The Sun.
London, England, 1854-08-23 00:00:00

APPOINTMENTS.

Lieutenant—John B. Field (1846), to the Cossack,
20, screw steam-corvette, at Chatham.

Paymaster—Josep4 H. W. Bowman (1853), to the
Salamander, paddle wheel steatu-sloop, at Portsmouth.

THE GIIN-BOATS.-TRIAL OF LANCASTER'S

GUN.

The Arrow, screw despatch gun-vessel, Lieutenant-
C mnairder Jolliffe, left Spitbead yesterday afternoon
for the Needle Rocks, Isle of Wight, to test the efficacy
of her new and powerful armament. Her Majesty and
Prince Albert, in the Victoria arid Albert, Captain the
Hon. Joseph Denman ; the Lords of the Admiralty,
with their flag flying in the Black Eagle steam-yacht,
Master-Commander Petley; the Dasher, steam-vessel,
Captain Le Febvre, also with a party on board ; the
Fairy Royal yaciit, with a party on hoard ; and the
Bee, steam-tender to the Excellent, with Captain Sir
Thomas Maitland, Captain Savage, and the whole staff
of Excellent on hoard, and numerous craft from Cowes
went to the scene of operations to witness the trial, all
returning in the evening.

We repeat that there has been altogether a misunder-
standing respecsing gun-boats for the Baltic, their uses,
and their efficiency. The authorities have been igno-
rantly reproached-Ist, because it has been reported
that there are immense numbers of gun-boats in the
Baltic ; 2d, because the Admiralty sent out the Jasper,
Pigmy, Cuckoo, &c., as gun-boats ; 3dly, because the
Admiralty desiihed a class of vessels which, from their
draft of water, .would be useless in the Baltic. Now, in
the first place, it may be asked, where are these hun-
dreds of gun-boats in the Baltic ? Everybody seems to
have adopted the notion of their existence, but nobody
has ever seen them.' But allowing them to exist, what
chance have they at the present day with a fleet of which
two-thirds are steamers ? Their power and efficiency,
their means of annoyance or destruction, were at an end
when the first steamer was launched. Secondly, it
should be observed, that the Pigmy, Jasper, Cuckoo,
and Co., were never fitted out or intended to be used in
the Baltic as gun-boats. Sir Charles Napier wanted
some old vessels that he could " expend"—some vessels
that be could make "fire-ships" of should he require
them ; when most aptly for the service the Admiralty
patched up those old steamers that had been advertised
to be sold, and sent them out to the fleet. Thirdly, the
Admiralty never designed the 470-ton vessels Arrow,
Beagle, Wrangler, &c., as gun-boats. They always were,
and now are, intended to be employed as despatch-boats,
but with so powerful an armament as to be useful for
heavy gunnery work should they be wanted. The real
gun-boats are those in course of construction ; four are
being built at Northfleet and two at Deptford dock-
yard. They are of 200 tons, and about GO horse power,
high-pressure screw engines, draw less than six feet
water, and all have their machinery under the water
line, and therefore not exposed .to shot. These low,
long, eight or nine knots an hour gun-boats will clear
the coasts of a myriad of the row gun-boats of the Baltic
if they are there.—Morning Herald.

MORE RUSSIAN PRIZES.

Her Majesty's ship Archer was at Memel on the 18th
of August making arrangements for sending borne the
14 prizes anchored in that port, taken by her Majesty's
crnizers for breaking the blockade of the Russian ports
in the Gulf of Finland, naval coast volunteers having
come out to work them home to England
Yesterday another. prize-ship, the Jonge Albert, of
which Van der Zee was late the master, taken a prize
by her Majesty's steamer Conflict for breaking the
blockade of Rip. arrived in the river in charge of Mr.
Dickins, from Harlingen, where her cargo was landed
by the Dutch authorities. She is to be taken into the
West India Docks for condemnation.

The Court of Admiralty has reserved its judgment
with respect to the Union, of Flensburg, prize to her Ma-
jesty's ship Cruiser, for violating the blockade of Riga,
for proof that the blockade was in force and that its
existence had been made known. With respect to the
Norwegian vessel Nornen, prize to the Archer for break-
ing the blockade of Riga, the Court of Admiralty has
reserved its judgment. In the case of the Ostzee, a
Mecklenburg- vessel, taken by her Majesty's ship Alban
for breaking the blockade of Cronstadt, the Court of
Admiralty has pronounced against the seizure, but has
refused costs and damages against the Alban for the
unlawful detention.

THE SUSPICIOUS YANKEE CRUISER GRAPE-

SHOT.
It is stated that the Grapeshot, a vessel that created
some stir by being reported some time since in the Eng-
lish Channel as a Yankee privateer, "has cleared out in
a roost mysterious manner from New Orleans, 'with a
cargo of muskets."
Our cruisers in the West Indies will doubtless look
after this "Grapeshot." If up to any pranks, she will
find herself some fine day under range of one of Lancas-
ter's " canisters."

THE CREW OF THE JANUS.
The Janus, paddle, Lieut. Kane, is still at her moor-
ings on the west shore, Sheerness. Her crew have for
the present been retained on board ; their ultimate dis-
posal is not yet known, but they expect still to be
drafted to the Indefatigable, for which ship they volun-
teered. Mr. Fisher, the gunner, upon whom the late
court-martial was held for desertion, but acquitted, is
likewise on board.

RECEIVING-SHIP FOR RUSSIAN PRISONERS.
The Devonshire, receiving-ship for Russian prisoners
of war, has had the collier Hercules and the water-tank
vessel alongside, to complete her store of fuel and water
preparatory to the draft of Russian prisoners of war
(500) being transferred to her, now on their passage
home by the Algiers, 90, screw steam-ship, returning
here to take in her lower deck guns, left here for the
convenience of receiving French troops for the Aland
Islands.

DEPARTURE OF TOE 34TH REGIMENT.
The 1800 tons screw-ship, Mauritius, went out of
Portsmouth Harbour, yesterday morning, at nine o'clock,
with the 34th Regiment on boi.rd and one company
of Sappers and Miners. They were to lie-to off
Osborne, for his Royal Highness Prince Albert to
board and inspect them. The gallant soldiers cheered
heartily as they left the harbour, and received the
same honest compliment from the ships of war and the
shore.

INVALIDS FROM THE EAST.
Detachments, consisting of the Grenadier Guards and
Coldstreams, with the 33d and 34th Regiments, arrived
at Chatham on Monday evening from Portsmouth, as
invalids from Turkey. The men were examined by the
chief medical officer at Fort Pitt, Chatham ; 14 soldiers
were taken into hospital, and the remainder were seat