The Sun.
London, England, 1855-01-12 00:00:00

ARRIVAL OF TEE AVON FROM TEE

BLACiK SEA.

SOUTHAMPTON, THURSDAY.

THE VACANCIES IN COMMAND AT

THE CRIMEA.

THE FLOATING BATTERIES NO
BUILDI2IgIIIT CHERBOURG.

The following, !gays the Courrier du Havre, is a
correct description of one of the floating batteries, called
the Devastation, now in course of construction at
Cherbourg.

As the object is to make it capable of resisting th•
most furious fire, no attempt has been made to gain
beauty at the expense of solidity, and the consequence
is that in appearance it is very like the huge barges
which ply on the Seine between Havre and Rouen.
It is entirely flat bottomed, so as to draw but little
water, even after receiving heavy artillery. It is 5/
yards long, and 14 wide, and will be armed with 16 guns
of 50. Its sides are of tle extraordinary thickness of
nearly 13 inehes, and they are to be covered with sheets
of iron nearly 4 inches thick. The ribs are from 13i to
15 inches thick, and are placed very close together.
The battery will be supplied with a screw of 150-horse
power, and will be covered ever. Its powers of destruc-
tion will be very formidable ; it will, in fact, be a
floating fort.

The Devastation will, it is expected, not be terminated
before the end of February.

COURT CIRCULAR.

WINDSOR, JAL 11.
The dinner party yesterday included the Duchess of
Rent, the Marquis and Marchioness of Abercorn, the
Ladies Harriet and Louisa Hamilton, the Earl of Cla-
rendon, Viscount Torrington, Lady Fanny Howard,
Baroness de Speth, Sir George Couper, and Major-
General Wylde.
The band of the Royal Horse Guards played during
dinner. Her Majesty's private Band performed after-
wards.

The Queen, with the Princess Alice, walked in the
grounds adjacent to the Castle this morning.
Prince Albert, attended by Major-General the Hon.
Charles Grey, Colonel the Hon. C. B. Phipps, and Col.
F. H. Seymour, left Windsor for London by a special
train of the Great Western Railway, at five minutes past
10 o'clock.

The Prince drove to the Exhibition of the Photogra-
phic Society, afterwards visited the Duchess of Glou-
cester at Gloucester House, and returned to the Castle
at half-past 1 o'clock.

. The Earl of Clarendon accompanied his Royal High
nese to London.

A Cabinet COuncil was held yesterday afternoon at
the Foreign-office. The Ministers present were the Earl
of Aberdeen, the Lord Chancellor, the Duke of Argyll,
Viscount Palmerston. the Earl of Clarendon, Sir 4.1.0.
Grey, the Duke of Newcastle, the Chancellor of the
Exchequer, Sir James Graham, Sir Charles Wood, the
Right Hon. Sidney Herbert, and Sir Win. Molesworth.
The council sat three hours.

The Sardinian Minister transacted business yesterday
at the Foreign-office.
Viscount Palmerston arrived in town yesterday from
his seat, Broadlands, Hants, for the purpose of attend-
ing the Cabinet Council held at the Foreign-office.
Despatthes from the Governor of the Cape of Good
Hope were received yesterday at the Colonial-office.
The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council sat yes-
terday, and heard apetition for a prolongation of Lowe's
patent (gas). The Lords present were—the Dean of
the Arches Court, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Corn-
wall, and Sir Edward Ryan.

His Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge, whose
arrival at Malta has been already announced, will, it is
expected, remain tkere for some time for the benefit of
his health.

The Duke of Davonshire continues at Kemp-town.
His Grace gives frequent dinner parties, and is making
progress towards complete recovery.
The Duke and Dichess of Richmond continue at East
Lodge, Brighton. His Grace has been slightly indis-
posed for the last few days, but not so much as to pre-
vent him from attending the drills of the Royal Sussex
Militia.

The Earl and Cointess Craven have arrived in town,
from Brighton, aft3r a stay of several weeks in that
watering place.
Workmen are em)loyed at present at St. Chamans in
making several hunlred pieces of cannon on the model
of the Minis rifle. these guns will carry 31 English
miles.

The Zeramna of Plilippeville says :—" The snow and
cold have forced the wild beasts to descend from the
mountains. Lately Iwo lions presented themselves on
the road to Eldis jaw as the Diligence from Constantina
was coming up. Ore of them placed himself abreast
of the horses and trotted along on a line with them.
The other followed tle vehicle at a distance of two or
three metres. The pisson,gers were dreadfully alarmed,
imagining that the trio animals would certainly attack
them, but after accompanying the vehicle nearly half-a-
mile both of them quetly withdrew.
The Scinde Railwa3Company have received a notifica-
tion from the East Inlia-house that the Court of Dire°.
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first instalment, whicl will be 25 per cent., is not to be-
come payable until two months after the Company shall
have obtained their act of incorporation.

The Royal mail steamship Avon, Captain Ellison, has
arrived off this port from the Black Sea, Constantinople,
Malta, and Gibraltar, bringing about 200 invalids and
wounded soldiers and officers from the British army in
the East.

The Avon brings no news of importance. She has
been employed for the past eight months in the transport
service, but, having sustained severe damage in the
great gale of the 14th of December at Balaklava, has
been sent home for repair.
It is expected the Avon will be at once ordered to
Portsmouth to disembark her melancholy freight. She
therefore has not entered the docks, but awaits instruc-
tions from the Admiralty.

The following is a list of the officers exercising com-
mand above that of a regiment who have become non-
effective and who have not been re-placed :
Lieut.-General Sir George Brown, at Scutari or
Malta ; Lieut.-General Sir De Lacy Evans, home ;
Lieut.-General Duke of Cambridge, coming home ;
Lieut.-General Sir G. Cathcart, dead.

Thus, of the lieutenant-generals commanding divisions
originally there is lent one left—viz., Sir Richard Eng-
land. We now come to the brigadier or major-generals.
Major-General Bentinck, home ; Major-General Tor-
rens, home ; Major-general Lord de Ros, home ; Ma-
jor-General Earl of Cardigan, home ; Major-General
Pennefather, reported.to be coming home; Major-General
Adams, dead ; Major-General Goldie, dead ; Major.
General Tylden, R.E., dead ; Major-General Strang-
ways, R.A., dead. Therefore, of the 16 officers of the
second, or major-general, rank, nine have become non-
effective—seven only Leing now left at their duty. Con-
sequently, 13 officers must have been taken from the
command of regiments to take the places of the non-
effective divisional and brigade commandos,