The Sun.
London, England, 1865-12-06 00:00:00

Naval and Military IntfAligence.

VALETTA, Dec. I.—On the 23d ult., when the last
mail was closing for England, several of her Ma-
jesty's ships left for different destinations. The
Pelican, 17, Commander R. P. Cator, as announced
at the time, left for Bengazi, to attend on the tele-
graph steamer Hawk during the operations for the
repair of the Bengazi section of the Malta and Alex-
andria cable ; the Cossack, 20, Capt. R. D.
White, left for the Piraeus ; the Phoebe, 35, Capt.
W. E. Rolland, left for Corfu (passenger, Lieut.
Hon. E. Dawson, R.N.) to relieve the Gibral-

tar, 81, Capt. R. Coote, now expected in a few
days ; and the Orlando, 46, Capt. J. B. Dickson,

took her departure for Gibraltar and Devonport, to

be paid off. The Orlando steamed out of port with
a man at each mast-head, amid reiterated cheers
from the line walls, the band on board striking up

t; Auld Langsyne." Favoured by the weather, the
faulty part of the Bengazi and Alexandria cable
was soon repaired by the able engineer of the com-
pany, Mr. Temple, assisted by Mr. Saunders, elec-
trician, and an adequate staff on board the Hawk,
and the services of the Pelican being no longer

required she proceeded to Tripoli, to communi-
cate with her Majesty's Consul-General there
before returning to Malta, while the Hawk
hastened back to this island to be ready for any
fresh emergency. Business is now carried on again
by the line as usual. Another submarine cable
has lately stopped working—that between Sicily and
Sardinia, so that the assistance of the Hawk maybe
again immediately called into requisition. Before
setting the Alexandria cable to rights, she repaired
the Corfu and Otranto line, which continues towork
in a very satisfactory manner. The Megxra, screw
transport, Capt. M. D. Dunn, having discharged at
the victualling-yard the stores she had on board for
Malta, left on the 27th ult. for England, taking with
her the following :—Lieutenant IL S. Hutchings,
R.N. ; Lieutenant W. T. Freeman, 4th Regiment ;
Mr. R. Sutton, R.N. ; Surgeon Donaldson, 100th
Regiment ; 103 soldiers, 22 women, 41 children and
2 seamen. The Cockatrice, 2, screw gunboat,
Lieutenant-Commander Gillson, left the day before
yesterday for Tunis. The Caradoc, 2, despatch-
vessel, Lieutenant-Commander E. Wilkinson, ar-
rived on the 26th inst. from Marseilles, having on
board the Right Rev. Dr. Trower, Bishop of Gib-
raltar, and family, who were admitted to pratique
yesterday-, after performing three days' quarantine
on board in the Marsamucetto Harbour. The iron-
cased ship Caledonia, 31 (bearing the flag of Rear-
Admiral H. R. Yelverton, C. 8.), which, together
with the Resistance, 16, and the Enterprise, 4, has
been stationed for some time past at Syracuse, has
received orders to repair to Malta. All three vessels

are looked for here about the 2d or 3d inst., and on

their arrival will probably go into dock. The Terrible,
21, paddlewheel frigate, Capt. J. G. Napier, will
leave Malta for Corfu about the Ist or 2d inst. The
Assurance, 4, Commander Woollcombe, is being
fitted with Orde's apparatus for lifting the screw,
which is becoming generally adopted in the
navy. The Psyche, 2, despatch-vessel, Lieutenant-
Commander R. Blane, is still under orders for
immediate service, believed to have reference to the
cruise of his Royal Highness Prince Alfred, who
is at present on a visit to Madeira, in the Racoon,
22, Captain Count Gleichen. The Surprise, 4,
Commander G. Tryon, after calling at Corfu and
Scutari (Adriatic), to communicate with the
British Consul, has orders to return to Malta.
The Chanticleer, 17, Commander Fenwick, is to re-
main at the Southern Islands and Patras for the
present. The Meeanee, 60, Capt. G. Wodehouse, is
still at Athens. The Firefly, 5, surveying steamer,
Conmander G. R. Wilkinson, now on the south-east
coast of Tunis, is expected back here about the 11th
or 20th Dec. There is a rumour that it is not in-
tended to keep more than one surveying vessel in
the Mediterranean, and that the Firefly will conse-
quently proceed home in the spring, to be paid off
or be broken up. Considering the amount of impor-
tant work that remains to be done, and much that
requires careful correction, it is earnestly hoped, in
the interests of Mediterranean navigation, that no
motives of false economy will cause any ill-advised
reduction of Abe hydrographic staff in these waters,
and that should this ship be removed she will be re-
placed by a more efficient class of vessel. The Racer,
11, Cora. L. Brine, sicce her arrival from the lo-
nian Islands, has been placed in the hands of the
divers of H.M.S. Victoria, for the purpose of hav-
ing her bottom cleaned of an accumulation of weed
and shell-fish which had formed on it during the 12
months she has been in commission. The Procris,
gunboat, and the Redpole, tender, are at Gibraltar.
Her Majesty's ships at present in Malta harbour are
as follow :—The Victoria, 102, bearing the flag of
Vice-Admiral Commander-in-Chief Sir R. Smart,
K.C.8., K.H. ; Hibernia, receiving ship, bearing
the flag of Rear-Admiral 11. Kellett, C.B. ; Royal
Oak, 35, iron-clad, in dock ; Terrible, 21 ; Racer,
11 ; Assurance, 4 ; Wizard, 2 ; Tyrian, 1; Psyche,
2, and Caradoc, 2, despatch vessels ; and one or two
smaller craft for harbour service. The French fri-
gate Renommee, 36 guns, bearing the flag of Rear-
Admiral Simon, Captain A. Vrignaud, arrived here
on the 27th ult. from Rochefort. She first en-
tered Quarantine Harbour, but, on receiving pra-
tique, steamed round into the Grand Harbour and
fired the usual salutes, which were duly re-
turned. The Rear-Admiral, imitediately on
landing, went to 'pay his respects to the Governor,
by whom he was received with his Excellency's usual
courtesy, and his Excellency returned the visit within
an hour, as the Renommee was to leave the follow-
ing day for Athens. Complimentary visits were
also exchanged with the naval authorities. By the
Italian steamer arrived yesterday information has
been received that arrivals from Malta will be ad-
mitted into all the ports of Sicily, subject to a
quarantine of seven days. At Tunis quarantine has
been removed from vessels arriving from this island."
Her Majesty's ironclad ram Pallas left Woolwich
basin on Monday, at 2 o'clock p.m., under her own
steam, and went down to Greenhithe. Before leav-
ing the basin she was inspected by a large number
of officials, including Admiral Codrington, late
Commander-in-Chief in the Mediterranean ; Ad-
miral Robinson, Controller of the Royal Navy, and
others. Admiral Codrington, who was escorted over
the ship by Commodore- Superintendent Dunlop and
Capt. Randolph, expressed his admiration of the
accommodation for the officers
and men. His atten-
tion
was specially arrested by the commodious wash-
places and bath rooms provided for the seamen and
marines. Yesterday, at 11 a.m., m
r• Reed, the
Chief Constructor, Capt. Connolly, Mr. Humphreys
and his son, with other persons interested in the
ship, arrived from London. The charge of the ship
had been given over by Commander Dillon, of the
Woolwich Steam Reserve, to Capt. Randolph, com-
manding the reserve at Sheerness, and she 'proceeded
at full speed towards the Nora to ascertain at what
number of revolutions the engines could drive the
four-bladed screw with which she is fitted, the pitch
of which has been reduced to 17ft. Owing CO the
fact that the boilers were filled with the river water,
which was at the time foul, the priming was very
considerable, and prevented the full pressure of
Steam from being obtained in time for running the
measured mile at the highest speed. It was obvious,
however, that the four bladed screw is ill-adapted
for the engines, and the ship will consequently be
placed in dry dock immediately at Sheerness for the
purpose of havingfrigwaote of its blades removed.
The ironclad Lord Warden, 20, 4,080
tons, 1,000 horse power, fitting at Chatham dock-
yard in dry dock, is ordered to be supplied with an
armament of 16 of the new pattern 9-ton 8-inch
rifled guns, and four of the ordinary 110-pounder
Armstrongs, together with the usual number of
smaller rifled guns for boat and field service. The
work of armour-plating this fine vessel is proceed-
ing as rapidly as circumstances will admit, and con-
siderably more than half of her 51 and 41-inch
ar-
mour plates have been bolted to her broadsides.
Inboard the joiners are busily engaged in fitting up
her cabins, offices, &c., and otherwise getting her
forward. The whole of the engines and machinery
have been fitted by the contractors, Messrs. Manda-
lay, Sous, and Field, and steam can be got on board
whenever required. About three months will
elapse before the Lord 'Warden is completed to en-
able her to leave the dock, when Mr. Reed's new
ironclad frigate Hercules will be at once commenced