The Sun.
London, England, 1857-04-17 00:00:00

ADDITIONAL MAIL TO GRAVESEND.

On and after Monday, the 20th inst., an additional
mail will be made up at this office for Gravesend, to be
despatched by the train which leaves the London-
bridge station at 4.50 p.m. (Sundays excepted).
Letters f:r this despatch must be posted at the re-
ceiving offices in London before 2 p.m ; at the branch
offices in Cbaring•cross and Lombare-street, the south-
eastern district office, 170, High-street, borough), and the
western district office (Old Cavendish-street), before 3
p.m. ; and at the General Post-office, St. Martin's-le-
Grand, before 3.30 p.m. They will be delivered
in Gravesend in time for reply by the London mail
which leaves that place in the evening.
By command of the Postmaster-General,
ROWL AND HILL, Secretary.
General Post-office, 10th April, 1857.

AMERICAN AND AUSTRALIAN MAILS.—LIVERPOOL,
Viursday.—The Royal Mail steam-ship Africa, Captain
Shannon, sails from the Mersey on Saturday afternoon
for New York, with mails, passengers, and cargo.
Letters must be posted here no later than 1 p.m., with
late fees before 2 p.m., and at the landing stage, with
the usual extra fee of is. each, until 3 p.m. on the 18th
inst. The White Star clipper ship Sir William Eyre,
Capt. Jopp, belonging to Messrs. H. T. Wilson and
Chambers, of this port, sails on Monday next (her ap-
pointed day), for Melbourne, with a large number of
passengers and a full cargo of merchandise on freight.
She wilt carry a ship letter-bag, for which letters must
be marked " per Sir Wm. Eyre," and posted before 11
a.m., or, with late fees, before 11.30 a.m., on the 20th
instant.
MAILS FOR NORWAY.—The steam packet communica-
tion between Denmark and Norway having been re-
established, the mails frora the United Kingdom for
Norway will be conveyed direct by sea from Denmark
to Norway, instead of via Sweden, until further notice.
The rate of postage to be taken on letters addressed to
Norway will be is. 4d. the half ounce, and so on, accord-
ing to the scale in operation for charging inland letters.
This rate comprises both the British and foreign postage
on the letters to the place of their destination ; and it
may be either paid in advance, or the lettere may be
forwarded unpaid, at the option of the sen&r, except,
however, as regards registered letters, the postage upon
which, as well as the registration fee, must be paid in
advance. —By command of the Postmaster-General,
ROWLAND HILL, Secretary.
The Postmaster-General has given notice that the
Jura will take out the next overland Australian mail,
and that ship mails for the Brazils will be made up in
the General Post-office to be conveyed by the screw
steamer Golden Fleece, which is appointed to leave
Southampton on the 25th instant.
The dollars brought by the last West India steamer
have bssn sold at 604 d, per oz., showing a decline of id.
CONTRACTS FOR PUBLIC DEPARTMENTS. —A report
from the (defunct) Select Committee of the House of
Commons on Contracts for Public Departments was
published yesterday. It contains simply the minutes of
evidence adduced by Mr. Thomas Howell, Mr. J. R.
Godley, Mr. R. Eaton, Mr. James Pew, and Mr. C.
Sandys Elliott. The evidence covers a space of 67 pages.
Among other particulars elicited, it is stated that out of
160,000 par of boots, 35,000 pair were rejected about a
year ago ; the cause of rejection having been bad work-
manship and bad materials.
FATAL BOAT ACCIDENT ON THE RlVER.—Yesterday
evening, Mr. W. Baker, the coroner, held an inquest at
the Town of Ramsgate Tavern, Wapping, respecting the
death of Christopher William Groves, aged 17, an ap-
prentice to a lighterman. On Monday afternoon last,
while engaged in rowing a skiff across the river, from
Wapping to the Surrey shore, he came in contact with
the barge Rebecca, of Colchester, whereby the boat was
swamped and the deceased was drowned. The body was
found near Aberdeen Wharf. The deceased had not ex-
ercised proper skill in the navigation of the skiff. Ver-
dict, "Accidental Death."

USED POSTAGE STAIIPS.—A party having assisted in
supplying stamps in answer to an advertisement was in-
formed on unquestionable authority that these advertise-
ments were baits held out to obtain stamps for the pur-
pose of oblaerating the post-office marks and defraud-
ing the revenue. It is confidently declared that the
Queen's heads can be cleansed and made fit for use
again so as to elude all detection.—[All persons dealing
in postage-stamps, either buying or selling, except
through the post-office, the stamp-office, or a licensed
stamp distributor or sub-distributor, aro liable to heavy
penalties.]
CONVICTION OF A FRAUDULENT MERSHANT.—At the
Bristol quarters:sessions, on Wednesday, before the Recor-
der (Mr. Sergeant Kinglake) John Danger, who had carried
on an extensive business in Baldwin-street in that city,
was indicted for having obtained a bill of exchange for
1841. Hs., with intent to cheat and defraud Richard
Latham. The prosecutor, Mr. Richard Latham, de-
posed that he was a currier, carrying on business in
Redcliff-street, Bristol. The prisoner, Mr. J. Danger,
who was a leather merchant, met the prosecutor and
said, " Will you buy some of George Jenkins's butts I
He is baling up 300 butts for me, and they will come
into my warehouse this afternoon." Mr. Danger then
took bim into the counting-house, when he produced
a bill for 1841. some odd shillings, which he asked
prosecutor to accept. The bill was ready drawn when
he went in, and Mr. Danger said if be accepted it
he should have the amount in the butts that were
coming in and the refusal of the 300. He accepted
the bill, and Mr. Danger took it. He never would
have accepted that bill of exchange if the prisoner had
not told him that Mr. George Jenkins was baling up
butts for him, and that they were coming into his
warehouse that afternoon. The butts never did come
in, although he had inquired for them repeatedly.
The prisoner had since become bankrupt. Mr. George
Jenkins proved that he was not on the 27th of Dec.
baling any butts for the prisoner, nor had he in fact
any stock to bale. He had not contracted to supply
Mr. Danger with any, nor was there any reason why he
should have stated that he was baling them for him.
The prisoner's counsel attempted to show that the
evidence failed to make cut legally all the elements o
obtaining by fal-e pretence. The jury, however, re
turned a verdict of guilty. The Recorder postponed
sentence till the next session.

DIABOLICAL ATTEMPT TO EXPLODE A POWDER MILL.—
Asa workman of the extensive powder mill of St. enemas,
which belongs to the Government, was on Saturday af-
ternoon, after dinner, about to resume his work in one
of the rooms in which there was at least ten tons of gun-
powder, he perceived some blueish substance in the
midst of the powder which he bad to handle ; and on ex-
amining it found the heads of a dozen chemical matches,
so arranged as probably to cause an explosion on being
touched. He immediately summoned his chiefs, and the
heads of the matches were removed with the greatest
precaution. The operat'oo was attended with consider-
able danger, as iu addition to the vast quantity of gun-
powder in the place, there were at least thirty tonsin an
adjacent storehouse. As it was impossible to suspect
any one of the workmen of the establishment of hav-
ing formed the design of causing an explosion, inas-
much as in all probability be would become a victim
of it himself, suspicion fell on a young man named
Mouttet, a stranger to the establ.shment, who, on
some pretext, had entered it just as the kmen
were suspending work to go to dinner. He was
sought for everywhere, and was at last found stationed
on the top of a high hill which dominates the mill,
gazing earnestly below, as if in momentary expectation
of some great event. He was at once arrested, and as his
replies to the questions put to him were not satisfactory,
he has been "detained, in custody. About two months
ago a terrible explosion which did great damage and
killed five persons took place in the same mill, and the
cause of it was never discovered. It is now not unrea-
sonably suspected that Mouttet may have occasioned it.
His motive remains, however, a mystery.