The Sun.
London, England, 1849-05-28 00:00:00

was got up, and she went out to her. She proved to b
the Uniao of Rio, a brig of 2SO tons burthen, fully
equipped and armed for carrying on the slave traffic.
She was sent to Demerara for condemnation, where she
has since arrived. The taking of this vessel has caused
a considerable sensation in the city of St. Sebastian.
One man acknowledged to the losing of 5,0001. by it, and
Rvcio N._2A5,011 00/.
the to
surplus 35,000 L
the reports are that the cargo she had on board, and
the specie,
Lair were
Ep worth
r from
Ll
arms, ac-
coutrements, and ammunition, are ordered to be for-
warded under escorts from the head quarters of Infantry
Regiments and depots, to the Ordnance depots at Dub-
lin, Cork Harbour, Limerick, Athlone, and Charlemont
Fort, consequent on the reduction of the establishment
of corps.
STAFF OFFICERS OF PENSIONERS.—A new district
will be formed, to be called Greenwich or Deptford, to
which Captain Christie, Staff Officer of Pensioners, at
Edinburgh, has been appointed.
The Board of Ordnance are about to rent the Castle
of Carrick-on-Suir, Tipperary, belonging to the Mar-
quis of Ormonde, in order to afford sufficient and ample
accommodation for the troops.
MAJOR-GENERAL LORD 'FREDERICK PITZCLARENCE
AND THE ROYAL MARINE CORPS.-At the termination
of the review at Portsmouth, on Thursday last, the
Major-General made a high complimentary address to
the Royal Marine Corps, alluding in strong terms to
their importance and conduct on all accasions, and espe-
cially to their correct discipline in the field on that oc•
casion.

THE CONVICT MrrcHEr...—TheiNeptune, convict ship,
in charge of Mr. Dees, as superintendent, landed 82 of
her cargo of convicts at Bermuda, and having filled up
from that plane her number to 289—among whom was
the political convict John Mitchel—sailed for the Cape
of Good Hope from Bermuda, April 22. Instructions were
given to keep Mitchel apart from the other prisoners,
partly on account of the shattered state of his health—
as he had suffered severely from asthma—and also for
political reasons. To carry out these orders, the steward's
pantry had been converted into and fitted up as a berth
for the convict, and a separate entrance had been made
to it, so that he was entirely cut off from contact with
the other prisoners. All the convicts on board the
Neptune on their passage to the Cape were "ticket-of-
leave men," their position in the colony depending upon
their conduct on board.

LAUNCH OF HER MAJESTY'S
STEAM-FRIGATE SIMOOM AT GOVAN.
On Thursday her Majesty's steam-frigate Simoom
was launched frcm Mr. Robert Napier's building-yard at
Govan, near Glasgow, in presence of a large concourse
of spectators. Through the admirable arrangements not
the slightest accident either occurred to the ship or the
banks of the river.
The principal dimensions of this fine steam-ship are
as follows

Ft. In.
Extreme length from figure head to taffrail 270 0
Length between the perpendiculars
Length of keel for tonnage 221 41
Breadth extreme (or breath for tonnage)
Depth
Burden in tons (old measurement) 1,979 57-49ths tons.
The Simoom is to be provided with a screw propeller
of 16 feet in diameter, to be driven by two engines of
350-horse power, which will be placed several feet below
the surface of the water, so as to be protected from the
enemy's shot in time of action. The engines are built by
Messrs. Watt and Boulton, Soho Foundry, Birmingham,
and will be sent to Glasgow by railway.
The manner in which the Simoom is built as to
strength is somewhat extraordinary, as the following
particulars will prove:—The keel and stem are of solid
iron bars, 9 inches deep by 5 inches thick; the stem
is in one piece, of the breadth and thickness mentioned,
and upwards of 40 feet in length; the stern posts are
also of iron of large dimensions. The frames are of
the largest sized angle iron, and placed at short dis-
tances apart; the floor pieces at the bottom of the
frames are two feet deep. On the top of the floors there
is a large box kelson, formed of iron, extending fore and
aft the ship. The outside plates (or skin of the ship)
are one inch in thickness at the bottom, diminishing to
three• quarters of an inch at the top of the side. She
has two entire decks above the engine-room, before
and abaft which there is also a lower deck. The main
and spar decks are four inches thick, laid on iron beams
of large dimensions, to which are connected large iron
shelf pieces and stringers, with waterways, formed of
timber, extending all round the decks, and connected
with the sides of the ship. The deck planks are secured
from the under side, which causes them to appear much
more perfect on the upper side than when laid on
wooden beams.

The armament for the spar-deck is intended to be as
follows:—Two swivel guns of 112 cwt. each, and four of
56 cwt. each, all for firing shot or shell of 8 inches dia-
meter; also two 32-pounders of 25 cwt. each. Tho
armament for the main deck is twelve 32-pounders of
56 cwt. each. She is fitted with three of Downton's
patent pumps, of which one is 12 inches in diameter, and
capable of throwing from 400 to 500 gallons of water
per minute. She is divided into five water-tight com-
partments below the main deck.
The screw propeller is fitted so that it can be discon-
nected from the engines and raised on deck through a
trunk fitted through the decks for that purpose.
The upper deck of the frigate is flush. In point of
tonnage this ship is the largest iron frigate ever built,
and considerably exceeds the size of the Terrible,
hitherto the largest, which has paddle-boxes, with en-
gines of 800-horse power. She is the largest iron ship
ever launched, for it must be remembered that the un-
fortunate and magnificent Great Britain was floated, not
launched, into the deep. When floating, the frigate's
weight, exclusive of engines, &c., is about 1,400 tons,
and when fully fitted out it is expected that she will draw
about 17 feet of water. We have no means of ascertain-
ing the exact cost of this noble ship.