The Sun.
London, England, 1859-09-23 00:00:00

Government, and was supplied with its en-
tire accessories—namely, the tender, capable of
containing a supply of water and coals for a day's
work, waggons, &c., together with a gun carriage.
The new engine is on the principle of Boydell's
patent, as employed in Woolwich Arsenal, and is
fitted with various alterations and additions, in-
vented and patented by the manufacturer, such as
an improved method of attaching the endless rail-
way to the wheels of the instatement by which the
rail is lifted passing through the wheel instead of
at the side, so that the endless railway is balanced
while being carried round on the wheel, by which
means the friction and wear and tear are said to be
considerably diminished. The patent wheels are
also of a new construction, being composed of
wrought iron welded together, and are pronounced
far superior to the wooden ones first introduced,
and which in eastern climates are liable to be
speedily destroyed by red ants and other vermin.
The rails and wearing parts are of steel, and the
unwieldy appearance which the endless railway
formerly gave to the engine, and which was the
terror of horses and other animals on the road, is,
under the present invention, ingeniously concealed
by compact and light-looking covers. A second
engine of a similar description is ordered to be con-
structed for India, at the request of the War Depart •
ment.

MANNING TILE NAVE

TO TIIE EDITOR OF THE TIMES.

Sir,—lra,ving read the various letters elicited by
that from me which you were pleased to publish on
the 16th inst., I would make a few observations, to
which I trust you will give a place in your columns.
In the composition of the supposititious crew of
1,000 men I by no means intended to fix an exact
proportion, but merely to exemplify a principle,
the details of which must depend upon numerous
conditions, varying with the class of ships and their
armaments, and occasionally with the special ser-
vices upon which they are employed.
The fact that " many merchant ships are lost for
want of a proper number of hands," adduced by
" A Naval Officer," is but too true, but supplies no
argument in the case. The fact is notorious, but
does not apply to first-class merchant ships, which,
although manned by far fewer seamen in proportion
to their tonnage than those assumed in my supposi-
titious crew, are navigated long voyages as safely as
even men-of-war with their full complement of
men, according to tilt" present establishment.
It cannot for a moment be contested that the
trained seamen gunners, from whom the " captains
of guns" referred to by Captain Maxsc are selected,
are as good as " marine" gunners, and. from their
being likewise seamen are preferable as gunners on
board ship,heing able to do duty in theirdouble capa-
city; for the same reason seamen would be preferable
in the engineer department on board steamships, if
they could be procured, instead of men selected
solely for their mechanical skill ; but at the same
time it cannot be questioned that " marine artillery-
men" are superior as gunners to ordinary seamen,
and without invidiousness it may be stated, from
the mere fact of their being specially trained to the
guns, that they are as a body the best gunners on
board ships of war.
Totally disagreeing from " A Naval Officer" as to
the possibility of a ballot entailing forced service,
which, in a free country like England, would, it is
to be feared, lead to open resistance and all the evils
of the press-gang►, it appears to me that the ques-
tion of manning the navy—the gravity of which
cannot be exaggerated—must be solved by other
means.

The extension of the mercantile marine of this
country is so great, in consequence of the rapid
growth of its trade, that the supply of able seamen
in ordinary times scarcely keeps pace with the de-
mand, aid is certainly not equal to it in cases of ex-
traordinary emergency. Sir C. Napier's evidence as
to the manning of the Baltic fleet is conclusive on
this point. If, therefore, superior inducements in
increased pay, &c., be held out to sailors to enter
the navy, the mercantile marine will be compelled
to keep pace and compete with the navy by corre-
sponding inducements. In such a competition it is
probable that the natural disposition of the sailor,
which leads him to seek frequent change, and to
object to the strict discipline inseparable from ser-
vice on board a ship of war, will make him prefer
the merchant service, and the question would again
be reduced to its present condition, and a navy
with continuous service seamen would be a deside-
ratum then as now.

Improvements in guns will necessitate the em-
ployment of highly skilled hands for working them,
and upon the same principle that the introduction
of steam required that the portion of a ship's com-
pany specially devoted to the service of the engines
should be recruited from another than the seafar-
ing class, so will it become necessary to recruit
naval gunners from a more numerous class of the
population who can be obtained and trained in
adequate numbers for the particular skilled service
which is required of them.
As regards boat expeditions and other occasional
services, the Marines are at present much used in
their performance, and no doubt if they were more
numerous might assist more largely in them, so
that ships need never be endangered by the tempo-
rary absence of too large a portion of their seamen
on distant expeditions.
Recent improvements in gunnery, such as Sir
W. Armstrong's gun, require that immediate steps
should be taken to obtain a full supply of compe-
tent gunners, otherwise they remain comparatively
valueless.

The sooner the necessity of the cas• is met the
better, or it may happen, as with the improved
rifles in the late war in the Crimea, that the advan-
tage of the improvements will be only very partially
reaped, by reason of the ignorance of those who have
to use them. Unhappy must that side always be in
a fight, whatever the arms, which is not skilled In
the use of those arms. It is too great a risk, in face
of the rapid progress of invention, to leave defi-
ciencies in skill to be supplied by mere animal

courage.
I am, Sir, your obedient servant,
Sept. 21. J. L. A. SIMMONS.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE TIMES.
Sir,—With reference to Mr. Cave's letter on your
second leading article of the 10th inst., I beg to bear
testimony to its truth, and solicit your insertion of
the following :
:-.,. During the past yeor 14 lads from this ship have
joined the army, and six have entered the navy.
All are doing well.
There are at present on board many fine " strap-
ping" boys of 16 and upwards, some of whom have
been at sea. Many have been convicted of only
trivial offences, such as desertion from ships, va-
grancy, sleeping in outhouses, &c., but all have
undergone a careful course of moral training and
discipline for an average of two years, by which
their antecedents, however bad, arc thoroughly
eradicated.

They have also been instructed in the various
duties of a sailor, and are considered by most of the
shipowners of this port to be worth the wages of an
ordinary seaman. (Two have to-day joined the
ship Alexander as ordinary seamen.)
But, alas ! in addition to their other faults, they
have broken the " eleventh', commandment, and,
unlike their more fortunate though not more honest
brethren, have been contaminated by the Reform-
atory, and are considered unfit to be openly re-
ceived into her Majesty's naval service.—l am, sir,
your obedient servant,
WILLIAM FENWICK, Commander R.N.
and Captain of the Akbar.
School Frigate Akbar, Birkenhead, Sept. 21.

GARIBALDI AND THE TTNE.—In the spring of
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that lie has used both glass and sword to some service dur-
ing the recent campaign in Italy. The Commonwealth is
in the Tyne again, but she has changed her name and
owner also. She is now called the Leguria of Genoa, and
is sadly changed' She was a smart, clean, and handsome
looking craft when iu charge of Garibaldi, who, in appear-
ance, as he walked the streets of Shields, was every inch a
sailor. She has now a sad, slovenly, neglected-like appear-
ance, and is altogether different to the Commonwealth of
Garibaldi.
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