The Sun.
London, England, 1864-05-07 00:00:00

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TRIAL OF THE CALEDCIIit-4;
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,Matirty
The iron-cased screw steam frigate. .iste.4L. 1- :74
35 guns, was taken from tho large bas \l4,llii3Qk
noes dockyard on Thursday last for a few axileaa
run, to test the working cap abilities of the ma-
chinery previous to her official trial at the measured
mile. On Friday the first ofackll trial of the en-
gines took place off the Maplin &Inds, under the
immediate superintendence of Captain W. K. Hall,
C,8., chief of the Sheerness Steam Reservo ; Messrs.
William Rumble, inspector of machinery afloat at
Sheerness ; George Bloxland, chief engine9r of the
Sheerness Dockyard, and F: Martin, senior assist-
ant master shipwright, were in attendance to watch
the results of the trial on the part of the Admiralty.
The firm of Messrs. Mauchley, Son, and Field, con•
tractors for the machinery, were represented by
Mr. Telford Field, and the engines were in ehargik
of Mr. Henry Warriner.

IThe Caledonia is a timber framed vessel, built at;
Woolwich Declryard, and Eke her sister ships.
and Royal Oak, is cased in
Prince Consort, Ocean,
rolled iron armour-plates 41 inches thick, extending•
from stem to stern and gun wale to five feet belol v
water line, the ship's sides being filled and solid and
strengthened with iron to enable them to carry /hie
heavy armour, which is secured with through bolds
having largewashers and nuts on the inside. Theuppm!
deck is constructed of iron beams of the Butterly
type, upon which fin. plates are riveted, which
gives great strength to this part of the ship. The
whole of the work of the ship having been performe d
by the artisans employed in a Government Doc}:.
yard, the vessel may be favourably contrasted wita
others supplied by private contractors. The Cale.
donia is rigged, having her three lower masts and
bowsprits of iron, and her topmasts, yards, &c.,
being of wood. The Mauling rigging is of gs l-
vanised iron-wire rope.
The machinery is supplied by the firm of Messrs.
Mandsley, Son, and Field, of London, and consists
of a pair of horizontal double piston rod engines,
which work the screw shaft direct. Each engine
has the whole of its starting and regulating levers
grouped together within convenient reach of the,
engineers. The massive shaft which passes through
the stem tube carries the propeller fixed upon it,
thus doing away with the well and hoisting app.-
ratus, which spoil su many of our noble ships and
cramp their steering apparatus. The propeller,
which has four blades, variable in pitch from 20ft.
to 25ft., and is 20in. long on lino of keel, with a
diameter of 21ft., was invented by the Admiralty,
and has been found very successful in decreasing the
vibration both in the Achilles as well as in this ves-
sel. The screw can be disconnected from the en-
gines when the ship is under sail by withdrawing
the coupling bolts and allowing the after length of
shaft and propeller ti turn round. The vessel is
fitted with two auxiliary engines for feeding the
boilers; there are also two others for extinguishing
fire and pumping out ship. Two steam crabs are
also fixed on deck for the purpose of raising ashes
and for general purposes.

During the trial the Caledonia had a draught of
water forward 22ft 4in, and aft 23ft llin. She had
on board 245 tons of coal, 200 tons of cables, stores,
&c., and about 100 tons of water, crew, &o. Her
guns and ordnance stores have not yet been put on
board. Six runs were made at full boiler-power on
the measured mile with the following results :
First run—time, smin 24 secs; speed, 11.111 knots;
revolutions of engines, 58; pressure of steam, 20;
vacuum, 26. Second ran—time, 3min 58sec ; speed,
15.126 knots; revolutions of engines, 57; pressure
of steam, 19; vacuum, 26. Third run—time, smin
31sec ; speed, 10876 knots; revolutions of engines,
58 ; pressure of steam, 19 ; vacuum, 26. Fourth run
—time, 3min 57sec ; speed, 15.190 knots; revolutions
of engines, 57 ; pressure of steam, 19 ; vacuum, 26.
Fifth run—time, smin 40sec ; speed, 10.588 knots;
revolutions of engines, 56 ; pressure of steam, 16.5 ;
vacuum, 25.5. Sixth run—time, 4min Bsec ; speed,
14.516 knots; revolutions of engines, 56; pressure
of steam, 16.5 ; vacuum, 25.5, giving as a first
mean 13.118, 13001, 13.032, 12.889, and 12.552
knots ; and the second means:l3.os9, 13.017, 12.961,
and 12.720 knots, the true means being 12.939 knots
per hour.

Naval and Military Intelligence,

THE NAVY.

The screw steamship Bombay, 67, Capt. Colin A.
Campbell, from the eastward, arrived yesterday
morning at Plymouth. Rear-Admiral the Hen.
Charles G. J. B. Elliot hoisted his flag on board
during the forenoon, under the customary salutes.
She has been completed with fuel and will embark
supernumeraries, and unless there are any defects
to make good, will proceed at once for the South
American station.

Letters rccoived at Plymouth from the screw
steam-sloop Icarus, 11, state that she left Malta on
the 19th of April, and arrived at Gibraltar on the
28th, when she received orders to proceed home-
wards immediately. Her officers expect to call at
Portsmouth and then go to Sheerness, whore the
crew will be paid off.
The paddlewheel sloop Gorgon, condemned to be
broken at Woolwich, was yesterday towed down to
Greenhithe by the Monkey, Master-Commander
Smithers, to act as a receiving hulk for the transfer
of the officers and crew of the Queen's steam-
yacht Osborne, Staff Commander Bower, four cases
of smallpox having made their appearance on board,
The sufferers have been transported to the Naval
Infirmary at Woolwich for treatment. The disease
commenced with the gunner's mate. On mustering
the ship's company for the doctor's inspection, three
others were found to have caught the infection, one
of whom is now very severely attacked. There are
at present 11 cases in the infirmary at Woolwich,
seven of whom are men of the Royal Marines. The
Osborne was brought op to Greenhithe for the
accommodation of the Board of Admiralty in their
inspection of the Channel Fleet.

The Admiralty yacht Vivid, Staff-Commander
Allen, was yesterday ordered to hold in readiness
at Woolwich to sail on Monday for Dover, to be in
attendance on the fleet now in the Downs. A
couple of dockyard lighters, laden with victualling
stores for the ships of the squadron, were yesterday
despatched from Woolwich in charge of a steams
tug.
The Admiralty yacht Black Eagle, Staff-Com`
Fleet.
mender Whillier, has sailed from Woolwich on
special service from Heligoland. It is rumoured
that the object of her mission is to watch the move-
ments of the Austrian shipsofictehreelminaedneowyeintetrhdoasye
waters. It is otherwise reported that she is des
spatched to Heligoland to bring home pilots res
quired for the service of tyihocatCehollerargnie:eiltF.
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The following appointments
at the Admiralty :—Lieut.
Royal George ; Dr. N. C. surgßeeolnL,
Assurance ; James Thomson, Burgeon, to the Enters
surgeon, to the
prise ; Ingham ganborYl assist._
Cumberland ; Jobn Turner (B), engineer, to the In-
dus for the Gleaner ; and 1 ohn Blight, engineer, to
the Galatea.

THE ARMY.
major-Gen. Sir Richard Dacres yesterday re-
sumed his final inspection of the garrison at Wool-
wich, Preparatory to his final resignation of the
comm and, by a muster of the Riding-house esta-
blishment, the whole of whom, officers and men,went
through a course of exercises in the upper and lower
schools, and displayed some very clever feats in
mouatiug and riding past with great effect.

ROYAL AUTOGRAPIIS.—The Crown Princess of
Prussia and tho King and Queen of Denmark have sent
their autographs to the Now York:Sanitary Fair. The
Crown Princess's autograph is as follows :—" Victoria,
Crown Princess of Prussia, Princess Royal of Great Britain
and Ireland."—ffew York Titncs.

THE INTOLERABLE BOTHER OF CITY PROPERTY.

—At the Auction Mart the other day, during the
sale of some property situate in the line of th© street lead-
ing from Blackfriars Bridge to the Mansion House, the
auctioneer stated that the owner of the property could
seldom get his breakfast in a morning, without being dis-
turbed by some one or other who knew he had City pro-
perty, and wanted to know if any part of it was to be dis-
posed ef. He had also been applied to by upwards of sixty
auctioneers and surveyors to negotiate with the improve-
went Commissioners the terms of compensation for the pro-
perty required for the new street, and he found his City
property to be such an " intolerable bother," that ho WAS
determined to get rid of it altogether,—City Press,

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