, and the afternoon at church parade, not held as formerly,
with a chaplain and a drum concealed by the colours for a reading
desk, and a very attenuated congregation of somewhat husky volunteers
forming choir and listeners, but a parade, marching to church down at
Warminster, at least two miles away. It was far better so; an idle
Sunday in camp was detrimental in every way. It was simply a lounge for
visitors, and was subversive of discipline, and often propriety.
Monday, being Bank Holiday, was treated as such after twelve o'clock,
and athletic sports took the place of drill. The spectators must have
exceeded 6000 in number, and were well rewarded for coming so far.
Races (with an allowance for age and service), officers' menagerie
race (won by geese, splendidly held together and driven by Lieuts.
Whitehead and Curtis), hurdle races, sack jumping, and tug-of-war.
Four companies competed in the bayonet exercise--Salisbury, Wilton,
Warminster, and Bradford, the judge being Major Helme, the prize being
a challenge cup, given by Lord Harry Thynne, M.P. It was won, but not
without a very close contest, by the Salisbury company; the first and
second prizes of 40_s._ and 20_s._ (with 10_s._ extra for the drill
instructor of the winning squad) to Wilton and Warminster companies.
There were prizes for which the yeomanry were alone eligible, such as
tent-pegging, tilting at the ring, &c., at which much skill and really
good horsemanship was shown. Captain Helme, of the Rood Ashton Troop,
was _facile princeps_ both in tent-pegging and tilting, but refused to
take a prize.
On the 7th the battalion was inspected by Colonel Brett, commanding
the 38th Depôt Brigade, the parade state showing 568 as present. The
day was intensely hot but fine, and the onlookers many. The battalion
assembled on the general parade at 2.30 P.M., and after a thorough
inspection were addressed by Colonel Brett. He said that the march past
was especially good, the evolutions executed smartly and in good style,
and in marching at the double the men kept together and moved with a
precision which would do credit to a line regiment. The camp was clean,
well kept and orderly, and the drills, including bayonet exercise,
and the new system of attack, creditably performed, more especially
considering the short space of time they had been learning it.
The inspecting officer then required those belonging to the ambulance
corps to be put through their movements, and was well satisfied with
the thorough knowledge displayed.
The evening saw a merry lot sitting round the usual great camp fire,
song after song passing on from officer or man until the bugle rung
out the retire, and visitor and volunteer quitted the scene. But they
had to be up early the next day; breakfasts soon after daybreak, their
tents to strike, and the whole camp to be packed. This done, a picnic
dinner on the short crisp turf of the wild downs, and the whole marched
to Warminster on the return to their respective homes.
The Expenses of the Camp were £325
Camp Allowance £327
Subscriptions £30
The Capitation Grant earned was £1088
Head Quarters, Warminster,
_1st November, 1885_.
1st Wilts Volunteer Battalion.--Summary of Annual Returns.
KEY TO COLUMN HEADINGS:
a. Company.
b. Station.
c. Efficients.
d. Non-Efficients.
e. Total Enrolled.
f. Officers.
g. Sergeants.
h. "Tactics." Certificated Officers.
i. Marksmen.
j. Remarks.
+----+------------+----+----+-----+------------+--+---+---------------------+
| | | | | |Certificates| | | |
| | | | | | of | | | |
| | | | | |Proficiency.| | | |
|----+------------+----+----+-----+------+-----+--+---+---------------------|
| a. | b. | c.| d.| e. | f. | g. |h.| i.| j. |
|----+------------+----+----+-----+------+-----+--+---+---------------------|
| A. | Salisbury | 91| 4| 95 | | 6 | |30 | |
| B. | Salisbury | 98| 2|100 | 1 | 5 | |25 | |
| D. | Trowbridge | 61| 3| 64 | 2 | 5 |1 |10 | |
| E. | Bradford | 82| 4| 86 | 1 | 5 | | 0 |Range only 300 yards.|
| F. | Warminster | 79| 3| 82 | 1 | 8 | |37 | |
| G. | Westbury | 50| 2| 52 | 1 | 1 | |11 | |
| H. | Wilton | 67| 3| 70 | 3 | 4 | |29 | |
| | Staff | 15| 2| 17 | 3 | 1 | 1| | |
| +------------+----+----+-----+------+-----+--+---+ |
| | Totals | 614| 25|639 | 13 | 40 | 2| | |
+----+------------+----+----+-----+------+-----+--+---+---------------------+
(Signed) J.W. Hume, _Major and Adjutant,
1st Wilts Rifle Volunteers_.
This year, 1885, marks the retirement from command of the battalion of
one who could be ill spared. Colonel Everett sent in his resignation
towards the close of the year, and with this episode it may be as
well to bring this history to a conclusion. In Colonel J. Everett the
battalion had found just the man they wanted, and just at the time
most needed. Energetic, self-reliant, a first-rate business man, and
of great command of temper, he used all these valuable qualities for
the new duties which he had undertaken. He found the seeds of good well
sown in the battalion, of which he accepted the command in 1866; but
they wanted developing. Never had a better class of men, as a whole,
more willing or, as things were at that time, possessing more general
knowledge of drill than the 1st Administrative Battalion Wilts Rifle
Volunteers, been offered to a young officer fresh from the service.
Systematic drills, discipline, and cohesion were what were required,
and so Colonel Everett was not long in discovering that these could
never be attained by following old courses. Regimental camps and a turn
occasionally at Aldershot, or in camp with regulars, were the only
panacea; and by patiently continuing these, the battalion has become
one worthy of the encomiums ever passed upon it by authorities, and of
being of use in the defence of the empire, should its services ever be
demanded.
The following copy of battalion orders dated December 15, 1885, is
given: "It is with much regret that Colonel J.F. Everett now takes
leave of the 1st Wilts Rifle Volunteers, after commanding them for
nearly twenty years, and he will always look back with pleasure and
satisfaction to his long connection with them; and though it is with
great reluctance that he relinquishes the command, yet it gives him
much consolation and satisfaction to know that it devolves on the Earl
of Pembroke, the next senior officer, and one who has always shown as a
subordinate officer a perfect example of strict obedience and all other
good qualities which a soldier ought to possess; and who, by position
and knowledge of the military profession, is in every way fitted to
take command of the battalion.
"In conclusion, Colonel Everett begs to thank the officers,
non-commissioned officers, and men of the battalion for their uniform
good behaviour, good discipline, and attention to his orders during
the many years he has commanded them, and he hopes they will always
endeavour by their good conduct and discipline to make themselves more
efficient year by year, and to increase the already good reputation
which they bear.
"By order.
"(Signed) J. Hume, _Major and Adjutant
1st Wilts Rifle Volunteers_."
Finis.
As this account of the raising of a battalion of infantry in the now
well-known and fairly efficient body of men termed the Volunteer
Force of Great Britain is sent to the printers, so once again comes
the rumour of war and the possibility of our being invaded. We are
stronger, better armed, and as a nation generally far better acquainted
with the needs of warfare and how to meet them; but so are those who
not improbably will be opposed to us. The past thirty years have been
thirty wondrous years of increased knowledge in all that concerns
war. Steam has in reality bridged the Channel, when vessels of ten
thousand tons can steam more than twenty miles an hour; and these are
both numerous and well adapted for troopers. Guns have been made far
more destructive, and are effective at immense distances; and armies,
which then were considered terrible in their numbers and might, are now
increased fourfold; and no single thing left untried or unconsidered
which might tend to their capabilities of offence or defence. We may
be better prepared to resist invasion than we were in 1859, but are we
so fully prepared, and are our forces so numerous, so armed, so fully
equipped and so fully provided with guns, hospital comforts, carriage
and commissariat, as would allow of our auxiliary forces being called
upon suddenly to serve and, so serving, to hold their own and keep the
field for a prolonged period?
It is no time to be careful as to what foreigners may impute, or to
defer preparations in deference to their feelings. War in Europe is
imminent, at the door, and war in Europe not improbably means some
nation or nations at war with us. If this be so, we may rest assured
that nothing less than our ruin as a naval and military power would be
attempted.--R.D.G. 1888.
1ST CORPS (SALISBURY) WILTS RIFLE VOLUNTEERS.
Among the first to stir in the matter of self-defence and raising a
corps of rifle volunteers was the city of Salisbury--England's Venice.
Indeed, a rifle corps, consisting of one company and a sub-division,
with its officers and non-commissioned officers, drill and practice
grounds, and systematic teachings, had been established and worked
before many other towns and cities had done much more than think
something really ought to be arranged--of course not by themselves,
but by the Government. However all this may be, the old cathedral city
of Salisbury, so early as May, 1859, had called a public meeting at
the White Hart Hotel to consider the desirability of raising a body
of riflemen from the city; and among those attending the greatest
enthusiasm prevailed. After some preliminary conversation, Mr. J.H.
Jacob, of the Close, was asked to take the chair, and business
immediately commenced. Among those present were many of the leading
county families, as also the principal tradesmen. Indeed the room was
inconveniently filled, upwards of one hundred persons being there.
Several gentlemen addressed the meeting, when T.W. Gilbert, Esq.,
moved, and J. Pinckney, Esq., seconded, a resolution to the following
effect: "That in the opinion of this meeting it is desirable that a
rifle corps be established in this city, to be called the Salisbury
Rifle Corps, and to be under the regulations received from the War
Office."
This resolution was unanimously adopted, as also was a second, moved
by A. Denis Hussey, Esq., and seconded by Mr. James Brown: "That a
committee be formed for the purpose of establishing such, and that they
be empowered to enrol members, receive subscriptions, frame rules and
regulations, and to communicate with the Lord Lieutenant of the county
thereon. That five be a quorum, and that such committee do consist
of Messrs. J.H. Jacob, A.D. Hussey, T.W. Gilbert, J. Pinckney, James
Brown, E.W. Brodie, E. Fisher, John Read, W. Pain, E. Sidford, W.
Fawcett, jun., R. Cobb, N. Davis, with power to add to their number."
At the suggestion of T. Pain, Esq., that the command of this corps,
with the rank of a field officer, be offered to the present chairman,
should the Lord Lieutenant of the county consent to such appointment,
the proceedings were brought to a close. The following was given as
an estimate of about the expenses incidental to any joining the rifle
corps, and receiving no assistance from subscriptions, &c., &c.:--
Rifle (Lancasters) £4 6 0
Suit of Uniform £2 15 0
Chaco and Ornament £0 7 6
Belt and Pouch £1 2 6
--------
Total £8 11 0
In the issue of the _Salisbury and Winchester Journal_ of May 28, 1859,
under the heading of "The Salisbury Volunteer Rifle Corps," the names
of the chairman and committee of the corps were given in full, and a
"Notice" to the following effect was added:--
"The committee being prepared to enrol members of this corps under the
regulations recently issued from the War Office, all persons wishing to
join are requested to forward their names in writing to any member of
the committee, and they will be duly enrolled.
"All members of the corps must undertake to pay for their own uniform
(the cost thereof not to exceed £3 10_s._), to be provided through the
medium of the committee.
"The arms and accoutrements will be provided by the committee from
the funds to be raised by subscription, and will thenceforth be the
property of the corps."
The attention of all the citizens of Salisbury was called to this
advertisement by the editor of the paper, and from this date very many
enrolled themselves as members of the Salisbury corps; J.H. Jacob,
Esq., being appointed captain-commandant, and he afterwards selecting
and recommending the names of gentlemen willing to serve to fill the
subordinate positions. That something more than playing at soldiers
was intended may be inferred from the editorial of the paper in which
the advertisement appeared. It is presumed that the editor not only
appreciated the gravity of the situation, but repeated the sentiments
of those attending the meeting, when he stated the result of inquiries
to be, "the obligation of every member to obtain a fair proficiency
in drill, and to obey the regulations published, and that this could
be done easily by an hour-and-a-half's drill in the morning, say from
7 to 8.30 a.m., and an hour-and-a-half in the evening, from 6.30
to 8 p.m., on consecutive or separate days, as most convenient, so
that interference with professional or other avocations need not be
feared." Shades of the past! "to be done easily." Time was precious,
and men were enthusiastic; and perhaps were circumstances to repeat
themselves, elderly gentlemen and striplings would again be seen very
early in the morning practising judging distances on a common or on
some wild moor, and of an evening setting out in hail, rain, or snow
for the shed, hall, or yard used for drill instruction. There certainly
is not the necessity now for all this assiduous attention, but the
Force would be better for more care being given to these preliminary
drills. The foundation of drills was well laid there, and the result
was greater steadiness in the ranks, and perhaps a greater individual
knowledge of the meaning of certain manœuvres. It would take a good
deal now-a-days to make young England turn out at daybreak to improve
his knowledge of skirmishing and judging distance, or to give up the
sweet saunter on the _pavé_, with a bad cigar in his mouth and the
refreshment derivable from an occasional glass of bitter beer, for one
to two hours' instruction in minutiæ, and an occasional lecture on war
as a science. If skill in the use of the rifle and a thorough knowledge
of the movements of a company in battalion or singly were necessary in
1857 to preclude the possibility of an invading army making progress in
this our island, much more is required now. The use of steam, from the
largest to the smallest vessel, and the enormous speed, sea-worthiness,
and capabilities of these vessels, have thrown twenty bridges across
the Channel, where formerly two barely existed. Our trade has increased
enormously, and as we are dependent on it in many instances for mere
existence, it demands greater attention from our fleets in every part
of the world, and weapons of war are far more deadly. In other words,
war has become a science. Doubtless bravery, or, as Lord Palmerston
had it, "he who could stand a quarter of an hour more beating than
another will win," if the old style of hammer and tongs be adopted; but
we have no right to suppose this. We know that the Germans blundered
very little, and in invading carried all before them. If, in our turn,
we should be invaded or at war, it were well for us to have every joint
in the harness carefully looked to beforehand, and not trust too much
on such a reed as militia or volunteers would be after a "little more
teaching," "some weeding out," and "embodiment." The next European war
in which England is engaged, gives time for none of these processes;
and not improbably the volunteer battalion, made up of scattered
companies, full of half-drilled, ignorant bumpkins or mechanics, with
no great-coats, paper-soled boots, and underclothing spare and worn,
working as labourers in the wildest parts of Yorkshire, or the smelting
works of Staffordshire, will be summoned by telegraph to join the head
quarters at ----, and take part in the manœuvres deemed necessary to
repel an invasion occurring or occurred on the coast. Will men then be
weeded out? Will their poor papery boots, spoiled by the mud of the
first ditch they are bid to hide in? Will their utter ignorance of sign
or signal, of the value of keeping touch, and not acting independently,
stand them instead, and they be sent to the reserve until better
suitable? I trow not. They will be subjected, regular and irregular,
taught and untaught, to the same murderous fire and rigorous treatment.
There will be no time for selection, and the whole nation will rue
the day when they were persuaded into the belief that they were not
likely to be attacked, and that for offence or defence they were amply
provided.
Among the first officers of the company were Captains Jacob, Beverley
Robinson, and Ambrose Hussey, Esq., with Mr. Wyndham Payne, Edward
Fisher, George Smith, C. Brown, W.J. Wilton, as subalterns; whilst the
names of Mr. Walter Clapperton, Mr. Stokes, Mr. Read, Mr. Farrant, Sir
E. Poore, Mr. E. Kelsey, Mr. Sheppard, Mr. Harris, Mr. Aylward, Mr.
Maunder, Mr. Rae, Mr. Lucas, Mr. Farr, Mr. Curtis, as non-commissioned
officers at the same time may be mentioned. Captain Jacob commanded
the company, with its headquarters at Salisbury, and the half company
with its headquarters near Downton, under the command of Lieutenant
Wyndham Payne, and no time was lost after organization in commencing
drills and practices. The records kept are small in amount, giving
no details, and as a rule are merely orders for drills and parades.
"The Company will parade on Harnham Hill, or at the Reservoir at 7
a.m. to-morrow for judging distance drill," or "to-morrow evening for
position and aiming drill at the Market House," appears monotonously
frequently, after the 9th September, 1859, in the Company Order Book.
The corps were present at the review held in their neighbourhood at
Clarendon Park, mustering well, two companies with thirty file each,
and were always well represented at other reviews and battalion drills.
The corps attended as two companies at Durdham Downs, near Bristol,
and doubtless joined in the obnoxious volley firing, at Bath, Southsea
Common, Portsdown, the autumn manœuvres, Royal Review at Windsor, and
Jubilee Review more recently at Aldershot. At the various regimental
camps the numbers have been fairly good, though marching-in strength
was not well continued day after day; but tradesmen, particularly of
a busy city like Salisbury, can ill afford to be much away from their
work, and of these the Salisbury Rifle Corps have been and yet are
composed. The uniform selected was more useful than beautiful, its
cut being after the style as shown in the figures of Noah & Sons in
the ark. Certainly the corps attracted many young men into its ranks,
but the uniform could not have been the source. It however was not
lost upon the London street boy, inasmuch as, when Captain Jacob and
Lieutenant Robinson in uniform proceeded down St. James Street on
their way to the levée held in 1860 for the presentation of volunteer
officers only, one urchin remarked, "Well! if them ain't the ugliest
buffers we've seen yet." A sentiment which (speaking from absolute
knowledge) the captain thoroughly appreciated.
The formation of the various corps of South Wilts into a battalion
with its head quarters at Salisbury, and that city very often used
as a meeting-place for all the corps on battalion occasions, was
perhaps rather advantageous to the headquarter companies, enabling
them to practise field movements, and to acquire more knowledge of
battalion manœuvres than other corps, and at less cost; but it is
doubtful after all. The dispersion of other companies in the midst of
a battalion drill in order to get to railway stations affected them
too, and perhaps a quiet battalion instruction parade on the cricket
ground, with four companies in single ranks of twenty or twenty-four
men each, was more effective and instructive. The Market Hall made an
excellent covered-in place to teach aiming drill or squad, but was too
cramped and supplied with articles of machinery, &c., &c., to make it
thoroughly available for company drill. The streets of the market place
then, as the short evenings of autumn or the dark nights of winter
came on, had to serve the purpose, and drilling became a tremendous
difficulty. Imagine one hundred men in uniform marching through a dense
mass of the _genus_ street boy at every twist or turn they took, and
every order, as given by instructor, captain, or sergeant, echoed and
re-echoed by these detestable small boys. To attempt any drills where
firing (sham) would be shown, such as volley or independent firing,
&c., &c., was the signal for more than usual activity and interest in
the proceedings being shown by the tormentors. With "P'sent," down fell
a wriggling mass in the mud, each shamming to have been shot, and only
rising and running to the flanks as the good-natured riflemen moved
forwards. What were the police about? The police at that day cared not
to interfere in these matters, and a rifleman was too new a thing to be
appreciated or protected.
Owing to the want of any lists of attendance, target practice records,
or extensive cuttings from the local papers, it is a very hard task
for any one to show what occurred in the early days of this corps. It
appears to have shown a strength of 121, forming two companies at the
Clarendon Park Review so far back as September, 1860; the officers
present being Captain Commandant Jacob, Captain Beverley Robinson,
Lieut. Pinckney, Lieut. Sir E. Poore, Bart., Ensign Hussey, Ensign
Fisher, Assist.-Surgeon Cardell, and Quartermaster Smith. At the first
inspection of the newly formed battalion, which took place on the
downs above Warminster, under Major G. Hume, Inspector of the District,
the corps mustered within one of the same strength, viz. 120, Captains
Robinson and Hussey, Lieutenants Fisher, Smith and Wyndham Payne, with
C. Brown, J. Brown, and Assist.-Surgeon Cardell, being the officers
present. About this number the corps remained for some years, gradually
increasing both in efficiency and discipline. The force had become
established, regimental camps were formed, more system prevailed, and
men undertaking the duties of volunteer privates better understood what
would be demanded from them, and reflected accordingly. The enthusiasm
had died out, but the spirit of determination that the country should
not again be left to ignorant self-defence was as strong as ever, and
as corps became more consolidated, so did the members, both officers
and others, fluctuate less. With all this, there was after awhile
throughout the battalion a slow but steady increase of members; and
the Annual Returns of corps composing the 1st Wilts Rifle Battalion
show that, in November, 1869, the Salisbury corps had a total enrolled
of 156, of these 150 being efficients and only six non-efficient. In
1873, at an inspection parade held at Warminster, they mustered a
total of 112. Again, in 1875, at another inspection, they had present
125; though of these 25 were belonging to the band, fairly drilled men
perhaps, but of whose proficiency in anything beyond a musician's duty
no test was made. However, the band was and is a necessity for a rifle
battalion, and to some extent for a company detached. Both Salisbury
and Trowbridge corps furnished the men required for the battalion band,
hence at inspections an undue proportion of these corps appeared to be
bandsmen. In the instance above, Trowbridge also contributed 21 men out
of her muster of 143 to the band. At one time in the volunteer epoch,
the bands were somewhat too numerous; "five-and-twenty fifers and five
fighting men" was not altogether unknown at a muster; but time has
changed all this.
The Annual Returns for 1875 show a total enrolled of 173, of whom 162
were efficients. In 1878, the return is 180, with 176 efficients. The
attendance in camp for inspection in 1877 was 138; and again in 1881,
168, Captains Kelsey and Hodding being in command.
The rifle range of the Salisbury corps was at some distance from the
city, on the London Road, and was a particularly difficult range at
which a good score could be made. The ground undulated somewhat, and
at each range was subject to varying currents of wind; a knowledge of
these and their vagaries was a necessary ingredient in the formation
of a steadily good shot at Salisbury Rifle Ranges. Practice is said
to make perfect, and certainly much practice and attention to detail
turned out very many good shots in No. 1 corps. Among the officers
might be named Smith, Fisher, J. Brown, C. Brown, Hodding, Kelsey,
Harris, Wilton, Wilson; and among the non-commissioned officers and
rank and file, the name is legion. Without mentioning all or even
one-half the number of those who have been large prize holders, the
names of Butler, Wheaton, Manns, Watson, Barnett, Robbins, Calkin,
Perris, &c., &c., are famous.
Prize-winning commenced early, as a Company Order, issued on the 19th
September, 1861, by Lieutenant Fisher, commanding the corps, directs
the band to assemble at the railway station to do honour to Sergeant
Butler, who had won at the county meeting held at Devizes the challenge
cup, value £50, and a silver salver, whilst Sergeant Wilton of this
corps had proved himself to be the best shot of the meeting at 200 and
300 yards, five rounds and Hythe positions, £10 being his reward. Again
in 1862, when the Rifle Association of the county held the meeting at
Salisbury, we find the Salisbury corps holding their own against all
comers, and the Challenge Cup so closely disputed that there was a tie
between Sergeant Wilton, 1st corps; Private Hitchcock, 7th Wilts, 2nd
Battalion; and Sergeant Neate, 7th Company, 2nd Battalion. The shooting
off was in favour of Sergeant Wilton, and amidst the acclamations of
almost all present, the chief prize was declared to be yet held by a
member of the Salisbury Rifle Corps, and with it the salver offered by
the Mayor and Corporation of the City. An unpleasant incident occurred,
which may serve to show how servile was the following of Hythe rules.
The right to possession of the Challenge Cup by Sergeant Wilton was
disputed, inasmuch as he had used his second finger instead of the
fore wherewith to press the trigger, and was not crowned with the bays
until he had satisfied some of the committee and the umpire, that owing
to an injury he was unable to use the fore-finger. "_Tantas componere
lites._" Imagine in these days raising such an objection! Sergeant
Butler won several valuable prizes, shooting at long ranges, 400, 500,
600, and 700 yards, five shots at each distance, and succeeded in
scoring a hit for every shot--a total of 20 hits and 45 points. Among
the officers, Lieutenant Fisher of this corps won the Ladies' and other
prizes. At another county meeting held at Warminster, the shooting
of some of the 1st corps was below their usual quality, or perhaps
that of others was of a higher standard. The President's Prize places
Sergeants Butler and Wilton at 26 points each, and the winning score
at 32; the winner being the gentleman shooting a tie with Sergeant
Wilton on a former occasion, Sergeant Neate, 7th corps, 2nd Battalion.
The change among officers since Mr. Jacob first took the command has
been great. Probably, Captain Hodding, at that time a corporal, alone
remains. The corps has furnished three majors to the battalion--Captain
Jacob on the first formation in 1861, Captain Pinckney in 1872, and
Captain Kelsey in 1885. That the Salisbury Rifle Corps, now A and B
Companies of the 1st Battalion Wiltshire Volunteers, has increased in
numbers and efficiency is shown by a reference to "Returns" of a recent
date. In 1886, the Annual Return, dated 1st November, 1886, gives--A
Company, 92 efficients, 9 non-efficients; B Company, 99 efficients,
6 non-efficients. Total, 190 efficients and 15 non-efficients; and
at a bayonet exercise competition held in camp in August, 1887, the
challenge cup was won by A Company, Salisbury.
2ND CORPS (TROWBRIDGE) WILTS RIFLE VOLUNTEERS.
C & D Companies.
Among the earliest of the towns in Wiltshire to move in the formation
of a rifle corps must be enumerated that of Trowbridge. A large
manufacturing town, it felt how serious a matter would be even an
attempt at an invasion of our shores, and without unnecessary delay
the raising of a rifle corps was determined upon. It commenced by the
formation of a Rifle Shooting Club among some of the tradesmen; but
that this would not meet the occasion soon became evident, and in
August 1859, a public meeting was called for the purpose of raising a
rifle corps, collecting subscriptions, and considering details. The
business habits of the leading gentlemen of the town made them act with
deliberation, and perhaps it was the delay caused by the consideration
of all matters affecting the permanency of the future corps which
placed it as No. 2 in the county. It may be so, but at the same time it
obviated constant alterations and correction of mistakes.
It was plain that however good at obtaining bull's-eyes on a target a
man might be, still he fell very far short of what would be required in
a modern rifleman. The troops which an enemy engaging in the invasion
of this country would bring, must be selected men, and if opposed by
riflemen, held together without knowledge of drill and discipline,
but merely acting on the spur of enthusiasm, would scatter such as is
chaff before the wind. Elderly landholders were content to entrust
the defence of the country to gamekeepers, with perhaps a sprinkling
of poachers, as being equally good shots; and some (the military
especially) could only see there was nothing like leather, and that
troops not trained by the regulations for the army, and drilled exactly
as are line and militia, would be worse than useless.
The first meeting, held at the office of Mr. J.G. Foley, with Thomas
Clark, Esq. of Bellefield, in the chair, appointed a committee to
canvass the town for volunteers; and Mr. J. Pattison of Bridge House
was nominated as secretary. At the second meeting it was seen that a
goodly number of names had been enrolled, and that others were ready
to join. The meeting then arranged that a corps for Trowbridge should
immediately be formed, and that Mr. Thomas Clark of Bellefield be
recommended to Her Majesty for the commission of captain.
Subscriptions towards meeting the various wants of the new corps came
in from every quarter; Mr. Walter Long of Rood Ashton, Mr. W. Stancomb,
and Mr. T. Clark each contributing fifty pounds, whilst sums of smaller
amount but yet munificent were received from other gentlemen and the
tradesmen generally. All were enthusiastic in the matter.
In the first week of December 1859, Mr. T. Clark received information
from the Lord Lieutenant of the County that Her Majesty had accepted
the services of those offering, appointing him as captain, with
one lieutenant, one ensign, and 100 men of all ranks. The officers
recommended for the commissions of lieutenant and ensign were Mr. W.P.
Clark and Mr. J.G. Foley.
Constant and regular drills now gave the new corps plenty of
occupation. Drill sergeants from the militia and retired veterans
from the line were obtained, and fathers of families with their sons,
independent gentlemen, tradesmen, and mechanics, despising snow and
sleet, pouring rain, and muddy streets, were to be seen at nightfall,
with rifle over the shoulder, and not improbably a very heavy stick in
hand, just by way of strengthening the muscles of the forearm, wending
their way to the place of drill; there to be kept uncomfortable for at
least a quarter of an hour for not raising the toes sufficiently off
the ground in the "right about turn," or to be pointed at as unworthy
of being enrolled as a defender of his country, when the necessary
delay of several minutes between the words "two" and "three" in the
second position of the musketry exercise made his arm shake like an
aspen leaf, and his rifle to wabble ("warble" more probably) in a
most unsatisfactory manner. Sergeant Swipes was a great man on these
occasions; he knew how things ought to be done and would have them
done. There were none there to say he didn't, or any to dispute his
right, so gentlemen drilled on night after night, hoping eventually to
be able to complete the circle of "about" without staggering as if half
tipsy, and to hold out the rifle if "three" was yet longer in being
shouted out.
A detachment of the Antrim Rifles were at this time stationed in the
barracks, and from them every assistance and kindness was received. The
officers took great interest in the corps, supplied drill sergeants,
attended themselves at some of the drills, and as all improved in
knowledge of what was necessary, often allowed the corps to do
battalion drill with their two companies commanded by Major Bruce.
About this time, through the exertions of Mr. Walter Long of Rood
Ashton, a sub-division of the Trowbridge corps was raised at Steeple
Ashton, of which Mr. W. Stancomb took command; but soon after resigning
was succeeded by Mr. George Temple. However, the whole had but a short
life. The men were few, the country wild, and regular attendance at
drill almost impossible, so it was broken up.
It will not be out of place here to say what then was meant by raising
and supporting a rifle corps, and how great the enthusiasm and
patriotism of both men and women must have been when they submitted to
give so much and receive so little. In the movement ladies were most
enthusiastic and helpful, contributing by gifts of money, uniforms,
shooting prizes, and in holding bazaars. To the Government of the day
not one shred of praise or thanks are due. They never moved in the
matter until very late in the day, and then only to intimate to the
Lord Lieutenants of counties that corps might be raised, provided
that they met the terms of this letter, which simply said that every
expense, even to finding arms--stipulating only for these to be of the
same bore--should be borne by the newly formed corps, and that in the
event of their services being required, pensions as in the line for
wounds, &c., would be sanctioned.
Perhaps it was as well that the authorities did not give more definite
orders, if one is to judge by this letter. They, however, did one good
thing, they appointed officers immediately under their own command as
Inspectors and Assistant Inspectors--men fresh from the Crimean and
Indian Mutiny campaign, who had not only seen service, but had received
other impressions than those gathered in the barrack square; and to
their common sense, judgment, patience, and willingness to be guided by
circumstances, may be attributed the good qualities of the officers and
men composing the volunteer force. Names need not be given, these will
live in the memory of more than one.
It was impossible that an army such as the volunteer force had now
become could go on for ever spending their own money and begging for
more to keep them efficient; and so demand after demand was made on the
War Office for assistance; but it was not until they saw that it was
the people's force, and was supported in its claims by landed gentry
and people having detestable influence in Parliament, that this help
was sanctioned, and a starvation allowance voted; and as a certain
increased amount of efficiency was demanded in return, the volunteer
force at once became part of the defensive organization of the country.
The Court had earlier shown an indefinite recognition of the force, as
it had sanctioned the appearance of the officers at a special levée.
The officers appearing at the same from Trowbridge were Captain Thomas
Clark, Lieut. W.P. Clark, Ensign J.G. Foley, and Assist.-Surgeon
Seale. The modesty of their uniform as compared with the wonderful
compositions surrounding could hardly have given the facetious among
the crowds ranging St. James' Street an opportunity of making remarks.
Dark grey cloth, with red facings, fitting well to the body, a small
chaco and ball, with black belts, left little to be desired. Perhaps
the proximity of the Antrim Rifles at the barracks had something to do
with this and many other things.
At the Royal Review in Hyde Park the only corps of volunteers
representing the county was that of Trowbridge, and their general
appearance and smartness obtained approval. If "Well done, Wiltshire!"
"Well done, Trowbridge!" sung out by many in the crowd, is worth
recording, this was repeated more than once.
To enable the Trowbridge Corps being present at the Royal Review
in Hyde Park, it had to hire brakes, and by starting not very long
after midnight from Trowbridge, arrive at the Great Western Railway
Station at Chippenham, so as to meet the special train leaving there
at daybreak for London. Perhaps "Well done, Wiltshire!" "Well done,
Trowbridge!" was not such undeserved praise when these men of Wilts
passed the Queen, and it is remembered that soon again they would be on
their travels, and not be home before the break of another day; and to
this may be added few, if any, of them absent from their work at the
mills. The corps also attended at the review held in Clarendon Park,
near Salisbury, and again at Durdham Downs, above Bristol, coming in
for its share of abuse in discharging rifles because other corps did
the same when three cheers for Her Majesty the Queen were demanded.
Doubtless the crime was great, and proved at once that men who could
fire without orders, or contrary to the musketry regulations as laid
down for the British army, could never be otherwise than a rabble, and
were unfitted to be trusted with arms. However, Trowbridge, and indeed
the rest of the sinners, survived their iniquity, and No. 2 Corps
put in an appearance at several subsequent general assemblies of the
volunteers.
It was not the fault of the volunteers that only too often at these
reviews the manœuvring was bad, fire wild, and confusion great. Orders
were almost always badly conveyed, the general staff selected for the
occasion quite ignorant of tactics or the movement of large bodies,
and brigades, with their composing regiments, left to be guided by
volunteer officers, themselves only beginners in the very outlines of
drill. The War Office were content to look on. They were told the force
would melt away of itself, and perhaps hoped and believed it would; but
it did not, though now that the war fever had diminished the supporters
were fewer, and the expenses greater on officers and men, and it was
fully time that assistance should be given by the Government. Pressure
was brought to bear, and as certain allowances were granted, it was
necessary to guard the same. The demand to be recognised more fully
as part of the British army, and the quality presenting itself, at
length made the War Office consent to these corps being formed into
battalions and with paid Adjutants and Sergeant Instructors brought
into one system of governance and discipline.
The first necessity was to change the uniforms. It was painful to some,
doubtless. The brilliant silver and grey of corps had to yield to the
more sombre pattern of the Rifle Brigade. Elegant shoulder belts, with
buckles of the beadle pattern, were replaced by shiny black, bare of
ornament. Tunics of the Noah's Ark cut lessened their skirts, and pith
helmets were bowed out. Trowbridge was not long in accommodating itself
to the new state of things, and helped not a little by its discipline
to make the task of amalgamation and uniformity less difficult to those
appointed to carry out the same.
In conjunction with the rest of the corps composing the battalion,
the Trowbridge companies (now two) attended various assemblies for
united battalion drills held in different parts of the county, as also
elsewhere for reviews, the chief of these being at Durdham Downs,
Clifton, Lansdown, Bath, Portsmouth, Portsdown, Royal Review, Windsor,
1881, Jubilee Review at Aldershot in 1887, and the Autumn Manœuvres
which were carried on in Wiltshire and Dorsetshire in 1872. At all
Regimental Camps, No. 2 Corps mustered in strength, and perhaps had
a larger average attendance daily than other corps composing the
battalion; but this they were bound in honour to show, inasmuch as the
date and place of assembly was arranged so as to meet the peculiar
position of the corps.
To the uninitiated the expression "peculiar position" may need
explanation. It would yet seem to do so to War Office authorities,
commanding officers, inspecting officers, depôt commanders, and
adjutants. These gentlemen are much given to treat every company
composing a battalion of volunteers alike, and judging all by one,
comment on non-attendances and want of skill at target practice or
on parade. Now in a county battalion no two companies are similarly
situated, and can give an equal attendance on drill or other
instructions. One company has its members scattered over an area of
twenty miles, the centre of such area being little more than a village,
and serving as head quarters. To these head quarters no railway runs,
nor is there anything beyond the floor of a barn obtainable for drill
purposes in bad weather. The target practice ground is inaccessible,
and terribly exposed. There are no resident gentry to help the funds
of the corps or to offer prizes for best drills or best shots, and all
the expenses incurred beyond those met by the dole received from the
War Office comes down on the two or three officers attached, perhaps
the village attorney and the doctor, who as Captain and Lieutenant
have undertaken the thankless office of commanding and keeping up the
company. Another company lives in clover; its head quarters are in a
good town: the officers are wealthy and popular, and the townspeople
proud of their men and the band. The practice ground is close at
hand, the armoury large, with drill-yard attached, and all expenses
incidental to attendance at regimental camps, autumn manœuvres, and
reviews on a large scale, immediately met. It is easy for such a
company to be efficient, and it is still more easy for an inspecting
officer, with his beloved barrack square dangling before his eyes,
to select this company as a criterion, and _ex uno disce omnes_. The
Trowbridge companies are composed chiefly of mill hands, and so defined
is the work of the mill among the numerous hands employed, that in
many instances the withdrawal of two or three of these from a single
machine will delay the completion of an order for an indefinite period.
A battalion drill at 2 p.m. simply means all work in that part of the
mill where these men now gone to the drill are employed must cease; and
when these attendances at drills are demanded for days at a time, as
is the case with a regimental camp or at autumn manœuvres, indeed any
man, excepting perhaps an Army fossil or a War Office clerk, could see
that so serious a demand on the hands of mill-owners or employers of
labour generally, must be met by special arrangements, and thus it was
with the Trowbridge Rifle Corps. The mills were overhauled and repaired
generally in the month of August, and so this time was selected for
holding the Regimental Annual Camp.
The assistance received in supporting the corps was great from all
at and about Trowbridge, the ladies being foremost in helping on the
movement by giving prizes to be shot for, and by holding stalls at
bazaars, &c., by which undress uniforms, hand instruments, &c., &c.,
were purchased, but which could not be found with the paltry allowance
received from the War Office. The want of covered spaces in which to
drill in bad weather, or indeed to find any place at all for such a
purpose out of doors, excepting the damp field, muddy roadside, or
barrack yard, was felt considerably. Public rooms or offices offered
certain advantages, but had many drawbacks, and it was not until Major
Thos. Clark, promoted to field rank by the death of Major Jacob at
Salisbury, munificently met the difficulty, that this want was removed.
Entirely at his own expense, Major Clark erected a hall large enough
for every purpose, and after a while the Rifle Volunteers of Trowbridge
found themselves welcome in a most comfortable and substantial
building, in which all squad and, to a certain extent, company drills
could be performed, their arms and accoutrements properly cared for,
and additional rooms, where roaring fires in winter, the morning and
other newspapers, a fair library, and bagatelle table, made members of
the corps, off drills, rest and be thankful. Once a year outsiders were
admitted, for a consideration, to witness the distribution of prizes,
or perhaps the performance of theatricals, the members of the corps
being the actors and entertainers. "Mrs. Jarley's Waxworks," and other
incidents equally well got up and done, to say nothing of the witty
prologues written on every occasion by Sergeant A. Wilkins, will long
be remembered.
Among his earliest efforts are these recited by Lieut. Stancomb:--
"To give that pleasure is the rifle band,
So let everybody here quite understand,
That without _stocks_ the funds can't keep supplied
With instruments and music, if we tried.
The band has got the brass, but not the tin,
So please to help us out by sending in."
Then again, referring to the Oxford Corps at autumn manœuvres:--
"The Oxford University were there,
Those noble swells, turned cooks, the sight was rare,
To see them cut their meat and put their pots on,
Good judges they of beef, just come from Oxon."
The amalgamation of the various corps into a battalion occurred in
1861, and found many of the companies well advanced in drills. Indeed,
at the first inspection of the whole at Warminster by Major Hume,
Assistant Inspector of the district, he remarked on the very great
advance in the knowledge of drill each company had made. On this
occasion the Trowbridge Corps mustered 72 of all ranks, Captain T.
Clark, in command, and Lieutenant W.P. Clark being the only officers.
Major Jacob was in command of the battalion, and by his skill in
manœuvring the regiment, and his evident knowledge of the meaning of
certain movements, not only drew forth encomiums from the inspecting
officer, but even at this early date of the Volunteer Force showed that
the military were not the only ones capable of commanding armed men,
and that drilling regiments, companies, or squads could be managed
by civilians. Soon after this, to the great regret not only of the
volunteers of his own corps, No. 1, at Salisbury, but to that of others
in the battalion, and to all in Wiltshire, knowing the man and his
worth, Major Jacob was called away by death, the result of an injury
received in stepping from a boat. His place as major in the battalion
was taken by the officer commanding the Trowbridge Corps, who as senior
major of the battalion retired in the year 1879. The command of the
company was taken by Lieutenant W.P. Clark, and Mr. E.P. Stancomb
promoted from sergeant to the ensigncy. Shortly after this Mr. Foley
resigned his commission as lieutenant, and Mr. W.P. Clark, jun., was
appointed ensign in the place of E.P. Stancomb promoted.
Among the officers of the Wiltshire Rifle Volunteers accepting
the offer of fourteen days' musketry instruction at the School of
Musketry, Hythe (entirely to be at their own expense) was Captain
(Major) T. Clark of this company. At the same time there were present
at the school from the battalion the Marquis of Bath, Captain Charles
Penruddocke, and Captain Pickwick. The course was the longer one
epitomized, and answered its purpose well. Indeed, absolute experience
makes it no exaggeration to say that almost as much good, so far as
the use of the rifle is concerned, and to teach the same, was obtained
in this short course as from the longer of two months' duration. It
scarcely requires an officer to be detached from his regiment for
two months, so that he may learn how to do position drill, hold his
rifle straight, strike the bull's-eye, or do skirmishing, volley,
or independent firing. All this, and everything besides, including
register-keeping, lecturing, brown mixture, and even laws of motion,
to say nothing of mean deviation and attraction of gravity, could be
equally well and probably more thoroughly taught at the headquarters
of a regiment than at the more pretentious place. If an adjutant can
be made at home, and as such directs and instructs, so at least can be
the musketry instructor. The Trowbridge Rifle Corps possessed among
themselves very many good shots, but among these Sergeant Graham stood
pre-eminent. His shooting was uniformly good, and at the Wimbledon
Meeting of 1863 he stood second in all Great Britain for the Queen's
Prize, his magnificent shooting leaving it doubtful until his last shot
at the distance of one thousand yards as to whether he or Sergeant
Roberts, 12th Shropshire, would be the winner. At an early part of
the day Sergeant Roberts had concluded his firing at all the ranges,
leaving the wonderful score of 65 to be exceeded by any disputing his
claim to victory. Sergeant Graham's time for attendance at the targets
was later on in the day, but his 24 at 800 yards against Sergeant
Roberts's 23 showed him to be a dangerous competitor. At 900 yards the
scores were Sergeant Roberts 26, Sergeant Graham 24. At 1000 yards
the score of 16 made by Roberts had to be beaten, or at any rate
could be tied, but it was not to be: much depended upon the value of
the last shot to be made by Sergeant Graham; a bull's-eye would tie
with the winner, and not a little was the excitement shown by the
onlookers, amongst these being Lord Elcho and General Hay, as to what
would occur. Coolly but resolutely the aim was taken, but a centre
left Sergeant Roberts undisturbed in his honours, and the high score
of 64, obtained at the longest ranges by thoroughly even shooting,
proved Sergeant Graham to be among the best shots in the Army. In
contests with neighbouring corps the 2nd Wilts simply held their own,
perhaps as often defeated as winning. In challenging the 9th Corps at
Bradford-on-Avon on 12th October, 1861, in the first match they were
defeated by 14, Sergeant Graham making the score for Trowbridge 12, and
Sergeant Thomas 15, whilst for Bradford Captain Pickwick scored 13,
and Private Scutt 14. In the return match the shooting of both Captain
Pickwick and Sergeant Graham was thoroughly bad, and Bradford won by a
few points.
The officers as well as non-commissioned officers and very many of
the privates were above the average at the targets, and at county as
well as at local meetings have made good scores, Major Clark at one
time holding his own fairly well against such men as Sergeant Thomas,
Sergeant Graham, and Sergeant Bailey, and a host of other sergeants
and men. The rifle range of the corps is at a long distance from the
armoury, and as this distance, nearly four miles, requires a lift being
given to the men detailed for class firing, it forms a heavy item in
the demand on the funds of the corps for conveyances. The range itself
is now improved, but could never have been considered good or very
safe, extending as it does over several grass meadows, intersected
by roads and paths, divided by hedgerows, and well perambulated by
cows and sheep; the butts, or fagot erection, sufficiently thick, but
scarcely broad or high enough to ensure safety.
It may not be out of place here to give the scores made by officers and
others of this company from the period when the Enfield muzzle-loader
was the weapon and two to five hundred yards the usual distances. In
looking back on those days many may think that the shooting was bad and
men have improved very much since; but put it in another light, that
the rifle has very much improved. The introduction of breechloading
obviated the necessity for using either a very tight-fitting
bullet--its shape, more especially point and sides, grooved and
injured by ramrod--or else an easy-fitting bullet supposed to expand
itself equally into the rifle grooves on the explosion of the powder
at its base. A little mental calculation will show that under such
circumstances no two bullets would keep the same trajectory fired by
the steadiest of shots. The bruised head or jagged base would cause
deviation sooner or later, and the longer the distance the greater
certainty of this apparent contradiction. The cartridge and loading
at the breech overcame this difficulty, and all that remained to be
done was to lower the trajectory and find out the best size for bore of
rifle, and the weight and balancing power of the projectile used.
In 1863 we find that at ranges 200 and 500 yards with five rounds
at each range, Corporal Marshman, missing once, scored 28, whilst
Colour-Sergeant Graham, also missing once, scored 27, but Ensign
Stancomb, hitting each shot, scored 25, but in the Challenge Cup given
by the ladies of Trowbridge, at ranges 200, 300, 500, and 600 yards,
five rounds at each range, with only two misses, Colour-Sergeant Graham
won the Cup with a score of 45, Private Reddrop, shooting as well,
scoring 44. Again on another occasion, at 200 and 400 yards, five
rounds at each distance, Colour-Sergeant Graham and Private Reddrop,
making no misses, scored respectively 33 and 31.
In 1869, at a distribution of prizes in Hill's Hall, Major T. Clark
gave a short epitome of the history of the corps since it was first
raised in 1859, showing the improvement made in every way during
the ten years that had elapsed. There were prizes given not only
for skill in open competition, but for class firing, attendances at
drills, and proficiency in drill. Later on, in 1873, in a challenge
between Trowbridge and Devizes, seven shots at 200, 500, and 600
yards, Trowbridge won, scoring 488 as against 393, Private Hart, of
Trowbridge, scoring 58, and Corporal Ruddle 54, being several points
higher than any made by their opponents. Again, in competition with
Melksham, seven shots at 200, 500, and 600 yards, the Trowbridge scored
264 as against Melksham 391; but in the return match, the following
week, the tables were reversed, and Trowbridge scored 410 as against
381. In 1879 the Trowbridge were considerably beaten by the Devizes
Company, the score of the first being but 417, against that of Devizes
amounting to 477. The last record we will give is in September, 1885,
at their own butts, Stranger's Corner, Sevrington, distances 200, 500,
and 600 yards, seven shots at each distance. Colour-Sergeant T. Hill
won the Challenge Cup with a score of 71, with Private Frank Long
making 70.
During the years that have passed since the formation of the corps many
and great changes have occurred, more especially among the officers and
non-commissioned officers. On the occasion of Captain T. Clark becoming
major in the battalion his place was taken by his brother, Lieutenant
W.P. Clark, and to this officer, in conjunction with Captain, now Hon.
Major E. Stancomb, the corps is very much indebted. Probably none in
the corps have attended so many drills of all sorts and kinds as Hon.
Major W.P. Clark. Wet or fine, hot or cold, this officer was ever to
be seen at the fore. In camp none more anxious for the welfare and
orderly behaviour of those under his command, or willing to give every
assistance in his power towards carrying out petty, but nevertheless
very troublesome and necessary details; but the Regulations are
inexorable, and a certain clause forced Hon. Major W.P. Clark to retire
into private life. In Hon. Major E. Stancomb he has a worthy successor,
and doubtless for many a long day yet will C and D Companies of the 1st
Battalion Wilts Volunteers do their duty to their Queen and country.
No. 6 CORPS. HEAD QUARTERS, MAIDEN BRADLEY.
This company was differently circumstanced from any in the battalion.
It was raised from among the tenants of the Duke of Somerset, and was
composed of men of a good position socially, and, as a rule, of means.
The duke's eldest son, Earl St. Maur, originated and commanded it,
taking as a model the system of the Irregular Cavalry of India; but
Irregular Cavalry, whether in England or India, are expensive articles,
and if to be permanent, beyond plenty of spare time and enthusiasm in
all connected therewith, require either Government support or a long
private purse for dipping into. So long as the war-fever lasted, the
tenant farmers found time and means to assemble at the head quarters
and learn the supposed duties of mounted infantry, for that was what
the corps were in reality; but the game was getting expensive, the
French would not come, the men were not quite so keen as formerly,
and farming was more profitable, so attendances and numbers fell off,
and gradually the cavalry element disappeared, leaving a nondescript
infantry, possessing a system, a dress, and even a drill, peculiarly
their own.
The account of the origin and final extinction of this fine corps will
be given almost verbatim, as furnished to the writer of this battalion
history by Mr. Styles Jefferys, one of the duke's tenants, this
gentleman having been appointed a sergeant in the first instance, and
at the time of the breaking of the corps held the rank of lieutenant.
He was only one of many in this corps, and any connected with the
Volunteers having outlying companies, such as were Maiden Bradley and a
portion of the 8th Corps at Mere, can understand how much is lost to a
battalion by the extinction of officers and men of this sort.
The hunting element was strong in both these corps, more especially in
the Maiden Bradley, and had to be considered as regards fixing drills
and other matters. Most of the farms were either in or bordering upon
the meets of the Blackmoor Vale foxhounds, and at Warminster were
the kennels of the South Wilts, the Lieut. Colonel commanding the
battalion being the master, so drilling and hunting had to be combined
if anything like a muster was desired. Some of the best to attend at
the roadside inn on a winter's evening for a two hours' dose of squad
or position drill were men who had been in the saddle all day; but the
men really liked drill, and considered it as a duty to be present. As
an instance of the willingness with which these Wiltshire men attended
drills, and of the sort of individuals composing some of the outlying
corps, the author offers the following story. It is of course one of
many similar ones occurring in the history of the early formation of
rifle corps throughout any of the wilder counties of Great Britain.
However, it shows the stuff the men were made of, and also perhaps the
necessity for tact and temper in the adjutant.
It had been agreed upon between the adjutant and the captain commanding
the 6th Corps, that as a certain day was a general holiday, there
should be a drill at the head quarters about midday, it appearing
this hour was more suitable than any for the majority to attend. The
adjutant was to ride over from Warminster and take breakfast, and
some water-colouring was to be done between that meal and the time of
assembly. As proposed, so carried out, and on the appointed day, a
bleak December morning, the adjutant, mounted on his best, started away
for the captain's abode, there to find him at breakfast sure enough,
but in pink, and evidently intent on hunting instead of drawing or
drilling.
"I forgot all about the drill. Bother it, we can't have it. The hounds
meet at Knoyle, so we haven't a moment to spare. Every fellow will be
there, and you must come." This was the explanation; and the appearing
of the adjutant at the meet in uniform being the only substantial
objection, it was overcome by borrowing coat, waistcoat, and hat, the
uniform long boots and dark pantaloons remaining; albeit the rig-out
was none of the neatest or best-fitting, as the captain was a few sizes
taller than the adjutant; but it answered its purpose, and throwing
goose-step, turnings, wheelings, and odd files to the limbo prepared
for such uninteresting articles, the breakfast was hastily swallowed
and the two set out for Knoyle.
The Blackmoor Vale is a fine hunting country, and none residing
thereabouts, having a bit of horseflesh to call their own, but do a
bit of hunting, and as a consequence few of No. 6 Corps were absent.
However, nothing was said about the drill, and a fox being found down
in the bottom, away we went. Straight riding and a firm seat was
wanted, the country selected being heavy, with double ditches and
banks, pleasingly interspersed with oak rails, or stakes and bounds. A
moment's breathing in the woods of Fonthill, and on again, killing at
last almost on the highway leading to Frome.
"This isn't drill, Mr. Jefferys," said the adjutant to one of the best
sergeants a volunteer corps ever possessed, as that officer touched him
on the back with his hunting whip, whilst the two splashed into the mud
making soft the landing from a drop leap.
"Law, no, sir. We've forgotten all about it," was the reply, and in
another moment we joined the few in at the death. There were excuses
and apologies, and by the time these were done and the fox eaten, Sir
R----, the very taciturn master, remounted, and calling off the hounds,
proceeded at a sharp trot in an opposite direction. With the view of
finding another fox, many of the field followed, and as Sir R---- rode
straight, there was more than one obstacle overcome and fall received,
observing which, and that they were mistaken in following him, he
called out, "Shan't hunt any more to-day. Kennels," and continued
his route, whilst all whose homes were elsewhere pulled up somewhat
disgusted. The disappointed Englishman had his growl, and as we
retraced our steps towards the Frome road Lieutenant Harding proposed
"a drill after all, as we are," and with an echo from Captain Festing
and the high approval of the adjutant, "Across country to the Bradley
Inn" was given, and before half-an-hour had expired, with daylight just
sufficient to conceal blundering, some thirty broad-shouldered men in
tops and breeches, bespattered with mud, and fall-marks plentiful, fell
into the ranks and did an hour's very hard drill. This finished, and
remounting, all returned home. It was in consequence of the feeling
of national insecurity pervading people's minds at the time, that
in October, 1859, an inquiry was sent through the Estate Office to
the tenantry and others by Earl St. Maur, eldest son of the Duke of
Somerset, whether they would be willing to form a volunteer corps under
him for defensive purposes, and if so, who would be willing to join. A
favourable response was given, and a number of names sent in as willing
to join the "Maiden Bradley Irregulars."
A meeting was called at the Somerset Arms, Maiden Bradley, to take
the matter into consideration, and to provide funds for the necessary
equipments. The meeting was numerously attended, and its object most
enthusiastically supported, so much so, that in the course of a few
days a sum of between £400 and £500 was raised, and as many as seventy
names of men enrolled as willing to serve. In the absence of Earl St.
Maur, through illness, Michael J. Festing, Esq., agent to the Duke of
Somerset, took the chair, and a committee was formed for the purpose of
carrying out the views of the meeting; Earl St. Maur to be President of
the Committee, Michael J. Festing, Esq., Treasurer, Admiral Festing,
Harry B. Festing, Esq., Messrs. Harding, S.E. Jefferys, &c., being
members.
Soon after this date, Earl St. Maur having become better, and reports
received, another committee meeting was called at the same place,
and there it was explained by Earl St. Maur to those members who had
enrolled themselves for service, the idea and purpose for which such a
corps should be formed. He represented that in the undefended state of
our coast, our difficulties in India, the menacing attitude of France,
with its immensely increasing armaments, &c., the country was in a very
critical situation, and liable to be invaded any day; therefore it was
the duty of every Englishman to do the best he could for the defence
of our hearths and homes; and acting on these principles as a party of
countrymen, many of whom possessed good horses which they could and
did ride fairly straight across country, and also having a knowledge
of the country to be defended, his idea was, that the corps in case
of emergency or attack should act in the forefront of the defending
force, keeping touch with them, harassing the enemy as much as
possible, and at the same time being the eyes and ears of the defenders.
To carry out this idea practically it was shown that as many men as
could be mounted were to act individually and collectively, having the
dismounted portion of the corps to retire upon for support if such
should be necessary. The mounted men were to be armed with the then
new Westley-Richards repeating carbine or Colt's revolver combination
of carbine and pistol; but this was never done. However, a start had
to be made, and a parade of the corps was held at Maiden Bradley,
the men falling in in Brice's Field to the amount of some seventy or
seventy-two in number. There was deep snow upon the ground, and all
were on foot. On the roll call being replied to, it was found that
about thirty members could ride horses of their own, such as they
frequently used for the purpose of hunting. The ages were between
thirty-five and forty, indeed only two men being over forty, and one
a lad of eighteen. Three were married men, and the average height
somewhat exceeded five feet nine inches--tall and big men all. The
corps was formed almost entirely of tenants or sons of tenants on the
Duke of Somerset's estate at Maiden Bradley, Witham Friary, Silton, a
solitary individual from Hill Deveril, and a few young gentlemen pupils
of the Rev. Geo. Brown at Maiden Bradley.
The corps was started in October, 1859, but was not legally enrolled
until the spring of 1860, its composition, character, and other matters
creating delays and difficulties; but was eventually sanctioned
under the title of the 1st Wilts Mounted Rifles and 6th Wilts Rifle
Volunteers. It will be seen that this corps, with its imposing start
and quality for immediate usefulness, contained in its formation the
germs of early decay. It was very expensive, and it was doubtful
whether, as the present men moved away to other farms or occupations,
others would take their place, and certainly the pupils of Mr. Brown
would be constantly leaving. The officers first appointed were: Earl
St. Maur, Captain; the Hon. J. Ogilvy, Lieutenant; and H.B. Festing,
Esq., Ensign; Sergeant Stickler, late of the Guards, Drill Instructor;
T.K. Harding and S.E. Jefferys, Sergeants, with Sergt.-Major Latham, of
the Somerset Yeomanry, Instructor in Mounted Drill. The head quarters
were fixed at Maiden Bradley; but the corps was divided into three
squads or divisions; the first being at Maiden Bradley; the second at
Witham Friary, Somersetshire, five miles distant from head quarters;
and the third at Silton in Dorsetshire, seven miles away from the head
quarters. Squad drills were arranged to be held as often as convenient
at the three places, but to be fixed for a general muster assembling
once a month alternately at Bradley, The Friary, and Silton. The rifle
range was at Long Knoll, Maiden Bradley--a good range, extending 1100
yards, and very safe. The uniform was a blue-grey serge blouse, sleeves
buttoning tightly to the wrist, with scarlet collar; the trousers
were loose and baggy, of the same colour and material; the mounted
men wearing long Napoleon boots, the dismounted black leather gaiters
with knee-caps. The accoutrements consisted only of a waist-belt with
elongated frog or simple frog for mounted or dismounted, and on this
belt were two pouches, one to be worn in front, the other behind; the
belt itself being brought together with a clasp, on which was placed a
scroll describing the corps--"The Maiden Bradley Irregulars." The head
was protected by a grey felt helmet, somewhat similar to those worn in
the present day, but without spike or ornament. The Government long
Enfield rifle and bayonet was the arm used by the corps, but for the
mounted men a curved sword of Indian pattern was substituted for the
bayonet, and hung suspended from the waist-belt by the elongated frog,
thus being made quite useless, as its position precluded the weapon
being drawn from the scabbard, excepting with the greatest difficulty,
and the hilts were all too small for men with large hands. The men rode
on their own hunting saddles, but were supplied with double-reined
bridles as also with leading reins, so as to allow of one man taking
charge of several horses whilst the riders were skirmishing. At first
the rifles were all kept in the armoury at the head quarters, but
this was found to be a mistake. They were not properly looked after,
so got out of condition, and often necessitated the men appearing on
parade without arms, as the sergeant in charge could never know how
many to send to the distant rendezvous. Afterwards, each man was made
responsible for his own weapon, a careful examination of the rifle
being made by the commanding officer at each drill. An amusing incident
with reference to this occurred soon after the order had been given by
Lord St. Maur, the captain, "that each man should come provided with a
small piece of white rag, wherewith the cleanliness of his rifle could
be tested." "Examine arms," was the order, and each produced his bit
of rag, but one poor youth, much cared for by an aged female relative,
thought to carry out his captain's orders very thoroughly, and produced
from his pouch a piece of linen, neatly folded, and the size of a large
handkerchief. This, of course, caused a titter to pass down the ranks,
which changed to a roar of laughter as Lord St. Maur, observing the
cause, coolly remarked, "I ordered you to bring with you a piece of
clean rag, but I did not wish to deprive you of your bed sheet."
In the spring of 1860 Earl St. Maur resigned the command, which was
afterwards taken up by his brother Lord St. Maur, and in accordance
with instructions received the corps proceeded to Warminster, some six
miles distant, to be inspected by Colonel G. Hume, Assistant-Inspector
of Volunteers. Colonel Hume complimented the men warmly on their fine
physique, patriotism, &c., but in pointing out their faults told them
that the loose guerilla character of their drill was not at all in
accordance with his instructions, and he would see the corps again at
its own head quarters in the course of a few weeks. This he did and was
better satisfied.
In consequence of this incident and of an increased knowledge of what
was required, it was evident that the corps could not work under its
present organization, but was in reality useless, and that if it was
to exist at all, it must accommodate itself to circumstances, and
be placed under the same regulations as other corps in the county.
However, nothing was done, and in September, 1860, it put in an
appearance at the review of the volunteers held in Clarendon Park;
and though much admired and commented upon for stalwart bearing and
physique, yet the dress and organization created a great deal of
ridicule. In the spring of 1861, Lieutenant the Hon. E. Ogilvy had
resigned, and many of the mounted men following his example, it was
resolved to reorganize the company, so the horses were dispensed
with, and from that time it became simply the 6th Corps Wilts Rifle
Volunteers. The flimsy serge uniforms had become shabby, and so a new
uniform of good cloth was provided. Tunic and trousers of light grey,
facings scarlet, accoutrements retained, silver chevrons for sergeants,
and the helmets rebound with white leather, and a silver crown resting
on a scarlet cushion placed in front. A silver bugle was presented to
the corps by the ladies, and so that a more systematic style of target
practice should be carried out, Colour-Sergeant Styles E. Jefferys
proceeded to the School of Musketry at Hythe. The officers at this time
were Captain Lord Edward St. Maur, Lieutenant H.B. Festing, and Ensign
F.K. Harding.
On the formation of the 1st Administrative Battalion Wilts Rifle
Volunteers, out of all the rifle corps raised in South Wilts, it was
seen that the widely extended area from which this corps was drawn
would become a source of difficulty and expense. The time occupied, the
distances to be travelled, and the whole expense devolving on the men
themselves, together with affairs of one district not coinciding with
others, would make, and did make, general musters for a battalion drill
anything but a sinecure. Besides these causes, the enterprising spirit
of the age constantly drew away some of the best men, necessitating
their places being filled by others from a lower social scale, who,
though equally good men in the ranks, were not so well able to bear
these expenses. In 1864 the helmet was discarded and replaced with a
neat shako and ball.
The Silton property having been sold, the squad drilling there, and of
course continuing to be members of the 6th or Maiden Bradley Corps,
were politely requested to transfer their allegiance to the 8th or Mere
Corps, which was short of numbers; so for the future many of these men
were lost to the Bradley Corps. Indeed this was a most serious injury
to the 6th Corps, simply cutting off a wing.
Troubles continued to thicken. In December, 1865, Captain Lord Edward
St. Maur was killed in India in an encounter with a bear which he had
wounded, and for some time the corps continued to be without a captain,
it being desirable to obtain a gentleman who could command not only
with his voice but his purse, the funds having become very low and the
incidental expenses everlastingly increasing. The uniform, head-dress,
belts, all to be changed; rifle green and helmets to be worn. However,
in 1867 a great effort was made, and the "redivivus" was sounded. It
was hoped that with the aid of the Government grant and strict economy
the corps might yet rub on. Lieut. H.B. Festing accepted the captaincy;
Ensign Harding the lieutenancy; and Colour-Sergeant S.E. Jefferys was
appointed ensign. But once more the social scale had to be lowered, so
as to keep up the required numbers, and several of the best class of
agricultural labourers were enrolled, good in themselves and excellent
in the ranks, but not such as could be taken from their day's work,
either on their own account or that of their employers, and general
musters for reviews and drills were being constantly demanded.
The corps attended the first camp at Warminster Down in 1868, and also
was present at that held on Homerton Down, near Salisbury, the next
year, and were present at the various reviews at Lansdowne, Salisbury,
Wilton Park, &c., seldom appearing in less strength than twenty-five
files, exclusive of officers and supernumeraries. These attendances
entailed a great expense, some of it coming out of the general fund,
but much from private resources. In September, 1869, Earl Seymour, heir
to the dukedom and originator of the corps, died, leaving the estate
without direct heir, and consequently with diminished interest in
keeping up the company; Captain H.B. Festing withdrew from the command,
and the muster-roll had become far below that required; so a meeting
was called, at which it was determined that the officers should tender
their resignations and an application be made for the disbandment of
the corps. The accounts were all wound up, and on the completion and
passing of these the 6th Corps 1st Administrative Battalion Wilts Rifle
Volunteers was finally dissolved, ceasing to appear in the _Army List_
after the early part of 1873.
The silver bugle was left in safe keeping, so that in case of another
"war's alarm" it might be ready when wanted, and the Maiden Bradley
Rifle Corps be once again enrolled among the gallant men of Wilts
willing and anxious to serve their Queen and country.
It may not be out of place before bringing this to a conclusion to
tell something about the good shooting of many in the corps. At public
meetings, perhaps, the members were not numerous, but good shooting
was to be seen on the practice ground on Bradley Knoll. Col.-Sergeant
S.E. Jefferys won the County Challenge Cup, Bronze Medal of N.R.A.,
the Etruscan Vase presented by the Mayor and Town Council of Salisbury
in 1864, the Fonthill Challenge Cup, open to the county, being won in
three competitions out of four, Mr. F.H. Poynder's 50-guinea Vase at
Warminster in 1866; later, competing for the Officers' Prize, presented
yearly by F.H. Poynder, Esq., Mr. Jefferys carried away the Challenge
Centre piece, to be held for the year, and a Silver Claret Jug to be
retained; Lady Charlotte Watson Taylor's "Prize for Officers" also
fell to his share. Corporal T. Jefferys, his brother, won the County
Challenge Cup, Bronze Medal of the N.R.A., and Silver Tea Service
presented with it in 1869. The winners of other than public prizes are
not mentioned.
Thus ends the history of a thoroughly good corps. It perished from want
of support, but scattered as were the members all over the county, its
existence from the first was problematical.
No. 8 CORPS. HEAD QUARTERS, MERE.
Unfortunately records of the early proceedings connected with the
raising of this company are not to be found; and whether the usual
public meetings were held and the neighbourhood asked for subscriptions
as a preliminary business, with the subsequent formation of committees
of management and drawing up rules, &c., as was customary generally,
is not shown. On the Groves, of Zeals House (whose estates, including
the town of Mere, bordered on those of the Duke of Somerset), appears
to have fallen almost all, if not quite all, of the trouble and
expense of raising and equipping this corps. The heir to the dukedom
of Somerset had raised and equipped a very fine body of men from his
father's properties at Maiden Bradley and Silton, and not improbably
this led the young squire of the adjacent property to attempt the same
thing, more especially as knowing that he could get advice and valuable
assistance from his neighbour and friend, Lord Seymour, the captain of
the newly-raised corps of rifle volunteers, with their headquarters at
Maiden Bradley.
It is very clever now in people to discover that in a neighbourhood
such as Mere and Bradley there was too sparse a population from which
to form and keep up two rifle corps, and that to have always sixty
efficients on your roll entailed the necessity for very many more
useless appendages being within hail. The young squire of Zeals House,
at that time just obtaining a commission in the Guards as ensign and
lieutenant, managed, without much difficulty, from among his tenants
and the tradesmen and mechanics of the small town of Mere, to get
together the required number wherewith a company or corps could be
formed; and, as is shown by letters, asked Lord Seymour to advise him
on what next was to be done, as he was anxious that all should be
performed well and quickly. At the time the possibility of invasion
was never doubted, and those knowing the horrors of being invaded, or
after thought and consultation, saw how exposed and really unprotected
we were, dreaded losing the time necessary for the proper training and
equipping of the new force through the red-tapeism and prejudices of
War Office subordinates. Then, as now, the navy was our great stand-by,
and was our first, and with the regulars abroad, our only line of
defence; the militia being, generally speaking, too ill-trained to be
quite reliable. We have now improved our regulars, militia, and added
a huge multitude of fairly-instructed volunteers. We have, too, a navy
more powerful than any other single nation, but other peoples have
increased and improved their armies, and as regards their navies and
mercantile marine have advanced as much if not more than ourselves,
and things which were doubtfully possible thirty years ago may now be,
comparatively speaking, not a very difficult matter to realize.
In 1859 we were pushed hard by the mutinies in India, had scarcely
recovered from the effects of the Crimean War, and the reduction
of our forces to a peace establishment, and knowing our unprepared
condition, the nation then, through the voice of Parliament, insisted
on information from the Government of the day as to how we really
stood, and in the event of prevailing reports becoming true, in what
manner they were prepared to meet the emergency; the stereotyped answer
being received, "that in due course of time all would be arranged, and
that the departments were in perfect order, having worked hard, and
were working most judiciously and economically," the country took upon
itself to see things in their proper light, and knowing that invasion
was possible, raised the Volunteer Force.
That Volunteer Force we still retain. They have become a well-trained,
reliable, and very valuable body of men, but fitted only for garrison
duties. The infantry are clothed and equipped but for the day--having
neither boots nor underclothing, and in too many cases stamina, such as
would enable them to undergo one week's exposure in bad weather or in
winter before an active and terribly resolute enemy. The artillery are
without guns, and ignorant of the use of field guns, nor have they the
means of moving light guns or guns of position, even had they all been
instructed in their use. The broken reed of trusting to neighbouring
farmers, brewers, omnibus proprietors, &c., for horseflesh is sure to
fail. It cannot be otherwise. On a sudden call all would be brought
together, new to their work and new to each other. Men, drivers,
horses, with harness and equipments probably obsolete, not unlikely
rotten, and fitting so badly as to produce nothing but pain and galls.
One day's march means two days' halt under such circumstances. If the
fleet were badly beaten in the Mediterranean, or even in the eastern
seas, the demand for assistance would be made on the home authorities
and the number of vessels guarding the Channel considerably diminished,
weakened, or rendered powerless by a call for their services elsewhere;
in other words, the _complete_ command of the Channel lost, and this
being so, invasion is not only possible, but most probably would occur.
A few heavily-armed vessels as guard-ships, and with less than two
hundred thousand tons of shipping at the enemy's disposal, one hundred
thousand men could be landed with ease, perfectly equipped and ready
for action on very many parts of our shores. The voyage is short, large
steamers, probably of low power but adapted for troops, and various
other vessels would be obtained without difficulty; and, as before
observed, with the command of the Channel no longer in English power,
would again and again repeat the voyage, not improbably with impunity,
or at best with feeble opposition.
To oppose these, what have we? Literally nothing. The attack on our
shores or the defeat of our fleet is not likely to occur at the onset
of the war. It would be later on, when all of our regulars have been
despatched to India, Egypt, and perhaps the Colonies, and when the
best of the militia, both artillery and infantry, have been detailed
for garrison duty at Gibraltar, Malta, &c., leaving this country to be
defended by the rawest of recruits raising for the regular army, a few
militiamen, terribly out at elbows in every way, and the volunteers,
without commissariat, without hospital arrangements, without
fully-trained officers, without a sufficiency of good and useful
clothing from boots upwards, and not improbably without repeating
rifles and a sufficiency of ammunition. Add to this, artillerymen
without guns, or knowledge of how such are used in the field, horsed
from the plough, cabs, carts, omnibuses, &c., and it is not too much
to say that to oppose the advance of an enemy, once landed, on London
or elsewhere, we have nothing to bring. Brave men enough, but mere
bravery is foolery in modern warfare. Skill and perfect arrangements
are now necessary to secure victory, and as the demand for the service
of our volunteers would be sudden, so would they be unprepared for
the task before them. All, all, sick or well, well skilled or badly
drilled, shod in slippers or serviceable boots, would be hurriedly
summoned, and not improbably, without test or examination of any sort,
time not allowing it, would be confronted with the enemy; and after one
week's exposure to fighting constantly, picket duties, and camping out,
die off like flies. However, this is a digression, and we will return
to the raising and training of the 8th or Mere Corps of Wiltshire
Rifle Volunteers. The excuse for having left the path must be that our
present time strangely resembles that of 1859, when we, the people,
were left to our own resources, and by prompt action staved off or, as
far as we know, absolutely knocked the idea of a successful invasion on
the head. It is our duty now, as then, to look matters boldly in the
face; to calculate all the pros and cons of the case, and not be led
astray from what we in our hearts believe to be necessary, and should
be done, regardless of the money it may cost, or of giving umbrage
either to political parties or neighbouring nations.
So far then as can be gathered, the greater part of the difficulty of
raising the 8th Corps fell upon its future commander, Chafyn Grove,
Esq., of Zeals House. His friend and neighbour, Lord Seymour, had got
together an excellent body of men from the tenants of his father's
property on the Maiden Bradley and Silton estates; and, with the
experience of Lord Seymour to guide him, it is not surprising that
Mr. Grove should have resolved to try and raise an equally useful and
good corps from Zeals. It only required men and money, and these being
obtainable, Mr. Grove addressed his neighbour with regard to what was
next to be done. The advice and guidance asked for was promptly given,
and right sensible advice was it that emanated from the future heir
to the dukedom of Somerset. Lord Seymour foresaw events, and told the
young squire of Zeals how his wishes could be carried out. He let him
see plainly, that it was and probably would be an expensive experiment,
and that so far from the Government of the day giving assistance, they
would offer obstructions. At Mere were a goodly number of recruits to
be found, and also from the men employed on the property and among the
tenants; but the majority of these were too poor to be able to afford
the expense incidental to the loss of time in attending drills, or
finding anything for themselves. Patriotism they had plenty of, but it
required to be supported by anybody's purse excepting their own, and
patriotism, like other valuable articles, diminishes under difficulties.
In a letter, dated 2nd January, 1860, addressed by Mr. Grove to Lord
Seymour, we find that the young squire of Zeals is just in the first
throes of volunteer corps raising. He has got the men, and asks advice
regarding colour and prices of uniform and accoutrements, and in reply,
is not only warned against being misled by cheap advertisements of
these articles, but is let into the secret that before his recruits
can be accepted, he must satisfy the Government that he has provided
all that is necessary for their future efficiency; which now no longer
entailed finding a rifle or gun of some sort or another for each man,
as rifles and bayonets would be found by the War Office; but included
a practice-ground, with targets, &c., of at least two hundred yards in
extent, an armoury, safe from attack, and an armourer to look after
the arms, a magazine safe and secure, and various other matters, all
of which would cause delay and be most vexatious. Lord Seymour says:
"You have told me nothing about your rules, excepting about entrance
fees. I am improving my first set, and I strongly urge this as a rule:
'That all gentlemen wishing to join as volunteers send in their names
and the amount they intend to subscribe to the funds,' their becoming
members being left to the committee's approval."--Adding, after some
explanations, "Unless the committee keeps the power of admittance or
non-admittance into the corps in their own hands, it is, in fact,
pledged to dress and equip any number of men who may pay two shillings
and six-pence, and obtain for it three or four pound's worth of
clothing."
Again Lord Seymour observes: "The demands on the general fund will be
very heavy. In Devonshire, I am told, the ammunition alone costs 10_s._
per man a year. Believe me, a small number of men, well equipped, is
the most promising beginning for a company. You say your uniform will
only cost 48_s._ per man, including belts. Certain outfitters offer
these things, but somehow they manage to make the price higher later
on. Lord Elcho's 28_s._ suit may have been made as an advertisement.
Neither he nor anyone else will get a serviceable suit for that money.
10_s._ belts are bad. All I have seen allow the cartridges to rattle
about in the front pouch."
A few days after this, certain rules were sent to the Lord Lieutenant
of the County by Mr. Grove for approval, and were sanctioned, as
"nearly approaching those recommended by the Government," and at the
same time the sender was informed, that the commission of Captain would
be given to him, and eventually an inspector sent down to see that the
place selected is "eligible for exercise, and to ascertain the fitness
of the man appointed for the custody of the arms."
As the inspector was long in coming, and the _Gazette_ silent as to
his promotion, Mr. Grove again addressed his lordship on the cause;
but the reply, dated the 20th April, gave him to understand that there
had been no unnecessary delay in his being gazetted, in the acceptance
officially of the corps, or of the despatch of the inspecting officer;
but there had been much extra work in the departments, and "the
acceptance of the services of No. 8 Corps of Wiltshire Rifle Volunteers
was only communicated to the Lord Lieutenant 'on the 16th of this
month.'"
Captain Chafyn Grove was told to select two gentlemen for the
commissions of Lieutenant and Ensign, and after various further
delays, the _Gazette_ informed the public that William Chafyn Grove,
Esquire, was to be Captain, E.A. Card, gentleman, to be Lieutenant,
and John White, gentleman, to be Ensign, in the 8th Corps Wilts Rifle
Volunteers--Head quarters, Mere. Among the earliest to join as members
of the corps were, Messrs. Alford, Barnes, Baker, Burpitt, Cards,
Careys, Cowards, Cole, Dowding, Farthing, Foot, Green, Glover, Jupes,
Keates, Landers, Larkam, Maidments, Mitchells, Markey, Merriman,
Meaden, Perrett, Pillinger, Randall, Read, Roberts, Rogers, Seymour,
Sharp, Tilt, Toogood, Topp, Waters, White, Wickham. The corps was
formed, drilled, and had attended one or two neighbouring assemblies
before its officers appeared in the _Gazette_, and was in good order
and strength when called upon as one of the corps or companies to make
up the 1st Administrative Battalion Wilts Rifle Volunteers. The musters
for company-drill, held at least once a week at the head quarters,
Mere, were well attended, and the target practice not neglected: but
it was with Mere, as with the company at Bradley, a difficult matter
for all to attend regularly at drills, as the distances of men's homes
from Mere, the head quarters, was often great, and entailed no little
expenditure of time, trouble, and only too often absolute money out of
pocket on the volunteer himself.
It was these ever-increasing expenses in attending home drills,
battalion drills, general assemblies, and camps which ultimately caused
many corps to die out. The initial expenses of an individual or of a
committee, in raising such a body of men, finding practice-grounds,
targets, ammunition, clothing, accoutrements, &c., were heavy, and
were willingly met; but when it came to men being away from their work
for a week at a time in camp, or autumn manœuvres, or hiring wagons,
and paying very large railway fares five or six times in the year,
the scattered corps began to get few recruits, and gradually fell
off in efficiency and numbers. Owing to the death of its founder and
captain, W. Chafyn Grove, Esq., much of the needful support was gone,
and notwithstanding every exertion was made by his family to revive
the company, yet little was the success. The addition of the Silton
estates to the Zeals properties added a few more men, but they served
unwillingly. Their hearts were with their first love, the corps which
they had helped to raise, the 6th, with its head quarters at Maiden
Bradley, and so, after a while, their advent was of little account, and
No. 8 Corps resumed its fading aspect.
Lieutenant Card and Ensign White did their best to keep the company
together, and, at no little expense to themselves and others, succeeded
in bringing a fair number of men to battalion drills and local reviews.
Troyte Bullock, Esq., accepted the vacant commission of Captain, and
attached himself to the Guards with a view of acquiring a knowledge of
the various drills and practices recently introduced, and commanded
the company on the occasion of its last attendance at camp, and
such portions of it as proceeded to the autumn manœuvres, held on
the borders of Wilts and Dorset, taking part in the various defeats
and victories, and being left ingloriously with his men to guard a
haystack, whilst the divisions pushed on to complete the victory over
the northern army at the battle of Wishford.
It was useless to contend against fate, and the 8th Corps, with its
head quarters at Mere, ceased to exist in 1878, just two years later
than that which witnessed the same disaster in the 6th Corps, with its
head quarters at Maiden Bradley.
9TH CORPS. BRADFORD-ON-AVON.
The rifle movement, now general throughout Great Britain, was showing
itself in the quaint old town of Bradford-on-Avon. Some towns and
cities in the county, and indeed some villages in the country, had
advanced further in corps-making than had the men of Bradford; but
perhaps nothing beyond a low number in the county rifle volunteers
was lost by it, but very much experience gained, and needless expense
avoided. Doubtless, in 1859, there was no time to be lost in putting
the country into a state of defence, and making some arrangements by
which an advance of an enemy into the heart of the land should be
stayed, even if a landing on the shores could not be prevented. It
was plain, very plain, and all the more from becoming so suddenly,
that if the vapouring of the French turned into a reality, and war was
declared, the country was quite unprepared for such. Her army at home
reduced to a handful, with the greater portion of it in India crushing
out mutiny; the militia, where not embodied, weak, badly officered,
and really untrained; and the navy in a transition state, between
wood and iron, sailing and steam. It was no good shutting one's eyes
to the fact: the country was terribly open to invasion; and as the
invaders were not likely to send any but their best and most efficient
soldiers to attempt the subjugation of that country whose word was law
to almost the whole world, it behoved every citizen to aid, either in
means or person, in the defence of his home. It was no time to tax the
Government or Governments with having thrown dust in the eyes of the
people, and said all was well when things were very far from being
so, and that not only were the army, navy, fortifications, and all
appertaining thereunto, amply sufficient to meet any demands made upon
them, but that economies ought to be practised. The people of Great
Britain had to do then what they have to do now, to take things as they
find them, and, liking it or disliking it, set about putting their
house in order.
It was harder in 1859 to say what was best to be done than it is now.
Money and labour can overcome much of the present difficulties, but
then the only thing to do was to raise an army, and that army on the
very shortest notice to be such as not only could be trusted with
the national defence, but be able to co-operate with the regulars
in the defence of their native land. Some advocated the training
of gamekeepers, and sportsmen generally, with, we suppose, a small
sprinkling of poachers to keep up _esprit de corps_, others were
for arming every old pensioner, and not a few for purchasing the
services of foreigners, as was done in the early wars with Napoleon,
and more recently in the Crimea. Danger was at the door: for years
prognosticated, and for as many pooh-poohed, or denied altogether;
and now that it was so near, it found none so weak and wavering, none
so helpless and unwilling to meet the emergency, as the individuals
causing it. They simply stood by, wringing their hands, and left each
and all to arrange as they best could, provided it cost the State
nothing.
Notwithstanding the backwardness of the Government and their inability
to see the absolute necessity of immediate action by raising some
force less long in making efficient, and of a different class in
life to regulars or militia, the country commenced with the greatest
activity; and as rifle corps had been decided upon as both useful and
dependable, few towns of any size but had such forming. In Wiltshire
some progress had been made in the movement at Salisbury, Trowbridge,
Malmesbury, Devizes, &c., and now Bradford followed suit by calling a
public meeting on 19th December, 1859, "for the purpose of promoting
the formation of a local volunteer rifle corps."
E. Edmonds, Esq., was unanimously called to the chair, and was
supported by most of the influential gentlemen of the neighbourhood
and others residing in the town. On the platform were the Right Hon.
T. Sotheron Estcourt, M.P., R.P. Long, Esq., M.P., Rev. W.H. Jones,
Vicar, Rev. J. Wilkinson, Rev. W. Popham, Rev. E.D. Whigfield, Captain
Rook, Captain Pickwick, Dr. W. Adye, A. Adye, Esq., G. Forster, Esq.,
W. Beavan, Esq., J. Gee, Esq., T. Taylor, Esq., Mr. Neal, and others.
After a very enthusiastic speech from the chairman, Captain Rook moved
that the rifle movement of the country he supported, and Mr. Forster,
of Holt, in seconding the motion, offered his services in any way by
which they could be rendered most useful. Mr. Sotheron Estcourt, Mr.
A. Adye, Captain Pickwick, and Mr. Richard Long, of Road Ashton, spoke
on the occasion, and finally a committee of management to collect
subscriptions and to make the necessary arrangements was appointed, and
the following subscriptions were announced: The Earl Manvers, £50; the
Right Hon. T. Sotheron Estcourt, M.P., £10 and the equipment of five
men; Walter Long, Esq., M.P., Road Ashton, £10; the Rev. Edward Brown,
of Farley, £5.
Subscription books were issued, and gentlemen undertook to canvass
the town, special books being kept for ladies willing to assist in
raising the rifle corps. These prove, as indeed was exhibited all over
the country, that ladies were most earnest in the matter, and their
five-pound notes, guineas, and lesser subscriptions helped not a little
to start the good cause. In one of the Bradford collectors' books,
in which the ladies are asked to subscribe towards the purchase of
uniforms, a sum of nearly £20 is put down; and in another, where it is
pointed out that a certain band requires uniforms to enable it to join
the rifle corps, no less a sum than £43 12_s._ is entered.
There was another meeting held on the last day of December, 1859, and
there, as was generally done elsewhere, after finding that sufficient
names had been enrolled to form a company, they proceeded to elect
the officers of the company--not being aware that the election of
officers to command men is contrary to certain rules and regulations.
The committee could recommend for the position of captain a gentleman
to the Lord Lieutenant, and this gentleman, if appointed captain,
could again recommend certain gentlemen as subalterns. The result of
this electing officers was, that Mr. Edmonds, of Berryfield House,
was selected as captain, with Captain Pickwick and Mr. Forster, of
Holt, as subalterns. Captain Pickwick having been in the regular army
and having seen service at the Cape, besides knowing a soldier's work
well, at once refused to serve in a subordinate capacity, and that
under a civilian; so Mr. Edmonds resigned, and ultimately Captain
Pickwick was appointed to the command of the company, with Mr. Forster
as lieutenant, and Mr. A. Beavan ensign. Among the first appointed
non-commissioned officers were, as sergeants, E. Neale, Cursen,
E. Scrine, J. Poole, with D. Hole, T. Butterworth, G. Hallet, as
corporals. However, changes had to be made; and whilst Wm. Adye, Esq.,
M.D., was appointed hon. assist.-surgeon, and the Rev. J. Jones, M.A.,
chaplain to the corps, Messrs. Applegate and Geo. Adye were promoted
sergeants to fill existing vacancies.
The first meeting of the corps for drill purposes was on the 24th
January, 1860, at Mr. Spackman's dyehouse, and as every man thought
it necessary to come armed with a gun of some sort, and also as with
this gun (perhaps an old flint musket of the Georges' time, or a flimsy
single-barrel sparrow-killer) he was to go through the manœuvres and
platoon, and appear in the ranks generally, the teaching of musketry
must have been utter foolery, and the movements of our Bradford
volunteers somewhat ludicrous. However, these like other volunteers
survived the ridicule, and notwithstanding _Punch's_ "Who shot the
dog?" and the wondrous wit displayed by street boys, or by those
disliking the movement, but whose position and education should have
taught them better, drilled steadily on, and on the 17th May made their
first appearance before the public in full uniform, doubtless to the
gratification and admiration of themselves and relatives.
The drills were to be seven in the week as squad drills, viz., on
Tuesdays and Fridays twice, and on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays
once, thus meeting the convenience of most members of the corps. These
drills were well attended, and by the time the Government long Enfield
muzzle-loading rifles were sent down in the early part of June, the
9th Corps had fully mastered the outlines of company drill, and dined
together soon after on the occasion of more correct enrolment being
carried out.
Becoming more assured, they now paraded with their band and drilled
in public, and had the usual church parades and class sermon; then
marching over to the neighbouring town of Trowbridge, they were
instructed in the outlines of battalion drill by Major Lawson.
The men of the 9th Wilts not being aware that eventually rifles would
be supplied to them by the Government, and being anxious to compete
for prizes with other corps, in many instances from an early date they
had provided themselves with weapons, generally Enfields, of the usual
bore and shape, and with these constant practice was being made at
the ranges; so that by the summer, when challenges between corps were
frequent, and prize meetings being held, not a few of the officers and
men had become good shots and held their own wherever they entered. The
ground selected as a practice ground was an easy one to shoot over,
the steep turfy hill against which the targets were placed forming
an excellent background; but by whom the said range was passed as a
rifle range deponent sayeth not. He could not have been to Hythe, or
had much notion of the erratic flight of an elongated projectile, or
of the difficulty even the best-drilled soldiers in the service find
in avoiding accidents, where your line of fire extends across sundry
footpaths, a canal, and a railroad. That there were no accidents is
attributable more to good luck than good guidance. The shorter ranges
across the canal were tolerably secure. A red flag, much shouting,
and an occasional despatch of one of the squad to the dangerous point
managed to stay man, woman, or child from running into danger, and
informed the cursing bargee of his being cared for; but when it came
to long distances, where shouts and signals were unheeded, or where
the height of the trajectory was deemed safety sufficient, then came a
question as to whom was the sanction of this being used as a range due.
The Great Western Railway Company evidently for very many years
troubled themselves not about such trifles as bullets through their
carriages, for on the edge of the line was a firing point, where,
_of course_, the firer was able to check himself instantly should an
express or other very fast train or engine suddenly cloud his vision.
Be all this as it may, the corps both drilled well and shot well, and
from an early date up to the present time sent forth steady and good
shots. Amongst these may be numbered Assist.-Surgeon, afterwards Hon.
Major, Wm. Adye, winner of the Officers' Challenge Cup at Devizes,
silver claret jug, various vases, &c., Sergeant George Adye, Sergeant
Neale, Corporal Davis, Privates Scutt, Reddrop, Merrett, Chas. Adye,
Wallman, &c.
At most of the reviews and at all battalion drills, the Bradford Corps
have put in an appearance, and as a rule mustered well in proportion
to their strength. Their first appearance at any large gathering was
at the review held in Clarendon Park, Lord William Paulet commanding,
in September, 1860. They mustered forty strong, Captain Pickwick,
Lieut. Forster, and Ensign Beavan being the officers, and were attached
to the battalion commanded by Major G. Hume, Assistant Inspector
of Volunteers. In November of the same year they were inspected by
Major G. Hume in the Broad Field, and out of the sixty men on the
muster-roll, exclusive of band, fifty-four rank and file presented
themselves on parade. All the officers were present, and the inspecting
officer complimented them upon the way they drilled, and upon the
soldier-like look of the company; some twenty men of the Trowbridge
Corps, under Captain Clark and Lieut. Clark, kindly keeping the ground
during inspection. The year 1861 saw all these scattered corps made
into a battalion, with one lieutenant-colonel, one major, one adjutant,
as the staff thereof, and from this date the attendances of corps
beyond their own head quarters was limited, and certain arrangements
made by which drill attendance could be verified, and more correct
returns of efficiency and strength sent up to Government, on which a
capitation grant might be founded. There were some brilliant ideas
exhibited by the War Office authorities as to the expenditure of this
grant. The adjutant was to combine paymaster- and interferer-general
with his other duties, and only pay the amount earned by a corps to
that corps on its showing an exact voucher for every item, and as the
grant could be carried to accounts past or present, it was hard work
for the secretaries of companies to get one item which would fit in
exactly for the whole grant earned, and in the adjutant's hands, or
to make half-a-dozen smaller items to do the same thing, so vouchers
were made up to suit the purpose. In other words, a cooking process was
required to enable a corps to receive its dues.
The uniform selected by the Bradford Corps was an excellent one--of
course fitting the body too tightly; but this screwing in a man's waist
and throttling him with a stock was considered the proper thing to do,
and even yet has a value in some elderly gentleman's view of the smart
soldier. In olden times a man was supposed to carry in a knapsack on
his poor back all that was necessary, and that the protection of any
particular part of the body from heat, cold, or wet was making him
into a mollycoddle; so they sent him to Canada and India with a shoddy
coat buttoned across the chest, and sloping off into two tails in the
cutaway style, and bade him wear for six months in the year woollen
trousers, nice and long, so as to cover his hideous ankle boots and
to pick up the dirt, and for the other six months, ducks, as these
washed. The Rifle Movement ended these and various other absurdities.
When officers commanding battalions and companies discovered that
things wore out quicker than necessary, that other things were only
an unnecessary expense, and that the men themselves observed much
latitude in the regulations, then they appointed committees to consider
matters, and adapted the clothing and very many other things connected
with drills and target-practices to the change brought over the whole
military system by the introduction of arms of precision. Freedom of
action, greater mobility, more self-reliance, and a thorough knowledge
of his weapon and skirmishing, was a volunteer discovery, and after a
while the drill, if not the dress; but the whole organization of the
British army has been changed and improved. The mud-colour with red
facings of No. 9 corps, with a neat shako, was, and is, if made of a
looser fit and knickerbockers instead of trousers, the proper colour
and cut for a rifleman's wear. The black of the Rifle Brigade and the
term Rifles being utterly absurd, as all are now Rifles, and of all
colours the most visible, near or far away, the black bears away the
palm. With this battalion, as all had to be of one colour, it was well
not to adopt any colour in use by other corps, but the day will come
when the black will be discarded, and perhaps then the mud-colour or
khakhee of the Guides in India will be selected. The helmet is a bad
headpiece, rolls about, cannot be laid on, and is hot and clumsy. The
straight-peaked low kepi gave greater shade to the eyes for aim-taking,
and was smarter-looking and far easier kept on in going through woods,
low jungle, &c., than the spiked invention from Germany. At the first
inspection of corps as a battalion, which took place at Warminster on
7th November, 1861, by Major Gustavus Hume, Assistant-Inspector of
the Volunteers, this company mustered fifty-nine; Captain Pickwick in
command, with Lieut. Forster, Ensign Beavan, and Hon. Assistant-Surgeon
Adye. All did well, and the inspecting officer gave them great credit
for doing so well with so short a time for training. A very heavy
hailstorm coming on did not improve the drill, and few were sorry when
the trains arrived at the station by which they could return home. The
7.15 train saw Trowbridge, Bradford, and Westbury corps returning, but
those lower down the line had far longer to wait. It was ever thus for
a battalion drill; the trains never fitted in, and whilst some part of
the battalion would arrive at midday to parade at 3 p.m., another could
not be present until past the drill hour. If a late hour was fixed for
the general assembly then the hurry to catch the last train made a
general scramble to be off break up the parade.
The ladies of Bradford were nothing behind their sisters elsewhere in
helping forward the Rifle Movement, and by bazaars, county and local
prize-giving for shooting encouraged very many of the men to practise
careful shooting. The earliest record of a subscription being got up
from the ladies of Bradford for this purpose is in September, 1861,
when Mr. T. Taylor and Mr. J.C. Neale were the collectors. The money
obtained allowed of a handsome silver cup being purchased, and smaller
sums distributed in prizes. The distances were short, but they were
beginners, and allowance had to be made for blundering. The terms being
easy, though the entrance as a competitor depended on his subscription
to the funds of the corps, so, with or without knowledge, a majority
of the company appeared at the targets. The highest scores made at
the two distances selected, viz., 200 and 300 yards, were those of
Sergeant Neale, total 13, Private Reynolds 13, Charles Adye 13, W.
Mager 12. The whole day was occupied in the business, and the band,
with refreshments, helped to break the monotony, for it must have been
monstrous stupid for onlookers, these many hours of blundering. Being
Britons, a dinner at "The Swan" was necessary to mark the occasion, and
there, with Captain Pickwick in the chair, supported by Mr. Forster,
Mr. Beavan, and Assistant-Surgeon Adye, and various other gentlemen
not immediately connected with the corps, each proposed the health of
another, and drank "The Ladies" with great enthusiasm.
It will not be here out of place to show how great is the improvement
in shooting now-a-days. Formerly the values of a hit were very high,
three being obtainable for one shot, and yet here is the result. To
quote from the local trumpeter, "at 300 yards most beautiful shooting
throughout."
300 yards. Total.
---- 5 shots 2 2 1 2 2 9
---- " 2 2 2 1 1 8
---- " 1 2 1 2 1 7
---- " 1 1 2 1 2 7
---- " 1 1 1 1 2 6
The riflemen of Bradford could do better than that now.
Again, at even lesser distances it seems that men such as Captain W.
Adye, Sergeant G. Adye, Sergeant Davis Privates Scutt, Chas. Adye, &c.,
at 150 and 200 yards, seven rounds each range, half targets, hits and
points added, 25, 34, 38, 33, 40, 33 were the highest scores.
In October, 1861, a challenge was sent to the neighbouring corps at
Trowbridge, to be shot off on the Bradford ground; five rounds at 200
and 400 yards, twelve on each side. The highest score on the occasion
was made by a Trowbridge man, Private Thomas, he making 15, not once
failing to hit the target. On Bradford side, Captain Pickwick, with
one miss, made 13, and Private Scutt, without missing, scoring 14. The
match was won by Bradford by 14 points. On the return match, shot off
on the Trowbridge practice ground, Bradford again proved the winners
by 9 points. The shooting was bad on both sides, Private Scutt of
Bradford, with no misses and 15 points; Private Thomas of Trowbridge,
one miss and 13 points; Private Packer, no misses and 13 points, being
the only men doing even tolerable practice.
The Bradford Corps next year challenged those of Melksham, twelve
picked men to be on each side, 200 and 400 yards, five rounds at each
distance, hits and points; and Bradford were victorious by 39 points,
Sergeant Wheeler of Melksham, without missing, making a score of 22,
and Private Young, with one miss, a score of 21, whilst Sergeant G.
Adye, without missing, scored 24, Private Wallman 27, Reynolds 22, and
Captain Pickwick 21.
At the county meeting held about the same time none of the Bradford
men won prizes. Many shot well, but with the magnificent shooting
of Messrs. Ward, 5th Wilts; Butler, 1st Wilts; Graham, 2nd Wilts;
Fisher, 1st Wilts, to become a prize-holder was a very difficult
thing. However, Private Scutt showed that he, as well as many others
in the 9th Corps, knew how to use a rifle. Soon after this Lieut.
Forster tendered the resignation of his commission, and Mr. A. Beavan
was promoted to the vacancy, and afterwards William Adye, Esq., M.D.,
resigning the hon. assistant surgeoncy, was appointed ensign vice
Beavan promoted.
The review at Durdham Down, near Bristol, was attended by this corps,
with Captain Pickwick and Ensign Adye as officers, three sergeants,
and forty-one rank and file. Not improbably they joined in the volley
firing, so terribly destructive of all discipline and tradition,
indulged in by most of the volunteers on this occasion, excepting of
course by the virtuous few who, upon becoming aware that to do such
a thing was held in holy horror by cocked hats, hastened to let the
British public know, through the local papers, that not only were
they innocent, but knew a soldier's duty too well to be caught thus
napping. Later on, with the other corps composing the battalion, they
were present at Lansdown, near Bath, Portsmouth, Portsdown, Windsor,
Jubilee Review at Aldershot in 1887, and at the Autumn Manœuvres in
1872. At every regimental camp the corps mustered well, and struggling
with very many difficulties, have kept up their numbers and efficiency.
To their late Captain, Hon. Major William Adye, they are much indebted,
as indeed to his family generally for constant support and useful
help. Among the earliest to join the corps were Dr. Wm. Adye and his
brothers George and Charles, all of whom worked with a will in the
cause, and set an example to many of punctual attendance at drills and
obedience to all orders received. Dr. Adye, resigning the assistant
surgeoncy and becoming ensign, eventually commanded the company,
retiring as hon. major in 1886, whilst George and Charles Adye both
became sergeants, and for the many years they remained in the corps
had very few their equals, either in knowledge of all drills or at the
targets as steady and reliable shots. On Captain Pickwick retiring
from the post of captain, his place was taken by a gentleman living in
the neighbourhood, Buonaparte Wise, Esq., but his remaining with the
company was brief. He did not quite understand the men, and it is very
certain they did not understand him. He joined too at a wrong time,
when financial troubles were more or less prevalent among all volunteer
corps, and when a complete change of system was seen to be necessary.
Some misunderstanding occurring, led to the resignation of Captain
Wise, as also Lieut. Beavan; their places eventually being taken up by
the promotion of William Adye, Esq., to be captain, E.M. Davis, Esq.,
to be lieutenant, and Mr. T.W. Dunn as ensign. The annual returns of
effectives in this company have been fairly good. Taking them roughly
in an enrolled total of 82, they shewed 74 efficients in 1868. In 1870
the enrolled strength was 77, and efficients 66. In 1875, enrolled
65, efficients 59. In 1878, enrolled 68, efficients 60; and in 1886,
enrolled 91, efficients 87. The strength of the company at the annual
inspection of the battalion in camp at Warminster in 1886 was thus:
One captain, Captain T.H. Clark; one lieutenant, Lieutenant J. Adye;
one sub-lieutenant, Lieutenant Barton; five sergeants, one bugler,
fifty-five rank and file; total, 64.
No. 10 CORPS. WARMINSTER RIFLE VOLUNTEERS.
It was not until late in the year 1859 that the good people at and near
Warminster called a meeting to consider the best methods for raising
a rifle corps at Warminster and in its neighbourhood. It was not the
custom of Warminster, as a rule, to let other towns go ahead of her
in matters of any great moment, and her doing so in a thing of such
interest as the defence of the country remains unexplained. She was
struggling into being with her rifle corps, when Trowbridge, Maiden
Bradley, Salisbury, &c., were well on at target practice and judging
distance drills: but she lost nothing by delay--not improbably gained,
having thereby avoided some of the mistakes and unnecessary expenses
incurred by beginners. The corps raised eventually was numbered 10 in
the county of Wilts, and was known at home as the "Jolly Tenth," but in
the battalion, and throughout the county generally, as a rifle corps
second to none in real efficiency, and both in its officers and men
possessing a smartness and cohesion somewhat unusual.
On the 5th December, 1859, the following notice of a public meeting to
be held at Warminster was posted in the town and neighbourhood:--
Volunteer Rifle Corps
For the
Town and Neighbourhood of Warminster.
A Public Meeting
Of the Inhabitants of the Town and Neighbourhood
Will be held
At the Town Hall, Warminster,
On Saturday, the 10th December, 1859,
At 3 o'clock in the afternoon,
To take into consideration the expediency of establishing and
organising a Volunteer Corps, and to make arrangements for carrying
the same into effect.
(Signed)
Bath,
H. Thynne,
William Temple,
Joseph Everett,
John Ravenhill,
Nath. Barton,
John Davis, Junr.,
George Temple,
H.G. Biggs,
_Magistrates acting for the Division of Warminster_.
The Marquis of Bath will take the Chair.
In accordance with this notice a large and influential meeting of the
inhabitants of the town and neighbourhood was held in the Town Hall,
Warminster, on Saturday, the 10th December, 1859, under the presidency
of the Marquis of Bath, when it was resolved--
"That it is expedient to organize a volunteer rifle corps for the town
and neighbourhood."
The following noblemen and gentlemen were formed into a committee for
the purpose of considering the best plans for carrying this resolution
into effect: The Marquis of Bath, Lord Henry Thynne, William Temple,
Esq., Charles Lewis Phipps, Esq., H. Godolphin Biggs, Esq., Joseph
Everett, Esq., John Ravenhill, Esq., Nath. Barton, Esq., John Davis,
jun., Esq., George Temple, Esq., and the Rev. A. Fane, Justices acting
for the Division of Warminster. Among the many attending the meeting
were H.G.G. Ludlow, Esq., John Phipps, Esq., Vere Fane Benett, Esq.,
Rev. J. Erasmus Philipps, Mr. F.W. Bayly, Mr. Charles Bleeck, Mr.
William Davis, Mr. R. Bedford, Mr. Timothy Goodman, Mr. H.P. Jones,
Mr. Wm. Morgan, Mr. Martin, Mr. Thos. Pope, Mr. Geo. Pope, Mr. E.
Parfitt, Mr. W. Parham, Mr. Thos. Harris, Mr. Haden, Mr. R.E. Vardy,
Mr. John Scott, Mr. Vicary, and Mr. Grubb. The meeting was unanimous,
and arrangements were made for immediately enrolling members willing
to serve. Subscriptions to meet incidental expenses were collected,
and within a few days sixty effective members (the minimum number
required for enrolment) having volunteered for service, an application
was at once made to the Lord Lieutenant of the County requesting his
sanction to their being enrolled and on the 1st April, 1860, the corps
was enrolled as the "10th Wiltshire Rifle Volunteer Corps," with the
Marquis of Bath, as captain, commanding the same.
In the first instance the members selected their own officers, their
names being sent in to the Lord Lieutenant for his approval, through
the captain commanding the corps. To the corps were then added the
names of William Davis, Esq., as lieutenant, and Mr. John Scott as
ensign, Charles Bleeck, Esq., as hon. assistant surgeon, and the Rev.
J. Erasmus Philipps as chaplain.
The following were the first non-commissioned officers: Joseph Smith,
quartermaster-sergeant; J.B. Haden, armourer-sergeant; George White,
Philip Grubb, Edward Chambers, were sergeants; and Richard E. Vardy,
D. Tillbrook, Charles Price, corporals; with Sergeant Sheppard, of the
Wilts Militia, as sergeant-instructor; Edward Turner, bugler.
The uniform and equipments left nothing to be desired. The clothing
blue-grey, with scarlet facings, and belts dark.
The drills for squad purposes were usually held in the corn market, but
the broad streets and roads in the neighbourhood for wet weather, while
the cricket and other fields in summer, were more frequently used. The
corps worked with a will, having both morning and evening drills, and
doubtless disturbed some of the sleep-loving folk by their devotion
to the cause. A company of soldiers being instructed in section
formations or wheelings, on the high road, under a window at 7 a.m.,
on a November's morning does not tend to the peaceful rest of any in
the house of which the window is part, nor perhaps to their temper or
rapture with the volunteer movement; more especially if that company
were the 10th Wilts, with Sergeant-Instructor Sheppard intent on having
things done correctly, and repeating "As you were" cruelly often.
The first range for rifle practice sanctioned by the War Office was
at Knapper's Hole on the Parsonage Farm; but this not being found
satisfactory, the range was removed in 1861 to Mancomb, about a mile
from the town, where there is a most excellent range, up to 1100 yards,
perfectly level; with a low range of chalk hills as a background to
the targets, and the whole safe but far from free from gusts of wind
and currents of air, trying to riflemen generally, but to pot-hunters
in particular. The armoury, at first, was at the Town Hall in a room
placed at the disposal of the corps by Lord Bath. It was then removed
to the market-place, and subsequently to the High-street, where it now
is.
As a band of some sort was found to be necessary, the formation of a
drum-and-fife band was determined upon, and on the 16th May, 1860, the
ladies of Warminster presented the corps with a silver bugle and a
complete set of drums and fifes.
In March, 1860, a sub-division was established at Codford, and the
following officers were appointed: John Ravenhill, lieutenant; Herbert
Ingram, ensign.
The corps first turned out in complete uniform at a company drill on
the 30th May, 1860, and on the following 2nd July the whole of the
members were sworn in at the Town Hall after attending a church parade
at the parish church, a sermon being preached for the occasion by the
chaplain, the Rev. Sir J. Erasmus Philipps. About the same time a
public dinner was held in the Town Hall, and was attended by almost all
the rifle corps and very many of the tradesmen of the town and county
gentlemen.
When the corps was first established the requisite finances to meet
preliminary expenses were raised by donations from the public, and
annual subscriptions from honorary members. Effective members had
to pay an annual subscription of £1 and to find their own uniform,
with the exception of cap and accoutrements, these being provided by
the corps. This somewhat large annual subscription from effective
members helped to keep the corps unusually select, and to retain men
in the ranks. Besides, it caused all to be jealous for the respectable
behaviour of each member of the corps, precluding the retention in
the ranks of any unwilling to obey every order as issued, or acting
otherwise than was correct. Discipline had to be preserved, and this,
with William Davis as captain, with J. Scott for his lieutenant, and
such non-commissioned officers and men as formed the 10th Corps, was
not a matter of very great difficulty.
One of the weak points in the volunteers (it is so still) was talking
in the ranks, and this was met in this corps by a fine of 6_d._ on any
individual so doing whilst the company or squad to which he might have
been attached were drilling. At a later period this fine was reduced to
3_d._, and the sergeant of the section to which the man belonged was
made responsible for enforcing the rule.
It may not be out of place here to introduce a balance sheet showing
what the expenses of this corps were from the date of their first
formation, December, 1859, to May, 1860. Experience and the class
accepted made these expenses less than usual.
10TH CORPS WILTS RIFLE VOLUNTEERS.
Statement of Receipts and Payments up to 22nd May, 1861.
-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------------
_Receipts._ | _Expenditure._
£ _s._ _d._ | £ _s._ _d._
Honorary Members' | Preliminary Expenses:
Donations and Annual | Printing and Advertising,
Subscriptions 285 17 0 | &c., before the
Donations from the | acceptance of the
Public 86 4 0 | Corps, from 6th Dec.,
Effective Members' | 1859, to April 2, 1860 11 9 5
Annual Subscriptions 100 0 0 | Appointments (Accoutrements
Three months' interest | and Cap for each Member of
on £150 deposit 1 6 3 | the Corps), the same being
| the property of the Corps 63 12 2
| Uniforms for Band,
| Bugler, and Drill Instructor
| (the property of the Corps) 39 16 6
| Rifle Stands and Racks,
| Aiming Boards, &c.,
| for Corps (the property
| of Corps) 13 17 3
| Various Expenses in
| swearing in, the Salisbury
| Band Hire, Ringers, &c. 20 2 3
| Cleaning Arms one year
| (ceases now, as each
| Member takes charge
| of his rifle) 24 6 0
| Practice Ranges and
| Targets, both at Warminster
| and Codford 61 9 4
| Drill Instructor's Pay,
| &c., at Warminster
| and Codford 74 7 6
| Band Instructors 32 14 0
| Bugler's Boy (one year) 10 0 0
| Ammunition Account 41 0 3
| Printing and Stationery 16 10 10
| Carriage of Rifles,
| Ammunition, and Stores 5 5 3
| Postal Expenses, Use of
| Town Hall, Gas, Delivering
| Notices, and
| Miscellaneous Expenses 22 10 0
| Balance in hand of Treasurer 36 15 8
---------- | ----------
£473 7 3 | £473 7 3
========== | ==========
By this it may be seen that the sum expended in establishing this corps
was not very far from £500; and the writer's experience leads him to
think that very few corps comprising administrative battalions of
volunteers throughout the country were established for much less.
Latterly the subscriptions from effective members were lowered, and
altogether abolished in 1871.
It is not presumed that this corps were more enthusiastic in preparing
themselves for the defence of their country, were it invaded, than
others in the country. Drilling, if not a delight, was certainly a
duty, and most honestly carried out. The following orders for the week
ending 30th June, 1860, taken from the Company Order Book, will give a
fair specimen of the really hard work which all undertook to perform,
and as a rule absolutely did perform:--
Non-Commissioned Officers' Drill 7 0 A.M. Monday.
Company Drill in Uniform 6 30 P.M. "
" " with Rifles 6 0 A.M. Tuesday.
Nos. 1 and 2 Sections with Rifles 7 0 P.M. "
Company Drill with Rifles 6 0 A.M. Wednesday.
" " in Uniform 6 0 P.M. "
Company Drill with Rifles 6 0 A.M. Thursday.
Recruit Drill 6 0 P.M. "
Nos. 3 and 4 Sections with Rifles 7 0 P.M. "
Company Drill with Rifles 6 0 A.M. Friday.
Longleat-Company Drill with Rifles , , Saturday.
(Dated) _23rd June, 1860._
(Signed) J.V. Toone,
_Orderly Sergeant_.
The corps has always been most popular in the town and neighbourhood,
and when first raised were petted and feasted to an extent that would
seem almost incredible. At one time there was seldom a company drill
without a feed to follow, and gentlemen in the town and neighbourhood
vied with each other in their hospitable treatment of the corps. This
led to their being termed the "Jolly Tenth," a name retained long after
they had been joined into the battalion, but unknown since the more
matter-of-fact days succeeding the year 1880, when they became simply F
Company of the 1st Wilts Rifle Volunteer Corps, by which title they are
still known.
In another part we have said that the rifle range was an
unexceptionably good one, within an easy walk from the town and
offering many advantages. In the corps there were some good shots,
men always certain to score, but not as a rule prize-winners of any
note at open meetings. However, most of the members were satisfied
with the prizes offered at home, without going elsewhere to try their
skill. The shooting of such men as Captain Wakeman, Lieut. Ponting,
Sergeants Toone, Whiting, Haden, Luke, Smith, &c., was uniformly good.
The great supporter of the corps has been the Marquis of Bath, having
always contributed £50 yearly to its funds, besides giving various sums
in prizes and other methods by which the corps is benefited. Of this
annual £50 the sum of £25 is carried to the shooting-prize fund. With
this, and the amount collected for the same fund from the ladies and
gentlemen of Warminster, it may be said that few, if any, of the corps
composing the battalion can equal and none surpass this company in the
amount at its disposal for prize shooting. There is a yearly challenge
cup given by the officers of the corps considered as being the blue
ribbon of the local meeting, also two silver cups open to monthly
competition to all members--one of these cups is given by the officers
of the company, and the other by Mr. George Hurrell of the town. There
is also a very handsome challenge cup given by His Highness Higashi
Fusimi, Prince Imperial of Japan, in the year 1872, when he with his
suite resided for a long period at Warminster. Altogether the company
has many inducements to target practice, and this is taken advantage
of, the attendance at class-firing and honest fulfilment of the
regulations as regards this part of a rifleman's duty being strictly
carried out. With this company the efficiency of all returned as
efficient was to be depended upon; and no better company or more really
efficient a body of officers and men can be found throughout the whole
of the Volunteer Force than is the F Company of the 1st Wilts Volunteer
Battalion.
The following is a complete list of the officers of the company, with
the dates of their commissions, promotions, and retirements:--
Captain Commandant Tho Marquis of Bath; Captain, 1860; retired, 1862;
Hon. Colonel of the Battalion, 1866.
Captain William Davis; Lieutenant, 1860; Captain, 1862; retired, 1866.
Captain John Scott; Ensign, 1860; Lieutenant, 1862; Captain, 1866;
retired, 1874.
Captain Herbert Ingram; Ensign, 1860; Lieutenant, 1867; Captain,
1874; retired, 1877.
Captain Hon. Major Herbert Wakeman; Ensign, 1867; Lieutenant, 1870;
Captain, 1877; retired with hon. rank of Major, 1886.
Captain Thomas Ponting; Ensign, 1869; Lieutenant, 1873; Captain, 1886.
Lieutenant John Ravenhill; Lieutenant, 1860; retired, 1867.
Lieutenant Philip Grubb; Ensign, 1862; Lieutenant, 1867; retired,
1870.
Lieutenant Joseph Smith; Ensign, 1866; retired, 1869.
Lieutenant Thomas Flower; Sub-Lieutenant, 1878; died, 1882.
Lieutenant Sir Harold Pelly, Bart.; Lieutenant, 1882; retired, 1887.
Lieutenant Sidney Smith; Lieutenant, 1884.
Lieutenant George Herbert Wakeman; Second Lieutenant, 1887.
Surgeon Charles Bleeck; Hon. Assist.-Surgeon, 1860; Battalion
Surgeon, 1864; resigned.
Hon. Assist.-Surgeon Isaac Flower, 1864; resigned, 1874.
Hon. Assist.-Surgeon Thomas Flower, 1874; resigned, 1878.
Acting Surgeon Joseph Hinton, 1878.
Hon. Chaplain Sir James Erasmus Philipps, Bart., 1861; resigned, 1883.
No. 13 CORPS. WESTBURY.
[No returns have been received.]
14TH CORPS. HEAD QUARTERS, WILTON.
The earliest records of the formation of this corps have not been
preserved, but that is no reason for supposing that the stir for some
more satisfactory system of self-defence than then existed did not
affect the good people of Wilton and its neighbourhood as much as
in other parts of Wiltshire. However, all were slow in moving, but
whom to blame for this supineness it would be hard to say. The lordly
owner of Wilton House, and of some thousands of acres stretching
away into Dorsetshire and North Wilts, was residing abroad, and his
representative, distinguished as a senator and one of the ministry,
perhaps too much occupied at such a moment with greater matters to
enable him to find the necessary time to work out details and set the
thing well on its legs. It was plain that any rifle corps raised at
or near Wilton must be composed chiefly of the tenants of the Earl of
Pembroke, and that the starting this corps, which then simply meant
coming down with a large sum of ready money, the obtaining uniforms,
accoutrements, ammunition, even arms, armouries, and practice grounds,
must fall to a very great extent on the possessor of Wilton House.
Of course, for a time, as long as enthusiasm lasted and the French
blustered, men would offer their services, and county gentlemen
contribute handsomely to the funds, and acknowledging that it was very
hard for patriotic Thomas, the blacksmith's assistant, or William,
the village carpenter, to leave work early two or three times weekly,
and stump across miles of down to Broad Chalke, Dinton, or elsewhere,
to attend squad or company drills, so willingly helped towards the
expense of conveying such men to these drills; but this philanthropic
tendency would not last, and the expense would devolve either on the
officers and men themselves, ultimately causing the corps to be lost
altogether, or to sink into mere pot-shooters, but if to be kept up
as a disciplined and useful adjunct to the forces of the Empire, the
command, and many incidental expenses, and arrangement connected
therewith, would fall upon the Herbert family.
Not improbably, then, it was from want of an initiative being shewn by
this house that the delay arose in the formation of a rifle company at
Wilton, and that the one ultimately raised became No. 14 Corps in the
1st Administrative Battalion Wilts Rifle Volunteers.
On the 23rd March, 1860, a public meeting was called at Wilton, at
which Charles Penruddocke, Esq., of Compton Park, Geo. Lapworth, Esq.,
J. Woodcock, Esq., W.J. French, Esq., with Messrs. Chipperdale, Wm.
Allen, G. Young, D. Dodds, W. Naish, E. Rawlence, &c., present, and
from whom a committee of management was formed; ultimately causing
a body of riflemen being raised at Wilton and from the surrounding
neighbourhood, termed the Wilton Rifle Volunteer Corps, with a strength
of one captain, one lieutenant, one ensign, and 100 of all ranks. The
officers recommended for commissions were Charles Penruddocke, Esq., of
Compton Park, as captain; Mr. Geo. Lapworth as lieutenant; and Mr. J.
Woodcock as ensign: Mr. W.J. French as assistant surgeon, and the Rev.
B.S. Chermside as chaplain; Mr. Chipperdale undertaking the post of
secretary; Messrs. Barnes, Eyres, Dodds, Miedenhall, Wm. Allen, and G.
Rawlence being appointed non-commissioned officers.
As with other corps composing the battalion, the first great difficulty
showing itself was in arranging so that drills should be numerous,
practical, and easily and inexpensively attended by the corps; but with
its members scattered from Wilton to the borders of Dorsetshire and
many miles apart, the conveying to drill, whether at first for squad
and company, and later on for battalion and camps, was ever a source of
difficulty and great expense. Nevertheless, the attendances, both at
battalion drills and in camps and at autumn manœuvres, with reviews,
and less grand assemblies, have been uniformly good, as the following
numbers will show.
Before the creation of the battalion this corps attended the Review
held in Clarendon Park to the number of 72; at Bath, 60; at Salisbury,
70; at Wilton Park, 72; at the Autumn Manœuvres, 68; at the Grand
Review in Windsor Park, 2 officers and 72 men; and the average
attendance at the annual regimental camps has been 2 officers and 60
men. Recently, indeed, at the Jubilee Review at Portsmouth, it showed 3
officers and 64 men. This represents a heavy expenditure for travelling
and incidental expenses, which cannot be met by the men themselves,
and usually falls upon the officers. A company of 60 volunteers is
not taken from the wilds of Wiltshire and placed down on a hillside
overlooking the sea at Portsmouth for a small travelling allowance, or
at their own expense.
An additional major being sanctioned to the battalion, Captain C.
Penruddocke of this corps accepted the vacancy, holding it for some
years, but at the same time continuing to be captain of the company.
Lieutenant Lapworth resigning, was replaced by Mr. C.R. Clay, Mr.
Woodcock by Mr. Wm. Allen, and the Rev. D. Olivier chaplain in place
of Mr. Chermside. Later on Major Penruddocke resigned the company,
and his place was taken in the command by the Earl of Pembroke, who
resigned on becoming junior major in the battalion, of which he is now
lieutenant-colonel in command.
It will be seen by what has been said, that there are great expenses
and difficulties incidental to a scattered country rifle corps such
as was this, also No. 6 Corps and No. 8 of the battalion, than many
are aware of--certainly much more than could have been known by the
clerk managing the master of the department in the War Office at the
period; otherwise, one could hardly have imagined that the passing
of a travelling allowance, insufficient by a large amount as it was,
would have been granted according to the efficient strength of a corps
equally whether that corps were all collected together in a large
town, with railway accommodation handy, or were scattered in twos or
threes half over a county; and the better to make the mean allowance
appreciated, add the rule, that such corps as are at the headquarters
of the battalion or within six miles radius are to be exempt from the
receipt of travelling allowances altogether. Perhaps Mr. ---- of the
War Office thought that omnibuses and cabs, with underground railways,
were common on Wiltshire Downs, and that time was of so little value
to the agriculturist, that he could afford to walk three times yearly
six miles out and back to do the required battalion drills, and saunter
about with his rifle from the targets to squad or company drill. Any
way, it was soon found that for the men to attend in any numbers at the
five weekly squad drills arranged to be held--three at Wilton, where
the riding school of Wilton House was kindly placed at their disposal
for winter nights, one at Broad Chalke, and the other at Dinton or
Burcombe Down--was a serious drag on all for time, and on many for
money. To those having horses it was a great expense, and the carrying
of rifles for individuals from the armoury no little trouble. For a
while, so long as the war cloud hovered over the land, money would
come in, and every encouragement be given by those not serving, in the
way of money or help; but with the war scare decreasing, enthusiasm
decreased also, and Private Stumptheveld began to discover that his
rifle and belts were heavy and hot, also that it was more comfortable
on a bleak evening at the fireside of the "Seven Stars," than at the
hillside of the Punch Bowl at Burcombe Down, and as his patriotism was
less demonstrative, so his rheumatics increased, and his attendances
at drills became few and far between. It was evident that having many
places for the men to meet at for drill purposes was a mistake. It was
more expensive than by fixing upon one as the general drilling place
for all, and gave no promise that the attendance would be sufficient
for instruction being given in anything beyond the mere rudiments of
drill. Anyhow, at the outlying stations the attendances became fewer
and fewer, until the vanishing point was almost reached. Often, beyond
the sergeant-instructor, there was none attending, and on the occasion
of visits from the adjutant, whether at Dinton, Broad Chalke, and
latterly at Wilton also, the numbers putting in an appearance were
far too few. Ultimately, all this was changed, and Captain the Earl
of Pembroke required all the drills to be done at Wilton, the head
quarters, and made such arrangements that, in attending them, the loss
of time and expense was less than formerly.
The rifle butts of this corps were very good, safe, but perhaps rather
spoiling men using it much from even shooting elsewhere, though this
was not shown by the many good shots found in the corps. It was one of
those deep valleys scooped out of the soft chalk hills by the action of
sea or glacier in long ages past, and whilst the steep hillside kept
off every breath of wind, the smooth flat bottom made shooting in any
position easy, leaving the targets distinctly visible. Probably, in
the olden time, this "Punch Bowl," as it is termed, might have been
used as a tilting ground, where knights spitted knights for the fun of
the thing, or because they had nothing better to do, unless it were to
spit Paynims in the Holy Land, a race of men far superior to themselves
in scientific knowledge and civilization. However, modern necessities
have found a full use for the Punch Bowl, and may it long continue a
practice ground for the Wilton Rifle Volunteers.
It may be as well now to describe the uniform of this corps as it was
for officers and men on the first formation. Each corps had a different
one--some soldier-like and useful, some perfectly hideous; but for a
thing of beauty for ever, No. 14 beat all Wiltshire. Its colour was a
light drab with facings of scarlet, but much of this concealed under
an abundance of silver lace; trousers to match, and shako of the same
colour, ornamented with goodly lace and flowing plume, half concealing
the silver plate on shako, which was a copy of that worn on the belts.
Then the belts! For officers, of light Russian leather with waist and
cross-belt, on which was fixed a silver breastplate large and polished,
instructive in heraldry and art. The centre contained the number of
the corps, XIV., surmounted by a crown, and round this was placed the
corporation arms of Wilton, the whole surrounded with the words "Wilton
Rifle Volunteers." Above this breastplate, attached to the belt, was a
lion's grim head in silver, from which descended two chains attached to
a whistle, encased in graven silver, about equidistant from the breast
centrepiece. From below the shoulder to about midway in the back were
crossbars of silver, ending in a monster buckle of the same metal, such
as may yet be seen in shining brass worn by that terror of the London
boy, viz., the beadle of the Burlington Arcade.
It certainly was not a suitable dress for riflemen; and though
less gorgeous for non-commissioned officers and rank and file, the
silver lace being represented by white braid, and bronze for silver
ornaments, was quite unfitted by colour to stand knocking about in, or
was it otherwise than visible at all distances. The blame for having
uniforms of all sorts, kinds, and colours is not to fall on officers
raising corps. The War Office had for the infantry red or black, or
indeed the khakee of India as a choice; but to have given a decided
order on the subject would have shown an interest in, or perhaps a
belief in, the prolonged existence of these corps, and this was to be
avoided. However, as mutual assembling together of corps for reviews
and battalion purposes became more frequent, so did the absurdity of
each company in a battalion having different uniforms and accoutrements
become more evident. It rendered the equalisation of companies very
difficult, and marked men making mistakes only too distinctly; so at
last the matter was taken up by the Lord Lieutenant of the County, who
with Colonel M.F. Ward, commanding the 2nd Administrative Battalion
Wilts Rifle Volunteers, and the adjutant of the 1st Administrative
Battalion, as representing his commanding officer, met together at the
Government manufactory at Pimlico, and it was there decided that the
uniform for the future should be the same as worn by the Rifle Brigade.
This decided the case; the ugly and the beautiful, the light grey and
the dark blue, the olive and the drab ceased to exist. All had to
change, and to mourn over the past by assuming black.
At the commencement of the movement it was a pretty sight, and spoke
volumes for the patriotism of the inhabitants, when they willingly gave
up their time to attending drills, and could be seen dotted here and
there on the hillsides, riding, walking, or driving to the places of
assembly. Conspicuous among these was the captain's dog-cart, bristling
with rifles as do quills on the porcupine; and beneath these rifles
(which are being carried for men walking, or whose horsemanship allows
not of such an article being in the rider's hand) might be seen the
officer himself and subalterns shining in their uniforms, guiding the
horse as best they could. Perhaps some of the cocked hats so harshly
judging the force would have been less generous in their remarks on
ignorance and not so very condemnatory of the volunteer movement, and
complaining about the disgraceful performance of some of the members of
a battalion, recommending impossibilities in the way of classifying,
squadding, drilling, &c., as the certain cure for the fault, had they
only known the difficulties attending a corps becoming efficient.
Things have certainly changed since these earlier days for the better.
Prejudice is lessened, a far more real knowledge of the military
profession, as regards all details of tactics, drill, and of men from
whom soldiers can be made, has been acquired by superior officers.
Some test of ability to command is required now. The possession of
rank, which position and only too often wealth gave, no longer enables
an elderly gentleman, surrounded by a brilliant staff, to bluster out
abuse, and offer his opinion and advice on matters which are far better
understood by his juniors and unwilling listeners. He now-a-days must
know his work, and do it.
There were some good shots in this corps whose names were sure to be
seen not only at local events as prize-holders, but at county meetings.
Messrs. King, Dodds, Barnes, and Allen were perhaps among the best; and
although Mr. Allen's name appears last he was first as a prize-holder,
and at all times a dangerous opponent; very cool, very steady, and
one who seldom missed the target. Dwelling perhaps somewhat lengthily
on his aim, he added not a little to the suspense of opponents; but
usually relieved them by increasing the distance he held ahead of them.
Lieutenant Allen held a badge for Queen's Prize, the Challenge Cup for
one year, and on one occasion was second for Queen's Prize. The prize
meetings at the Punch Bowl were from the first held annually, and have
been hitherto well supported by the officers and surrounding gentlemen,
the mayor and corporation of Wilton always giving a hearty support by
way of prizes. Major Penruddocke was ever foremost in inducing men to
attend drills and to know how to use the rifle by offering prizes, &c.,
and very frequently both on prize shooting occasions and on general
musters provided most sumptuously for the inner wants of the hungry
men. To Major Penruddocke the company is much indebted for the getting
up of the fife-and-drum band; indeed, for very many things useful and
necessary, but which cannot be obtained out of common funds, or be
found by the men themselves. The Earl of Pembroke, Major Penruddocke's
successor in the command of the company, besides offering many prizes
at the targets, &c., most liberally provided every non-commissioned
officer and man with an undress suit of uniform, an expense which none
but a company having a good subscription list and a balance at the
bankers can enter into, the capitation grant being quite insufficient.
END
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