The Sun.
London, England, 1862-09-24 00:00:00

711 E NAVY.

The St. George, screw line-of-battle-ship, Capt.
the Hon. Francis Egerton, with his Royal High-
ness Prince Alfred on board ; the Chanticleer, 17,
screw, Commander C. Stirling, arrived at Spithead
yesterday morning from Kiel, as announced yester-
day, and await orders at Spithead. The ships now
at Spithead, in addition to the St. George and
Chanticleer, are the Emerald, screw frigate, Capt.
A. Cumming ; the Galatea, screw frigate, Capt. R.
Maguire; and the Resistance, screw iron frigate,
Capt. Chamberlain. The last-named vessel was
undocked yesterday at Portsmouth, and anchored at
Spithead in readiness for her official trial of speed
at the measured mile in Stokes Bay, ordered to take
place this morning.
The Revenge, screw line-of-battle-ship, Capt. C.
Fellowes (flag of Rear-Admiral Smart), moved her
berth from alongside Portsmouth dockyard yester-
day to alongside her hulk, to transfer her crew
preparatory to going into dock.
The Sutlej, screw frigate, Capt. M. Connolly, in
dock at Portsmouth, yesterday embarked her de-
tachment of Royal Marine Artillery, consisting of
1. sergeant, 1 bombardier, and 17 gunners. The ship
is picking up her crew fast, for, in addition to Capt.
Connolly being a very popular officer, the ship her-
self has a comfortable lower deck for berthing her
crew, while her iron sisters are compelled to berth
their crews on their main decks. She is besides
going on a three or four years' cruise.
Rear-Admiral George St. Vincent King has been
named as the officer who will probably succeed
Rear-Admiral the Hon. George Grey as Superin-
tendent of Portsmouth Dockyard on the expiration
of the latter officer's term of office.
The Simoom screw iron troopship, on being paid
out of commission on her return to England from
China, was placed in the steam reserve at Ports-
mouth until a very recent date, when she was
brought down the harbour and placed in No. 7 dock.
On this occasion we expressed a hope that her de-
fects would be made good, and that she would again
become available for the public service. An order
has now been received at Portsmouth to give the
bottom plates (which since she has been in dock
have been scraped clear of all incrustation) two coats
of preservative varnish and again place the ship at
the reserve moorings. We regret to hear this, and
trust it is only a temporary measure. There must be
plenty of work in hand for our Government troop-
ships, and keeping before us the facts of the debtor
and creditor account of the Himalaya during Capt.
Seccombe's command, and that the commissioning
of Government troopships finds employment for a
certain number of officers and seamen, we cannot
but think that the Simoom in commission would be
a far more profitable investment than the Simoom
on the list of the steam reserve. It may not be out
of place here to state that the average cost of pre-
serving the hulls and machinery of the paddle
steamers at the present moment in our steam re-
serves (all of which are of course useless for the
future as war ships) is very close upon £l,OOO each
per annum. To this sum must be added the inte-
rest upon their cost.
The hired transport vessel Maria Frederika, Capt.
Christensen, with military stores from Hong Kong
and three invalided soldiers from St. Helena, arrived
at Spithead yesterday morning, and after commu-
nicating with the authorities, received orders to
proceed with her cargo round to Woolwich.
Mr. Mattison, an artisan in the Devonport dock-
yard, has invented a mode of preparing iron plates
for ships' sides, which it is expected will very much
facilitate that difficult work. It has been thus
described :—The first process, taking the mould
for the curve of the plate, is effected by what is
termed an " Ordnance-box"--.that is, a wide piece of
iron standing on its edge through which a number
of movable bolts are placed. On the points of the
bolts being fitted against the side of a ship they are
pressed home into the hollows of the curve until the
exact shape is obtained. They are then fastened by
screws and thus rendered immovable. In connexion
with taking the mould is another instrument for
obtaining the levels and curved edges of the ship's
side. It is made of slight polished iron, exceedingly
flexible, so that it readily conforms itself to the
curve when by movable pieces of iron crossways
and lengthways the levels are taken. The instru-
ment on being removed returns immediately to its
original flattened shape, the edges only retaining
the peculiar form given to it by the ship's side. This
instrument is for the levels only, the curve of the
ship's side being obtained by the other. The mould
being thus taken, is transferred to the machine that
actually makes the curve, which consists of a kind
of iron box filled with what are termed " peppots"
—that is, a number of pieces of iron about an inch
square and 10 inches long. These, by screws in the
bottom, can also be lowered or raised, and the
mould being placed on the top of these movable
pieces of iron, the exact shape of the curve is secured,
and the peppots are screwed into their proper posi-
tion. Another framework, containing similar pieces
of iron in a con-verse position, is suspended over that
already described. When the plate to be curved
has to be laid on, the lower framework is drawn out
on a kind of rail ; the plate, after being heated, is
laid on the top of the peppots and drawn into its
former position, when, by means of a lever, the
upper peppots are brought down with such power
as to secure the required shape. The model is 20
inches wide, 30 long, and 42 high. The plan is
said to possess great advantages over the one now
in use for taking the carves by means of wooden
moulds, which are usually 3ft. wide and 4ift. thick
and about 15ft. long. These moulds are cumber-
acme and costly. Mr. Mattison's plan has been sub-
mitted to Rear-Admiral Sir Thos. Pasley, superin-
tendent, and other officers of the Devonport
and Keyham yards, who are understood to have
expressed their approval of the invention. The
model is to be sent to Woolwich to be tested.
The screw steam frigate Severn, 39, Commodore
Montresor, left Plymouth on Monday for the East
Indies. On departure cheers were exchanged be-
tween her crew and the men belonging to the
paddlewheel steam.sloop Geyser, 6, Commander C.
Campbell, in the Sound.
The following appointments were made yesterday
at the Admiralty :—Lieut. S. H. Babington and
Lieut. Edward I. Jermain to the Excellent; James
R. W. Quinn and Thomas C. Pascoe, masters' as-
sistants, to the Phoebe ; T. J. Grieves, Alfred W.
Brookes, and Thomas S. Brand, midshipmen to the
Phcebe ; J. B. De Lopez, midshipman, to the Phoebe,
as supernumerary ; Edward R. W, Noble, midship-
man, to the Sutlej, as supernumerary; Francis W.
0. Grant, Carleton Tufnell, 'William Farr, J. Mas-
termer), and Malcolm Drummond, naval cadets, to
the Phoebe; Edward G. Elves, Charles G. Crau-
ford, William N. Willink, William L. Morrison,
and froward F. G. Hay, naval cadets, to the Sutlej ;
Eustace T. Groves, naval cadet, to the Sutlej, as
supernumerary; the Hon. W. B. Phipps, naval
cadet, to the St. George ; Charles I. Norcock, naval
as supernumerary and Charles
cadet, to the Phoebe,
E. Morison has been nominated to &naval cadetship.