The Sun.
London, England, 1861-02-07 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, THU RSDAY EV_ENIING, FEBRUARY 7, 1861.

THE NAVY.

Bear Admiral Sir Baldwin W. Walker, K.C.8.,
was yesterday appointed to be Commander in
Chief at the Cape of Good Hope and West Coast
of Africa stations, vice Rear Admiral the Hon.
Sir Henry Keppel, K.C.B.
Rear Admiral the Hon. Sir Henry Keppel,
K.C.8., was yesterday appointed Commander in
Chief on the South-east Coast of America station,
vice Rear Admiral Sir Stephen Lushington, K.C.8.,
whose period of command has expired.
Letters received by the Brazil mail by our
Southampton correspondent state that Her Ma-
jesty's ship Ardent, with the mails from Buenos
Ayres, and the Caracoa, from Maldonado, arrived
at Montevideo on the 29th of December. On the
arrival of the Royal Mail steamer Mersey at
Buenos Ayres, on the 14th of December, the bottom
of her port cylinder was carried away, and on the
circumstance being reported to the English Ad-
miral he ordered that the homeward mails should
be taken to Montevideo :by Her Majesty's ship
Ardent, and thence transferred to Her Majesty's
ship Buzzard for conveyance to Rio de Janeiro.
The Mersey took in the passengers and cargo, as
usual, and made a very good run to Montevideo,
doing it in 12 hours, which is at the rate of
11 knots per hour. She left Montevideo on the
30th, and experienced very bad weather, with a
heavy sea, the ship rolling considerably, and made
the run to Rio in six days. At Monte Video the
mails were transferred from H.M.S. Ardent to the
Buzzard, which left on the 31st, and arrived at Rio
on the 9th January.
Her Majesty's steam packet Caradoc, recently
employed in the Mediterranean, was on Monday
paid off at Woolwich, and will be put out of corn-

mission.
The Isis, 44, sailing ship, at Chatham, fitting for
the coast of Africa, is ordered to be ready to be
undocked on Saturday next.
The Immortalite, 51, screw, Capt. G. Hancock,
under orders for Lisbon, still remained at Spithead
up to dark yesterday, a strong south-west wind
having been blowing the previous 36 hours.
The Geyser, 6, paddle, Commander Jackson, ar-
rived at Spithead on Tuesday evening from the
eastward, with supernumeraries. Yesterday a por-
tion of them were transferred to the Immortalite,
at Spithead, and to the St. Vincent, in Portsmouth
hafoour. The Geyser afterwards went into the
harbour to fill up coal.
The Cossack, 20, screw, Captain R. Moorman, is
stripped to her lower masts in dock at Portsmouth,
refitting. Her rigging is receiving an overhaul
alongside the rigging house.
The Volcano, paddle (floating factory), has been
masted in the basin at Portsmouth, and is being
completed in her outfit for the first class reserve by
the riggers and steam reserve.
The Philomel, 5, screw, commander L. Wildman,
at Portsmouth, had her official trial of speed, at
deep draught, deferred yesterday, owing to the
strength of the wind.
The Lords of the Admiralty have ordered that
Lieut. Campbell, R.M.L.1., shall be struck off the
list, for having been absent from duty on board her
Majesty's ship Colossus without leave. First Lieut.
Johnson, of the Portsmouth division, embarks on
board the Colossus, vice Campbell.
_ _ .

Capt. H. B. Roberts, from the Light Infantry
Division of Royal Marines. joins the Artillery Divi-
sion, vice Davis, who is placed on half-pay from
ill health.

In accordance with the recent orders issued by
the Admiralty for the discharge of 800 of the
hired hands from Chatham dockyard, 58 of the
supernumerary mechanics and labourers have
received notice that their services will not be
required after the 23d inst., on which day they will
leave the establishment. A similar number will be
discharged weekly until the 25th of May, by which
day the entire number will have left the dockyard.
The serpent, screw steam sloop, 200. horse power,
recently received at Chatham from the contract
builders, is ordered to be fitted for the third
divi-
sion of the steam reserve at that port.
Tynemouth garrison is now the ordnance depot
for that portion of the north-east coast lying be•
tween Berwick and Hull, and a quantity of shed
and shell and other ammunition has been recently
stored there, which will be served out for volunteer
artillery practice during the summer months.
Messrs. R. Morrison and Co., of Ousburn, New-
castle-on-Tyne, cast on Saturday an enormous anvil
block, weighing upwards of 34 tons, for the Elswick
Ordnance Works. The melting of the metal occu-
pied five hours, and the immense mass will take
three weeks to cool, when it will be removed to its
bed at Elswick.
The following appointments have been made at
the Admiralty :—Lieut. R. S. Moore, to the Im-
pregnable ; Lieut. H. C. A. Brand, to the Royal
Adelaide ; Lieut. J. B. Scott, to the Formidable,
for the Lizard ; Lord Albert S. P. Clinton, naval
cadet, to the Nile ; F. R. Dicken, naval cadet, to
the Aboukir; L. G. P. Goodrich, midshipman, to
the Donegal ; R. W. Wodehouse, midshipman, to
the Aboukir ; H. B. Stewart, N. H. Ward, and G.
M. Loch, midshipmen, to the Princess Royal ; and
D. F. Steddy, second class assistant-engineer, to
the Immortalite ; Commander J. Montgomerie, to
the Centaur, vice Aplin, promoted ; Commandei S.
C. Greville to the Sanspareil; Commander H. B.
Woolcombe to the Queen; Lieut. Maxwell Fox to
the Edgar ; Lieut. W. N. Cornewall to the En-
counter ; John W. Lowe, master to the Imaum ;
George Treviss, chief engineer, to the Cumberland,
for service in the Barossa ; Andrew Douglas, chief
engineer, to the Russell ; Peter Greetham, second-
class assist.-engineer to the Cumberland, for ser-
vice in the Dart ; George G. Brodie, midshipman,
to the Jason ; James Browning Young has been
appointed to a naval cadetship; Geo. Lapidge, pay-
master addition al, to the Cumberland ; Wm. Carter,
assist.-paymaster, to the Majestic ; Henry V.
Forrest, assist.-paymaster,to the Meander; William
A. Brown, assist.-paymaster, to the Donegal ; Wm.
Nottidge, clerk, to the Meander ; John H. F. Max-
well, clerk (supernumerary), to the Narcissus ; and
Edward L. Bisson, assist.-clerk, to the Narcissus.

the probationary clerks will be ss. a•day, and that
the emoluments of established clerks will be as fol-
lows :--ss. per diem with allowances till the com-
pletion of the first five years of their service, in-
creasing at the rate of ls. per day for every addi-•
tional five years' service, up to a maximum of Os.

per diem.
On Monday Dr. J. B. Gibson, C. 13,, Director-
General of the Army medical Department, accom-
panied by Sir J. R. Martin, M.D , C. 8., physician
to the lion. Council of India, and also one of the
members of the Senate of the Army Medical School,
Fort Pitt, Chatham, arrived at the establishment,
for the purpose of making themselves practically
acquainted with the progress made by the medical
candidates in•their studies, and superintending the
competitive examination of the students now being
held by Professors Longmore, M D., Parkes, M.D.,
and Aitken, M.D. On their arrival at the General
Hospital they were met by Dr. Hume, the principal
medical officer of the garrison ; Dr. Longmore,
Deputy Inspector General ; and Staff Surg. Barron,
M.D., and proceeded in the first instance to make a
minute inspection of the various wards of the
hospital, and examining the books and returns kept
in the establishment. They then proceeded to the
Lunatic Hospital, which is set apart for the soldiers
sent home insane from-India and the colonies, and
made a similarly careful inspection of that esta-
blishment, and subsequently visited the casements,
kitchens, and other departments, with the general
good order and extreme cleanliness of all of which
they expressed themselves much gratified. They
then visited the ',Museum, and examined the im-
provements now in progress, the medical library,
and Army Medical School, where they witnessed
the candidates at the competitive examination for
commissions as army surgeons, and again expressed
themselves highly satisfied at the result of their
visit. The establishment of the Army Medical
School at Chatham has proved of the greatest uti-
lity. Under the superintendence of Dr. Longmore
and Dr. Parkes the candidates for commissions
have been daily instructed in the various duties
appertaining to the members of the army and
medical professin.
The whole of the circumstances connected with

the recent terrible explosion at the Chatham Royal
Engineer establishment, together with a copy of
the report drawn up by the officers composing the
board of inquiry ordered to investigate the causes
of the unfortunate occurrence, having been laid be-
fore the Duke of Cambridge, his Royal Highness
has so far expressed his dissatisfaction that he has
directed a further inquiry to be instituted, in order
to clear up certain points in connection with the
accident. Yis Royal Highness desires information
as to the reason for using the north gun-shed for
the purposes of a laboratory, with other circum-
stances connected with the accident which call for
explanation. The two sappers mostinjured—Smith,
who occasioned the accident, and Rogers, who re-
ceived the severest injuries—as well as all the other
sufferers by the explosion, are progressing very fa-
vourably, and it is expected that several of them
will be sufficiently recovered to allow of their leav-
ing the Royal Engineer Hospital in the course of
the next few days.

EARL DE GREY AND RIPON AND 271 E
VOLUNTEERS.

ing from the spontaneous patriotism of the nation,
that it should be permitted, within the limits of
those necessary rules, to deyelope itself in the
freest and most unfettered manner.

" Heartily concurring in these principles, I en-
deavoured to apply them in the daily conduct of
the business of my office, and, while I always main-
tained the just and proper authority of the Secre-
tary of State, I trust that I never forgot that I had
to deal with a body of volunteers who were freely
sacrificing their time, their money, and their per-
sonal convenience in the service of their Sovereign
and their country, and who were on every ground
entitled to receive the utmost consideration at the
hands of the Government.
" I do not pretend to say that the task was free
from difficulty, but it was to me truly a labour of
love, and it was greatly lightened, after the com-
mencement of last year, by the able and invaluable
assistance which I received from the Inspector-
General of Volunteers, CoL M‘Murdo.
" Mention is made in the address of the succees
which atfended the great gatherings of volunteers
which took place last summer, but very little indeed
of the credit of that success is due to me. It was
Col. M'Murdo who organised those gatherings, and
as far as the official arrangements are concerned,
the chief praise is due to him.
" But if you are good enough to thank me for
the efforts I have made to aid in the development
and to promote the efficiency of the volunteer
force, I have far greater reason to thank you and
the commanding officers of volunteer corps through-
out the county for the frank and hearty co-opera-
tion by which you rendered comparatively easy the
duties which I had to discharge. I have frequently
had occasion to invite you, as commanding officers
of metropolitan corps, and as representing to a great
degree the feelings f the Volunteers generally, to
meet me and discuss questions of interest to the
force, as they arose; and from the ready assistance
which you always gave me on such occasions I de-
rived the greatest advantage.
" I do not deny that the inevitable severance of
my official connection with the volunteers has been
to me a source of much regret ; but it is an unex-
pected, and I fear little deserved gratification to
have received at your hands this mark of your con-
fidence, to which I shall always attach the highest
value, and for which I shall ever be most grateful.
" I have the honour to be, my lords and gentle-
men, your most faithful servant,
"DE GREY AND RIPON.
"1, Carlton-gardens, S.W., Feb. 6."