tigable mind of Sir John Macleod; and his unremitting attention and exertions were most ably met by the zeal and emulation of the officers appointed to the new commands.

At this time there occurred another gratifying instance of the high estimation in which his name was held in the army. An expedition was preparing under the command of the late Marquis of Hastings, with whom he had served in America. His first step in making his arrangements was to offer the command of the artillery to Sir John Macleod; but not only did his staff duties again present an impediment, but his rank in the service at the time precluded the possibility of his appointment to so large a command. The following letter of Lord Hastings is inserted here, not so much with a view of exemplifying the estimation in which he held Sir John Macleod's military character, as from the desire which naturally suggests itself of recording a proof so illustrative of his Lordship's personal enterprise and zeal:

St. James's Place, 5th November, 1793.

" (Secret.) "MY DEAR MACLEOD, It is probable that I may very speedily be employed at the head of a considerable force. In such a situation, there is not any person I could so much wish for a commander of my artillery as yourself. If this cannot be, point out to me somebody upon whom I can rely in such a trust. Let it be some keen fellow, who will laugh in the midst of difficulties, as I have seen you do. Cast your eyes round too for inferior officers whom I may ask for; because, as we are sure of tough work, I ought to have good stuff. Thirty pieces of cannon would probably be requisite; yet I foresee, from the paucity of artillerymen, I shall be stinted in this particular. I mention this, to give you an idea what the nature of the artillery officer's command would be. But all is still loose and undetermined; and I have to request your secrecy in every respect.

"Believe me, &c.

"MOIRA."

The regiment of artillery had been now augmented from the peace establishment to a force of 25,000 men. The staff duties had, of course, increased in proportion, both in trust and in importance. The Master-General in consequence, in concurrence with the Duke of York, Commander-in-Chief, submitted a representation to his Majesty of the indispensable necessity of a public officer as Deputy Adjutant-General of Artillery. His Majesty was pleased to approve of this arrangement, and Sir John Macleod was accordingly appointed Deputy Adjutant-General, with the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel in the army (March 27th, 1795).

On the 21st of August, 1797, he was promoted to the regimental rank of Lieutenant-Colonel.

arms.

In 1798 a rebellion of most disastrous character broke forth in Ireland; and Lord Cornwallis was called on to proceed thither with extended authority to suppress it by force of Sir John Macleod considered the active employment of the Master-General of the Ordnance a favourable moment for soliciting permission to accompany him; and he entreated Lord Cornwallis to submit his wishes to the King, and to exert his influence with his Majesty to that effect. His absence from his responsible duties, however, was deemed inadmissible; but he received the following gracious assurance of the King's approval of his zeal and motives.

"Whitehall, 18th June, 1798.

"DEAR MACLEOD, I am just returned from the King's closet, and have stated to him your earnest wish to be allowed to accompany me to Ireland, for a certain time at least, and the desire which I felt of availing myself of your services. His Majesty expressed himself to be highly pleased with your zealous offer, and to be much disposed to gratify both you and me, by complying with your request: but he added, that he was apprehensive the service here must greatly suffer by the absence of the Public Officer; and he desired me to tell him fairly, whether that would not be the case.

"Called upon in this manner for my opinion, I could not

help admitting, that the service here must be liable to some inconvenience from your absence; upon which his Majesty desired me not to press him further on the subject.

"I am sincerely sorry for this disappointment, on your account as well as my own; but on reflecting coolly on the business, I must confess I think the King is in the right.

"Dear Macleod, very sincerely yours,

"CORNWALLIS."

In addition to the increased extent of the corps, there was added, in 1801, the establishment of a Riding School on a large and efficient scale; and also a Veterinary Establishment adequate to the necessities of the cavalry branches of the regiment, now increased by a numerous corps of drivers, regularly organised and trained for the service of field brigades of artillery. This corps, which had its first formation in 1793, had grown to the extent of 5500 officers and men; and before the conclusion of the war amounted to 7300. The formation and efficiency of these several departments, though apparently of minor detail and interest in the service, were not the less an object of Sir John Macleod's constant care and watchful superintendence.

In 1808 he was directed to organise a tenth battalion of artillery; and on the death of Lieutenant-General Walton, in the same year, he was appointed to succeed that officer as Master Gunner of England.

In 1809 the Scheldt expedition was projected; and Lord Chatham being at the time Master-General of the Ordnance, Sir John Macleod again seized the opportunity for soliciting active employment. His Majesty, on this occasion, was pleased to accede to his request; and he accordingly sailed from the Downs in command of the artillery under Lord Chatham's orders, in July, 1809.

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The result of this expedition is remembered to have been unsuccessful; but the arduous and laborious duties of Sir John Macleod's command proceeded from the commencement of the operations with uninterrupted and progressive success;

doing equal honour to the arrangements of the commanding officer, and the devoted zeal of the corps, in surmounting every obstacle, as far as the objects of the expedition were persevered in.

At no previous period had the resources of Sir John Macleod's mind been more necessarily exerted, than in the gigantic outfit and pursuit of the objects of this expedition. But the war now assumed a character that called for still increasing energy and thought, to meet the demands and casualties of the service, multiplied by the extension of our arms throughout every part of the world; by a constantly accumulating correspondence from every quarter; and above all, by the hourly increasing importance of the war in the Peninsula, where the vigour of the struggle between the two great contending nations seemed actually to grow with its duration. Sir John Macleod possessed, and fortunately knew how to employ, abilities equal to the growing emergencies of the service, which seemed but to give new life to his ardent and energetic exertions.

Before the close of the war, the three corps of artillery, organised by Sir John Macleod, amounted to upwards of 26,000 men, and near 14,000 horses. The recruiting branch of the service alone, to keep up such a legion, in men and horses, had become a source of great and anxious solicitude; and formed in itself an overwhelming mass of business to powers of less resource and experience than his own. From the commencement of the revolutionary war, there had been an almost constant succession of foreign expeditions, the arrangement and equipment of which devolved upon him. The principal of these were, the continental, in 1793; the West Indies, in 1794; the Cape of Good Hope, in 1795; the Helder, in 1799; Egypt, in 1800; Cape of Good Hope, in 1806; Buenos Ayres, in 1807; the Mediterranean, throughout the war; Spain and Portugal, in 1808; Walcheren, in 1809; Holland, in 1813; and, finally, the Netherlands and France, in 1815.

On the 25th of October, 1809, he attained the rank of

Major-General; and on the 4th of June, 1814, the rank of Lieutenant-General in the army.

The battle of Waterloo, at length, gave peace to Europe; and on the recall of the British Army of Occupation from France, Sir John Macleod was employed in making reductions in the artillery similar to those which took place in the other branches of the service. He had now attained a rank which, from the reduced number of the corps, would in future prevent his employment in the duties he had fulfilled during the war. It was on this occasion he received a letter from the Duke of Wellington, offering him the situation of Director-General of Artillery. A mind like that of Sir John Macleod could not with indifference quit a post at which he may be said to have formed the corps, to whose name and welfare he was, in every sense and feeling, enthusiastically devoted; and the considerate kindness with which the Duke's proposal was addressed to him was never forgotten by him. He continued to fulfil the duties of Director-General of Artillery to the close of his life; and even throughout his last illness he would never consent to any respite from the details and duties of his trust.

If we revert to the services of Sir John Macleod throughout the eventful and protracted war, during which he was employed in the most confidential and important duties an officer, can fulfil, it would be difficult to distinguish what might properly be termed the most conspicuous period of his career; but it may, perhaps, be considered to be that between the interval commencing with the chivalrous and enterprising advance of Sir John Moore into Spain, and the brilliant succession of events that followed without intermission till the final close of operations in the Peninsula: at which time the nature and responsibility of the duties he controlled had acquired an extent, variety, and importance quite unequalled in our service.

In 1820 his late Majesty, desirous of marking his sense of such long and important services, commanded his attendance at the Pavilion at Brighton; where, under circumstances of