The Sun.
London, England, 1863-10-28 00:00:00

THE NAVY.

With regard to a paragraph which appeared in
the Naval and Military Intelligence of yesterday
relative to scarlet fever on board the cadet training
ship Britannia, at Dartmouth, we learn that Capt.
Powell has been authorised to disperse the boys
should matters become worse. He is gratified in
having received liberty to act, which places him
more at ease, but he hopes that there will be no ne-
cessity to send the lads home, as there have been no
fresh cases since Friday, and young Mr. Brooke,
about whom he wee so anxious, is recovering,
although he cannot yet be pronounced out of dan-
ger. It would have been a source of much annoy-
ance to Capt. Powell to break up before the usual
time, as the boys thoroughly enjoy themselves on
board the Britannia, and work with so much spirit
that an interruption would have been a great check
to their progress. Yesterday a north-easterly wind
was blowing, which was the most favourable the
Britannia has had for some time. There is not now
a single case of scarlet fever on board. Every patient
has been removed to sick quarters on shore.
The Lords of the Admiralty on Monday afternoon
transmitted a telegram to Port-Admiral Stewart, at
Devonport, to have the new steam iron-cased fri-
Consort, 25, 4,046 tons, commissioned
gate Prince
for "short service," Supposed to be for a month, and
giving the command to Captaia Vesey, whose com-
mand of the Royal Adelaide expires on Saturday.
Telegrams were also despatched to Commandant
Gascoigne to send one captain, three subalterns, and
100 Royal Marines on board ; to the Royal Naval
Hospital to send two surgeons; and to the Royal
William victualling-yard to prepare provisions.
Yesterday morning the Marines, with 450 seamen
from the Royal Adelaide, Cambridge, and Canopus,
began to prepare the Prince Consort, and proceeded
most actively to bend sails, &e., and boats were
hastily launched from the dockyard. A. court-mar-
tial was postponed until Thursday. At 10 o'clock
orders were unexpectedly received to stop all further
The men returned to their ships, and the
progress.
Marines to their barracks. Shortly before noon, how-
ever, another telegram was received to prepare
the Prince Consort for a trial trip, and the men re-
newed their labours on board. At a late hour last
evening it was announced that the ship's destina-
tion is Liverpool, and that her duty there will be
to watch the iron rams preparing for sea in Mr.
Laird's yard. The Prince Consort went in the
evening from Hamoaze into the Sound. It is ex-
pected that immediately after her compasses are
adjusted this morning she will sail for her destina-
tion. The apparent indecision on the part of the
Lords of the Admiralty is attributed to an error in
the transmission of the message of yesterday morn-
ing.
The screw steamship Desperate, Commander
Arthur T. ThruPP, from Jamaica, Sept. 23, and
Bermuda, Out. 6, arrived in Plymouth Sound yes-
afternoon. She brings as paseen-
terday (Tuesday)
gers from Bermuda, Dr. Donville, her Majesty's
ship Nile, and Mrs. Donville, and the Rev. John
Evans and Sub-Lieutenants Darwell, from the
Landrail, and Skipworth, from the Challenger.
Mr. Whitehead, Master-Assistant of the Ariadne,
and Mr. E. N. Naylor, midshipman from the Phae-
ton, 12 supernumeraries, 6 naval and 10 military
invalids, and 5 military prisoners. She left at,
Jamaica the Ariadne, the Cygnet, and the Barra-
couta, and at Bermuda the Challenger and the
Plover. She spoke on the 21st of October, in lat.
44 23 N., long., 21 21 W., the English bark Flying
Cloud, and on the 23d, in 46 25 N., long. 15 30
the ship Beloochee, outward bound.
Tho Resistance, 16, iron frigate, Capt. Chamber-
lain, had her bottom examined and reported upon
yesterday, on being docked, by the officials of Ports-
mouth dockyard. She was coated when last in dock
with Hay's and Peacock's protective and antifoul-
ing compositions on opposite sides. On examining
both sides now they appear to be nearly alike in
their state, whether as regards cleanliness or pre-
servation of the iron, but if there is any difference
it is certainly in favour of the " Peacock," as
the " Hay " side has a more liberal allowance
of adhesions of all kinds—dirt, coralline, weed,
and barnacle. Small patches on the ship's bottom
when last in dock were coated with Brown's patent
vitrous sheathing, attached to the iron of the
ship's bottom with Hay's marine glue. The
ma-
jority of these plates have, however, fallen off, but
the patentee of the vitrous sheathing, who was
bport-
sent yesterday at the inspection of the ship
tom, attributes the falling off of the plates tos the
inefficiency of the marine glue for the purposeremaining
on
deg
to
which it was applied, and the glue
the ship's bottom appears in a great r
state. A
ee to verify
this assertion by its evidently decomposed
fresh trial will probably bo ordered to test both
glue and sheathing.
Admiralty instructions were yesterday. conveyed
by telegram to the authorities
rdoefr
Woolwich
dock.
the removalr
yard annulling the previous u
of the iron-cased ship Caledonia this day frota the
Victoria docks to Sheerness. It appears that the
works on board require some few days more for
completion, although the men have been latterly
employed day and night. Their Lordehipti have
therefore ordered her detention in the Victoria docks
until the 10thof November. She was launched from
her building Blip at Woolwich precisely a twelve-
month a[4o—namely, October 24, 1862,
The iron-cased ship Royal ea,,,
35, Cent, Fred.
A. Campbell, one of the Channel squadron, was
placed in No. 1 dock in Keyham steam-yard on
Friday lust. When high and dry on the blocks she
.. gavu" about an inch, which is not considered much,
as most ships droop a little at both ends when afloat.
The ports of the Royal Oak, which are of iron, were
07:iginallY !limp on hinges below, so that when they