The Sun.
London, England, 1859-11-15 00:00:00

111 E NAVY.

The screw steamship Trafalgar, 91, Capt. E.
Fanshawe, from Portland, which arrived on Fri-
day at Plymouth, will continue there until the 25th
inst., in order that the crew shall have liberty on
shore. For this purpose it has been found that
Plymouth is preferable to Portsmouth.
The screw steamship Royal Albert, 121, flag of
Sir Charlos Fremantle, is hourly expected in Ply-
mouth. She is leaky and has some defects to make
good.
The steam frigate Odin, 16, Capt. Lord John
Hay, C. 8., which arrived at Plymouth from Ports-
mouth on Friday, steamed into Hamoaze on Sun-
day to make good defects, which are numerous con-
sidering that she has just left her port of equipment.
Her rudder is said to be defective.

The screw despatch vessel Flying Fish, 6, Com-
mander Hope, from Gibraltar, arrived at Plymouth
on Saturday.
The Meander, which sailed from Spithead on
Sunday, by the Western Channel, for Ascension,
was recalled by signal from flagship, and returned
to that anchorage yesterday morning.
The Beagle, 6, screw, Commander Hay, sailed
from Spithead for China, yesterday afternoon.
The Himalaya, screw, Commander J. Seccombe,
steamed into Portsmouth harbour yesterday, from
Spithead, and berthed alongside the dockyard
jetty. She will have her decks caulked and other
slight defects made good.
The Victoria, 121, screw, has been removed from
her berth in Portsmouth harbour to the steam basin.
She will be placed in No. 7 dock this day.
The Lords of the Admiralty left Portsmouth for
London on Sunday.
Admiral W. Bowles, C. 8., Commander-in-Chief
at Portsmouth, accompanied by his Flag Captain,
Lieutenant, and the Admiralty solicitor, yesterday
went on board the Princess Royal, 91, screw, Capt.
Thomas Baillie, lying alongside the dockyard, and
preparing for paying oft, to inquire into the out-
break which took place among her crew, and which
was reported in The Sun of yesterday. There are
several versions of the matter, but, without accept-
ing any one as the truth, we know that matters
reached so serious a pitch that a strict investigation
is absolutely necessary in order to prevent such dis-
graceful scenes being repeated. Capt. Baillie himself
hes always borne the character of being one of the
most upright and humane officers on the Navy List.
Mr. Ferdinand Silas, inventor of the indestruc-
tible lights applicable for telegraphic purposes at
sea, and also to point out the presence of lifebuoys
in case of shipwrecks or other such disasters, and
which were exhibited for the approval of the
Lords of the Admiralty in September last, in the
presence of Commodore the Hon. Sir James
Drummond, C. 8., and the officers of Woolwich
Dockyard, last night performed a course of
experiments at Blackwall for the satisfaction
of Admiral Hardy, Captain F. R. Ward,
members of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution
Committee ; Capt. Robertson, Surveyor-General ;
Mr. Lewis, Secretary; Mr. Grey, and other mem-
bers of the Board of Trade who were present. The
experiments commenced at 6 o'clock, when a num-
ber of the floating lights, attached to lines, were
cast into the river from the piei. On floating to
the surface, the phosphoric substance of which they
are composed suddenly burst into a blaze of light,
and was only extinguished by being dragged under
the water. The apparatus intended for the tele-
graphic light resembles a moderator table lamp.
This was placed on the jetty near the water's edge,
and was operated on by the inventor. In spite of the
opaque fog, which completely enshrouded the river
from bank to bank, the strong glare of the phos-
phoric light penetrated for some considerable dis-
tance, and was gratefully acknowledged by several
boatmen, who would otherwise have had great
difficulty in making the pier. Similar experiments
were entered into a few days ago in the presence
of Admiral Gordon and the Brethren of Trinity
House, together with the officers of the exploring
ship Fox It was then pronounced that the inven-
tion was extremely suitable for all the purposes
above named, but they could not recommend the
apparatus as applicable for lighthouses. In conse-
quence of the deep obscurity in which the river was
last night involved, and the difficulty of thoroughly
carrying out the experiments, it was arranged, at
the request of Admiral Hardy, that a second course
of experiments shall take place at Blackwall on
some future occasion.