REGULATIONS FOR THE EDUCATION AND PROMOTION OF THE ENGINEERS OF THE ROYAL NAVY, AS LAID DOWN IN CIRCULAR W., No. 60. OF 12TH OCTOBER, 1863, MEMORANDUM L. OF 19TH MAY, 1864, &c.

Admiralty, 22nd February, 1869.

1. Vacancies for Appointments as Engineer Students in the Factories at Woolwich, Sheerness, Portsmouth, and Devonport are open to public competition.

2. The Lists of Candidates are kept by the Superintendents of those Dockyards, to whom all applications must be addressed before the 1st of May, or 1st of November, in each year. With a view of complying as far as practicable with the wishes of the Candidates as to their distribution among the several Factories, the candidates in their application for nomination are to write down the names of the four Factories in order of preference.

3. Candidates must not be less than fifteen nor more than sixteen years of age on the first day of the Examination. Proof of age will be required by Certificate of Birth, extract from Baptismal Register, or declaration before a Magistrate. Evidence of respectability and good character must also be produced on a form which will be furnished by the Superintendents of the Dockyards. They will not he admitted for examination until they have been pronounced fit for H.M. Service by the Medical Officers in the Yards.

4. The Examinations will commence on the first Tuesdays in June and December.

5. The following will be the subjects of examination, and the maximum number of Marks for each subject:

6. Candidates will be subjected to a Preliminary Examination in the first three subjects, and should they fail in any of the three they will be at once rejected. Those who pass the preliminary test will then undergo a Competitive Examination in the remaining subjects, and the Candidates who display a competent knowledge of all the above subjects will be classed in one general list in order of merit, according to the number of marks gained, and will be eligible for appointment in existing vacancies. Those who do not succeed at the first examination will be allowed a second trial, if not over age; but they must apply to the Superintendents for a second nomination.

7. Engineer Students will be employed in the Factories for a period of six years, with a view to their becoming Naval Engineers if, on examination at the end of that time, they are found to possess the necessary qualifications. In the course of the six years they will its employed in the fitting and erecting shops, and will attend in the drawing office, the foundries, the smitheries, and other shops, to acquire a general knowledge of the work done in them. They will also attend at the Dockyard School two afternoons and two evenings in the week to pursue such studies as may from time to time be determined on. Means will also be afforded them of acquiring the groundwork of the knowledge required by a Naval Engineer, respecting the working of marine engines and boilers, the practical use of the various instruments used in the engine room, including the indicator, and of becoming generally acquainted with the duties of a Naval Engineer.

8. Engineer Students will be examined twice a year by the Director of Education, on the third Mondays in January and July, and the Marks obtained for these Examinations will cumulate up to the final one for entry as Assistant Engineer. The final examination will embrace

9. Engineer Students must gain 1150 marks before they obtain a certificate of qualification. These numbers must include at least half of the numbers allotted to the subjects marked with all*. The certificates will be of two classes. To obtain a first-class certificate a Student must gain 2000 marks, which must comprise three-fourths of the numbers in the subjects marked. A first-class certificate will be regarded, in respect of promotion, as equal to one year's sea-service. The Chief Engineer and Inspector of Machinery will also examine the Engineer Students twice a year as to their progress in practical studies, and no Engineer Student will be entered in the Navy until the Chief Engineer certifies that by his skill as a workman, his knowledge of steam machinery, and his good and steady conduct, he is fully qualified for the appointment of Assistant Engineer.

10. Engineer Students who may fail to attain the required standard for the scholastic examination at the end of six years, will be allowed to present themselves a second time, at the next half-yearly examination of the Director of Education; if they fail to obtain their certificates at the second examination, they will cease to be eligible for the Naval Service.

11. The weekly pay of Engineer Students will be 8s. during the first year of their training, and if they are reported deserving by the Chief Engineer and Inspector of Machinery, it will be increased 2s. a week each year until the sixth, and then increased 8s., making their wages 24s. a week for the last year.

12. The most intelligent of the Students will be eligible for a more advanced education at the School of Naval Architecture, in accordance with the Regulations contained in the Admiralty Circular of the 17th June, 1864, and those educated there will be bound under a Penalty of Fifty Pounds to remain in Her Majesty's Service for five Years after the expiration of their studies.

PRACTICAL QUALIFICATIONS OF ENGINEER OFFICERS, PASSING AND PROMOTION AT HOME AND ABROAD.

A Candidate for the appointment of Second-Class Assistant-Engineer must produce certificates of servitude in a factory, or proof of his acquaintance with engine work, and of his practical abilities as a mechanic, as well as testimonials of good conduct and character; he must possess all the qualifications requisite to enable him, after a short experience in the working of marine engines, to execute efficiently the duty of Second-Class Assistant-Engineer of any of Her Majesty's Ships; he must be able to keep accounts, and make rough working sketches of engines and boilers; be must understand the general principle of the engine, and be acquainted with the names of the various parts and their uses; and be willing to exert himself as a mechanic and workman in the several contingencies that may arise in the engine-room.

A Second-Class Assistant-Engineer who has served as such in one or more of Her Majesty's Ships, on full pay, for three complete years, may be examined as to his qualifications for the appointment of First-Class Assistant-Engineer, by order of the Commander-in-Chief, or senior Officer present: if at home, by the Chief Engineer and Inspector of Machinery of one of Her Majesty's Dockyards, and the Inspector of Machinery Afloat, in the presence of the Superintendent, or of such other Officer as may he nominated for the purpose, and if abroad, by an Inspector of Machinery afloat, and two Chief Engineers, in the presence of a Captain or Commander. The Candidate must possess all the qualifications required of a Second-Class Assistant-Engineer, by fully competent to perform the various duties of a First-Class Assistant-Engineer, and to take charge of a watch in the engine-room, when the steam is up at sea.

An Officer must serve for two complete years on full pay, as First-Class Assistant-Engineer, in one or more of H.M. Ships, before he is eligible for promotion to Engineer, when he may be examined under regulations similar to those laid down for promotion to First-Class Assistant-Engineer. He must possess all the qualifications required of a First-Class Assistant-Engineer, be fully competent to perform the various duties of an Engineer, well acquainted with the principle upon which marine engines work in all their parts, able to adjust all the various working parts, and set right defects which may arise in the engines and boilers, and in every way competent to take charge of the engines in the absence of the Chief Engineer.

When a First-Class Assistant-Engineer who possesses a certificate from the Inspector of Schools presents himself for examination for promotion to Engineer, he may also pass all examination in engineering knowledge which will qualify him for Chief Engineer.

An Officer must serve for three complete years, on full pay, as Engineer in one or more of Her Majesty's Ships before he is eligible for promotion to Chief Engineer, when he may be examined touching his fitness for that rank, by the Chief Engineer and Inspector of Machinery of one of Her Majesty's Dockyards, and the Inspector of Machinery afloat, in the presence of the Superintendent, or of such other Officer as may be nominated for that purpose: but he cannot receive a commission as Chief Engineer until he has a certificate from the Inspector of Schools or has been granted a dispensing order from the Admiralty. He must possess all the qualifications requisite to enable him to execute efficiently the duty of Chief Engineer of any one of Her Majesty's Ships; he must he able to make notes in the register of every particular of the working of the engines and boilers, draw rough sketches of any part of the machinery, with figured dimensions, fit to work from; be able and willing to exert himself practically as a mechanic and workman when occasion requires, either in driving the engines, or packing, repairing, or adjusting the working parts of the machinery, or making good the defects of boilers; he must possess a thorough knowledge of the construction and working of marine engines and boilers in all their parts, and be so far acquainted with the elements of theoretical mechanics as to comprehend the general principles on which the machine works; he must understand how to apply the Indicator, and draw the proper conclusions from the diagrams; and he must be acquainted with the principles of expansion, and able to prove, or at least to illustrate, the advantages to be derived from the use of expansive gear.

An Engineer, or a First or Second Class Assistant-Engineer, who may be serving abroad, where the requisite number of proper examining Officers cannot be obtained, may be provisionally examined, under the directions of the senior Officer present, by an Inspector of Machinery Afloat or by one, two, or three Chief Engineers, according as such Officers may be on the spot, in the presence of a Captain or Commander, or of the Officer commanding the ship in which the candidate may at the time be borne; and no Engineer Officer is to be considered eligible for advancement to a rank or class for which he has not passed at least a provisional examination; neither will he be eligible for confirmation in any rank which he may have attained after passing provisionally, until he shall have passed the established examination before proper Officers, in accordance with the foregoing instructions.

Engineer Officers of ships about to leave England for service abroad, may present themselves for examination for promotion to superior ranks, twelve months before completing the respective periods of service specified above.

A certain number of Engineers who may be considered fit and deserving, may, at their own request, be selected, from time to time, by the Admiralty, as " Engineers for special charge." As a general rule, they will not be appointed to ships bearing Chief Engineers; but they are not, after being so selected, to be considered eligible for promotion to the rank of Chief Engineer.

By Command of their Lordships, C. PAGET.

MEMORANDUM.

Admiralty March 15, 1866.

Engineer Officers will be examined by the Chief Engineers of the Dockyards only on the First Tuesday in every month, except under special circumstances.

Source: Navy List for 1870, Page 469 etc

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