The Sun.
London, England, 1860-08-10 00:00:00

THE ARMY,

The reserve Channel fleet, under the command
of Commodore Yelverton, C.B.,has arrived in Port-
land, from a cruise, and has been inspected by the
Lords of the Admiralty. The ships will shortly
return to their respective districts.
The orders of the Admiralty for the whole of the
iron-plated steam floating batteries lying in the
Medway, at Chatham, with the few others at the
remaining ports, to be docked and examined, in
order that any defects discovered in them may be
repaired, cause a considerable amount of activity
in the smiths' department at Chatham dockyard,
the workmen employed in which have commenced
working overtime until a late hour in the evening,
in order that the ironwork required for the repairs
of the floating batteries, and also in fitting those
steamers required for the steam reserve, may be
prepared without necessitating any delays in the
fitting of those vessels.

The Childers, 12, one of the vessels attached to
the reserve ordinary at Chatham, is being fitted
for the reception of the engines and machinery of
the various steamvessels at that port as they arrive
from the contractors.

The Orpheus, 21, the Cormorant, 4, and the
Racehorse, 4, are being fitted at Chatham for the
second division of the steam reserve.

The sloop Elk, 12, Commander Hubert Campion,
from Australia, arrived in Plymouth Sound yester-
day afternoon. After landing invalids, she will
proceed to Chatham, where her crew will be paid
off.

His Russian Majesty's screw steam frigate Grand
Admiral, 60, and a corvette, both from the east-
ward, arrived in Plymouth ktinnd 'yesterday after-
noon. _ _ .

The screw steam frigate Emerald, 51, Capt.
Arthur Cumming, in Plymolith Sound, took on
board her powder on Wednesday.
The paddlewheel steamvessel Rhadamanthus,
Master Commander Frederick R. Sturdee, having
landed machinery and boilers for the screw steam-
ship Gibraltar, was taken from Keyham basin on
Wednesday to the Royal William Victualling-yard,
Plymouth, to receive stores for Woolwich. She
sailed yesterday afternoon.
The screw steam Coastguard ships Majestic, 80,
Capt. William R. Mends, C. 8., and Blenheim, 60,
Capt. Edward Tatham, from Portland, arrived in
Plymouth Sound on Wednesday evening, and
saluted the flag of Rear-Admiral Sir Thomas
Pasley, which was responded to by the flag-ship
Impregnable, 104, in Hamoaze. They will corn.
plete their stores and coal, and then proceed to
their stations—the Majestic for Liverpool, and the
Blenheim for Milford Haven.

The Torch, 5, screw gun-vessel, Commander
Smith, and the Rinaldo, 17, screw, in the steam
reserve, both tested their speed at the measured
mile yesterday in Stokes Bay.
The first complete set of lamps forming the nu-
merical code of signals, invented by W. H. Ward,
of Auburn, United States, and termed the " Ocean
Telegraph" (one of which was tried six months
ago), having been illade, according to Admiralty
instructions for experiments on board the Channel
fleet, was yesterday received at Woolwich, and was
tested last night at nine o'clock at the mast-head
of the flag-ship Fisgard, under the inspection of
Commander Hawker, Mr. Thomas, Mr. Petley, and
other officers of the yard, who directed the trans-
mission of a course of signals, which were replied
to from different points of the shore. It was stated
that the lights reflected as signals by this new
and ingenious method were distinctly read
at the distance of two miles. The improvement
now effected in operating with the various
red, white, and dark shades from the deck of the
ship appeared to satisfy the committee as to the
facility with which messages may be despatched
from ship to ship and shore, as well as the bril-
liancy of the lights ; and they stated that the in-
vention was perfect, s% ith one exception—namely,
the weight of the lamps, each of which exceeded
301 b., and it was their desire that this slight draw-
back should, if possible, be remedied. Further ex-
periments are ordered to take place on a future
occasion.
The firing upon Jones's angulated target at Ports-
mouth from the Stork gunboat was resumed en
Wednesday, and concluded yesterday, to enable
Captain Hewitt to make up and send in his report.
The target has received 36 shots in all during the
practice. 17 of these have 4tguek the iron plate
upon which the 8-inch gun was first directed. The
enormous strain upon the sheet of metal caused by
this repeated hammering has naturally caused the
upper portion to bulge inwards, which has produced
a crack on each edge, but the plate is not fractured
in any way, and is now capable of resisting farther
shots. This plate was manufactured in the Mersey,
and must be one of the finest plates ever forged to
have stood so successfully the very severe tests to
which it has been subjected. The other plate is of
Yorkshire manufacture, and has not stood so well
as the Mersey. It has received 10 shots, and is
fractured in two places, which is admitted to be
owing to the inferior quality of the iron. The
steel plates were both manufactured in the Mersey.
The 41-inch received four shots, and the 34--inch
five shots. Both have surface cracks, but, with the
exception of a piece chipped out of the 31. inch by
an" edge-blow, have no fractures. None of the
plates have been pierced by the shot, and in every
instance the shot itself has been shattered. Several
times the pieces of the broken shot have been ob-
served to fly back from the target in the direction of
the gunboat. This has for the presented concluded
the most important trial of the effects of shot upon
metal plates which has yet taken place at Ports-
mouth.
Several 100-pounder Armstrong guns, manufac-
tured expressly for the naval service, have recently
been completed and proved with entire success.
Much activity now prevails at the Royal Gun Fac-
tories in producing this description of ordnance,
and a number of guns to be completed at Woolwich
are weekly forwarded by railway from Sir W.
Armstrong's factory at Elswick.
The following appointments were made yester-
day at the Admiralty :—Commander Edward H. L.
Ray to the St. Georgei Lieut. H. T. Gammell to
the Conqueror ; Lieut. James D. Curtis to the Ma-
jestic ; Lieut. Henry Golden to the St. Jean d'Acre ;
Lieut. Grantham R. Y. Rattray to the Impregna-
ble ; Lieut. William Spratt to the Blenheim ; Lieut.
Henry L. C. Robinson to the Cumberland ; Lieut.
Herbert R. Holmes to the Donegal • S. M'Dougall
to the Royal Albert ; Edward Ingledew, second-
class assist.-engineer, to the Emerald ; James
Ritchie, third-class assist-engineer, to the Indus, for
charge of the machinery of the Procris ; and John
Leigh, acting third-class assist.-engineer, .to the
Asia, as supernumerary.