The Sun.
London, England, 1858-12-01 00:00:00

THE NAVY.

Thg Sappho, 12, brig, Commander Fairfax
Moresby. Our Chatham correspondent, in conse-
quence of the Admiralty having received no account
of the wreck of the above vessel, corroborative of
the statements made in certain private letters re-
ceived at Chatham, has made further inquiries, and
says, he " found out the coxswain's wife of the
Sappho, Mrs. Gimson, and to questions put to her
relative to a letter she stated that the name of the
merchant ship which took the crew on board was
the Cordelias, and that her husband, whose name is
Edward Gimson, is alive. She thinks the name of
the island is what is called East India Island. Mrs.
Bentley, wife of a ship keeper, has also been seen,
and she has a letter containing some account
about the Sappho ; but she declines giving a copy,
or taking that portion out of ihe letter which re-
lates to the ship. She says if the Admiralty wish
to have the letter she will send it. . With regard to
the Firefly, Mrs. Gimson says that the ship, which
will be home about Christmas, she thinks, is the
Flyaway, sailing vessel. The general opinion in
the Dockyard and the Marines is that the ship has
foundered."—Morning Herald.
Her Majesty's steam sloop Argus, 6, Commander
Ingram, was under orders to leave Spithead last
evening on service, and had steam up when this
report left Portsmouth.
Her Majesty's yacht Fairy, Mr. D. N. Welch,
Naster, R.N., in charge, was taken into dock at
Portsmouth yesterday morning to be cleaned prior
to being reported ready for the embarkation of the
Queen and Court on their approaching visit to
Osborne. •

Thce Pioneer,, 6, screw despatch gun vessel, was
taken out of, dock at Portsmouth yesterday, after
a thorough refit, and got up her, steam alongside
blteis exptcwa,
to be commissioned by Commander Hewett,
late senior lieutenant of the Royal yacht. She NO.U.
. . •

probably be taken to Stokes Bay to-day to try her
speed at the measured mile.
A superb and valuable souvenir commemorative
of the fame earned by the ship, in the shape of a
memorial table, has been made of the original
timbers of the brave old Victory, by the joiners of
Portsmouth Dockyard. No wood has been employed
but that which was in the ship at the Battle of
Trafalgar. The table is 18 fee long, 16 feet wide,
and 3 feet 1 inch high, supported on six massive,
handsomely turned legs. It is destined as a present
to the Junior United Service Club, Pall-mall. All
the models of the ships engaged in the ever-memo-
rable action are to be placed upon the table, which
is panel-topped, and fastened by screws or screw-
bolts, made also of copper which was in the ship in
the height of her glory. The table is now being
polished, and will be forwarded to its destination
in a few days. It may be inspected before going by
any one on application at the dockyard in the usual
manner.

H.M. iron screw steam storeship Supply, Master
Com. W. H. Balliston, arrived at Woolwich yester-
day, at 12 &clock, from the Mediterranean. Her
cario consists of about 100 tons of Carian marble
antiquities shipped in Boudroan-bay, as well as
naval stores from Malta and. Gibraltar. After per-
forming the measured mile, in order to verify the
state of her machinery, she made fast off the dock-
yard, under orders to be admitted into the basin to
be stripped and paid off. Her present commission
bears date April, 1856.
Mr. J. Peake, assistant master shipwright of
Woolwich dockyard, designer of the lifeboat adopted
by the Royal National Institution of Great Britain,
yesterday received instructions to superintend the
construction of three 30-feet single banked life-
boats after his design, ordered to be builtby Messrs.
Forrestt, of Limehouse, for the, Russian Govern-
ment, preliminary to a further order for the supply
of the Russian coasts. The 34-feet double banked
boat about to be presented by Government to the
municipality of Calais is now complete, and will be
despatched to Calais on Monday next by the steam-
packet Triton from London. 'Messrs. Forrestt have
likewise completed a 30-feet boat on the same prin-
ciple, intended for Table Bly, in South. Africa?
which will be shipped for transport to►its destina-
tion to-morrow.

The screw steam sloop Curlew, 9, Commander
William Horton, from Spithead, arrived on Monday
at Plymouth, where her crew will be paid off.
Steam was got up on board the screw steam
frigate Topaze, 51, at Devonport, and an Monday,
at 11, she went outside the Sound to test her new
machinery at the measured mile. The wind was
strong from W.S.W., but the run was satisfactory,
averaging 12 knots.
His Royal Highness Prince Adalbert of Prussia
on his return to Berlin has sent his portrait to Mr.
J. Tucker, master of the Exmouth, 90, screw steam
guardship of ordinary at Devonport, in " remem-
branceof happy days passed in his society many
years since," accompanied by a kind letter, express-
ing th© pleasure his Royal Highness experienced
on the recent renewal of acquaintanCe with an old
and respected friend.