The Sun.
London, England, 1844-12-05 00:00:00

TIIF SUN, LONDON, THURSDAY. MORNING, DECEMBI4:I 5 1841.

and fastest ship in the British navy. In 1813 and 1814
she carried the flag of Admiral Sir Edward Pellew, after-
wards Lord Exmouth, Command,"r-in-Chief of the Medi-
terranean fleet, which consisted of nine three-deckers, and
twenty two deckers. The Caledonia was the largest and
best ship of t hat large fleet, sailing well, and mrking like
a cutter: excepting the Boyne, three-decker, and four or
five of the two-decked ships, she beat all the other ships on
all points of sailing, and for working no ships came near
her. In 1830, she had a thorough repair, and although Lord
Exmouth was most decidedly opposed to it, this ship
was thrown out on each side about fourteen inches. It
was expected this increase of beam would make her
more buoyant ; but it had the contrary effect, as she
increased her immersion on being put into the water
some four 'or five inches, and the result has been, she
has never been a fast ship since, although said to be a
good ship in a sea, and weatherly in heavy breezes, and
possesses many good qualities as a man-of-war.
No one can forget the outrageous puffs about the
Queen on her Mediterranean cruises—in one of them
this year she " was the most manageable and easy ship"
her captain had met with; but " she had been pur-
posely kept light, her water-casks were not filled, and
she was rather short of three months' provisions!' when
she started. This was her trial with the surveyor's
frigate Vernon, when it was trumpeted forth to the
world that additional " laurels had been added to the
surveyor's brow" by the Queen beating the Vernon,
which was stated to be " the fastest frigate in the ser-
vice." Now if the Queen, by beating this frigate, con-
ferred so much- honour. on Sir W. Symonds, what de-
gree of mortal praise is due to the venerable constructor
of the St. Vincent, which vessel has proved so supe-
rior to the Queen ? And, allowing the Albion the
credit of outsailing the three-deckers, it may be
asked how shall we estimate the sailing qualities of the
Vernon, " the fastest frigate, in the service," when
we find that the old Fox, 42, frigate, beat .the Albion,
that ship, having beat the three-deckers, among them
the Queen, which ship was said to be superior in sailing
to the Vernon

THE SURVEYOR'S SAFETY VESSELS.—On two late
occasions, to bolster up and claim a superiority for the
" intuitive" vessels of the surveyor, the disasters which
befel the Acorn, and some of the old 10-gun brigs,
were triumphantly pointed out by a morning contem-
porary. That journal, however, would seem to be
oblivious of the loss of life and property which has been
sustained by the surveyor's ships, although-their hulls
have been preserved. Without taking into eonsideration
the narrow escape of the Pique, 36, from total wreck, on
her voyage from Canada, when she was saved,only by the
indomitable skill and perseverance of Capt. Rous and his
officers, we may allude to the mishaps of the Star packet.
Three times was this vessel thrown on her beans-ends with
frightful loss of life ; on one occasion a lieutenant and 11
men—a whole watch—were washed out of her and
drowned; and she was saved from going down by cutting
away the masts, which, fortunately, they were enabled to
do from the channels of the Star having been fitted on
a principle to the patentee of which the surveyor
and his officials -have offered very great -opposition.
The Racer, 16, was also thrown on her beam-ends twice,
with loss of life. The Mercury, tender, nearly drowned
the pay clerks at Chatliam-yard, and as nearly spoiled
their money, off 'Sheerness, and afterwards repeated,
with loss of man, lives, a similar specimen of her safe
qualities in the Bristol Channel. ..On this occasion, the
mate in command, by almost superhuman exertions,
Caved the tender, and ids meritorious service was acknow-
ledged by his promotion. The causes.which occasioned
such losses as those of the old Acorn and Martin have
been properly explained in the House of Commons ; but
the above-mentioned instances will show that there is
little reason for boasting of the safety ofthe'" intuitive" I
vessels.—. Herald.

COURT-MARTIAL ON LIEUT
STOKES.

Some little time since we were led to offer a few
remarks upon the case of Barnes, the carpenter's
mate of the Resistance, and especially with reference
to the extraordinary determiation come to by the
Lords of the Admiralty, •in incarcerating that man
for two years, for the commission.of an offence, re-
cognise! indeed by the articles of war, but which
would have been scouted out deny civil court of law
governed by the principles of justice and common
sense. Barnes, it will be remembered, was convicted
of lifting an 'adze against the boatswain (Lee), while
in a state of insensibility, the effect of Lee's violence,
and was sentenced to be hanged at the yard-arm of
such one of her Majesty's ships as the Lords of the
Admiralty might direct. We then stated, that'if ever
there was a case showing the necessity for a revision
of the articles of war, that of; Barnes was the
'identical one. We have, however, this-week' to
record a still greater anomaly, in the result
of the trial of an officer upon a charge which
in a civil court of law would have involved the
liberty of the accused for a considerable 'period.
An officer of the Tartarus; Lieutenant Stokes, was on
Tuesday brought to a court-martial upon certain dis-
gusting charges, preferred 'against him by a boy
named Terry, belonging to the same ship. It is not
for us to question the judgment of the -members of
that court. who tried the prisoner, in coining to the
decision they did, but certainly the consequence of
that decision shows a lamentable amount of incon-
gruity in the various degrees of punishment which the
articles of war prescribe' for offences recognised by
the service. Thus, in the one case, where a man,
proved to have been insensible, and by consequence
irresponsible, lifted a weapon in selfsdefence against
a brutal boatswain, the punishment was, according to
these precious articles, death. In the present, when
the court is of opinion that an officer is guilty of one
of the most disgusting offences known to civilised
man, the sentence is, we presume, by the same arti-
cles, simply dismissal from the ship in which the
offender was serving at the time of the 'commission of
the offence. Thus much with regard to the ignorance
and folly of those -articles of war ; now for the merits
of the case in question. , We have said it does not be-
come us to impugn the judgment of the members
of the court on Tuesday last, but it does be-
come us as public journalists -to • express an
opinion as to the nature of the evidence
adduced in, support of the charge' against this
officer, and, if possible, to discover. whether the
prisoner's guilt was rendered as conclusive as it is
made by the sentence of the court: The prosecutor,
upon whose evidence alone' the charge rested, was
proved by witnesses of irreproachable credit to have
been anything but a good character—to have been
guilty of falsehood, and to have evinced not once, but
many times, a spirit of hostility to the accused. lie
himself admitted that he had 'been punished for ne-
glect of duty, and, what was of still'greater conse-
quence, that Lieutenant Stokes was obnoxious to the
crew, who desired to get him out of the ship, because
lie was too strict a disciplinarian. These were im-
portant ficts drawn from the prosecutor, and we ask
what jury of conscientious Englishmen would enter-
tain such a charge after admissions of so unequivocal
a nature ? Again, it was proved that the boy Terry
had exulted in the belief that by his instrumentality the
prisoner was " in for it," and 'this, too, immediately
after the, commission of the alleged disgusting act.
For the credit of human. nature, it is not to be be-
lieved that an individual, under such circumstances,
could have acted with the gross levity which it was
distinctly sworn the prosecutor did. The commander
of the Tartarus and the brother officers 'of 'the pri-
soner gave him the highest character for moral and
religious bearing, and the medical officer of the ship
entirely &proved the statement' made by the prose-
cutor as to indications of the offence having been com-
mitted. Ought such a prosecutor to have been cre-
dited? Was not the testimony to character of some
importance, and was note the evidence of 'the surgeon
of the highest importance ? Notwithstanding, the
court thought the charge 'proved,. and Lieutenant
Stokes was sentenced to be dismissed his ship. One
of two things is certain—either the prisoner was guilty
of the imputed offence, and ought to have been dis-
missed her Majesty's service, and subjected to other
punishment, no matter how-severe ; or he was inno-
cent of the charge—that it was a foul conspiracy
against him, and that he ought to have been restored
to his previous honourable position in society.-
Derovort Independent.

MORTALITY in the METROPOLIS

The following are the results: of "A Table of Mortality
in the Metropolis, showing the Number of Deaths from
all CAUSES registered in Me Week ending 'Saturday, the
30th of November, 1844." The Table is issued from the Office
of the Registrar-General:—

CAUSES OF DEATH.' ' :
Tot Al. Average of
F:pid emie, Endemic, and Contapo" us Dm' ased 220 Filirver:keerl7.
1124 LI
Diseases of variable or uncert:ulauTtue......--
Diseases of the Brain, Nerves
Diseases of the Lungs, and other Organs .of
Respiration '323 ' 285
Diseases of the Heart and 8100d-vessels
39 21
Diseases of the Stomach, Liver, and other
Organs of Digestion
'
13 s
Childbirth, Diseases of theilterus, &c.
Diseases of the Joints, Bones, and Muscled 4 . 6
Diseases of the Skin, &c . - . 1
Old Age, or Natural Decay 72 - - 71
By Violence Privation, or Intemperance
Causes specified 1074 942
Deaths from all Causes ...... . ....... ... 1075 946
MUMS FROM THE PRINCIPAL DISEASES INCLUDAD IJNDAR

GREAT WESTERN STEAM-SHIP
COMPANY.

SPECIAL MEEI7G.
(From the Bristol Mirror.)
A special general meeting of this Company was
held on Tuesday last at the office in Princes-street.
'There was a large number of the proprietors present,
the questions for consideration being of vital im-
portance to their interests.
Henry Bush, Esq., haying been called to the chair,
the notice for convening the meeting was read, which
was followed by a lengthened report , from the di-
rectors, in which the necessity of raising additional
.capital, by the creation of new shares, was fully and
clearly explained. The sum required was stated' to be
sq,Qoot , which was proposed to be raised by the crea-
tion of 1,784 new shares of 30/. each, being the same
number as the original .hares. The following are the
terms on which the new shares were to be issued, as
detailed in the report :
" 1. That out of the net proceeds of the undertaking,
after paying and proiiding for the cost of management
and repairs, and other expenses incident to the conduct
of the business of the Company, a dividend of 5L per
cent. per annum shall be paid halt-yearly upon all
moneys paid in respect of such 306 shares, previously
to any moneys being set apart for the reserved fund, and
the payment of dividend upon theexisting 100 L shares.
• 2. That after the payment of such dividend on the
30L shares, the surplus moneys of the Company, ap-
plicable to the payment of the dividend shall be appro-
priated to or towards the payment of 51. per cent. upon
the existing 100/. shares,: zind if, after the last-tnen-
tioned payment any surplus shall remain, the same shall
be divided among the proprietors of both old and new
shares in proportion to the amount of capital paid up
on each.
" 3. That if in any one year there shall not .be suffi-
cient to pay the full dividend of 51. per cent. upon the
capital for the time being paid up in respect of new
shares, the net proceeds (as before-mentioned) of any
future year shall be applied to make good such deficiency
before .any 'portion thereof is applied to any other
purpose.
" 4. That on the sale of any portion of the Company's
property,-the proceeds of which shall, under the deed of
settlement, be applicable to the repayment of capital, the
capital paid up in respect of the 301. shares, shall, at the
option of the proprietors of such shares, be first dis-
charged thereout.'
" 5. That the proprietors of ,the existing shares shall
have the preference of taking such new shares, and if the
whole be not taken by them, the directors to have the
power of disposing of the remainder.
" 6. That the first call upon such new shares shall not
exceed 101. per share, and no subsequent call to exceed
5/. per share, and that there shall be an interval of three
months at least between any two calls.
" 7. That interest at 'the rate of 5/. per cent. be paid
upon all moneys advanced iii anticipation of calls."
The report of the 'directors then went on to state
that it haying been 'urged at all 'the meetings of the
Company for the last three years in the strongest
manner, that measures should be adopted: for dispos-
ing of the Great Western and the works, not only
with the view of providing the requisite funds for
completing the Great Britain, but as a step pre-
paratory to the disposal of that ship when completed,
and the final disiolutiim of the Company, the directors,
had made, from time to time, every effort to meet the
wiShes of 'the' proprietors. Repeated attempts had
been made to sell both' the Great Western and the
works' by private contract, and ultimately b public
auction; but all had been alike unsuccessful. No
offer had been made to purchase the 'Works at 'any
price, and there had been only two bona fide negotia-
sions for the purchase of the Great. Western. The
first negotiation terminated abruptly; the other was
With ,the Peninsular And Oriental company, to whom
it was agreed to sell the vessel, provided the Govern-
ment surveyors should approve of her as a fit and.
'proper vessel for the Royal Mail service. Some time
was occupied •in her examination by these officers ;
the result of which was most satisfactory, proving as'
it did 'that the -ship and .machinery were in the best
condition. The Government engineer hot- being
'satisfied as to the sufficiency of steam for the Royal
Mail service, alterations were made for the purpose of
meeting his, views,- and the Peninsular and Oriental'
!Company were requested again to send him down.
After waiting his arrival ten days, during which
itime,the ship was left at Kingroad, manned and
'ready for sea, the last post-day- for ;Writing' to 'the
United States previously' to' her sailing having,
arrived, the directors had no alternatiVe hitt'
to decide at once upon placing her upon her
'old station. The Peninsular and Oriental Company
then applied for and obtained an injunction to prevent
.her sailing 'as advertised. This, however, on the
case being argued- before the Vice. Chancellor, was
dissolVed, and, subsequently,' the bill filed by the
Peninsular and Oriental Company for a specific per-
formance of the contract had been dismissed, and the
contract rescinded.. This result the, directors could
not regret ; ' the price 'at which, under the pressure
from their proprietors, they felt bound to agree to
sell the vessel—namely, 32,000 l in their opi-
nion, far below her value. The report then went on
to explain that these proceedings had 'operated preju-
dicially to the interests of .the proprietors, both from
the loss of traffic occasioned, and from having given rise
to' reports which had caused a serious diminution in
the earnings of the Great Western. The directors had
during the past year devoted themselves moat ear-
nestly to the consideration of every measure which ap-
peared calculated to meet the expressed wishes of the
proprietors. With that view they had attentively
considered'the question of separating the interests of
the proprietors in the Manufacturing and in the mer-
cantile departments, and especially the very valuable
suggestions of Mr. Charles Bowles Fripp on that
point. They had, however, most reluctantly' been
obliged to come to the conclusion, that however de-
sirable' such plans might be, the difficulties which ne•
cessarily attended them were of such a nature as to pre-
sent insuperable obstacles to their being carried into ef-
fect: They were, therefore, compelled, for the present at
least, to abandon the -idea of providing for the more
profitable use of the winks by any measure of that
description ; nor were' they prepared to suggest any
other"plan, it being their opinion that it would
_be
more for the interest of the proprietors to defer the
consideration of their disposition for the present. The
superiority of iron steam vessels of the largest class
was now so clearly establiThed, and the convenience
for building and repairing both vessels and rnachineryat
the- Company's works so great, that the directors
could not doubt that ere long an_ opportunity would
occur either for selling or letting the works, without
that sacrifice 'which must necessarily attend a forced
or hasty attempt to' dispose of them. At the com-
mencement of the present year they were not pre-
pared to advance such an opinion with- the confidence
they now entertained; circumstances, however,
had since occurred, which, in reference to
the, value of the works and the prospect of an
advantageous -disposal of them, the directors deemed of
the last importance. They alluded to the determina-
tion Of the Dock
,Company to widen the entrance
locks into the port, which, when effected, would
afford to Bristol, the means of taking advantage of the
undoubted facilities it possesses in all other respects
for manufacturing and repairing iron steam-vessels,
and from which it was at present debarred solely
by the narrow dimensions of the loCks. It was
needless to remind the proprietors that at present there
were.no works in the kingdom, save those belonging
to the Government and that Company, in which the
largest class of steam-vesseis • could be docked and
equipped. Under those circumstances the directors
thoUght that the most prudent course would bete defer
the qUestion of the disposal for the works for the present.
After adverting to some minor matters, the report
proCeeded to state that the completion of the hull
and machinery of the Great Britain was accomplished,
that stie would pass through the outer lock in
the course of next month, and should the proprietors
adopt the proposition for the consideration of which
they were met, she would be ready to sail on her first
voyage to New York in the spring of next-year. The
report then went on to allude to that proposition and to
enforce it on the proprietors, and then stated that
the object of the directors was not to secure the
permanent prosecution of the. undertaking, but to
provide fur the discharge of the liabilities of the Com-
pany, in such a manner as to prevent the property of the
present proprietors from being' absolutely sacrificed,
and, at the same time, afford the opportunity of at
least attempting, now that the time for so doing had
arrived, to realise those expectations of success which
induced, the prvprietors to embark in the undertaking;
and they did not hesitate to express their firm convic-
tion,os
ufltt
het
wouldh.
msi
tfbst:aun(cighf
uani nnoeto)pa
sp oruecrahtiui
asnaiottiynoen• waa s afforded, the re-
satisfactory to the proprietors in eotsftl
oethe
nt expectationsg as
t,their
r
would b e
r
pro-
perty to its legitimate value. The report concluded
by -showing what had.been the yearly nett earnings of
the Great Western, and then gave an estimate Of her
future probable returns, which were calculated at
8,248/. • The net proceeds of the Great Britain, taken
on the same basis, would probably amount to 22,465/,
per annum ; those sums would amount together to
30,7131., which, it was obvious, would not only give
a fair return to the proprietors, but provide a reserve
ample for every contingency, and for the ultimate re-
demption of the capital of the Company within a very
limited period.
Much conversation ensued upon the fourth and fifth
clauses of the report; to the latter was added, " upon
the same conditions, but, not at a lower price." It
was also arranged that the operations of the Company
should be restricted solely to the working
of the Great
Western and Great Britain steamers, and to the nd-

cessary repairs of these ships and the Company's works
until otherwise determined by the proprietors.
The report was then unanimously adopted.
A vote of thanks was given to the Directors, for the
responsibility they bad taken upon themselves in• the
alteration of the dock, to allow of the entrance of the
Great Britain into the basin.
A

vote of thanks was also given to the Chairman,
for the able manner in which lie had conducted the
proceedings.