The Sun.
London, England, 1861-11-05 00:00:00

THE SUN.

LONDON, TUESDAY, NOV. 5, 1861.

The Warrior has gone out to look for a storm,
which the present state of the weather gives pro-

mise that she will not seek in vain. If her

success be as complete in heavy weather as it has
proved in Stokes Bay, we may well be proud of our
first ironsides. That she will roll heavily in a sea-
way there can be little doubt. Some ships may
make " better weather" of a gale than others, but
all must be influenced more or less by the action of
the ocean. The Great Eastern rolled like a log
when in the trough of the sea, although it was
fondly hoped by her admirers that the elements
would not affect her. The Albion, a two-decker, again,
when in the Channel squadron of evolution some
years ago, rolled so heavily that she could only
run out her maindeek guns, being unable to
open her lower deck ports, while the Canopus,
likewise a two decker, was able to fire her whole
broadside. Therefore, should the Warrior prove
herself to be a stiff and steady vessel, as she
has shown herself to be a fast one, it does not follow
that all iron-clad ships must be the same. So, on
the other hand, should she roll her masts out,

that will be no reason why other iron-sided ships
may not be constructed wherein such disadvantages
may be avoided. It is very foolish, not to say
presumptuous, to prejudge works of which, from
their very nature and novelty, nobody has as yet
had the opportunity of testing the merits. Theory
is all very well, but as everyone has a particular
theory of his own on most subjects, practice must
eventually decide which theory is the most ser-
viceable. Regarding the use of iron versus wood
in the construction of ships of war, great contention
existed amon g naval men ; and it was not until it was
discovered that the splinters of the iron, when a shot
struck the side of an iron vessel, were more fatal to
the crew than the shot itself, that wood again came
into general favour, and iron was used only for
transports and packet boats. Armour plates have
now reopened the controversy. We speak of armour

plated ships, not those murderous in object and

absurd in reality, steam rams, invented by our faith-1
ful ally, which to succeed in their object would re-
quire to carry a nautical basilisk on the prow to
charm the foe into inactivity to enable the mighty
ram to run her down. While yet the matter was
pending, before the Warrior had made her sea-going
capabilities known, even before her trial in
Stokes Bay, we think, Admiral SARTORIUS,
in an article in the United Service Maga-
zine, should not have made a comparison between
that vessel and the much lauded La Gloire.
While giving the gallant Admiral all credit for his
good intentions, we cannot understand why he
considers it necessary to condemn every attempt of
the Board of Admiralty to improve the navy.
That their shortcomings are many we admit,and that
they are themselves awake to that fact,the opportune
departure of Admiral Sir B. WALKER, when his evi-
dence was wanted by a Parliamentary committee,
fully testifies, but nem• mortalium omnibus horis
errat ; and now that an endeavour is being made
to keep pace with our warlike neighbours, we do
not consider that it is fair to condemn untried a
vessel which in her recent trial has proved herself
to be so perfect. Admiral SARTORIUS, taking
for granted that the Gloire is speedier than
the Warrior (which it has been proved she is
not), endeavours to show that she is in all points
a superior vessel. He tells us that because the
Gloire is only half the tonnage of the Warrior,
and that the Gloire having engines of 1,000 horse
power, and the Warrior engines of 1,280, the power
is in favour of the smaller vessel in the propor-
tion of about 3 to 2. Being built by one of the

first architects in France, and with lines for Brea
speed, he presumes that with her comparatively
greater horse power she will have the advantage
in
bassipseoend.whTircihalthhaesgparlolavnetd
At
~hde
me
TO.
rnatlr contrary ;
was to obtainan
his theory for every founded
thea ed
a over
other advantage the Gloire
hebe will have to take up a new
position before
the gru......1
the end of his article,-;itehalfresh attack. At
alt hough founded throughout uponelfas '
--lsev written,
principles,
he draws a most dismal picture of `what might hap-
pen, provided our fleets were destro7ea
beaten, our dockyards in flames, and londo:inmthe
hands of the French. We do not contemplate any
such catastrophe. What Englishmen dare do when
at bay has been proved by our soldiers in many a
desperate defence. But what they will do when
their native land is invaded, the world has yet to
learn. We can fancy, as in olden times the beacon
fires roused. the country, the electric telegraph
flashing the information throughout the length and
12.:dth of the land, that 500,000 French-