The Sun.
London, England, 1840-04-13 00:00:00

Castor, 120, 5, Lieut. F. F. G. Serval
Brasier, 100, 5, Lieut. J. G. Cazy
G'reegois, 160, 5, Lieut. L. A. Laurencin—E. Indies
Coursier, 60, 3, Lieut. C. A. C. de Villemarcst ; and
Ebreo, 460, Lieu. Lt. Papillault—Senegal,

LAUNCH OF FRENCH SHIPS

OF WAR.

(From Gatgnanes Messenger.)
A correspondent at Cherbourg gives the following de-
tails of the launch of the Friedland, on the 4th instant,
which we have already mentioned :
" At 8 in the morning the Cure of Cherbourg per-
formed the ceremony of baptizing the ship, and with
the rest of the clergy of the town walked in procession
round her. Booths were erected on each side for the
accommodation of the ladies, who came in great num-
bers from all parts to view this imposing sight, and all
of whom were in their best attire. The Maritime Pre-
f,?ct was present, with the whole of his staff, and assist- /
ud in the operations, which were ably conducted by
M. Besuchet, the marine engineer, under the
orders of M. Lefebvre, director-general of ship-
building. Not even when the King came to Cher-
bourg, in 1833, was there such an immense influx of
visitors. Upwards of 20,000 people surrounded the
outer port. Four steamers arrived early in the morn-
ing
from Havre filled with passengers, many of whom
came from Paris. The spectacle is described as having
been very majestic. The following are the dimensions
of this vessel, the largest in the French navy :—Length
from stern to stern, 67.3 metres. Depth of hold, 1:3.615
metres. Breadth of beam, 13.46 metres. Entire
length of mainmast, 81.19 metres ; of the foremast,
74.79 metres ; of the mizenmast, 57.37 metres ; and of
the bowsprit, 59.73 metres. She contains 38,000 cubic
metres of timber, which, at 90 kilogrammes the cubic
metre, makes a total of 342,000 kilogrammes. She will
carry :32 long 30-pounders, 30 short 30-pounders, four
80 pound shell guns, thirty-four 30-pound shell guns,
sixteen 30-pound carronades, and four 30-pound howit-
zers. Her magazine will be stored with 8,860 balls of
30 pounds each, and 32,800 kilogrammes of gun-
powder. She will have six cables of 37 centimetres cir-
cumference, and 10 anchors, weighing together 34,000
kilogrammes. The aggregate weight of her rigging
and ropes will be 124,000 kilogrammes. In her con-
struction there are 67,000 kilogrammes of iron, and
28,000 kilogrammes of copper. For her sheathing there
will be required 2,525 sheets, weighing 15,412 kiloffram-
nies, and in nails 2,480 kilogrammes. For her ballast
she will require 700 tons of iron in pigs. When com-
pletely manned, stored, and provisioned for war, she
will have an actual burden of 5,200 tons of 1,000 kilo-
grammes each. Her complement, when upon the war
establishment, will be 1,087 men, and on the peace
establishment 851 men, including 21 officers and 13
naval pupils.
" Two vessels of the Royal Yacht Club were at
Cherbourg when the Friedland was launched. They
were the Owen Glendower, with the owner, Lord
Dysart, on board, and the St. Margaret of Mr. Delme.
_ _

The former saluted the port with 13 guns, and the
batteries returned the salute.

" The Gemappes of 100 guns was launched at
L'Oricnt on the 2d inst. without the slightest accident,
in the presence of an immense concourse of spectators."

THE PROVOSTSHIP OF ETON.

On Tuesday last the Fellows of Eton held a " Col-
lege" for the election of Provost, in the room of the
late Dr. Goodall, who held the Provostship during a
period of upwards of thirty years. The " individual"
recommended by the Queen was the Rev. Francis
Hodgson, the Archdeacon of Derby, and the son-in-law
of Lord Chief Justice Denman ; but in consequence, as
it was alleged by the Fellows, of this gentleman not
being (at the least) a bachelor of divinity, he was con-
sidered by them to be disqualified from holding the ap-
pointment, and therefore, they decided upon throwing
overboard her Majesty's " recommendation," and elect-
ing another Reverend Gentleman instead. The indi-
vidual thus selected was the Rev. Mr. Lonsdale, the
Principal of King's College, London, and who was, about
eight or nine years ago, one of the Fellows of Eton. This
gentleman was, therefore, " returned" by the Fellows as
the new Provost. Some communications, we have
been informed, have since passed between the Vice-
Provost and the Home-office ; and, on Friday
last, that gentleman, accompanied by two of the.
Fellows, proceeded to London, and had an interview
with one of the Members of her Majesty's Government.
The nature of that interview may be guessed from
the fact, that upon the return to Eton of the Rev. Mr.
Grove, the Vice-Provost, and his two colleagues,
another " College" was that afternoon convened, and the
Fellows proceeded to a second election, when the Rev.
Mr. Hodgson, the gentleman originally nominated by
the Sovereign, hut rejected by the Fellows, was unani-
mously elected Provost. It is stated that the Rev. Mr.
Lonsdale, as soon as he was informed that he had been
elected in opposition to the desire of her Majesty, ex-
pressed, not only his !egret that he had been so elected,
but a most anxious desire that the Fellows of Eton
I should proceed to another election. Thus it will be per-
t ceived that, notwithstanding the disposition which was
at first manifested by the Fellows to thwart the wish of
the Sovereign, they were induced—and without much
delay—to retrace their steps, as, under the circum-
stances, the wisest plan they could adopt. The Pro-
vostship of Eton is supposed to be wor:.h upwards of
3,0001. a year. The circumstance of the Fellows having,
in the first instance, elected as Provost an individual
not recommended by the Sovereign, is the only case of
the kind that has occurred since the foundation of the
Collego.—Observer.

POSTAGE (PUBLIC DEPART-

MENTS.)

GREAT BRITAIN.

An account of all sums charged to or paid by each Public
Department, on account of Postage, from the 10th of
January to the 20th day of February 1840 :
£. s. d.
The Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty 567 13 5

Adjutant-General's Office
Audit Office ,

585 10 7
460 6 10

Colonial Office

976 13

Commander-in-Chief's Office

82 14 3

Council Office

23 - 7

Commissioners of Customs

The Lord Chancellor.