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Grey River Argus, Volume X, Issue 817, 10 March 1871, Page 2

The Ceres was the only vessei loading on the berth at Melbourne for this port when the Magnet left. • The s.s Alhambra was not to leave Melbourne until Saturday, the 4th instant, so that she is not due until to- .lay, and it is likely that she will be tendered here tomorrow and despatched to Nelson, Wellington, other southern ports and Melbourne. The clipper brig Magnet, Captain Clinskill, from Melbourne, arrived in the roadstead on Wednesday afternoon, and was towed in yesterday forenoon. She left Port Phillip Heads on the 27th ult., with light westerly weather, which continued until the . following Thursday, when she met strong breezes from the S.W., with heavy seas, which lasted until Sunday night. On Monday she had light weather, and on Tuesday calms until eight o'clock on Wednesday morning, when she got a strong breeze from the N. W., which brought her into the roadstead. She was towed in as above. She brings 240 tons of general merchandise in first-rate order, consigned to her owners, Messrs Kennedy Brothers, and will commence discharging cargo this morning. Captain Clinskill reports having spoken a steamer, supposed to be a man-of-war, probably H.M.S. Virago, on her return trip from Bligh Sound to Wellington. We have to thank Captain Clinskill for later dates from Melbourne The Marine Board of Adelaide have issued a notice that a fixed bright light is to be exhibited from a lighthouse on Cape Jarvis on and after the Ist of May next. A despatch has been received from the Secretary of State for the Colonies, by his Excellency the Governor of South Australia, intimating that the Lords of the Admiralty have directed the Commodore to send a ship of war occasionally to Port Adelaide. The following letter, addressed by Lieut. Patnter to a fnend in Melbourne, will be read with interest, as showing how the gallant commander of our ironclad extracts matter for amusement out of the difficulties and inconveniences of his adventurous voyage. It is dated H.M.C.S. Cerberus, Aden, January 10:—"Well, here I am •with the three-headed brute, safe and sound so far, though not half-way to my destination. I have been rather a long tinw getting so far, but she is not a clipper; and with all her extra weight Bhe won't'steam, and it requires a gale to drive her under sail; and when it does blow a gale I prefer keeping the sails lashed up, or I should be making another Captain of her, which, as far as I am personally concerned, I don't care about, nor do I think, as far as regards the ship, the colony would thank me for doing so. She is not a handsome ship— bow and stern the same, except that she has a bowsprit at one end and notjthe other; but her real beauty will not be seen until I go into dock, when they will see her magnifioent lines just like this (making a mark to illustrate the cross section of the vessel). Her extreme breadth on upper deck is 45ft and on the bottom 43ft, so you can fancy its being much like taking a floating-dock to sea. Nevertheless she has proved a good sea-boat, thongh not exactly a clipper. I have managed hitherto to get 100 miles a day out of her. Her next best (?) quality is power of suffocation, which is very strong. We were nearly all cooked coming down the Sed Sea, and I am sure if we had been another week we should have been overdone. I have had the satisfaction of being the first to bring an ironclad and cupola ship through the Canal and down the Red Sea; also I hoist the Australian flag 'in these parts.' Victoria may be proud of the first ironclad she possesses, as far as strength goes, for I verily believe she is impregnable to the present ordnance. She causes a vast amount of astonishment wherever she goes, especially when people see her guns. I hope to get away from this the day after to-morrow, and reach Galle about the 2nd of February ; from thence I go to Sumatra and Java, i>hen down sooth for the Sound, and then 'hoorah' for Hobson's Bay. It trill be one of the happiest days of my life when I drop my 'mud-hook' off Williamstown;" — Argut*