The Sun.
London, England, 1861-09-26 00:00:00

2HE NAVY.

VALETTA, Sept. 20.—Her Majesty's gunboat
Wanderer, 4, Commander Seymour, arrived on the
18th inst. from Devonport and Gibraltar. Her Ma-
jesty's ship Sanspareil, 70, Capt. G. Bowyer, left
yesterday on return to England. She took the fol-
lowing passengers :—Capt. Cowell, 3d Buffs; En-
sign Hall, 22d Regiment ; Mrs. and Mrs. Colton,
Mrs. Stokes, Mrs. Tudor, Mrs. Mills, Mrs. Cloyne,
Miss Yair, 1 corporal, 5 soldiers, 2 soldiers' wives,
and 13 children. The screw steamer Malacca, Capt.
T. S. Gilpin, having on board a portion of the Malta
and Alexandria electric telegraph cable, which is
to be laid from the cable end in the Gulf of Syrtis
to Bengazi, left for Bengazi yesterday, to meet the
Rangoon at that place. The Rangoon is at present
engaged in laying the portion of the cable intended
to unite the Alexandria end with Bengazi. On the
submersion of these two sections the whole line from
Alexandria to Malta will be complete.
eombe, sailed from Portsmouth yesterday morning
for Gibraltar, Malta, and Corfu with detachments
of troops, as already detailed in The Sun, calling
at Queenstown. She afterwards put back, and
anchored in St. Helen's Roads, owing to the wild
state of the weather.
The Alert, 17, scresc, Commander W. R. Pearse,
sailed from Spithead yesterday for Devonport,
where she will be dismantled, pay off her crew, and
be put out of commission.
The Pelican. 17, screw, Commander Brock, also
sailed from Spithead yesterday for foreign service,
calling at a western port for final orders.
Her Majesty's screw steam corvette Archer, 13,
Capt. Craufurd, from the West Coast of Africa,
arrived at Greenhithe yesterday, and discharged her
powder. She will proceed this morning to Wool-
wich to be stripped and paid off. The Archer was
commissioned at Woolwich in May, 1858, for the
African station, soon after her return from North
America and the West Indies, in command of Capt.
Edmund Heathcote. Having undergone but slight
repairs since 1853, she will now require a thorough
overhaul.

The paddlewheel steam-sloop Firebrand, Corn-
mender Bruce, from North America and the West
Indies, having been received in basin at Woolwich
and surveyed, is ordered to be ready again for sea
about the 18th of October. The work of caulking
and cleaning commenced yesterday in basin, and
the crew are to be granted 14 days' leave of
absence.

In order to facilitate the operation of berthing
the iron frigate Defence, 22, in No. 3 dock at
Chatham, the blocks on which she will be placed
have been reduced to a uniform depth of only three
and a half inches throughout, thus giving nearly e
foot more water between her keel and the blocks.
As the Defence at present lies, her greatest draught
of water aft is a few inches less than 23 feet, but,
as at the highest spring tides a depth of nearly 25
feet can be obtained in the dock she will occupy,
there will be sufficient water to dock her with per-
fect safety. It is, however, a matter for considera-
tion whetherafter she has been fitted with her stores,
and her iron masts are on board—for the Admiralty
have decided on having her masted before she is
docked—her draught of water will not be so in-
creased as to render the process of undocking her
one of some difficulty. The work of fitting the De-
fence afloat is still rapidly proceeding, upwards of
100 mechanics from the dockyard, and those em-
ployed by the contractors, being engaged on her,
the men working from daylight in the morning
until a late hour at night. Whatever delay, there-
fore, martake place in docking the Defence, no time
will be lost in getting her ready for sea, as the works
to be effected in her interior can be carried on quite
as well as she lies afloat in the harbour as if she
were in dock, though, of course, in the latter case
greater facilities exist for completing her equipment.
In addition to the dockyard mechanics, a number of
workmen of various trades will shortly be taken on
at the dockyard, to be specially employed in com-
pleting the Defence, the Admiralty being desirous
of sending her to sea as early as possible to join the
Warrior.

A naval court-martial was held yesterday at
Sheerness, on board the Formidable, 84, flagship of
Vice-Admiral W. J. Hope Johnstone, for the pur-
pose of trying E. S. Young, acting assist.-engineer
belonging to her Majesty's ship Cumberland, but
serving on board her Majesty's gun-vessel Lee, for
absenting himself without leave from about Sept.
2, 1861, until about Sept. 14, 1861. The charge was
fully proved, the offender being sentenced to be
severely reprimanded, and also to forfeit out of his
pay the sum of 128., the same sum not exceeding the
amount of two days' pay, and also the further sum
of .ClB, such last-mentioned sum not exceeding six
days of his said pay for every 25 hours of absence
from his duties.

The following appointments have been made at
the Admiralty :—Lieut. B. L. Lefroy, to command
the Doterel, commissioned ; Lieut. F. H. H. Hutch-
inson, to the Medea; Lieut. N. B. Smith, to the
Pelican ; Lieut. P. Blakiston, additional, to the
Marlborough, for disposal ; C. B. Ryall, master, to
the ladps, for service in the. Styx ; Henry R.
Berners, sub-lieutenant, to the Narcissus ; Allan
It. Woodruff, naval cadet, to the Orestes; J.
Hood, chief engineer, to the Medea; C. A. Strat-
ford, acting engineer, to the Medea ; J. H. Binns,

engineer to the Fisgard for the Rifleman ; David
Milhr, first-class assist.-engineer, to the Majestic
for the Goshawk; P. Hutchinson, first-class assist.-

engineer, to the Himalaya; W. Birks, acting firs

class a-,sist.-engineer, to the Asia, as supernumerary
for hospital treatment; W. MiLaurin, acting first-
class assist.-engineer to the Medea; J. Austen, sur-
geon, to the Medea; W. J. Aplin, assist.-surgeon, to
the Warrior; W. Barclay, second-class assist.-engi-
neer, to the Medea; J. Sumner, acting second-class

assist.-engineer, to the Medea; W. J. Sullock, act-
ing second-class assist.-engineer, to the Indus, for
service i n the Thais ; W. J. Wise, acting second-

class assist.-engineer, to the Asia, for the Fire
Queen ; G. Edwards, acting assist.-engineer, to the
Asia, for the Eche ; A. M. Mould, second master,
to the Plover ; H. H. Hannay, second master, to
the Dasher; H. Mortimer, master's-assist., to the
Medea; IV. H. Buck,master's-assist.,to the Victory;
E. H. C. Smith, master's-assist., to the Malacca ; D.
F. Guy, assist.-paymaster, to the Victory, as super-
namerary ; E. H. Key, clerk, to the Firebrand; and
B. Drayson, assist.-clerk, to the Formidable.