The New York herald., 1870-12-05

SIR-fhe onlcal communication waich has been
made public through you aud th3 press generally of
the superior saDillty OF her Ma esy snIp MOaarcn
Clder canvas over tnat oI the lost captain oDlmcs
rue TO break silence which otherwiss would have
preferred TO MAINTAIN nntil the First L.rd II the
Admlraltys promised minute had been published.
II ever the tru h OF tue old Engifsn proverD ..aur-
der VIII oui, proved, II Is III the ngnres pro-
claimed from the shippullding Department oi the
Admiralty, and 1t only strengthens s more tho
case agalust that department, whicn pus
in the mdest terms. l MAINTAIN, amoun.s
TO charge OF gross incompetence. For would
ask you or any rational person. Irrespective OF any
sailor knowledge whether TWO SHIPS Oi such dspro-
portOnae stability should have been sent 10 sea
compete one against the other under canvas. with
out tnis melancholy fact being made known 70 The
gallant officers VINO commanded them or 10 the al
mirals VINO were responsible Tor ,he valuable ships
and lives under their charge. II the department, 10
avoid the charge OF mansiaughter. now peads tnas
this information was only known ater the catas-
trophe, reply That this IL al acknowledgment OF
| the negligence and incompetency winch IL VIII oe
MIR. Chders' duty 10 bring home 10 his suoordlhat:s
ana to punish the offenders ana naval olllcers
general are waiting in perect reliance on Mr. Ch-
dersi courage ana good faith Ia uediila with t.is
/ important question:
| No one, am sure, can feel deeoly than he
! does the serious charge which now lies al tue door
| OF the Board OF Admiralty. one OF its departments
has indicted on tho British navy los oly equal 70
| that which we have previously suffered when cary
ing OF great victory like rraaigar the Nile
In this case 500 lives have been dsas.rousiy sacrl-
feed and disgrace lies at the door Whitehall Is
Is for Mr. Chiders to say VINO Is IN flult and what
his punishment shailbe. II apointsman ar signal
man Il railway had occasioned the loss OF 500
aouls from uunal neglect vi duty, all
| England would have rlng with IL and the wretch
been certainly sentenced to period OF servitude.
Arc gong to allow those who ought 70 have cxu-
toned our officers OF the danger they We're incurrinE
in sailing the Captain In e1uinoctal gates TO escape
/ with greater impunltv, when by the iigures they
furnish you to-day they acknowledge tnat 1t waa
Within their power 70 give the Information which
| would nave saved her MaJesty's ship CaptalnY
| Passing from this to another subject, think the
time has come when royal commission ought to
| be assembled to consider the lamentaDie position
| ilto which the Comptroller's Department oil the
navy IL drifting us. The most that can oe said OF
our ir0nc clad ect AZ this moment Is that rs bet
| French
| what that Is worth reply ITS value IN Old iron ~
| After spending SO many millions In ryinV 10 make
| iron-clad ships resemble IN TORN anu appearance
the obsolete type Of wooden men-o-aar, after
pulling after another the various iron productions
or our late Constructors genius, anu slowing away
In Bermuda ana our coastguard his many failures.
we have to-day heet OF which one of our aolest
captains and one who has constantly up 10 to-day
been afoat In the feet and seen all It's cruisn.
paci,ses. writes as fonows:-
do not believe that vesaee could
keep the aud together In ordinary winters gale
ls this, would ask you, the position IN which we
ought to De alter zen seais arnGN a, a eApenare ~
able to strike blow for Frances Has IT cap
: ! tured single German iron-clad fortress town Or
Has not France in 1870 committed the same gross
blundcr with IRON snips that we pcrpetratel fifteen
years ago IN the Baitic-viz, sending vessels TO do
work for which they were utterly unit. Their IRON
clads, ike ours, are hainpered witn mass OF nasts,
yards ana sails, which necessitates their beng
vessels OF great draught OF waller. Directly war
was proclaimed all this TOP hamper nad either to be
landed pied on the decks, ana eagne power
alone trusted 10; but they could not yea rid of tho
serious impeachment offered 10 their utlty by their
very lOrlus being calculated TO the sails and
masts useless IN real warfare, and feet winch
numbered SIX TO one or the German squadron mas
been unable TO even attacA It, though ying tempt.
ingly before them OF Jahde Bay. Their ofty sides.
intended 10 give stability under sail. nave been u
| source OF weakness not known only to the French
officers, out equally so 10 the Germans.
knew AZ II tact that On board the German fleet
every oiilcer In charge OF gun has ulagram sup
, pied him from Berlin showing the thickness W
platng on lie side ol every French Droadsl1e iron.
clad, so that directly The olicer commanding knew
hEHi il al Innf np NJ nj
he cond al once direct his IRE On the portions where
the thin piaung exists, and ayod inc patches Of
hcs arnor. Now. this weak feature Il part Of al
our iroA-clads, including the Monarch lheY are fun
OF soft spots, ana my informant assures that dia
grams showing tue thick and thin armOr-plaHng or
our ships are better known al Berlin than TO amy
officers OF our own feet; and no German navat
officer would be SO ignorant o his WORK to amuso
himself by hling at tns solitary tnleh belt OF tha
) Hercules or the Monarch when he Knows thai be
Gould penetrate ther sides Win ms guns ~ almost
any otuer direcucn One shell wen piatfcd IN the
many suit paris OF our Droadsde iron clads wii send
them feeng out oil action.
| Our Board OF Admiralty has been engaged IA
+, \ reforms connected with expenditure oi stores.
dockyard economies and the sta more serious ques-
ton OF the personnel 0 the navy that The Controller
and Constructor have mad II all theT own way and
! brough. us 80 q iamen'abIe postod Mr. ChildeIs
has done much IN The direction 10 which he, as Il
civilian, has mainly turned MS attention. and for
one feel grateful to hn ior it; but 1t Is nigh me he
looked 10 he condition vi the ieet, and tnt ne toox
into his cOunsels men Of less plastic temperament
tlan those IL was perhaps necessary for hn 10 IN
v stall at Whitehall carry ont the reforms no
| has been busted upon.
Had Mr. Seeey.s motion some years since in thu
House OF Commons FOR an inquiry INTO the structure
| OF sur neet been supported as 1t ought 70
nave been by the lDera parties, TWO Years waste u
| expenditure would have been saveo. i, must now,
however be done. ana since the state of alarm ia
| which for fifteen years we have been Kept by the
naval arm3ments Ol France Is disposed Of the mo
lneut Is most oppOrtune Tor an inquiry, and II 4
0 royal commission was appointed TO arrive al facts
irrespective OF all party considerations, have very
tte doubt the result would be the adopIon Of pin
cipes Tor which my amented friend Cowper Cole:
struggled so long, aud perlshed al iast In the
/. | 9u3i conflict between an individual aud depart
nent--glz., low reeboards and heavy armor plaJinl
no nasts or Sails motive power 10 DC dependent oI
steam engines; moderate drauglt aud SIZE. q
enable lron-claus 70 defend our swn shores, 0l
| break INTO aa enems's port whenever hostile
armada might threaten our liberties or commerce.
, au0 these the elements which have been entiIei
lost sight OF IN the present British armored feet
. I'm, sir, yours faithfully.
SHERAHD OSBORN, Captain Royal Navy.
t LONDON, Nov 10.
: AV0IRg AND ARSON.