For every Letter |If Single.|If Double.|Per ounce.
----------------------------------------+----------+----------+----------
| s. d. | s. d. | s. d.
To or from any place within 80 miles | | |
of London | 0 2 | 0 4 | 0 8
At a further distance than 80 miles | 0 3 | 0 6 | 1 0
To or from Scotland | 0 4 | 0 8 | 1 6
To or from Ireland | 0 6 | 1 0 | 2 0
In Ireland-- | | |
To or from any place within 10 miles | | |
of Dublin | 0 2 | 0 4 | 0 8
At a further distance than 40 miles | 0 4 | 0 8 | 1 0
----------------------------------------+----------+----------+----------
--H. Scobell, _A Collection of Acts and Ordinances_, London, 1658, p. 512.
ACT OF 1660 (12 CAR. II, CAP. 35).
--------------------------------------------------------------
|On Single|On Double|
| Letter. | Letter. |Per ounce.
-------------------------------+---------+---------+----------
From London-- | d. | d. | d.
80 miles and under | 2 | 4 | 8
Above 80 miles | 3 | 6 | 12
To or from Berwick | 3 | 6 | 18
From Berwick within Scotland-- | | |
40 miles and under | 2 | 4 | 8
Above 40 miles | 4 | 8 | 12
To or from Dublin | 6 | 12 | 24
From Dublin within Ireland-- | | |
40 miles and under | 2 | 4 | 8
Above 40 miles | 4 | 8 | 12
-------------------------------+---------+---------+----------
N.B.--There were no cross posts. Between two towns not on the same post
road, however near, letters could circulate only through London, and
whenever a letter passed through London an additional rate was imposed,
e.g. from Bristol to Exeter (less than 80 miles) a letter would be sent
via London and charged two rates for over 80 miles.
1711 (9 ANNE, CAP. 10).
--------------------------------------------------------------------
|Single.|Double.| Ounce.
--------------------------------------------+-------+-------+-------
From London-- | d. | d. | d.
80 miles and under | 3 | 6 | 12
Above 80 miles | 4 | 8 | 16
To Edinburgh | 6 | 12 | 24
To Dublin | 6 | 12 | 24
From Edinburgh within Scotland-- | | |
50 miles and under | 2 | 4 | 8
Above 50 miles and not exceeding 80 miles| 3 | 6 | 12
Above 80 miles | 4 | 8 | 16
From Dublin within Ireland-- | | |
40 miles and under | 2 | 4 | 8
Above 40 miles | 4 | 8 | 16
--------------------------------------------+-------+-------+-------
The initial charge was raised from 2d. to 3d. The area of the penny post
delivery was therefore restricted to the 10-mile circle from the General
Post Office. Previously, towns within about 20 miles had been served by
the penny post, but an additional penny was charged for all packets
delivered in the suburbs.
1765 (5. GEO. III, CAP. 25).
For Great Britain--
Not exceeding one post stage 1d.
For England only--
Over one and not exceeding two stages 2d.
No change was made in other inland rates.
1784 (24 GEO. III, SESS. 2, CAP. 25).
The rates of 1765 were increased by 1d. for a single letter for
distances under 150 miles, and 2d. for greater distances.
1796 (37 GEO. III, CAP. 18).
Within England, Wales, and Berwick-- For a Single
Letter.
Not exceeding 15 miles 3d.
From 15 to 30 miles 4d.
" 30 to 60 " 5d.
" 60 to 100 " 6d.
" 100 to 150 " 7d.
Over 150 miles 8d.
Within Scotland--
In addition to existing rates 1d.
1801 (41 GEO. III, CAP. 7).
Within Great Britain--
Not exceeding 15 miles 3d.
15 to 30 miles 4d.
30 to 50 " 5d.
50 to 80 " 6d.
80 to 120 " 7d.
120 to 170 " 8d.
170 to 230 " 9d.
230 to 300 " 10d.
For every 100 miles above 300 1d.
1805 (45 GEO. III, CAP. 11).
Within Great Britain, in addition to existing rates--
1d. for a single letter
2d. " double "
3d. " triple "
4d. " an ounce letter.
1812 (52 GEO. III, CAP. 88).
Within Great Britain--
For a single
Letter.
Not exceeding 15 miles 4d.
Above 15 but not exceeding 20 miles 5d.
" 20 " " 30 " 6d.
" 30 " " 50 " 7d.
" 50 " " 80 " 8d.
" 80 " " 120 " 9d.
" 120 " " 170 " 10d.
" 170 " " 230 " 11d.
" 230 " " 300 " 12d.
" 300 " " 400 " 13d.
" 400 " " 500 " 14d.
" 500 " " 600 " 15d.
" 600 " " 700 " 16d.
" 700 miles 17d.
These rates were re-enacted by I Vict., cap. 34, [S] 3. The usual
increased charges for double, treble, and ounce letters applied
throughout. Additional rates were charged in respect of conveyance by
packet boat, e.g. for a single letter between Holyhead and Dublin, 2d.;
in respect of Menai Bridge, 1d.; in respect of Conway Bridge, 1d.; and
in respect of any letter conveyed in Scotland by a mail carriage with
more than two wheels, 1/2d. (See 1 Vict., cap. 34, [S][S] 3, 5, 6 and
7).[674]
By 2 and 3 Vict., cap. 52, the Treasury was empowered to regulate rates
of postage, and subsequent changes have been made by Treasury Warrant.
1840.
Not exceeding 1/2 ounce (uniform rate 1d.
irrespective of distance of transmission).
" 1 ounce ( " " " ). 2d.
For each additional ounce, or fraction of an ounce, 2d.
1865.
Rate for letters exceeding 1 ounce in weight reduced to 1d. for each 1/2
ounce, or fraction of 1/2 ounce, after the first ounce.
1871.
Not exceeding 1 ounce 1d.
" 2 ounces 1-1/2d.
For every additional 2 ounces or fraction of 2 ounces
up to 12 ounces, 1/2d.
For letters exceeding 12 ounces in weight, 1d. per ounce,
including the first ounce.
1885.
Rate of 1/2d. per ounce after the second ounce continued without limit.
1897.
Not exceeding 4 ounces 1d.
For every 2 ounces, or fraction of 2 ounces, thereafter, 1/2d.
1915.
Not exceeding 1 ounce 1d.
" 2 ounces 2d.
For every 2 ounces, or fraction of 2 ounces, thereafter, 1/2d.
* * * * *
II. FOREIGN RATES IN THE BRITISH SERVICE
One of the earliest regular posts in England was the post to Dover,
established for the transmission of despatches to and from the
Continent.[675] This post early assumed considerable importance
relatively to the other posts. The settlement of foreign artisans in
this country, in consequence of the persecutions on the Continent,
naturally led to the growth of a considerable intercourse with places
abroad. There was besides a large cloth trade. Letters were not,
however, sent exclusively by the King's post. Frequently the merchants
made their own arrangements for the conveyance of their letters; and
since one of the functions of the post in those days was to enable the
authorities to keep a close watch on all correspondence passing within
the realm, in order that conspiracies against the State might be
detected, this proceeding of the merchants was viewed by the Government
with much jealousy. It led to the first assumption by the State of the
monopoly of the carriage of letters. In 1591, before the use of the
posts for the transmission of inland letters for private individuals had
been officially recognized, a royal proclamation forbade the conveyance
of letters to or from places outside the realm except by the King's
post. A further proclamation to the same effect, so far as it related to
foreign letters, was issued in 1609.[676]
In 1619 the foreign post was separated from the ordinary post, and a
foreigner, Matthew De Quester, who had been appointed by Lord Stanhope,
then Master of the Posts, to superintend the foreign post, was appointed
to control the service. In 1626 De Quester published the following
tariff applicable to foreign letters:--
To or from the Hague, Brussels, Paris, and Vienna 30s.
To or from any part of Germany 6s.
From Venice for a single letter 9d.
From Venice for any letter other than a single
letter 2s. 8d.
From Leghorn and Florence for a single letter 1s.
From Leghorn and Florence for any letter other
than a single letter 3s. the ounce.[677]
The tariff was incomplete, but is noteworthy as the first set of rates
of any description issued in England for the conveyance of letters by
post. Stanhope had charged certain fees on letters for the Continent. On
letters to or from Amsterdam or Hamburg, for example, his fee had been
8d.[678] But, until this time, no general table of rates had been
issued.
By the Ordinance of 1657[679] the following rates for foreign letters
were established:--
------------------------------------------------------------------
| For a | |
|Single |Double | Per
|Letter.|Letter.| ounce.
------------------------------------------+-------+-------+-------
| d. | d. | d.
To Leghorn, Genoa, Florence, Lyons, | | |
Marseilles, Aleppo, Constantinople | 12 | 24 | 45
To St. Malo, Morlaix, Nieuhaven | 6 | 12 | 18
To Bordeaux, Rochelle, Nantes, Bayonne, | | |
Cadiz, Madrid | 9 | 18 | 24
To Hamburg, Frankfort, Cologne | 8 | 16 | 24
To Dantzic, Leipsic, L[:u]beck, Stockholm,| | |
Copenhagen, Elsinore, K[:o]nigsberg | 12 | 24 | 48
------------------------------------------+-------+-------+-------
No rates were fixed for letters passing outside Europe.
These rates were not substantially altered by the Act of 1660, although
in some cases a variation according to the route followed was
introduced. For example, a letter sent to the North of Italy via Lyons
was charged 3d. more than a letter sent direct.
Under James II rates of postage (6d. a single letter, 1s. a double
letter, and 2s. the ounce) were fixed for letters to and from Jamaica,
although no service to and from the island was provided by the Crown.
In 1686 regular mail services were established under contract between
Dover and Calais and between Dover and Ostend, and in 1687 a service
between England and Holland. It is probable that packets were sailing
between Dover and Calais before that time,[680] but in general the
cross-Channel services had previously been conducted by boats hired
casually for the conveyance of particular mails. For the Calais service
a sum of [L]1,170 a year was paid, and for the Dutch service a sum of
[L]900 a year.[681]
Letters from abroad brought by merchant ships (known as "ship letters")
were by the Ordinance of 1657[682] and by the Act of 1660 made subject
to postage on arrival in this country. Such letters were required to be
given up to the postmaster at the port of arrival, who forwarded the
letters to London, where they were charged with the proper amount of
postage. No payment was made to the shipmaster in respect of letters
handed over to the Post Office in this way, and no penalty was incurred
if the letters were not so handed over. This part of the Act
consequently remained a dead letter. The farmers of the Post Office saw,
however, that it would be profitable to them to offer a small pecuniary
inducement to the shipmasters, and accordingly offered to pay a penny
for every letter brought by private ship and handed over by the
shipmaster to the postmaster of the port of arrival.[683] As the farmers
were able to charge the legal rate of inland postage on all such
letters, there was a sufficient margin to leave a profit after payment
of the penny. The regular ship letter fee, which was afterwards
legalized, originated in this practice.
Most of the ship letters came to the port of London, and the
establishment of the penny post in 1680 had a serious effect on the
proceeds of the ship letter money. If the letters were for delivery in
London, they could be dropped into the penny post for delivery at a
penny each, whereas if handed in to the General Post Office as ship
letters they would be charged at the appropriate foreign rates,
according to their place of origin. Thus, letters from Marseilles for
delivery in London would be charged 1s. each, although the service
actually performed by the Post Office was no greater than that performed
for a penny in the penny post. The foreign rates, as applied to ship
letters, were therefore for the most part a simple tax, and the use of
the penny post was greatly resorted to.[684] The Postmasters-General
protested continually against this fraud on the revenue; and in 1696,
in order to put a stop to it, two officers were appointed whose duty it
was to receive letters and packets from all "masters of ships and
vessels, mariners, and passengers as shall be by them hereafter brought
in any ships or vessels into the Port of London."[685]
The payment of a penny a letter to the shipmasters was without legal
sanction until the Act of 1711.[686] This Act revised the foreign rates,
in general in an upward direction, the increase on the rates of 1660
varying from 1d. to 3d., and first established statutory rates for
letters passing to or from the colonies. From London to or from the West
Indies the rate was 18d. for a single letter, and to or from New York
12d. The rate to the West Indies was, in 1765, reduced to 1s. for a
single letter, and this rate became in course of time the standard for
all colonial letters.
In 1796, in addition to the ordinary shilling rate, letters from the
colonies were subjected to a charge at the inland rate in respect of
transmission within this country: e.g., a letter from America would be
charged the shilling rate, and the inland rate from Falmouth to its
destination. An addition of 4d. was also made to the rates on letters to
or from places abroad, other than places in the colonies. In 1805 an
additional penny was laid on letters between Great Britain and the
American Colonies.
The Act of 1711 had made illegal the despatch by private ship of letters
which could be sent by the regular packets; but for places to which no
packet service existed, shipmasters were free to accept and carry
letters, and to charge what fees they chose. So far as it directed that
all letters for places abroad should be sent by packet where a packet
service existed, the Act was ineffective. From the chief coffee-houses
in the City of London it was customary to collect letters to be sent in
this way by private ship where no packet service existed. This practice
was extended to those places to which there was a packet service, and
became generally recognized. Shipmasters usually charged a fee of 2d.
per letter,[687] and the whole traffic was conducted independently of
the Post Office.
No attempt was made to collect postage on letters conveyed by private
ship, whether received or despatched by such ship, except in respect of
transmission within the kingdom. The penny authorized by the Act of 1711
went to the master of the ship. About the year 1790 Frederick Bourne, a
clerk in the foreign department of the Post Office, suggested a scheme
which should bring all ship letters into the post and subject them to
postage for foreign transmission. He proposed that inward ship letters
should be charged a uniform rate of 4d., and outward letters should be
charged half the packet rate; for those places to which there was no
packet rate, the rate was to be based on what the packet rate might be
presumed to be if a packet service existed. In view of the long period
during which the provisions of the Act of Anne had not been enforced in
this respect, Pitt was unwilling to attempt to suppress the illegal
practice which had grown up. He considered that in respect of outward
letters the service performed by the Post Office, which amounted to no
more than sealing the bags and handing them to the shipmaster, was
insufficient to justify compulsory payment of packet postage. The
proposal was therefore adopted only as a permissive measure: merchants
were given the option of handing their letters to the Post Office. The
Act authorizing the change empowered the Post Office to despatch and
receive letters by vessels other than the regular sailing packets. On
letters despatched by private ship the Post Office was authorized to
charge half the packet rates in the case of letters for places to which
a packet service existed; in cases in which no rate of postage was
established, the charge was to be half the rates then paid, as near as
could be ascertained.[688] On letters brought in by such vessels, in
addition to the inland postage, a charge of 4d. a single letter, and so
in proportion, was authorized. A fee of 2d. was payable to the master of
the ship in respect of every letter delivered to or received from him by
the Post Office in proper course.
A Ship Letter Office was opened on the 10th September 1799. No vessel
was allowed to make entry or break bulk until letters brought by it had
been handed over to the Post Office. The chief object in view was not,
however, achieved. Letters sent out of the country by private ship still
continued for the most part to be handed to the shipmaster without the
intervention of the Post Office. Efforts were made to secure the
assistance of coffee-house keepers as agents of the Post Office, but
without success; and for many years the proportion between incoming and
outgoing private ship letters was eighteen to one.[689]
In 1814 a further Ship Letter Act[690] raised the rate on inward single
letters from 4d. to 6d., and made it compulsory to hand all outward ship
letters to the Post Office to be charged. The East India Company, whose
servants had previously been allowed to send and receive letters free,
protested strongly against the new Act, although the official
correspondence of the Company had been exempted. The Company pointed out
that the Post Office maintained no packet communication with the East
Indies, and to charge postage was to levy a charge where no service was
performed, and in effect to lay a tax on letter-writing. They had a
stronger weapon than sound argument: the ships sailing between England
and India were to a large extent controlled by them, and the Act laid no
compulsion on the owners of private ships to carry letters for the Post
Office. When, therefore, the Post Office requested the Company to carry
post letters to India, the Company replied that they did "not see fit to
authorize the commanders or owners of any of their ships to take charge
of any bag of letters from the Post Office subjected to a rate of
postage for sea conveyance."[691] In consequence of this difficulty an
Act was passed in 1815 making it compulsory on all shipmasters to carry
such mails as should be tendered to them by the Post Office. The Post
Office was required to pay the owners a reasonable sum as remuneration
for the carriage of the letters, the ordinary fee of 2d. a letter still
being paid to the commander as a perquisite. The East India Company was
placated by the concession of further exemptions in its favour. By this
Act the rate of postage to India or the Cape was fixed at 14d. the ounce
on letters, and on newspapers at 3d. the ounce--the first enactment
providing a lower rate for newspapers than for letters in the foreign
service.[692]
The result of this Act was eminently satisfactory. In the first eighteen
months or so the postage on letters for India and the Cape of Good Hope
amounted to [L]11,658, while the amount paid for the conveyance by private
ship was only [L]1,250; although it should be explained that expense was
incurred for less than half the number of despatches, the remainder
being conveyed by his Majesty's ships, or by ships of the East India
Company which were placed at the disposal of the Post Office free of
charge.
Other minor changes were made in subsequent years. In 1836 a postal
treaty was arranged with France, under which certain rates--in general,
rates slightly lower than those previously in force--were agreed for all
letters passing through France.
The rates for colonial letters were revised when uniform postage was
introduced in the inland service. They were made chargeable according to
weight, and for transmission to any port in the colonies were fixed
generally at 1s. the 1/2 ounce.
In 1850, on political grounds, the Postmaster-General[693] proposed the
establishment of a general 1s. rate for all colonial letters. The
proposal was not immediately adopted, but a few years later a rate of
6d. the 1/2 ounce was established for all parts of the Empire except
India, the Cape, Mauritius, and Tasmania. This rate was extended to all
the colonies in 1857, and to the United States in 1868. In 1869 the rate
for letters to the United States, Canada, and Prince Edward Island was
reduced to 3d. In 1875 the Universal Postal Union rate of 2-1/2d. came
into operation. The next great advance was the result mainly of the
efforts of Sir J. Henniker Heaton, who for many years advocated the
facilitation of postal intercourse, especially within the Empire. In
1898 penny postage was established between the United Kingdom and all
the chief colonies except Australia, the Cape, and Natal. In 1905 these
colonies joined, and were followed by Egypt and the Sudan.
In 1907 a special rate of 1d. a pound was established for magazines and
trade journals posted in the United Kingdom, for Canada. The rate did
not cover the cost of service, and its justification is to be sought in
political considerations. In order to secure the low rate Canada
undertook to defray the whole cost of ocean transport. Difficulties in
regard to the financial arrangements arose subsequently, and on the 1st
January 1915 the rate was altered to the following, viz. 1d. for the
first 6 ounces, 1-1/2d. for 1-1/2 pounds, 2-1/2d. for 2-1/2 pounds, and
so on.
Under the old system the rates of postage were for the most part
nominal, that is to say, no attempt was made to adjust the rates to the
actual cost of providing the service, although in allocating between the
different States the total amount of postage, a rough assignment as
between land and sea services was made.[694] The usual 6d. rate for
single letters to and from the various colonies illustrates this. The
actual cost of service must have varied greatly. In the case of the
colonies other considerations, mainly political, were allowed to enter.
In the case of foreign countries the whole arrangements for the
interchange of correspondence were based on such agreements as could be
arrived at, and the actual rates of postage were determined in that
way.[695] The chief difficulties in negotiations occurred in connection
with the division between the contracting parties of the postage
collected. The packet service was often conducted at a loss, and the
rates of postage on foreign and colonial letters were not, in general,
fixed with a view to rendering the service self-supporting, although
this was regarded as a condition to be aimed at.[696]
By the Consolidating Acts of 1837 (1 Vict., cap. 34 & 36) the
Postmaster-General was empowered to require the masters of outward-bound
vessels to accept mails, and to deliver them without delay on arrival at
the port of destination, under penalty of [L]200.
The general character of the foreign packet service was entirely changed
by the introduction of steam propulsion, which greatly shortened the
length of voyages and introduced a degree of punctuality and regularity
hitherto undreamt of. Until this time the Post Office had, for many
long-distance services, relied on its own packets; i.e. packets sailing
under contract expressly for the conveyance of the mails and under the
control of the Post Office. In 1818, with the introduction of steam
vessels, this policy was changed and that of Crown ownership of the
packets adopted. This method was found extremely costly, and the
Commissioners of Revenue Inquiry reported emphatically against it.[697]
The policy of providing for the service by contract was then reverted
to. It now appeared, however, that vessels sailing for commercial
purposes could be counted upon to sail and arrive regularly, and the
Government desired therefore to make use of them for the despatch of
mails. It was proposed to forward mails by the _Great Western_ under the
powers conferred on the Postmaster-General by the Act of 1837 (1 Vict.
34, [S] 19) for the prescribed remuneration ([S] 24). The owners refused to
carry mails on these terms, and the Law Officers advised that the
Postmaster-General had no power, either by Statute or Common Law, to
compel the owners to carry mails.[698] It was not found necessary,
perhaps it was not deemed wise, to follow up the question of powers. In
1839 a contract was entered into with Samuel Cunard for the provision of
a steamship service between England and North America, at a cost to the
Post Office of [L]55,000 a year. This policy proved successful. It has
been followed in the case of all the great routes, and has continued
until the present day.