The Sun.
London, England, 1854-06-13 00:00:00

THE WAR.

NAVAL AND MILITARY INTELLIGENCE.
A letter from Malta, dated June 2, says :
" Since my last, by the Thabor, several arri'als of troops
have been noted, but nothing more, either of Beal interest,
or from the seat of war, that will not have alrady reached
you.
" The total amount of French troops that have reached
the island to the 31st of May, and gone on to he eastward
is—men, 18,430 ; horses and mules, 3,506.
" The English troops that have arrived are—
" By the Rubicon, No. 38 transport.—Caitain Barry,
R.A., 52 troopers, 44 horses, and Assistant-Surgeon Llew-
ellyn, 7th Dragoons.
' By the Mary Ann, N 0.42 transport.—Caplain Oldham,
13th Light Dragoons ; Cornet Montgomery, Amistant-Sur-
geon Armstrong, 52 troopers, and 53 horses.
" By the Carnac screw steamer.—Ensigns Smyth and
Light, 68th Regiment; Lieutenant Ogilvie, R.A. ,• Dr.
Risk, R.A. ; Lieutenant, Morris, R.A. ; and ;14 rank and
file, for the various regiments garrisoned in the island.
" By the Orinoco steamship, arrived yesterday, Lieut.-
Colonel Lockyer, Majors Handcock, Welsford, and Colvill
(brevet) ; Captains Ingram, Moore, Obert, Hatton, Leah,
Burton, and Chichester ; Lieutenants Haranc, Vicars,
Venables, Lumley, Reynolds, Woods (adjutant), Annesley,
Ramsbottom, Dawes, Cannon, and Brinkley ; Ensigns
Mackesy, Nares, Ingram, Whitehead, M`Gregor, and Ayl-
mer; Paymaster Harvest, Quartermaster Desmond, Sur-
geon H. Downes, M.D.; Assistant-Surgeon E. M. Sinclair,
M.D. ; and 1,064 rank and file 97th Regiment; Commis-
sary-General Weir, Assistant-Commissary-Generals Drake
and Pratt, Dr. Bryson, Dr. Slight, R.N. ; Dr. Douglass,
R.N. ; Assistant-Surgeon Woods, 23d Regiment.
" By the Negotiator, No. 59 transport—Captain Jenyns,
Lieutenant Jervis, Assistant-Surgeon Abbott, 50 troopers,
and 49 horses 13th Light Dragoons.
" By the Monarchy, No. 60 transport—Dr. Chapman,
Deputy-Inspector of Hospitals ; Mr. Humphrey, 77th
Regiment ; Captain Tromayne, Lieutenant Smith, Pay-
master Frith, Quartermaster Anderson ; 43 troopers, and
47 horses, 13th Light Dragoons. The Orinoco left last
night, having in tow the Monarchy and the Negotiator.
The 97th will touch at Athens, and probably proceed to
the East.
" By the Harbinger, No. 61 stransport, towed in by the
Vectis—Lieutenant-Colonel Doherty, Lieutenant and
Adjutant Irwin, Lieutenant King, Cornet Chamberlayne,
Surgeon Paynter, Veterinary-Surgeon Legrew, 57 troopers,
and 53 horses, 13th Light Dragoons, and Commander
Edward Franklin, R.N.
" By the Northumberland, No. 62 transport, towed in
by the Hydaspes—Lieutenant Philips and Dr. Jas. Ekin,
with 50 men and 48 horses, Royal Artillery. This vessel
lost one of her horses on the passage.
"By the Hydaspes.—Lieutenant-Colonel Cameron,
Majors Cumberland and Tulloch ; Captains Macpherson,
the Hon. R. Rollo, Cameron, Murray, Campbell, Wilkin-
son, Pitcairne, Whitbread, the Hon. G. H. E. Grant;
Lieutenants Chisholm, Graham, Orde, Fraser, M`Leod,
Uuninghame Montgomery, Drysdale (adjutant), Ward,
Campbell, and Jervoise ; Ensigns Grove, Webber, Scott, Sir
P. A. Halkett, Moseley, M. Viscount Forth ; Paymaster
Wheatley, Quartermaster Wood, Surgeon J. G. Wood,
M.D.; Assistant-Surgeon W. A. Davidson, M.D.; 902
rank and file, 14 horses, 42d Royal Highlanders."
A letter from Lieutenant Chapman, R.N., commanding
the Royal Mail Steam-packet Company's transport-ship
Trent, dated Constantinople, May 25, says :
" I informed you that Admiral Stewart had fitted this
ship for conveying horses. As, however, there were only
about 51 to be taken from Malta for this place, he put on
board 500 men belonging to the 30th and 55th Regiments
and volunteers from other regiments. We left on thelnight
of the 18th of May, and on the 22d, off Tenedw, took in
tow the transports Nos. 18 and 22, with part of the 17th
Lancers and Artillery. We anchored for the night below
the old castle of Europe, in the Dardanelles. On the 23d
landed Colonel Cobb and his horses, and reached Scutari
yesterday forenoon ; landed the men in the afternoon, and
proceeded by order about four miles up the Bosphorus
to land the horses. As soon as all the horses are landed I
return to Scutari to land baggage and stores, and am, I
believe, to take in a full cargo of horses for Varna."
Advices were received yesterday at the Admiralty that
Admiral Sir Charles Napier, with nine screw ships of the
line was off Helsingfors on the 4th of June reconnoitering.,
the rest of the fleet being in the Offing. Ten Russian ships
of the line were counted in the harbour protected by the
batteries.
Yesterday notice was issued on the Royal Exchange
that the Russian ships Die Gebroeders, Victor A. Lind-
holm, master, taken by her Majesty's steamer Amphion ;
the Najuden, N. Gustaf, master, taken by her Majesty's
steamer Odin; and the Carolina, Captain Ehlers, also
taken by the Amphion, would, within 20 days from that
date, be condemned as lawful prizes to their captors.
By advices received yesterday, under date Elsinore, June
the 9th, it appears the ship Osten Voss, of Korndoff,
bound from St. Petersburg to London, had been boarded
off Dajeret by the English cruisers. She was taken to the
Duke of Wellington flag-ship, and, Sir Charles Napier
considering her a lawful capture, ordered her home to
England for condemnation.

LAUNCH OP HER MAJESTY'S SCREW
STEAM-SHIP ESK, 21 GUNS.

This fine screw steam-corvette, designed in the office
of the Surveyor of the Navy, and built by John Scott
Russell and Co., on similar lines as the Highflyer, 21,
screw-steamer, on the principle of let well alone, the
Highflyer having proved in every respect an excellent
sties ‘A T ono isaseseast s,oaseday, the 12th instant
at Millwall, in the presence of a large number 'of spec-
tators, among whom were the Queen's Advocate and
Lady Harding, Sir Robert Price, Bart., M.P., Sir D.
Brewster, Professor 'Willis, Captain Washington, R.N.,
Mr. Chatfield, master shipwright ; Mr. Monchett, store
receiver ; and Mr. Pearn, master attendant of Deptford
dockyard ; Mr. Rice, master shipwright ; Mr. Gottleib,
store receiver ; and Mr. Atherton, chief engineer of
Woolwich dockyard ; and Mr. Baker, Mr. Campbell,
Mr. Stephens, and Mr. Robinson, directors of the Eas-
tern Steam Navigation Company, and the secretary of
the company ; with a number of scientific persons and
ladies and gentlemen.
The Eck being the first ship of war ever launched
with the full complement of machinery on board, inclu-
ding her engines of 250-horse power, her boilers, the
screw shaft, and the screw in its proper place, and re-
quiring only her masts, rigsing, and sails to complete
her for sea, excited a great degree of interest. The Esk
is built of wood, and wee commenced in John Scott Rus-
sell and Co.'s yard only ten months ago ; and by adop-
ting the plan of putting her engines on board before
launching her, she will be completed and ready for sea
in two months less time than would have been the case if
she had been taken to the East India Docks to have them
put on board there after she was launched. Tier builders
were induced to hasten her completion, as it was known
to them that her services were required at the earliest
possible period to join the Baltic fleet. At half-past two
o'clock, Miss Martin, daughter of Capt. Martin, C. 8., su-
perintendent of Deptford dockyard, who some time ago
christened the Hannibal, 91, screw steam-ship, at Dept-
ford, was conducted to the bow of the Esk by Mr. John
Scott Russell, and is bottle of Champagne having been
previously suspended to the bows, Mr. Chatfield ex-
plained the manner in which it should be broken, and Miss
Martin, taking the bottle, covered with three wreaths of
roses, pelargoniums, calceolarias, and other choice
flowers, in both her hands, let it drop in such a manner
that it broke instantly and at the same moment the Esk
began to move, and as she progressed her motion was
accelerated, and she entered the river amidst the cheers
of the assembled spectators, the band of the Hon. Artil-
lery Company playing " Rule Britannia," and subse-
quently concluded by playing the National Anthem.
The following are the dimensions of the Esk
In.
Length between the perpendiculars lO2 0
Length of the keel for tonnage ........ 167 3
Breadth extreme to outside wales ....--••• 36 4
Breadth for tonnage 36 0
Breadth moulded 35 4
Depth in hold 22 8
Burthen in tons, 1,153 39 94.
Immediately after the launch, the Esk was taken to
moorings off Deptford dockyard.
The greater portion of the company having arrived by
special conveyance shortly after 12 o'clock, the interval
between that time and half-past 2 o'clock, when the
launch took place, was occupied by the visitors being
permitted to inspect, through the liberality of the
builders, their vast and extensive machinery and pre-
mises, and the works in progress for the Eastern Steam
Navigation Company, whose Leviathan steam-ship is
one of the wonders of the age. This gigantic undertak-
ing derives much of its interest from the
if th f that
reatest it is
calculated, at no distant period, wor act
e
revolution in the communication between the mother
country and her most distant dependencies ; and it may
be interesting to many to peruse a brief notice of some
of the leading features connected with the construction
of the first stupendous vessel of that enterprising com-
pany. In 1853, the company having determined upon
the size and power of their vessels, concluded their
arrangements for the construction of their first ship
with J. Scott Russell and Co. for the ship and paddle-
engines, and with James Watt and Co., of Soho, for
the screw engines. By the early part of September
great preparations had been made for carrying on these
works by Messrs. Russell and Co., when, on the Ith
of that month, the whole of the premises containin
g
these preparations were totally destroyed by fire. The
re-building of the premises and the restoration of patterns
has occupied the interval ; but, in the meantime, the
ground on which the ship is building has been prepared
with the utmost care and regard to solidity, the piling
alone consuming upwards of 1,500 loads of timber, and
has taken four months to execute. The dimensions and
power of the Eastern Steam Navigation Company's ship
are as follows :—Length 680 feet, breadth 83 feet, depth
53 feet, with screw and paddle-engines of the aggregate
nominal horse-power 2,600. The hull of the ship is of
iron, of extraordinary strength, while the magnitude of
its dimensions afford peculiar facilities for introducing
many precautionary measures conducive to strength and
security. The whole of the ship's bottom, up to six feet
above the water-line, will be double, and is of a cellular
construction, so that any external injury would not af-
fect the tightness or safety of the ship. The upper deck
is also strengthened on the same principle, so that the
ship will be a complete beam, similar to the Britannia-
bridge. There are also ten complete separate watertight
compartments, and the intermediate spaces are sufficient
(being 60 feet in length each), to afford a convenient ar-
rangement of separate saloons and cabins. The bulk-
heads are carried completely to the upper deck, giving
an efficiency to the system of compartments which has
not hitherto been attainable.