THE WEEK AT HOME
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MILITARY AND NAVAL.—The most important event of the week has undoubtedly been the new gun experiment at Shoeburyness. It has long been suspected that the apparent inefficiency of the Arm- strong 200-pounders against the iron-plated vessels at short ranges has been due to the smallness of the charges of gunpowder with which they are loaded, and the consequent feebleness of the initial velocity. The old 68-pounders were known to send the shot from the mouth of the gun with a much higher initial velocity than the rifled Armstrong guns. The advantage in the latter lay in the much less resistance which the conical and rifled shot opposed to the air, so that, though starting with far less velocity, because propelled by a much smaller Charge of gunpowder than the shot of the old 68-pounders, they travelled to more than twice the distance, and of course at long distances, like 2,000-3,000 yards, struck with much greater force. With the Armstrong 200-pounder the initial velocity of the shot is about 1150-1200 feet per second; with old smooth-bore 68-pounders it is 1600 feet per second. But while the former shots attain a range of 7000 yards the latter only reach 3000 yards. At a distance of 700 yards the velocities of the two kinds of shot are about equal,—the 68- pounder shot beino.17, of course much ahead of the other, as it starts with a great advantage. From this time, however, it loses rapidly on the other, till at a distance of 1,200 yards they are both abreast, and at 3,000, as we said, the old 68-pounder shot touches the earth while the Armstrong is still in mid-career. It is obvious, therefore, that for short ranges like 200 yards the destruc- tive force of the shot will depend upon the initial velocity, that is, upon the charge of gunpowder, and not on the causes which determine its destructive force at a long range like 2,000 or 3,000 yards. It is a delusion to suppose that the gun of greater power at a long 'range must be the gun of greater power at a short range. This is so only if the shots issue with equal velocity from the mouthof the gun. At Shoe- buryness, on Tuesday, experiments were tried against a target built like the side of the Warrior with a new gun (not yet rifled) of Sir Wil- liam Armstrong's, made on purpose to take a great charge of gun-
owder, and so secure a high initial velocity. The gun is iron, 14 feet , the diameter of its muzzle 101 inches, and its weight 12 tons. If d it would throw a 300-pound shot, but unrifled it only threw 156- ' •iitetud shots. It was tried with a charge of 40 pounds of powder
1:(r11are than twice the ordinary charge of the old guns). The
stoleult was astounding. The side of the Warrior, which had
Veesisted both the old 68-pounders and the ordinary Armstrong 200-pounders at the same range, was utterly shattered by this gun, even with a 40 lb. charge, and with a 50 lb. charge of gunpowder was riddled so effectually, that there was little doubt but that it would have passed entirely through the real ship at a similar range, and made its exit from the opposite side. The first shot entered, passed through 18 inches of backing, and was stopped by the inner iron skin of the ship, which, however, it cracked. The next went through plating, backing, skin, and all. The 50 lb. charge produced a still more formidable effect. The target was the same as the side of the Warrior, Defence, Black Prince, and Resistance, namely, a four- and-a-half in. iron plate, with two layers of ten-in. teak beams placed transversely, and with an inner skin of wrought iron nearly an inch thick. The iron-plated frigates now building—the Achilles, Hector, Agincourt, Valiant, Northumberland, and Minotaur—are to have plates five-and-a-half inches thick, with the same thickness of teak and inner iron. But when the new Armstrong gun is rifled, so that a 300 lb. shot can be thrown with the same initial velocity, there can be no doubt that this coat of mail will yield as easily as the other. The damaging effect of a shot is in proportion to the mass multiplied by the square of the velocity ; and in doubling the weight of the shot, therefore, if the velocity be not diminished, the damaging power will be also doubled. These experiments are conclusive as to the rate at
. which science is at present advancing the aggressive force of our gunnery; it is probably even more rapid than the rate at which the defensive force of our armour can ever advance.
Pounce.L.—On Tuesday night a meeting was held at the Corn Exchange, Manchester, the Mayor of Manchester in the chair, to receive the report of the recent deputation to Lord Palmerston con- cerning the Indian tariff, and to originate petitions from every cotton mill in this country for a repeal of the Indian import duty on manu- factured cotton goods and yarns. The petition prepared goes over the old (and generally solid ground), points out that the .protective duty has already had the effect of multiplyiw•t' cotton spindles and looms in India tenfold; that Indian capital is thereby artificially diverted from agriculture to manufacture, &c. It introduces, how- ever, rather a clap-trap argument, that in the Indian mills the labourers are obliged to work seven days in the week, i.e., also on the Sunday, the petitioners evidently supposing that if there were no protective duty on Indian cottons the Indian capitalists would become Sabbatarians. When the petitioners complain that the Sabbath is " openly violated in consequence of the false steps taken by the Indian Government," they certainly press into their service a species of logic that is well calculated to damage an excellent cause.
The New York Chamber of Commerce has passed a resolution recording its " grateful sense" of the ability and fairness with which Mr. Bright has advocated the principles of the Federal cause in Eng- land, and transmitted this resolution to Mr. Bright in a complimentary letter. Mr. Bright replies appropriately. but not patriotically. Pie believes that there is no other country in which men have been so free and so prosperous as in yours, and that there is no other political constitution now in existence in the preservation of which the human race is so deeply interested as that under which you live." Had Mr. Bright written in the fundamental reconstruction of which the human race is so deeply interested" he would have expressed better the general English feeling amongst the warmest friends of the Federal cause.
Lora Shaftesbury's life has been threatened with apparent lunatic (Mr. William Cole), and he has b bring him up before a magistrate. On Thursday a meeting was held at the Society of Arts to arrange for a more general appeal to the people for their contributions to the memorial of the late Prince Consort. This meeting was well attended, and came to the resolution to appoint a general committee to repre- sent all classes in the country for the purpose of forming local sub- committees, or, we suppose, in fact, collectorates. It is unfortunate that the distress now so general in the north should to some extent check their well-meant plans. You cannot expect those who are asking for bread to contribute towards a stone, even to their late beloved Prince.
Law AND JUSTICE.—The five men concerned in the forging of the Russian bank-notes have been tried before Mr. Baron Wilde, and found guilty. Rosenberg and Reichberg, the leaders, are condemned to eight years' penal servitude ; Horwitz, Josephson, and Weber to six years.
A case of some interest has been tried on the Home Circuit, before Lord Chief Justice Erle, of some interest, chiefly because it shows i into what indiscreet scrapes titled ladies urgently in want of money are apt to get. The Viscountess Forbes is or was a bed-chamber woman to the Queen; but she appears to have wanted money exceedingly in 1859, and to have especially wished to raise 20001. The mother of the Viscountess, Mrs. Territt (formerly of Chilton Hall, Suffolk), an old lady of ninety years of age, supposed that she had discovered a way of enabling her daughter to raise this money, when she fell in, at a lodging-house in Chester-street, with an opulent-looking lady called Miss M. A. Richards, who was living 'in good style in Chester- street, and appeared to think she could oblige the Viscountess with a little ready money on security. The Viscountess executed a mort- gage on her property, but the money was not forthcoming. Miss Richards then suggested that Lady Forbes and Mrs. Territt should accept a bill for 5601., which might enable her to procure 500L, which she could lend to the Viscountess. The bill itself was not properly stamped, and could not be brought in evidence. The Viscountess never received a penny on it of any kind, but Miss Richards did, and the question for the jury was, whether the Vis- countess had or had not employed Mips Richards as her agent to raise money for her. If she did, then she was responsible to those persons who had lent Miss Richards the money on the strength of that agency. Miss Richards raised the money through the help of the proprietor of the Argyll Rooms, Mr. Bicknell, and a music master employed at those rooms, Mr. King. Mr. King was the plaintiff in the case, Mr. Bicknell having discounted the bill for him. The jury found a verdict for the defendant, as it seemed clear that the Vis- countess had never recognized Miss Richards (who seems to be a bankrupt swindler) as an agent of hers.
FliceNcrs.L.—The Egyptian Loan has been very successful, but in consequence of rumours circulated with a view to damage its success,
Soctek—The February returns of pauperism show a very rapidly increasing pressure in Lancashire, which has raised the general pauper ism of the whole country nearly 12 per cent. above what it was at' the same period of last year. In Lancashire and Cheshire the in- crease of pauperism over last year is enormous; in the four weeks of February it was, respectively, 47.88 per cent., 52.64 per cent., 57'42 per cent., and 86.32 per cent. more than in the corresponding week of 1861. In other words, in the last week of February it was not mach less than double what it was in 1861-81,134 paupers in 1861, 151 1 2 in 1862 the premium upon the Scrip for a short time fell from 21 down to per cent. There was afterwards a reaction to 2 per cent., but it has since receded to• If prem. The contractor, in the person of Mr. Goschen, and their solicitor, in the person of Mr. Freshfield, attended before the Committee of the Stock Exchange on Thursday, with the view of being examined upon the general and special character of the contract, and the arrangements of the loan. The following satisfactory notification was afterwards issued : "The atten- tion of the committee having been drawn to an ambiguity in the wording of the prospectus of the Egyptian Loan, Mr. Goschen, the agent of the contractors, and Mr. Freshfield, their solicitor, attended to give all necessary explanations, and it is the opinion of this committee that the explanations so given by these gentlemen were perfectly satisfactory." The Scrip of the Turkish Loan has been down to 111, but. recovered to 21, and is now at 2/ 1 prem. Moorish Scrip firm at 61 1, but Italian Scrip is heavy at 31 3 dis. There have been no other foreign loans talked of, but in the shape of new joint-stock projects the demands upon the money market are heavy. Several new undertakings have been announced, and many more are to follow. The payment of the dividends has made money more plentiful, the Market is easier, the current rate out of doors being from 21 per cent. Gold continues to flow into the Bank, and will do so while the exchanges are in our favour. Mr. J. D. Powles, who has la- boured so long on behalf of several classes of the " Foreign credi- tors" of European States, proceeded at the close of last week to Madrid, in charge. of the memorial to the Spanish Government, which has been signed by the leading merchants and capitalists of the city of London, having for its object to put an end to the present resolutions of the Committee of the Stock Exchange, by which, so long as the " Certificates " representing the ar- rears of interest not capitalized are not recognised, no new Spanish security of any kind can come upon the Market. Spanish Cer- tificates, upon the prospect of a very vexatious question being honourably settled, have advanced to 7 to 8. The Bank of England returns for the week show the usual effects of the payment of the dividends, while the Bank of France returns for the month exhibit but a slight increase to the bullion. The market for the English Funded Securities has been quiet, but firm. Consols have been up to 941 for money, and 941 for the May account, but are back again to 93/.i and 931 94 respectively, as some allusion is expected to be made in Parliament about the state of affairs in Italy. New and Reduced Three per Cents., 921 1. Exchequer Bills, 18s. 21s. prem. Bank Stock has advanced to 237 39. The Indian Securities are steady. The Old Stock is up to 926 28 ; the New is at 1081 1; the Five per Cent. Rupee Stock, 1021 31 ; the Five-and-a-Half per Cent., 1081 1 ; the Bonds are steady, at 25s. 30s. prem. In the Foreign Securities there has been a fresh fall in Mexican Bonds, to 321 331, as no new remittances are coming forward, and the French Government is still dissatisfied with the terms of the arrange- ment entered into by the Allies with Juarez. Spanish Certificates are buoyant and active at the prices previously quoted. The Active Bonds are at 52131. Turkish New Six per Cent. Bonds and the Loan of 1858 have been extensively operated in down to 70, but the present price is 701 ; the Bonds of 1854 are at 80/ 81 ex div. : Miles 65i ; Venezuela 23 1. The general aspect of the Railway Market is not so good, prices being lower. Caledonian at 11. 158. lower than last week, and other lines 10s. to 11. Canada Securities are lower. Bank Shares are flatter. The prices of the new undertakings are :—Alliance Bank 41 prem.; Imperial Bank, 1 prem ; Bank of Columbia 21 prem.
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