The Sun.
London, England, 1855-12-21 00:00:00

EAST INDIA AND CHINA MAIL

SOUTHAMPTON, DEC. 20.
This day, at one o'clock, the Peninsular and
Oriental Company's steam-ship Ava, Capt. Field,
arrived in the river, with the heavy portion of the
East India and China mails, which were imme-
diately after landed.
The Ava brings 62 passengers, amongst whom
was Sir Laurence Peel, from Calcutta. The freight
consists of 585 boxes of raisins, 109 bales of silk,
110 bags and 91 packages of gum, 1,240 sacks of
wheat, 27 packages of elephants' teeth, and 248
packages of sundries.

The dates of sailing were—Alexandria, Dec. 6 ;
Malta, 10 ; Gibraltar, 15.
On the 11th, the Ava passed two vessels bound
to the westward, supposed to be H.M.S. Rodney
and London ; and on the 16th, the steam-ship
Melita, and the schooner Maid of Athens.
Her Majesty's ships Ceylon and Hibernia were
at Malta. At Gibraltar, the Prometheus.
From Gibraltar we learn that during a gale on
the night of the 10th, the Spanish brig Bravo,
Capt. Daniel Maury, with a carga of wine, soap,
paper, &c., bound from Barcelona to Havana, hav-
ing 47 passengers on board, was lost near Torre
Carbonera (eastward of the rock), and 22 passen-
gers, i,,cluding 7 women, perished. On the same
night, the Georgiana, Capt. Parfitt, bound from
Valencia to Liverpool, was driven ashore on the
Eastern beach.

The steam-transport Sir John Easthope, left
Gibraltar on the morning, of the 14th, for Spithead,
having in tow the sailing transport St. Hilda.
The steam-transport Northumberland left Gib.
raltar, on the 15th, for Spithead.

Exchange on London, at 90 days' date, 51 to 51i.
Freights, $l2 per ton, and 10 per cent.

SHIPPING INTELLIGENCE.
GIBRALTAR, Dec. s.—The Osprey, steamer; which ar•
rived yesterday from London, with stores for the British
army at the seat of war, will coal previous to leaving for
Balaklava. The following are the passengers she has en
board :—Col. Patterson, Rev. E. Verity, Capt. Fereday,,
Messrs. Blelock, Scherman, Calisher, Boys, O'Neill, and
Jepper ; Mrs. and Master Ellison, Mrs. Lander, Mr., Mrs.,
Miss, and Master Pearse. _

A French line•of•battle ship and the British transport
Lady Anne passed the garrison to the westward at half-past
seven o'clock this morning.

The sailing transport Title-Briton, Captain Norris, put
into the hay this forenoon from Malta, to land gunpowder
and shell hers.

DEC. 6.—The steam-transport William Beckett, which
came in from Malta yesterday evening, with condemned
stores for Deptford, took in 90 tons of coal during the
night, and will leave for her destination immediately after
repairing some defect in the valves of her machinery. The
sailing transports Bombay, Gemelza, and True Briton, are
busy discharging shot, shell, drc.

DEC. B.—The screw steamship Tiber, which left Liver•
pool in the afternoo❑ of the 30th ult., arrived in the bay
yesterday, at lour o'clock p.m. She brings five passengers
and a general cargo for Gibraltar and different ports of the
Italian peninsula, and will resume her voyage immediately
after taking i❑ a supply of coal and discharging the goods
destined for this market.

The Italian, screw-steamer (a sister ship to the Sardinia,
but 100 tons larger), arrived from Havre on Saturday
afternoon laden with stores for the French army in the
Crimea, and, after,coaling in the bay, started for Constan-
tinople at Ave p.m. yesterday.
The screw-steamer Berwick, Captain Farmer, which put
into the bay at one p.m. yesterday, to coal, made the pas-
sage from London in 5 days and 12 hours, notwithstand•
ing she had been 13 hours without using steam, in conse-
quence of the engine being out of order. She exchanged
signals with the French ship of the line Eneo, in lat. 38
48 N., long. 948 W. steering to the northward. The Ber•
wick coaled at the New Mole, and resumed her voyage to
the Crimea at eight o'clock last night, conveying 7 officers
and 227 men of the Army Works Corps, and some wooden
huts and warm clothing for that corps.
The Progress, steam-transport, which arrived on Satur•
day, and the Cockrane, steam-transport, this morning, are
both laden with shot, shell, and gunpowder, for this
',lace, and will disharge preparatory to leaving for Eag•
laid.

The Zebra, steam-transport, arrived during the evening,
from Malta, where she left on the 3d instant, with Major
Guernsey, Turkish Contingent ; Capt. Knight, of the
same corps ; Dr. M'Donell, deputy inspector of hospitals ;
Mr. Leyland, and four others, for Portsmouth. and will
proceed, as soon as she gets a supply of coal at the New
Mole. The Indiana, steam•transport, which lift Malta
half an hour before the Zebra, also arrived here at half-
past 10 this morning.
DEC. 11.—During the stormy state of the weather last
night the British ship Georgiana, Capt. Parfitt, was driven
ashore on the western beach, near the Tunara. This ship
had lately discharged a cargo of guano at Valencia, and
was on her passage from that port to Liverpool in ballast.
The Zebra, steam-transport, having been supplied with
160 tons of coal from the New Mole, proceedeid at 8 a.m.
to -Ipithead.

The Progress and Cockrane, steam-transports, laden
with powder and shot from the East are discharging their
cargoes preparatory to leaving for England.
DEC. 12. The Indiana, steam-transport, Captain
M'Master, which came in yesterday afternoon from Malta,
is laden with gunpowder, shot, and shell for this garrison,
and will discharge the same preparatory to leaving for
England.
The sailing transport-ship St. Hilda, from Malta, in
ballast, for Plymouth, put into the bay yesterday.
The Belgian schooner Ville de Liege, laden with fruit,
b,aind from Marseilles to Antwerp, unfortunately got
ashore off the Devil's Tongue during the night. The steam
tug Bustler went to her assistance this morning, and sue.
ceeded in getting her afloat.
DEC. 13.—The steam transport Bahiana passed from
west to east at half-past eleven o'clock this morning.
DEC. 14.—The extraordinary prevalence of wet weather
during the latter part of the last month and the early half
of this may lead some persons to fear lest a prejudicial
change of some sort has come over our usually delightful
climate. What might be the cease of such a change it
would probably puzzle the philosophy of our Gibraltar
meteorologists to determine, but it may be some consola-
tion to them to know that the present inundation is not
a together unprecedented, and that we may still hope for
the return of an unclouded sun at its usual seasons of vlsi-
tatiou.
Although the mean annual fall of rain in this place is
estimated at 31.1 inches ; and the actual state of the plu-
viometer at the end of less than four months gives an
amount of 40.28, the variation is recorded to be no less,
than from
17m194.16 up to 62.87 the maximum which fell in
the year
anomalies,
lieslt rareis
ne not to
haveapprehended,
lately been observed—such
rain—the therefore,ft h
34onie
absencealthoughat
of
soiree as
nearly double the usual quantity of
spots upon the sun on all bunt
in-
frequency of the customary meteors
as the moon having at this change entirely forfeited
eVeodrasyasnd out
othero
the natural causes which have hitherto rendered this corner
her prestige—any material alterationhas been effected by
of the Mediterrannean not less agreeable to those who do
not dislike to see or feel the sun, than generally healthful
to all who do not scorn to be prudent in the matter of expo-
sure to its unobstructed beams.
The steam transport Sir John Easthope took her de-
parture for Spithead this morning at eight o'clock, taking
in tow the British sailing transport St. Hilda.
The Northumberland, steam-transport, Captain Craggy
which left Malta at four p.m. on the 7th inst., put into
the bay this forenoon to coal, and will leave for Spithead
to-morrow morning. Captain Cragg observed, about 40
miles to the eastward of the Rock, bulwarks, stanchions,
hen-coops, other articles, and a great quantity of oranges
flea iug on the surface of the water, which appeared to be
remnants of a ves:,el recently wrecked and broken up.

SOUTH AUSTRALIAN BANKING COMPANY.—The Ulna,
meeting of this company was held yesterday. The re
port showed that the affairs of the company were in a
prosperous condition. From the accounts it appeared
that the year's •profits amounted to 45,8751. 170. 2d*
The balance on the 28th of May last was 50,3471. 18F-
-2d., from which 10 per cent. was carried to the reserve
fund, and a dividend of 14 per cent. on the paid-up calm-
tal was declared. After a brief discussion the report
was adopted.