The Sun.
London, England, 1842-06-25 00:00:00

-•- ,
EXPERIMENTS AT THE ROYAL
ARSENAL.
WOOLWICH, JUNE 22 —One of the large guns made foe
Mehemet Alt by Messrs. Walker and Co. having been mounted
on a strong ship carriage, constructed at the Royal Arsenal,
it vas resolved to make some experiments with this gun pre-
vious to its being sent to Deal, as in the event of any deficienuf
being likely to take place, it would be discovered and remedied e
with greater facilities here than it possibly could be on the se',
coast betwixt Deal and Sandwich. At precisely two o'clock
today, Lieutenant-General Lord Bloomfield, G.C.8.,
and G. C. H., Major-General Drummond, C. 8., Director- ee
General of the Royal Artillery, Colonel Paterson, Colonel .
Lacy, Lieut.-Colonel Dansey, C. 8., Lieut. Col. Dundas,
and Lieut.-Col. Chalmer, members of the select committee, at-
tended at the butt in the grounds of the Royal Arsenal, to "it-
ness the experiments. The carriage oe which this neugela'
cent gun, of the most perfect symmetry to the eye, has been
placed, is mounted on a sliding platform twenty feet in length, •
to afford ample room for recoil to the carriage when the gita
is fired, and the whole has been placed on a base similar,
to the deck of a ship or war steam-vessel, with pieces of
iron forming part of a circle, on which the apparently Pm-
dcrous gun and carriages can be moved from one side to en"
other, emote' ng to the direction in which the gun may be
required to be pointed, with the greatest ease. This was
clearly shown by the tacility with which seven men moved the
whole from one side to another. The angle on which the
sliding platform was placed is to inclined forwards as to require
the united power of sixteen men to draw back, in the direction
of the recoil, the carriage and gun six feet; hut it only required
sie men attached to the pulleys, and two of the levers, to bring
up the gun and carriage to their original position after being
fir.-d. After the varieus exorcises of the gun in moving it from
one direction to another, and retiring and advancing it, as
might be required, when loading was gone through, in a matt' e
ner to the entire satisfaction of the officers present, the pap
was loaded with a charge of 261bs. of powder, and a solid ball
41
of 1301bs. weight. Lieutenant-Colonel Dansey then applied
a percussion tube on a new constructien, being an improce-
merit on a percussion tube, submitted by a Hanoverian agar,
and noticed at the time. The improvement consists in
simplifying the mode of discharging the percussion uorn"
position, and the result was the most satisfactory of and
that has yet taken place. Lieut.-Colonel Dansey fired thA°
three first rounds himself, and three others were fir
by a gunner and driver of the Royal Artillery, with
greatest certainty, precision, and ease at the word of coca'
mand, which shows that the experiment has been complet,VP
successful. This important discovery in the mode of des'
charging large guns is the most simple that can be iillagine A
being merely a small piece of iron or steel, not larger io
almost of a similar shape to the support attached to ladies' golde
watches when carried about with them, and the pieces of cord
about two yards long, with which the discharge is effected,
not thicker than the usual silk guards attached to the watches
of gentlemen. The whole occupying so little space that MY:
might be carried in the waistcoat pocket without presentil
any very prominent appearance. Lieutenant-040nel Dans? tJ
tried a number of the tubes in guns which were not loadeur"'r
and in every instance, with only one solitary exception, tbelei
proved effective. The first shot tired caused the gun and "e
care iage to recoil about five feet and a half, and the seeMf • •1:'
shot only one-half inch more with the same charge °
powder. The third shot had a charge of 291bs. of powder, j"
and the recoil exceeded the former by six inches. lb.! 13
fourth shot, with a similar charge, recoiled only five 40'4 lee
and three quarters more than the two first shots The fir .(
and sixth shots, with a still greater charge of powder,'
coiled, the one 15 inches, and the ('her 171 inches more thina•
the first, but leaving ample space on the sliding platform to is;
sure that it was sufficient for the Leaviest charge that might e,
ever be applied.

THE COINAGE.-PIX JURY.
The Jury of the Pix, which assembled on Wednesday, wert;.'
occupied until nearly six o'clock in witnessing the asilla,
the different coins of the realm. At the conclusion theyP'
ceeded to the residence cfthe Lord Chancellor, in Great George"
street, Hanover-square, and delivered the following verdict to
his Lordship :
" That they, the Jury, found, in one or two instanceso.l
slight deviation from the weight prescribed, but it was wit,h,"2
the allowance made in the Mint Indenture, bearing Ow

April 17."
The Lord Chancellor then ordered the verdict cf the Jury
be recorded in the usual form.
The Foreman of the Jury said he was requ'sted to call bl.
Lordship's attention to the fact, that the scales which had bee!
used during the assay were supplied by the Mint. He and his
brother Jurymen had no doubt those scales were in all respee4
perfect and correct, hut they were supplied by the Mint. tri!.
Jury were of opinion it would be more satisfactory to the publl.
if they were supplied by some responsible officer of the Gels/ '4,
not connected with that department. In making these remarks'
he begged to repeat, that they had no reason for a single alf_e,
ment to think but that the scales were in every way fair an" es
just; but, as the Master of the Mint was on his trial, the Jeri
considered it their duty to call his Lordship's attention to the,
fact of the scales being supplied by the Mint.
The Jury then complained of the inconvenience to whic:,S,
they had been subjected for want of room, whilst employed
discharging an important public duty. '
The Lord Chancellor, after carefully listening to the slat tf
ments of the Foreman, said he was glad the Jury had Ini"-:*r
the remarks they had done respecting the scales. The Pr°-,
priety of having them furnished from another quarter was eTidie:i,
although it could not be supposed for a moment but that the '
were correct. The subject should be attended to. Wiaires
to the accommodation, he must say that he thought a 111°.-
t
convenient place of making the assay might be found. ''
.
The verdict was recorded, and the Jury retired.
-t4
A new gold coinage, it is said, will shortly be issued. '4O-
-

COURT OF ALDERMEN. , re'r
Yesterday a Court was held for the despatch of public blue .1,0
ness. Sergeant Merewether was sworn in as Town-Clerk. .vt,
ADMISSION OF THE CURIOUS TO THE CHAPEL IN Nrcri
GATE DURING SERVICE ON THE "CONDEMNED SERMOS ft
DAY. t 1
Alderman BROWN said he rose to call the attention'
,„
the Court to a subject of considerable importance. It '''rl'
rather of general notoriety that several observations had ,
made in Parliament with reference to the sermon preached' s',"
the Chaplain of Newgate on the day preceding the exec'd 0,,i
preached,
of Good. It was needless for him to say that the facts rre'l
been exaggerated.—(Hear, hear.) It had been stated ,S 4 °:
the prison dress of the criminal had been taken off, and 13,11,1,
he had been accommodated with ether clothes, and preps_,,,aeli
for exhibition before the public in the Chapel.' Now it ^„,er `,
well known that the prison of Newgate was a prison for matt ''d
prisoners, and there was no prison dress there whatever, It;
~,,.
that in Ncwgate be had not been obliged to put on a erit°ta ,S,
dres,. Good was, however, permitted, after condemnation, tO, 4
change the clothes in which he had been tried, and to wear till';.o,
altered dress at his execution, as well as in the Chapel. 0"
(Alderman Brown) should confne him: elf to the observatio t
arising out of what had taken place in the chapel. The CO,izr .
of Aldermen had, in the year 825, adopted measures wit
.1„,
view to prevent such occurrences as had recently taken plabese; 0
and as had, he believed, very frequently taken place, since tersii 4.
period. When he and Sir Jchn Key were Sheriffs, sere" ;cc
di, inct executions had anhappile, marked their year of ow-, ',i:
The first the tocct rred did not excite any particular attentin •,,.
but the next, that of Fauntleroy ,oceasioted a great deal; tare. :'.)
he and his co: eague, upon goirgto Newgate on the Sol 2,21
previously, we re surprised to find that the doors of the pori
were blocked np, and thet the moment they were opeueno
crowd rushed in. the most impetuous manner. The scene "„,
exhibited was quite enough to convince the Sheriffs of the o'.
cessity of bringing the subject before the Court of Aldermen'
They considered tnat it would be sufficient to have an girder 1'..,
sued for closing the chapel doors against the public on Sundays
immediately previous t olexecutions,as well as on ordinarySungtt
and the matter was referred to the Gaol Committee. 1,1,
Committee, in their Report, dated the lath of Novoll" ;g
1825, certified that they were of opinion that in future ;
would be expedient to exclude strangers from the chapel °.
these particular Sundays, as well as on all ordinary occastoesl
an opinion which was agreed ta, or, to use the quaint le;),
guage of an ember period, was well liked, and approved t 4
the Court.—(Hear, hear.) That Report having been adop.,_eo
with unanimity, he did not kuow how it happened that t"ti
public again contrived to get into the chapel. He regrett.eici
that so good a regulation had been violated, for no one Or,
question the propriety of drawing and confining the aftentoi°,
of a criminal, about to leave this world, to the awful cites
so
stances in which he was ilaced. Nobody he believed 'roe
better qualified than Mr. Carver, the excellent Ordieer/Ite
the prison, to direct the religious attention of an unfortarlo.re
person in such a condition; and nobody was mire
strongly persuaded of the necessity of not subject
a fellow creature in his preparation for another 0,7,,
of being, to interruptions such as were now so usual.,
( Hear, hear.) Convinced of the expediency of enfore;
the observance of a regulation by which all persons except 'be
Sheriffs, the Ordinary, and the Governor were excludeo,,h
Court of Aldermen had acquiesced in 1e25.—( Hear, be ibe
e
should move a resolution in the spirit of that in which
s;)
When that motion should be carried, he would move 014 iiig
Town-clerk deliver a copy of it to each Sheriff upon cella ~
into office.—( Hear.) He begged to be understood as isePtties •
no blame whatever to the gentlemen who performed the dl,
of the office so completely to the satisfaction of their fei,th00. a
citizens. They acted as their predecessors had acted. '
Alderman then moved the first resolution.
after
Alderman Thomas Wood seconded the motion, and . 0,
some remarks from Alderman Maguey, Alderman Thotld, .
Sir Peter Laurie, Alderman Lucas, and Alderman Col',
.41.
all approving of the spirit of the resolution, the motion of of
of
effect
of •
derman Brown was unanimously agreed to. The
this motion will be to exclude the public from the Chapel ..
Newgate on all occasions.
t"
'
Alderman Timairsost then moved that it be referred - to
to, J,-
Gaol Committee to consider whether any, and what altertnef ..-)
if any, ought to be made in the regulations for the admiow
~..'
.
angers on days of the exeution of iminals.
The motion was agreed to,c and after the transaction of 9°°l6:
•.• business of no public interest the Court adjourned. .
n•ficeo , ' '
THE STEAM-SIIIP HINDOSTAN.—This moo, I 00 ,
v ssel, the first of the Oriental Steam CompanY'scei- , °Y.
for the communication between Calcutta, nidrast ~rid .
100, and Suez, is rapidly progressing in her outfit, t .. 4
will, it is said, be ready to start for India from 5°1173 '
ampton, by the Ist of September. She will be 003..
btlian
manded by Captain Richard Moresby of the soi .
Navy, so well known for his elaborate survey of the bee
Sea, the Maldive Islands, &e. A considerable ntli'tol
of cabins are already engaged in her, and it is ex) and
the vessel will be full of passengers on her loon,
voyage. 'The Bentinck, a sister vessel to the liin"..,ched
and destined for the same station, will soon be lat!"_., of
at Liverpool. These vessels are each of the burtrrno,
1,800 tons, and have engines of 520 horse power. -`34 her '
del of the Hindostan, exhibiting a complete plan (',f the
interior accommodations, is kept at the offices 'OO •
Oriental Company in St. Mary Axe, and is $ 6
ear:o3ity. Mr. Vent'
ELABORATE ASTRONOMICAL CLOCKS. ' 0f cOn'
of 82, Strand, having had the distinguished honoour.
iron°.
strutting, by command of the Emperor of Russia, tw 1100 to
mical clocks, invites a public inspection of them re'
their departure.
_____„,..../-----""

MARRIED. t Ger.
On the 21st inst., at St. Mary's, Islington, Harried Tap
trude Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas W. Perry, ElVferpoot•
nell-place, Islington ,to John Hilditch Evans, Esq.,ol''
DIED. f• 0 l'ird'
•
On the 12th inst., at Walme M Churchill, wife
r, rs.
tenant-Colonel Churchill, of the 31st Foot, aged 45. a efortl-
On the 17th inst., at Croase House, Kingsland, .
shire, Jehn Williams,aged 5. Ecl`card
(hi the 20th inst., at Boulogne-s6ur-Mer, Captain Sir
Will:am Corry Astley, R.N. - irc re °- '
On the 21st inst., at Auteuil, near Pails, Charlotte, ti 9 Vii[
Colonel H. Percy Davison, and youngest sister of the 3
Francis Hastings Doyle, Bart. 'O oodt
On the 22d inst., in Grove-end-place, St. Johnr
Sarah, relict of the late J. Davison, Esq., aged 71, St. J°l/1!'" -
On the 22d inst., at Southampton, George Ernest , --.
the it fant smn of the Rev. R. L. Benson. f Willt: . -,. -
On the 19th inst., the Lady F. Jemirra, the wife 0 ,---
- James __:-.ete-
Gcrfdeve, Esq., of Clifton

oi
London: Printed and Published by I%IIJRDO yot ad,
No. 112, Strand, at The Sun Office, No. 112, 8111
the County of Aiiddlesez, Saturday, Juno 25, MI