The Sun.
London, England, 1845-11-07 00:00:00

45.

would be as bad as she was on the former trials. As it is,
ehe is now in yacht-trim ; but what is the use of a ship that
cannot sail with all her provisions on board? That old
Frenchman, the Canopus, seems to combine all the qualities
of a thorough good ship—fit to chase or to run away; to
fight, or to blockade.—Herald.

TIIE EXPERIMENTAL BRIGS.
(From the Plymouth Times.)
It will be within the recollection of our readers that dur-
ing the time the late squadron of brigs were under trial, and
before any official report had become public, the partisans
of the Surveyor's department of the navy were constantly
endeavouring to mislead the public mind relative to the
merits and qualities of their own vessel, the Flying Fish,
which they stated to be the most complete and perfect of the
whole; and, not content with this, they endeavoured to
strengthen their statements] by most unhandsome misre-
presentations of the other brigs, particularly L'Espiegle
and Daring. The fcrmer was made, more especially, an
object of official jealousy and vituperation, solely from the
circumstance of her having been built and constructed by
three gentlemen of the late school of Naval Architecture,
whom tiny described " as being of little or no use"--" as
sauntering about the dockyards and picking their teeth with
chips." All this was, of course, only a continuation of the
policy pursued by the late First Lord of the Admiralty, who
took so active a part in ruining the prospects of these gentle-
men—certainly the best educated and most talented men in
the dockyard service. He stated, as is well known, in his
place in Parliament, as an excuse for keeping them in
subordinate situations, they had "failed in the science they
professed;" but did not explain how. At last, however, this
shallow policy of sacrificing the interests of science upon the
altar of a political party, merely to uphold the views and in-
terests of a few individuals, became so very apparent that
the present Board of Admiralty deemed it expedient to em-
ploy these much-abused gentlemen, for the first time, in the
construction and building of ships for the public service, by
which it would be seen whether they were fairly open to the
mean misrepresentations of those whose very existence de-
pended on keeping them back in the service, or not. Now,
it proved that, so far from their being incompetent to the
very highest duties which could be required of them as naval
constructors, scientifically educated by the Government, that
they sent in very beautiful and perfect designs for a line-of-
battle ship, a frigate, and a brig, accompanied by a most
complete and important report on the general state of our
national naval architecture, and which, we are assured, on
the best authority, gave the greatest satisfaction to the Ad-
miralty. The brig, as is well known, when constructed, al-
though the first vessel ever built by these gentlemen, came
very nearly within the line of flotation given by calculation,
and differed less from the construction drawing, than any of
the other vessels ; whereas the Flying Fish, the brig pro-
posed by Le Surveyor of the Navy, and constructed in his
department, differed so much from the intended line of flota-
tion, as shown in the construction drawing, that if all her
ordnance stores, including guns and all her provisions in
casks, together with her anchors, had been sent on shore,
she would not then have swam upon the lines intended. So
much for the comparative merits of the constructors of these
two vessels, and so much for the alleged failure in the
science professed.
Come we now to the reports of the trials of these vessels
as men-of•war. The official reports upon these trials, al-
though called for in the House of Commons, have been de-
layed and kept back from time to time, in certainly a most
extraordinary and suspicious way. At length, however,
those who so withheld them have been literally compelled
to 'yield them up; and it will be most gratifying to those
who endeavour to maintain the necessity of scientific educa-
tionin the public service, to find that they fully bear out the
enlightened and patriotic principles which they so frequently
advocate.
The first of these reports which claims attention is that of
Commodore Corry, who states, that "on a wind," in mode-
rate weather, there is very little difference between the
Flying Fish and Espiegle ; that in a head Bea, the Daring
is the superior vessel ;" whilst in a following sea," there
was little difference between the three." In the thirteenth
trial, L'Espiegle "had a decided advantage over the Mutine
and rest of the squadron." In fact, any one who will peruse
Commodore Corry's very clear, well-arranged, and valuable
report, will see that, to say the least possible in favour of
this, the first vessel ever constructed by the gentlemen of the
School of Naval Architecture, she was in no wise inferior in
sailing qualities to the Flying Fish, the latest production of
the Surveyor's department of the navy, after fifteen years'
empirical experience at shipbuilding at the public expense.
And it will be apparent to every one that in this same report it is proved that the Flying Fish was very frequently beaten
by the other brigs—not only by L'Espiegle, but by the
Waterwitch and Mutine. In the ninth and tenth trials the
Flying Fish was third.
Upon the whole, Commodore Corry awards superior sailing
qualities to the Daring. But in reference to other dualities,
viz., capability of firing guns, &c., lie remarks, " last al-
luding to the inclination, I must state that I could not help
remarking the extreme stiffness of L'Espiegle when com-
pared with the other vessels, which must give her a great
advantage when firing her guns." Now, when it is consi-
dered that this brig carries her ports nearly a foot higher out
of the water than the Flying Fisb, and, by Captain Thomp-
son's report, she left Plymouth Sound with full five months'
provisions under hatches, whilst the Flying Fish could only
stow, in a similar way, :fourteen weeks', can any one doubt
of the superiority of this vessel over the Flying Fish as a
British man-of-war? Even the report of Commander Harris,
of the Surveyor's own vessel, the Flying Fish, is favourable,
and highly honourable to L'Espiegle, admitting, in fact, that
each might claim success upon four trials to windward out of
seven ; whilst in eight subsequent trials Commander Thomp-
son states that L'Espiegle beat the Flying Fish five times,
and Daring three times.
Yet, notwithstanding these striking facts, the organ of the
Surveyor's-office, which seems to keep no terms with either
consistency or truth, has the impudence to tell the public that
these returns to the House of Commons prove the great supe-
riority of the Flying Fish over all the ether brigs, as they
have repeatedly maintained. Verily, none are so blind as
those who won't see. If Captain Corry's report goes for
anything, it goes to show directly that the constructors
of L'Espiegle have been most unjustly dealt with, both
by Lord Minto and the late Board of Admiralty, and
tyrannically kept down to subordinate situations in the
dockyards against every principle of honourable deal-
ing. If the Admiralty will only look a little forward
there will appear a most melancholy prospect of
obtaining in a few years, properly qualified persons for
superintending the work of the dockyard ; and from whom
can be selected surveyors of the navy and other officers in the
higher department of the service. In fact, they have only
the wreck of the School of Naval Architecture to depend
on. Some of them may be certainly found eminently quali-
fied as practical and theoretical shipbuilders, extremely
well versed in the routine of the dockyard, and who are
beside sound mathematicians; but even those are
getting far advanced in life, and unless some grand step
be taken to train up and educate fitting persons
in the science of naval architecture for the Go-
vernment service, why, as a matter of course, that service
must either become degraded in its class of shipwright
officers, or be left at the mercy of any successful private
shipbuilder or amateur, who, through the patronage of the
State, can seize upon the office of the Surveyor of the Navy.
The Reform Admiralty have made a pretty mess of it, they
"and their apron men." They have certainly left the Go-
vernment ship-building in a far worse state than they found
it; with such a man as Sir Byam Martin, Comptroller of the
Navy, and such men as Sir Robert Seppings, Sir William
Rule, Sir Henry Peake, and others, there was at least some
guarantee that the public affairs could not be misconducted
by underlings and managing men, whilst, at the same time,
there was some little regard shown to the progress of science
in the establishment of the School of Naval Architecture.
We have, in this respect, to use a homely proverb, got out
of the frying-pan into the fire. It was remarked by an old
stage coachman, in regard to railways, that if you are
thrown off a coach into a ditch "there you are. But if you
are smashed in a railway carriage where are ye?" /sow
where we are in the naval architecture of the Government
by this smash of the reform government in their royal road
to learning, we believe it would puzzle any to tell—such a
mass of contradictions was never before heard of in
any public
establishment. With respect to the official reports of the
brigs, we earnestly recommend them to the serious attention
of naval men, as being quite conclusive to the principles
for which we are contending, and as being a complete con-
tradiction to the numerous attempts of hired writers to mis-
lead the country upon all the important questions of its
government shipbuilding and the melancholy state of its
dockyard affairs.

ROYAL THAMES YACHT CLUB.
Last night the monthly meeting of the club was held at
the British Coffee-house, W. Harrison, Esq., the Commodore,
presiding, faced by Lord A. Paget, the Vice-Commodore, and
supported by Lord W. Lennox, and about eighty influential
gentlemen of the club.
Mr. REYNEE.L brought forward his long-delayed motion
for the establishing a new club-house, or removing from their
present quarters, and after considerable discussion the motion
was unanimously carried, and a committee of thirteen gen-
tlemen appointed to inquire as to the best mode of carrying
out the same, and to report thereon. Among the gentlemen
appointed were the Commodore, Vice-Commodore, Lords W.
Lennox and Seaham ; the first meeting to take place on
Thursday-, the 20th inst., at Cuttriss's Piazza Coffee-house.
The great confusion at present existing from the mode of
taking the ballot was, on the motion of Mr. GREENWOOD,
altered to taking the names collectively, or by balloting
singly if one black were found in five
It was also decided, upon a motion of Mr. BUCKNALL, that
the Society should in future receive 1/. for every yacht sold
after being placed on its list.
The remaining business having been disposed of, thanks
were awarded to the Commodore, &c., and the proceedings
terminated.

SIR ROBERT PEEL:—We are exceedingly happy to
state that the answer to inquiries in Whitehall-gardens yesterday
was, that Sir Robert had nearly recovered from his recent attack of
the gout, and was in excellent health.
THE COURT.-In the event of a continuance of the
present fine autumnal weather, her Majesty and the Prince Consort,
accompanied by the infant Royal Family, are expected to proceed
to Osborne House about the 20th or 21st inst., where the Court
will probably remain for about a fortnight or three weeks.
MTSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE lOF LADY ADELA
VILLIERS.—BRIGIITON, Nov. 6.—Considerable excitement has
been caused in this town by the sudden and mysterious disappear-
anceof
of Lady Adela Corisanda Maria Villiers, youngest daughter oungest
the Earl of Jersey, who. has been missing since yesterday
tLodge,afternoon.
His Lordship and family are at present residing
at
Upper Rock-sprdens. It appears tkat at five o c
afternoon her Ladyship retired to her room, with the
tention of dressing for dinner, but as she
itoai e
d b e
did not make
yesterday
avowed
akeher
pearance at table, inquiries were made, and she was not
eer t
found in the house. On further investigation t was
ascertained
l od lodge-gate, ea,n
and turned
uarneddown
quarter.
pastt a t hetfirio o'clock,a ys Ladyship passedtwith
o small throughhond bundle
theio her
St. James's-street ; butsnothingsince
a
further
hrttheerraciolwualdy
shtaetiolena,rbnuedt
no
of
pheerr..
Inquiries have been mad
son employed about it remembers any person answering her Lady-
ship's description going by either of the trains which left last
night after five o'clock. Every means have been resorted to to trace
the fugitive, but hitherto without the slightest success. Intelli-
genet of the distressing occurrence was forwarded to the Countess
of j,,,ey, who was on a visit to the Duke and Duchess of Norfolk,
at Arundel Castle, and the Countess returned to East Lodge early
this morning. Lady Adela is only 17 years of age.
MAKING THE BEST OF IT.—Not long ego the
minister of a dissenters' meeting-house, near this town, failed to
make his appearance at the hour :appointed for the commencement
of the service. The congregation waited patiently fer some time,
but still he came not ; and anxiously they waited on, expecting
each moment that he would be seen ascending the pulpit, but still
they waited in vaM. They, however, remained quietly in their
places, and scarcely a whisper broke the silence of the house of
worship. At length a highly respectable gentlemen of this town,
seeing his son in the lower part of the chapel, and no doubt think.
ieg it time to commence proceedings, called out " Tom I" Tom
responded, " Yes, father." " Hadn't we better sing a hymn,
Tom ?" " Yes, father, I think so," responded Tom. Accord-
ingly a hymn was given out and sung. Still the minister did not
appear, and the service came again to a dead standstill. The old
gentleman above alluded to, however, came again to the rescue.
Calling again to a relative, he said, " Hadn't some one better read
a sermon 1" " 1 think so," was the reply, •.and forthwith the re.
spondent, a sharebroker of this town, went into the vestry, found a
sermon, ascended the pulpit, and read the discourse with good
emphasis /tad diicretion..—Lircrpoel Albion.

(From the Allgemeine Zeitung.)
Sir Henry Hardinge's government of India has been
hitherto remarkable for its moral policy, its avoidance of all,
military parade, its serious devotion to the internal interests
of the country, and the civilisation of the natives—a line of
policy which offers a sufficiently striking contrast to the
warlike achievements of his predecessor. Nay, although one
of the best and bravest soldiers of the Peninsular war, it is
said that he has not, since his landing in India, held, as
yet, even one review of the troops, and so concealed his
military energies, like his policy, beneath his zeal for
schools and colleges, no less than beneath the simplicity of a
very retired private life.
Meanwhile, however, the moment is approaching when
the Indian mails will bring us intelligence of the most im-
portant movements. Opportunity, and means and ways, for
British intervention in the affairs of the Punjaub may now
I be more nearly destined and predicted; and in consequence
of the combination of an intelligent policy, supported by an
army sufficiently strong to command respect, the kingdom of
Lahore is being gradually encircled on all sides by troops.
The events which, after the death of Runjeet Singh, rapidly
followed one another in this kingdom—the fearful crimes
which desolated the palace of Lahore—the lawlessness which
allured the army to frequent revolts—and the misery which
these revolutions heaped upon the people—are already suffi-
ciently known in Europe.
There is no present probability that any one of the
branches of the family of Runjeet, or the contenders for the
dominion of the State, will be able, by means of their own
resources, to regain a secure sovereignty over this disrup-
tured land. During the last three years England observed
the strictest neutrality, and the Council of Calcutta did not
trouble itself to know who sat on the throne, so long as the
nominal Sovereign possessed sufficient strength to keep the
army within bounds and to govern the country. The result,
however, of this moderation was an uninterrupted succession
of violent revolutions and continued blood-sheddings, whilst
chance or the will of the army raised some one chieftain to
a power which was ruinous to all who possessed it. It has
thence been confirmed by experience that the authority and
even the lives of the Princes of Lahore are endangered, and
it is probably under these circumstances that the assistance
of the British Government has been applied for, and the
country consented to sacrifice a portion of its former inde-
pendence, so that once more will a kingly house be incorpo-
rated into the list of the subsidiary States of the Indian em-
pire. Conformably with the conditions of such a treaty,
these Princes will retain their exalted rank together with
the civil administration of the country, but the military go-
vernment will be transferred to English officers. In other
words, this sort of intermediation is desired by the Princes
themselves, and will be very advantageous to their subjects,
as it ensures to the country a peaceful government, although
it will encounter the most strenuous opposition on the part
of the Sikh army. Notwithstanding all the political con-
vulsions which Lahore has had to endure, the army of Run-
jeet Singh has sot lost much of its strength. It is still ap-
parently the finest army ever possessed by a native Asiatic
Prince, and it will remain united and strong as well against
foreign influence as for the defence of its own existence. The
cavalry, and especially the artillery, are magtificent, so that
it will be impossible to overthrow these troops without one of
the most sanguinary battles ever recorded in the annals gf
Indian history. On the other hand, however, the British
army, which has long been stationed in the north-western
provinces, has been selected and equipped with the moat ex-
traordinary care for the exigencies of this momentous affair.
The Sikh infantry is perfectly equal to any body of foot
soldiery in the world, and the army consists in a far greater
proportion than has hitherto been customary of European
cavalry—l believe not less than five regiments—a species of
force in which the preponderance of English strength and in-
trepidity in Asiatic warfare has been everywhere very
powerfully felt.
Sir Henry Hardinge is preparing slowly to advance to-
wards the north, and as a rupture with the Sikh army seems
now inevitable, we look with the most lively interest to-
wards the further progress of events which ought to crown
this long interval of expectation with sudden and successful
activity.

A WHALE IN BELFAST LOFGH.—On the morning.
of Wednesday last the services of the Coast-guard, stationed r
Cultra Point, were called into active requisition by the appearance
of—not a smuggler, but something " very like a whale," plough-
ing the waters a few hundred yards from the pier. " A whale: a
whale I" was the cry. The alarm spread far and wide, and, ere
long, almost the entire population of the village were gathered on
the beach, anxious to catch a sight of the aquatic moister who had
voyaged so far from his ocean home. 'Without loss of time a boat
was manned by four or five of the Coast-guard men, armed with
harpoon, eintlass, carbine, and hatchet, resolved to make the stranger
pay dearly for his visit. Whether the fish had been tempted by
curiosity or in quest of prey so far as the Lough, can only be
guessed at. There, however, he was, his back rising dim and
huge above the billows, and furrowing in his way the liquid ele-
ment in sport or fury. After a good deal of manwuvering, the
men succeeded in bringing their boat alongside the enemy, At'
then commenced their assault upon him without mercy. The fish,
accustomed to " do as he liked with his own," namely, the whole
of the inferior finny tribes, was, no doubt, surprised to be thus
assailed in what he would consider his own dominion, though an
extreme, and, till then, unvisited part of it, and, after a little show
of opposition, he attempted to make off, but his endeavours were
fruitless. After receiving two or three shots, and a good many
strokes with the harpoon, a grappling-iron was thrown ever him,
and the boats were rowed shorewards amid the huzzas of the
spectators, with the poor whale vanquished and weltering in his
blood, which dyed the waters, and soon the retreating tide left
him " high and dry" upon the beach. The fish thus captured
proved to be a whale of the bottle-nosed species, and the money
its sale will repay the prowess of its captors, as it is
computed
ytedb
that it will yield at least 200 gallons of oil. It exhi-
bited great tenacity of life, having survived six hours after being
brought to land, though cut and hacked in an extreme degree, In
length it measures 22 feet, and its girth is nearly 12 feet, the
breadth of the tail being 5 feet. It is of a light lead colour,
and, to use a cattle dealer's phrase, it seems in capital condition-
ztdphaerFoat
thlai
Re: other
Erl
yap
AT
attraction
oenist
On Wednesday and yesterday crowds of persons flocked from
sstoi: e
rEel
.Iye
oiftTa
ulsihe II
much theeofirnr.e
w nhs
which
the
Ecg to
great.—Banner
consisting
s
e
rarity of the fish, at least on our shores, as in its dimensions, as
there
C,
ituaiorlEwter,naLC;AoamTn
at
broke out on Wednesday night
upon the premises of Mr. Barnes,
Pentonville-hill, continued to burn for several hours; and it
was not until nearly two o'clock yesterday morning that the fire-
men had succeeded in getting the flames extinguished. In a great
measure may be attributed the rapid progress of the conflagration
to the fact of there not being a sufficiency of water to supply the
whole of the engines. This may appear rather surprising, when it
is stated that the reservoir of the New River Company's works is
situate within a few hundred yards of the spot. Had not the fire-
men exerted themselves to the utmost, the work of destruction must
have been far more serious than it has been. The following is a
copy of Mr. Superintendent Braidwood's official report of the extent
of damage done :—" 15, Lower Queen's-row, Pentonville;—Mr. J.
Barnes, builder; the workshops, &c., with their contents,
nearly consumed. The cause of fire unknown. Insured In the
Sun Fire-office for stock in trade and premises. 15, Lower elleTtl'..
row—Mr.lposeph Barnes;: dwellitig.house, the most part destroyed.
The furniture and other contents nearly consumed. Uninsured.
14, Lower Queen's-row.—Mr. Salter, confectioner; building and
contents damaged by fire, water, and hasty removal; insurance
unknown. 13, Lower Queen'a.row._Mrs. Barnes, stationer ;
furniture much injured by water and removal; uninsured. 12,
Lower Queen Lrow.—Mr. J. Mason, music.seller ; contents of
stock in trade and furniture greatly damaged by removal; insu-
rance unknown. 10, Lower Queen's-row.—Mr. Petty, hair-
dresser and perfumer ; building considerably damaged by fire ; the
stock and furniture extensively injured ; insured in the Phoenix
fire.office. 20, Penton-place.—Mr. Barnes, fun.; furniture da-
maged by water, &c. l, NVestern.place.—Mr. Hodgkins; roof
of the house damaged. The engines that attended were, two be.
longing to the parish, seven of the London fire establishment, and
two belonging to the West of England and County offices."
P.ROVISIONS IN GLASGOW.—The retail provision
markets are very high; the best oatmeal, which lately sold at
Is. 10d. to 2s. per stone, is now retailed Is. 10d.,
being a rise of 10d. per stone In about a higher': '
in price in this city than in other towns in ,r is
4d. per stone cheaper than in Edinburgh.
from 3d, to 4d. per 'tom—Glasgow Cons,'

L, which was lately sold at
d at 2e. Bd. to 2e. 10d.,
month. Bread is higher
in Scotland, while flour is
Potatofe are retailed at
itittitig444, ,‘
it.--Tl3-