The Sun.
London, England, 1846-03-23 00:00:00

INIARCH 23, 1846.

PRICE SD.

NAVAL INTELLIGENCE.

PowraNtount, FRIDAY.—The Caryafort, 26, Captain Sey
mour, left Portland Road?, on the 18th, for Sydney. . .

The Bth (King's Own) Regiment, under the command of
Colonel Sir Henry Bayley, G.C.H., and Lieutenant-Colonel
Hartley, was inspected this afternoon, on Southsea-common,
by Major-General the Hon. Sir Hercules Pakenham, K.C.8.,
in command of the south-west district, and Lieutenant-
Governor of this garrison. The men were put through the
various evolutions by their respective officers in a manner
showing the well-skilled officer and practised soldier, and
performed them with a precision and minuteness of detail we
never saw surpassed by any regiment in the service. The
Gallant General was pleased to express his warm praise at
the highly efficient state of the regiment, the excellent order
of their movements, the precision of their fire, and their war-
like and soldierly appearance, before leaving the ground. The
Bth now musters 900 strong, which will be increased to 1,000
before leaving on foreign service.
It has been reported that the Bth is about to proceed to
India, but we have good authority for stating no troops will
proceed from this quarter for India before June. Notices for
tenders fir conveying troops to India are not yet issued by the
Government or East India Company.
CHATHAM, MARCH 20.—The African steam-vessel, J. King
master, arrived here on the 18th instant with seamen from
the Trafalgar, flag-ship at Sheerness, for the Raleigh, 50
guns, Captain Sir T. Herbert, K.C.8., and returned to Sheer-
ness again the same day, taking the Goodwill lighter in tow,
loaded with stores for that dockyard.

The Duck, Savage master, arrived on the 19th inst. with
stores from Portsmouth yard.
The Cockatrice schooner, fitting for a victualling vessel for
the coast of Ireland, is nearly completed, and is now getting
her masts in place.
The Magpie, fitting for a water tank, is masted and nearly
completed for service.

The Teazer steam-vessel, building—The caulkers have
completed caulking this vessel. She is expected to be ready
for launching the middle of next April.
The Raleigh, 50 guns, is nearly completed in her rigging.
The painters commenced yesterday painting her. She is ex-
pected to be ready for service next month.
A party of caulkers have been lent from this yard to caulk
the Sidon and Hound steam-vessels building at Deptford, and
another party are ordered to be lent to Sheerness to caulk the
Trafalgar in dock. _ _

Fift3; ropemakers and eighteen boys are ordered to be en-
tered in the ropery at this yard.

The Ttlawir V. sk .sr otoam
Master-Commander S. B. Cook, returned to Woolwich on
Monday, after having conveyed the Lords of the Admiralty
to Sheerness and Chatham, on a visit to these naval ports.
She is to be fitted with new boilers.
The Myrmidon steam-vessel, Lieutenant-Commander Jen-
kins, went to Greenhithe on Monday to have her compasses
adjusted, and subsequently proceeded to Portsmouth where
she will be paid in advance, and is expected to serve on the
Mediterranean station _ _ _

The Phoenix steam-vessel, Commander Dennis, will be
ready for sea on Sunday. She will be paid advance at
Portsmouth.
The Terrible steam-frigate, Captain Ramsey, was taken
out of the basin at Woolwich on Tuesday afternoon, in the
presence of a great number of naval and military officers,
who had visited that fine vessel during the day. She will
leave for Greenhithe about the middle of next week.
The Mastiff, Master-Commander Thomas, with her tender,
the Woodlark, left Woolwich yesterday for Kincardine, on
the coast of Scotland, to resume her surveying duties.
The Violet steam-vessel, built for the Dover station by
Messrs. Ditchburn and Mare, and fitted with engines by
Penn, was tried down the river on Tuesday, and her average
speed was found to be 14.270 knots per hour.
Captain Jerningham has continued his experiments in
Woolwich marshes during the week, with a ♦iew of ascer-
taining the simplest and most effective mode of saving lives
from shipwreck, and to-day Lieutenant Knolleart, com-
mander of the Adder war schooner, belonging to his Majesty
the King of the Netherlands, attended in the marshes to wit-
ness them. The mortars were fired at an elevation of 33 de-
grees, and charged with 12 ounces of powder, which enabled
the shot fired to carry a strong rope of Manilla hemp, one
inch in circumference, and very elastic, a distance of 320
yards. The Manila rope was rolled up on this occasion in
the manner used by riggers, and the inside end of the ball
attached to the shot; the ball was then placed in a tub and
run out when fired all clear, and this appeared to be the best
plan yet tried. The anchor was also fired, and carried a dis-
tance of 182 yards, and when it alighted its holding powers
were so great that the united strength of twenty men could
not bring it home. Yesterday two lines were fired at one
time, and carried a distance of 210 yards, and this mode gives
great advantages, as on being spliced, those on board and on
shore could make an endless rope of them, which would be
of great assistance during shipwreck.

SUICIDE OF CAPTAIN M'LEOD.
The following is an extract from a letter written by Mr.
Santos, agent for the Peninsular and Oriental Company at
Corunna, dated March 12 :
" I returned from the wreck of the Great Liverpool on the
10th inst., and have relieved Mr. Baker, from the temporary
duty as agent to your company at this place.
" The melancholy death of Captain M'Leod, which took
place on the morning of the Bth instant, has, as you may
well suppose, added greatly to my labours, and, indeed, must
plead for my present hasty report, relying upon your indul-
gence to permit me to furnish more details when the depar-
ture of the Queen shall afford me more quiet and leisure.
" Poor Captain M'Leod his been, ever since the unfortu-
nate loss of the Liverpool, in an extremely depressed state,
and caused me very serious apprehensions. At five o'clock in
the morning I went to the habitation where he, with one of
his officers and the doctor, had been sleeping. I told them
to get ready, as everything had been arrrnged by me
for an early start for Corunna. I asked Captain M'Leod
how he had rested, when he replied that he had not
closed his eyes, went to the window, and agreed with me on
our having tine weather for our journey; immediately
after he took off his coat and went into his sleeping-
room, I thought to wash ; we soon heard a noise, and the
landlord coming in to report the same, made us all rush
into his room, where we found him weltering in his blood,
and his throat cut from ear to ear. All our efforts could
not prevent his expiring within ten minutes, so effectually
had the rash act been done. You may well conceive the
consternation we were thrown into, but, overcoming my
feelings I immediately proceeded to go through everything
that was necessary to be done. I sent for the judge, and ar-
ranged matters for holding an inquest. I interred the body
of the unfortunate Captain M'Leod the same evening, and
esrly the next morning set out upon my journey with all the
remaining officers and crew."
The following additional particulars are contained in a
letter from Southampton :
" I have very little to communicate in connexion with
the melancholy death of poor Captain M'Leod, of the
Great Liverpool steam-ship. It appears that everything
was in readiness to depart from the inhospitable shore
on which the remainder of the passengers and crew had
been located since the unfortunate wreck, and Captain
M'Leod had retired to his room to make preparations for
his departure. His protracted stay was remarked; and on
one of the party knocking at the door of his room, to an-
nounce that every person was in readiness, no answer
was returned, and after repeated knockings with the same
result, the door was opened, when the horrid spectacle of the
unfortunate gentleman with his throat cut from ear to ear,
presented itself to view. So determined was the suicidal act
that life was quite extinct. He was buried in the village of
Cee, where the distressing catastrophe was perpetrated, every
one of his fel!ow sufferers following his remains to the grave
with heavy and mournful hearts.
" Captain M'Leod was a gentleman of extremely high spirit
and honour, and it is not improbable that the severe suffer-
ings, anxiety, and trials, the loss of the vessel entailed upon
him, superinduced the committal of the dreadful deed.
"Mrs. M'Leod, with her yonthful family (and a prospect
of further increase shortly), is resident in Southampton.
The distressing intelligence was communicated to her as
delicately as possible immediately on the Queen's arrival,
but it is impossible to describe the agonising state of mind of
this truly unfortunate lady.
" Captain M'Leod was a lieutenant in the navy; his com-
mission bears date the 19th of July, 1823.
" The conduct of the natives is described by the passen-
gers as villanous in the extreme; they openly filched every-
thing they could lay their hands upon, accompanied in many
instances with acts of violence. Even the guards sent by
the British Consul at Corunna are, it appears, not exempt
from the charge of robbery.
Au investigation, it is said, is
about to take place on a charge brought forward against one
of these worthies, and, if proved, no doubt the rascal will be
shot.
" The unfortunate ship had entirely disappeared ; not a
vestige of her was to be seen. Occasionally, however, things
floated ashore, but they were quickly pounced upon by those
ravenous wolves in human shape, and divided amongst
them."

LORD PALMERSTON AS A SPEAKER. All things
taken into account, Lord Palmerston is, perhaps, the best
debater among the Whig leaders of the House of Commons.
In the different qualities which, when combined, go to
render a man an orator, he is excelled ,by many indivi-
duals among his contemporaries. Lord John Russell shows
more tact, more intimate acquaintance with party his-
tory (not with parties, for, in that knowledge, Lord
Palmerston beats all men living, having been a member of
almost every Government within the memory of man),
greater skill in pointing allusions to the political errors of
opponents,and altogether more refinement in the management
of his Parliamentary case. In eloquence, both of concep-
tion or in delivery, Lord Palmerston is, of muse, excelled
by Mr. Shiel or Mr. Macaulay, and even by men holding
a far inferior rank as speakers. In soundness and vigour of
argument he cannot stand a moment's comparison with
Mr. Cobden, or with Earl Grey (when that nobleman
does justice to his own powers) or even with Charles
Buller. Each speaker on his own side, in fact, is in ad-
vance of him in some particular quality of the orator.
Yet no one would for a moment hesitate to place Lord
Palmerston amongst 'the first speakers in the House of
Commons, or would deny that he had derived from
hearing one of that nobleman's speeches as much pleasure,
of its kind, as if he had listened to the most brilliant
efforts of Macaulay, the most spirit-stirring of Sheil, or
the most skilful and satisfying of Lord John Russell. The
peculiarity in Lord Palmerston which gives him this
singular power of charming with an oration as a
whole, the several parts of which are not calcu-
lated to please. if critically analysed, is the thorough
and hearty spirit of partisanship, not malignant, or angry,
or mean, as is that of most zealous advocates of em-
bodied
unodpi giniuoinseod, or isnotermesutsc,h so a
but frank,
to assumek,manly,opena-lhmeoasrtt aed,
sportive character, as if Parliamentary politics were a
mere pastime, a kind of relaxation from the heavier
cares or labours of administration or of ordinary
political life, in which all men are bound by a sort of mutual
compact, answering to the laws of a game, to exert their
utmost powers to excel or to overcome each other, for the
sake cf the distinction and applause which are the reward of
success.—Contemporary Orators, in Fraser.
RAILWAY ACCIDENT.—WORTHING, FRlDAY.—Yes-
terday a young man named Smart, a resident of Shoreham, employed
on the works of the Brighton and Chichester Railway at Leominster,
was killed under the following circumstances :—A train of muck
waggons, which had come from Brighton, had reached the parish of
Leominster, and, the steam having been shut off for some 500 yards,
the speed of the train was reduced to a rate of about four miles an
hour. The waggons being slack-coupled, there was a reaction of
them against one another consequent on diminishing the speed, and
the deceased, who was standing up on one of the waggons, was
jerked out headlong. In his fall, between two of the waggons, he
broke his neck, and the train passing over him, both his arms and
one leg were also broken, and his chest was crushed in. Ile was
picked up dead—life was destroyed instantaneously.