** The next Preliminary Army Guide will be published early in April.

PRELIMINARY ARMY GUIDE.

FEBRUARY EXAMINATION, 1882.

PART I.

REVIEW OF THE LAST PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION. THE papers set in this Examination were of a very reasonable, straightforward nature, and such that any candidate who had been properly prepared ought to have been able to do with comparative ease. Perhaps the French Translation was a little hard; but then it was amply compensated for by the easiness of the French Grammar. In the Dictation also-that "bugbear" to so many candidates-there is very little to cry out against; and probably not quite so many candidates as usual were" postponed " in this branch of the Examination. The Arithmetic Paper was, as usual, simple and straightforward; the object of the paper being not to puzzle the Candidates, but to test them in the accuracy of their numerical results. There were one or two rather stiff problems in the Geometrical Drawing Paper; and this subject will doubtless become gradually harder and harder at each successive Examination. Still, there has nothing been set as yet that is in any way appalling. The Geography was a thoroughly good Test Paper-one which any candidate who had been merely "crammed" for his examination would make very little of, whilst on the other hand any one who had worked well and been thoroughly prepared would be able to show to advantage in it. As long as the Civil Commissioners continue to set such papers as they have lately issued, no reasonable complaint can be made; and if a candidate fails in his examination, the fault must rest with him or his tutor, or with both; it certainly cannot be laid at the door of the Examiners.

LIST OF THE SUBJECTS REQUIRED FOR THE PRELIMINARY ARMY EXAMINATIONS.

1. Dictation.

2. French or German; limited to Translation and Grammar.

3. Arithmetic; including Vulgar and Decimal Fractions, Proportion, and Interest.

4. The Elements of Geometrical Drawing, including Comparative Scales. 5. Geography.

6. The First Book of Euclid, and propositions based thereon.

There are Four Preliminary Examinations in the year, in the months of February, March, July, and August. The Further Examinations are held

in June and November.

B

PART II.

TEST PAPERS ON GEOGRAPHY AND ARITHMETIC; ALSO ON MILTON'S SAMSON AGONISTES AND LYCIDAS; CORIOLANUS, AND CANTERBURY TALES (PROLOGUE).

GEOGRAPHY.

(Continued from last number.)

England and Wales, Scotland and Ireland.

1. Draw an outline map of Ireland, filling in the chief mountains and rivers and the following places (marking them with a star), Cork, Londonderry, Belfast, Limerick, Wexford, Drogheda, Carrick.

2. Trace the course of the Shannon, Tweed, and Trent.

3. Give a full description of the county of Yorkshire, its physical features, political divisions, manufactures, chief towns, population, &c.

4. In a coasting voyage from Southampton to Cork, what bays, capes, river mouths, and towns would be passed?

5. Mention the counties of Scotland that are washed by the sea, and give the capital of each.

6. State what you know of the position and importance of any ten of the following:-Bannockburn, Belfast, Elgin, Scone, Carisbrook, Alnwick, Naseby, Limerick, Coldstream, Youghal Bay, Dunstable, Peebles, Paisley.

ARITHMETIC.

(Continued from last number.)

Practice and Proportion.

1. Find, by Practice, the dividend on £297 6s. 6d. at 13s. 9d. in the £. 2. Find the cost of 18 cwt. 2 qrs. 15 lbs. at 108. 94d. per qr.

3. If 10 men mow 11 acres of grass in 9 days, how many men will it take to mow the same quantity in 36 days?

4. If of a ship is worth £5040, what is the value of of it?

5. If 10 horses eat 3 quarters of corn in 7 days, how many quarters will 16 horses eat in 10 days?

6. Find the value of 1011 yards of calico at 88. 24d. per dozen yards. 7. Find, by Practice, the cost of maintaining a garrison of 3500 men for a week at the rate of 7s. 94d. per head.

8. If 10 reams of paper cost £2 158., how many reams can be bought for £4 108.?

MILTON'S SAMSON AGONISTES AND LYCIDAS.

1. Give an outline of the plot of 'Samson,' and quote any lines which seem to you to refer to the poet's personal circumstances.

2. Discuss the metre in which 'Samson' is written. Is the work a

Tragedy in the strict sense of the term? Explain fully.

3. Whom does Milton mean to represent by Lycidas? Assign the

approximate dates to this poem and 'Samson,' giving your reasons.

4. Explain the following, filling in the context:

(a) Thy fair enchanted cups, and warbling charms
No more on me have power.

(b) Hid in her vacant interlunar cave.

5. In what senses are the following words used:-Reft, meed, meditate, weanling, crude, rathe, draff, trains, interminable, transverse, fraught? 6. What other poems did Milton write, and at what dates were they published?

CORIOLANUS.

1. What evidence, internal or external, is there to fix the date of the play? Whence did Shakspeare derive his materials for it, and what is the moral which he wishes to point?

2. Explain the following, with reference to the context:

(i.) See here these movers that do prize their hours

At a crack'd drachma !

(ii.) The one side must have bale.

(iii.) And tent themselves with death.

(iv.) How shall this bosom multiplied digest

The senate's courtesy?

(v.) Let them pronounce the steep Tarpeian death!

3. Quote lines from the play, to show the use and meaning of the following:

The cockle of rebellion; my unbarb'd sconce; bolted language; to stale 't a little more; ruth; to gird the gods; pretences; manifest housekeepers; by your patience; even to Cato's wish; embarquements.

4. Describe any of the mob or citizen scenes, and the interview between Coriolanus and his mother.

5. Quote any ten lines from the play that you most admire, giving your reasons for so doing.

6. Discuss the characters of Coriolanus and Aufidius, showing the points of resemblance and difference.

CANTERBURY TALES (Prologue).

1. Write a short life of Chaucer.

What is the date and origin of the

Canterbury Tales?

2. What suffixes of nouns and adjectives do we find in Chaucer that have since died out?

3. Explain the following:

And palmers for to seeken straunge lands.
Me thinketh it accordaunt to resoun.
And he hadde ben sometime in chivachie.
And to ben holden digne of reverence.
That stemede as a forneys of a leede.
With his bargayns and with his chevysaunce.
Gird with a seyut of silk, with barres smale.
Ful many a fat partrich had he in mewe.

A schirreve had he ben and a contour.

4. In what senses are the following words used? (Give derivations where you can.)

Vileinye, habergeoun, harneysed, wood, byt, in good point, lymytour, yeddynges, clerk, aulas, lyveré, schaply, boote, mortrewes.

5. Give Chaucer's description of the "Good Wif byside Bathe," and of the "Millere."

6. Explain the following expressions:

Him wolde he snybbe scharply for the nones.

At wrastlynge he wolde alwey have the ram.

And prively a fynch eek cowde he pull.
Ful thinne it lay, by culpons on and oon.
That ye ne rette it nat my vileinye.

Us thought it was nat worth to make it wys.

7. In what senses are the following words used:-Hertely, verdite, to talen, stepe, latoun, vermèle, Thestat, narwe, sawceflem, surcote, achate, resoun, tukked, ale-stake, maunciple, lewed.

8. What particular uses are found in Chaucer of the words: Which, What, That he?

9. Give instances from the Prologue of :-The old Genitive case; The old plural suffix of adjectives; The gerundial infinitive. 10. Scan the following lines:

A bettre preest I trowe ther no wher non is.
In a gowne of faldyng to the kne.

And forth we riden a littel more than paas.

Ne wette hire fingres in hire sauce depe.

In the next PRELIMINARY ARMY GUIDE (to be published directly after the March Examination) Papers of Test Questions will be given on France, Germany, Spain, Portugal, and Italy; on Interest; and on Richard II., Bacon's Essays, and Napier's Peninsular War.

PART III.

CORRESPONDENCE, QUERIES, NOTICES, &c.

A. B. You have to qualify in every subject.

ANXIOUS.-You will know the result of the Examination about three weeks after it is over.

MILES.-The Medical Examination has to be passed before you can proceed with the Further Examination.

X.Y.Z.-The average number of marks obtained by the lowest successful candidate is between four and five thousand.

'GEOGRAPHY MADE EASY.'

This little work, prepared specially for the Army Examinations, will be ready in about a month's time. All communications should be addressed to John Gibson, Bromley, Kent.

PART IV.

ANSWERS IN FULL TO THE QUESTIONS SET AT THE FEBRUARY EXAMINATION, 1882.

FRENCH.

Wednesday, 15th February, 1882. 10 A.M.-12.30 P.M.
[Including Grammatical Questions and English Dictation.]

Translate into English:

I.

L'ARMÉE FRANÇAISE EN ESPAGNE EN 1813.

Cette armée en qualités militaires n'avait pas d'égale, surtout depuis les pertes que nous avions faites en Russie et en Allemagne. C'étaient les plus braves soldats, les plus aguerris. Mais en même temps ils étaient, comme nous l'avons déjà dit, dégoûtés de se voir depuis six ans sacrifiés non seulement à une entreprise funeste, mais à l'incapacité et à la rivalité de leurs chefs. Avec une confiance immense en eux-mêmes, ils n'en avaient aucune dans leurs généraux, excepté toutefois les généraux Reille et Clausel, et ils n'attendaient qu'à être battus. Ce défaut de confiance dans ceux qui les commandaient avait achevé de détruire parmi eux la discipline déjà fort ebranlée par la misère. Habitués à n'être jamais nourris, à vivre uniquement de ce qu'ils arrachaient à une population qu'ils haïssaient et dont ils étaient haïs, ils se regardaient comme les maîtres de tout ce qui était sous leur main.

This army had no equal in military qualities, especially since the losses