The Sun.
London, England, 1854-05-02 00:00:00

SIR CHARLES NAPIER IN SWEDEN.

The following i 3 from a correspondent of the
Daily .News, dated Stockholm, April 24
" The Swedes—who are on the whole a less phleg-
matic race than the Danes—comprehend more readily
than the latter the importance of the approaching con-
test, and enter, so to write, into the spirit of it. As
observed in one of my previous communications, the do-
minant feeling in Copenhagen with reference to that
contest is rather one of alarm ; in Sweden, on the con-
trary, it is one of hope, that is to say, so far as the great
mass of the people are concerned. It is not surprising,
therefore, that the announcement on Saturday last that
the British fleet had arrived in what may be called the
Stockholm waters produced much excitement, and be-
came for the time the all-engrossing topic of conversa-
tion. Arrangements were immediately made by nume-
rous persons for going down in steamers to the bay in
which the squadron was lying at anchor. The first
one, hired by a private party, started about midnight.
The majority on board were officers of the guards,
and amongst other persons present I observed the British
consul, Major Pringle, and one of his sons, and the
British vice-consul, Mr. Samson.

" The steamer, named the Ririe Dahlberg, is a small
but very handsome one, generally employed in running
on the Malarsee, that celebrated arm of the sea which
stretches to and beyond Stockholm, and which is covered
with hundreds of picturesque islands. Our party was about
50 strong, and about one-half remained on deck till day-
break, wrapped up in their fur cloaks, and well provided
with all the good things of this life. That the Swedes
are, from time to time at least, a right merry race, I soon
discovered, and so did the few persons who sat in the
cabin in the hope of having • a quiet nap. On reach-
ing Daleroe, after passing the strong fortress of 'Wax-
holm we espied a small English war steamer, which
turned out to be the Lightning, 2 guns. Some of our
party landed for a few minutes on that island, and brought
back the intelligence that a British officer was on it.
On inquiry we found that it was Mr. Marks, the pur-
ser of the Duke of Wellington, who was making the best
arrangements in his power for proceeding by land to
Stockholm, in order to see the British consul. Very
fortunately, the latter gentleman was on board our
little steamer, so Mr. Marks was saved a long journey,
on a very bad road, and in a patriarchal kind of vehicle,
where he would have been far less at ease than in his
own berth or the flag-ship. The Lightning, which had
conveyed him to Daleroe, soon got under weigh :wain
and followed in our track, the people on board being
not a little surprised to find Mr. Marks returning in a
I Swedish steamer to the fleet which he had so shortly
quitted. I need scarcely state that he met with much
courtesy on the part of all our Swedish acquaintances.
Towards seven in the morning we came in view of a
portion of the fleet, and eager was the gaze of all the
Swedes of the, party. That eagerness was increased
when, quitting a narrow channel, we emerged into a
spacious and well-protected bay, that of Elfsnabben,
about 55 English miles from this city, and one or two
from the Baltic. The ships, 18 in number, amongst
which I recognised, besides the admiral's one, the Nep-
tune, with Admiral Corry's flag at the fore, the St.
Jean d'Acre, the Royal George, the Ctesar, the Cressy,
the Princess Royal, the Boscawen, the Blenheim, the
Hogue, the Edinburgh, the Amphion, the Arrogant,
and the Dragon. The squadron was moored in a svini-
circle, in a circumference of about a mile and a half.

"As soon as it was known on hoard the Duke of
Wellington that the British Consul, Major Pringle, had
come down in the Elric Dahlberg, a cutter was sent to
convey him to the former. I may state here that the
gallant major, formerly of the Scots Fusiliers, has seen
much active service in his day, that he is an old school-
fellow of Sir Charles Napier, with whom he served in
North America in 1814 and 1815, and that he is inti-
mately acquainted with the language, as well as with
the political and social condition of Sweden, in which be
has filled, during several years, the post of British Con-
sul-General.

"After a little delay, all the persons on board the
Elric Dahlberg were rowed to the admiral's ship, in the
cutter of the latter, and received on board with great
courtesy. Their chief desire was to see the admiral,
and that desire was gratified, for Sir Charles was pacing
upend down the quarter-deck apparently in deep thought.
As soon as he perceived the visitors, he returned their
salutations in a friendly manner, and continued his brisk
walk, muttering occasionally to himself, and often cast-
ing eager glances in the direction of the open sea. One
simile appeared to occur to the minds of all our Swedish
friends, for I heard group after group designate the ad-
miral as a " lion." And certainly, as he paced up and
dowa the quarter-deck, in majestic solitude, the ruler
of all he surveyed, and conscious of his vast might as
head of the noblest British fleet which has appeared in
the Baltic, the simile was not an inappropriate one.
"Shortly after our arrival, Divine service, according
to the Anglican ritual, was commenced—the Roman
Catholics not going below deck, and, consequently, not
taking any part in that service. There appeared to be
a not inconsiderable number of Roman Catholics, but a
hint was given to me that several persons on board gave
themselves out as such in order not to be under the
necessity of attending church.
" During the three or four hours I remained on board
the Duke of Wellington, six other small steamers came
alongside, and each poured forth a new batch of visi-
tors, all of whom were allowed to go over the noble
vessel and to examine it in all directions. I should have
stated before that the Swedish officers of the Guards,
who came down in the Ririe Dahlberg, were hospitably
entertained in the wardroom. They appeared highly
delighted with the cordial reception they met with, and
on their departure they raised three hearty cheers. One
of their countrymen and brother soldiers, Lieutenant
Theorell, is now serving as a volunteer on board the
Duke of Wellington. During the 'day, a small Swedish
war steamer, the Gylfe, of two guns, arrived in the
bay, having on board Commodore Annerstedt, of the
Stockholm division of the Swedish fleet, and other
officers, who paid a visit to the admiral. At
,the invi-
tation of the commodore, the British Consul and a few
of his acquaintances; including Mr. Marks, the purser
of the fleet, went on board the Gylfe, and proceeded in
it as far as the fortress of Washolrn, where they were
transferred to a smaller Government steamer which
reached Stockholm about one a.m., closely followed
by one of the passenger steam-boats. The night
was extremely cold, but nearly every one was
wrapped up in fur-lined coats, and no ladies went
down to Elfsnabben to see the fleet—the distance
being, no doubt, considered too great, arid the wea-
ther very cold, particularly in the insulated channels
between Stockholm and the above bay. I am informed
that in two of the steamers the night was passed, during
the return home, in doing honour to various toasts
which would have sounded very disagreeably to Russian
ears ; and I can state that I heard in other Swedish
quarters the expression of much sympathy for England,
and of many an earnest hope of its success.
"This morning Mr. Grey, the British chargd d'affaires
ad interim, accompanied by Mrs. and Miss Pringle, the
wife and daughter of the respected British consul, paid
a visit to Sir Charles Napier, on board the Duke of Wel-
lington, and returned with him last night to Stockholm
—the gallant admiral becoming Mr. Grey's guest. It is
probable that Sir Charles will pay a visit to the king of
Sweden, provided that no such difficulties arise as those
which he at first met with, through certain court and
ministerial influences in Denmark, and, consequently,
provided that no great delay occurs in his obtaining an
audience. A man in the admiral's position bas no time
to lose through court etiquette. All day yesterday Mr.
Marks, accompanied by one of his messmen, was em-
ployed in catering for the fleet, and he has contrived to
procure about 60 live bullocks, a large quantity of meat,
and good supplies of all kinds. As Mr. Marks, who has
seen much service, is no longer a young man, and as he
bears some resemblance to Sir Charles Napier, lie was
frequently taken during his perambulations for the ad-
miral, and was followed from time to time by hosts of
inquisitive persons.
" The stay of the fleet in the Stockholm waters will
_beose,-yOU,.42aY readily atTporie, only a brief one-at

most three days more, unless the weather become, as it
threatens to do, very severe again. The present arrange-
ment is, I believe I may state, for the fleet to leave In
the couree of Thursday next."