The Sun.
London, England, 1863-01-14 00:00:00

FRENCH GUNNERY EXPERIMENTS.

The report which we were r -cently enabled to furnish of
the gunnery experiments in France, and the successful
piercing of iron plates,having excited considerable discussion
in naval and military circles, we now subjoin some further
details, which may be of interest. The gun used is built
entirely of steel, and composed of several tubes os that
metal put together in the method introduced in France by
Colonel Tienille de Beaulieu, but better known in England
as " Blakeley's" plan, and which secures the simultaneous
action of all the tubes in resisting the bursting force of the
powder. The gun weighs only four tons, three-quarters,
and a few pounds, or nearly three tons less than the Arm-
stroflg gun, rifled on the Whitworth plan. The French gun
is rifled with three grooves, less than a quarter of an inch
deep. The twist of the rifling is uniform, one turn in 30
calibres, being a slightly quicker turn than that used by
Armstrong, and a little slower than that used by Cavalli
and Whitworth. The gun, when last heard of, had been
fired 830 times without injury. The shell weighs 45 kilo-
grammes, or between 991 b. and 100 lb. The service charge
of powder is 123/4 kilogrammes, or about 281 b., although in
some cases 16 kilogrammes, or 331 b. of powder were fired.
With reference to the question of the introduction of flat-
headed projectiles, it is scarcely perhaps necessary to
mention that they were first brought into public notice by
Captain Norton in 1852, and were describel by him as
"punch-headed iron shells." The gallant Captain, with
more modesty than other inventors, did not, however, claim
for his shell the advantage of novelty, but only the merit of
endering it a pplicable to modern artillery.

SHIPPING INTELLIGENCE—This Day.

LONDON, Jan. 14.—Wind this day at noon—North-
Westerly ; moderate breeze, and fine weather, but rather
cloudy.

OFF HURST CASTLE, Jan. 14.—Arrived—Seine, steamer,
from the West Indies.

QUEENSTOWN, Jan. 14.--Arrived—Etna, screw steamer,
from New York.

SUNDERLAND, Jan. 13.—Wind S.W.—Sailcd—George
and Ann, for Havannah.
FouTsmou'rn, Jan. 13. Wind S.W.—Arrived—Nico-
las, from Santa de Pilau. Sailed— Her Majesty's ship
Pylades, for Not th America.
PLYMOUTH, Jan. 13.—Wind S,W.—Arrived—Flens-
burg, from London for Rio Joneiro, leaky; Three Sistcrg,
from London for St John's, Newfoundland. Sailed—
Rival, for Santander.

LOUGH FOYLE, Jan. 15.—Arrived—Bohemia, screw
steamer, from Portland, U.S.

(BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.)
SOUTHAMPTON, Wednesday Morning.
Arrived—Dispatch, from Cowes; Seine, steamer, from
St. Thomas.
Sailed—Atalanta, steamer, for Jersey ; Guiding Star, or
Fareham; Paquebot No. 1, for St. Malo.
(BY MAGNETIC TELEGRAPH.)
GRAVESEND, Wednesday Morning,
Arrived—Bonheur, from Stockholm ; William and
Martha, from Larache ; Sea Witch, from Hakodade ;
Pursuit, from Newport , Adelaide, from Seville.
DEAL, Tuesday Morning.
Anchored--Storm Bird, of Guernsey, from Azores, for
London.
Passed—Celerne, for Cette; Maid of Athens, for Car-
diff; Fanchor, for Constantinople; Chaaze, for ShanghLi
—all from London.
Sailed—All the outward bound, for the West.

THE COMING MAN.---Th 6 New York Tribune
states that a telegram was recently despatched to the Fede-
ral army directing to whom the command of a brigade was
to be intrusted, and that the operator at the teleg. aph
station, declared the person selected to be Amjyrdkowasejcw
Deabapco?.

MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF A YOUNG LADY.—The
Ballymena Observer of Saturday last contains a
notice of an "extraordinary and painful" case—the particu-
lars of which include the alleged violation and poisoning of
a young lady at Ballymena. The young lady, Miss Amelia
S. E. Cary, was 18 years of age, of great personal attrac-
tions and most respectable family connections, and died on
the 2d inst. at Gracehill, near Ballymena, after an illness of
fourteen days. The body was interred, but, in conse-
quence of rumours of ill-treatment, was exhumed, and a
post mortem examination made on Wednesday last. On
Thursday an inquest was held at Ballymena, and a woman
named Mary Ann M'Atamney, a domestic servant in the
employment of Dr. Courtenay, medical officer of the Gal-
gorm Dispensary, was brought before the Court in custody
of the police. Dr. Arthur Ross and Dr, Black, surgeons
at Ballymena, agreed that at the post mortem examination
they discovered all the organs of the body to be healthy,
except the stomach, which was discoloured, and evidently
in a state of mortification, the result of previous inflamma-
tion. They believed these appearances were occasioned by
some irritant mineral or vegetable poison. There were no
external marks of violence on deceased's body except cup-
ping, but, though deceased was not pregnant, there was
evidence that improper liberties had been taken with her
with or without her consent. At the close the inquiry was
adjourned, that the analysis of the stomach might be made,
and the prisoner was removed in custody,
FEDERAL FALSEHOODS.—The lying statements
of our generals are so notorious that even dying sol-
diers allude to it. Not long ago a soldier belonging to one
of the regiments that fought under Gene, al Pope at No. 2
Bull Run, where he was badly wounded, was given up.
The chaplain of the regiment prayed and read to him. He
read from the Bible an account of the slaying by Sam-
son of so many Philistines with the jawbone of an ass,
" What is that you are reading ?" asked the spoke-for man.
" The Word of God," replied the clergyman. " Excuse
me, but I thought it was one of John Pope's dispatches
to Washington." Soon after the soldier died.

LEGAL NOTICE. -- The Lord Chancellor has
directed the Registrars not to pass any order made
under the Trustee Act of 1850, the 16th and 16th Vie., cap.
55 (The Trustee Extension Act), or the 25th and 26th Vic.,
cap. 53 (Transfer of Land Act), which shall have the effect
of a conveyance or assignment of any lands, or a transfer of
any such stock as can only be transferred by stamped deed,
until the same shall have been duly stampel as required by
section 18, of the 15th mad 16th Vic., cap. 55, and section 47
of the 25th and 26th Vic., cap. 53. The Commissioners of
Inland Revenue will at any time stamp an order after it is
written, and beforo it is passed by the Registrar. CECIL
Mown°, Registrar. Registrar's-office, Dec. 19, 1862.
A NEW POTATO.—A member of the Belgian
Central Society of Agriculture has recommended
to the attention of the society a new variety of the potato,
which is remarkable in the triple point of
gviiuewm.of
Its stalk
abundance, and facility of preservation. It appe a
or
us
tt ombaenla,,
variety of what is called chardon in Bel
graws to the height of 12 inches, and throws
branches. The blossom is of a pale violet
colour, and pro •
duces no fruit. A field of 1 acre of third-class quality,
lightly manured, pruduced 22,000 kilogrammes of sound
potatoes. The neighbuuring farmers were astonished not
only at the enormous produce, but at the absence of any
unsound potatoes, The orop Was dug out on Oct, 12,