The Sun.
London, England, 1861-10-30 00:00:00

lIIE NAVY.

A plan has been recently submitted to the autho-
r.ties for the improvement of the channel of entrance
the harbour of Portsmouth, and for giving an in-
c eased area of basin accommodation, and has created
uch attention from its comprehensiveness and
n oderate cost, The urgent necessity for the creation
o. large docks for the reception of iron ships of war
acknowledged on all sides, and it is understood
twat steps will be taken by the Board of Admiralty
t construct the first of such docks in the north-east
ortion of the mud lands of Portsmouth harbour.
Other accommodation must, however, be found for
these iron steamers besides docks, such as steam
LiSHIS, coaling wharfs, &c. The plan to which refer-
I nee is made provides this accommodation in the
following manner :—The shoals which separate
Portsmouth harbour channel from the deep water

t Spithead are of a nearly triangular form, the
base extending from Blockhouse Fort, on the west
t ide of the mouth of Portsmouth harbour, to Fort
2,lonkton, at the east end of Stokes Bay, the apex
cf the triangle being near the Spit Buoy, and oppo-
site Southsea Castle. It is proposed in the terms
used in the specifications " to inclose these shoals
with two tiers of whole bulk cofferdam piles, with ties
and braces complete, filled in with excavations from
the shoals, which would thus become of sufficient
depth in the area inclosed within this piling for
Iwo basins ; the one at the base of the triangle to
be an inner floating basin of about 216 acres, the
(cuter one, at the apex of the triangle, to be a tidal
I)asin of about 125 acres." The plan includes wharfs
over the piling 200 feet wide, with lines of railway
on their inner and outer faces; a coaling depot on
each side of the entrance at the apex of the work,
each capable of holding 100,000 tons, with a light-
house over each. The author of the plans, a civil
engineer of good standing, estimates the cost at
£450,000 only. A glance at the chart of Ports-
mouth harbour and Spithead will show that by the
construction of these walls, or wharfs, the one ex-
tending from the mouth of Portsmouth harbour
along the side of the harbour channel to the Spit
Buoy would confine the flood and ebb tides to the
channel proper, instead of wasting their strength,
more especially the ebb, as at present, on that
part of the shoal between Blockhouse and
the outer swashway. Under these im-
improved circumstances the tides would per-
form their natural functions, the so-called
" bar " of the harbour channel would rapidly dis-
appear, and no fears would be entertained in future
as to the want of a depth of water in any part of
the approaches to the port. The second point to be
noticed is the vast amount of basin area and wharf-
age which would be gained for the berthing, coal-
ing, and storing our men-of-war, and thus allowing
the interior of Portsmouth harbour to be reserved
chiefly for docks. With an inner floating basin of
216 acres, and an outer tidal basin of 125 acres, the
accommodation afforded is beyond what could be
obtained at any other point in the Channel. At first
sight the plan appears open to objection from its
exposed state to the attack of an enemy at Spit-
head, but, although not included in the plan, being
very properly left to the Royal Engineers, it is
evident, on examining the drawings of the work,
that it would become the strongest part of the sea
defences of the port by simply constructing bat-
teries along its line of broad wharfs, and that the
necessity for constructing the contemplated heavy
fort on the Spit would be dono away with ; or, if
the fort must be conrtructcd, that it would form an
appropriate guard to the entrance to the basins.

A naval court-martial assembled yesterday on
board her Majesty's ship Victory, at Portsmouth, for
the trial of James Mathews, a private in the Royal
Marines, on the charges, inter alia, of having stolen
a silver watch and gold chain, the property of Mr.
Sturt, naval cadet on board the Hero. The prisoner
was sentenced to be reduced to second class, to re-
ceive 48 lashes, and to be imprisoned for nine months
in Winchester gaol.
Her Majesty's line-of-battle screw steamer Orion,
89, GOO-horse power, Capt. John J. T. E. Frere,
arrived at the Little Nore, on Sunday, from the
Mediterranean, and immediately saluted the flag of
Vice-Admiral W. J. Hope Johnstone, Commander-
in-Chief, which was retcrned by thiS Formidable,
84, Captain W. J. Luard. On the following morn-
ing Admiral Johnstone embarked on board the
Wildfire paddlewheel steamer, Master-Commander
G. Brockman, and proceeded to the Nore to in-
spect the Orion, and was received by the officers
and crew in the customary manner. The gal-
lant Admiral minutely inspected the various
parts of the ship. He afterwards mustered the crew
and exercised them at the great guns. Before leav-
ing tho Orion he expressed himself much pleased
with the high state of perfection in which the ship
and crow were found. She will immediately strip
and pay off.

The Phaeton, 51, screw steam frigate, 400 horse-
power, is being prepared in No. 3 dock at Sheerness
for immediate commission. This fine frigate was
formerly one of the " crack" sailing frigates of the
navy, and about two years since was lengthened 30
feet and converted into a sere w steamer, since which
she is one of the best of the converted class of 51-
gun screw frigates.

The, screw steamship Revenge, 91, Capt. C. Fel-
lowes, flag of Rear-Admiral Robert Smart, K.H.,
left Plymouth Sound yesterday afternoon to join
the Warrior at Portland. Flag-Lieut. F. H. Co-
lomb, of the guardship in steam ordinary, is gone in
the Revenge to test his system of night signals by
flashesproduced from an ordinary lamp, the light of
which is enclosed in a movable cylinder acted on by
the barrel of the machine, which in some respects is
on the same principle as that of an ordinary barrel
organ. The weight of the entire apparatus does
not exceed 801 b.

The crew of the gunboat Skipjack, which left the
Sound for Spithead on Monday morning and put
back in consequence of strong easterly winds, will
be paid off at Plymouth instead of Portsmouth.
She is now in Hamoaze.

Orders were received yesterday at Devonport to
prepare the Aboukir, 90, and Centurion, 80, for
foreign service forthwith. it is conjectured at
Plymouth that these ships will be sent to Mexico.

In The Sun of the 17th and 22d current refer-
ence was made to a trial trip of the Maid of Kent
steamer to test the most effectual method of disen-
gaging ships' boats in cases of emergency. Clifford's
apparatus was not that exclusively approved.
There were four boats ordered by the London,
Chatham, and Dover Railway Company for the
vessel making the trip, two of which were on Clif-
ford's plan, and two on Rogers's ; the latter having
been ascertained to be particularly well suited for
being lowered while the vessel to which they are
attached is in rapid mot'
The following appointments were made yester-
day at the Admiralty- • aent. Cecil G. S. Stanley,
additional, to the Catnbc—id Pleat. George Morice,
to the Forte ; Lieut. St. Jgohen; Coventry, to the Cum-
berland ; David Craigie, master,
the Victory ;
Coo. Macfarlane, mabter, additional
to
tto the Asia for
the Esk ; Frank Buckley, na:malniidansah'
irpureataponar:
t 0
00
theth e
Aboukir; Charles G. Hunt
assist-
ant, Orpheus ; Daniel J. Hamilton, assistant-
to the Revenge; William J. Taylor, mastegn
ant, to the Orpheus; Charles M. Dobson, master's
assistant, to the Firebrand ; Thomas C. Foote,
master's assistant, to the Virago ; and George L.
Miller, clerk, to the Victory, as supernumerary.