The Sun.
London, England, 1854-05-12 00:00:00

mission.
The Janus, 4, paddlewheel steam-vessel, Lieutenant
Kane, left Portsmouth yesterday for the eastward,
taking round supernumeraries.
The new steam-frigate Curacoa, 30, is having her
jury-masts, &c., taken out in the steam factory basin, at
Portsmouth, to prepare her for the workmen to com-
mence fitting her for commission.
The Rolla, 8, brig, lately used as an instruction vessel
for the naval apprentices of the Victory, is ordered to be
docked for examination and repair.
The Scourge, 6, paddle-frigate, Commodore Adams,
and the Brisk, 14, screw-corvette, Commander Seymour,
are both ready to leave the basin at Portsmouth for sea,
Her Majesty's frigate Portland, 50, Captain Chads,
arrived at Plymouth from Portsmouth on Wednesday,
and had her powder and shot taken out in the Sound.
She was towed into harbour yesterday to be paid off,
and re-commissioned.
Orders were received at Plymouth on Wednesday to
commission the brig Mariner, by Commander Johnson.
The following articles of provisiens of the best quality
for the use of patients, have been put on board the hos-
pital ship Belleisle, Commander Hosken, now in Ply-
mouth Sound, bound to the Baltic :—Beef, 50,0001 b. ;
bread, 50,00016. ; flour, 50,0001 b. ; Scotch barley,
7,0001 b. ; essence of beef, 2,000 quarter-pints ; and 87
gallons of white wine. She has also shipped for the use
of the fleet—Bread, 1,000 bags ; salt meat, 250 tierces ;
spirits, 50 puncheons, and a proportionate quantity of
all other kinds of provisions.
Captain Sandom, of the Royal William Victualling-
yard, has been directed to procure imme-
diately hay and oats for 90 days, and bran for 80 days,
for 300 horses, about to embark at Portsmouth for the
East.

The fourth detachment of the 13th Light Dragoons
embarked yesterday on board the Calliope transport, at
Portsmouth dockyard—Capt. Goad, Cornet Goad, Vete-
rinary Surgeon Towers, and about 50 men and horses.
The remainder of the regiment will embark in the Mo-
narchy and Harbinger transports to-day.
The Jason steamvessel arrived at Woolwich yesterday-
from Deptford, and will be taken into the basin to em-
bark the whole of Capt. Wodehouse's field battery, and
the centre division of Capt. Turner's field battery, for
conveyance to the East.
At Liverpool the preparations for despatching troop-
ships are being prosecuted with unabated vigour.
Yesterday the Gertrude (1,361 tons), and the Pedes-
trian. went into the river, having on board upwards
of one hundred horses and a number of officers belong-
ing to the Ist Royal Dragoons. They were to sail
for Constantinople to-day. The Panola (955 tons) will
also sail from the Mersey to-day for Dublin, where she
will embark horses belonging to the 11th Hussars. The
Arabia, a fine vessel of 1,022 tons, the Coronelli, and
the Rip Van Winkle, which are being fitted at Liver-
pool for the conveyance of horses to the seat of war, are
in a forward state, and will soon be ready to receive
them.

The Asia transport was towed out of Kingstown bar
bour on Wednesday morning, and made sail for Malta
with a troop of the 11th Hussars on board.
The head-quarters of the 34th Regiment, commanded
by Lieutenant-Colonel Maxwell, arrived in Portsmouth
garrison from Sheffield yesterday.
Capt. Taylor's troop of Royal Horse Artillery arrived
at Woolwich yesterday afternoon from Canterbury.
The head-quarters of the 12th Infantry Regiment with
regimental band and colours, arrived in Dublin from Bel-
fast by the 5 o'clock train on Wednesday evening. The
detachment consisted of three companies of the regiment,
under the command of Captain Co; with the subaltern
officers of each company, and the ensigns and assistant•
surgeon of the regiment. On leaving the terminus
the troops were paraded in front of the building, and
then, having formed in marching order in open
column, with a double instrumental band in front, they
marched through Talbot-street, Earl-street, Sackville-
street, and the quays to the Royal Barracks, en, route
to Cork, where they will await the arrival of the re-
maining companies of the regiment, which, when com-
plete, will embark at Queenstown for the East. Crowds
of people accompanied them in their progress from the
railway terminus, and cheered them repeatedly as they
marched along.
A Limerick paper, of Wednesday, says—" The Ad-
miralty have invited the Naval Coast Volunteers of the
United Kingdom to tender their services on the sea as
far as the Brit, to assist in bringing home the captured
, ships of the common enemy. Captain Jerningharn,
R.N., who superintends the Naval Coast service for the
south of Ireland, accordingly mustered all the men en-
tered at the port of Limerick on Monday last, and ex-
plained the instructions he had got, requesting they
I would consider the advantage to be derived from parti-
cipating in this extension of duty, and which it would
be optional with them to accept or decline. Ten of the
number eagerly volunteered to proceed on the expedition,
but Captain Jerningliain would not accept one of their
names without full time for consideration. Accordingly,
he yesterday again attended the rendezvous on the quay,
when 30 of the enrolled men gave in their names for
immediate employment upon this important branch of
the war service, for which they are sure to be richly re-
warded, according to the number and value of prize-
ships escorted to British ports."
Yesterday afternoon, about 4 o'clock, 200 volunteers
from the 22d, 70th, and other infantry regiments were
landed at Hungerford-market steam-boat pier by the
the Sylph, Woolwich steamer, whence they proceeded
by railway to Windsor, to join the 97th, under orders
for the East.
Yesterday forenoon the East London division of en-
rolled Chelsea Pensioners assembled for the first time,
under the command of Captain Wood, in the moat ad-
joining the Tower of London, to go through their six
days' drill. There were about 250 present. The pen-
sioners of the other metropolitan divisions will in the
course of this and the ensuing week be inspected by
their various commanding officers. It is expected that
on next Saturday fortnight a review of all the divisions
will take place in Hyde-park, in the presence of
Vis-
count Hardinge, the Commander-in-Chief.
THE 63D REGIMENT.—PRESENTATION OF COLOtIRS.—
On Wednesday afternoon an interesting scene took place
in the Phcenix-park. The service companies of the 63d
A
Regiment assembled in the Nine Acres, and a new set
of colours was presented to them. Mrs. Exham Swyny,
who had been requested to perform the act of presenting
the new colours to the regiment, came into the square
riding a beautiful grey charger.
NARROW ESOAPE OF THE ANDES FROM FIRE.—The
following is an extract from a private letter received by
a gentleman of Plymouth, from an officer of the Royals,
dated steam-ship Andes, April 30, 1854 :—" I write
these few hasty lines to inform you of our safe arrival
at Malta, which is now about ten miles distant. We
have had, altogether, a very fine passage. From Ply-
mouth to Gibraltar it was splendid, having left Ply-
mouth at half-past seven p.m., and passed Gibraltar on
Tuesday afternoon at half-past three. During the night,
of Tuesday, it blew a gale right ahead, which delayed us
two days, otherwise there is little doubt we should have
made the run to Malta in a week. We had a most
providential escape yesterday from total loss. The ship
caught fire, and for about two hours we were working
for our lives, and got it under, thank God, without ac-
cident. The regiment behaved capitally. Ii; was, cer-
tainly, the most alarming two hours of my life. We
were a long way from land, had only two small boats,
end had 1,050 men on board, and revere] tons of gun-
Powder, so the loss of life must have been immense. We
threw overboard 50,000 rounds of ball cartridges. The
origin of the fire is not exactly known, but there is littlo
doubt that it proceeded from the engine-room, or some-
where in that vicinity. We were, when the fire was dis-
covered, about 300 miles from Malta, and 60 from the
coast of Africa. If the wind had been a little stronger
we must have been lost."
At the examination, held at the Royal Naval College,
Portsmouth, on Wednesday and Thursday, the follow-
ing passed :
For Lieutenants—Messrs. Knevitt, Poole, and Scott.
For Master—Mr. J. Roche.
For Masters' Assistants—Messrs. Swan, Gulliver,
Osborn, Chaffers, Fisher, and Hayward.
For Naval Cadets—Lord A. P. Clinton, the Hon. J.
C. Ellis, the Hon. M. F. Murray, and Messrs. Fitz-
gerald, Orumanney, Wood, Law,
Wadlow, Clanchy
(these five and the Hon. Mr. Ellis were qualified by
Mr. Eastman, R.N., at his Preparatory Naval College,