The Sun.
London, England, 1860-02-23 00:00:00

211 E N.AVI,

The officers and crew of her Majesty's paddle-
wheel steam sloop Vesuvius, Commander Wise, from
the West Coast of Africa, were yesterday paid off
at Woolwich.

The necessary preparations have been completed
for the launch of the Camelion, 17-gun screw
steamer, from Deptford Dockyard this (Thurselay)
afternoon. The Cameleon was only laid down upon
the stocks about six months since, and has been
built under the immediate inspection of the master
shipwright of the yard, Mr. H. Chatfield. Her
dimensions are as follows :—Length between per-
pendiculars, 185 feet ; keel for tonnage, 164 feet ;
breadth extreme, 33 feet 2 inches ; ditto for ton-
nage, 32 feet ; ditto moulded, 32 feet 4 inches ;
depth in hold, 17 feet 5 inches ; burden in tons,
950 8-94. Her engines, which are being constructed
by Messrs. Maudslay and Son, will be of 200-horse
power. After the launch it is intended to tow her
to Woolwich to be completed for sea. The launch
will take place between 1 and 2 o'clock, the public
being admitted to the yard about an hour pre-
viousy.
The Stork gunboat, tender to the Excellent,
gunnery ship at Portsmouth, proceeded yesterday
up Porchester Lake and made practice at short
range with solid shot irom her B.inch pivot gun
upon an iron plate affixed to the side of the old
Briton frigate. At the conclusion of the firing the
plate, which appeared to be upwards of four inches
thick and about six feet in length by four in
breadth, was carefully eovered up with canvas.
The result of the trial, however, was precisely the
same as on former occasions of the kind, the third
shot from the gunboat breaking the plate and
driving large portions through the frigate's side,
strewing the deck with broken pieces of iron, and
again clearly demonstrating the destructive cha-
racter a ship's so-called "protective armour" must
assume when broken up by powerful artillery, and
scattered in jagged fragments among the crew of
the vessel it was intended to defend. The Briton
was yesterday towed down the harbour and placed
in No. 1 dock, to have her copper stripped off, when
she will be again moored up the harbour as a target
for the Excellent.

The Flying Fish, 6, screw, Commander C. W.
Hope, was undocked at Portsmouth yesterday,
after completing repairs to her rudder, &c.
The Hornet, 14, screw, was yesterday removed
from the steam basin at Portsmouth, and berthed
alongside the north jetty, in readiness to be placed
in No. 1 dock for repairs, when that dock is vacated
by the Briton. The Ariel, 9, screw, was also re-
moved from the steam basin, and berthed alongside
the North Wall, to receive her tanks, cables, &c.
The Bacchante, 51, screw, got up steam in the
steam basin at Portsmouth yesterday, preparatory
to her official trial.

The Ariadne, 26, screw, Capt. Vansittart, was
again under way yesterday atrpithead, for the
purpose of resuming her experimental screw trial,
but owing to the force of the wind it was again de-
ferred.

The Mars, 80, screw, Captain Strange, at Spit-
head, has received orders to prepare for sea.
The screw steam frigate Diadem, 32, Capain J.
H. Cockburn, arrived at Portland on Tuesday from
Portsmouth. A portion of the Channel fleet is ex-
pected to leave that harbour in a few days for the
Tagus. The vessels now is port are the Royal
Albert 121, Edgar 91, Queen 91, Algiers 91, Done-
gal 101, Hero 91, Trafalgar 91, Melpomene 51,
Mersey 40, Diadem 32, Blenheim 60, Mutinc 17,
Greyhound 17, Biter 2, and the Partridge 2.
The following appointments were made yester-
day at the Admiralty :—Lieut. George Powys, to
the Hero ; Lieut. C. A. G. Bridge, to the Algiers ;
Lieut. H. F. Campbell, to the Royal Albert, addi-
tional, for disposal; Lieut. E. H. B. Hartwell, to
the Aboukir ; Lieut. Augustus Jacob, to the Mars ;
Lieut. Richard Sheepshanks, to the Excellent;
Sampson Harris, chief engineer, to the Wellington,
for charge of the machinery upon that ship, being
paid off; Henry Cook, promoted to first-class
assistant engineer in the Banterer; John Singer,
promoted second-class assistant engineer, to the
Orion ; and Edward Chambers, acting third-class
assistant engineer, to the Fisgard, for service in
the Bustler.