The Sun.
London, England, 1846-06-05 00:00:00

D.M. S.
Superb
Rodney
' Queen 176 7 332 45 N. 3032 W. 475
From this it may be found that Superb at starting was
191 fathoms to leeward of St. Vincent, Rodney 324 fathoms,
and Queen 354 fathoms, thus showing that on the present
occasion there could have been no great difference in favour
of either ship.
All the steamers except Rattler were found missing to-day,
as was also the Brilliant.
Lat. in at noon, 49 30 N. ; lon. 7 31 W.

No. 111.
MAY 17.
REMARKS.

To-day being Sunday the squadron was ordered to keep
station, and make and shorten sail as necessary to do so.
This proved an excellent mode of ascertaining what one ship
could spare another. The wind was N.W. force good 7.
The St. Vincent lead the weather line, followed by Vanguard,
Albion, and Trafalgar. The Vanguard occasionally, and
Albion constantly, spared the St. Vincent a mainsail. The
Trafalgar was run nearly out of sight. The Queen led the
lee line, followed by Rodney and Superb, the two latter
sparing Queen their mainsails. At 2h. 30m. P.M. a general
signal was made by the Commodore, " Has St. Vincent to-
day beaten Queen ?" and each ship, including Queen,
answered in the affirmative, the answers returned being,
" most decidedly," " decidedly," " certainly," &c. ; not that
there was the least doubt in any one's mind as to the result
between Queen and St. Vincent, but that the opinions of
the respective captains might be entered in the signal log as
to the fact. The sail carried was single reefed topsails, but
there was a cross sail from the southward, and -whenever
such is the case, or a head sea, Queen-yin be beaten by every
ship, as occurred last year, when Trafalgar beat her under
similar circumstances. Rattler did remarkably well under
sail. The other steamers in company—namely, Gladiator,
Retribution, and Scourge (the latter three having rejoined)—
did but little, and if they had been under steam would have
done less, for the screws of the one, and the paddle-wheels of
the other, would have been half the time out of water. In
short, with the exception of Rattler, whose sailing qualities
appear to have been much improved, the steamers have done
nothing under sail, and have retarded the progress of the
squadron considerably since leaving Portsmouth. If bound
to an enemy's coast, the sailing ships, in weather like to-day,
would have bad to wait fir them, and if they had been under
steam on their arrival there they would have been useless
for want of coals. Terrible, Cyclops, and Brilliant still keep
out of sight, so their sailing qualities as yet remain untried.
Lat. M at noon, 48 deg. 32 min. N. ; long, 8 deg. 25 min. W.

No. IV.
MAY 18.

REMARK-S
To-day the e.ind bas been from. West to W. by N.. blow-
ing 7 and 8. At 11h. the weather division bore up, and
formed line cf battle in open order, on the lee column—an
evolution well performed, the squadron generally under
trebly reefed topsails. At a little before TlO2l, the lee
division (now the leading one) wore in succession, and came
to the wind on the Port tack. At noon, the port or -lee di-
vision again wore, as did also the weather division, and
formed the prescribed circler of nailing on the starboard tack.
y. Towards evening
This closed the manceavring for the da
the squadron jogged along under
the wind freshened, and
close reefed topsails.
Lat. in, 4S deg. 44 min. N.; long., 8 deg. 44 min. w.

No. V.
MAy 19.
TRIAL OF SAILING 01 AWN
At lob. 30m. Rodney, Vanguard, Superb,l and Albion,
having prevlously run down to leewardbetwteheen sdiixetaanudeesewveane
miles, hauled to the wind, per signal, but
too great for mast-head angles. The windheading
steady N.N. by
from S. W.
12Y W. the St. Vincent under eas3tsail
W.; the force of wind was full 7, with a short head sea,
fore
and
the sail carried at starting was single-reefed topsails,
and main topgallant sails, jib, and spanker—a press of sail
which on no other occasion has been carried. Scarcely had
they started when Albion split her maintopsail; shortly
afterwards Superb's main tack went, followed quickly by
her maintopsail sheets and jib and spanker. The race was
thus left to Rodney end Vargnard, and a more interesting
one has never taken place. First, the ships were well
matched; next, the sail carried was excessive; and lastly,
both ships were handled beautifully. About the finish there
can be no doubt ; for, after having tacked, Vanguard passed
across St. Vincent's bows about two cables' length distant,
and when directly to windward was something less ; Rod-
ney stood on until within her own length of St. Vincent's
lee beam, and would have passed through her, so to speak,
when she was obliged to bear up a little and pass under her
stern. It was just at the moment of putting her helm up
that she looked most nobly—topgallant sails had been taken
in, for the wind had considerably freshened, but the sail on
the lee yardarm baffled her people for a long time, and was
to be seen bagging away to leeward; it was a moment of
intense anxiety, for a spOke of the wheel the wrong way, or
the carrying away of a tiller rope, would have caused irre-
parable damage to both, and when her sails, which momen-
tarily flapped while passing under St. Vincent's lee, caught
the breeze again as she drew clear, her yards quivered like
willow rods, and then resumed their arch-like form. The
distance between the two ships in a direct line was now
about 3 cables' length, Vanguard being that to windward.
At starting from a mean of two or three mast-head angles
that were taken on board St. Vincent by different observers,
Rodney was found to be 10 cables' length to leeward of
Vanguard ; but, as before mentioned, the distance was too
great to admit of certainty. Vanguard makes Rodney 650
yards to leeward at starting, and claims a victory, but this
cannot be from their positions at the finish. My own im-
pression is that Rodney had the best of it ; one thing, how-
ever, is very certain, that Vanguard pitched more heavily
than Rodney, and that both ships must hare had enough of
that particularly agreeable motion. Shortly after the trial
was over, the wind increased to 9, and the ships took in
everything but their close-reefed roeintoPsails, set fore and