The Sun.
London, England, 1861-04-29 00:00:00

EVENING, APRIL 29, 1861.

2'HE NAVY.

NEVI SHIPS ORDERED TO BE BUILT AT CHATHAM.
—Five screw steamships are ordered to be built in
Chatham Dockyard, in addition to those-now on
the slips building—viz., Pactolas, 22, corvette;
Diligence, 17 Boadicea, 51 ; Salamis, 4 ; and Al-
batross, 4. Those now on the stocks are—Royal
Oak, 91; Bulwark, 91; Belvidere, 51 ; Menai, 21;
and Reindeer, 17.
Great progress has been made in the completion
of the screw corvette Rattlesnake, 22 guns, pre-
parieg for launching at Chatham dockyard. The
Rattlesnake is to be furnished with a pair of en-
gines, each of 200-horse power, by Messrs. Raven-
bill and Co., and a portion of the machinery con-
nected with the working of the screw has already
been delivered at the dockyard, and is being put on
board by the engineers employed by the contractors.
The shaft for working the screw is a fine piece of
metal, weighing 6 tons 12 cwt., and the weight of
the " brush" for the sternpost 1 ton 13 cwt. She
is a handsome ship, and her dimensions are-225
feet in length between her perpendiculars, 40 feet
8 inches extreme breadth, and 23 feet 11 inches
depth in hold. She is 1623 .40-94 tons burden.
As soon as the Rattlesnake is launched the Salamis
will be laid down.. Her length is to be 220. feet.
The temporary covering erected over the line-of-
battle steamer Bombay, in the fourth dock at Chat-
ham, has been removed, preparatory to that vessel
being floated out, of dock. It is understood that the
Bombay will be the last of the sailing ships which
will undergo " conversion " to a screw steamer, the
Lords of the Admiralty baying decided on not
altering any other sailing vessels to screws.
The Cressy, hired transport, was towed into
Portsmouth harbour on Saturday and berthed along-
side the dockyard, where the detachment of the 2d
Battalion Ist Royals, under the command of Col.
Urquhart, disembarked from her. The detachment
were paraded in the dockyard, and afterwards
marched to the railway station, whence they pro-
ceeded by special train to Manchester, to join the
head-quarters of the regiment.
The Sampson, 6, paddle, Capt. G. S. Hand, C. 8.,
steamed into Portsmouth harbour from Spithead on
Saturday afternoon and berthed alongside the dock-
yard, to dismantle and return stores prior to being
put out of commission.
The Cruiser, 17, screw, Commander Bythesea,
V.C., had her masts taken out by the dockyard
sheers at Portsmouth on Saturday. She will be
paid off to-day.
The Inflexible, 6, paddle, Commander Brooker,
was paid off at Portsmouth on Saturday, and after-
wards hauled off from alongside the dockyard to a
berth in the harbour.

The Victory, flagship of Vice-Admiral H. W.
Bruce, Commander-in-Chief at Portsmouth, has been
moved from her position on the Portsmouth side of
the harbour to the moorings lately occupied by the
Asia on the Gosport side, to afford sufficient space
for all-sized men-of--war to go directly alongside the
extensive jetty nearly completed, and which will
be of essential service in coaling or storing. Two
of our longest frigates or line-ot-battle ships can lie
there at the same time.

The Jasper, 1 screw gunvessel, Lieut.-Commander
W. H. Pym, steamed into Portsmouth harbour from
Spithead on Saturday.
The Flying Fish, 6, screw gunvessel, Commander
C. W. Hope, steamed out of Portsmouth harbour on
Saturday, and joined Rear-Admiral J. E. Erskine's
division of the Channel fleet, at anchor at Spithead.
The Dancan, 101, screw, was taken out of the
steam basin at Portsmouth on Saturday, and berthed
alongside the Camperdown, coal depot, in the har-
bour, in readiness for her screw trials.
trier Majesty's screw steam stood Rapid went
down the river on Saturday from Woolwich on the
engineers' first trial, and returned to Woolwich to
be completed for service. Her engines, by Messrs.
Scott and Co., of Greenock, are of 150 nominal and
650 indicated horse-power. The trial was highly
satisfactory, the engines performing 100 revolutions
per minute, and with a pressu‘p of 221 b of steam,
and giving the vessol a speed of 11 knots per hour.
Her Majesty's paddlewheel steamer Dee, having
undergone some repairs in her machinery, has
recommenced shipping, in Woolwich basin, a cargo
of cylinders shafts, and other heavy portions of
machinery, for the Black Prince, at Glasgow. In
consequence of the Ithadamanthus and the Dee
being engaged in the above-named service, the
industry, under orders to be paid off at Woolwich,
has been hauled under the sheers and commenced
taking in a cargo of steam gear, intended for the
steam frigates Octavio and Glasgow, at Portsmouth.
A hundred and twenty Ist and 2d class lads were
on Saturday despatched from the flagship Fisgard,
at Woolwich, to Portsmouth, for distribution in
the fleet, and a similar number will leave Woolwich
to-morrow for the same service. _ _

The newly-converted screw steam storeship Wye,
eommissioned by Master Commander Roberts, has
been hauled out of basin at Woolwich, and received
her crew and stores on Saturday from the Hebe re-
ceiving hulk. She will forthwith be laden with
naval stores and provisions from the victualling
yard at Deptford for Rio and Ascension.
The magazines of the screw steam frigate Con-
stance, 51, at Devonport, are to be fitted on a plan
suggested by Captain Arthur W. Jerningham, of
the gunnery ship Cambridge, in Hamoaze.
The transports York, Bosphorus, Alfred, Indomi-
table, and Mars, with- troops from China, are ex-
pected to touch at Plymouth.
The following appointments were made on Satur-
day at the Admiralty :—Alfred Whitehouse, pay-
master, to the Colossus; Thomas Hockings, pay-
master, to the Donegal ; and David Acheson, clerk,
to the Diadem.
Mr. W. Mitchell, acting foreman at Devonport,
has been appointed to be acting foreman at Pem-
broke, vice Saunders, promoted to assistant (acting)
to the master shipwright of Portsmouth Dockyard.