Washington sentinel. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1853-1856, 1856-02-28
ErdM The New York Expr..s.


From the New York Express.
Launch or the United states steam FRI
gate Niagara.
This new vessel, which has been in course
of construction for little more than year,
and has been ready for launching for month
past, waiting for a favorable tide, was launched
this Saturday morning in the presence of
about ten thousand spectators Among those
on board at the time of the launch we observed,
Capt Brown, of the Pilot boat Mary Taylor"
the Lieutenant of the Navy Yard, First Lieut.
enant Brazier, Miss O'Donnell, and several
other ladies and gentlemen.
Precisely at III o'clock, George Steers, esq,
naval constructor, under whose superintend-
ence the Niagara was built, gave the signal,
when the beautiful vessel glided majesically
into her native element, amid the cheers of the
immense concourse Of people assembled on
both sides Of the river, whilst salute of 81
guns was fired from the ship North Carolina"
Several ladies and. gentlemen then got on
| board when the ceremony of baptizing the
vessel was performed by Miss O'Donnell,
daughter of ex Coroner O'Donnell, who, having
taken a bottle Of champagne, assembled to the
bowsprit, and, breaking it, pronounced the
name NIAGARA" in an audible voice,
whilst the crowd assembled in the yard gave
three hearty cheers, and thus the ceremony
concluded. During the ceremony, the band
of the North Carolina played several favorite
airs, among which were the Cavatina" and
chorus from III Trovatore.
| The Niagara is one of the fine new frigates
just finished for our navy. Her main dimen-
sions are: Tonnage, 5000; extreme length on
deck, 345 feet load line, 1923 feet. She is full
| ship-rigged; mainmast Ill feet long and
| feet inches in diameter; mainyard So feet
| long, and mizen spanker boom 81 feet. Full
complement of men 400.
The following Neutrality-suspicious. of arma-
ment and machinery-have been used in her
constructions:
Live oak timber, cubic feet. ............ 40, 900
White oak timber, cubic feet. 10000
White plank, superficial feei... IL 900
Yellow pine timber, cubic feet. .......... AZ, 900
Yellow pine plank, superficial feet. 10000
Yellow pine timber, cubic feet. .......... 5000
White pine plank, superficial feet ........ $4,000
Copper, lbs. ..l40,000
Spikes IDS. ................... 2O.O00
The armament will consist of twelve ll-inch
pivot guns, to carry ITO pound shot, and
charge of Is lbs. of powder.
The machinery is from the Fulton Iron
Works. The boilers, four in number contain
| over 5000 brass tubes, and weigh about $780,
900 lbs. She has three engines. The bed
plates weigh $4,000 lbs; the straight shafts,
10000 lbs; the crank shaft, $4,000 lbs; the
cylinders, $4,000 lbs; condensers, $4,000 lbs.
pistons piston rods, pillow blocks, caps and
cupolas, about 1000 lbs.
The cost of this superb craft will not be far
from 81 100000. She is to be full rugged, and
her builder, Mr.. Steers, estimates that she will
go II knots an hour, with a good breeze, and
Is knots under steam.
1t has been enormously stated that this
steamer will be the largest in the world The
Adrfatic flor the Collins Line now upon the
stocks at the Messrs. Steers shipyard, will be
larger by several hundred tons. Her main
dimensions are: Length over all, 352 feet; ex-
treme breadth OF hull, SO feet; depth of hold,
33 feet inches; tonnage, $3.50, carpenters
measurement. Like the Niagara, this steamer
is divided into water tight compartments Her
engines (oscillatng) are from the novelty works,
Il feet stroke, and cylinders hundred inches.
The Messrs. Steers are rapidly Fastening the
completion of the Adriatic with all their dis
possible force, and she will probably be ready
for launching by the middle or last of March.
MIR. David Dangers.
lnlS ctieDrdleu sculptor, VINO uleu MOI iouS
since in France executed the bronze statue of
Thomas Jefferson, which now stands in front
of the Presidents House. He was a radical
Democrat, and among the numerous works of
art which he has left are statues and busts Of
all the liberal men of his age. Regarding
sculpture as the handmade of history, he sought
to preserve in her bronze or marble the images
of the leading characters of the century, and
was successful. At one time Louis Napoleon
exiled him. aud as it was feared that his funeral
wonld be made the occasion Of an expression of
political feeling, large bodies of military and
police were out to preserve order. The funeral
passed off quietly. M. Halevy, of the Academy
of Fine Arts, delivered the usual farewell
discourse at the grave, where there were no
clergy, the deceased being an atheist. Among
the crowd at the grave were General Cavagnac;
de Beranger, the poet; Cremiux, Marie Cloud
chaux, and other Liberals. Wash. Star.
Religion and Negro Slavery.
The New York Observer, religious paper
of ability and influence at the North, in late
article on the subject of slavery in America,
says
When the ancestors Of those negroes were
torn from there homes in Africa by the slave.
traders of Old England and New England,
and placed under the influence Of christianity
at the South, they were among the most de-
graded and miserable Of human beings, slaves
of cruel masters, the victims of bloody super