The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1845-09-02 00:00:00

SPEED OF THE GREAT BRITAIN STEAM SHIP.—As
great interest is felt by the public on the subject of this
extraordinory vessel, the following analysis of her first
voyage across the Atlantic may be acceptable. Nautical
miles :—The distance from Liverpool to the South Stack
Lighthouse is 72; thence to the Tuskar Lighthouse 90;
from the Tuskar Light to Cape Clear 134 ; Cape Clear to
New York 3008. Whole distance from Liverpool to New
York 3304. The Great Britain steamed this distance,
against foul winds and cross seas, in 14f days, or 354
hours, giving an average speed for the nit le voyage of
somewhat more than 94 knots or nautical miles, which is
equal to 101 statute miles per hour. The average speed
of steamers across the Atlantic in their outward passages
has not been equal to what has been achieved by the Great
Britain on her first voyage to New York; although many
instances may have occurred in which a homeward pass-
age, made under favourable circumstances, has shown (as
in the last voyage of the Cambria,) an average speed of
104 knots or nautical miles per hour.

REPRESENTATION OF THE SECOND SAILING MATCH
OF THE ROYAL MERSEY YACHT CLUB.—A spirited print
of an interesting part of the last sailing match of the ves-
sels of the Royal Mersey Yacht Club, drawn and litho-
graphed t y Mr. Melling, the honorary secretary, has
made its appearance, the second of, we trust, a series il-
lustrative of these interesting contests. The time selected
by the artist, who is himself au enthusiastic yachtman,
is when the two leading boats are about to round the bell-
buoy, (the outer point of the course.) The Seagull, his
own vessel, is ahead, pretty closely followed by the Leda,
both contending close hauled in a heavy sea-way, caused
more by the previous gale than the breeze then blowing.
The Black Bess is to the leeward of both, beating upon
the larboard tack ; the Clutha is next, and The rest of the
fleet doing their best, more in the distance. The buoy,
which is about 14 miles from this town, is conspicuous in
the foreground ; and its verisimilitude will remind all who
have passed it of the doleful monitory sound of its bell,
" awakened by the waves alone," and which is ever wel-
come to the ears of mariners, especially by night, or du-
ring fogs. This buoy is a picturesque object in itself,
ever restlessly in motion, and it has recently been con-
verted, by means of iron trellis-work and an elevated plat-
form, into a place of refuge for those in vessels or boats,
who may be in danger during gales. The Formby Light-
ship is discernible in the extreme distance, and the pic-
ture, as a whole, is highly animated ; conveys correct por-
traits of each yacht in view at the time; and will add ad-
ditional laurels to the wreath already achieved by the in-
defatigable author.

CHARGE AGAINST AN AFRICAN CAPTAIN.—Mr.
Rushton was on Tuesday afternoon engaged in an investiga-
tion, which had been ordered by government, relative to
certain charges which had been brought against Captain
Glover, a member of the firm of Barton and Glover, of
this town. The original aspect of the case, as brought
under the notice of our government by a French captain,
was rather of a serious character. Captain Glover com-
manded a vessel of 67 tons, named the Lydia, which sailed
hence to the coast of Africa. The crew consisted of eleven
hands. The first mate was Benjamin Heseldine. It was
alleged that when the Lydia was lying in the Galoon river,
Captain Glover tied up a seaman by his wrists, with the
tips of his toes just touching the deck, and then ordered
the mate to flog the man ; that the mate refused to obey
the order ; that, in consequence of this refusal, he was put
in irons, and a number of black men conveyed him ashore
at night; that he was kept there almost without provisions ;
that he was ultimately abandoned by the vessel, and left
on the coast in a state of distress, without the means of
returning to England ; and that he at length succeeded in
getting a passage to Havre in a French vessel. The com-
mander of this vessel, it would seem, brought the case un-
der the notice of the English government, and the law of-
ficers of the crown ordered that an investigation should
take place, and the result be transmitted to them. The
mate and captain were consequently summoned before Mr.
Rushton. Heseldine stated that the above account of
the affair had been gleaned by the French captain from
the exaggerated stories of the negroes, and did not rest on
his authority, although, in the document, it was distinctly
set forth that it did, The only reason assigned by him
for Capt. Glover having harshly treated and illegally aban-
doned him was, that he had a dispute with a seaman on
board the Lydia, This was denied by the captain, who
alleged that Heseldine had been a disobedient and inso-
lent officer. that he had treated the crew harshly, and that
he had threatened to take his (the captain's) life before he
reached England. The log, written by Capt. Glover, was
put in in support of this statement, and Mr. Robertson,
the surgeon of the Lydia, was examined at considerable
length. He deposed that Heseldine, who had been a so-
ber and tolerably well-conducted officer up to the arrival
at the coast of Africa, quarrelled with a seaman for hav-
ing abused his mother, fought with him, struck at the sur-
geon for interfering, and for two hours after had to be pre-
vented by main force from renewing the contest. In the
evening, when the captain returned on board, he called
him aft to inquire into the occurrence, he went with his
sheath knife in his hand, owing to which, two men were
ordered to stand close beside, who then handcuffed and
put him in the boat ; and when there lie abused and threa-
tened the captain. (The entry in the log stated that the
abuse and threatening took place on deck, previous to the
handcuffing; but the surgeon was sure it took place in the
boat.) The blacks who took him ashore to the prince re-
ceived orders to provide him with food, and three biscuits
per day were sent ashore for him. There was no room in
the vessel to confine him. The captain declared that the
man could not have been in distress, as the prince, who
had a large quantity of goods belonging to the Lydia to
trade with, lived very well ; and the assertion, that he had
not the means of returning to England was false, as there
were two British vessels short of hands lying in the river.
The mate denied the latter statement, and said that the
blow supposed to have been aimed at the surgeon was in-
tended for the seaman. Mr. Rushton thought that the
conduct of the mate had been very blameable, and said
that he would not require Captain Glover to find bail then.
He would forward the evidence to the law officers of the
crown, and if any further proceedings were deemed neces-
sary both parties should have notice.

THE ADOPTED LANDING-STAGE AT
GEORGE'S PIER.

We have been favoured with a cursory glance at the
plans and sections of the landing-stage about to be con-
structed by the Corporation, as designed by Mr. Cubitt,
C.E. ; and the accompanying rough diagram will enable
our readers to form some judgment of its applicability,
without our entering into minute details, especially as the
whole is very simple. The principal portion is a floating
stage, lying parallel with the sea-wall, and of 500 feet in
length and about 70 in width. This is connected with
the top of the river-wall (opposite the Baths) by two
suspension bridges, with the roadway of each supported
over—not, as in the Menai Bridge, under—the swag of
the chains, forming in appearance an inverted arch of a
prolonged or gentle segment, filled up with iron trellis-
work. From the edge of the vier to the outside of the
stage, the distance is about 250 feet, so that at the latter
point (north and south) a depth of 10 feet will be obtained
at low water of spring tides. Round this stage, and along-
side of it, eight river-steamers may be accommodated at
a time, there bring room for one between each bridge and
the corners of the stage nearest the pier, and for the others
at the outside and ends of the floating scaffold. The stage
will be surrounded by posts and chains (we presume),
forming a railing, that may be opened here and there as
occasion requires. In the centre of the stage there will
be a suite of waiting-rooms of light construction, one
story in height, pavilion-roofed, and having ten windows
and three entrances on each side. The bridges are each
about 190 feet in length, and at right angles with the wall
and the stage. These bridges are strongly hinged to the
top of the wall at one end, and to the inner part of the
stage at the other ; and, when the tide is down, will, cf
course, form inclined planes, decreasinc, in acclivity until
they are level as the tide reaches its height. We have not
learned in what manner the stage is to be moored, but
can imagine nothing more feasible than two or more
chains, at each end secured to heavy stones sunk to the
level of the river bed. These must of course be slacked
off, or drawn in as the tide rises or falls. The structure
will, no doubt, (judging from its appearance on paper,)
present a neat appearance; but we are not prepared to
offer an opinion upon its stability in gales of wind. It is,
in fact, merely a huge raft connected with the land by the
two bridges, and is not to be found fault with for its
simplicity and self-working properties ; but how far it
may be available or secure during a heavy blow from the
westward, when at times the sea dashes on the pieroead,
is a question which experience can alone solve. With
respect to the originality of the conception, it cannot be
denied but that it bears a strong resemblance to more
than one of the plans sent in to the Dock Committee, and
rejected ; and we especially remember one transmitted,
we believe, by Captain Christie, of the City of Dublin
Company's steamer, the Birmingham.

BRIDGE

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