The Sun.
London, England, 1836-07-22 00:00:00

POST OFFICE.

A notification was issued yesterday from the Post Office'
from which it appears that all the provisions of the treaty
though it has not undergone ratification in the form pre-
scribed, will be brought into operation at once, so far as the
communications with France are concerned. Thus the
public will have the option of sending letters to France,
either unpaid or paid for the whole distance, or of adhering
to the old plan, in paying the postage to the French fron-
tier. To countries the road to which lies through France,
so perfect an arrangement cannot, it seems, yet be adopted,
but there is still some improvement in this respect on the
former method. Letters for Switzerland and Sardinia, for
example, may be paid to the place of destination, and those
for Southern Italy may be paid in advance to the Italian
frontier of Sardinia. Letters for Austria and Venetian
Lombardy may also be paid in advance, but letters for all
the places above named cannot be taken without payment.
The reduction of the rate of postage, for which the new
treaty has provided, is also to be brought into effect imme-
diately, and appears to be considerable. The English
charge for French letters, instead of is. 2.d., is now 10d.,
and the Spanish letters, instead of 2s. 2d., will be Is. 7d.
only ; other places in nearly the same proportion, as may
be ascertained by a reference to the official notice. The
rate between Dover and Calais is reduced from 6d. to 3].
for a single letter. The registration of letters at a charge
of 2s. 6d., instead of 215., will be a great convenience to
the merchants, and will produce more revenue to the Post-
office. The old charge was so absurdly high, that it was
scarcely ever submitted to. Another part of the new ar-
rangement, which is considered of value here, is a sort of
approach to the French system of charging the letters by
weight, and which gives, in some respects, an advantage over
it to the English merchants. No letter which does not weigh
a quarter of an ounce will be charge more than single,
whatever number of enclosures it may contain ; for
half an ounce the charge will be double, and no
letter which is under one ounce will be charged more
than double. A letter on one sheet of paper, and
under an ounce in weight, will only be charged single,
but such letters on the other side, where the charge is
wholly by weight, will have a heavy postage to pay. In
regard to newspapers, the improved facilities are also worth
notice. Those for France may be put in, us the letters are,
without any payment, and the only charge to which they
are subjected on the other side is four centimes, or about a
halfpenny. We fear that the old regulation remains i.i
force by which English papers published in France are ex-
cluded from all the advantages of the new arrangement,
and must be sent as letters. The object of this is to pre-
vent the printing of newspapers by English publishers in
France, and their circulation here without the payment of
any stamp duty, than which a more puerile notion never.
entered into the head of any Statesman. A traject even
of six hours would make any newspaper valueless in the
competition with the local publications. We hope that
this blot in the treaty will be got rid of at the first conve-
nient opportunity. In addition to the route through Calais,
arrangements are made for sending letters to Dieppe
through Brighton, and Havre through Southampton.—
Morning Paper.

A letter received from Brighton, states that the mar-
riage of Colonel Leslie to Lady Mary Dorothea Eyre, daugh-
ter of the Countess of Newburgh, was solemnized at Slindon
Hall last Tuesday. The new married couple were expected
to leave for the bridegroom's seat in Scotland.

REPRESENTATION OP NEWCASTLE.—The death
of Sir M. W. Ridley has occasioned a vacancy in the repre-
sentation of Newcastle. There are three or four individuals
mentioned as likely to become candidates. The friends of the
late Sir Matthew Ridley have issued a hand-bill, calling on
the electors " not to promise their votes, as they believe his
son, the present Sir Matthew (now in London), will solicit
their suffrages." The friends of John Hodgson, Esq., of
Elswick House, have announced a meeting to consider the
propriety of sending him a requisition to come forward. C.
J. Bigge, Esq., the Mayor, has
,been talked of as likely to
offer himself in the event of Sir Matthew Ridley declining ;
and C. Atticus Monck, Esq., son of Sir Charles Monck, of
Belsay Castle, has been also mentioned. Mr. Aytoun, of
Edinburgh, who was a candidate at the last election, has been
spoken of, as well as Colonel Napier, the able historian of
the Peninsular War, but we do not think that either of them
would at present have any prospect of success. The contest,
if there be one, will probably be between two of the four gen-
tlemen first named—that is,. between Sir M. Ridley and Mr.
Hodgson ; or between Mr. Bigge, or Mr. Monck and Mr.
Hodgson.—Tyne Mercury.
" DEVEREUX."—This fascinating novel, from the
masterly pen of Mr. Bulwer, is now publishing in the weekly
issue of " Colburn's Modern Novelists." It is to be com-
prised in six numbers, price one shilling each, with engravings.
Of all our modern writers none has displayed more perfect
knowledge of character and more deep management of the
interest of his story, than the author of " Pelham," and, per-
haps, in these particulars, none of his works ranks so high as
" Devereu::." The public certainly owe a debt of gratitude
to the publisher, for enabling them to possess at so cheap a
rate, and in so elegant a form, works preferring such high
claims to literary excellence as his attractive series of
Modern Novelists" presents.