The Sun.
London, England, 1860-10-04 00:00:00

TATTER S.vALL' 8-(THIS EVENING.)

Very fesT7 members present, the subjoined prices being
for the most part nominal

CESAREWITCH.
10 to 1 agst Golden Pippin (offered)
2to 1 agst Dalcibella (offered)
100 to 6 agst Optimist (taken)
100 to 6 agst Newcastle (offered)
20 to 1 agst Ancient Briton (offered)
25 to 1 agst Bevis (taken)
33 to 1 agst Moorcock (taken)
43 to 1 agst Conscript (offered)
100 to 1 agst Starke (taken)
100 to 1 agst Danae (taken)
CAMBRIDGESIIIRK STAKES.
40 to 1 agst Benbow (taken)

BEDFORD RACES.—(This Day.)

LAY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.]
STRATTON PARK STAKES.

Newstead

Lady Bird
Wiukfield

Three ran.
SCURRY HANDICAP.

Juliet

The Don...

hider
Seven ran.

CARDIFF RACES.—(This Day.)

BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.
REVIVAL HANDICAP.

Speaker
Brine
Artist
Four ran.
PRINCIPALITY STAKES.

Tonio
Northam 2
Sloth 3
CARDIFF STAKES.

Timandra
Buss 2
Emblem
Nine ran.

IRON. CASED SKIPS OF WAR.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE TIMES.
Sir,—May I venture to crave sufficient space in
your valuable columns for a few further remarks on

the above subject, which some of the observations
contained in your article of the 22d inst., and in
some subsequent correspondence, lead me to believe

may prove useful ?

1. The " preparation of the Trusty," referred to
in my former letter, consisted in filling in the port-
holes with timber and iron plating, of the same
thickness as that of the side, in the vicinity of where
the ship was to be fired at, so as to prevent the
profitless mischief of shot finding entrance at the
ports.
2. Nothing could have been easier than to prove
the comparative effect of the heavy 68-pounder
smooth-bored gun again the sides of the Trusty at
the Shoeburyness trials, inasmuch as this gun con-
stituted the permanent armament of the gunboat
from which the firing took place on that occasion,
and it was by Po means requisite to remove it in
order to make room for the rifled SO•pounder. The
reason why it was not used I therefore conclude to
be that it was thought useless to do so. A solid
681 b. spherical shot of wrought iron, carefully lathed
so as to have the smallest possible windage, was, I
am aware, driven from this gun through the plated
side of the old Albert at Portsmouth from a. distance
of 20 yards; but no shot from this gun has, as I
believe, ever yet succeeded in entering a ship with
a side of combined timber and plating especially
constructed to resist it ' • and if in any single case
this has, indeed, been done, the conditions have
been, I doubt not, quite as exceptional, in point of
range and other circumstances, as those by means
of which the rifled " bolt" succeeded. The superior
" smashing power" claimed for this gun is said to
reside in the greater initial velocity of its shot, a
superiority which, even if admitted, is in name and
nature essentially ephemeral, and from the range
usually adopted at experiments, a distance of 200
yards seems to be the limit assigned -by its
advocates for its existence at all. But 2,000
yards is a perfectly effective distance for shot, shell,
and carcases of molten iron,rdirected against the
sides of a ship of wood ; and if such a ship should
indeed succeed in reaching, undamaged, th© above
smaller distance from her iron-sided opponent, the
signal disparity between the two would only become
the more obvious and decisive where every shot on
both sides must equally strike, but not at all equally
~.., ......—.-- Xis u, plopuruon or only one-halt or
the British shots which decided the close fights of
the Nile and Trafalgar bad done no more mischief
than that of sticking in the sides of the French ships,
history must have had to record very different re-
sults from those which now adorn her pages in re-
spect to those battles.
3. Perhaps the most practical mode in which to
submit to public judgment the moot question of the
effect of "ordinary" broadsides will be thus. Out
of the 17 effective shots so deliberately fired at the
sides of the Trusty, is it to be expected that a larger
proportion than two would have entered the ship
if the whole number had been fired at once, with
the necessarily more promiscuous and uncertain aim
,of a broadside ? Those who entertain such an ex-
pectation will perhaps furnish the public with the
reason why.
4. With respect to concentrated broadsides, no
persons can, I think, be found who has ever wit-
neesed the serious practice of this mode of attack
between any two ships. Concentrated broadsides,
and " divisions" of broadsides, for which all our
ships are prepared, have, I am well aware, been de-
livered against targets by well practised crews with
formidable accuracy ; but in all such cases favour-
able circumstances-have been chosen, the focal dis-
tance has been carefully ascertained, and the firing
has been all on one side. Nevertheless it has been
seriously proposed to concentrate the entire broad-
side of a 90 gun ship on some given portion of the
side of an iron-clad ship, and thus endeavour to dis-
pose of the whole question raised by that very dis-
agreeable Gloire by sending one of her representatives
to the bottom—a result which lam bound to admit,
under certain conditions, might be practicable. But,
besides determining the exact distance, it would
require in this case that the ship firing, and the
ship to be fired at, should both be fixed in im-
movable " rests" similar in principle to that pro-
vided by Mr. Whitworth for her Majesty's coup
de grace at Wimbledon. And instead of trusting
to the perfectly simultaneous "pull" of the 45
" trigger-lines" of the 45 seamen gunners distri-
buted over the three decks of a ship 250 feet long,
it world also require each gun to be provided with
its own voltaic apparatus, and the combined wires
be placed in the hands of a single operator. With
the tail of the bird thus properly prepared the pro-
posed " concentration" of " salt" might, no doubt,
be effectually applied. Finally, having now fel-
filled what I have conscientiously regarded as a
paramount public duty, viz., to submit for general
consideration on a subject of the gravest national
importance such information of a relevant nature
_i
the course of my professional duties has brogl
before me, I have now only to render to yourself,ipsir, my sincere thanks for the very libera _
tunity afforded me for so doing, and toi atiotnhaitt,
except for any necessary purpose of exP an '
any public con-
is my intention not to be led t.
trovers on either the facts or lonfeionrieoninsailn, havessir
, y thuso u r
felt it m duty to state. —I beg
obedient servant, ED Captain R.N.
E. P. Masi' ,
Tallaah-a-Bbiethe, Pe____................rth5hire, Sept. 29.

---
sm Ts OF TRADE.

LEICESTER, pet. 3.—For the time of the year
there is a
fair amount of business doing ; the
hosiery trade
generally being in a healthy state.
In the country districts business continues flat, but
not
more so than is usual at this period of the year.
High prices are asked for wool, and the market
continues firm. Yarns have undergone no change
in price.
NOTTINGHAM, 3d.—There has been very little
doing in the lace warehouses this week, in conse-
quence of business having been impeded by the
holidays of the annual fair. There is not much
change to note; plain goods are rather more in-
quired for, and there is fully as much doing in
fancies as for several weeks past. The silk lace
trade remains quiet. There is no favourable change
to report in the hosiery trade. Very little is doing
in any department, but both in lace and hosiery
manufacturers are making as little stock as pos-
sible. A good deal of lace and hosiery machinery
has been standing this week, and numbers of the
operatives continue out of work. Yarns are un-
changed in price.

CLOSE OF THE SALMON FISHING ON THE EARN.—
The rod-fishing on the Earn closed on Saturday. The
number of salmon and grilse killed, especially during
August and September, exceeds that of any previous sea-
son for many years past ; and the quantity of sea-trout
captured was also large during the summer. Anglers who
fished for trout did not enjoy what could be called good
sport, owing to the prosence of pike and perch in the river.
The river police have now been placed at station? friff:
Comrie to Kinkell, for the protection of the Ma cigaPg
spaning NOMA.