The Sun.
London, England, 1856-02-20 00:00:00

Naval and Military Intelligence.

The Calcutta, 34, in tow of the Gorgon, 6, paddle-
sloop, Commander Crawford, left Portsmouth harbour
for Devonport yesterday morning—the former to be
fitted for the flag of Rear• Admiral Sir Michael Seymour,
K.C.8., and the latter for the Black Sea.

The Hawk, 60, screw block-ship Captain On: mammy,
weighed from Spithead yesterday morning, and anchored
at the western part of the Motberbank.

The Duke of Wellington, 131, Capt. Caldwell, C. 8.,
flag of Rear• Admiral the lion. Sir Richard S. Du,das,
Commander-in-Chief of the Baltic Fleet, got
under n•ay from Spithea,d yesterday, and tried her ma-
chinery at the mile in Stoke's-hay and the West Deeps,
after which she re-anchored at Spithead.

The Impetieuse, 51, Captain R.. B. Watson, C. 8.,
had mteersed up all day yesterday at Spithead, and un-
rnoored, bat bad not left at 6 o'clock (dark) last night,
The Falcon, 17, Commander Pullen, went out of
Port3mouth harbour to Spithead yesterday, and took in
her powder, &c.

Tile Urgent naval steam transport, Com. Phillips,
R.N.., and the Telegraph hired transport, went into
Portsmouth harbour yesterday, from Spithead.
The Cleopatra steam transport embarked at Ports.
mouth dockyard yesterday, troops for the Mediterranean,
The steam tender. Sprightly, Mr. Geo. Allen, master-
commanding, embarked yesterday draughts of the Ist,
3d, 4th, 7th, 231, 46th, 69th, and 88th Foot, and car-
ried them to the hospital ship Britannia, three-decker,
in Blockhouse-hole, to await a troopship to take them
abroad. The Britannia will be temporarily used as a
floatit,g barrack. _

Orders were received at the General Screw Company's
offices at Southampton yesterday morning to imme-
diately prepare for the reception of horses and men
the four large steamships enumerated in The Sme
of yesterday—viz., the Argo, the Queen of the South,
the Calcutta, and the Hydaspes. The Argo has pre-
viously been employed in the transport service in the
conveyance of horses, ar:d it will, therefore only be
necessary to put her fittings in proper order. The
Other three vessels, however, will have to be pro-
vided with the necessary horse accommodation. It is
expected that all the ships will be ready for sea by the
Ist of March. These four fine steamers are capable rf
carrying about 100 horses and a corresponding number
of troops.

Rear-Admiral of the Blue Robert Lambert Baynes,
C. 8., &c., arrived at Sheerness, yesterday, and at 1.15
p.m., hoisted his flag on board the Retribution, 28 guns,
paddle-wheel steam-frigate, Capt. Thos. Fisher. Every
exertion is being made for her immediate departure, by
completing her stores and victualling her, and shipping
her munitions of war, with shot, shell, &c. Her debti-
nation is reported to be the West Indies.
Mr. Alfred S. Pratt, late acting as assistant-surgeon,
has La I his appointment confirmed by the Lords of the
Admiralty, and dated buck to January 22, 1555.
The Etea, floating battery, now being built in the
large new slip at Chatham dockyard, is expected to be
completed and fit for launching at the end of about six
weeks. A large number of additional hands have been
added to theforce working on board this vessel, which now
exceeds 200 men. Relays of shipwrights are also work-
ing over hours in order to have her completed by the
end of March. The whole of the large slip is lit up with
gas, which is also carried into the interior of the battery
by means of guttapercha tubing. The Etna is intended
to be one of the most formidable vessels of her class,
She is to carry 16 guns of the heaviest calibre, and, in
order to protect her from the effects of shot, and to ren-
der her almost invulnerable, she is being lined on the
whole of the outside with immense iron plates, of four
inches in thickness, each plate measuring 12 feet 7
inches in length, 2 feet 3 inches in breadth, and weighing
between three and four tone. She is to be provided
with a picked crew of the most efficient gunners in the
navy, and it is expected that she will be ready to sail
with the Baltic fleet in the approaching spring.
The Admiralty have given directions for a new vessel,
to be called the Charybdis, to be laid down at Chatham
dockyard, on the slip from which the Severn, 50 gun
frigate, was recently launched.
A large supply of new arms arrived at Brompton bar-
racks on Monday afternoon from the Toner for the corps
of Royal Sappers and Miners. They were immediately
served out to companies under orders to embark for the

Crimea.
The following screw steamers are being fitted at Li-
verpool for the conveyance of troops and stores to the
East :—Samh Sands, 1,299 tons (ready) ; Jura, 2,240
tons Babiana,
1,530 tons; H.M.S. Resolute, 1,902
;
tons Oneida,,•,aan6dgunsarrived i
n the Mersey on Saturday, for
2,317 tons. Her Majesty's steamer
n
the purpose of towing. away the new gun-boats recently
launched by Mr. Laird ; and yesterday her Majesty's
steamer Geyser, 6 guns, made her appearance at the
same port, with stores and provisions, for the Resolute.
About 40 naval volunteers were forwarded last night
from Liverpool to London.

The following appointments were made yesterday at
the Admiralty :
Lieutenant J. Berkeley, to the Waterloo ; Lieute-
nant H. Moore, to the Victory ; Lieutenant J. W.
O'Grady, to the Impregnable ; Lieut. R. B. Cay, to the
Dragon • W. Dyer, Secretary to Rear• Admiral the Hon.
Sir R. S. Dundas, Commander-in-Chief of the Baltic
fleet ; R. Bone and R. Mundy, secretary's clerks, to
ditto ; A. P. Cox, clerks' assistant, to ditto ; W. A. G.
Young, Secretary to Commodore the Hon. F. Pelham ;
Ebenezer Waymouth, secretary's clerk to ditto ; F. C.
H. Petch, Master's Assistant, to the Pylades ; Edwin
R. Miall, Acting Paymaster, to the Medina ; W. S. E.
Freeman, Assistant. Paymaster, in charge, to the Cyclops;
and J. Bremner, Acting Clerk, to the Rodney.

MILITIA.
On Thursday 160 volunteers from the Royal North
Down Rifles left Belfast for their several regiments.
This is the second draught of volunteers which left this
week. The North Down stands now only 390 effective
non•comrnissioned officers and men, wanting 470 to
complete. The above number of volunteers admits of
two of the officers receiving commissions in the regular
army. A considerable number of men from the
Donegal
Militia and Louth Rifles have volunteered for the line.
The Mouaahau Regiment have been called upon again
to furnish a further quota of volunteers to the lisle. ma.
jor Dirmester, 59th Regiment, attended at llelturbet on
Friday, for the purpose of receiving 'Lieu who were in-
dined to extend their services to the regular army. The
regiment, Laving been assembled on parade, and ad-
dressed by Lieut.-Col. Forster, a number of gallant fel
lows at once came forward, 48 of whom were ioally at-
tested fur the following regiments :—Royal Artillery,
16th Lancers, 27th Regiment, 47th Regiment, 59th Re-
giment, and let battalion 60th Rifles. This is the fourth
time since the embodiment of this regiment that it bee
furnished volunteers to the line, having given altogether
about 250 in w months,

LINDON, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1856.

The hope of the nation now mainly rests on
Lord CLARENDON. Much will depend on his
clear-sighted ability, but still more on his unbend-
ing firmness, during the approaching Conferences.
If he be true to himself, and fulfil the high pro-
mise afforded by his antecedents, he may extri-
cate his country, without much loss of prestige,
from the unpleasant position in which it is
placed ; but if, on the other hand, he suffers
himself to be bamboozled or hoodwinked by the
assembled diplomatists, England will be involved
in a calamity of no ordinary magnitude, and will
sustain irreparable injury to her honour, and to
her material and commercial interests.

One of the first questions to be ventilated will
be the duration of the armistice that has been so
improvidently sanctioned. The British Plenipo-
tentiary has emphatically declared in his place in
Parliament that it cannot be too brief. Let him
act on that view of the case. Under any circum•
stances the truce must be seriously prejudicial to
the Allies.

Russia will gain on every point. In Asia, in
the Crimea, in the Baltic she will be enabled to
consolidate and strengthen her positions. At
Kars the invading army will be reinforced and
obtain the supplies necessary for holding what
they have acquired, and, if desirable, of making
further demonstrations on the Turkish territory.
In the Crimea, too, the chain of positions will be
so regulated, as to enable the Russian troops to
offer a far more determined opposition to the
complete success of the Allies than would have
been practicable if the capture of Sebastopol had
been vigorously and energetically followed up.
Nicolaieff and Khersou will also be rendered more
difficult of access. The blots pointed out by the
tardy demonstrations against Kinbourn will be effec-
tually protected, and Cronstadt, and Helsingfors,
Sweaborg andßevel, and Riga, and other fortresses
on the Gulf of Finland and the Baltic, will have
every possible addition made to their defences,
so as to foil, or at least have a better chance of
navies in case of any attack.
foiling, the opposing
Every hour will be turned to the best advantage
by those who are working at home. The Rus-
sians will be developing their resources to the
utmost extent, while the Allies will unprofitably
consume those which have been conveyed at an
enormous expense fully three thousand Files
from home.

Nor is it in these respects only that Russia will
profit by the arrangement, She will obtain the
desired opportunity of disposing of immense
now lying idle, and obtaining
stocks of produce
in return money drawn from the Bank of Eng-
land, thus gaining the sinews of war for herself,
while she is laying the foundation for a monetary
panic in this country, and perhaps completing
the arrangements for a considerable loan at Berlin
and-Amsterdam, and some of the friendly German
capitals,

In addition to these palpable points there will
be ample opportunities, if a protracted armistice
be agreed en, of obtaining the active support
and co-operation of transatlantic Muscovite sym-
pathisers. The relations between this country
and the United States are already sufficiently in-
volved, and i t is impossible to close our eyes to the
ominous fast, that avowed hostility to Great