COMPARATIVE SHIPPING STATEMENT.

Southland Times, Volume I, Issue 17, 9 July 1864, Page 2

COMPARATIVE SHIPPING STATEMENT.

Return of the number of Ships and Tonnage which sailed from all ports of Great Britain, to the Australian Colonies, in the month of March, 1864:— Ships. Tonnage Victoria 11 .. 12,272 New South Wales 10 ... 8,399 Now Zealand 6 ... 2.438* South Australia 3 ... 2, 135 Queensland 2 ... Tasmania 2 ... 703 West Australia 1 ••• 4 40 * The tonnage of two ships is not given in the list from which tbis return is made up. Return of the number of Ships sailing from all parts of Great Britain, to the Australian Colonies, up to the 23rd April, IS6-1 : — Now Zealand 9 Victoria " New South Wales 3 South Australia 3 Queensland '" Tasmania 0 Western Australia 0 Roturn ofthe number of ships on tho berth in all ports of Groat Britain, loading or cleared for the Australian Colonies up to 23rd April, IS&4:— Victoria 25 New Zealand 19 New South Wales 1^ South Australia 12 Queensland - 1 Tasmania West Australia 4 Wb understand thnt a plan of general messing is about to be tried on board Her Majesty's ship Research, Captain Arthur Wilmshurst. If the experiment should in this instance fail, we trust t uit the Admiralty wdl not be daunted, but try it aeain and again, as there can exist no valid reason that because one gentleman wears a blue coat, and another a red one, that the former cannot comport j himself at meals in the presenecof hi* commanding j officer as seemingly as the latter. We should have been glad if a larger ship, such as the Royal Sovereign, had been selected for a trial of a system, the adoption of which was first advocated about twenty years since in the columns of a morning contemporary, at that period distinguished for its early' and excellent naval intelligence. Captain Wilmshurst should feel highly complimented in having been thus selected to inaugurate a regulation which can only become general from the manner in which it will be found to work on board the ship he commands ; consequently much will depend upon the temper, tact, and judgment which he will bring to bear in carrying out the instructions he -vrill receive from the Admiralty. — Army and, Navy Gazette. . J Tee Poets of Westebk India. — Much of the importance of Bombay is owing to I the fact that it possesses hot only the sole Port, j properly speaking, on the Western coast of India, but that it has- so great a rise and fall of tide. In no port .of /Ceylon can we boast of more than three feet difference between low and high water ; and most parts of the Malabar coast arc scarcely more favored in this respect. Although,, therefore, we can point to our grand harbor of Trincomalie; our not despicable harbor of Galle ; and our not very bad ' roadstead of Colombo ': we must look rather "foolish 'if we are asked, as we were the other evening, "Where are your docks P"^ To see the very finest harbor in the East, with neither docks (a dock-yard does not imply^oeks), shipping, Qpmmerce, nor population, let the eight-seer visit Trincomalie when there are no war ships jnTthetfiarbbr. ( . But to see docks as well as a harbor, we must go to that Indian Liverpool, Bombay. Kurrachee will yet be something, but there is that awkward sandbank, as awkward now as it was in the days of Alexander and Nearchus, three centuries "before the Christian 'era. And no doubt there wiUbe agreatnewportatßedaßhegur, (orCarwarasitis'notr called), provided an un-iimited*-amonrit of stone is available.. Amongst our fellow-passengers, from Europe, at the commencement of this year, was a Mr. Sow-erby, a civil engmeer,iwhd. was going out to submit to the Indian Government certain grand schemes for the formation or -improvement of harbors on the Western coast of India. He was prepared abo with a plan for the improvement of Galle harbor, but at; an expense -of not lass than £200,000 to £300,000. What reception Mr. Sosrerby and. his plans met with -hto are riot aware ; but suspect

■'.■L»..ml .IHLLL- JI.UIL. JLiL~i— J — ■- l - --'- "-:- y4 -"-"- India, rich as she is, can , scarcely yet meet the expense of raising up rivals to Bombay over the extended line of the \ Western coast. — Colombo Observer.