The Sun.
London, England, 1860-07-23 00:00:00

The mail boats tit. the Sit-'y of Dublin Steam
Packet Company,
b*t.ve. run so I ong'an d regu-
larly, in all weathers, I...,otween lialyhead—and
Kingston, are about tu be super.g.,thitt• 'the " time"
between London and Dublin—we are' ceasing to
. • " -is to, be shortened to less than
; 1/4...i.steamers, though safe vessels
of their class, have long been considered too`slow
for the service. Their style, build, and fittings are
familiar to thousands; but they are on the eve of
disappearing, and t hose-who make their first voyage
to the sister island after August Ist will do so in an
entirely new class of steamers, almost as different
from the present vessels as the galley of Cleopatra
from a Thames lighten. That they are propelled by
steam is the only point in which they resemble each
other. In size, build, power, speed, and all the in-
terior accommodations, the new vessels of the com-
pany are extraordinary improvements on their pre-
deeessors. But, while the older variety of the class
is passing away, they deserve an acknowledgment
of what they did during many years ; the ocean

link in the chain of communication was very rarely
broken ; in the worst weather the Dublin and Holy-
head steamers made the passage, not always as ra-
pidly as the passengers wished, but as safely as
could be desired. Even in the furious tempest that
wrecked the Royal Charter and perilled the Great.
Eastern, the Holyhead mail packets we believe
crossed the Channel without acccident or any
unusual delay. Bat in an era of progress one
good quality will save neither men nor ships
from being beaten in the race by those wlaich
possess that one merit and some others besides.
The Irish mail boats, though safe, had become, by
comparison, slow. It was in the power of science

to save an hour on.the Channel passage, and it has
been effected. The original Channel steamers will
soon be as extinct as stage coaches. When such
vessels as the Leinster appear their time is nearly
come. Our communication with the neighbouring
shores will be made by steam ferries; and the
narrow seas will be crossed with nearly as much
facility as inland rivers.
The Leinster is one of four new steamers built
by the City of Dublin Company for the mail ser-
vice and passenger traffic between England and Ire-
land. The contract with the Post-office requires
the mails:to be conveyed from London to Kingstown
in 11 hours—the maximum average oftime allowed.
The ordinary sea passage is now five hours. In bad
weather it is not unfrequently more. It is in cross-
ing the Channel that time may be gained. The
new vessels of the company are to effect the saving.
The Leinster ran a trial trip to the Nore and back
on Saturday, and the results of the trial were com-
pletely satisfactory, In a rough sea, and with an
adverse wind, she attained an average rate of speed
of nearly 20 miles an hour—it was only a small
fraction of a mile less. The directors of the com-
pany had invited a numerous party of passengers
for the experimental voyage. They were con-
veyed from Fenchurch-street to Tilbury by an ex-
press train. The Leinster was lying off Gravesend;
and as soon as the party had been placed on board she
started. The morning was ,very unfavourable.
Leaden skies, a driving rain, cold wind, and muddy
waters deprived the trip of all that might have been
pleasant, if the elements had been in the exact op-
posite condition. The Thames was chafing with its
shores, and lashing the Essex flats in one of its
worst humours. But it did not affect the business
part of the proceedings. The Leinster started, and
steamed down the river gallantly, passing every-
thing on her way. She is an iron steamer, of 2,000
tons burden, and about the same length as the
Himalaya, 350 feet, and 35 feet in breadth. In pro-
portion to her length she is, therefore, very narrow,
and her lines forward ace exceedingly sharp. She
will cut through the waves rather than ride over
them. Her engines are enormously strong ; nomi-
nally they are 700-horse power, but they can work
up to several times that rate. Her paddlewheels
are 27 feet in diameter. Throughout the trip the
engines worked with perfect smoothness ; so easily,
indeed, that they seemed rather to be at play than
at work. They were built by Messrs. Itavenhill
and Co. At 2 o'clock the vessel's rate of speed was
tested by the measured mile. She passed down that
distance in three minutes and 42 seconds, giving an
average rate per hour of 16.216 knots. Having put
about, she did the up mile in three minutes 23
seconds, a rate of 17.734 knots an hour. The aver-
age speed of both miles was 16.975 knots per hour,
which is equal to 19.526 land miles. The trial
running was not at all favoured by the weather,but
rather the reverse. Mr. Samuda, the builder, who 0
was on board, received many hearty congratulations
on the decided success of the Leinster in point of
speed, the greatest any steamer has attained in the
open sea. The cabins are spacious, with more
height than can be allowed in most sea-going
vessels, to the great improvement of ventilation.
The ladies' cabin is a complete drawing-room, very
elegantly furnished. One compartment of the ship,
forward, is fitted up as a post-office, where the
letters both ways will be sorted on the voyage.
At 3 o'clock, when the Leinster hail again reached
water smooth enough to make dining safe to the
landsmen, a cold collation was served in the cabin,
at which prosperity to the ship and her owners was
drunk with goodwill. Among the guests were the
following noblemen and gentlemen :—Earl of
Shrewsbury and Talbot, Earl of Mayo, Earl of
Caithness, Lord Fermoy, M.P., Right Hon. J.
Napier, Sir Hugh Cairns, M.P., Colonel Dunne,
M.P., Sir Edward Grogan, M.P., Mr. M'Cormick,
'
Dr. Brady, M.P., Mr. M`Cann M.P., Sir Cusack
Roney, Mr. Blake, M.P., Mr. Roy Campbell, Mr.
P. Roll, Mr. J. George, M.P., Mr. P. Haddow,
Captain Steckpole, M.P., Mr. Booth, chief secre-
tary, and Mr. Gray, of the Board of Trade, Mr.
Samuda, Colonel French, &c.