Year: 1865

Holland, and anchored near the break
water. They left Nienor dep on Fri
day last, and had a pleasant run from
Holland down tho North Sea, the
Strait of Dover and the English chan
mel. After casting anchor in the har-
Dor the Colorado ran up the French
flag TO the fore and saluted it with
twenty-one guns. The salute was re-
turned, gun for gun, by the fort near
tho dock yards. Subsequently the
Admiral, accompanied by Captain
COso and Lieutenant Samson, went
ashore and paid an official visit TO the
commanding the station, and
were received in very courteous man
ner. Yesterday the French Admiral
returned tho visit, and was received
with salute of thirteen guns, which
were returned by the fort, and the en-
tente cordiale was established on q sound
basis.


We found at anchor in the harbor
the Northern division Of the iron-clad
consisting of tho flagship
Magenta and tho frigates Heroine and
La Flanders. Tho former is an i'm
mensely heavy ship, carrying two tiers
of guns about forty-two on broad
side-evidently rifles. The Magenta
is bark rugged, with short masts and
very heavy spars. She has an i'm
mense spur on her bow, shaped like a
plough, which must project at least
twenty feet from her bow, and which
would prove terrible engine of de-
struction when propelled against a yes
sci at full speed. One blow would
sink the most powerful wooden ship
in heworld, or, indeed, any iron-clad
that floats. The Heroine and La
Flanders arc vessels of a different
class, carrying only gun deck bat
terry, armed with nearly forty-eight
guns Their bows are immensely
strong, but have no projecting spur,
80 far as can be seen, the sharp bows
being relied on to serve the purpose Of
a ram. The shape Of the bow is not
unlike that Of Collins steamer, and
seems TO be exceedingly massive and
strong. The quarters of the ships
seem to be too crowded to enable the
crew to work the guns with facility.
The French have an idea that the
more guns they can place on a ship
the more effective she will become
They allow on the iron-clads onl y ten
feet for quarters for each gun-a space
clearly insufficient for the purpose, ac-
cording to American and English
ideas. Great rapidity of firing can
not be attained by this system of over
crowding the crew at quarters. On
the contrary, the service of the bat
teries is obstructed and the deck is
converted into vast slaughter pen in
consequence Of the closeness Of the
guns crews TO each other.


The batteries of all the iron-clads
we saw here are rather light, but
doubtless efficient. None of these
guns seem to be of calibre greater
than our one hundred Founders, and
are mostly rifles Evidently their
greatest offensive qualities as against
irau-clads consist in their ability to run
down ordinary vessels by their great
speed and immense power. They have
engines of tremendous power, and can
attain very high rate of speed when
pushed. In tolerably smooth water
they run eleven and twelve knots-a
speed that would enable them to catch
nearly every vessel in our navy. Not
withstanding all these qualities / do
not believe they could successfully cope
with our improved monitors of the
Monadnock and Agamenticus Glass;
Their armor would indifferently resist
a solid fifteen inch shot at ordinary
range, and our monitors wonld have
little to apprehend from the light rifles
of the Frenchmen.


The iron-clad division steamed out
of here to-day for the Isle of Wight,
where tho other division from Brest
will join it, and, together, they visit
Portsmouth, England, TO return the
visit of the English iron-clads just
completed. A grand series of brilliant
fetes are to be given the allied squad
ron in England, and jolly time had
generally. The English are perfectly
satisfied with the comparison institu-
ted between their iron-clads and the
French, and breathe freer since they
have seen and examined them. The
same defects that L have noticed above
were observed by the English, and
they are now convinced that English
ships are the best in the world, and
that the time for the Mistress of the
Seas to abdicate has not yet arrived
at least the trident is not yet to be
handed to tho French.


Admiral Goldsborough and staff
will leave for Paris tonight to spend
a few days. Many officers of the two
ships will also avail themselves of the
opportunity of paying brief visit to
the French capital while We lie in
port.


Our future movements are as yet un-
decided upon. The westward march
of tho cholera may possibly prevent
us from goiug to Spain or Portugal,
or to the Mediterranean, until late in
the season. The disease has already
made its appearance in Valencia, Glib
ralter and Malta, and rumors are cur
rent that it prevails to a slight extent
in the extreme south Of France; but
the latter report is undoubtedly incor-
rect. We shall doubtless lay here for
two weeks, ane then cruise down to-
ward Portugal, touching in all the
French parts and sreneing the time
rs well as possible, until the cholera
abates and permits us to go to Lisbon,
Cadiz and Gibralter.


The gunboat Shawmut arrived out
last week at Antwerp. After coaling
she will join us here and remain with
the squadron until it enters the Medi-
terranean, when it is rumored she will


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