The Sun.
London, England, 1857-05-11 00:00:00

PLYMOUTH ROY AL REGATTA.

The coninitte; met at the on Thursday
evening, when it was resolved that the regatta for the
present year should take place on Wednesday, Aug. 26,
being the anniversary of H.R.H. Prince Albert's birth-
day.

RYDE, MAY 9.
FIRST MATCH OF THE SEASON.

The match which has been for so long a time past the
talk of the yachting circles, between the Shadow, cutter,
52 tons, the property of Sir Gilbert East, and the
Coquette, schooner, 47 tons, Mr. John Hugh S. Pigott,
came off on Thursday last. The course fixed was round
the Isle of Wight.
The morning was in every respect as fine a one as a
true lover of this delightful sport could wish. At ten
o'clock, the hour fixed for starting, there was a stiffish
easterly breeze blowing, with a bright sun shining. The
starting gun having been fired from the Royal Victoria
Yacht Club-house, both yachts got under weigh in excel-
lent style, veering their heads a little round to the island.
It was feared, shortly after the start, by the in?xpe-
rienced, that both ve-sels would be run on the sands, so
closely did they hug the shore ; but, in so doing, it
showed the skill of the respective commanders, for by
working their craft close up to the Sand's Head buoy
they were enabled to keep close in shore, and thus escape
the strong run of the tide. The Coquette, having a
slight start of the Shadow, passed inside the Sand's
Head buoy, after which she held her course out to
l3remridge-ledge. The Shadow was now keeping far-
ther off shore with the view of rounding the " No-
man," thereby enabling the Coquette o pass the "ledge"
first, which she did in good style at 11.30. Directly she
passed the "ledge," the Coquette beet up gaff-topsails,
square-sail and balloon-jib, causing her, as it were,
to fly, with the breeze and tide both in favour. Upon the
arrival of the Coquette off Bonchurch, the Shadow was
a long distance astern : and, after a splendid dashing
run to the Needlee, the schooner passed the rocks at
2.13, and the cutter at 2.25. It was after passing the
last-named point that both vessels bad to struggle for the
mastery, both tide and wind being here dead against
them, causing them nothing hut tack for tack till their
arrival at Scone Point. When oil the fort, the Coquette
was compelled to " put about," and lose a deal of way
which she had on her, owing to the,Government Ap-
prentice brig standing close on to her weather quarters.
The effect of the above accident was to allow the Shadow
to pass the schooner, the former gradually increasing the
lead till her arrival at Ryde at 6.1., the Coquette arriv-
ing at 6.16.
Considering the dkadvantage which a schooner labours
under, in comparison to a cutter, this can be considered
as no great defeat. On the contrary, it is one of the
closest runs that has been for a long time, the whole of
the course inside the Needles being a dead weight, with
a succession of short tacks.
YACHTS AT AND OFF TITS STATlON.—Henrietta Count
Batthyany ; Snake, Capt. G. Brigatecke ; Dawn,- T.
Broadwood, Esq. ; Wildfire, T. Turner, Esq. ; Coquette,
H. S. Pigott, Esq. ; Shadow, Sir G. East, Bart,; and
the Triton, T. Meares, Esq.

( FronOe &comer.)
It was, of course, expected by no one that a ses-
sion beginning in May should plunge into a subject
of such magnitude as a new-Reform Bill, which it
could not possibly bring to maturity, and could
hardly indeed do more than discuss in the crudest
and least profitable manner. The only prActicible
step was probably that which the Government has
taken with a promptitude and explic'tntss grew ly
to its credit, the acknowledgment in the face of
Parliament that an improvement in the representa-
tion of the people is required, and that a measure
for tile purpose will be prepared in the vaca•ion
and, be proposed in the next se Sion. It will be
observed that Lord Palmerston speaks of the sub-
. . _

ject with a gravity of expressionwhich shows that
he takes no narrow or trivial view of it. He calls
it ""a large question," from which we may fairly
and even. confidently infer that he contemplates
dealing with it in no petty or niggardly spirit.
Large questions are only to be dealt with largely.
"It may often be your duty," said Lord Mel-
bourne once with true wisdom, "to ros'rain the

impetuosity of popular ,feeling, but this is true
policy—when you do give, give generously."
Mr. Roebuck, who had previously laid a resolu-
tion on the table pledging the house to take the
subject early into its consideration, received Lord
Palmerston's assurance in the proper tone, and
wisely declared his intention to lealie the question
in the bands of the Government. _ _

It will be remarked that the Government pledge
is confined to the defects and anomalies in the ex-
isting-distribution of the franchise. CUnsequently,
though it is right that Mr. Roebuck's notice should
be withdrawn, it is otherwise with Mr. Henry
Berkeley's on the independent question of the Bal-
lot. The Ballot, though a Parliament try Reform
in itself, is a question that stands entirely apart,
upon its own distinct grounds, unconne.ted with
the question of electoral districts, or any extension
of the electoral franchise. The advocates of the
Ballot simply dem rnd that the franchise should be
made a reality, let the privilege be enjoyed by
few or by many. The case for it is, of course,
stronger with a confined electoral body than a great
one, because the smaller the • constituency the
greater in proportion is the practical diminution
from its power, through the operation of the foul
influences. 'There is no reason, then, that the sense
'of the new Parliament should not be taken at the
earliest convenient moment upon the subject of
Mr. Berkeley's notice. That the question has
made considerable progress with the public since it
was last discussed in the House of Commons we
have no doubt. ' The general election cannot but
have given it a great impetus. The Marquis of
Waterford, at the head of the terrorists, has done
it immense service ; the Glo'ngs of Ruthin have
been no less serviceable on this side of the Channel;
and, as we have elsewhere shown, the failure of
the Corrupt Practices Act in the Queen's Bench
has reduced to a demonstration'the impotence of
any possible law to protect the independence of
voters exposed by their circumstances and condition
in life to corruption in its most insidious forms.

A DEPOSIT-NOT 4. PROMISE TO PAY!

(From the Freeman.)
What should Reformers insist upon this session ?
'We reply, Nothing less than a substantial deposit
of reform. Many of our readers will have seen the
feelers put out by the Times._ Last week it owned

that the country expected Parliament to pass a
Reform Bill, and even pressed on' Toryism the
danger of delay,—the danger of arousing the people

to demand larger concessions tbau -would now

satisfy them. This week the wind veins a point or
two, the text being a rather singular mistake of
Mr. Wa,tkin's, the member for Yarmouth, who

strangely fancied that the Palmerstonian journal
could wish to give the suffrage to every man who
could write his name and vote. A liberal journal
_ _

appears as if it would be satisfied by the ad-mission
of a Jew to Parliament this session ; and we have
little doubt that Lord Derby himself would offer
but a nominal opposition to that proposal, if
thereby he could insure the postponement of re-
form. Other liberal papers ask for an avowal of
reform policy in the Queen's speech, and a full ex-
planation by Lord Palmerston of what he will do
next session. _ We, on the other hand, ask for

something worth having this session.
We think there is urgent reason for Reformers
to demand this. We are met, of course, by the
pretence of want of .time. It is but pretence. The

Morning Post in reply to Disraeli'staunt proved
that Lord Palmerston had "wasted" not • a year,"

but on tythree weeks. As the old members have hrid
so long a breathing time instead of a short Easter re •
cess, and as the new ones are freAl to their work, thy
can all afford to give the country ample time for the
purposes for which the country elected or re-elected
them. One of those purposes, the chief of them, was,
notoriously, Parliamentaryßetorm. Let us hear no
`more of want of time, therefore. Indeed the return of a
large majority on the Liberal side, ought to shorten
debates and save time. With a majority of a hun-
dred, a Premier, as well practised as LDrd Palmer-
ston in Parliamentary management, cmn save time
—if he will.
Next looking at the House, let the country re-
member that its future successes very much depend
on its performances. The morale of such an army
as that of the Liberals in Parliament is almost

everything. If they are badly led. at fit st, baffled
by ministerial cunning, dispirited by small and in-
significant achievements, or by defeats owing to
combinations of sections of their own body with the
mass of the Torieß, they will soon look upon them-
selves as not destined to do anything great ; they
will settle down into the notion that they are to be
a common-place tax-voting, cabinet-serving Parlia-
ment, and Reform will drag oa session after session,
till it may be postponed for another Parliament. If,
on the contrary, some measure be paused of which
every Liberal can feel proud, of which lie can tell his
constituents when he visits them in the autumn
with satisfaction, for which he can be sure of re-
ceiving their enthusiastic approbation ; the impetus
from such a triumph will carry him into next session
in the same spirit, and he will be determined then
to complete what he has so happily begun. Look-
ing, also, at the Ministry, and the uncertainty, not-
withstanding the vast majority, of its more than
surviving this session, it is utterly unwise to throw
Reform overboard to take the chances of another
session and another Cabinet; a Cabine', be it ob-
served, which will not be under the sane obliga-
tions to obey the behests of this Parliament as the
Premier is, by whose will it came into being.
We by no means believe that a complete new
Reform Bill this session need I resent any difficulty
to honest legislators. We know so well the prin-
cipal designed and undesigned defects of the pre-
sent Acts, that it is mere evasion of the question to
plead the time required for elaborating details.
The Consus tells us with sufficient accuracy where
to find constituencies : the only difficulty that can
arise is to settle whether principle or expediency is
to shape the new Bill. Are we to get rid of all the
paltry constituencies or not ? Are we to make the
number of members reasonably commensurate with
the number of electors ? Are we to make some
tolerable approach to bestowing the suffrage on all
tax-payers, and on all who must be amenable to the
laws l Are we to protect the voter against intimi-
dation, and against the offer of a bribe ? These are
the real points for discussion ; details of a formal
or a local nature will present no difficulty, and
Icould indeed be re-arranged and perfected from
year to year. They could even be made, as in
I America, to depend on a self-adjusting principle.
To be precise then : we demand, as all Reformers
should, the one thing from which. nothing ought to
induce them to waver—the taking of the votes at
the elections by Ballot. Though not absolutely
perfect, we should be satisfied with the enactments
of the electoral law in Victoria on that subject.
That law has the convenience of being a fact—a
tried and successful fact ; and, to avoid all fanciful
objections, we should be content to take the Ballot
clauses of that law as they s hind. Concurrently
with this, we would fight hard for an Extension of
the Suffrage to all rate-paye2T, at least, both in
boroughs and in counties: the preeuca of a different
' franchise for town and country be,:rig necessary, we
consider to be the veriest piece of ' Tory and Whig
charlatanism ever attempted to be 'tali-lied upon our
common sense. We would, of course, rrqulre the
abolition of the rate-paying clans .a, and make it
very easy work for the revising bailie teas.
We have placed these essentials in the order in
which we would contend for them.. We wish for
a complete Reform Bill ; hut the balls. t we would
not dispense with. We would tern any Pointer
out of office who refused to concede th It. There is
—and Lord John Russell and Lord
_Palmerston
both know it well—there is more of rei.:orm in that
one demand than in all the others put together.
They know that all the others will follow that ;
but, that all the others might be given, and still
leave half the voters of the country at the .mercy of
the dominant classes. They know that no- exten-
sion of the suffrage they can give will be of i to much
value as really extending it to the thousat ids who
now have it but iaQmically. They cart a:pout the

ballot's being merely a mechanical protection to
the voter, and forget that the poll book is nothing
but a mechanical device to give the tenant's vote to
his landlord. They pharisaically pretend concern
for the non elo:I rs, yet refuse the non-electors a
vote. They rtfuso, as they say, in the int-rest of
the non-enfranchised, to give the ballot to the pre-
sent electors, but it is because they know that the
first Parliamt-nt, returned by a really free election,
would speedily emancipate the remaining six-
seventl:s of the poi:natation.
We see it is no* stated that Mr• Locke King
means to press his motion early, and that he
created some diAnay in Downing-street by inform-
ing the Govern-cent of h s intention. We heartily
wish him success ; but we would eatnes:ly press on
him a more gen,iral form of his tri,tiop, and one
which would adapt it to any Liberal change ;
namely, gnat the franchise in boroughs should also
be the county franchise for all persons not resident
in boroughs. Mr. Berkeley's motion is, however,
the one of first importance. Let us insist on
giving reality to our pre,ent constituency. Let us
put up with no shuffling on this point. Let us en-
courage the tens of thousands to vote who are now
arrad to oo it, and convert the tens of thousands
who are now but the voting machines for their
oppressors, into really "free and independent elec-
tors." The Billot is the smallest deposit we should
demand this session; and the country should re-
solve to have a deposit, not merely a promise to
pay.

EXPERIMEATS on, NEW DECKED COPPER
PONTOONS at CHATHAM.

The interesting experiment in pontoonin?, an-
nounced by Sir C. Pasley for 'Monday afternooe,
the 11th inst., at Rochester-bridge, to which per-
sons who took an interest in the subject were in-
vited by a circular, has been postponed till Mon-
day, the 18th inst., in consequence of unexpected
failures that occurred in previous trials on Friday
and Saturday last.
On the first of these days a raft of his pontoons,
consisting of four demi-canoes, put together in pairs
by deck and keel lashings, so as to form two decked
boots similar to canoes, and covered with the usual
superstructure of balks, chesses, anchors, and other
stores, after taking on board, at the gun-wharf,
Chatham, a 32-pounder on its travelling carriage,
weighing rather more than four tons, manned by
Lieut. Phillips, R.E., with six men to row, a_ser-
geant to steer, and a few spare men, attended and
assisted by two cutters, put off from these for the
purpose of landing the gun on the beach at Upnor ;
nut the swell occasioned by a strong easterly wind
.washed over the decks and filled the canoes with
water, which sank on their reaching the Upnor
shore where the gun was landed. The water was
the partly pumped, and partly baled out by
buckets, after taking off the hatch&, one to each
demi-canoe. They then got under weigh again,
and reached the pontoon basin, near St. Mary's
Creek. in readiness for next morning's operation,
leaving the gun on shore with its wheels embedded
in mud.

Next morning, having secured the wooden plugs
of the pump holes on the deck:4 of the demi-cauoes,
which had been loose the day before, and made
everything watertight as was supposed, Lieut. Phil-
lips took another gun and carriage of the same cali-
bre on board the raft, and rowed up to Old Roches-
ter-bridge, where he moored it at high water slack,
in order that it might be exposed to the fury of the
half-ebb of one of the strongest spring tides of the
season.

Owing to a mistake made by Sir Charles himself
in his written directions.for the operations of this
day, the raft was moored about 30 feet higherthan
in any of the numerous experiments on military
bridges formed there in the annual pontoon prac-
tice of the corps, so that as soon as the ebb tide be-
gan to flow, the water fell perpendicularly down
upon the heads of the canoes from which the raft's
crew were soon withdrawn ; but as Sir Charles had
expressed a wish to be present at the rolling over of
the gun, whieh now appeared inevitable, the raft
was left to its fate ; but he came too late to witness
it. When the gun went to the bottom, some of the
woodwork of the superstructure was broken, but
the canoes floated, turning over upon their decks
with their keels uppermost, and one of them was
brought on shore at the landing pkee of the new
bridge for his inspection. A single plank of the
deck only was fractured ; but with the exception
of one small indentation, the copper appeared per-
fectly sound and uninjured. The woodwork of the
superstructure of which two balks only were said
to be broken, was oared by the engineers' boats,
and deposited in a builder's yard below the new
bridges, and the canoes were towed to the pontoon
basin the same evening. _ _ _

Had Sir Charles arrived sooner himself be would
have prevented this accident by veering out about
20 feet of the upper, and taking in the same length
of the lower, cables, bat he was not sorry that the
accident happened, as it proved in a most convinc-
ing manner the superior strength of his new con-
struction.
On taking leave of them, he expressed his entire
satisfaction with the means afforded him by Major
Hassard commanding, during the absence of Col.
Sandham, and the zeal, intelligence, and activity of
Lieut. Phillips and the non-commissioned officers
and men of the Royal Engineers employed on.this
occasion, which were such that these difficult and
dangerous operations, entirely new to them, were
executed without a single man being hurt. Better
pontoons he would never wish to have.
On Monday the engineers will be employed in
getting the gun left at Upnor, and the other sunk
at Rochester-bridge, back to the gun-wharf. On
Tuesday, the leaks, (if any) in the copper will be
repaired, and instead of one large hatch for both
compartments of the water-tight partition in each
demi-canoe, extending the whole width of the deck,
with seams half an inch wide at each end, secured
by India rubber in a manner which did not exclude
the water, two small square hatches will be formed
independent of one another, each having its own
pump hole and plug perfectly water tight, both
raised a little above the deck, and just sufficient to
admit a man to get down into the interior of the
demi-canoe.
This was the arrangement of the original decked
copper canoes of 1819-20, over which the wares
caused by high winds and conflicting tides rolled
harmless, the restoration of which renders the post-
ponement for another week necessary, after which
Sir Charles will try the same experiments, at old
Rochester-bridge that failed on Saturday, with
full confidence of success.