Star.
London, England, 1807-09-25 00:00:00

FE VERSHA if POWDER MILLS.

At about ten minutes before eight o'clock in the
morning of F: iday laft, the corning mill, No. 3, form.
ing part of the royal powder works, near Fevertham,
and !hosted at the north call angle of the Matflr, in
the parith t f Ore, blew op with a violent explofion,
and fix men and three horfes fell Viaims in c .nfe•
quence. But before we proceed in our narration. it
is necelTary to defcribe, to fuch of our Readers as
may be unacquainted with' there work•, the nature of
their form and prncefs. The corning mill. are din.
ber buildings, of an oblong quadrangular figute,
fomewhat fimilar toy ba.n, with four entrances, one
on each fide ; the internal (pace divided by two par-
titions into three compartments, the one containing a
prefs with levers and captian for prefling what is
called in the language of the workmen the green
charge, into cakes, which cakes, after being coarfely
broken with wooden maners, in alto a wooden mar-
tar, are then conve) ed into fieves of copper of different
degrees of finenefs, for the purple of being granu•
lated, the machinery for which forms the middle
compartment. In the third is the horfe walk and
wheel, the cogs of which give motion to the whole
apparatus, and thefe form the fecond principal flage
of the formation of the powder. Thefe mills are each
fury ounded at tome dirtance wi,h a Itockade or pali
fade, and a platform leads from that part where the
prels is placed, to a fhed at the exterior of the pali-
fade, in order that a communication may be had to
the mill for the tumbrils, without the neceffity of
their approaching near to it.
In the procefs of the corning, the fieves above
mentioned are agitated by the machinery, and hence
arifes a conflant cloud of dull, which cove►s the
ground, and impregnates, as it were, every beam and
rafter with inflammable matter, fir much fo, that
after the deftruEtion of the building, the burning
timbers continued for Come time to explode. At the
time of the explofion the prefs was charged, and the
fieves were at work ; but how, or from whence the
cattle of the ignition. mutt remain unknown, as in
this, as in almott all fimilar cafes, no one remained
to tell the tale.

'the report feemed rather a protrafted rumbling
than an inllantaneous blaft, and hence it is fuppofed
that it mull have been communicated from fome one
part to the other.
The ruins, and fcene of devailation it occafioned,
are fcarcely to be defcribed ; the mill, the flied
abovementioned and the flockade levelled with the
ground, the timbers of the building fplintered and
difperfed in every direction for Come rods diflance.
and the mallive pref.; And mill wheels difplaced and
thrown many feet diaant from their'original pofitior.;
the trees and plantations in the vicinity were alto
much torn and disfigured, and a building called the
Receiving-honfe, only feparated front this mill by a
flight plantation, was alto much injured ; fortunately
at the moment it was empty, or the confequences
would have been more dreadful.

The qtrantitrof campotition contained in the mill
was S4olbr. the aural charge received twice a day
from the grinding-houfe, and the Mailer Worker
had left the mill not a quarter of an hour prier to
the expiation. A labourer, named Thomas Delo,
vas mending the gravelled walk leading to the
mill, about to yards diflant from the fhed, was twice
thrown down (as he himfelf defcribes), from the
effeff of the Brock, before he heard the noire, but
attempting to rife a third time, was firuckly apiece
of timber on the fmall part of the back, and render-
ed infenfible ; he was conveyed to the watch-houfe,
and medical affitiance procured, and is, we under-
hand, now in a fair way of recovery.
Of the unfortunate fufferers, one alone evinced
fome fign of life, but that only in a faint refpiration
and heave of the break, one was thrown to fome
rods difiaat, and fell among the willows ; another,
(Scott, the foreman) was cut afunder through the
middle, had one of his thighs broken, and the back
part of his atoll blown off; the others were all more
nr lefs di-figured, their clothes torn off, their bodies
fcorched black and lacerated. Their names were John
Scott, Wm. Elliot, Daniel Tappenden, Geo. Blunn,
John Sampfon, and Andrew Shilling ; of there, Scott,
Elliott, and Samplon, have each left a wife, and Tap-
penden and Blunn alfo each a wife and two children;
Shilling was unmarried, and has left confiderable
property in the funds.
Of the three honks employed at the Mill, two
were d►eadfully fluttered, and the third was fa
much bruited as to make it necelfary to kill it imme
diateiy.
The explolion was heard in the direiliou of the
wind, which blew from the N. E. to a confiderable
diflance, and much alarmed and agitated the inha-
bitants. _ _

The lan accident of this nature, and a fimilar
one to the above, took place on the 7th of September,
1802 ; this was the Corning Mill No. t, and then,
alto, fix men and three !tortes (offered ; this has fince
been rebuilt with the prefs feparated'from the mill by
a high mound of earth.
A report bas been circulated that this calamitous
event was occalioned by the men carrying force
kettles jull taken from i ff the fire at the watch-houfe,
into the mill, in order to prepare their breakfafis, but
we have authority to Rate that no fuch circumaanees
appeared in evidence before the Coroner's Inque9.
A reprefentation of the cafe has been made to the
Ordnance Board, and there is no doubt but that the
wives and families of the unfortunate men will be
fufficiently provided fur, as has locen the cafe in all
former indances.

L4W ATELLIGENCL

ADWRALT'V COURT, DOCTORS' COMMONS.

Ydlerday the Right Eon. NVILLIAM Scrrri
proceeded to the adjoclicatirm of the following cafes.
Maria Therefa. Bo:titer. ntafter. This ',etre', laden with fait,
on an aftertcd voyage to Tmmirgen, was (kering, when captured,
towards nothing The exeufe the matter let up was, that the
veffri had fprung a leak, cud the crew, exitsitfted by labouring at
the pumps, were compelled to make for the firft port. The Court
was clearly of opinion, from the evidence produced, that no loch
need:l4y exiited and accordingly condemned the fhip and cargo.
Twe Gebroeders, Bunkg matter This cafe being exadly hmi-
lar to the ahuve, the fame sentence was pronounced.
Orozentbo,Brewfter matter. This Tail was under American
colours, on a voyage front Hilton to China It appeared there
were fcvcral Dutch °Meets of high rank, and other perfuns in civil
itations on hoard, as p.:(f;nger• got s to Batavia ; and it was con-
tended, on the part of the captors; (hat this vet Tel was to be mai-
deresi as a tranfport hired by the Dutch Government. The Court
determined the reiti liable to confifeation, and accordingly con-
demned th,- fame.

Concor.lia, Beer miner. This was a Pappenburgh vtfi'd laden
with falt —Ship diredrd to further proof and cargo rehired.
Hoop, Nefafzon matter. Ti A was a Ming veffel, laden with
Gal and odic!. artidct, going to Rottcrdam.—Property condemned.