The Sun.
London, England, 1860-04-02 00:00:00

LATEST FROM MEXICO!.

Miramon commenced the siege of Vera Cruz on
the sth of March with 6,000 men and a strong siege
train. An attack was made on the city on the, 7th,
but was repulsed.

The steamers General Miramon and Marquezy,
which left llavannah to aid Miramon, were cap-
tured, after a short resistance, by the American
sloop of war Saratoga, off Vera Cruz, after refnsing
to show colours and firing on the American flag.
The steamers were taken to New Orleans. During
the engagement the two steamers hoisted the
Spanish flag.
The American loss amounted to 3 wounded; that
of the Mexicans was 15 killed and 25 wounded.
Great excitement prevailed at Vera Cruz. The
American Minister had been instructed to land a
force for the protection of American citizens.
NEW YORK, MARCH 20, EVENING.
_

. -
Exchange inactive. Money unchahged. Stocks
firm and active. New York Central, 751 ; Illinois,
621 ; Erie, 101. Cotton dull; sales to-day, 1,000
bales ; middling upland, 11 atc. Flour unchanged.
Corn less active. Provisions quiet. Sugars dull.
Freight for cotton, 5.16 d.

ORLEANS, MARCH 19.
Sales of cotton, 1,000 bales; middling, 102 c. to
11c. ; moderate demand.
MOBILE, MARCH 19.
Cotton unchanged; sales, 1,600 bales.
CHARLESTOWN, MARCH 19.
Cotton sales, 1,900 bales; prices unaltered.
LATEST BY TELEGRAPH VIA HALIFAX.
NEW YORK, MARcll 22.

The North Briton arrived off Portland yesterday.
The Australian was detained here by storm. The
American squadron has captured at Vera Cruz two
war steamers, bought by Miramon at Havannah,
and has sent them to New Orleans. These vessels
not hoisting any flag two American steamers went
to inquire their nationality. One of the American
steamers was fired into. The Saratoga then fired
broadsides, and Miramon's steamers were boarded
with the 'bayonet. The Washington Aministration
approves the act, and has ordered more vessels from
the Gulf squadron to proceed to Vera Cruz, which
place Miramon is besieging and was about to bom-
bard on the night of 13th of March.

California advices are the 3d of March. No
important news.
COMMERCIAL INTELLIGENCE.
NEW YORK, MARCII 22.

Cotton sales to-day, 2,000 bales ; in two days,
2,500. Quotations barely maintained. Prices
drooping. Middling upland, lle. ; lower grades
almost unsaleable. Breadstuffs dull and heavy.
Provisions steady, but quiet.
NEW ORLEANS, MARCH 22.
Cotton sales to-day, 6,500 bales. Sales in four
days, 31,000. Stock in port, 743,000 bales.
Freights for cotton, 19-32 d. Exchange on Lon-
don, 7-Z- to 81 premium.

QUEENSTOWN, APRIL 1.
The Royal mail steamship Persia arrived here
at 3 30 p.m., ,embarked mails, and proceeded to
New York at 830 p.m. All well.

. The screw frigate Galatea, 26, 800-horse power,
fitting at Chatham, will-be ready to be undocked on
Thursday next, when she will proceed to join the
second division of the squadron of the steam reserve.
The Castor, 36, training-ship, is expected to leave
Chatham on Wednesday for Greenhithe, where
moorings have been laid down for her.
The screw steamship Nile, 90, Capt. K. Barnard,
was towed down Hamoaze on Friday to her sailing
moorings off the Devonport dockyard.
About 80 artificers . and others were discharged
OA Saturday from Devonport dockyard.
The screw steamship Hero, 91, Capt. Seymour,
at Devonport, will be out of the hands of the ship-
wrights and joiners about the 6th of May.
In accordance with. Admira)ty orders, about 40
shipwrights and 20 labourers, selected from the
number hired during the busy period of last year,
were discharged from .Chatham dockyard on Satur-
day afternoon. last, the Board of Admiralty having
directed a very largo reduction to-be made in the
numberof hands at that estahlishnaent. A similar
number of the hired mechanics and 'labourers will
he discharged on each Saturday until the number
of men on the establishment has been reduced to
that ordered by the Admiralty for the present finan-
cial year. The shipwrights discharged complain
that they have been unfairly treated by the Admi-
ralty, as at the time they were induced to leave their
employment with private firms to enter her Ma-
jesty's dockyard they were led to believe that their
services would be required for two or three years.
The .transport Havering, Capt. Itickaby, with
Government stores, from London for Kongkong,
put into Plymouth Sound on Friday, with the,cresv
in a state of insubordination in consequence of the
alleged leaky condition of the forecastle. It became
necessary to seek magisterial interference, and Capt.
Rickabay was ashore at Plymouth for that purpose
on Saturday; when, the weather, which was ex-
tremely boisterous in the neighbourhood for some
days past, increased to a gale, and the chains of the
Havering snapped in a most sudden and unexpected
Manner. She drifted
,towards Batten Bay, and her
condition having been obServed by the ships-of-war
in the Sound, several boats' crews were sent down
to her. Sail wax in the meantime got up, end she
bad nearly cleared the bay when her stern unfortu-
nately caught in the ridge of the Batten ledge of
rocks, and there she remained. A Government tug
and the steamer Lord Yarborough were in attend-
ance on Friday evening, but their assistance was of
no avail. Yesterday she filled ; two barges were
alongside receiving cargo, and a Government tug
was at hand. Messrs. Fox, Sons, and Co. are acting
as agents. The Havering registers 906 tons, and
belongs to Messrs. Livingstone, Toulmin, and Co.,
of London. Besides Government stores, which, it
is said, include some Armstrong guns, she has about
150 tons of general merchandise.
The following appointments were made on Satur.
day at the Admiralty :—Commander E. Scott, to
the Centurion ; Lieut. C. E. S. Woodman, to the
Centurion ; Lieut. G. H. Barnard, to the Nile ;
Lieut. C. G. Fegen, additional, to the Ajax; J. Gill,
acting third-class assist.-engineer, to the Asia, as
supernumerary.