Accompanying this change was the abandonment of the rank of private—an unmeaning name for a well-defined grade, and substituting for it the more expressive and appropriate designation of sapper.
The history of the Royal Sappers and Miners is now closed. Henceforward its services belong to the history of the Royal Engineers.
1856.
Concluding Chapter.
Establishment of the corps—Organization of companies—Distribution—Establishment at Chatham—The Ordnance Survey—Its divisional districts—and military character—Qualifications of the observers—List of the non-commissioned officers employed as such—Greatest distances observed by them—Importance of the services of the non-commissioned officers, as proved by the reduction of the officers—Situations of trust filled by them—Strength of the companies—Average distribution in the United Kingdom—Division of labour—Great triangulation—Private James Weir—Secondary and minor triangulations—Other general survey duties—Perambulation of boundaries—Sergeant Robert Meade—Pay and allowances—Skilful and distinguished talents and usefulness of eleven non-commissioned officers; and of quartermaster William Young—Merits and services of the survey companies.
The establishment of the corps, excluding the nine staff officers attached to it, counts a total of 4,025 of all ranks. This number is divided into thirty-two companies, twenty-eight of which were raised for general service, and four for the duties of the national surveys. There is also one troop of drivers.
Each general service company is organized, with respect to trades, in numbers equivalent to the assumed wants of the service; and thus constituted, it is in a position, in proportion to its numerical efficiency, to undertake and accomplish any work within the scope of military purpose and requirement. The skill of the workmen and their ability as a body are rendered certain, by the enlistment of none but good or promising artificers, and the extreme care taken to form a company for duty.
Such, however, is not the rule in completing a survey company, for men of superior intelligence and acquirements only are drafted to them, irrespective of any classified organization of their establishment with respect to trades.
The distribution of the corps is as follows:—
| Companies. | |
| Chatham | 6 |
| Woolwich | 1 |
| Aldershot | 2 |
| Portsmouth | 1 |
| Devonport | 1 |
| Gibraltar | 2 |
| Malta | 2 |
| Corfu | 1 |
| Halifax, N. S. | 1 |
| Mauritius | 1 |
| Cape of Good Hope | 2 |
| Western Australia | 1 |
| New Zealand | 1 |
Detachments from the above are at the following places:—