The Sun.
London, England, 1863-03-24 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, FUESDAY EVENING, MARCH 24, 1863.

.Naval and Military Intelligence.

THE NAVY.

VALETTA, March 17.—The marriage of the Prince
of Wales was celebrated at Malta by a review of all
the troops of the garrison on the 10th inst. The
Governor and the Admiral gave dinner parties in
the evening. The fleet was brilliantly illuminated.
At 9 30 p.m. the yards were manned; three cheers
were given, amid a blaze of blue lights and a shower
of rockets from each yardarm of the line-of-battle
ships, which produced a gorgeous and magnificent
spectacle. Later a grand ball was given by the
officers of the army and navy and the members of
the Union Club, at the Auberge de Provence. The
subscriptions for this were so liberal that it is said
there will remain a considerable surplus to be handed
over to the Lancashire Relief Fund. Prince Alfred
is now completely recovered, but is still in hospital,
hich he will leave to embark on board the Magi-
cienne for conveyance to Marseilles, when the time
for his departure is fixed on. Orders have been
received by the Commander-in-Chief to grant leave
of absence to the Deputy Inspector, Dr. A. Arm-
strong, who will accompany his Royal Highness
and Major Cowell. It is expected the Magicienne
will leave some day this week, and, after landing
the Prince, Major Cowell, and Dr. Armstrong at
Marseilles, will return to Malta. The Marlborough,
131, Capt. W. H. Stewart, C. 8., bearing the flag
of the Vice-Admiral Commander-in-Chief Sir W.F.
Martin, K.C.8., will proceed to sea for a cruise on a
favourable change of the weather. The Queen, 74,
Capt. F. C. Hillyar, will hoist the flag in her absence.
The St. George, 86, Capt. the Hon. F. Egerton,
will leave to-day for target practice. The Trident,
Commander C. J. Balfour, will leave on- Saturday
next for Gibraltar, to be stationed there. The sur-
veying ship Medina, 5, Capt. T. A. Spratt, C. 8., is
to be sold or broken up, and she will probably be
replaced by the Hydra, 6, now lying at Woolwich.
Lieut. Wilkinson, of the Medina, left by the Penin-
sular and Oriental Company's steamer Euxine for
England on leave of absence. The Wanderer, 4,
Commander M. C. Seymour, which was on her way
from the coast of Syria to Malta, has been, a telegram
from Smyrna of the 15th inst. states, detained there
by her Majesty's Consul. The Chanticleer, 17,
Commander C. Stirling, has been ordered foom Corfu
to Beyrout to relieve the Alacrity, 4, Commander J.
Baird, which has been ashore at Latakia. The Ma-
lacca, 17, Capt. G. J. Napier, is still on the coast of
Syria. Her Majesty's ships at Corfu are :—The
Edgar, 89, Capt. the Hon. F. A. Foley (bearing the
flag of Rear-Admiral S. C. Dacres, C. 8.), and the
Trafalgar, 70, Capt. the Hon. T. Baillie. I regret
to state that Commander R. Reid, of this vessel, who
arrived here a few days ago from Corfu, invalided,
died this morning from pericarditis in the hospital
at Bighi. The Phoebe, 35, Capt. T. D. Fortescue,
had left the Piraeus for Corfu, having been relieved
by the Liffey, 39, Capt. G. Parker, from Malta. The
latter vessel and the Pelican, 17, Commander P.
Brock, were at the Piraeus by the last accounts. The
Shannon, 35, Capt. 0. J. Jones, was at Patras. The
Foxhound, 4, Commander the Hon. A. Hobart, left
the Piraeus on the 14th inst., having on board the
Hon. P. C. Scarlett, her Britannic Majesty's Envoy
at Athens, who purposes making an official visit to
the different ports of the Greek Archipelago. The
Hon. H. Elliot would perform the duties of the Em-
bassy during the absence of Mr. Scarlett, The
Icarus, 11, Commander N. Salmon, V.C., is on her
way back to Malta from Naples, whither she has
been to take up supernumeraries for the Meeanee,
60, Capt. G. Woodhouse. She called at Marsala on
the 10th. The Supply, iron screw storeship, left
Malta on Thursday last for Corfu, and is expected
home shortly.
Her Majesty's steam storeships Rhadamanthus,
Master Commander Raymond, and the Wye, Master
Commander Valentine G. Roberts, entered the
outer basin at Woolwich yesterday, the Rhada-
manthus from Portland, and the Wye from the
West Coast of Africa. The latter vessel will be
inspected this morning at 10 o'clock and will be
afterwards surveyed throughout, with a view of
ascertaining the extent of her defects. She will be
ordered to be paid off.

The first of the official trials of tha armour-clad
war vessel Royal Oak, the pioneer of the fleet of
ships of this class, completed and building, took
place at the Government trial ground, Maplin
Sands, yesterday, under somewhat unfavourable cir-
cumstances of weather. The Royal Oak has any-
thing but a handsome appearance, her square-built
hull, receding bows, and general form being alto-
gether different from what is generally associated
with vessels of her size and tonnage. She has no
figure-head, the absence of this ornament being
rendered the more apparent by her tumble-home
stem. Like the Defence and Resistance, she is only
bark rigged, with double topsail yards, which,
taken with her immense size, gives her a peculiarly
strange and weird-like appearance. The armament
of the Royal Oak is not yet on board, and, as only
a portion of her sea stores have been shipped, the
trial yesterday was only at light draught, and forms
therefore no criterion of what her performance will
be when she is fully equipped for sea, with all her
provisions, stores, cables, shot, shell, coals, guns,
&c., on board, increasing her draught of water some
three or four feet. The engines have been con-
structed by the firm of Maudsley, Son, and Field,
and were originally intended for the line-of-battle
ship Bulwark, at Chatham, but the Royal :Oak
being completed before her they were placed on
board that vessel. They are nominally of 800-horse
power, but can be worked up to 3000-horse power,
and are the horizontal double piston-rod direct act-
ing, fitted with improved gear for tightening the
piston-rod bands without stopping the engines.
The cylinders are 82 inches in diameter, and the
length of stroke four feet. The screw is an im-
proved Griffiths, the blades being bolted to the boss
with flanges, instead of being fixed with the key
and wooden wedges. The diameter of the screw is
19ft., and its weight rather more than 19 tons;
by its improved mode of construction the pitch can
be readily varied from 22ft. 6in. to 27ft 6in.,
The officials under whose superintendence the trial
yesterday took place left Chatham dockyard at an
early hour in the steam tender Adder, Mr. Blayer,
Master Commander, and steamed out to the Royal
Oak, which lay lashed alongside the coaling-ship.
Since she was floated out of dock on Thursday, the
stowage of the shot, shell, cables, and other stores
on board has been altered so as to bring her
from an even keel to about two feet down by the
stern. Since Thursday she has also had about 150
tons of coals placed on board, and yesterday morn-
ing she was found to draw 23ft. lin. aft, and 20ft.
7in. forward, with her midship ports l.lft. 23-In.
from the water. At 11 o'clock the frigate got
under way, and her head turned towards the Maplin
Sands. Scarcely a breath of air stirred, and the
sea was in every respect most favourable for the
trial. The engines were in the official charge of
Mr. Tuck. the chief engineer, and, although it was
almost the first time that they had been tried, were
found to work very satisfactorily. After steaming
well out to the Nore, the engines working a little
more than half speed, some experiments were made
in turning the circle and stopping and starting the
engines. The force of the wind at the time was
barely 1, and the sea calm. The experiment was
first made in completing the circle, but, owing to
vessels being in the way of the frigate, the first
two trials were failures, and at the second trial the
wheel slipped. With the helm hard over to star-
board, and four men at the wheel, the circle was
made in 5 min 23 sec., with the rudder at an angle of
31 deg., and the screw making 52 revolutions per
minute. The helm was then put hard sport, and
with the rudder at 261 deg. the circle was made in
5 min. 6 sec., the engines making 54 revolutions per
minute, the pitch of the screw on both occasions 27ft.
6in., and diameter loft. 6in. ; vacuum, 24 ; load on
safety valve, 201 b. The frigate was found to answer
i her helm remarkably well, and turned the complete

circle in little more than twice her own length.
Experiments were made in starting and stopping
the engines. From the time of giving the order
from the bridge to the engine-room, by means
of Allen's engine-room telegraph, the engines were
stopped dead on two separate occasions in 61
minutes and 6 minutes respectively. From the order
being given from the bridge the steam was shut off
and engines started in 7 seconds. Tho course of the
vessel was then laid for the measured mile ; but at
this time a thick haze came on, rendering objects
almost invisible at a cable's length. The frigate,
however, kept on her way, at reduced speed, in the
hope that the fog would rise, especially as it was
bright and clear above. Ou reaching the Maplins
it was found that there was too great a haze pre-
vailing to allow of the experimental runs being
made with safety, and the vessel was accordingly
hove to for some time, under the impression that the
mist would clear off. After waiting till late in the
afternoon, however, and the atmosphere being still
very thick, the ship's head was turned to the Nore,
where the anchor Was dropped at 2.30 p.m. The
official trial was conducted by Commander Crewe-
Read, of the Cumberland, guardship, of the Chatham
Steam Reserve, and the working of the machinery
was under the supervision of Mr. W. Rumble, in-
spector of machinery afloat, and Mr. Baker, chief
engineer of Chatham dockyard, on the part of the
Government. Mr. Maudelay and Mr. Field, the
manufacturers of the engines, were also on board,
the engines being under the charge, for the day, of
Mr. Warriner. Should the weather be favourable
the trial will be resumed to day.
Rear-Admiral Robert Spencer Robinson, Con-
troller of the Navy, arrived at Portsmouth dock-
yard yesterday from London, and inspected the
Royal Sovereign iron clad turret ship, the iron clad
frigate Royal Alfred, the iron frigate Hector, &c.
The last-named vessel is ordered to have the external
surface of her bottom plates coated with the pro-
tective composition prepared by the Admiralty chy-
mist, Mr. Hay. The anti-fouling composition will
not be applied until the ship is further advanced in
her outfit for sea.

The following appointments were made yester-
day at the Admiralty :—John Andrews (a) to be a
retired Deputy-Inspector-General of Hospitals and
Fleets; and Robert George Cragie is nominated to
a naval cadetship.

stations within 330 yards of each other ; one, the
Metropolitan, with the rails 19ft. below the surface,
and the other, the North London City Branch in
Liverpool-street, with the rails 19ft. above the sur-
face. This, however, was of little importance, as
there was not any great necessity for intercommu-
nication between them; but the case was altogether
different as regards the proposed establishment of
the Great Eastern terminal station in Finsbury-
circus, with the rails above 18ft. above the surface,
within 220 yards of the Metropolitan terminus,
19ft. below it. This proposal, however, had not yet
been sanctioned, and the subject would probably
receive full and thorough investigation, The open-
ing of the Metropolitan Railway between Padding-
ton and Farringdon-street, and the manner in
which it was made use of by the public, had clearly
pointed out the expediency of providing other lines
of railway within the metropolitan area proper which
would abstract some of the passenger traffic at pre-
sent carried on by cabs and omnibuses, and thus
materially relieve the great pressure in the main
thoroughfares. The experience gained by the open-
ing of the Metropolitan Railway was valuable in
another respect. It was almost proved beyond doubt
that, as at present constructed with two lines of rail-
way, though exceedingly well adapted to supersede
to a very great extent omnibus and cab traffic, it
would not accommodate through passenger traffic,
and would have great difficulty in disposing of any
large amount of goods traffic. South of the Thames,
in the low-lying districts contiguous to the river,
this could only be done by constructing the lines on
viaducts, which would interfere with, and somewhat
prejudice the appearance of, the public streets ; but
there was no sufficient reason why the bridges over
important thoroughfares in the metropolis or else-
where should be made so objectionable in appearance
as they sometimes had been, and this in future might
be obviated by special provisions introduced into the
several acts ; but it must be borne in mind that,
where railways crossed important streets by over-
bridges, the safety of the public travelling in
vehicles or on horseback along those streets required
that the trains should be hid by some kind of screen.
North of the Thames the case was somewhat diffe-
rent, as the elevation of the district generally was
such that facilities existed for the construction of
railways under streets in covered ways of tunnels,
where there need not be the same amount of inter-
ference with private property or disfigurement or
injury to the public streets, and where the construc-
tion of such railways would to a great extent free
the thoroughfares from a large amount of traffic.
Of course it was absolutely indispensable that these
railways should be so laid out and constructed as not
to interfere with the drainage of the metropolis,
and, as far as possible, they might be expected to
follow the general course of the crowded roadways.
When sanctioned under important thoroughfares,
some special provision would be necessary
to prevent these thoroughfares from being
blocked up while the lines were in course of con-
struction. The policy of authorising the appro-
priation of the squares in the metropolis for the
purposes of terminal stations, covering the area with
lofty railway buildings, was exceedingly doubtful.
In some instances circumstances might justify it;
but there were no grave objections to railways pass-
ing under the squares or parks, provided the drain-
age and sewerage were not interfered with. The
removal of houses, where the existing buildings
were ill-constructed and too densely inhabited by
the poorer classes, in order to allow of the construe.
tion of railways through such districts, was not
always objectionable, and might even be desirable,
if provisions were introduced into the Acts securing
the construction of a better class of houses else-
where, and providing for the running of certain
daily trains at very low fares; Railways were gra-
dually being introduced into the metropolis, and,
comparing the past with the present, one was
enabled somewhat to anticipate the future, and to
arrive at the conclusion that more railways would
be constructed within that area. It was only a
question of time. The formation of lines of inter-
communication between the terminal stations of the
northern and eastern main lines of railway north of
the Thames with those of the southern and eastern
lines south of the Thames, and with each other,
would necessarily diminish the cab and omnibus
traffic through the streets ; but it would probably
have a much greater effect in clearing them by
allowing the goods traffic to pass directly, without
being conveyed through the streets by means of
heavy goods vans. A scheme was before Parliament
—the East London and Rotherhithe—proposing to
connect the Blackwell Railway with the south
side of the Thames through the Thames Tun-
nel, but the inclines and curves on the proposed
line were very objectionable. The subject, how-
ever, was of great importance, and if such a
communication could not be satisfactorily made
through the Thames Tunnel, or by the bridge
of the Charing-cross Railway leading to Cannon-
street station, it would be still more requisite that
the expediency of providing intercommunication
between these districts should be steadily kept in
view, and its feasibility examined, through the
Ludgate Station and Junction Railway and the
Metropolitan Railway, by placing the Great Eastern
terminus on such a level as would admit of a junc-
tion with the Metropolitan Railway at Finsbury-
circus. In many instances the schemes brought
before Parliament were prepared in a very hurried
manner, and as regarded the metropolis lying north
of the Thames especially the plans did not gene-
rally show the position of the sewers nor give any
information respecting the drainage, which was so
important in examining the merits of any scheme
or in judging of its feasibility. The construc-
tion of many new lines of railway in so limited an
area as that of the metropolis by a considerable
number of independent companies would probably
fail to afford the public all the advantages which
would result from the construction of thoroughly
considered schemes in the hands of a limited num-
ber of companies—the fewer the better—with proper
facilities to each other for the interchange of traffic
at the various junctions. This interchange would
not be possible if the termini of any two lines placed
in close proximity to each other were in one case on
a viaduct and in another in a subway or tunnel,
or on such different heights above the same datum
plane that ajunction could not be effected between
them. Anumber of the schemes affecting the metro-
polis had already fallen through, from failing
to pass the standing orders, or been rejected or
withdrawn. Possibly some of the best schemes
might thus be shut out from view ; and he thought
it seemed well deserving of consideration whether
the true interests of the public and those of the
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fsosrswsndi passingoar
,
railway companies would not be best consulted
by postponing the consideration of all railway
schemes which proposed to establish new lines, enter-
ing, a
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might be considered together, and those of them
sanctioned which should appear to best meet the
public requirements. The railway schemes in ques-
tion were all named in group D, but six of them
were no longer before Parliament. The plans de-
posited for the
.Session of 1863 might be divided
into the following groups :
MAIN LINES SEEKING TERMINI IN THE METROPOLIS.

1. Great Eastern Railway—New Metropolitan Station
and Branches. Length, 10 miles 36 chains. Capital,
£1,200,000.
2. Midland Railway—Extension from Bradford to Lon-
don, with a terminus at the Euston-road. Length, 51 miles
4 chains. Capital, £750,000.

3. Ludgate Station and Junction Railway. Length, 66
chains. Capital, L 1,000,000.
LINES PROPOSED TO MEET THE EXIGENCIES OF EXIST-
ING TRAFFIC, OR TO IMPROVE THE CONSTRUCTION OF
EXISTING OR AUTHORISED RAILWAYS.

4. No 4 of the London, Brighton, and South Coast Rail-
way (extensions and alteration). Length 421 chains. 5
Nos. 5,6, 7, and 8, and Victoria Station of the London,
Chatham, and Dover Railway, No. 1. Length 2 miles 73
chains, Capital, £600,000, 6, Victoria Station and Pimlico