The Sun.
London, England, 1858-04-12 00:00:00

THE REVISED BASTIVATES.

In the lists of the Royal navy published in our
columns a few days since, we gave the forces in
commission up to Match 1. Now that the navy
estimates for the ensuing financial year have been
revised, it will be as well, perhaps, to bear in mind
that up to the let of the present month the num-
ber of ships in commission was about the same, and
the summary of the entire force at home and abroad
on the Ist of April was as follows :
Station. Ships. Guns. Men.
China and East Indies 7l 894 11,388
Australia
Mediterranean
N. America and West Indies 22 290 3,211
West Coast of Africa
Pacific
Brazils
Par
Ca
—pe
cul ... .....................
tiar service 9 39 843
Coast-guard ......
Surveying ... ............
Fitting out, ko ...
Home ports ......................

Total ..................... 278 4,796 44,804
Tho only alterations since the Ist March consist
of the following :—The Agamemnon, screw, two-
decker, 600-horse power, and Gorgon, paddle sloop,
320-horse power, have been commissioned fur the
Atlantic cable service, with complements of 361
and 97 respectively ; the Merlin, 3, paddle sloop,
100 men, and 312-horse power, has come home from the coast of Africa,
and remains unappro-
priated; the Shamrock, 2, screw gunboat, 60 horse
power, has been commissioned for surveying ser-
vice ; and the Implacable, training ship at Daven-
port, complement 80, and Alban, 4, paddle, 100-
horse power, and 55 men, have been paid off. The
screw and paddle steam fleet, therefore, of the above
force consists of—

Number.
Screw ships ......... 131
Paddle ships ........ . 67

Guns. Men. H. p.
2,806 23,700 29,100
301 2,600 16,240

T0ta1......... 198 3,107 26,370 45,340
It must, however, be remembered that the ships
at home fitting out have not entered their full com-
plements, and are still waiting for volunteers to
complete their crews, which they doubtless could
readily obtain if the following ships, ordered home
from foreign stations, had arrived
Guns. Men. H.-p. Prom
Monarch B4 750 Pacific.
Brunswick (s.)
Nankin
Sy bills ..... . ... 40 350 China.
Pique
Castor . ..... 36 330 Cape.
Penelope (p.) l6 300 650 Cape.
Comus
Racal( rse ....... 14 120 China.
Himalaya (s.)
Virago (p.) .....• 6 165 300 Brazils.
Bloodhound (p.) 3 55 150 Cow of Africa.
Myrmidon (p.)
Supply (s.) 4 48 80 Mediterranean..

Toial, 14 ... 396 4110 2430
In the revised navy estimates for 18i8-59 it will
be seen that the new Board of Admiralty have not
reduced a single man for the active services of the
navy. They have most wisely adopted the esti-
mates of their predecessors, and have endorsed Sir
C. Wood's demand for 44,380 seamen and 15,000
marines. With due regard for the exigencies of
the naval service and the defences of the country,
it was impossible under the most pressing economi-
cal influences to reduce this vote. At the present
moment there are more seamen borne on the
books of the navy than have been voted, but the
Admiralty looking to the number of ships that will
come home from foreign stations, and especially
the return of those from China, now that the Naval
Brigade will be relieved from field service in India,
do not feel themselves justified at the present
moment in reducing the number of seamen within
the prescribed figures voted.
It will be Sctn that China and the East Indies
absorb more than one-fourth of our entire naval
force, exclusive of the extra battalions of marines,
but the home tone, scattered as it is amongst
coast-guard ships, stationary ships, ships fitting
out, unappropriated, tire., gives us a respectable
foundation for a powerful Channel fleet. The
coast-guard ships alone stationed at the principal
ports of the United Kingdom give us a force 26
ligiiinole,Tor7e—oii-tte' books of the district guard
ships, and likewise the number of men to be era-
voyed on shore and not borne on ships' nooks, tbii
home force amounts to 9,000 men. If to these we
add the men in the stationary ships and the fitting •
ships, and include the marines ashore, we shall find
a naval force of about 20,000 men available on an
emergency.
The only votes on which Sir John Pakington's Board have made any reduction in their revision
of the estimates are the following ;
Original Revised
Estimate. Estimate,saving'
Wages to artificers in the
dockyards 986,921 936 Naval stores, etc., building ,921 50,000.
and repair of ships 1,464,742 1,389,742 75,000:
New works and repairs of
yards .
Army and...
ordnance ...n.co 694,618 585,862 108,756,
-
veyance of troops 495,500 410,500 85,600
Thereby reducing the original estimates by no:
less than 318,7561., and yet showing an increase in
last year's estimates of 613,8451.
By the old estimates it was proposed to increase
the number of men in the dockyards from 10,850
to 12,790. By the revised estimates their lord=
ships do not propose to increase the dockyard este-
blishmants this year. It is to be hoped that an im-
proved system will be adopted of continuing good
ships in service that could run three or four years
longer without coming into the hands of the dock-
yard for most expensive renewals and repairs.
For the purchase and repair of steam machinery,
50,0001. less is asked for in the revised estimates,
and with no detriment to the service ; 15,0001. is
struck off for purchase of stores, and 3,0001. for
ships and vessels building by colored.
The reduction in the new works and improve-
ment of yards' votes is au easy one, considering the
annual increasing demands in this department ;
and for the army and Ordnance departments these
branches of the government are doubtless left a
little more margin to provide for themselves.
It will be seen that the reductions in the revised
estimates are in those departments for which in-
creased votes were asked as compared with last
year's estimates.