The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1844-09-10 00:00:00

SPORTING IN TEL LIGENCE.

TATTERSALL'S, THURSDAY.
4 to 1 ar,st Mr Salvin's The Cure (taken to nearly £300)
g 2 Lord Stanley's Ithurlel (take, 5 to 1)
6 Duke of Richmond's Red Deer (taken to .e 150)
8 1 Mr J. Scott's Bay Momus (taken to 4100)
8 1 Col Anson's The Princess (9 to I taken freely!
II to 1 Mr Irwin's Foig-a-Ballagh (taken)

MANCHESTER, FRIDAY EVENING.
The Cure was backed to-day in a good quarter at 3i to 1
£6O. Ithuriel and Bay Momus were nearly equal favourites:
the former at 6 to I was backed for a score or so; Moolus
hundreds, &c., by one gent at 7 to 1 to the tune of •e3°'''• \TEL..
t
night, we believe, he took a point less to some money' &c.,
elan was first backed at 300 to 20 ; then 400 to 20, 2t,0 to ,
was laid. Closing prices :

ST. LEGER.
The field agst Scott's lot (offered) ; 3 to 1 agst Ithuriel ae!
Va erian ;offer, d); 6 to 4 offered Ithuriel runs. Offers t°'
turn 1,000 for a sov if Advice wins.
3 to 1 agst The Cure (taken)
II 2 Ithuriel (offered. 6 taken)
6 I Bay Momus (offered, 7 taken)
6 I Red Deer (taken, and offered freely)
8 1 Princess (taken, and offered)
10 1 Foig-a-Ballagh (offered)
100 6 Valerian (offered, 2,1 taken) •
25 1 Godfrey (offered, 30 taken) •
40 I Lightning (taken)
500 10 The Devil-to-Pay (taken)

THE HANDICAP.
Not much done to-day.YORKSH
TheIRE following will show the IS
recent offers, &c.:—
4to 1 agEt Mickey Free (t) In to 1 agst Advice (t and 06
5 1 Rowena (t) 10 —I Pompee (t) t,
8 1 Artfui Dodger
10 1 Ashtead Pet 15 1 Ravensworth '
THE DONCASTER

:up.—Not named,

DER
25 to 1 was laid at Eccles agst
ponies (taken).

BY. ii
Black Prince; then 20 to I

Lord G. Bentinck has lent Devil-to. Pay to run for the Le
r
his lordshir, to receive ha'f the stakes should the horse win' no
Bloodstone, or the horse that run as such at Ascot, Was sile
on Wednesday afternoon, at Warwick, fur 205 guineas•
goes into S. Scott's stable at Ascot.
Tux Goonwono Cor.—ln future there will he no al.°W,,,,rioie
ace
of weight for running at York, Newton, Chester, Liverr-
Manchester, and Newca tie, or in Scotland or Ireland. 10
Sir Gilbert Ileathcote's Akbar, we are informed, on his ret4,o,
from Goodwood, was found to have two of his ribs bre!e`nr
Chapple states that in running for the Racing Stakes he Yoe
as if in pain, but no one suspected the nature or extent (N.
~e 0
injury u,.til lie reached Epsom. It is supposed to have e'
indicted before the race, but how is a mystery.

;41.

Sept. 10,1844

eeds
exan3v
has been
the next
between
.wsburl,
ichester,
he union
onaPanfr
with
ny,
le centre
ling new
ind fortl
abitantt
be route
"ticturing,
.ests
iveePo°l'
~wsbury,
Clear.
id wine.
hire are

e 300)

£150)
10)
reelyl

3i tO 1 t 47
vouritcs:
roams ift
Last

• Vale-
) 10, &c.,

aid and
ers to re-

the 104
and er
ot)rth (t)

, to I 0

e Leger;
pill• l,
VeltS s
iele
eas.

l'owa'j„elye
iverlW"
is retur°
brOYea
be l'ese
It of t
ave be

CAPTAIN WARNER'S INVENTIONS.

'For years past it has been a question of no little doubt
amongst scientific and nautical men, whether the alleged
inventions offered for purchase to Government by Capt.
Warner—(who, it will be seen, has recently charged our
representative, Sir Howard Douglas, with unfairness in
his conduct as one of the Commissioners appointed by
u▪
nrernment to investigate the value of those inventions)
---were what they were represented by him to be, or the
mere creations of a mad enthusiast's fancy. There was
something apparently so outrageous in the sum demanded
for them in case of a successful trial of their powers,
(X 400,000 in all, or £200,000 for the invisible shells, and
the same amount for what was styled " the long range,")
that sensible and cautious men were indisposed to believe
that, in the present advanced state of science, any de-
structive agent could exist, or any mode of applying
I'aawn agents could be discovered, worthy of a remunera-
uon so great as that named. The professions of Captain
warner, therefore, as to the tremendous powers of the
engines at his disposal, were, somewhat too readily per-
rPs, treated as gasconade, and, especially by professional
men, looked upon as illusory and fraudulent in character
and design.
The recent publicly-made experiment off Brighton,
when a vessel (the John o'Gaunt, furnished for the pur-
pose of trial by private munificence) was destroyed most
signally and effectually at the will of the operator, con-
ced all but the obstinately incredulous that Captain
Ratner did possess the knowledge of some secret agent
of tremendous and irresistible power, or some mode, pre-
viously undeveloped, of using known agents, which was
calculated to effect a vast change in naval tactics, and
,gl7e a terrific preponderance to that nation who first used
t ; 111 warfare. But even that experiment, publicly. made
was, afforded no solution of the question so Indus-
ri°uslY canvassed by the public, as to what was the nature
,3f he agent or the mode of its application. Capt. Warner
olew
up the John o'Gaunt at a signal given, he being in a
''BBel at some distance from her ; but it was not seen
'Whether the agency employed was a projectile, or in what
other way the destruction was effected. It was even sur-
mised that collusion might have been practised—that
tikimalaustibles might have been previously placed on board
bue vessel estroyed. The experiment was admitted to
„a a wonderdful operation ; but it was not admitted to be
"ne which could be repeated under circumstances adverse
to
6 the operator, or made practically useful in warfare.
~,"Ptain Warner kept his secret too closely to allow the
rqblic either to pirate it, or sufficiently to satisfy them-
aelvea _
of its real value.
2, copy of the correspondence which has taken place
between her Alajesty's Government and Captain Warner
4aw before us, which throws considerable light upon
nature of the inventions, and the treatment experi-
enced by their owner in his endeavours to render them
available by the Government of his native country. We
have already already mentioned
s ru twofold, consisting first of a shell of a
that the inventions in question
t etron and adaptation,peculiar con-
struction•
shell," by which called
by the captain his " invi-
secondly, of some
be destroyed with vessels, fleets at sea, or forts, can
tremendous celerity and efficiency; and
destruction,
with peculiar means of projecting engines of
a certainty of aim hitherto unknown,
by which objects can be destroyed at a distance from the
operators of five to six miles. This the captain styles his
" long range!, With a view of affording to our readers
a closer insight into the nature of both these engines of
destruction than perhaps they at present possess, we shall
give Captain Warner's description of them, contained in
a letter under date of the 2nd November, 18-11, addressed
to the Earl of Hardwicke ; and, for the sake of perspi-
uity, we shall describe them separately. First, there-
fore, we take the " invisible shell," of which Captain
Varner thus speaks :

•
'' I will first, my lord, enumerate some of, the effects which I
Undertake to produce by means of my
.ppatilog hr efly, as Itheir practical
Invisible Shells, antici-
!laseability as will probably
goalong,
occursuch to the minds of seamen, and
such„a as, I am informed, havebeenurged against
against their use by
()ulcers n' t intimately acquainted with their mode of operation,
bolt
o eration,
hor aware of the perfect control I can exercise over them. By
their means, the mouths of rivers, harbours, and roadsteadsrnaY be blockaded ; arid any channel, where the usual
sound-
ings can be obtained, may be rendered impervious to ships,
'Without 'destruction. By usual soundings, I
Incurring certain
mean
vwhere a ship under ordinary circumstances will bring
.. up.
or example, any part of the Downs I could easily and speedily
?ender impassable,and accomplish this without running
any
r,,,
~-K of detection, even in the face of an enemy's fleet. If need-
MI, in a case of European emergency, the entire Straits r . St of Dover
b,ght be rendered impassable, and the whole of the ordinary
%hie track to the South Foreland, tra up-channel, from Dungeness .
I beg your
r any channel of similar depth. With this in view,
lordship to ports, harbours, and road-
steads examine a chart of the
of the Mediterranean; and your lordship will, at a glance,
tnertereainvoeeby the soundings laid down, that the Dardanelles, the
Toadports and
to Toulon harbour, and all the principal
steads throi possible
gho t that sea, are liable to the same
interruption whi3ch I couldu cause iu the more stormy and tide-
Mersey,ledEnglish Channel. The mouths of the Thames. the
a, the Humber, the access to Portsmouth, either by the.n
•iseedles or St. Helen's, Plymouth S und, and all other ports 1
the United Kingdom, might be severally blockaded, and ingress
and egress effectually prevented in the space of a night] haveany
Provided for all fluctuations of tide and alterations fromtoo;
and
.ailse of the depth of water, for the set of currents
b te the force of
Lazne does not deteriorate the efficiency or abate a *
these implements. . * *
' MY system is quite apart from any accustomed system of
!la va! tactics, and entirely novel i butso simple, that it would
if possible, to look in
ee advisab:e an enemy should be induced,
4 diametrically opposite quarter foi.
danger to that whence it
expression, it is desi-
Will really strike him to usea
colloquial
t.
!able to put him on a false scent, which can only be done by the
uarded discretion. I assure your
'lo,est secresy and mos f
these Invisible Shells, I could so en-
,ordship, that by means o
liroU and shut in a fleet brought. up,
that it could not get under
destruction; and I
`ea without involving itself in certain
sail, N'hatever might be
`ea d ensure it the same fate if under.
the e and number of the -,.e state of the sea, the weather, the sa .
4'lll's composing =ls fleet, or the rate at which they may be
„,„._, s
t r I may add too, adhering most
-,,s?'!!l_g. through the wa e .
btained so perfect a mastery over
ahe"vl,/waaertruth, that I have o
it with facility and cer-
' taint in question, that I can apply
Y on the lar est or most portable scale as occasion may
rtleaaq, My integntion, and I believe your lordship's wish, was,
ea" ' ahould principally state the efficiency of the inventiontsnel
2 er to Government in maritime warfare ; but I will take
abert '
trop / of subjoining. that I can apply them on shore againstifficut
ao',3'l3's or forts with equal destructiveness. The mostd i,
arlal'ili passes might be maintained by meansot this
or defended
ycith a , forts, however lofty their site, be attacked
or ea very small body of men, and without an battering train,
~,,,,,. stly Yet perishable stores of ammunition. any
will not, how-
Nei enlarge on the land application of my inventions,' but
ral of theOrd-
.nats,.Z.tlit!r lordship to the present Istaster-tGe,sneiend.,.
1 ' YOll desire further satisfaction on h. 1
its .1 the will at once be seen that the
has
extracts above it
r is not a projectile, as
~..as the 41ell of Captain Warne
even after the experi-
*Pent ~gttlerally received opinion,
Ls 4 13 • de ocuments now pub-
lied, • righton. From oth
jeo It w• they are calculated to
rate ill be seen in what way
Depot, Woolwich,
"th \ ' In a letter, dated " Grand
4
and j arch,lB A. 13," and signed by J• A. Chalmer, R.A.
• • ' C ffi R N prescribing the expert
*ments
Which ti, • a n, • •,
de to enable them to report
to g" "eY require to be ma .
5t1..,,, erntnent with respect to their value, we find it was
„lie i, es I ate d as the first experiment, that
, invisible shells be placed by Mr. Warner
.along the coast, so
.1,,,,11 Prevent a ship lying at anchor from putting to sea, the tide
-,x wa.ter.''
Ihe
tbov second experiment was to be "the same as the
1100 d. r I
e. but with the tide either strong ebb or strong
With _ respect to the third it is stated—
hi.siri.n'arrner is to suppose himself chased, and to throw overboard.is
Waskca •
visible shells, and to destroy the ships following in his
From
Prom these and other particulars
be-
tween government and the of the neg ociation -
captain it will be readily sur-
loaised that these " invisible shells" are to .e th .be sunk in
-water, secured by grapnels, and attached togeth
in such a manner as to operate by
vessels er by lines
striking them in
their course. An under-water cordon, it is said, can be
formed round any port, or round any fleet, which will in-
sure the destruction of vessels attempting to escape through
It: At the same time, the party using this defence can
'with safety remove them when required. They are said
'lse to be perfectly safe in when
on board ship; the
Pnl
cu ty which might be supposed to arise in the case of
enzine of destruction submerged, or from the rise
and fall of tides, is capable of being provided for; and the
eit Aeration of arranging the instruments round works to be
tn'troYed can be performed without interruption, or an
the,
ernY perceiving from what quarter they are menaced by
The
by r, Power styled " the long range" is thus described
already Warner in the same letter from which we have
..',',',iY quoted :
ti,e :a, next topic to which I solicit your lordship's attention is to
The ~e°, hd inventions which I have designated my Longe Valise.
akediaoarlike advantages secured by it are, an extent of range ex-
earth! ~„by far that of any ordnance now in use by ally nation on
tre e 1-0 this pre-minent advantage may be added, rapidity et'
:es4lartt!TY of aim,freedom from recoil, and perfect safety to the
-,„e„aapri:".;en carries, and the crew which handles, the implements
-''''cl,'''' tinder my general title of Long Range. I need only
ba'44,,v't stc.italle frequent and fatal accidents which have occurred on
i°-0.,v lar' ships
late from the shells now in use., to impress upo_ti,
'*--
ti,il-4.13 mind the desirableness of obtaining weapons foie
.„,;hase:rrible liability to explode spontaneously.
Ivor lopaseat ae . s witnessed by
a single shell of my fabriati
jointha. al.
&lc), I
beg
to
,4ii.rra D and 'other competent judges nil
ioi;-e'r with the one
the You 3 4straat I can project 100 of
.equa
I flight, and repeat
re, °Peratior,,.°e capabilities you saw, in a single
what ship' or fort-
Pi; 3 coal(' sa, with rapidity. Against such a tire
re-
. ,o,lit,ed, thatahial? It has been falsely, and I fear maliciously,th,hock
of
81/44allar: -/
" have boasted of my ability to blow up 1
"'tbrtr". I h,l'ever gave utterance to so ribsura and
i ridiculous a
upon any
last, ess a,
save said that I could bring such a fire to bear
man
te 41,1 be left[Br°ng as Gibraltar, that in a few hours not a
i
' - i2saect. to alive alive in it, and I do not withdraw these words. la it s
,t"'tritio:, the third adva, and Ido not withdraw these words. With
sqs m adeaute I have mentioned as incident to my
too
m4ogeeztaitity of aim, I can in the highest sea ensure my aim
say h° -r eYond any distance hitherto attained by any battery
. y how pour lorash• • .
I k ws how difficult it is, I may
saa, 51,__ . ip practical y no
sea viva),
,
eala't..!..so a, to"sL Impossible it is, in a heavy sea v! a), to obtain a
leeable
ae,,,"ihty of I Paint Sriun on a fixed carriage wills any to
..„ ,
tah Ud' as in listfing object whose position alters . nearly € }
tai, therefor 4 t be the case with a pitching and rolling ship, and
aoadiffscape UnlY appreciate the importance of rmn
. IA; trign3, 'S. I wish not to disparage the efforts which have for
•• high]4 gun ears been made to improve the theory and practice of
lii,y Dmie_rY, but I plainly assert, that while the efforts have be
If
1ak,,41! p,,,,z7e ;forthy, the success has been very in.considerable.l
45 "e 80 tr'°" moment to dwell upon the Eau! of Acre, which.
*tehUse of a. nitaPhantly quoted as a proof of our unprovelvent in
Ivh,.: serviens, I needsurely only remind a naval officer who has
alto, seal. " Your lordship has,' that the water was
.smooth from.
a iiretlier ale,,e„,,ille cannonade was directed, the garrison assailed
1(4.41. rack -aineient, and the object of aim was a huge fortress on
rea4 hies „„'....n?t a fluctuating ship But 1 will appeal to your
nit hies
1 .. R.nowledge whether, if I had been employed tc? ,
Britishe-
po,i!a withieauld not have prevented the approach of the
ta s'ililt rayselif. gunshot of its shores; and on the other hand, sup-
iriferaeoa,„ .„!°, be engaged against it I will refer vour lordship
ha-gatia,r "iurray, Lord In esti. and Lieutenant Webster, for
0 e baka whether I Id g e•
' f • Long Ramp,
tit W.' , varded Ac cou not, by means o in) .
mte
tint ae ~,_ ,
o_re from a single vessel, placed in security
lq 1
om,": a 4
euse.z,l. f the garrison artillery. I will here, my.
test.' Will ,a;1 on I may reasonably an any experienced
aeart ttie
use,Can any ordinary ship's company be easily
et4p• /tin of these implementsmost easily and
. the 're' cclristia,3.,Yte further and properly demanded,—Whethar the
tain.en,itipelling pala?enrand animating principle, if I may so designate
l'ea :Y.Runters or" these different implements, can be ascer-
1,
to aided, y n . seamen employed in handling them ? I an-
'asp give this not and I feel no common satisfaction in being
i.t.,,ree4t-ever will ttsstitrance, for in every crew spies may be, and I
And n di'eover,' ourid, who for a reward will reveal any secret
thes in, earlfir •
to e u•eStr •rnation of the opinions of the inventors of
Lord uctive aents, we may give a let
Melbourneter addressed
by Lieutenant Webster, an officer of

experience, selected to test some experiments made with
them.

"28 13, Manchester-street, Manchester.square,
" loth October, 1839.
"My Lord,—l beg to inform your lordship that the principle and
practice of the various projects of which Captain Warner is the in-
ventor, having been fully shown and explained to me by that gen-
tleman, and that being most thoroughly satisfied of their effective-
ness, an outline of the same projects was, on Monday, the lfith of
September last, duly reported by me to Sir William I'arker, with
an urgent request on my part, that, seeing the extreme importance
of the matter, not a moment's delay might be incurred in laying
the whole before your lordship, together with my distinctly ex-
pressed opinion, that their merits are so extraordinary as to vest
the absolute sovereignty of the seas in the hands of the first power
that shall adopt them. lam fully convinced that it is utterly im-
possible for any thing that floats to resist them for a single moment,
either at close quarters or any given distance, even to a range of
five or six miles.
" The strongest fortifications in Europe could not withstand
these extraordinary powers for a single hour. In river ways, and
against stockades, as in India, the largest armies would be annihi-
lated without a chance of escape ; and the most difficult mountain
passes would be utterly untenable against their operation.
"The country would thus be rendered impregnable, for 100 sail
of the line would be useless against a single vessel so constructed ;
and whenever it should be necessary to call this power into action,
its effects could be attained by a trifling expense, and at the short-
est notice.
" I submit, however, to your lordship, that the inventions should
lie dormant until a case of emergency, and that the secret should be
confined to the projector, the crown, and your lordship's
breast, and a whisper of its existence should not be suffered to get
abroad.
" I solemnly declare to your lordship that I consider the whole
country deeply indebted to Captain Warner for these inventions,
were they to cost the nation five times what he asks for them ; and
not less gratitude is due to him for the patience, forbearance, and
self-denial he has shown, when, with so mighty a secret in his 1 o-
som, his own interest would have been estabiished in any other
land btt :.ieefodri:closure
earnestly entreat your lordship no longer to neglect
a man upon whom the existence of the country depends.
" I have the honour, &c.,
(signed) "WILLIAM WEBSTER,
" The Right Honourable Lieutenant A.R. N.
Lord Viscount Melbourne."

Of the mode of the projection of the latter of these pow-
ers we have no information given. It is asserted, how-
ever, by Captain Warner, and an opportunity of testing
his assertions eagerly claimed and only refused on the
score of expense, that the effect is unerring, and that at
six miles distance lie can hit any object of sufficient size
—a ten-gun brig is named—to be feared as a vessel o
war.

Such are the powers offered by Captain Warner for the
purchase of government—offered too with every apparent
disposition to have them fairly tested previously to such
purchase. The difficulty, however, which has prevented
any thing like an approach to the agreement is a little
perplexing. Captain Warner refuses to give up any por-
tion of his secret without some guarantee of remunera-
tion in case of its value being recognised. Government,
on the other hand, want a trial, leaving its own hands un-
fettered ; and when this demand is conceded by Captain
Warner, negociations are broken off on the score of ex-
pence. The inventor, who has expended, as he says, a
fortune in pursuit of his secret, is to display the powers
acquired by him, and perhaps peril the keeping of his se-
cret, at his own expense, or to be set down as something
very like an imposter or a maniac. We cannot certainly
recognize the justice of this course. If government ima-
gine that there is sufficient prima facie probability of
these powers being actually existent in the hands of Cap-
tain Warner, or any other man, to warrant one-half the
trouble of investigation already taken, they ought really
not to grudge the paltry amount (truly paltry in a national
view) demanded, with every guarantee offered against ex-
travagance or collusion, for the purpose of testing them
properly and settling the question at issue. Captain War-
ner is either a madman, a quack, or an ill-used, or under-
valued man. He has, however, already effected quite
sufficient to render it imperative for his country's interests
that his character should not be determined upon without
his powers being properly tested, even at the expense set
down. The subject of the amount of remuneration, we
leave as he leaves it, for after consideration. The British
nation would not be unjust to a proved benefactor.