The neighborhood is occupied with sailor boarding-houses, liquor stores, and residences of workmen. The gates generally stand wide open, affording ingress and egress to all who choose, though a marine is constantly on guard. The building on the right is occupied as a guard-house, and the little wooden edifice further down on the same side of the street is the office of the clerk of the yard, around which the workmen all assemble in the morning and at noontime to answer to their names, called in alphabetical order. Fortunate is the man whose name begins with one of the latter letters of the alphabet, the usual algebraic symbols of unknown quantities, for he will have fifteen minutes more in which to eat his dinner and smoke his pipe, than poor A, B, or C, who must be on the spot precisely at the hour, or lose his half day's work. One bearing the name of Adams or Atkins, for instance, would feel some temptation, in applying for employment here, to enter as Williams, or Watkins, or Youngs. On entering the yard, the visitor will be impressed with the order and neatness which everywhere prevails. The streets are beautifully clean; our city street inspectors would do well to examine them, and take them as a pattern for imitation. Heaps of cannon-balls and bomb-shells are piled symmetrically in different spots within the grassy enclosures; rows of cannon, bomb-mortars, and anchors, some of them of enormous size, lie within the neatly white-washed fence. These all tell of the stormy deep, of deadly slaughter, and the fierce jar of human passions; but the velvetlike lawns around, the beautiful foliage above, and the sweet song of numerous birds, speak of peace; and the heart would fain interpret the whole as a prophecy, that these instruments of death shall yet lie idle in their resting-places, objects of curious interest to the beholder, never more to become the messengers of destruction. The road seen on the left of the cut leads up to the commandant's residence, a front view of which is here given. It is a neat two-story frame house, on elevated ground, overlooking the whole yard. We do not know that there is any special prohibition against visiting this part of the premises; but courtesy and good-sense should dictate the propriety of not intruding upon the privacy of this lovely home, even though it be that of a public officer, and the house itself the property of "Uncle Sam." Some years since, we are told, at least one party, if not more, took the liberty of entering the halls and passing through various rooms uninvited. We cannot but hope that such specimens of rudeness are "few and far between." Further down, on the left-hand side of the street, is a building resembling externally that at the gate; the two lower stories are occupied as offices, and the third and fourth by the Naval Lyceum, a description of which will be given hereafter. In the door-yard in front are several brass pieces, with Spanish inscriptions; trophies of the late Mexican war. Directly opposite this edifice is a flag-staff, bearing the following inscription:"Latitude 40° 41′ 50′′ North. 66 Longitude 74° 0' 25" West of Greenwich. 30 21 35" East of Washington. West." Variation 4° 10/ If the visitor has never before been able precisely to ascertain his position, he will now have the satisfaction of doing so, at least for a few moments. Turning from this, the next object likely to attract the attention is a large wooden building, three hundred and fifty feet long, and eighty feet to the peak. It is full of windows, and somehow recalls to the mind our childish vision of Noah's ark. Can it be that the worthy officers of our navy have erected a fac-simile of that ancient bark as a model for imitation! Passing around to the water-front we find the doors open, and perceive that the building is nearly empty. It is no ship, but the shell out of which, some time since, a ship was hatched. Indeed, several have already been launched from its inclosure, and others will probably follow. Along an inclined railway they dive into the water like young ducks, wingless at first, it is true, but soon to be supplied from the sailmaker's loft with those necessary organs, made of the very best duck. The vessels are built under cover, and remain so, sheltered from the weather sometimes for years, till they are needed for service. In a similar shiphouse adjoining, a first-class frigate of forty-four guns, to be called the Sabine, is yet to be seen in an unfinished state. Though not of the largest size, she looks gigantic as she lies high and dry, for so great a proportion of the bulk of a vessel is below the water-line when she is afloat that one can form but little idea of her real magnitude. What a spectacle yon noble ship, the North Carolina, must have presented before she slid from the ways into the element for which she was built! Now that we have mentioned the North Carolina, let us board her. But she lies at a distance from the land; a little guard-house is just before us, however, near which a plank gently descending will bring us to a float, from which we can step into a barge, or scow, or ferry-boat, call it what you please; at any rate, the motive power is neither steam, nor horses, nor wind, nor oars. A rope is stretched from the vessel to the shore; this rope passes through rings at each end of the boat, and two sailors by pulling soon bring you safely over. You land on a float at the side of the ship, and looking up at the rows of guns peeping out from her sides, congratulate yourself that you come peaceably, for the effect of one broadside would be more than you would care to witness. She shows her teeth, however, without barking or biting, and having mounted the flights of stairs you are soon on her upper deck. Here are officers in uniform, and sailors going to and fro; all is neatness and quietness. The decks look as if they had been scrubbed by the best of housewives, the brass is highly polished; while all around, with their mouths turned away from you now, are the black demons that looked at you so terribly as you were coming on board. A staircase takes you down to another deck, similar in many respects to the one above, with rows of cannon on every side; another staircase to a third deck, which is ditto; and then, getting tired of going down stairs, you look down the hatchway and see two or three stories of dark holds yet below you. On one of the lower decks is a caboose, or cook-stove, and tables for the different messes. Muskets are stacked in various places, and a fire-engine stands ready for use in case of necessity. If the doors of the officers' state-rooms are open, you will see that they are pleasant and neatly furnished; but do not enter them, for they are private. Should you get there at nine o'clock A. M. or three P. M., the band will be on board, discoursing most excellent music. The North Carolina is a line-of-battle ship, called a seventy-four, but mounting one hundred guns of large caliber, and is moored off the yard for the purpose of receiving recruits for the navy. She is under the immediate charge of Commander E. Peck, who is subordinate to the commandant of the navy-yard. The other officers are Lieutenants Walke, Ring, Middleton, and Bowers, and Master S. C. Reid, who acquired during the war with England quite a reputation as commander of the General Armstrong. There are also connected with her Surgeons Abernethy and Bell, Purser Cahoone, Marine Lieutenant Brooks, and Chaplain Lenhart, a member of the New-Jersey Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Her complement in her present service is one hundred and forty men; at sea, she would be manned by eight hundred. She was built at Philadelphia in 1820. At a little distance from the North Carolina lies a hull, without masts, &c., the Brandywine, whose first voyage was THE BRANDYWINE. undertaken to bring to this country that honored guest of the nation, the Marquis de la Fayette. She is a frigate of the first class, mounting forty-four guns. She was built at Washington in 1825, and laid up in 1849. It is designed to rebuild her. The Constitution, familiarly known as Old Ironsides, was at this yard not long since. She and the United States are the oldest vessels in the navy, both having THE PEACEMAKER. | been built in 1797, the former at Philadelphia, the latter at Boston. Both are celebrated for their services, the Constitution especially so. Not far from where the North Carolina is now moored, lay the ill-fated Fulton, which was destroyed by the explosion of her powder-magazine in 1829. The catastrophe took place a little after midday, and resulted in the death of more than forty persons. The cause of this disaster was never ascertained. But little powder is kept about the yard at present. The government store of this destructive article is at Ellis's Island, in the bay below NewYork. One family only resides there, having charge of the premises; and no lights or fire are permitted. On shore again, we look about for new objects of interest. At the end of a brick building, standing between the two shiphouses before alluded to, is a cannon of some size, and in front of it a mass of iron eight inches thick, through which one of its balls has been driven. This gun, we are told, bears the singular title of "Stockton's Peacemaker," and carries a ball of one hundred and twenty pounds. It was made in England, and is of wrought-iron. The United States government, it seems, had been applied to to adopt and assist an invention called Stevens's floating-battery, composed of plates of iron, which the inventor claimed would be impregnable to cannon balls. It was resolved to test the matter practically, and one ball from the Peacemaker, though it did not make pieces of the target, caused that fearful rent. Steam and gunpowder! what mighty agencies are they! Controlled by man, how useful in many particulars; but, like caged wild beasts, how apt to turn, in terrible fury, against their puny tyrants! But no object in the navy-yard can exceed in interest the Dry-dock and its appurtenances. It is located at the northeast corner of the yard, its front, or entrance, being built on the edge of the convex channel of the bay. Standing on its brink, let us consider its history before we proceed to a more minute examination of its parts. in diameter, were repeatedly broken, six giving way in a single night. At length, however, the excavations were completed, and the foundations of the dock commenced; but the difficulties did not yet cease-numerous springs of fresh water, some forty or more, made their appearance. One of these, at the north-east corner of the dock, undermined the piles, and in a single day made a cavity in which a pole was run down to the depth of twenty feet below the foundation timbers. Into this hole two hundred cubic feet of cobblestone were thrown; but the spring sought a new outlet, bursting up through a bed of concrete two feet in thickness. Various expedients were resorted to in vain; but at last, by driving piles to a great depth, a secure basis was obtained. As early as 1826, Colonel Baldwin, a civil engineer, examined the harbor of New-York, and reported that it was practicable to build a stone dry-dock of sufficient capacity to receive a ship of the line. His report was approved by Congress; but nothing further was done until March 3, 1835, when a new examination was authorized, and one hundred thousand dollars appropriated for commencing the work. In the following June, Colonel For the purpose of making a solid restBaldwin repeated his survey, and reported ing-place for the foundation, eight thousand in favor of locating the dock within the two hundred and eighty-three piles were navy-yard. The subject was annually used, the average length of which was before Congress from that time till 1841, thirty-two feet seven inches. Some of when decisive action was taken, and the these, called bearing-piles, were round, work commenced in August, under the and of spruce timber; others, called sheetdirection of Edward H. Courtenay, Pro- piles, were of yellow pine plank. Concrete fessor of Civil Engineering at West Point. masonry, two feet deep, was then laid He was succeeded by others, who prose- between the bearing-piles, and a flooring cuted the task with ability and zeal, until, of yellow pine plank, three inches thick, on the 30th of August, 1851, it was com- was placed upon and spiked to them. Timpleted under the superintendence of Gen-bers and concrete, covered with another eral Charles B. Stuart, to whose published flooring of plank, then followed, and on account we are indebted for the particulars this last the stone-work was commenced. given.* The difficulties encountered were neither few nor trivial. The soil proved less substantial than was anticipated, although great pains had been previously taken to ascertain its character. There were numerous quicksands, and the coffer-dam, though composed of piles from thirty-three to thirty-seven feet in length, did not penetrate the solid substratum beneath to a sufficient depth to give them as firm a hold as was necessary. On two occasions breaches occurred with little or no warning-providentially without any loss of life. Additional piles were then driven, and, to keep them in place, chain-cables were attached to mooring-blocks on the shore; but these, though of iron, and two inches • General Stuart's work is very valuable, and beautifully got up. It is entitled "The Naval Dry Docks of the United States," and is published by Charles B. Norton, Irving House. Its illustrations are numerous, and add greatly to the value and beauty of the volume. | | The main chamber of the dock is two hundred and eighty-six feet long and thirty feet broad at the bottom, and three hundred and seven feet long and ninety-eight feet broad at the top. By means of a floatinggate, an additional length of fifty-two feet may be obtained, being room enough for the largest war-steamers afloat. Eighty thousand tons of stone were used. The granite for the exterior masonry was from the Sullivan and Franklin quarries, in the State of Maine; and the interior stone from the Staten Island and Highland quarries, in the State of New-York. sides of the dock are like a succession of lofty steps, as may be seen in the section here given, within which is represented the Pennsylvania, the largest ship of the line in the American service. The cornerstone of the masonry was laid May 12, 1847, and completed April 19, 1850. The When a vessel is to be repaired, the gates (which are very ingeniously constructed, but cannot be described in the THE PENNSYLVANIA IN DOCK. present article) are opened, and she is floated in; the gates are then closed, and the water pumped out by means of an engine of great power, at which we will now take a peep. This beautiful machine stands in the east wing of a granite building, perfectly fire-proof, three hundred feet long and sixty feet broad, with iron roof, doors, floors, shutters, window-frames, &c. A part of the building will be occupied for other purposes. The engine is of the species called a condensing double-acting beam-engine, and is set in a cast-iron gothic frame, and finished in the most perfect manner. Its cylinder is of fifty inches diameter and twelve feet stroke. A register records the number of strokes of the pumps. An elegant iron railing surrounds the whole. The boilers, three in number, are in an adjoining apartment. Thirtyseven thousand three hundred dollars was the price at which it was contracted for ; but various additions and alterations raised the sum total to fifty-two thousand eight hundred and thirty-five dollars and fiftynine cents. It was constructed at the West Point Foundry, at Cold Spring, New-York, and is the largest in America; and at the time of its erection not exceeded by any in the world, and is capable of emptying the dock in two hours and ten minutes. One, since constructed to drain the Harlem Mer, in Holland, is said to exceed it. The United States sloop of war Dale, The perpendicular lines at the bottom of the cut, represent the bearing-piles already mentioned. the steamer San Jacinto, the frigates St. Lawrence, Brandywine, Constitution, and Macedonian, the storeship Relief, and the French steam - frigate Mogadore, were all safely docked between the first of January, 1850, and the first of January, 1852. We believe the work has fully answered the design of its construction. Much time might be very pleasantly spent in examining the various workshops and store-houses in the yard. They are built of brick, with slate roofs, and are generally of two stories, and covered with a yellow wash. Some of them are occupied for the storage of provisions, and others as timber-sheds, where large quantities of oak and pine are laid up to season for use. One of these was consumed last spring, and much valuable property destroyed. Then there are shops for the blacksmiths, joiners, block-makers, spar-makers, &c.; besides lofts for the sail-makers, riggers, gunners, &c. A brick building now in process of erection in a distant part of the yard, is intended for a steam saw-mill. The barracks for the marines are not in the yard; a large wooden building on Park Avenue, is occupied by them. The Naval Lyceum, before referred to, will well repay the visitor for the time |