THE ROYAL ENGINEERS I JOURNAL Vol LXXXI MARCH 1967 No 1 CONTENTS 38 Engineer Regiment's Silver Centrepiece . Gold Medal and Trench Gascoigne Prize Essay-1965 . Survey Work by RE Officers in Canada During the Past Century Major-General R. C. A. Edge 12 Commanding a Territorial Army Field Squadron . Major E. T. Boddye 27 The Vanishing Castle . Major B. C. R. Pollard 32 Introduction to a Corps Field Park Squadron . .Major N. R. Sturt 35 Aberfan . Lieut-ColonelR. M. Merrell S8 A Study of Cavities in the Ground Lieutenant G. R. Oxley and Lieutenant M. D. P. Young 42 Arctic Search Party . Lieut-Colonel R. S. Hawkins 47 - Combined Services Expedition to South Georgia . Captain P. F. Fagan 56 - Correspondence, Memoirs, Book Reviews, Technical Notes . 72 PUBLI- - RS . INSTITUTION OF RE OFFICE COPY AGE IO RfMnvl . 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Write for full details under ref RE9 Northfield Industrial Fabrications Ltd. PARK WORKS, OSSETT, YORKSHIRE. TELEPHONE 625/6/7 TELEX 55280 (NF.9 THE COUNCIL OF THE INSTITUTION OF ROYAL ENGINEERS (Established 1895, Incorporated by Royal Charter, 1923) Patron-HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN President Major-General T. H. F. Foulkes, CB, OBE, MA, MICE ...... ... ... 1965 Vice-Presidents Major-General J. H. S. Bowring, OBE, MC, MA, MICE ... ... ... ... 1965 Brigadier H. W. Kitson, CBE, MA ........ ... ... ... ... ... 1965 Elected Members Brigadier R. A. Lindsell, MC, MA, MIMechE, FIEE .. .. 1964 Brigadier R. W. C. Smales, MA, AMICE .. ..... 1964 Colonel G. W. Shepherd, OBE, BA .......... 1964 Brigadier D. J. Willison, OBE, MC .. .. ..... 1964 Colonel R. F. N. Anderson, OBE, MC .. ..... 1964 Lieut-Colonel B. H. Holloway, OBE, TD, DL, RE (AER) .. .. 1964 Colonel J. L. Osborne MBE, TD, FRIBA (TA) .. .. .. 1964 Captain P. D. Plant, AMIPlantE .. ....... 1964 Colonel B. A. E. Maude, MBE, MA .. ........ 1965 Captain M. J. Parsons, BSc(Eng), AMICE .. ..... 1965 Colonel R. Bellingham-Smith, MBE, BSc .. .. .. .. 1966 Brigadier J. Constant, MA, MICE, AMIMechE, MIEE .. .. 1966 Lieut-Colonel B. J. Coombe, GM, BSc . 1966 Ex-Officio Memb ers Brigadier J. C. Woollett, CBE, MC, MA ... ... ... ... D/E-in-C (A) Colonel G. R. M. H. More, MC* ... AAG RE Brigadier I. H. Lyall Grant, MC, MA, MBIM ... ... ... Comd RSME Brigadier B. St. G. Irwin, MA, ARICS.. ... ...... ... D Survey Colonel G. T. E. Westbrook, OBE ... ....D/Comd, RSME ... Brigadier L. Scott-Bowden, DSO, OBE, MC * ... ... Comd, Trg Bde, RE Brigadier D. C. Cameron, CBE, ADC, BA ...... ... Brig. Eng Plans Corresponding Members Lieut-Colonel K. C. Fenton, BE (Civ.), MNZIE New Zealand Military Forces . .. ... .12 May 1964 Colonel C. Linsell, OBE, MC, Union Defence Force, South Africa ... I February 1956 Brigadier E. Logan, Australian Military Forces ... ... ... ... 16 November 1963 Lieut-Colonel N. Sadlier-Brown, CD, RCE, Canadian Armed Forces ... 26 January 1965 Secretary and Editor RE Journal Brigadier J. H. S. Lacey, CBE, BA ... ... ... ... 15 December 1958 Bankers - Lloyds Bank, Ltd, Cox's and King's Branch, 6 Pall Mall, SWI 4,000 1.3.67 THE ROYAL ENGINEERS JOURNAL Authors alone are responsiblefor the statements made and the opinions expressed in their papers VOL. LXXXI CONTENTS MARCH, 1967 PAGE I. 38 ENGINEER REGIMENT'S SILVER CENTREPIECE (With Photographs) 3 2. GOLD MEDAL AND TRENCH GASCOIGNE PRIZE ESSAY--965 3 3. SURVEY WORK BY RE OFFICERS IN CANADA DURING THE PAST CENTURY. BY MAJOR-GENERAL R. C. A. EDGE, MBE, BA, FRICS. ( With Photographs and Plate) 12 4. COMMANDING A TERRITORIAL ARMY FIELD SQUADRON. BY MAJOR E. T. BODDYE, TD, MA, AIM, RE(T) 27 5. THE VANISHING CASTLE. BY MAJOR B. C. R. POLLARD, RE (TA) 32 6. INTRODUCTION TO A CORPS FIELD PARK SQUADRON. BY MAJOR N. R. STURT, RE, MA, AMICE . 35 7. ABERFAN. BY LIEUT-COLONEL R. M. MERRELL, MBE, RE. CRE 53 (WELSH) DIVISION TA, WALES DISTRICT 8. A STUDY OF CAVITIES IN TIIE GROUND. BY LIEUTENANT G. R. OXLEY, RE AND LIEUTENANT M. D. P. YOUNG, RE, BSC, BD SQUADRON RE. (With Sketches) 42 9. ARCTIC SEARCH PARTY. BY LIEUT-COLONEL R. S. HAWKINS, MA, AMIMECHE, RE (RET'D). (With Plate) . 47 10. COMBINED SERVICES EXPEDITION TO SOUTir GEORGIA 1964-65. BY CAPTAIN P. F. FAGAN, MBE, RE. (With Photographs and AMap) . 56 1I. CORRESPONDENCE 72 12. MEMOIRS . 76 LIEUT-GENERAL SIR CIIARLES KING, KBE, CB, MICE, COLONEL COMMANDANT RE (RTD) (With Photograph) MAJOR-GENERAL R. P. PAKENHAM-WALSII, CB, MC. (With Photograph) BRIGADIER A. MACG. STEWART. (With Photograph) LIEUT-COLONEL J. CHATTERTON, MC (LATE OF TIIE DUKE OF WELLINGTON'S REGIMENT). (With Photograph) 13. BOOK REVIEWS . 91 TIlE MEDITERRANEAN AND MIDDLE EAST, VOL IV . B.T.W. ENGINEERING AT CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY 1783-1965 MILITARY DRAWINGS AND PAINTINGS IN TIIE COLLECTION OF HER MAJESTY TIIE QUEEN TIIE PIRATE COAST . B.T.W. ELECTRONIC AUTOMATIC CONTROL DEVICES . F.T.S. APPLIED MIECIIANICS FOR ENGINEERS VOLUME I . F.T.S. STRENGTII OF MATERIALS . F.T.S. BASIC TIIEORY OF STRUCTURES . F.T.S. SIx FIGURE TRIGONOMETRICAL TABLES: CI. SIX FIGURE LOGARITIIMIC TABLES: C . F.T.S. 14. TECIINICAL NOTES 98 CIVIL ENGINEERING THE MILITARY ENGINEER 38 Engineer Regiment's Silver Centrepiece 1 38 Engineer Regiment's Silver Centrepiece 2 Gold Medal and Trench Gascoigne Prize Essay-1965 The 1965 Gold Medal and Trench Gascoigne Prize was awarded to Major- General W. G. F. Jackson, OBE, MC. His prize-winning essay was pub- lished in the November 1965 issue of the RUSI Journal, and it is reprinted here by permission of the Council of the Royal United Service Institution. "China has now exploded a nuclear device. Francehad already done so and is producing a nuclear weapon delivery system that may be operationalby the end of the '60s. India and a number of other medium powers have, or will shortly have, the potentiality to produce nuclear weapons." Discuss the significance of thisfor the GreatPowers. PROLIFERATION OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS AT first sight the proliferation of nuclear weapons seems as inevitable as war itself.