The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1854-02-07 00:00:00

SHIPPING AND 3fERCANTILE

MISCELLANY

LAUNCH or A LARGE Sair.—On Tuesday a new ship,
the Black Eagle, the largest wooden merchant vessel ever
built in this town, was launched from the building yard
of Mr. John Mayor, Brunswick Dock. Her dimensions
are—length of keel, 200 feet, over all, 210 feet ; beam, 412
feet ; measurement, 1,700 tons. Her destination is likely
to be the Australian trade.
THE ENGLISH PASSENGER ACT.—The Union of Wash-
ington, publishes an official notice, stating that informa-
tion has been received at the state department, from the
U.S. consul at Glasgow, to the effect that instructions
have been forwarded to the emigration offices both of
Liverpool and Glasgow, by Her Majesty's emigration com-
missioners, limiting the dead weight of all vessels sailing
under the Passenger Act to two-thirds of her registered
tonnage. Every passenger ship will be required to have
three bower anchors on board before obtaining her clear-
ance certificate.

THE ST. JOHN'S IND LIVERPOOL LINE OP STEAMERS
now numbers eight splendid steamers, which from their
successful voyages have established their character for
safety and punctuality. The proprietors, Messrs. W. and
It. Wright, and J. and R. Reed, have entered into a con-
tract with Mr. Laird, of Birkenhead, for two first-class
iron screw steam-ships of 1.000 tons, to be placed on the
line between Liverpool and St. John's.' Each will contain
accommodation for 80 cabin and 200 steerage passengers.
It is intended to make an application to the legislature of
New Brunswick for a grant of £lO,OOO per annum for
ten years, to aid in the establishment of tEis line of
steamers, and for whichthe mails will be carried to and
from this country.
LAuNcit OF A &lartv STEAMER.—On Tuesday, a hand-
some screw steamer, Bahiana, built for the SonthAmerican
and General Steam Navigation Company, was launched
from the yard ei Mr. Laird, at the Dingle. The dimen-
sions of the vessel are—Length on the water line, 250 feet ;
beam, 36 feet; depth, 23 feet ; register, 01d measurement,
about 1,600 tons. She will be rigged as'a barque, and will
be commeaded by Captain Daniel Green, late of the
Brazileira. . . .

Trig NEW COAST-GUARD.—Captiit N. L. Sheringham,
the eeretmissioner of the western district, visited Barnsta-
ple, in the north of Devon, last week, and addressed the
sailors of the port at the custom house. He was received
enthusiastically. He told the sailors he had visited most
.of-the outports, from the Isle Of Wight to the Land's End,
and he was proud to say t'hat he had experienced the
t.tmost alacrity in all classes of seamen to defend their
earths and homes. He hinted that if sufficient volunteers
,could not be procured the'ballot system would be resorted
to, but he believed and trusted that this would be rendered
unnecessary by a readynequiescence on the part of sailors
with the demands andnecessities of the State.
LAUNCH or 'nit Srkt.x.—The Peninsular and Orient&
Company's iron •screw-steamer Simla was latmehed 'on
Monday from the .building-yard of Messrs. Tod and' Co.,
Glasgow. The Sinila is one of the largest steamers`that
have hitherto been'built in Scotland, and of the "following
proportions :--Reeland forerake, 330 feet 4 inehes:; breadth
of beam, 39 feet .2 inches ; depth moulded, 29`fett; and
height from main-to spar deck, 8 feet 6 inches. She has
two steeple engines of the aggregate power Of 642:horses ;
the cylinders are 90 inches in diameter, with a-stroke of
6 feet 6 inches. The diameter of the screw propeller is
18 feet, with a- itch of 21 feet 6 inches. The tonnage, by
the old nreavrement, is 2,508 tons, and by Ithe new
measurement, 2,563 tons.

MELA.NetOLY COINCIDENCE.—The stearderSan Fran-
cisco cleartid from New York, ..Detemberl7. 'ekci the same
day the following ships cleared, all of which have met a
similar to :—Ships Commerce, Singapore, and 'Borneo,
besiderekip Saxony, disabled and put into ':llltalifax.
TILE 'SHIP CHAUNCEY JEROME.—The New York
Tribusle contains an account of this •vessil, built for the
Liverpoia trade, going ashore ,en Lrng 'Beach, in a fog,
on the-12th ult. She had fifty passengers on board and
a general cargo. No life was lost,lbett much of the cargo
wasktamaged. When night came- on ' the crew and some
ten of the male passengers, heing ninth fatigued, deter-
min& to remain on board, in preference to being drawn
to Shore that night by the rope,whichthadibeen made fast
toqhe vessel as the mode of 'communicating with the
amid; but the crew got at a keg of-Whiskey, made them-
sblvts drunk, and became, -quarrelsome, and a genera
Akht ensued, in which nearly all.on'board received 'some
lalury, and two German -se amenweremearly killed.
MEECANTILE STEA.XERS PUHPOSES.—A.
..eommittee of Engineer 4fficers hss'reported to the Admi-
--riiity on the suitability of -the mail=packet steamers for
' war purposes. The committee 'especially examined, the
'.vessels belong to the Peninsular and Oriental and the
.o.nyal West India Maii-Company. They say, "Our opi-
nion is, that the ships of these-Tompanies can never be
regarded as efficient sibstitutes :for regular men-ofwan;
:and that opinion is based on the following considerations:
—l. Their sharp form-of bow to promote speed, continued
-upwards as it is to the height of -the port-sills, renders i it
'imposssiblelto point and elevate -guns in the line of keit
-2. Their rake of stern would render it dangerous to trea
gun when elevated, more: pattieulaily when trained from
a fore and aft line. S. These vessels having been:desigased
entirely for steam propulsiom arid. passenger accommoda-
tion, all other purpoees have been made subserrienttto
those ends. We find,.-too, that nataitention has been paid
to the importance that should beattached to theexpeaure
of the engines, killers, and steam,chest to shot, which,
though in some degree unavoidable in all paddlewheel
steamers, appears tor:exist in these,vessels to a most. dan-
gerous extent. After taking. a deliberate view of thewhOle
-question submitted tern.s, .we have arrived at the :condo.-
; sion that the ships 'referred to, .provided they could be
spared, would serve Jibe purposes- iof armed troop-skips,
: and might occasionally be used,: in the event of •war,i in
our colonies abroad:"

HURRICANE AT gEi.—The packti-ship Roscius, Capt.

Porter, arrived
,yesterday morning'from LiverpoOl,,
15th, with 254 emigrants, all in -gond. health. Dec. nth,
in lat. 50 10, long. ,14 40, while Aying to under dose.
reefed topsail, she experienced a 4evere hurricane froni She
N.N.W., which blew away the maintopsail, and every
other sail which was *.irled to the., yards was blown to
pieces. The maintowgallant mast was also blown away::
:sprung the head of the topmast and carried away the
iron work of the lowenand topsail-3mM. The remaining
-part of the passage encountered heavy •.weather, in. which
:she stove bulwarks, -skylights, boats, At. 10th instant,
in lat. 42, lon. (15 40 saw and boarded:the barque Midas,
of Thomaston, with all her masts gone, and everthing
attached. She was 'loaded with .-cotton and abandoned
She appeared to have been previously boarded, as every-
-thing was gone from leer which was: moveable.—The ship
Irene, :Hessen, from Liverpool, Dec. 14, with 65 passen-
Agers, experienced the same gale:. lost .tiose-reefed fore-
rtopsail, reefed fore-sail, :and fore-topmast staysail: the
rfore-topgallant-sail got loose and blew to pieces ; lost stern
host, shipped a heavy ,eeg, which stove leeward house
.-4cylights, letting much .water between decks ; started
.water casks, and damageduarly all the passengers' pro-
; the cargo between decks started, .and it was
three days before it was poetible to secure it. The Irene
bad one death on thepassage.-7.ltieth York Tribsete,Jan.l9.
:4,ffirS FOR RussLA--W 'lbw informed by a corres-
pondent that a number -of Russian ships that were at
Liverpool have been sold to ;I3&ish subjects, aid taken
..over, with the officers and ,crews, to be navigated under
the. British flag. Information ,on the subject, n under-
, stand, has been forwarded to lire Board of
,Trade--Ship-
:ping/Gazette.