The Sun.
London, England, 1861-10-05 00:00:00

2HE NAVY.

The line-of-battle screw steamer Bombay, 81,
400 horse-power, returned to her moorings at Folly
Point, Chatham, yesterday afternoon, after making
a two days' trial trip for the purpose of testing
her engines and machinery. The Bombay was
built a few years ago for the Government at Bom-

bay, and before her alteration to a screw steamer
was one of the finest line-of-battle sailing ships of
her rating afloat. On being converted into a screw
steamer at Chatham she was lengthened about 50
feet, and fitted with a pair of 400-horse power en-
gines. During the run the number of revolutions
made per minute by the screw, with all the ;boilers
at work, was 64, and at half-power 42 ; the draught
of water forward was 20 feet 2 inches, and aft 16
feet 6 inches ; the average rate of speed during the
trial being 10.19 knots. On the whole the engines
worked satisfactorily. The Bombay is to be
attached to the second division of the steam reserve

at Chatham.
The Warrior, 40, screw, Capt. the Hon. A. A.
Cochrane, C. 8., will be undocked at Portsmouth to-
day, and berthed in the harbour, where she will
continue to receive her general outfit until the 10th
inst. We have been officially requested to announce
" that, as the painting of the interior of the ship
will commence on Monday, no visitors will be
allowed on board after to-day (Saturday)."
The Emerald, 50, screw, Capt. A. Cumming, un-
der orders for Halifax, with Armstrong guns, shot,
&c., for the West India squadron, embarked super-
numeraries at Spithead yesterday. She was ex-
pected to leave before daylight this morning.
The screw steamship Donegal, 99, Capt. S.
Osborn, one of the Channel fleet, arrived in Ply-
mouth Sound on Friday afternoon.
The screw steamship Albion, 91, was hauled yes-
terday under the steam crane of the north basin at
Keyham-station-yard, for the purpose of receiving
her machinery.
The Chesapeake, 50, screw frigate, Capt. R.
Maguire, sailed from Spithead at daylight yesterday
for Sheerness, where she is to dismantle and be put
out of commission.

The Rattlesnake, 21, screw steam corvette, which
was some time since launched from No. 1 slip,
Chatham dockyard, is being rapidly completed.

She is still lying alongside the Gloucester, receiving
hulk, in the harbour, and a large number of hands
belonging to the yard are employed upon her
interior fitments. The fitting of her engines and
machinery is also making good progress under the
hands of a large body of the men of the contractors,
Messrs. Ravenhill, Salkeld, and Co.
The-Lords of the Admiralty having directed the
iron screw steamer Defence, 22, at Chatham, to be
fitted with Cunningham's patent self-reefing top-
sa ifs, the invention is now being fitted to the yards
an d masts at Chatham Dockyard, under the supe-
rintendence of the patentee. The fore and main
yards for the Defence are each upwards of 90 feet
in ,length, and weigh four tons each. The fore and
main topmasts are 55 feet in length, which is some-
what less than is usually carried by vessels of simi-
lar rating. The Defence, however, will trust more
to her lower masts, which are to be of wrought iron
and of great strength and weight. The operation of
placing the Defence in the third dock will take place
at spring tide this afternoon, orders to that effect
having been yesterday evening received from the
Admiralty. It was originally intended to mast the
Defence before she was docked, but, as every effort
is to be made to get her to sea as quickly as possible,
no time is to be lost in completing her; and, her
iron lower masts not having yet arrived, it is decided
that she shall no longer wait for them. The Defence
draws about 22 feet 4 inches aft, and about 19 feet
forward, but it is believed that not the least difficulty
will be found in docking her, the blocks on which
she will be placed having been reduced to give her
a greater depth. About 100 additional shipwrights
will be entered on Monday, to be employes in com-
pleting her internal fittings.
A semi-official trial of a patented compass took
place on -Wednesday evening on board her Majesty's
ship Britwania at Portsmouth, under the supervi-
sion of Capt. Robert Harris, commanding the Bri-
tannia. The object of the invention is to dispense
with the binnacle light on occasions when it may
be necessary to do so. In the coasting trade it must
be obvious to all that if the compass card could be
read on a dark night at sea, without the helmsman's
eyes being partially blinded by the binnacle light, a
wonderful advantage would be gained in enabling
the man steering the vessel to look instantly into
the darkness surrounding its pathway with the same
power of vision as before looking at the compass, a
thing impossible under the present circumstances.
The point is of equal importance to a ship 1,000
miles from land. The compass tested on 'Wednes-
day by Captain Harris and his officers is provided
by its patentee with a card which he says will do
away with the necessity for using any light in the
binnacle to read its points on the darkest nights.
The compass tested on Wednesday was of the size
used for boat service, and against it was fitted
one of the Britannia's ordinary boat compasses
The night was so extraordinarily dark that the
ordinary compass, to use the words of the officers
present, " could not be seen," while all felt
confident that they would feel no difficulty in
steering a boat within a point by the patent
compass without using a light." Capt. Harris has
given a decidedly favourable opinion on its imme-
diate adoption into the Royal Navy as a boat corn-

pass.
The Java, old 50-gun sailing frigate, is to be
brought down the harbour to be prepared as a tar-
get ship for the Excellent.
A Portuguese screw corvette passed through
Spithead to day on her way to Southampton, and
exchanged salutes with the flag-ship of the Com-
mander-in-Chief.
The Swedish frigate Nordkjoping, 32, Capt. Ad-
lersparre, from Carlscrona for New York, arrived in
Plymouth Sound on Thursday afternoon.
The dockyard lighter }lamoaze, W. Webber, mas-
ter, from Deptford, arrived in Plymouth on Thurs-
day.

,;,„ The Sanspareil arrived at Plymouth last night
with naval and military invalids and condemned
stores. She left Malta on the 19th and Gibraltar 1
on the 28th ult., and experienced fine weather on
her passage home.
The following vessels have been chartered by the
War Department for the conveyance of stores to
India, China, and the colonies :—The Pride of the
Ocean, 1,169 tons, and the Fairlie, 755 tons, for
lorabay ; the Star Queen, 769 tons, for Hong
Kong ; the Damietta, 265 tons, for St. Helena ; the
Witch of the Seas, 343 tons, for the Cape of Good
Hope; and the Matlah, 313 tons, for Algoa Bay.
The deaths of tho following officers have been
officially reported at the Admiralty during the
quarter ended the Ist inst. :—Admiral the Hon. Sir
F. B. R. Pellew, C.B. ; Admiral Sir B.
Reynolds, "--.C.8.; Vice-Admiral Sir T. Herbert,
K.C.B. ; Rear-Admiral the Hon. F. T. Pelham,
CIL ; Capts. W. F. Glaville, P. Gostling, J. Mac-
donald, and IL B°teler; Commanders J. 0. Ba-
thurst, 11. Parry, R. 11. Baroden, J. Pettey) S.
Valobra, T. Mitchell, L. Dickenson, F. 1). Lanzon,
J, T. titling, B. Lewis, T. Francillon, J. Chapman,
M. O'Hea, Tt. Brunton, W. White, andW. Miller;
Licuts. R. B. Beale, E. J. Squire, S. Sampson, w.
Radford, S. Wilkinson, and H. W. Harvey ;
tors C. J. Parker, C. A. Cleveland, 11. A. Martin
W. Rickman, It. Thompson, J. Perriam, and J.
Rundle ; Surgeons It. T. Easton, W. Fisher, w.
don and Y. Gannon ; Assist. -
Surgeons M.
Clayton, J.
I‘All. iad
,Grath ;TR:. M‘Donnell, T. B. Martin,
C. W. Wise, E. T. Rol, e 3-1 a... Ellie, W. T. fiddle-
nd J. Rogers ; Pavmae.
fere IT. IV. Ilrevienne,
combe, W. T. Hills, and A. Barren ; Naval Instruc-
tor J. L. Hodgson, M.A. ; Aseiste-Payitn. tors
D'Albertanson and J. G. Francklyn. 0311_,Aleas-
rines—Gen. W. H. Connolly, Capts. 1). J James
and J. Dowman, Licuts. J. Ede, J. W. Clapperten,
J. Jackson, W, Davies, and J. Barry.
The following appointments were made yester-
day at the Admiralty :—Lieut. C.D. Broughton, to
the Medea; :Lieut. F. H. H. Hutchinson, to the
Megmra; I. D. Willahire, second master, to the
Dasher ; S. T. Wallis, promoted to Ist class assist.-
engineer in the Recruit ; G. F. Graves, acting 2d
class assist.-engineer to the Asia as supernumerary.
Mr. R. D. B. Bruce and Mr. A. F. St. Clair have
been nominated to naval cadetships.