The Sun.
London, England, 1856-02-05 00:00:00

BY EHIBMABINE AND BILITISH TELEGRAPH.)

GRAVESEND, Tuesday, 10.11 a.m.
Wind W.S.W., tide three hours' flood, moderate and
fine.
Arrived—Jacob, from Odense; Ann and Rosetta,
Bruges.
Sailed—Hudson, for Malta.

DEAL, Tuesday, 10 a.m.
Wind W. by N. • light, and fine.
Anchored—Naid, from London, for Falmouth ; Portia,
London, for Port Natal.
Passed—York Town, for New York ; Pudsey Dawson,
Liverpool—both from Londoa ; Dunbar (tpt. 23), Gibral-
tar, for Deptford.
The Corina was assisted off the Goodwin Sands last
high water, and not to be seen from here.
Four bodies of female passengers and a child, lost in
the Josephine Willis, have been picked up and brought
into Walmer.

MARKET NEWS.--(Thts Day.)

HAY MARKETS.

SMITHIPI/ELD.—Meadow hay, 4/ 8s to 5/ 18s ; clover ditto.
4115 s to 61 185 • and straw. 11 4'4 Od toll 95 Od per load,
moderate supply, and a sluggish demand.
CIIMBILBLAND.—Moadow hay, 41 44 to Cl Os; clover do.,
41 15s to 61 15s ; and straw, 1/ 5s to 11 103 per load.
Trado firm•
virgrrzoniaßL.—Mead.ow hay, 4/ 4s to 5! 18s; clover
do., 41 151 to 6118 s ; and straw, 11 4s to 11 9. nor lo.d.
Both hay and straw moved off slowly, at our quotations.

TEN.---A. very dull marketCOLONIAL has been experienced, but
prices remain steady at previous quotations.
SUGAR.—There has been but little business transacted
in sugar for either home or continental demand. Several
public sales are declared, and sellers appear willing to ac-
cept previous rates. The refined market has been steady,
great caution having been exercised by purchasers.
COFFEL—There has been a litnitad demand forte tive
Ceylon, holders being firm, and requiring for ord
fine
ord 51s to 53s per cwt. - Plantation in good demand at
rather higher rates, holders being indisposed to giVe waY.
RICE.—The market has been quite inanimate, the fall in
the price of oorn having affected this article.
hoar.—There is little doing; but prices remain firm at
previous quotations.
TALLOW.—Great dulness has been exhibited in this
article, and quotations have receded to, Y.Y.C. on the
spot, 57s per cwt.

THE STEAMER. BELGlQne....—Yesterday the water—was
let into one of the large Southampton Graving Dna.,
where the Peninsular and Oriental Company's ship
O
Candia
was
lying, and she was floated out unfinished, is
order to allow the Royal Belgian mail-packet Belgique
to enter the dock, to be surveyed. This unusual course
was pursued in consequence of the anxiety of the Royal
Belgian maii.paeket Company to have the ship examined.
Owing to the cemPanY not having applied to Lloyd's in
ti meto have her registered,
their surveyor at South-
ampton could not report upon her officially. The three
surveyors ultimately fixed on to examine the Belgiqqe
were Messrs. Ronals, Summers, and Ruble. They
finished the survey at 5 o'clock last evening, and imme-
diately commenced preparations for making out their re-
port. A communication from Southampton informs us
that their report wan finished at 7 p.m. It ip a favourable
one, the leading feature of it iA a recommendation, in
order that all future doubt ahtent the strength of Qs
vessel may be removed, that her .sides be fortified by
stronger plates between the upp,sr and lower docks, and
that the large cargo port holes he entirely cloned up Dad
made a tart of the ehip's sides.

The prices of food, the state of trade, and the weather
have a certain influence on the marriages, births, and
deathg. Upon comparing in the table the prices of the
principal articles of food in the last quarters of the years
1853, 1854, 1855, it is seen that wheat was 69s 10,1, 6&J,
and 793 4d a-quarter ; beef was sd, sail, and 5 6-8 d a-
pound. Mutton sd, 6d, and 5 6-8,1 a pound. Bread
was dear during the last quarter. The average prices of
beef and mutton by the carcass were equal, differing
little from the prices of 1854, but higher than the price,
of 1853. Potaidas have fallen from 150 s. a-ton in 1853
to 955., and this materially alleviates the preisure from
the high prices of other articles. The weather is fully
described by Mr. Glaisher. The mean temperature of
October was above, of November and December below,
the averages of those months. The air was humid in
October and November, dry in December. The average
quantity of rain fell at Greenwich. The mean tempera-
ture varied from 46.5 deg. in Cornwall and Devon to
411 deg. in North Shields ; the fall of rain, from 10.5
inches in Newport and Ilyde, to 5.5 inches in Liverpool.

5,502, and below the average. Scarlatina has been
very fatal. It prevailed with much severity in the
colliery districts of Durham. The two villages in
Easington in which it was most fatal are situated very
low, on a marshy, damp, badly-drained soil. In South
Shields district, where many men are employed in the
construction of the extensive dock, scarlatina and
typhus have prevailed. At Ea:Hinton, Morpetb, small-
pox has been raging among all classes, affecting both
young and old. Those who had not been vaccinated
were great sufferers. Fourteen persons died of Asiatic
cholera, seven of diarrhoea, in Sunderland East—the
seat of the first outbreak in IS3I.
In Monmouthshire and Wales 5844 persons died.
Scarlatina and typhus attacked some districts ; but the
mortality was leas than in the two previous years.
Upon the whole, -the health of England and Wales
exhibits evidences of improvement.

Naval and Military Intelligence.

Admiral Sir E. Lyons, G.C.8., will return to the
command in chief of the Mediterranean and Black Sea
fleets in a few days.
The gun-boat flotilla at Portsmouth will commence
forming at the Motherbank this day. Each boat, instead
of one gun, as in the last campaign, is armed with two
heavy long-range guns and two howitzers. There are
26 at Portsmouth already fitted and in commission.
They are the following

Gleaner
Stork
Biter

Tickler

Beaver Skylark
Dapper Starling
Jackdaw Hind

Swinger
Pincher
Snapper
Bustard
Carnation
Thistle

Weas Al

RIII Lena

Seagull Plover Bullfrog
Dove Charger Cheerful
Cockchafer Whiting
Iler Majesty's ship Cassar, 91, screw two-decker,
Captain Rohb, was dressed in a garland of flowers,
evergreens, ribands, and "red, white, and blue" ensigns
on Saturday at Portsmouth by the crew, in honour of
their captain, who was married on that day.
Her Majesty's ship Colossus, Si, Captain the Hon. H.
Koppel, was taken out of dock, after refit, at Ports-
mouth on Saturday ; and the Blenheim, 60, Captain
Hall, C. 8., was taken in yesterday. The sailing-ship
Rodney, 92, was taken into the fitting basin yesterday
to be adapted as a depot-ship for the Balt►e. The screw-
sloop Falcon, 17, Commander Ptelen, was taken out of
►luck after repairs, and the Gleaner gun-boat taken in
yesterday.
Mr. Archibald, an extensive landed proprietor of Nova
Scotia, having discovered a valuable iron mine on or.e
of his estates in that country, has conceived the idea
of appropriating its proceeds to the purposes of the
War Department. A 6-pounder gun has been cast from
a sample of the metal, and this he has conveyed to Eng-
land. The gun has gone through a thorough process of
trial at the proof-butt at Woolwich, and stood some good
tests well. The metal is considered to be capable of as
►ouch resistance as any of our service gun and mortar
materials heretofore in use. Mr. Archibald has conse-
quently laid a proposal before the commanding officer of
the Royal Gun-factory Department at Woolwich Arsenal
to enable him to work his mine under a contract to sue•
ply the British Government alone.
Six sample rockets were fired for experimental pur-
poses from the Arsenal marshes at Woolwich on Satur-
day, with a view of testing the efficiency of an im-
provement brought out by Capt. Boxer on the old Con-
grove system. The experiment turned out very satis-
factorily. It is therefore intended to introduce this im-
proved principle in the future manufacture of rockets.
The Ann, of Plymouth, and the Mary, of Exeter,
schooners, are shipping a number of 68-pounder guns
from the Royal Arsenal at Woolwich, to man the gun-
boats at Portsmouth and Plymouth.
An extra supply of about 20 tons of powder is ordered
to be conveyed from Purfieet to Woolwich Arsenal, as
an increased demand of 18 cwt. per day is now required,
so actively are the war preparations being carried on
there.

The gun-boat Grasshopper, Lieut. Commander Lee,
has nearly completed her fittings, and will be shortly
ready to go down to Woolwich Arsenal to receive her
ammunition, &e., for service.

The crews of the Merlin continue to assist in manning
and fitting out the gun-boats, and her officers have been
transferred to the Vixen.

The Dee, Master-Commander Pullen, entered Wool•
wich basin yesterday morning to reload with steam ma
chi n ery fir Portsmouth and Plymouth.
The Firefly has completed her repairs, and has co►n.
menced coaling..