Thanks for the compliment, Jim! Those shoes are too big to fill! Actually, I think you hit this one right on the head when you mention the mountain troop types. Althoug I am of the opinion that ribbed brass hilted cutlass did exist and were used for sea service (Brit Life Guard swords come to mind), if we look closely at this sword, I think it at one time had another branch of the hilt extending down to the outer guards perhaps? Now long ground away. Also, on some of the examples that appeared more naval, the blades were either unfullered or had a single thin fuller running along the flat of the blade from the base of the guard, much as we see on the early Brit and Amer figure-8 hilts ca 1790's. I think this sword is more of an infantry/mountaineer type, based on fuller and time period (first quarter 19th onward). I can't tell if the point was shortened or if it was always a spear-point type blade. This is just guess work, of course, as no real sources exist on the so-called 'private purchase types' used at sea.
Mark