The Sun.
London, England, 1844-01-04 00:00:00

NAVAL INTELLIGENCE.

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PORTSMOUTH' JAW. I.—The Firebrand steam-frigate is to
be commissioned immediately. She is likely to prove one of
the fastest steamers in the service. During her passage from
the River to this pert she beat the Cyclops three miles an hour.
The Cyclops, however, had all her stores on board, and, con-
sequently had a deeper immersion in the water than the other,
and her engines are only 320 horse power, whereas those of
the Firebrand are of 430 horse power, although both vessels
are of *the same class. The first and one of the most im-
portant improvements in marine steam-engines was made by
Messrs. Seaward and Co., in the introduction of the Gorgon,
or direct action engine, into the Cyclops, as that vessel has now
engines of 320 horse power and 350 tons of coal in a space that
was formerly occupied by engines of only 220 horse power and
250 tons of coal. In fitting the engines of the Firebrand they
have effected a farther improvement, by which she can carry
engines of 430 horse power, and 450 tons of coal, in a space
eighteen feet less than that originally required for engines of
220 horse power and 250 tons of coal. This is in consequence
of the introduction of tubular boilers, which arc not half the
weight, and do not require half the space of the boilers upon
the old plan, and therefore allow of a considerable reduction of
the engine-room, with an additional quantity of fuel and an
increase of power. Another important advantage gained by
this improvement is in the reduction of the consumption of the
fuel, as the Firebrand's engines require very little more
than half per horse power than the smaller engines of 220 horse
power in the Medea, Salamander, Phoenix, &c. When hese
vessels undergo a repair there will be no difficulty in the adap-
tation of the tubular boilers to the old engines, whieh the Ad-
miralty will, no doubt, cause to be done, for the experiment has
already been made in the Prometheus, by which a space of nine
feet has been added to her accommodation.

The Vindictive, 50, Captain Toup Nicholas, is on her pas-
sage home to England, from the Pacific. The Wanderer, 16,
Commander G. H. Seymour ; Pelican, 16, Commander Philip
Justice; Nimrod, 20, Commander F. H. H. Glass; Childers,
16, Commander George G. Wellesley; and the Clio, 16, Com-
mander James Fitzjames. are on their passage home from the
East Indies; and the Pantaloon, 10, Lieut.-Commander Chas.
H. Lapidge, and Bonetta, 3, Lieut.-Commander E. E. Gray,
from the coast of Africa. The last-named vessel has arrived.
The completion of the magazines of a first-rate and 84 gun-
ship, according to the plan directed by the Lords of the Admi-
ralty, has been accomplished at this port, and the improvement
bids fair to be one of the most perfect and efficient that can be
resorted to, and reflects great credit on Sir Thomas Hastings
and the parties who have been carrying their Lordships' plan
into effect. The subject is one of the deepest importance as
regards the security of the lives of all on board, and the pre-
servation of the ship from the.terrific effect that may be pro-
duced by the shells recently introduced into the service. It is
now well known that powerful steamers like the Penelope,
armed with the shot and shell guns, have the facility of taking
any position they may deem expedient over sailing ships; hence
the great importance of this improvement in the magazines,
which are now so placed that the upper part or crown is
about six feet under water, and protected at the sides by water
and other means, that it arroants almost to an impossibility
that the explosion of a shell can affect the internal part of the
magazine.
The Hyacinth, 18, Commander Francis Scott, has arrived
at Plymouth from the coast of Ireland. She is to have her
masts reduced, and to receive an additional quantity of ballast,
of which she has already received forty-five tons. Her lower
masts are to be shortened four feet. It appears she is not able
to carry her present sail, and that altogether she has too much
top-hamper ; although the Rover, 18, recently paid off at Chat-
ham, also a corvette, had sufficient stability to carry, during
the whole time she was in commission, similar masts and spars
to those about to be reduced in the Hyacinth, and that, too,
without any ballast.
The Helena, 16, Commander Sir Cornwallis Ricketts, is
still at Spithead, but will in all probability sail to-morrow or
Wednesday. She is the sister ship to the Siren, 16, Com-
mander William Smith, now in the East Indies, of whose
capabilities the most flattering accounts have repeatedly been
received.
The Albion, 90, Captain N. Lockyer, will proceed in a few
days from Plymouth to Cork, where she will beeom• the
flag ship of Rear-Admiral Bowles. The Caledonia, 120,
Captain Milne, will return to Plymouth on the arrival of the
Albion at Cork.

Ship at Spithead—The Helena.
Ships in Harbour—The St. Vincent, Victoria, Excellent,
Victoria and Albert (Royal steam yacht), Penelope (steam
frigate), Fearless and Echo (steamers), Satellite.

STATE OF TRADE.
(From the Manchester Guardian.)
MANCHESTER.—There was a good inquiry yesterday for
nearly all descriptions of cloth, with a slight advance upon
those descriptions which are in the most general request,
anti especially on shirtingQ. For yarn, too, there was an im-
proved demand for the home trade, and an advance of id.
to id. per lb. was obtained on some descriptions suitable
for that purpose. On the whole, the new year opens un-
der farvourable auspices for spinners and manufacturers,
unless their prospects should be blighted by a speculative
advance in the price of the raw material at Liverpool; of
which there seems to be some danger, but for which, as it
seems to us, there is not the slightest grounds. The spinners,
however, have the remedy in their own hands. In case of
an advance arising from speculative purchases, all they have to
do is to buy only for their immediate wants ; when the pressure
of the stock, and of the coming imports, will very soon restore
the market to its proper and natural state. We may probably
give some further observations on this subject in a future number.
ROCHDALE FLANNEL MARKET, MONDAY, JAN.
There has been a dull market to-day, few buyers having
attended, and the business transacted has been very limited.

TEMPERANCE AMONG THE INDIANS.—There is no-
thing connected with the progress of civilisation among
the western Indians more lamentable than the fact that
wherever the Whites- have gone they have invariably
introduced the use of intoxicating drinks among
the savages, and thus effected a deeper and more
permanent injury than they could have done in
any other way. A great deal of this sin lies at the
door of the detachments of the United States army which
have been stationed along our extreme frontier ; and we
are glad to see, by a letter from an officer in the in-
fantry at Fort Towson, Arkansas, published in a re-
cent number of the Black River Journal, that they
have undertaken to remedy the evil so extensively
done by the only means in their power, the promotion
of temperance principles and the establishment of tem-
perance societies among the Indians. A society was
organised among the soldiers about a year ago which
has weekly meetings, and numbers 150 members among
the soldiers themselves. The members, officers, and
all connected belong to the army, and courts mar-
tial and military offences have almost wholly .disap•
geared. At a small village named Doatsville, about a
mile from the garrison, a society has been organised
among the Indians, of whom 400 or 500 have become
members. The cause of temperance is said to be making
very rapid progress among the Choctaws in that vicinity.
New York Paper.
THEATRES IN ITALY.--The recent death of Cata-

lini renders Sinigaglia, her birth-place, a spot of interest
to the musical world. The city is remarkable for the
brilliancy of its theatrical performances. Last year they
bad Frezzolini, Barbieri, Nini, and Pionthanti, as prime
donne, Poggi, Castellan, and Lucchesi, as printi knot i,
and Porto, as print° basso. In 1842, Teresa Brambilla
was one of the in ime donne, Ivanhotf and Lucche ii were
tenors, Tamburini, Itosi, and Fallar, basses. An at-
tempt was made to produce Guglielmo Tell, under the
name of Rodolfo di Sterlinga, but a Government decree
prevented its performance. The opera of Bonifacio di
Gerund, by Prince Ponistowski, has been played with
great success at the Teatro Argentine, at Rome, and was
supported by Teresa Brauibilla, Giacomo Roppa (tenor),
and Sebastiano Ronconi, Carlo Porto, and Francesco
Faller (basses). The theatre is celebrated for the ori-
ginal production of Rossini's Barbiere.- Sebastiano Ron-
coni, according to an "indignant" correspondent, has be-
come a superior actor to his brother Georgio ; and cer-
tainly, from our recollection of Sebastiano at the Lyceum
in the opera of Furioso, and of Georgic), at her Majesty's
Theatre, in 1842, we have no reason to discredit his
statement.
THE NEW COMET. —I think this comet's approach
to our system should be considered as one of the proxi-
mate causes of the fine weather, and mild temperature of
November and December. For as the transit of comets
is one of the most powerful causes of perturbation in the
meteoric action of the atmosphere (as proved by those of
1840, 1841, and 1842), and that the periods of the ap-
proach or these bodies into the solar system is unknown,
such a thing as absolute certainty in calculations of the
weather is of course not to be expected on the seasons
when they occur. The vteather has been wonderfully
mild all this month, with the barometer remarkably high
and steady. The thermometer was on Christmas-day at
50 degrees, and as the present high state of the barome-
ter shows a great atmospherical pressure, which accord-
ing to the nature of things cannot last long, then probably
great depressions will follow with snow storms. I am
every day expecting a change to cold—if it is delayed
till about Old Christmas-day then expect a severe winter
(which is the time severe winters generally set in) the
great frost of 1740 began at that time.—G. SUGDEN.
TIOWdeD, Pm 57,

A STRANGE ANIMAL.—The Courrier de Lyon
gives the following most wonderful story as a rare and singular
instance of sympathy between the canine and feline race. We
can hardly, believe, however, that our contemporary is serious:
An inhabitant of this place has brought up a cheinchat (a
hybrid between a dog and a cat is, we presume, meant). The
whole of the body is covered with hair like that of a spaniel.
One half of the head has all the character of the canine race,
the other moiety resembling that of the cat. The paws are
furnished with the claws of a cat. The animal snaps and barks
like a dog, but when enraged mews like a cat. When caressed
it shows its satisfaction by purring like the frequenters of the
garret§ and gutters."