The Sun.
London, England, 1862-01-27 00:00:00

TILE NAVY.

Oar Malta correspondent, under date of January
22, informs us of the arrival at that island, of the
gunboat Intrepid, Commander J. Marryat, on the
20th inst., from Beyrout, under sail in 15 days, and
the departure on the Saturday previous of the gun-
boat Foxhound, 4, Commander the Hon. A. C.
Hobart, for Candia, Rhodes, and Beyrout.
The iron masts for the Resistance, 18, 600-horse
power fitting at Chatham, have arrived from the
factory of Messrs. Samuda, Blackwall, and have
been deposited on board the Calypso, 18, in Chat-
ham harbour, until the Resistance is sufficiently
advanced to have them fitted. The intention of
having a " telescopic" iron bowsprit to be lengthened
or shortened as occasion might require, has now
been abandoned, and the Resistance will be fitted
with a fixed iron bowsprit, weighing nearly five
tons, similar to that supplied to the sister ship De-
fence, 18. It is to be regretted that the mistake
made in this respect in the Defence is to be re-
peated in the Resistance, the opinion of nautical
men being unanimous against an iron bowsprit at
all for this class of vessel, one of the principal
duties of which will be the running down and sink-
ing a hostile ship, in which case the lengthened
bowsprit will prove a serious obstacle to her free
action in this respect. It would, however, thus
appear that the Admiralty have decided against em-
ploying either the Defence or Resistance as steam
rams, or every care would have been taken tomake
them as effective as possible in that respect. The
cost of the meat and bowsprit for the Resistance is
nearly £3OO less than for those supplied to the
Defence.
The official report of the trial made on board
the 51 gun screw frigate Arethusa, 3,141 tons, for
the purpose of testing the engines supplied her by
Messrs. Penn and Son, Greenwich, has been for-
warded to the Admiralty. The Arethusa is fitted
with a pair of expansive trunk engines of 500
horse power (nominal), with all the latest improve-
ments, surface condensers, and superheated steam.
In working her full boiler power (four boilers)
with 201 b. pressure of steam, the screw made 61
revolutions per minute, vacuum 26.5 inches, tem-
perature of steam, 300 deg. At half boiler power,
with two boilers at work, the screw made 42 revo-
lutions per minute ; pressure of steam, 191 b.,
vacuum, 25 inches. Mr. W. R. Fabian, chief engi-
neer of the Arethusa, was present during the trial
on the part of the Admiralty to note the results.
Admiralty orders have been received at Chatham
directing a report to be immediately forwarded,
for the information of the board, of the names and
number of the steam vessels repaired and refitted at
that dockyard during the past year, together with
the number of men employed on each, the object
being to ascertain the number of men and compara-
tive cost of the repair of each of the vessels men-
tioned in the return.

Her Majesty's screw steam store vessel Buffalo,
Master Commander Alex. Brown, having discharged
her cargo and returned stores at Woolwich, was on
Saturday paid off and put out of commission for
repair. Her cargo, consisting of old naval stores
collected in the West Coast of Africa, some of which

were of the most useless description, filled every
part of the vessel, which was crammed to the very
hatches.

The paddlewheel steam yacht Osborne, 2, Master
H. K. Bower, left Plymouth on Saturday evening
for the Mediterranean, to be in attendance on his
Royal Highness the Prince of Wales.
Orders have been received at Devonport dockyard
to expedite the completion of the gunboats Sham-
rock and Violet for sea service.
The screw steam sloop African, 11, building in
No. 2 slip in Devonport dockyard, will probably be
launched about the end of March.
The repairs of the hired screw transport Ade-
laide, Capt. Lambert, at Devonport, are nearly
complete. She is to be supplied with boats from
the Royal Arsenal in place of those lost, and she
will be fitted with Clifford's lowering apparatus.
The following statement of a grievance endured
for the last ten years by the retired vice-admirals is
addressed to us by a naval correspondent:--u In
1846 the naval retirement took place. There were
54 captains of 1814 who become retired rear-admi-
rals, with the same pay as the rear-admirals receive
on the active list—which was to be reduced to 25
by death, and lined up as vacancies occurred by the
senior captains on that list, who were receiving L 1
per day. There are now 37 of those captains vice-
admirals, who receive that pittance of £1 per day,
all of whom have been sixty years and upwards in
their country's service, who have war medals and
other decorations for gallant and brilliant services
during the wars from 1794 to 1814. In 1851 a
second retired list came out, called the Reserved List.
Captains, on obtaining their flag, who had not served
their sea time afloat, were, and are now, placed on
this Retired Reserved List with 255. a day. There
are fifty rear-admirals on this list, some of whom
were not born, and many others who did not enter
the service until the war finished in 1814, conse-
quently never saw any active service, or a shot
fired against an enemy. Under these circumstances,
the vice-admirals prefer the reasonable demand to be
placed on the 25 shilling list. There were seven
generals who were similarly deprived of their pay
as major-generals, until General Peel and Colonel
Lindsay brought forward their case in the House of
Commons last year, and obtained jastice and redress
for them by getting £4OO a-year granted. If the
major-generals obtain that boon, which is their due,
why are the vice-admirals not to have the same
benefit and indulgence granted to them after having
served for more than sixty years in every quarter
of the globe P"—Paily News.

Admiral Sir Thomas Cochrane, G.C.8., is to
receive the good service pension placed at the dis-
posal of the Admiralty by the death of Admiral Sir
Edward D. King, K.C.H, Capt. Arthur Forbes is
appointed a naval aide de-camp to the Queen, vice
the Hon. Joseph Denman, promoted to Rear-Admiral.
The following appointments were made on Satur-
day at the Admiralty :—John S. Moore, essist.-pay-
master, to the Hawke; Mr..O'N. Markham, assist.
paymaster, to the Excellent; and Thos. Goodman,
assist-paymaster in charge, to the Banshee.