The Sun.
London, England, 1852-08-20 00:00:00

THE LOG

Weather hazy in the bay. Wind: Downing-street by
Somerset House. Tock soundings in the h01d.*... No
vvater; or should have sent Herries to the pumps. Ordered
Malcsesbury aloft to look out : reported that he could see
nothing before him: didn't expect he would. Ship rides
like o duck—sounded again, and not a drop of water;
but then, as Pakington says, we pitched it so very strong.
Hazy weather, with scudding fogs. At 12 P
bumped against something: took soundings, with a piece
of butter at the end of lead: brought up a bit of. stone,
which, the B—p of L—n—n, bursting into tears, iden7
titled as a piece of Fulham Palace. Fog very thick in-
deed. At noon, Dizzy takes an observation. Swears he
sees, &o. &c. &c. in distance: nobody believes him—
laughs, and 6 ciy s he doesn't believe it himself.
Wind, the t3ink by Exchange-Change Last. Noon:
Dizzy protests that, &c., &c., &c. This time, others
protest eo, too—somebody floating in the distance. We
put IT the helm, and shake ou: all red tope-1 mean all
reefs Approach the man in the water. Make him .out
with our glassea—and so he proves to be—Palmerston
in his Windsor uniform, with his hair curled. What
can he tl)at en? We put tee helm up again and near
him. The B—p insists we ti halt take him aboard;,
Malratsbury opposes, swearing he'd take the shiprfrom
us. We bail him through speaking-trumpet. "Pam ,
wid you come aboard?" "See you drowned first."
" But, Pam., whit do you float on?" Whereupon, Pam.
held up for a minute the cork—the single one cork—of
the bottle which, before the deluge, he judiciously held.
We put up the helm, and run afore the wind, Pam.
elnging the "Bay of Biscay," and floating towards
Windsor.

Wind variable, in all places at once. Dreadful to see
everywhere the bodies of Freetraders—eveu Dizzy,
nearly wept! Colonel Sibthorp counted two hundred,
entering their names in his own pocket-boOk of ass's
skin. Again put the helm up to get rid of the epec-
taclo. Wind l'ght. Called upon Walpole to make a
joke; and mast-headed him for disobeying orders.
Wind anyhow. Freetraders' bodies still float by our
gallant craft. Walpole swears he sees a man alive.
Boatswain Berosford declares he's only one of the rabble.
Man nears us, and proves to be the venerable and vera-
cious editor of the Standard. He calls for a life-buoy,
when Dizzy—(that Chancellor in the human shape)—
throws him over, but be declares in mistake—a file of
the sinking man's own paper: both instantly disappear.
Wind gone to bed. Ship answers everything but her
rudder; Dizzy says he's ready to answer for even that.
What a fellow ho is! Sweais he sees next week in the
distance. Took en observation; found we were just
over Manchester. At 1 P.M. John Bright, floating in
his own hat, passed us. Sibthorp wanted to bring a'
howitzer to bear upon him, but B—p interposed. Again
ealltml upon Walpole for a joke: still obstinate, and
threatened him with irons.

Wind, worst and by worst. Found we were directly
over Free Trade Hall. Saw the top of one chimney at
least, with Cobden distinctly upon it, waving a flag of
distress, a Manchester bird's-eye. Saw the Agitator
through telescope; but remembered Nelson's blind eye
and the signal, and—though the B—p suggested some-
thing—would not see him.

Wind, squally. Passed Gladstone on a cotton bag.
Light airs. Saw Manners, whom we forgot to take
up when the deluge began, astride a dolphin.
Blowing a gale. Passed Joe Hume in a patent life-
belr. Going straight to the Exchequer. Dizzy wanted
to have a shot at him; B—p benevolently interfered.
Wind got down. Took soundings. Found we were
just over the Victoria Tower of the Houses of Parlia-
ment. Thought we were sinking; to lighten the ship,
threw Malmesbury overboard.
Foundered on the House of Commons.

(Here the log becomes broken and fragmentary.)

" Only a shower," and no deluge atter all! -
Mr. Punch need not observe, even to the most ladylike
readers of even nautical novels, that the ship-knowledge of
the keeper of the log seems a good deal at sea.—Punch.

THE ELECTRIC TIME BALL IN THE

STRAND.

Yesterday, consequent upon an announcement to the
eff:ct that the electric apparatus, desiged for distribut-
ing mean Greenwich time throughout London and the
provinces, would be in active operation at one o'clock,
when the ball would fall simultaneously, by electrical
sympathy, with the Observatory Ball at Greenwich, a
considerable concourse of people assembled in the Strand
and at the Electric Telegraph Company's station to
witness the novel experiment, but were doomed to be
disappointed. The announcement that the experiment
would come off on the occasion was, we are requested to
observe, not only premature, but erroneous and unautho-
rised, the fact being that the arrangements were not com-
plete for the purpose, the necessary wires, forming a por-
tion of the circuit, in connexion with the South-Eastern
Railway Company's wire to Greenwich, not being con-
nected. This, however, will be done immediately,
we understand, by Mr. Edwin Clark, the company's en-
gineer, and a given day will be fixed for the first re-
gular falling of the ball. It may be interesting to state
that although the experiment of causing the ball to fall
at the same hour with the ball at Greenwich (the great
object of the apparatus) has not yet been accomplished,
the ball of 186 lbs. weight has been liberated by a bat-
tery of two plates at Greenwich, that power being found
sufficient for the purpose. Yesterday the electrical dial
in the centre of the five thoroughfares opposite Hunger-
ford Market was fixed upon its ornamented bronze pillar,
and at night, on being illuminated, presented a very
elegant appearance; the four dial plates being formed of
enamelled glass, with the hours and minutes marked in
stAined glass upon the base, and the pillar surmounted
by a gilt ball. The appearance of the great ball or re-
gulator, of a bright vermillion, sashed with a gilt circle,
presented, from its prominent position, a novel and im-
posing appearance, and was the subject of much admira-
tion during the day.