5 26th June. Iris not often in time of peace that we have to chronicle such a terrible naval disaster as that in token of sorrow for Which the men-of-war in harbour and some of tle merchant steamers had their flags at half-mast on sunday morning. It appears that the Mediterranean fleet, under the chief command office-Adwiral Sir George Iryon, K.C.B., have been engaged in maneuvres under steam in the eastern end of the Mediterranean, off the port of Tripoli in Syria, in lat, 34° 26' 24".N. In the course of these manenvres the Camperdown, a first-class twin-screw battleship of 10,600 tons, commanded by Captain Charles Johnstone, rammed the Admiral's flagship, the Victoria, a first-class twin-screw battleship of 10,470 tons, commanded by Captain the Hon. Maurice A. Bourke, so effectually that! the Victoria sank in a quarter of an hour in eighty fathoms of water, taking down with her the Admiral him-occurs, there is a tendency to depreciate the skill and seamanship of our naval officers, but there is no justification for any general condemnation of the kind. The fullest enquiry will, of course, be held, and the blame, if any, will be laid where it is deserved, and precautions, if necessary, will be enjoined to prevent the recurrence of such a calamity. Meanwhile we can only join in the lamentation that is going up at home over the loss of so many brave officers and men, and sympathise deeply with the hundreds of families that such jo wide-spreading disaster must have thrown into mourning.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.