The Sun.
London, England, 1859-01-24 00:00:00

THE NAVY.

A ma' i-martial assembled on board the flagship
Waterloo at Sheerness on Wednesday, to try Mr.
Stevens, , third-class carpenter, lent from the For-
iidahli 3. for duty on board the steam sloop Malacca,
in the Ito am reserve. The charges against Mr.
Stevens -cv ere for absenting himself from his ship
withoir t leave, and for drunkenness. Captain E.
P. %He :listed, in command of the steam reserve,
prosec sited. The Commander-in-Chief presided. The
char; ;es were fully proved, and the sentence of the
Cow tt was that Mr. Stevens be deprived of his war-
rant for two years, during -which period he is to
serve as an able seaman for duty in the carpenter's
crew.
Iler• Majesty's screw steam frigate Liffey, 51,
Capt. W. Preedy, C. 8., anchored in St. Helen's-
roadl4, off Poitsmouth, from Portland, at 3 p.m. on
Friday, and sailed again for Portland on Saturday
morning.
:Her Majesty's steam sloop Argus, 6, Commander
Ingram, sailed from Spithead at 6 p.m. on Satur-
day for Devonport, with supernumeraries for the
Mediterranean squadron.
The new steam line-of-battle ship Edgar will in
a short time be ready for a trial of her engines.
The Locust steam vessel, Lieut.-Commander Field,
arrived at Sheerness from Portsmouth on Friday
night last. The Locust was run into by a brig
while she was ridinr, by the fair buoy of the chan-
nel into Portsmouth harbour. She has received so
much damage that she will have to undergo repairs
forthwith.
The paddlewheel steam frigate Leopard, 18, Capt.
J. F. B. Wainwright, is being caulked and repaired
at Keyham.
Mr. Paul, Assistant Master Attendant at the
Devonport Dockyard, with 11 riggers, 11 seamen
riggers, and some seamen from the ordinary, is ap-
pointed to navigate the school ship Conway. to the
Mersey. The steam sloop Virago accompanies her,
and will probably bring back Mr. Paul and his
party. The Conway conveys her own moorings.
The Mersey, 40, screw, in the Portsmouth Dock-
yard steam basin, is progressing as fast as engineers
and riggers can work upon her. The screw, from
the Messrs. Maudslay, the makers of her engines,
has arrived, and presents as fine a metal casting as
can be conceived. There is another feature worthy
of consideration. Owing to the enormous size and
weight (about 14 tons) the screw has been divided
into three portions. The two blades are cast with
flanges, and screw on to the centre boss with nuts
and screws, rendering it so portable as to be easily
taken apart in the event of accident, and also a
great advantage in stowing spare blades. The
Mersey is the most powerful frigate in the world
at present ; her broadside will throw solid shot or
ten-inch shell ; her " fighting quarters " are 18
feet between the ports. She can carry eight days'
coaling at full speed, and if she realises what is
confidently expected of her—namely, the average
speed of 14 knots an hour—she will accomplish the
voyage from Portsmouth to Malta in seven days.
Her tonnage is very little short of 4,000, and her
cost may be calculated at £200,000. She is being
fitted with Clifford's patent boat-lowering gear on
both sides. She will be ready for her sea trial in
the month of February.
DEATH OF COMMANDER JOHN BARCLAY, R.N.
—We have to record the death of Commander John
Barclay, which occured on the 11th inst. at Albury,
Surrey, aged 77. This gallant officer was midship-
man of the Hydra, and served in her boats at the
capture of an armed lugger under a fire of musketry,
near the river Tongue, in 1803. He was acting
lieutenant of the Britannia at the battle of
Trafalgar, for which service he was promoted to be
lieutenant on the 20th November, 1805 ; was lieu-
tenant of the Latona at the capture of Curacoa in
1807, and retired with the rank of commander on
the 23d January, 1853. He had received the silver
naval medal with two clasps for his valuable
services.
DEATH OF LIEUTENANT ALEXANDER 0. MAC-
FARLANE, R.N.—Advices from Malta, of the 19th
inst., announce the death of Lieutenant Alexander
0. Macfarlane, which occurred on board the
Hibernia, 104, flag ship, on the 11th. Lieutenant
Macfarlane served as acting mate of the Valorous,
16, paddle frigate in the Black Sea fleet, and of the
Indus, 78, flag ship of Rear Admiral Sir Houston
Stewart, K.C.8., on the North American and West
India station; mate of the Brilliant, 20, on the
North American and West India station ; for a few
months was mate of the Racoon, 21, screw corvette;
and had served as lieutenant of the Recruit, 6,
paddle, in the Mediterranean since October last.