The Sun.
London, England, 1861-03-30 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, SATURDAY EVENING, MARC El 30, 1861.

Ai It. W. S. WOODIN'S NEW ENTERTAIN-
MENT, the CABINET of CURIOSITIES, POLY-
GRAPHIC HALL, King William-street, Charing-cross,
TO-NIGHT, and EVERY EVENING (except Saturday), at
Eight. Private boxes, £1 ls. ' • Stalls and box stalls, 3s. ;
area, 2s. ; amphitheatre, is. -A plan of the stalls may be
seen, and seats secured (without extra charge), at the Box-
office, from 10 till 4. Morning Performance, Saturday,
March 2.

RGYLL ROOMS. - GRAND MUSICAL
ENTERTAINMENT,
with the Celebrated BAND, Forty in number (established
eleven years), chosen from the Philharmonic Concerts, Royal
Italian Operas, and the Household Troops. Conducted by
Mons. Lamotte. Cornet-a-piston, M. Boulcourt.—Dancing
at Nine o'clock.-18. admission.

THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY ROOMS,
Nigh Holborn.—This popular and magnificently ap-
pointed Ball Room, decidedly the most fashionable and best
conducted entertainment in the world. The very excellent
band, under the able direction of Mr. ?acker, is constantly
introducing the choicest and latest music of the day—a qua-
drille and polka from Balfe's new opera, Bianca; Colleen
Barn Waltz, Garibaldi's Triumphal Galop, &c., among others,
now nightly receive the plaudits of the company. The wines
supplied are of the very choicest quality. The refreshment
rooms are elegant in the extreme, and replete with every
comfort. Admission throughout, is.

GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS—REDUCTION IN SCALE
oP PREMIUMS.
THE EUROPEAN ASSURANCE SOCIETY
-a- ISSUES POLICIES of GUARANTEE, at reduced
rates, for Officials in or under the Treasury, Customs, Inland
Revenue, Board of Trade, Poor-law Board, Admiralty, and
other public dep4rtments, and for bank and railway clerks
and persons in commercial employments.
Further reductions on the combination of life assurance
with guarantee. Annuities granted onfavourable terms.
Forms and' every information may be obtained at the Chief
Office, No. 2, Waterloo-place, Pall-mall, London.

CLARET ONE SHILLING PER BOTTLE,
kJ Twelve Shillings per dozen. HENRY BRETT tt CO.
Importers, Holborn Bars.

Provinces, acknowledging the generosity of the
relief committee at Calcutta in placing three-fifths
of the sum they may collect at his disposal, writes
as follows :

" For the relief of those who from age and infir-
mity are unable to work I have established relief
committees at the headquarters of each of the
distressed districts and a central committee at Agra
for the purpose of inviting and realising subscrip-
tions. The central committee has been placed in
communication with the several district relief com-
mittees and requested to keep themselves informed
as to the available funds and wants of each; and
to aid it in due propottiou to its requirements, so
far as the money at their disposal would permit.
In case it may not be generally known, I may state
that, with the sanction of the Governor-General, I
have engaged on the part of the Government to
double all donations and monthly subscriptions
that may be received from the public. This has
operated in these proinces as a great encourage-
ment to a liberal support of the Government in its
endeavours to
_alleviate the existing distress, and if
it be made generally known, will probably have the
same effect elsewhere."

On the application of the Bengal Chamber of
Commerce, the Governtoent had deputed col. Baird
Smith, who is describe( as an experienced officer,
to the North Western provinces, with the view of
ascertaining and repoitio,g upon the state of the
distressed districts, with special reference to the in-
fluence which the callmityluay have on the im-
port trade of Bengal. •t 4- . _

solution of these problems with others equally
puzzling, prominent among which may be men-
tioned that of placing the, whole apparatus so far
below the water-line as to be perfectly inaccessible
to shot. Hence, the concentration of parts we find
in the engines of the Warrior, hence the enormous
cylinders placed horizontally (and which, though
standing in their lower rim, you cannot reach their
upper circumference with a walking-stick) will still
be seven feet below the Hue at which any fire of an
enemy could reach them. The weight and size of
the pistons might seem at first sight incompatible
with the theory laid down, but the apparent light-
ness of them are indispensable, in order to make
the tremendous steam-power fully available ; and,
in fact, all the dimensions have been carefully regu-
lated by this paramount consideration. As all other
things being equal, the man with the most capa-
cious lungs will win the race, so the marine engine
which can utilise the largest volume of steam will
be the best and swiftest sea horse. Surveying the
condensing apparatus, with its nine-inch injection
pipes, these scientific principles income forcibly
impressed on the mind. The slides may be referred
to as illuStrationsoc the finished workmanship which
characterises every portion of the machinery and
which is also essential to the general result.' Their
surfaces are 6 ft, by 5 ft. 6 in., yet they are scraped
to a true surface with extraordinary-care in order
to reduce to a minimum the power exerted by the
action of the eccentric in pushing them to and fro.
We now come to the steam shaft, which is forged
in-one piece of..malleabladron 30 ft, long and 20in,
in diateter, having two cranks in its length cut out
of the solid. It is not quite .so large as the shaft of
the Great Eastern engines, but •from the fact of its
having, two throws or cranks in it was even more
difficult_ O Make. - It' is a wonderful specimen of
smith's( work,' and a grand proof of what the steam
hammer has enabled nsto accomplish in overcoming
these mechanical difficulties. The screw, 24 ft. in
diameter, p,nd weighing about 18 tons, is 120 fle
from ofo enqtnes, and is connected with
,the main
shaft by successive shafts each 26 ft. long by 18 in.
in diameter: • The screw alley is 9 ft, wide by 7 high,
at the stern there is -the usual well, fitted with the
hoisting 'apparatus for raising the screw to the deck.
The bearing on which the screw works are lined
with lignum vitce, a very beautiful, economical, and
simple application, first discovered by Mr. Penn,
and by which the immenie cost of repairs froni the
effect of friction' on the old brass bearings are re-
duced to . a nominal amount. The Warrior. will
[ have two funnels eaoh. & feet in diameter and '25
feet above the deck, but of course made telescopic.
Taken altogether, the machinery required for pro-
,
[ pnlsion will weigh 890 tons—a great weight, cer-
tainly, though not, so much when one remembers
that the power exerted by it will be little short of
6,000 horses indicated. Great carahas been taken
with the framing, foundations, and other accessories
of the engines and screw, so that whatever test they
may be pelt to in actual war service all risk of their
being found defective in point of strength is avoided.
Thus, in
.the possible event of the Warrior being
used as a ram—an idea which seems now exploded
—the engines are bedded down firmly in wrought-
iron girders of the most massive kind, which are
built into the frame of the ship. So,' again, the
stern and rudder posts, on which the screw revolves,
are prodigious forgings, involving such extraordi-
nary difficulties in their execution that the former
was only completed after nine months' labour, car:
ried on day and night Without intermission. One
striking result of the gigantic scale on which these
engines are planned is that it will be quite safe for
the engineers in charge to move about among the
working parts while in motion—an advantage
which has been facilitated by. the introduction of
light iron ladders in various places. In a similar
spirit the cylinder cover and those of the conden
sers can be removed.‘4 the',interrialpaEts
.irrtittrtiOleneVer'neassa*lird`lhe we replaced
again in twenty-four hours. In case of leak, besides
the ordinary provision made for such mishaps,
the injection pipes to the condensers may be used
for pumping. The boilers can all be worked in-
dependently of each other, and the slides are so
arranged that no mistake can possibly be made
in turning on steam. Viewed as a whole, what
strikes us most in these engines is not so much
their size or the simplicity of the general design, or
even the artistic proportions of the details ; it is the
combination of these qualities with an almost mar-
vellous perfection of workmanship which gives to
the whole its chief interest and importance. Enor-
mous sizes in machinery are in themselves matters
of comparatively easy accomplishment but to unite
with these the same soundness, finish, and accuracy
of fitting as are attainable with moderate dimen-
sions is a matter of the utmost difficulty. To
accomplish this is the real test of mechanical excel-
lence, and of such excellence the engines of the
Warrior are unrivalled examples. When our
engineers first attempted marine engines on the
great scale required for ocean steam navigation they
were not very successful ; but by simplifying the
parts, paying increased attention to the quality of
I the material, and striving to secure perfect accuracy
and finish in every detail, they have at length
triumphed over all obstacles. Messrs. Penn and
Son, beginning with the little river boats, and
working up from that standard to the largest
engines for war purposes, have led the way in this
direction, and thus secured their eminent position,
as marine engine makers. Of that eminence the
engines of the Warrior are a splendid proof. The
engines of the Black Prince, recently launched by
Napier at Glasgow, will be precisely similar to
those of the Warrior. These have also been com-
pleted by Messrs. Penn, and are now being put
together on the