The Sun.
London, England, 1861-12-04 00:00:00

mont up to the departure of the last mail. The list
looks sufficiently well on paper, though, when we

come to examine it,its formidable aspect very rapidly
disappears. It is not too much to say that the whole
of the first portion of the list down to the screw
frigates only enumerates the names of old wooden

vessels, which can scarcely be counted as forming
any part of the effective Federal Navy. The Penn-
sylvania,l2o, sounds quite large, though, in reality,
this old vessel is as harmless as our own Victory,

and would fall an easy prey to any of the really

powerful American frigates, such as the Niagara,
the Brooklyn, the Lancaster, or the Pensacola. In

fact, of the first ten ships of the line which head
the catalogue not one has ever had a gun in

her except the Pennsylvania, which mounts six.
The rest, with the exception of the Vermont, are
all about the oldest specimens afloat of the very
old school of sailing liners. Of the whole ten, four
were begun before 1820, and have lain in ordinary
ever since, and are, in fact, contemporaries of the
clay-coloured Benbows and Melpomenes that en-
cumber the waters of the Medway and Hamoaze,

Four others in this list were commenced in 1815

and 1818, and are still on the stocks, after a lapse of
45 years ! The same remarks apply to most of the
sailing frigates, some of which, as our readers will
see, were built nearly as far back as 70 years ago,

and even the most modern are constructed on the
old model as to size. - How our own naval archi-

,ects would stare at being requested to get 50 guns

into a ship of 1,600 tons, which, allowing for the
difference of American tonnage, represents little
over 1,300 tons of ours! In fact, most of the Ame-
rican sailing war vessels are always spoken of by
the officers in our service as being " a box of guns."

Thus, the St. Louis, Vandalia, Jamestown, and
Plymouth, though some of not more than 700 Ame-

dean tons, and nene over 1,000, all carry arma-
ments as numerous and almost as heavy as our
frigates of nearly four times their size. The result
is that " the quarters" in action are so crowded
with men and confined in space that the guns can-
not be handled, while every enemy's shot coming on
board tells with appalling effect among the close
groups of seamen. It was the knowlege of the fatal
disadvantages under which they laboured in this
respect as compared with the frigates of other na-

tions that led the United States' officers to press
upon their Government for the construction of
frigates of the largest class, capable of carrying
heavy guns, and, at the same time, allowing the
crews an ample space to work them in. And here
we come to the really formidable portion of the
Federal Navy. The Niagara was the first attempt
at vessels of this class. It was built by M. Steers,
the builder of the fur-famed yacht America, He,
however, like all other yacht builders, East or
West, sacrificed everything to speed, and so it was
found on trial that the Niagara, a vessel of 4,600
tons, was so deeply immersed that the idea
of a main deck battery of 30 huge guns had
to be given up entirely, and her armament
reduced to 12 11-inch Dahlgren shell-guns,
all on the spar deck. She is still, however,
from her great speed (with steam and sail she can
always command from 14 to 15 knots an hour) and
her heavy long range armament a formidable cruiser.
In their next efforts the American Government
were more fortunate, and in the Lancaster, Pensa-
cola, Brooklyn, Hartford, and Richmond, five large
and powerful vessels were produced, and sent afloat
in 1859. The Brooklyn is the best of these, and
the type of her class. With great sailing qualities
and high steam power, she can go at almost any
rate she pleases, and, above all, she carries well an
armament of 25 11-inch shell guns of great length.
These enormous ordnance very much resemble in
outward appearance east-iron champagne bottles,
and their weight is so great (with their carriages,
nearly nine American tons) that the whole of her
crew is required to handle one broadside effectively.
She, however, and her sisters we have mentioned
would still prove heavy overmatches for any slower
and lighter armed vessels of war. The Sill Jacinto
was the first experimental vessel of this class, and
the Brooklyn is the last and best. No vessel, we
may mention, is better known in our service than
the Brooklyn, from the part which Captain Walker
took when the outcry prevailed in America against
the British right of search for slavers. During that
exciting time, when a Mosquito fleet of ferry boats
and steamers, mounting one gun each, was sent by
the Federal Government to the West Indian sta-
tion, the Brooklyn made herself conspicuous by
heatinoo t 0 nuartprg —henevpr an EturliQh
-man of
war entered Port Royal, and training her guns, so
that all might bear on the new corner. This insult
was so persistently renewed that the English ships
at last replied in kind, and beat to quarters too,
whenever the Brooklyn was seen coming towards
them off a harbour. But our strongest vessel on
the station then was only the Devastation paddle-
sloop of six guns. We may, perhaps, mention that
the Orlando, 51, and the Mersey, 32, two of the
largest frigates in the world, were designed and
built as a kind of answer to the building of the Nift'
gars, while the Ariadne and the Galatea quite
compensate to our navy for the Brooklyn and ves-
sels of her class.
Perhaps, however, the vessel from the employ'
ment of which the Federals entertain the greatest
expectations is Steven's half-submerged iron-plated
battery, which is to carry four guns of 15 inches
and four of 18 ! But everything connected with the
construction of this vessel is so utterly novel and
peculiar that it would be impossible to describe it
in this abstract of the Federal Navy.
The total number of captains, commanders, and
lieutenants in the navy, amounting in all to upwards
of 450, had, up to June last, been reduced by the
secession to nearly 200. Since that date very mall
others have joined the cause of the South,—among
them the celebrated Commander Maury, whose
name in connexion with the progress of the scientific)
departments of the American Navy is known
hroughout Europe.

TILE BRAZIL AND RIVER PLATE MAIL

SOUTHAMPTON, DEC. 4•

The Royal Mail steamship Magdalena, with the
above mails, has arrived here. She brings 38 pas;
sengers, £44,580 in specie, and 3,060 packages Of
cargo.
There is no news of importance from BuenoS
Ayres. The town of Parana had been abandoned'
and was quiet. Derqui remained at Santa Fe, and
had refused to resign. The province of Tucurnail
is in a state of complete anarchy. General Nazat
had been appointed Military Governor of Bowl.
The Buenos Ayres market showed signs of ani-
mation consequent on the better aspect of political
affairs. The clip of wool was expected to be good
in quality and quantity. Sales of unwashed had
been effected at 50dol. to 70do1. per arroba, accord'
ing to quality. Sales of dry ox and cow hidee
limited, for English market, 39 to 40 reals.
At Bahia, sugar was in demand at improved
prices. Browns were quoted 2,200 reis per arroba
for regular, and 2,300 reis for good quality. Price!,
of white were nominal, but little business having
been done. Cotton was purchased for home eon'
sumption at 9,600 to 9,800 reis per arroba. Cafe°
—no transactions had transpired, exporters reflls'
ing the high prices demanded. Freights in brisk
demand at 40s. to 455. per ton to Liverpool.
change, 90 days, 25a.
The arrivals of sugar at Pernambuco exceed 01.:
average of late years. The quality of browns 10
fair; prices firm, at 2,100 reis per arroba.
quotations of cotton had advanced to 12,100 rel.:
per arroba. Fine quality hides, dry salted, 180 01
per lb. Freights sought after at advanced rafOl
Exchange, 251 to 261.
At Rio the coffee-market was active. The sale!
for the month comprise 151,370 bags. QuotaticV
were unaltered.
Hides.-8,000 had been sold at 300 to 330
leaving 11,000 in stock.
Freights in great demand—to Liverpool, 0'
Discount unaltered. Exchange, 254. °'
There was nothing worthy of notice in share
specie, and stock.

__—
SOUTH KENSINGTON MUSEUNI.—During the
week ending Nov. 30 the visitors have been as follows
On Monday, Tuesday, and Saturday (free days), 3,629 ;
Monday and Tuesday (free evenings), 3,629 ; on the three
students' days (admission to the public, 6d.), 1,066; one
students' evening (Wednesday), 193; total, 8,517. I.o°
the opening of the museum, 2,368,865,