The Sun.
London, England, 1853-10-25 00:00:00

STATISTICS OF THE FRENCH NAVY.

A report on the French navy by M. Ducos, Minister
of Marine, has appeared in the Moniteur. The Minister
shows that, with a budget of 40,000,000 f. less in amount
than in the time of Louis Philippe, he has increased the
power of the French navy to an extent that was never
before witnessed in the same period of time, and has
nevertheless a surplus of 10,000,000 f. on the budget of
1552. He proposes to return half that surplus to the
Treasury, and to apply the other half to the present
budget. The following is an analysis of the report
I The budget for the navy, it states, was fixed for 2
being
less 117,225,778 f, and for 1853 at 117,181,001 f.,
less by 40,000,000 f. than the budgets of 1847 and 1848.
The following are some of the advantageous results ob-
tained :-Ist, the previsions of the budget only applied
for 1852 and 1853 to 130 armed vessels, but 160
only
hav
e
been been kept at sea. 2dly,
these same previsionsB
plied to 30,745 able-bodied seamen for 1 and 27,249
for 1853, whereas the average number has been 33,675 .
3dly, France possessed only one squadron of
,eight
line-of-battle ships, whereas at present she possesses
two squadrons, composed of fourteen ships of the
line, exclusive of a proportiortate augmentation
in the number of frigates and steam corvettes ;
4thly, the French navy did not comprise any steam line-
of-battle
ship, completely terminated, but the Napoleon
has been finished, and for the last year has formed part
of the Mediterranean squadron. sthly, the navy pos-
sessed no mixed line-of-battle ship, whereas at present
it has four completely finished, and nine others in the
course of transformation, and the engines of which are
on the point of beine. delivered. These nine vessels can
be put to sea at tho end of the year. Gthly, six new
steamers on the model of the Napoleon have been laid
on the stocks ; by the end of the present year they will
be urged on to the 12-24ths of their completion, and will
be launched at the end of next year. 7thly, the greater
number of the steam frigates which were disarmed have
been placed in " commission de port." Bthly, the penal
settlements of Guyana have received their first establish-
ment, and nearly 3,000 convicts have been sent there,
9thly, the works in the port of Cherbourg have been
urged on with great activity, a sum of 4,000,000 f.
having been accorded to them from the present
budget. 10thly, the works at Castignau, which are
to complete the port of Toulon, have been under-
taken with the ordinary resources of the year,
and have already received a first sum of 1,000,000 f.
llthly, a careening dock was wanted at Rochefort ; it
has been commenced, and has already received a first
credit of 200,000 f. ; and 12thly, a number of matters
connected with the navy have been undertaken without
any extra resources, such as the reconstitution of the
reserve, the augmentation of the pay of the non-commis-
sioned officers, the amelioration in the quality of the
bread for the navy, &c. The expenses of all these im-
provements have been defrayed from the ordinary re-
sources of the budget ; and far from the sum appropriated
to the purchase of stores having been augmented, they
have left a sum of ten millions disposable from 1552.
That sum arises from three several causes—first, fromae
the postponement of several important. contracts, del.nyco,
by the circumstance of force majeure. Steam
value of
tools, and large supply of stores, to theeored
3,800,000 f., which were to have been delivered
til l'815t311e;
last months of 1852, were not sent
.in
secondly, from reductions effected in. varoleousssborravnecililleastiooef
the service ; and, thirdly, by the rigorous
and over the
exercised by the ministers at all monit
oen
f the navy. The
minutest details of every departroee
e ten millions by
report then proposes to dispotsreonsufnrtyby
and carrying over
restoring five millions to tth
the other five millions to hee budget of 1853. By means
of this latter sum the report declares allthveaernioguasgesz(le
gets.
frayed ; alse the increase alluded to above, amounting to
e of
3,800,000 f. will b
inbeprio
brandy, &c., to the extent of
1,400,000 f. ; .ansees
such as corn, flour,
whilst the o'ther 5,000,000 f. will serve to
meet the expense caused by the creation of a second
squadron, which has been rendered necessary by the
complication of events in the east. the propria-
tion of the 10,000,000 f. remaining over ap
from 1852, the
minister declares that he will be able to meet all the ex-
penses, ordinary and extraordinary, of his department,
without making any new demand on the public treasury.
The report is followed by an Imperial decree, carrying
out the suggestions of the minister.

ORDNANCE RIFLE MUSKET. Captain Sir Thomas
Hastings, R.N. A
' and Gunner, Esq , two officers of
the Board of Ordnance, have been for some. days past on
an official visit to the celebrated firm of Clives, gun-
makers, Birmingham, relative to an order, issued by the
Master-General, for the immediate supply of 20,000 rifle
muskets, of a similar bore to that hitherto made for the
use of the Ordnance corps.—Kentish, Mercury.