The Sun.
London, England, 1866-11-14 00:00:00

MAILS DUE.

Australia and New Zealand, via Southampton NOV.
Ditto, via Marseilles Dec.
Brazil and Capa Yards. by British packet. ..... Deo. 4.
Ditto, by French packet Nov. 23
Cape of Good hope, Ascension, and St. Llelena Nov.
China, Penang. and Singapore. via Southampton Nov J.
Ditto, via Marseilles Nov. 27
Falkland Islands

Gibraltar, via Southampton Nov. 19'
[Julia (Calcutta), and Ceylon, via Southampton Nov. 19
Ditto, via Marseilles
India (Bombay), via Southampton. Nov, 22
Ditto, via alarseilles ... Nov. 22
liana, Egypt, and Aden, via Southampton Nov. 19'
Ditto, via Marseilles Nov. 22.
.llauritiva, via Southampton
Ditto, via Mareeiliei ... .. px- 1.4,
Newfoundland ...
Portugal ..

Ditto, by private ship to Lisbon..
United states and British North America, byßri-
tish packet .. NOV. 21.

Ditto, by United States packet, via Southamp-
ton

Ditto, via Cork
Ditto, oy Canadian packet, via Londonderry Nov
West Coat of Africa, Madeira, and TencrifTe 12
West Indies and Futile (exoept Baha.nas and
llondurat) No ". 13
Cuba Ind Mexico Nov

Bermuda, via Halifax
Bahaings, via New Y ork.

1-Nov. 21
..Dec 15'

CAPTAIN M`KILLOP'S COFFERDAM.—Yesterbi
afternoon Capt. M‘Killop's cofferdam was again success-
fully applied to H.M.S. Terrible, in the steam basin 3,1
Portsmouth. The Kingston valve was taken out, and
Admiral Wellesley and Mr. Murdock, the inspector of ma,
chinery, with Captain Fellows and Captain Morrell, cf
the Duke of Wellington, went down under the slurs
bottom with lanterns. The operation was repeated. Tina
occupied, 27 minutes.

EXPERIMENT AT THE WAR-OFFICE.—The follow'
ing letter appeared in a recent number of the
Pall Mall Gazette :—" Sir,—Now that Mr. Snider
is dead, that Mr. Clode has spoken, and that the
administration, past and present, of the War-office
is again attracting its fair share of public attention,
I think the following little anecdote may be of sore
interest to your readers. In the beginning of the
year 1858, while attached to her Majesty's Legation
at Washington, I sent home a report upon the
" Morse" breech-loading " centre-fire" rifle, toge-
ther with drawings of the arm and its cartridgeii
I gave an account of the trials to which I 133
seen it subjected : how it was loaded ,cuter
water in the river Potomac with cartridges which
had previously been soaked in water for twenty-fear
hours, and how, in spite of water dripping out of
every part, and weeds and sand grinding in the
mechanism, it made fair shooting, and how under
favourable circumstances it could be fired twelve
times a minute with ease and precision. rril
account was simply a true and faithful narration
what I witnessed in presence of Admiral Dahlgren.,
(of big gun celebrity), Captain Wise of the N3Vj
Department, and many others ; and as it went hope
through the channel of the Foreign-office, it carne
directly under the notice of the chiefs of the 117.31.-
office, and so startled them that they incoutinentli
burst the bonds of red tape, and, contrary to the
most stringent rules, and to all precedent,' ordered
at the expense of Government a specimen rifle and
one thousand rounds of ammunition fora committee
to examineand report upon. After the usual nunl"
bcr of months the oracle spoke. The rifle was re-
jected. It did everything I said it bad done °r
would do, but it possessed properties, which, in the
opinion of the committee, were fatal to its intro-
duction into the British army. At the present day
even the authorities' acknowledge that the great
desiderata in a military rifle are rapidity and acen'
racy of fire, which can only be combined by
breech-loading rifle and a cartridge which car;
ries its own priming and holds the project"
in a metallic cylinder, thereby insuring the
coincidence of the axis of the projectile with
that of the barrel, and it may increase the ecli;
fidence of your, readers in the wisdom which
habitually presides over the technical departmenio
of the War Office to learn the nature of the groin'',
on which the committee condemned the 11-Icle
rifle, and to compare the advertisement of breech-
loaders just put forth by the War Office with ter
objections of the committee in 1858. The 1"r
Office advertisement, under date the 22d of October!
1866, stipulates that both the arms and ammunition
sent in shall be capable of bearing rough usage
damp, and exposure in all climates;' and further+
among other things, that ' the cartridges must earl
their own ignition," and that the cartridges beia
T
arranged on a table, the arm must be capable of
firing 'at least twelve rounds per minute without
aiming.' The objections of the committee to 0
Morse' rifle were three :-Ist. The rifle fired away
the ammunition too quickly ; 2d. The eartriag es
were metallic ; 3d. The cartridges carried their 0,,v,W
ignition.-1 am, sir, your obedient servant, v`
HOPE, late 7th Royal Fusiliers. Malvern, Oct. 2i3:
1866. —[P.S.—When the War Office have finally
chosen the rifle of the future, I intend to buy one'
•
to try how it behaves when loaded under water, with
weeds and sand grinding in the mechanism, in order
that I may fully appreciate its vast superiority 01,..*
r
the ' Morse,' and the astuteness of the committee I'
condemning that worthless weapon.--W.

Births.
HASLEHUST—On the 12th inst., at Chestnut-walk,
thamstow, the wife of W. H. Ilaslehust, Esq., of 3 s,°„a.
-
LowNDEs—On the 11th inst. at Braunston, Northampton'
shire, the wife of Lieut.-Col. Lowndes, of a son. Lb
NICKALIS—OR the 13th inst., at Holmesdale, s°ll
Darenth, the wife of Tom Nickalis, Esq., of a son. do_
NICHOLSON—On the 13th inst., at 4, Sussex-square, ifpark, the wife of W. Nicholson, Esq., M.P., of a eon'

Marriages.
porisl!
MtuwisTEß SOPER—On the 12th inst., at the A n
church of St. Dunstan's, Stepney, Charles, second ee—er.
the late Captain Midwinter, of Albert-square, Jo
cial-road, to Susan, third daughter of the late J. Pc's
of Blandford, Dorset, solicitor. *a-
WiliDnAM—VcEux--On the Bth inst , at St. Mall'et,z7(-;
lebone, Lieut.-General Sir Charles. A. Windham, "do' ry.
to Charlotte Jane, eldest daughter of tho late Bev. A"
Des Voeux.

Deaths.
BUCHANAN —On the 13th Sept., at Dunedin, New --A
John Buchanan, formerly of 47, Moorgate-st., age ich'
BASSETT —On the 11th inst., at Hermitage Villas,

mond, Thomas P. Bassett, Esq., aged 83. r eut.-
BERNARD—On the 12th inst., at 6, Jermyn-street, '-'' mat
Colonel Peter Bernard, formerly of the 68th IWO'''.
(Light Infantry), aged 65. ath,
CAFFIN - On the 10th inst., at Myrtle Villa,
Kent, the wife of W. Caffin, Esq., aged 89. T-Na of
DOUGLAS —On the 12th ' t Robert J D Ps' -- '"
MS , J. ou
Loekerbie. ' A.,
MARSTON— On the 12th inst. at at Ludlow, R. Marston., 4.
a Magistrate and Aldeima'n of the borough, ftged 'i
~
..,
RosSltei
ROSSITER—On the 12th inst., at Kensington, /I
.1
Esq., aged 53. r fo%
WENTWORTII—On the 11th inst., at Wandsworth, u•
Went Worth, "Esq., engineer, aed 47.
_......--
Blackhe

London : Printed stnd Publiched by WILLIAM AND'" 11,
of No. 112, Strand, Pzinter at TIM SUN °tree, Nt of
Strand, in the Precinct of the Savv, in the COW"
laiddletem—Wednesday, November 14, lea

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