The Express.
London, England, 1865-01-18 00:00:00

THE

IlLiNtrlatOTORY,

'emu
.

Amos, by
conditions of the problem. If we would diminish
these essermoue doses of timber which Lord Psi.-
GOLD CHAINS. llnine/11 and Mr. akin insist on our maintaining
for the oonitzuotion of new wooden ships which
JOHN BROGDEN'S GOLD GUARD ORATES. will never go into battle ; If
we would keep our
main stores of tar, hemp, canvas, and gunpowder
BROGDEN'SGOLDALBERT CHAINS. at some ogee few miles inland, whence they
could be brought by a short railway when required
JOHNBROGDENSGOLDEROOCHCHIIES. as easily se they Gan be moved from one pert of
the dockyard to another, we should have little
AGRICULTUR AL HALL. eau. to fear lees from the daring attack of any
The talk of Landes le
peesreat Sumas or MONS I • L.
HIPPODIWIIIi and Cll.OO. ced eh" whole of the IMP. "NW' And in thin* in 0° reason t°
landoo wen to be the wet eecesuisc troupe OM rat suppose that English sailors and English
duped taco Ihiglaud. Deere or! 'vo7 .T 9•7•11 0'..0.,••• shi
nsmon oxameochur at mit-peat 7. Comma suerieeelou pa
are less pre-eminent than of old,
rerru
et Novelties. our business must be to keep up such a fleet, so
manned, that in war no enemy can beat us at sea,
while vs retain in harbour such moderate num-
ber of vessels as may snMee to drive off or capture
any small number of ships which may momentarily I
evade our fleet. Steam, properly applied, gives
us in this an increased advantage, as all modern
soignee of war on see or shore happily tends to
strengthen the defemive. Rut, instead of this
plain and obvious sours* of safety it pleases our
rulers to amuse us with the promise of huge defen-
sive forts, for which now, in the fifth year of pro-
jection, it is disoovered that no foundation can be
obtained, while, save the Royal Sovereign, they
have not given: us one of those harbour defence
easels on whim, even on their own showing, the
efliseey of the forts was to depend. These facts
are a strange commentary on that vehement and
restless patriotism which conjured up imaginary
navies, landed on our shores impossible armies,
sacked London, stormed Portsmouth, and annihi-
lated British fleets and British forums, until all men
were set a talking of a Deimos Commissions," and
every one was brought to believe Lord Pmarsu-
srom to be a Heaven-born general, and the only
man in the country to whom England's honour
4 safety could be trusted.

70/121

ROYAL AGRICULTURAL BALL
anal aad Nova restore. A ()mad 1111litterzAsid Low
Man Spostacte, entitled the BRIGANDS ot the IRIAN
MOUNTAIN:4, Introducing upwards of mews at me tit"
aad the whole of the memilllcent stud ot ROMS sad rosin;
the spectacle being interspersed wlth cavahtslMryes. tests cd
arm., combats. bllaut tableaux, de., gm plow- ism OVIII
W mountain cataract.

ROYAL AGRICULTURAL R•LI.
Pub Mambas 111D-DATI.IIItIOiIItAZO3III, ea TWIIIDATI,
THMINDAYS. sad BATUMDAYS, al I edoolt. restelsobe
at hlapera. Canaria nadir MU mem adatitted half pdoe
to all lane of the balding, wept Me
Nomell.—The Promlater will and meat olemere la admitting
grails the ramie of the tarloaa ehasitleeio the dity eahlbtlloaa
upon aa applimilm from the tauten. rebate bonutedia;
WOW ; meta ea Clam :
• . Oellerim K leamMee epee &Systems Witham

IVIIEEMBIR ! we waik— Supine lot you dim
ill, Paataatiale. at MUM . rag salt

icite erpreisi.

TO 00111ZSPONDINTIL
bbeitlaemosta Mewled be The Repress" Leedom Image
, mad be el be Moe, 10, Ituairerla-dcread. Ol TV.
:ark co siss day et latdkaabas.

RIM RAMS TY'S.
Tula truarach IAUST. Use" Swift. Yorbau H. Mead
Machold . ardamps Laub' !yk liarrlagtoa. and
Doulsotor, Antll2—Aad TR' LION AND TRZ UNMAN.
—Munalui Tartonaanaa Saturdays and Tosselura at 2 o'clock.

RAYMAZEWL
TM Imams. DAVID GAZILICIL-COLD DUNDILLARY
DIMMED AND DONS BOIL bloom Ileibilen. Brad. look-
*Ark Gordon; Milli Boowdoe.-PRLICIOIB 81.1111011 MS.
Mr, Oampton.-Aad A DAY AUER TDB WIDDINO.

SIN essitt.

rawczers.
TWO Islingo. Tin MAGIC NORSE AND TIM ICI MAID=
111.11C138.—ARA ETKIZIS OP LONDON. Mesa
J. W. Day, I). Umber a U eT, J. Nelson. IL torrisierVl7M
a. maws an. a.laleska. names and O.

•
OSBORNE. JLII. 17.
7 he Queen walked and amyl!' yesterday morning
sad daemon.
Plasma Helens accompanied Ism MajeeVy. .1
PriDowe Leslie west oat &Mag.
ejer-G•oeral Lord WithamPsalet..mniasdiag the
Sontb-Weetern Distriel, Imbed at Oeberse from Pert*
await. end bed** MOMS of dialog vita her Majesty.

Tses mass, MY WIFICS OUT. Mr. Triddlecasb.—
itrY ALL& Maria Pechter. li)der: Fitspitriek. Cliariaart.
lledatrro, llarolard, Collett, Clifford :Wm C.
BILIFFACJID ismosToss. Mr. Wider°odb.

fm ITlEnte. LITrLI BUSY ; a, the Old Lei of
Threednesttleateort. Newham L Lam, W. Creaked. sea Z.
Jambe ; Mr. 0. etprood. lint-rate Taidombelete —And THZ
WOILIE-011tLi 07 LONDON.--comeeerre et laved S.

A deputation of officers of the Volunteer metre lied so
latarview with Eal de Grey at the Wsr-oelos yostasday.
The deputation cradsta of Lord Man, Lana..Colora
Commanding Looks flissaish ; Lord Truro, Lisa:Cam'
West Loudon Rides; Jonah Wilkinson, Lissit,Oolossel
End Administrative &Maim Middlesex Rids Volustars ;
Charles E. Murray, Liont.Doloaal 7th Administrative or
7111 South West Middlesex Battalion ; Doom Hoary
Mousy, Liont.-Colonel North East London Riffs, ; neap
E. Thorold, Lisa.43aosol Ist Admisistative Batialkis
Kent Bide Volunteers ; F. Andrew Durnford. Major 2ad
Barmy Artillery ; Hairy Pantos, Lisat,Coloael 39th Mid-
dlesex Riff* Volantsoss ; Thome Rubio, Lieut.-Dolma
19th Middles*: ;J. M. Corns, Lisa.-Ookaa 37th Middle'
au Riffs Volunteers ; Marcus Bamford, Limit. -Colossal 7th
Barmy Ribs ; and MacLeod of MacLeod. Liaut,Ooloasi
of lst Middlesex Eargissisrs.
Donparhos were received yesterday
at the Colonial.
offios from the Warms of the North Americas Provisoes
sad Bermuda.

HIGH WATS& AT LONDON BMW
TWO DLT NOMA& eb.
44.141011A011 lioralag, Ob. Ma...../demosa. ab aim

LONDON, WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18.

Ix is now definitely announced that one of the
Portsmouth manias forts must be abandoned, be-
cause of the impossibility of finding a foundation.
The fort in question was the most important of the
three proposed by Government, for it was that on
the Sturbridge shoal, almost in mid-channel
between Ryde and Gosport, and, unlike the other
two on the Horse and Noman shoals, it professed
not only to guard the entrance, but to command
the Spithead anchorage. The default of this ma-
terial part of the system it is proposed to remedy
by erecting two more forte in lieu of that aban-
doned, one on the Ryde sand, about 1,000 yards
nearer the isle of Wight than the Sturbridge shoal,
the other on the furthest point of the spit land,
which, running out from the Gosport side, flanks
the deep water channel into Portsmouth arbour,
and gives its name to the anchorage. Supposing
that these constructions are found practicable, they
will, at a neoessarily greater expense, accomplish
pretty nearly the same objects which the Sturbridge
Fort was intended to serve. They will form a square,
at the angles of which, on the Isle of Wight side,
will stand the Ryde sand and the Noman, on the
Portsmouth side the Spit and Gilkicker Point
Forts ; but each of these will be about two miles
apart, and the middle point within them, which
constitutes the deep water of Spithead, will be
2,200 yards from any of them, while it will be
only 5,000 yards from the combustible part of
Portsmouth Dockyard. Towards the westward,
indeed, the alteration in the position will allow
hostile vessels to approach nearer than they could
before, and afford them more room for cruising
within range of their object. And therefore, what-
ever the advantages or demerits of the original
system, it is certainly in no degree improved by
the alterations which circumstances have enforced
upon it.
Nor can it be said that the experience of actual
war has done anything to increase our confidence
in these stationary batteries, whatever their in-
trinsic strength, and whatever the weight of the ord-
nance they may carry. Denmark and America
have proved that turret vessels can live and work
their guns under the heaviest shore fire with scarce
any inconvenience and with no loss. But the dashing
exploits of the American navy at New Orleans, at
Charleston, and at Mobile, have proved that even
wooden vessels, and vessels very imperfectly plated,
an still in certain circumstanced bid defiance to
forts. These circumstances are, that the veinal do
not lie-to for the purpose of engaging the
forts, but run put them to attain some
ulterior object. For when this is the sys-
tem adopted, the power of the forts to
sink, burn, or blow up their opponents is neutra-
lised by the fact that they do not hit them.
Even in the late attempt on Wilmington we find
that the fleet was able to keep up such a shower
of shell that the garrison of Fort Fisher were driven
from their guns, while we do not read of a single
casualty on board the fleet from the fire of the
fort. Now, these conditions are exactly what an
enemy would find under the proposed system of
forts at Spithead. If he were to range up to any
one of them, for the purpose of trying to silence it
at close quarters, we may readily grant that he
would in a short time be sent to the bottom. But
be would commit no such aimless folly. He
would steam or sail past them at above 1,000
yards distance from the nearest, till he got
to a position where he could cruise at his leisure at
a distance of 2,500 yards from the nearest, shifting
incessantly his position and range, but always
within easy shelling distance of the dockyard.
He would accomplish thin very likely in the grey
dawn, as FAIILILAGUT did at New Orissa', or in a
light haze, when his ships would be absolutely in-
visible at the distance. But in any weather the
smoke of the fleet and forts would speedily serve
to render the aim at the ships uncertain, and the
fire of the forts ineffectual. tinder these circum-
stances what can the forte do ? If they are trusted
to resist the attack alone, they will certainly fail ;
if they are aided by • flotilla, they must cease to
fire when our ships engage. They will neither
suffice alone, nor serve as auxiliaries. They will
either betray es if we trust to them, or fail to aid
us if we trust to • fleet.
What we really require for the security of
Portsmouth and all our other dockyards is

The Prince and Princess of Wales and suite will,
moordiag to present ansagonmeir, leave firadrioghsar to-
morrow for Imabea. and, after wording a night Ili Mad-
boroesh Hamm pros rd fo Osborao to }ohs the Queen sad
. .