The Sun.
London, England, 1866-04-04 00:00:00

ARRIVAL OE THE DOURO.

SOUTHAMPTON, APRIL 4.
The Royal Mail Company's steamer Douro, from
the Brazils, passed the Needles at 6.15 a.m. to-day.

THE BRAZIL MAIL.

SOUTHAMPTON, APRIL 4.

The Royal Mail Steam Packet Companies steam-
ship Douro, with the above mail, has arrived here.
She brings 100 passengers, £7,724 in specie, eight
packages of diamonds, value not stated, and 1,500
packages of cargo, consisting chiefly of cotton,
coffee, and tobacco.

The French ship Nouvelle Pauline, with 7,000
bags of coffee from Rio de Janeiro, was wrecked
on Rio Real on the 23d. The crew were saved and
landed at Bahia. It was expected the ship and
cargo would be a total loss.

Screw British ship of war, two United States;
three Italian, five Spanish, two Frenoh, one Russian,
and one Portuguese were at Monte Video.

Admiral Samandare, with iron-clad gunboats
and Monitors, had arrived at Corrientes.

The Allies had not yet attempted to cross the
Parana for the invasion of Paraguay.
The Paraguayans seemed determined to hold out,
and their daring incursions, having twice crossed
the river in canoes and attacked the vanguard of
the Argentines, showed the resolute resistance the
Allied army must expect to encounter.
The inactivity of the Brazilian squadron during
these engagements caused serious complaints.

hitherto the movements of the Allies have been
so slow, and those of the enemy so rash, that until
the Allied army has crossed into Paraguay it is im-
possible to say how long the war will last. If the
Paraguayans hold true to Lopez, it must be long
tedious, and expensive.

It is understood that the passage of the Parana
will be undertaken immediately, and in all proba-
bility will only be effected with great loss to the

In the interior provinces everything was quiet
and the local Governments were busy with Indus.

trial projects.

At Buenos Ayres trade was good, Gold ruled

firm, and paper money was scarce. Sheep farming
was prosperous. Exchange ou London, 51./d. per
silver dollar. Freights to the Channel, 455.
Rio DE JANEIRO.--The Imperial Chambers
opened on the sth. The Senate sat on the 7th, but
no important business was taken up. A quasi
Ministerial crisis had occurred, but the only change
made was the retirement of Pedro Diaz de Carvalho
from the post of Minister of Finance; the vacancy
has been filled up by Joas da Silva Carsao.
A concession for the formation of a branch rail-
way from Escada to the Rio Grande station has
been granted to Baron de Maria.
Since the attack by the Paraguayans no serious
collision bad taken place.
General Flores has returned to his detachment,
and important movements of the allies were ex-
pected. The fleet at Corrientes numbers 32 ships.
The commissioners appointed by the British
North American Provinces with the view of de-
veloping trade, had arrived.

The bark Hermit, from Liverpool, had been
wrecked off Tocondina. The crew were saved.
The Ministerial crisis at Monte Video had been
resolved by the retirement of Senor Gomez, the
Minister of Finance, and the appointment of An-
tonio Maria Marques.
In Pernambuco and Bahia societies had been
formed for the promotion of immigration.
Various offences against the public peace had
occurred in the province. Money in Rio was Bto
10 per cent. premium. Government stocks 6 pre-
mium. Bank of Brazil shares $lO discount. Ex-
change on London, 2s. to 2s. ld. ; on Paris,
382 to 388 reis ; on Hamburg, 722 to 735.

SPAIN.

MADRID; APRIL 3d (Evening.)

The Governor of the Bank of Spain has published
a letter explaining the reasons which induced him
to tender his resignation. He maintains that the
Government ought to procure means for the in-
crease of specie in the treasury of the Bank, and
asserts that the general uneasiness is the reason of
the difficult position of that establishment.
The resignation of Senor Rios Rosas, as Presi-
dent of the Council of State, has been accepted.

Rumours are current that endeavours will
shortly be made to contract a fresh loan.

FRANCE.

BOURSE, April 3, Three o'clock.—The market
closed at the following quotations :-
41-per Cents 9B Bank Shares 3560
Do. end month — Italian Loan 57 90
3 per Cents.
Do. end month 67 70 Mexican Loan 46
Credit Alobilier ... 642 50 Do. Bonds 283 75
Do. end month ... 640 Spanish Threes -
- Unis — Home Debt
Do. end month — Deferred

RAILWAYe.
Cash.

Orleans
Northern
Lyons and Mediterranean
Southern
Western

Eastern
Sardinian

Acct.

- - ... BGS -
- - ... 1125 -

- - ... 542 50

532 50
105 -
385 -
401 25

Austrian
Lombard

North of Spain
Saragossa
Ditto to Barcelona
Roman

... 160 -

- - ... 205 -

--- - ~. 87 50

THE OR IHUMBERL AND.

It was not possible yesterday to make any fur
ther attempts towards moving this ship. Had a
high tide occurred everything was ready enough to
push her off. The wind, however, was against the
flood, and at four o'clock, when it was high water
at Millwall, it was six inches lower than on the pre-
vious day, so nothing whatever was done. After
high water a consultation was held, at which Sir
John Hay, Mr. Langley, the general manager, and
Mr. Reed, the Admiralty Constructor, were present,
to decide upon the best measures to be next taken.
It was then unanimously agreed that no further
efforts should be made until Monday, the 16th of
April, on which day, according to the nautical alma-
nacs, the tide will be the highest of the year, and
give nearly 25ft. of water under the Northumber-
land's sternpost. In case of a favourable wind it
may even rise as high as 26ft.—a depth that would
place nearly eight feet of water under her bows.
This in itself would be almost sufficient to float her
off, but, but as, in spite of the assumed infallibility
of winds and tides, neither can be totally depended
on, it is intended to take every possible precaution
against the contingency of low water by adding
such powers of flotation to the ship as will enable
her in a great measure to get off without an un-
usually high tide. To effect this it is intended
to dispense with the use of the lighters, which
have hitherto been chained under the Northumber-
land's stern, and have certainly not worked alto-
gether satisfactorily. Their efforts have been irre-
gular, and at the most critical times the best have
broken adrift. In place of these," therefore, two
small frigates will be lashed astern at the low water
preceding the high tide. Each will be chained to
the immense iron hull 'in such a way as to have, so
to speak, an independent action, while every pre-
caution will be taken to enable them to slip their
fastenings and get clear away the instant the vessel
moves quickly. In addition to these eight more
very large pontoons are to be built and placed close
under the stern, four on each side. These eight
new pontoons will have a greater floating power
than that of the whole ten now under the vessel.
Chained also, as they will be, at the extreme end of
the stern, they will exercise their greatest power at
the greatest advantage, and exactly where it is most
needed.
More important still than any of these changes is
the decision which has been come to to remove the
" bilge logs" under the midship portion of the ship,
and thickly grease the ways afresh. To understand
this it may be necessary to explain that the term
" cradle," in which a ship is launched and slides
over the ground ways, consists of one long massive
timber framework, the ship being held up at the
item and stern by the two tall, powerful, timber
" cradles." These two cradles, however, are, in

reality, one, and are firmly bound together under
the ship's bottom by the framework called the bilge
logs. It is beneath these latter that it is sup-
posed the Northumberland has jammed upon the
ground or launching ways. It is, therefore,
proposed to wedge her up slightly in order to re-
move the bilge logs, and coat the ground ways
thickly with grease before replacing them. The
foremost part of the cradle also, under the bows, is
to be removed by short lengths at a time, to ascer-
tain if any accidental or maliciously placed impedi-
ment prevents her moving. Here also, as the tim-
bers are removed, all the surface of the ground-
ways will again be coated with grease. Two addi-
tional hydraulic rams of great power are also to be
used on the 16th of April next to start her. We
venture to think that instead of again using the
timber battering-rams half a dozen 68-pounders
fired simultaneously from her port broadside would
contribute far more towards " starting" her from
the ways, and do far less injury to the ship than the
use of the beams must inevitably occasion. As is
always the case when these unforeseen hitches arise,
the usual mass of correspondence has been for-
warded to Mr. Chichester, the secretary for the
Millwall works, containing hints, advises, sugges-
tions, offers of patents, &c. Why some of these
letters were ever let pass by the keepers under whose
care their writers must evidently be it is difficult to
conjecture. One ingenious gentleman, for instance,
devotes a long manuscript to showing how if a dock
is built round the Northumberland, and carefully
filled with bales of cotton, on which scalding water
is to be poured, the expansion must infallibly make
the vessel rise !

IMPORTATION OF EGGS.—On Saturday a return
was published, showing that in January and February
last as many as 12,180,120 eggs were imported into the
truiteKingddom.

:ate.--

tersr
VC),
Int 19,1 A, E
ttrititar

HER MAJESTY•

- _ ~--

WINDSOR CASTLE, Tuesday.
The Queen, accompanied by Princess Helena,
the Princess Leiningen, and Princess llohenlolie
Langenbourg, drove out yesterday afternoon in a
carriage and four, and went out in the grounds this
morning with Princess Louise.

The Prince of Wales, attended by Major Grey,
went to Weybridge yesterday, and was present at
the funeral of the late Queen Marie Amelie. j