The Sun.
London, England, 1864-03-22 00:00:00

COMMERCIAL INTELLIGENCE.

The money market continnas easy; capital is
being freely invested at 5 to 6 per cent.
The share market is excited and irregular.
Railroad bonds have advanced 1 to 2 per cent.
The following are the transactions at the Stock
Board ; —New York Central, 1371 ; Erie, 118 a ;
Hudson River, 1521 ; Harlem, 144 ; Reading, 1411 ;
Illinois Central Scrip, 1371; Michigan Central,
145; Michigan Southern, 103; Cleveland and Pitts-
burg, 120; Galena and Chicago, 1191; Chicago
and Rock Island, 124'1 ; Pittsburg, Fort Wagner,
and Chicago, 126 ; Pacific Mail, 235.
Government Securities are firm; Registered Sixes
of 1881, 113 ; do. Coupons, 1131 ; Seven Thirties,
1121 ; One Year Currency Certificates, 991.
Gold opened at 1621, and rose rapidly to 1651,
closing at that rate.

Naval and Military Intelligence.

THE NAVY.

VALETTA, March 17.—8 y the arrival of her Majesty's
screw corvette Icarus, 11, Acting-Commander Lieut. Boger,
on Sunday last, news has been received from Corfu to the
Bth inst. The Icarus left Malta, Feb. 26, with the British
Vice-Consul at Benghazi on board, and after landing him
there on the 29th, and being detained a few hours to enable
the surgeon, Dr M'Donald, to amputate the leg of a French
seaman, who had no other way of getting the operation
performed, she left the same day direct for Corfu, where she
arrived on the 6th in,t. After a stay of two de) s she left
again for Cephalonia, and embarked at Agostoli on the 9th
a large quantity of ordnance stores, including 21 guns of
various sizes, while she brought drown with her to Malta.
She experienced very fine weather throughout the different
passages, which were performed under steam and sail ac-
cording to circumstances. The Royal Oak, 35, Captain F.
Campbell, arrived at Corfu from Malta on the Bth inst., and
the Gibraltar, Si, Capt. J. C. Prevost, arrived a few hours
afterwards from the Piraeus. The Resistance, 18, Captain
Chamberlain, has relieved the Gibraltar at Athens. The
Magicienne, 16, Capt. W. Armytage, had also arrived at
Corfu from Malta for the purpcse of embarking stores, and
was to call at Ithaca to remove guns from that island. The
Cossack, 20, Captain W. R. Rolland, had arrived at Corfu
from Zante, and was to return thither for stores. The other
vessels at Corfu were the Orlando, 46, Captain G. G. Ran-
dolph, and the Growler, gunboat, under the command of
Lieut. Dent, who had replaced Lieut. Boyd. There were
also several hired transports shipping stores, and an Italian
frigate. Her Majesty's screw storeship Fox, Master-
Commander T. C. Pullen, which arrived on the 7th inst.,
from Pembroke, left Malta on the 9th for Corfu.
The Meeanee, 60, Captain G. Wodehouse, arrived last
week from Corfu with a large quantity of stores, and
left esterday on return to take in a fresh load. Other ves-
sels have already proceeded to England with unserviceable
stores and guns. The dissatisfaction of the islanders at the
destruction of the forts is expressed in various ways, and was
unmistakably exhibited on the departure of the 6th Regi-
ment. Her Majesty's paddlewheel despatch vessel Caradoc,
2, Lieut.-Commander Wilkinson, arrived on Tuesday from
Constantinople in four days. She is to undergo repairs here,
and return to Constantinople in three or four weeks. The
Austrian steam gunboat Wall, Commander M. Monfort,
arrived on Monday from Corfu, and after replenishing coal
and provisions, left for the westward, It is reported that
she will join the Austrian squadron that lately called here
on its way to Gibraltar. Her Majesty's screw corvette Cos-
sack, 28, Capt. W. R. Rolland, returned from Corfu yester-
day afternoon, having in tow the lonian brig St. Demitri,
laden with 250 tons of powder. The Cossack left Corfu on
the 11th, when there were there the Royal Oak, the Gib-
raltar, the Orlando, the storeship Fox, the Growler gun-
beat, and an Austrian frigate, the Radetzky, the Italian
frigate (training ship) sailed on the 13th for a cruise. The
destruction of the fortifications of Vido and Fort Abraham
was actively going on. On the 9th the expected explosion of
4,8001 b. of powder at Fort Abraham took place, and on the
11th there were other explosions of a smaller nature at this
fort. On this day, at 4 p.m., the largest explosion (6,6001 b,
or three tons) took place at Vido. All the operations have
been attended with the fullest success, with most favourable
weather. The citadel of Corfu is to be allowed to remain.
A portion of the interior works of Fort Neuf has been de-
stroyed, but the exterior wall is to be left. The Gibraltar
is daily expected with powder, and the Royal Oak is to
follow shortly with stores. The Cossack will proceed to-
morrow to Zante to load the hired transport Thornhill with
ordnance stores for England. The Thornhill is here, and
will leave on Mondayfor Z ante. It was reported and believed
that when clear of the island of Corfu the crew of the powder
brig St. Demitri intended to blow up the vessel, which was
heavily insured, and to prevent this the Cossack was
ordered to tow her to Malta, The Icarus left yesterday on
return to Corfu, and the Wanderer, 4, Commander M. C.
Seymour, left this morning for the Piraeus. The only ships
of war now in port are the Marlborough, 121, flag of Vice-
Admiral R. Smart, K.H. ; the Hibernia, receiving ship, flag
of Rear-Admiral H. T. Austin, C. 8.; the Cossack, 90 ; and
the despatch boats Psyche and Caradoc; and the Dutch
frigate Prince Mauritz, of the Netherlands. Lieut.-Col.

Johnson and Lieut. Empsen, RA., arrived on Tuesday
from Marseilles, and Lieut. E. D. C. O'Brien arrived this
morning from Marseilles and Italy. Chas. 8.. Slythe, the
Italian Consul, left on Tuesday fur Turin, on leave of ab-
sence. Very satisfactory intelligence has been received of
the Malta and Alexandiia electric telegraph. Both the
broken ends have been picked up, and telegraphic column-

The contract for the manufacture of the rolled armour
Plates for the after body of the Lord Warden, ironcased
frigate, building at Chatham, has been taken by the firm of
Messrs. John Brown and Co., Atlas. Works, Sheffield, at
£39 per ton. Nearly the whole of the 6 inch armour plates
for the Bellerophon, also building at Chatham, are to be
manufactured by Messrs. Chaney and Co., at the Millwall
Ironworks, and a considerable portion of the plates required
have already been sent into the dockyard by that firm.
Under the new regulations adopted by the Admiralty, the
discharge of the hired mechanics and labourers at Chatham
Dockyard, at the end of the financial year, is to be only
nominal, and they are to be re-entered immediately.
Commodore Dunlop, C. 13., superintendent of Woolwich
Dockyard, accompanied by Mr. Ponsonby, the naval secre-
tary of the yard, yesterday went on board her Majesty's
ship Ranger, Commander W. E. Gordon, at the powder buoy
off the Royal Arsensal, and mustered and inspected the
crew. After the inspection the Ranger left the buoy for
Greenhithe, whore she will swing for the adjustment of her
eemlasses for sea. Her destination is the West Coast of
Africa, to aid in suppressing the traffic in slaves.
Mr, Race's ironcased experimental sloop Enterprise, in
dock at Woolwich, is ordered to be undccked on Thursday
next. Commander Rowley, appointed to the cimmar:d on
the 10th of Docember, 1863, Will on Saturday formally com-
mission the Enterprise, and ho.st his pennant on board.
The two 70-pounder naval guns and four 12 •pounder
breach-loaders manufactured by Mr. Whitworth, and in-
tended for the competitive trials at Shoeburyness with a
similar number of the Armstrong guns, were yesterday re-
ceived at Woolwich by Major Freeth, inspector of Artillery,
and will be forwarded to Shoeburyness in readiness for the
experiments ordered to commence on Saturday, the 2d
proximo.

An enormous cylinder, weighing 30 tons 16cwt. lqr. 26111,
intended for her Majesty's iron ship Minotaur, in the Vic-
toria Docks, was yesterday received at Woolwich from
Messrs. John Penn and Son, having been conveyel by a
team of 30 horses.

Orders were received yesterday at Portsmouth from the
Admiralty to defer the erabarcation of troops and naval
supernumeraries for China on board the screw troopship
Adventure, and to send the ship out to the Quarantine an-
chorage at the Motherbank to wait further orders. A caso
of smallpox having occurred on board is the cause of these

-measures having been taken. This disease is just now very
rife in Portsmouth and its Suburbs, fslf is in many other
parts.

Flans have recently been submitted to the Lords Com-
missioners of the Admiralty by Capt. C. S. Dawson, Royal
Fusiliers, doing duty with the Royal Engineers on the na-
tional defences, for carrying eight or twelve 300 pounder
guns (rifled) on the main deck of a ship as ordinary broad-
side guns, without in any way interfering with the vessel's
masts, funnel casings, or the general arrangements of the
decks. The plan for carrying eight guns shows five turn-
table on a line with the ship's keel, and five auxiliary or
radial turntables on either broadside with two radial turn-
tables at the bow and stern. Three of the central turn-
tables are to carry two guns each. The bow and stern tables
carry one each. Each gun will serve four ports, as occa-
sion may require. On the double turntable the guns are
placed muzzle to breach, and by a half turn of the table are
run on to their auxiliary tables in front of their respec-
tive ports, and trained by two men to any angle by the
most simple mechanical means. The plan for carrying 12
guns is very similar to the former, the principle being the
same, but the arrangement of the guns is different. There
are in this ease four central turntables on a line with the
ship's keel, and 12 side tables at the ports. Three guns are
carried on each of the central tables, and the whole arma-
ment of the ship is thus concentrated, when stowed as a sea-
going weight, within a space of 9Gft. in the centre of the ship,
and the extremities of the ship are thus materially lightened
at sea. These arrangements admit of broadsides being fired,
when the guns are brought into action, of 1,5001 b. in the
first instance and I,Boolb. in the second, while both sides of
the ship are in a state of defence. The advantages claimed
tor this system of carrying and fighting guns at sea are :-
1. Concentrating the armament of the ship near the centre
of gravity and insuring the chances of the ship's safety at
sea. 2..4A certain means of working the heaviest guns
through the broadside ports of a ship's main deck. 3. Em-
ploying shorter, swifter, and more manageable ironclads
than at present. 4. Firing a heavier broadside with a
smaller crew than at present. 5. A. means of giving ships a
thicker armour on their sides than can be done with ships
compelled as at present to carry their guns always on their
broadsides.

The folloming appointments and promotions were made
yesterday at the Admiralty ;—Capt. C, A. Campbell to the
Bombay, commissioned; John Stirling, M.D., to be Staff
Surgeon in charge of the naval hospital at the Cape; James
L. Hearne, midshipman, to the Gladiator; Dr. J. Wingate
Johnson promoted to be Inspecter-General of Hospitals ;
Charles Morton and William Dickson Smyth, M.D., pro-
moted to be surgeons; Edward Eckersley and James T.
Page, engineers, to the Euryalus, additional, for disposal ;
William Chase, Ebenezer Bennet, John Pickles, Angus
31.‘Intyre, John Brown (b), George F. Greaves, Samuel H.
Trenham, John Lewthwaite, Robert Paulson, and 'William
T. Foyer, assist.-engineers, to the Euryalus, additional, for
disposal; James Vcrcoe, engineer, to the Hastings, for the
Sandfly ; George H. Lomiale, acting engineer, to the
Hastings, for the Lark; Frederick Holden, assist.-engineer,
to the Colossus; and Thomas Pringle, assist.-engineer, to
the Colossus, fur the tenders.
William Broadfoot has been appointed lieutenant in tha
Royal Naval Reserva.