The Sun.
London, England, 1867-11-16 00:00:00

Naval and Military Intelligence.

Considerable activity is observable among the
mechanics and other workmen employed on board
the armour-clad iron frigate Hercules, building at
Chatham. The returns up to yesterday show that
upwards of 300 of the 9-inch, 8-inch, and 6-inch
armour plates, or close upon 2,000 tons, have been
bolted to the frigate's broadsides. Along the cen-
tral battery the armour plating is disposed in eight
tiers, consisting of one tier of plates 9in. in thick-
ness at the water-line, one tier of Bin., five tiers of
Gin., and another tier of Bin. in thickness. In the
central main deck battery, in which the Hercules
will carry her principal armament, both the fore
and aft armour plated bulkheads are completed, and
the iron decks laid. The embrasured ports for the
eight broadside guns which the Hercules will mount
in her main deck battery are finished off, and yes-
terday a trial took place with the wooden model of
the broadside guns with which the Hercules will be
supplied, In the design and construction of the
Hercules the chief object kept in view has been to
produce the most powerful vessel on the broadside
principle yet sent afloat, in order that the competing
system of broadside as against turret may be
brought to an issue. The Hercules is in all respects
a ship of the broadside type, but should it be in-
ferred from this that she possesses features in com-
mon with the broadside vessels of war of the old fami-
liar class an exceedingly inadequate conception will
be formed of this, in many respects, peculiar vessel.
Neglecting for the moment not the least important
of her features as the strongest, and in every respect
the most powerful, armour-clad ship yet attempted,
and confining attention to her armament alone, her
points of novelty are most marked and striking. In-
stead of carrying an outspread battery of guns, ex-
tending from stem to stern, as has hitherto been
thought necessary in vessels of war, the Hercules
will have a concentrated armament of the modern
type, having, although a much larger ship, even
fewer guns in paint of number in her broadside bat-
tery than Mr. Reed's former ship the Bellerophon.
Only four guns will be mounted at each main-deck
broadside, but these will be of a size and power
never yet seen afloat, being, in fact, rifled guns, each
weighing 18 tons, and firing nearly 1 cwt. of powder
at each discharge. Notwithstanding the enormous
weight of guns, they will be carried at a considerable
height above the water-line, the main-deck battery
portsills being no less than lift. high. Although the
guns mounted in the Hercules are intended to work
at the broadside, it must not be supposed that their
command of the horizon is limited to a training of
some 50 deg. or 60 deg., as is the case with ordinary
broadside guns. On the contrary, arrangements have
been made by her designer, aided by the inventions
and personal superintendence of Capt. Scott,. R.N.
for shifting, whenever required, the guns from the
broadside ports into the recessed or indented ports,
fore and aft, from which they will command an al-
most direct bow and stern fire, with a considerable
range of training round the stem and stern. In order
to accomplish this arrangement with celerity and
certainty, large turn-tables are now being fitted in
the battery deck upon which the guns stand, and
from the trials already made at Chatham it is confi-
dently anticipated that by the aid of Capt. Scott's
invention the guns in thebattery of the Hercules will
be capable of being turned from port to port as
quickly as a turret can be rotated from side to side. In
addition to these 8 18-ton guns, the Hercules will
carry a couple of 12-ton guns on her main deck, of
which one will fire directly ahead over to the stem
of the ship, from behind armour-plating, while the
other will occupy an analogous position astern. The
upper deck armament will consist of four 6k-ton
guns, of which two will command the entire bow,
round to each broadside, and the other two the stern
in a similar manner. Each of these four guns will
be mounted on a plan lately devised jointly by
Admiral A. Cooper Key, C. 8., the Director-General
of Naval Ordnance, and Mr.Reed,Chief Constructor
of the Navy, by means of which the entire quadrant
of training is obtained without the necessity of shift-
ing the gunfrom pivot to pivot, but keeping it always
at the same position with the breathings fixed. The
upper deck guns will be at a height of 16ft. above
water, and, although unprotected by armour-plating,
will add greatly to the offensive power. The bow
battery is also supplemented by the most formidable
submerged wrought-iron ram stem yet given to an
ironclad ship; and should it ever be found neces-
sary to use the Hercules as a ram, one blow from
her powerful stem, with the vessel steaming at 14
knots per hour, would prove fatally decisive in the
case of any vessel against which she might operate.
Glancing at the armour of the Hercules, it will only
be necessary to state that at Shoeburyness the vessel
is deemed invulnerable, and it may safely be affirmed
that she is proof against any known artillery which
may be brought against her. In order to convey
some not altogether inadequate idea of her strength
in the region of the water-line, it may be sufficient
to barely enumerate the materials of which her sides
are composed, consisting of a 9in. solid armour-plate
laid on a backing of 12in. of teak, with an inner
iron skin of 11in. in thickness, strengthened with
10in. iron frames 2ft. apart outside, and made solid
between with teak ; in addition there is also
another double layer of teak averaging 20iu. in
thickness, a second skin of 'lin. deep. Practically,
therefore, the broadside of the Hercules is in-
vulnerable to all existing ordnance, and is likely
to continue so fur many years to come.
It will be sufficient to add that the Hercules
will be a full-rigged ship, manned by 650
officers and men. The machinery and engines,
which are now being manufactured for her at the
establishment of Messrs. John Penn and Sons, are
to be of 1,200 horse power (nominal), but capa-
ble of working up to 7,200 indicated horse power.
They will be among the most powerful marine
engines ever manufactured in this country, the con-
tract biting that the mean speed of the vessel shall
exceed 14 knots per hour.
His Netherlands Majesty's twin-screw armoured
iron turret-ship Prins Hendrik, Capt. Jansen, ar-
rived at Spithead early yesterday morning from
Nieuwe Diep, on a month's cruise between the Eng-
lish and French Channel ports. Captain Jansen,
immediately after the arrival of the Prins Hendrik
at Spithead, landed at Portsmouth, and was intro-
duced to the chief naval and military authorities of
the port and garrison by the Chevalier L. A. Van-
denbergh, the Netherlands Consul at Portsmouth.
The Prins Hendrik will go into Portsmouth harbour
this morning from Spithead, and remain there until
her departure for other ports. She will visit next
in succession Plymouth, Cherbourg, and Brest, and
from the last-named port return direct to Holland.
She sailed from Nieuwe Diep on the Ist inst., ex-
periencing very fine weather, and exhibiting very
good qualities as a sea-boat. Very satisfactory
practice with shot and full-powder charges at long
range was made from the guns in the two turrets
between Nieuwe Diep and the English Channel.
The turrets worked admirably. The Prins Hendrik
is manned with a crew of 230 men, and carries two
turrets, each mounting two 9-inch 12-ton rifled
muzzle-loading guns. She has a length between
perpendiculars of 230 ft., a beam of 44ft., and a
tonnage measurement of 2,006. The armour-plating
on her sides and the backs of her turrets is 41
inches in thickness on a backing of the Warrior's
target strength ; but round the gunports of the
turrets, or the turret's face proper, the thickness of
the armour-plating is 11 inches. She is fitted on
the upper deck with a poop and forecastle of elliptic
fron form, and similar to those of her Majesty's
shipsWivern, Scorpion, and Captain. The ship is
three-masted, with square yards on the fore and
mainmasts, and both fore and main lower masts
fitted on Captain Cowper Coles's tripod principle.
The machinery of the ship consists of a pair of
engines, each of 200-horse power nominal, driving
a pair of independently working twin screws a la
Dudgeon. Messrs. Laird Brothers, of Birkenhead,
built the ship, and constructed her machinery under
a special contract with the Dutch Government.
The draught of water of the Prins Hendrik now is
17ft. sin. forward, and 18ft. 6in. aft. •
The una.rmoured screw gun vessel Myrmidon,
Commander Johnstone, is detained in Chatham
harbour for a few days beyond her arranged time
for sailing, in consequence of some portions of her
stores not being re tdy for shipment. She will pro-
ceed down the harbour to Upuor Castle to-day and
receive on board her ammunition, and, after being
inspected, will take her departure for the West
• Coast of Africa,

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HER MAJESTY.

WINDSOR CASTLE, Nov. 15.

The Queen, accompanied by Princess Beatrice,
drove out this morning. The Hon. Emily Cathcart
was iu attendance.

Princess Louise walked in the grounds, attended
by the Hon. Horatio Stopford.
The Prince of Wales dined with their Royal
Highnuses Prince and Princess Christian, at Frog
more, on Tuesday evening.

The Duke and Duchess of Newcastle have arrived
at their residence on Carlton-house-terrace from Clamber
Park, Notts.

The Marchioness of Salisbury passed through
town yesterday on her way to Hatfield House, after visit-
ing her mother, at Knob Park, near Sevenoaks. Kent. _ .

The Earl of Dorby is fast recovering from his
attack of gout, and in all probability will by able to be Pre-
sent at the opening of Parliament on Tuesday. His lord-
ship is still suffering from weakness in the feet.

LEICESTER-SQUARE.—Late yesterday afternoon
their lordships gave judgment in the case of Tulk v. ll°
Metropolitan Board of Works, which involved the right to
tho open space in Leicester-square. The Court was of
opinion that the Board had no right over the ground, and
therefore their judgment was for the plaintiff.

RECENT IVILLS AND BEQUESTS.

(From Mt Illustrated London Neuts.)

The will of Kenneth Macaulay, Esq., for-
merly M.P. for Cambridge, is contained in these
few words :—" One thousand pounds to my brother
Tom, all the residue to my dearest wife absolutely.
Kth. Macaulay." The will is without date, but
was written by the testator on April 22 or 23, 1865-
The testator died July 29, 1867, at Ardincaple
House, Cambridgeshire, at the age of 52. The
personalty was sworn under £82,000. The testator
was the youngest son of the Rev. A. Macaulay, and
cousin of the late Lord Macaulay, P.C.
The will of E 'ward Fisher Sanderson, Esq•,
formerly merchant of the city and State of New
York, but late of Sheffield, was proved at Wake-
field, under £BO,OOO personalty in this kingdom--
the executors for England and elsewhere, excePt
America, being Thomas Sanderson Furniss, Esq., ei
Lincoln's Inn, and Edward Tozer, of Sheffield, the
confidential clerk in the house of Sanderson Brothers
and Co. ; the executors for the United States being
Julius C. Sanderson, Edward Frith, and Gilbert
M. Speir. The wife is appointed guardian of in-
fant children. The will is dated March 10, 1858
and a codicil Nov. 15, 1865. To his wife be
leaves his furniture, carriages, horses, plate, jewel-
lery, personal ornaments, minerals, philosophical
and chemical apparatus, paintings, &c., and all
other articles and effects at any of the residences
absolutely. He leaves $30,000 to be divided into
six equal parts of $5,000 each, to be paid to each of
his children ; and out of the residue of his property
to pay one-sixth part to his son Thomas, and the
interest of the remainder to his relict for life, and
the principal, at her decease, to be divided equally
amongst his five daughters. There is a legacy of
$5OO to the St. George's Society, New York. Ile
directs that all his property invested in the firm of
Sanderson Brothers and Co. should remain unti
such times as his children shall call for their respec-
tive shares.

The late Charles Stockton, jeweller, of Birming'
ham, died possessed of £lO,OOO personalty, and has
left charitable bequests to several institutions 10
that town--viz., the General Hospital, Queen's
Hospital, General Dispensary, each £100; Bluecoo
School, Deaf and Dumb Asylum, Blind Asylum,
each £5O ; and small legacies to other institutions•
The late Mrs. Marianna Hooper, of Andover, hl4
bequeathed to each of the following societies a
legacy of £soo—viz., the Church Missionary so'
ciety, the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel,
Wesleyan Missionary SJciety, and the Church
Building SociJty, as well as legacies to several other
charities.

The late Sir Charles Mugge. Price, Bart., died in-
testate, and limited letters of administration of his
estate and effects have been lately taken out.

The wills of the undermentioned have been re-
cently proved :—Richard Walker, Esq., £60,000
personalty ; James Combe, Esq., £30,000 ; Jobil
Hollock, Esq., £30,000 ; John Propert, Esq.'
£30,000.