The Sun.
London, England, 1844-11-27 00:00:00

NAVAL INTELLIGENCE.

PORTSMOUTH, TUESDAY.—Pierre Gondre, the Frencfr
seaman who had his arm shot off whilst saluting his
royal master on his late visit, left Haslar Hospital yes-
terday quite recovered from the effects of his calamity.
He expresses himself most grateful for the kindness
with which lie had been treated ; his own vessel, La
Reine Amelie, carrying no surgeon, he was removed
immediately after the accident on board the Victory,
where the surgeon of that ship, Mr. J. 11. Acheson, per-
formed amputation above the elbow in a most skileur
manner ; he was then removed to llaslar, and placed
under the care of Mr. James Allan, the surgeon and
storekeeper of that establishment, for whose kindness he
could never be too grateful. He acknowledges with feel-
ings of very apparent pride and gratitude the receipt of
101. from our benevolent Queen, through the hands of
the Commander-in-Chief, Sir C. Rowley, and also the
pension of 600 f. per annum, conferred by his King.
A seaman of the Espiegle, 12-gun brig, one of the ex-
perimental squadron, who had the three last fingers of
his right hand blown off, and arm shattered, whilst
saluting at the same time as the above, has also received
101. from her Majesty, and is doing well in llaslar Hos-
pital.
The Albatross, 16, Commander Yorke, was at Sierra
Leone on the 20th of September.
The Cleopatra, 26, Captain Wyrill, was at Simon's-
bay on the 16th of September.
The Pickle, 2, Lieutenant-Commander Bainbridge, left
Port Royal for Honduras on the 17th ult.
The Wasp, 16, Commander Usher, was at Sierra Leone
on the 25th of September.
The Conway, 26, Captain Kelly, arrived at Algoa-
bay, from the Cape of Good Hope, ott the sth of Sep-
tember, all well.

The Dolphin, 3, Lieutenant Hoare, was at Rio on the
13th ult., as were also the Alfred, 50, Commodore
Purvis, the Racer, 16, Commodore A. Reed, and the
Crescent, 42, receiving ship.
The Vestal, 26, Captain Talbot, arrived at Simon's-
bay on the 9th of September from the River Plate.
The Gorgon steam-sloop was still ashore at Monte
Video on the 20th of September.
The St. Vincent, 120, Captain the Right Hon. the
Earl of liardwicke, arrived this day at noon, and brought
up at Spithead, where she saluted the Commander-In-
Chief, Sir C. Rowley, with 17 guns. The St. Vincent
beat her two three-decked competitors, the Queen and
Caledonia, in the late cruise, which lasted 34 days. The
squadron did not fall in with the Albion, 90, Captain
Lockyer, until two or three days after touching at
Lisbon, when the four ships sailed in company to within
about 80 miles of Madeira. They experienced very
heavy gales during the early part of this month, but
latterly the weather was fine. The trial has fully proved
the great inefficiency of Sir W. Symond's (the Surveyor
of the Navy) ship Queen, which has been beaten by
long odds uppn every tack. The St. Vincent weathered
upon the Albion, but the latter, carrying more canvass,
carried off the palm. The Albion parted company with
the rest of the squadron, and made for Lisbon on the
20th inst.

The Excellent, gunnery ship, Capt. Sir Thos. Hastings,
struck the flag of Admiral Sir Charles Rowley, at sun-
set, and it w.ll be re-hoisted on board the St. Vincent
to-morrow. Seamen gunners from the Excellent were
exercised in rocket practice this morning on Southsea-
common, the rocket being of a new description, and
constructed on board that ship. The result, we are
informed, was highly satisfactory. There has been no
shell practice upon the Swiftsure from this ship since
Thursday. We are informed the next shell tried will
be Colonel Dansey's, R.A._ _

Orders have arrived at this port from the Admiralty
for the officers,' cabins on the gun-deck of line. of-battle
ships to be in future fitted upon a different plan to that
kitherto practised. The mode adopted hitherto has been
to construct them of mere frames of wood, with panels
of canvass, secured to cants below and aloft.. The now
instructions are, to form them of canvass exclusively,
nailed to the deck above, and secured below by a cordage
to staples; this will be at once more simple and portable,
and give infinitely less trouble in clearing decks for
action.

The Scourge, steam-sloop, has been jury masted, and
is now being rigged with all speed, in order to get her
into the river by the time specified in the contract
between her engine-makers and the Government.

The Snipe, cutter, Lieutenant-Commander Raymond,
arrived from Devonport on Monday, with seamen paid
off from the Cornwallis and Nimrod, and sailed this
morning fur Sheerness and Chatham, with supernume-
raries for the Amazon and Eagle.

IMPROVEMENTS IN THE TOWER
OF LONDON.
This ancient fortress is about to undergo extensive
alterations and improvements. For mom ohs past Govern-
ment surveyors have been engaged, at the of
the Board of Ordnance, in surveying different parts, And
for the batter guidance of the Honourable Board ats
elaborate working model has been formed, under the
superintendence of Major Hall, of the Royal Engineers,
A new grand entrance will be made facing Upper
Thames-street, and will be approached by a draw-
bridge. To effect this alteration, the well-known Spur
Gate is to be demolished ; that part of the old ditch be-
tween the Warders' Hall and the Spur Gate filled up,
and a new one in a line with the ditch that runs along
the water side is to be made, so as to run outside the
grand entrance, in accomplishing which a large space of
ground will be added to the fortress, although no en-
croachment on the public right of way on Tower-hill.
The Spur Gate barracks, the well-known menagerie
buildings, the New Ticket-office, the Spur guard-room,
and the ramparts adjacent, are all to be razed to the
ground, and on their site to be built substantial erections
for public offices. The Warders' Hall, now fronting
the Stone Kitchen, is to be destroyed, and a new one to
be erected, which, together with the ticket-office and
guard-room, will form the buildings at the grand
entrance.
The two archways almost at the extreme eastern end
of the fortress, leading to what is termed the Irish bar-
racks at the south-east angle, are to be removed, and the
Irish barracks, now used for the accommodation of the
troops, are to be converted into store-rooms. The en-
tire row of buildings on the opposite side of the way ars
also to be demolished, and the whole space to the ram,
part wall will be cleared away, affording a commodious
thoroughfare. At the end of the Irish barracks are a
number of smiths' shops and lofts ; all these are to be
levelled to the ground as far as the Old Mill barracks,
to the end immediately beneath the Jewel House. The
houses fronting the barracks in a line with the King's
Arms public-house, about forty in number, are to share
a similar fate; at least those as far as what is called the
School-room. Nearly opposite to those buildings are the
officers' residences, and which are intended to be appro-
priated for the accommodation of the warders. A large
building, between the Beauchamp Tower and the
officers' present quarters, is to be converted into an in-
firmary for the troops, an institution so long required in
the garrison.
The alterations intended immediately adjacent to the
grand parade are equally as extensive. The houses ou
the right, after passing under the Bloody Tower to the
parade, now the residence of some of the warders, will
be destroyed, also the guard-room, and all the buildings,
in fact, contiguous to the White Tower are to be swept
away, so as to throw that interesting and stately struc-
ture open to the view of the spectator, many of its beau
ties being hidden by the unsightly buildings that are
attached to it. The carriage-way is to be abolished and
raised level with the parade, which will certainly be one
of the finest exercising grounds any fortress can boast
of. It will be approached by a wide flight of steps close
under the Bloody Tower. On the ruins of the grand
store-house is to be built a magnificent building for the
accommodation of 800 soldiers, the style of which is to
be in strict keeping with the White Tower. Extensive
excavations are now going on in order to secure a good
foundation, for which purpose the whole of the burial-
ground attached to St. Peter ad Vincula has been de-
voted, the bodies therein having been removed and de-
posited in a spacious vault.
Some of the buildings to the west of the parade are
to be pulled down to make room for more substantial
erections. The houses on the terrace, known as the
Map-office, are to be used as officers' residences, the
roofs of which will be made to correspond with the
White Tower and the intended new barracks. The
Beauchamp Tower, which stands on the west side of the
parade, will be thrown open to public view, and when
the records are removed to the new houses of Parlia-
ment, the White Tower will be open for public in-
spection.

ATTEMPTED ROBBERY AT THE LONDON Doc Ks—
. or three days since, several bladders were disco-
vered lying in a craft, which was at the time full of
bonded goods, which had been shipped overside from a
vessel recently arrived in the dock, to be housed else-
where, and as the appearance of their being concealed in
such a place was very suspicious, they were taken pos-
session of by the dock authorities, to await any further
particulars which might come to light on the subject.
It has since been found that a cask on board a ship
recently arrived, and lying near the craft in question, has
been plundered of a considerable quantity of brandy, to the
amount of several gallons ; although it is not known by
whom, or in what manner the abstraction has taken place,
there is very little doubt but that the brandy pillaged from
the cask alluded to, formed the contents of the bladders
in
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lost to the owner and the duty to the revenue.
DEATH or SIR A W. CALLCOTT, R.A.—This ac-
complished artist died at his residence at Kensington
Gravel-pits, the day before yesterday, in his 65th year.
lie was the son of T. Callcott, Esq., by the daughter of
Wall, Esq., of Kensington. Married, 1824, the
daughter of Rear-Admiral G. Dundas, and relict of
Captain Thomas Graham, R.N. rkfyaib,ctswvietrhy° without
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