SOLE SECRETARYSHIP--FIRST ANNUAL REPORT 1854.
PROGRESS OF IMPROVEMENT, 1855-59.
The statement which will be found on a subsequent page relative to
improvements in hand during the last month of 1854, shows, in some
measure, the increased progress consequent on the important change
effected within the year. Command of the secretary's staff--many of
them able officers--enabled me more rapidly to devise and mature
measures of improvement, relieved me, to a great extent, from the
necessity of dealing with details and from the toil of throwing my
conceptions into the form of well-considered and elaborate minutes, and
allowed me, when due authorization had been obtained, to carry them
out without impediment or loss of time, or over-watchful care against
the introduction of some thwarting modification. Provided only I could
obtain the approval of the Postmaster-General, and, where needful, of
the Treasury, my course henceforth would be uninterrupted so long as
health of body and mind should be vouchsafed for its continuance. I
did not however, expect, though such a notion seemed to be very common
abroad, that the approval of the Postmaster-General and the sanction
of the Treasury were to be had for the mere asking. These authorities
frequently have views of their own, and, though they naturally pay
much attention to the advice of their highest permanent officers,
nevertheless they occasionally delay or modify action, and sometimes,
though very rarely, exercise their absolute veto. All who had the
pleasure of knowing Lord Canning, the Postmaster-General of the day,
must be aware that he was not a man likely to act upon advice in great
matters without being first convinced of its soundness; but, at the
same time, they will remember that his great ability, diligence, and
candour, were likely to bring the means of substantial conviction
within his reach. In working under such a man, though one may be
sometimes subjected to delay or disappointment, there is, nevertheless,
much profit, as the necessity for convincing often leads to closer
investigation and more careful consideration than might, at first
sight, appear necessary, and occasionally tends, even where measures
are perfectly sound in themselves, to more careful inquiry as to the
best mode of presenting them in an acceptable form to the public. I
entered now, therefore, upon the most satisfactory period of my whole
official career, that in which the course of improvement was steadiest,
most rapid, and least chequered. The work of organization, to which I
was now able to give most of my time and attention, had long been to
me of all occupations the least difficult and the most pleasant; and
perhaps, but for the effect of past struggles, the course now opening
to me might have continued, though not without some abatement from
causes to be mentioned hereafter, unto the present day.
During such a period personal history naturally loses most of its
interest. For six years there was peace in the Post Office, and the
history of peace, though often most important, is almost proverbially
uninteresting. Quitting, therefore, for a time, that which more nearly
appertains to myself, I proceed at once to describe the improvements
effected or attempted within the period.
ARRANGEMENT OF SECRETARIAL DUTIES.
The private journal from which I have drawn so largely in narrating
the occurrences of my official career was suspended soon after my
appointment as sole secretary, partly because I now felt myself
relieved from the fear of that antagonism which had rendered exact
knowledge of past occurrences a matter of painful necessity, partly
because I was no longer obliged to build up and maintain a claim for
promotion, and partly because the full liberty now allowed for the
furtherance of reform required on my part undivided attention to
the device and careful consideration of measures, and of the means
of carrying them into effect. Henceforward, therefore, I have for
some years to depend mainly upon records of a formal and official
character, and prominent among these stand the Annual Reports of
the Postmaster-General, the first of which relates, so far as it
is special, to the year in which I attained my final position. It
describes, therefore, occurrences which partly preceded, partly
followed, that change. Much, however, in this First Report is naturally
of a more general character.
I must premise, that one of my earliest steps on becoming sole
secretary was to arrange for the meeting of the chief secretary
(myself) and the two assistant-secretaries (Mr. Tilley and my
brother) in frequent conference, for the consideration of measures
in contemplation or in progress, and also of such suggestions on any
subject as any one of the three might offer. This provision proved
to be exceedingly useful. Mr. Tilley, who had been between thirty
and forty years in the department, and had made good use of his
opportunities, was always ready to furnish such information relative
to details as occasion might require; while my brother, who had, for
seventeen years, been engaged in duties of a higher order and greater
difficulty than those now devolving upon him, brought with him a
mastery of general principles, a power of origination, and a habit of
constantly striving for improvement, which gave him special fitness for
the duty to which, indeed, he was more especially appointed, that of
aiding me in the work of amelioration. This conference continued its
sittings during the whole of my secretaryship; and I felt much concern
when I learnt that on my withdrawal it came to an end.
In the division of duties between the assistant-secretaries, I was
guided by my knowledge of their respective powers, as well as by a
reference to the speciality of my brother's appointment. Whatever
departments required to be efficiently conducted with but moderate
change in their arrangements were committed to the charge of Mr.
Tilley, while those which seemed most susceptible of great improvement,
with the exception of such as I retained in my own hands, were given
in charge to my brother. The principal of these were the Money Order
Department, already mentioned, the mail conveyance by land and by
sea, and the Foreign and Colonial Department generally, including,
of course, conventions with foreign countries. I need scarcely add,
however, that I exercised a general control over the whole; and as the
reader will be but little interested in knowing whether particular
reforms owe their origin or execution to my brother or myself, I shall,
save in a few more marked cases, sink individuality and speak only of
joint action. I wish, however to state here my conviction that without
my brother's able and zealous assistance, the full reform of the Post
Office would not and could not have been successfully accomplished.
The heads of departments--the immediate subordinates of the
secretaries--were, for the most part, men whose selection did credit
to my predecessor, Colonel Maberly, on whose recommendation they had
been appointed. They were, in short, an able staff of officers. I took
advantage of their ability to make what proved a valuable change in
their mode of proceeding; for whereas the practice had been for these
officers simply to select the cases requiring the judgment of the
secretary, and to await his instructions before writing their minutes
thereon, I gradually induced them to come prepared with an opinion of
their own, which might serve in a measure for my guidance. This soon
led to a further improvement; for, as the most convenient way of giving
such opinion clearly was to throw it into the form of a minute, it
became not uncommon, at least in ordinary cases, to draw the minutes,
even before any reference to me. This arrangement not only saved me
much valuable time, but also procured for the matters in question a
much closer investigation, and more careful consideration from those
whose position was most advantageous for the task, than could be
without the responsibility pertaining to men called on to advise.
The Annual Reports already mentioned were intended to supply such
information to the public as might tend to prevent misapprehension
and avert complaint, and at the same time to describe the course of
improvement.
_Construction of Reports._
The Reports themselves, though always perused and often curtailed or
otherwise modified by the Postmaster-General, were, from the beginning
to the close of my secretaryship, substantially the work of my brother,
with whom indeed the plan originated, being but the application to
the Post Office of a practice which he had very fully maintained
during sixteen years as an Inspector of Prisons. It must be observed
that the surveyors and heads of departments were called on to supply
the necessary materials by reporting each on his own division of the
service. This arrangement obviously supplied an additional motive for
exertion, and more especially for bringing all matters in hand to a
speedy completion. It may be added that in the year 1856, that is to
say within two years from our first issue, a letter was addressed by
the Treasury to the other departments of the public service, calling
attention to the Post Office Reports, and inviting similar reports from
them, and that in the following year there appeared a First Annual
Report from the Board of Customs, and from the Commissioners of Inland
Revenue, each containing a mass of valuable information.
RATE OF IMPROVEMENT.
The following passage in the First Report throws light on the rates of
improvement:--
"On the first day of every month a report is laid before the
Postmaster-General, showing the principal improvements in hand, and
the stage at which each has arrived. The latest of these reports
(which is of the usual length) records one hundred and eighty-three
measures, in various stages of progress, or completed, during the
month of December, 1854. Minor improvements, such as extension of
rural posts, &c., are not noticed in these reports."
BUILDING.
At various towns correspondence having far outgrown the space provided
for dealing with it, existing offices were enlarged or new offices
erected. Though, at times, there was more or less of contest with
influential corporations, naturally inclined to adorn their respective
towns at the national expense, yet, so long as the matter was left in
our hands, we were able, upon the whole, to effect these changes at
moderate cost.
A far larger outlay than was involved in all these provincial erections
and enlargements, however lavishly made, had already been staved off by
my brother. He learning, soon after his appointment to the department,
that there was a great demand for room at the chief office (a building
originally erected with far more regard to outward appearance than
inward convenience, as was found out as work increased), and that the
purchase of Smithfield had been suggested, together with the erection
of an entirely new building, examined the present office from the roof
to the basement. He found several rooms filled with old and useless
papers, and one large apartment, in the immediate neighbourhood of
others where clerks were working, employed as a laundry; while for
extinguishing fire, of which the risk was thus thoughtlessly incurred,
there was not then in the whole building any provision whatever.
He also found a great deal of unoccupied space available for the
construction of large additional rooms. With the assistance of Mr.
Gould, the intelligent clerk of the works, he recommended alterations
which, being carried into effect, greatly added to the capacity of the
office. While the danger of fire was diminished, provision was made
against its occurrence by the erection of tanks on the roof, with a
provision of pipes, cocks, hose, and buckets, in different parts of
the building, and by appointing firemen to be on duty, by relays,
throughout the day and night. In short, the improvement in the building
was so effectual, that when I resigned my post, more than twelve years
afterwards, there appeared every reason to hope, especially considering
the relief afforded by the district offices, that the erection of a new
chief office might be indefinitely postponed; though I learn now (1868)
that such expectation is disappointed, and that land in the immediate
neighbourhood has actually been purchased as an additional site.
Long before my resignation, however, a change had been made, the
benefit of which I have never been able to discover,--the construction
and alteration of Post Office buildings being transferred by the
Treasury, in the year 1858, from the Post Office to the Board of
Works. I attempted to obtain a reversal of this order, knowing that
the change by no means tended to economy; and, in support of my view,
I produced the following striking contrast. A new post office had
lately been erected at Brighton, the cost, excluding a very moderate
sum expended in fitting up a portion of it as a residence, being no
more than £1,600. A similar erection had now to be made at Dundee; and
as the correspondence of this town is not more than about half that of
Brighton, the least to be expected was that the cost here should be
within the cost there; instead of which, the estimate sent in by the
Board of Works raised it to four-or five-fold the amount; nor could all
the remonstrance I made, and I was not sparing in my representations,
bring it lower than £5,700. My general pleading availed no more than
my special remonstrance, and the duty in question is still attached to
the Board of Works, with what æsthetic advantages I cannot pretend to
say, but certainly at a greatly increased expense.
FREE DELIVERY.
Free delivery was rapidly extending throughout the United Kingdom.
At the present day (1868) the work is so far advanced that to many
readers the very term "free delivery" must have lost its significance.
Formerly, to every office there were limits, sometimes narrow ones,
beyond which delivery was either not made at all, or made only at an
additional charge, generally of one penny per letter, an arrangement
nowise interfered with by the simple establishment of penny postage.
During the period now under consideration, however, in addition to
much previously done, this immunity was extended to several thousand
places, without counting a widening of range or other improvement at
places where it already existed in an imperfect state. In short, by
the end of this period free delivery was extended so far as to include
ninety-three per cent. of the whole correspondence.[123]
LONDON DELIVERY.
While due attention was thus paid to the provinces, the department did
not neglect the interests of London, whose population is one-tenth,
and whose correspondence is even one-fourth of that of the United
Kingdom. Much as had already been done in accelerating the delivery of
letters coming into the district, we saw that additional improvements
might be made to carry this acceleration still further. As early as
January, 1856, a hope was expressed, in the Report on the previous
year, that the first delivery of the day throughout the metropolis
might eventually be completed by nine a.m.,[124] instead of eleven,
or even later. To effect this, however, and no less to obtain rapid
intercommunication between the different parts of the metropolis,
required changes so complicated, that their details could not be set
forth without wearying the reader. At the same time, the greatest
caution and foresight were required to prevent derangement in
transition; and this, combined with other difficulties, greatly delayed
the completion of the plan. Briefly stated, the changes involved were
as follows; and I may remark that they are almost identical with those
proposed in my evidence before the Post Office Commissioners in 1837,
already mentioned in this narrative. We had to unite the two corps
of letter-carriers (the impracticability of which, under divided
authority, had so long delayed the whole measure[125]); to rearrange
their "walks;" to divide London into districts, each to be treated
in some respects as a separate town; to procure suitable buildings
for district offices, or, failing this, to erect such buildings,
first obtaining proper sites (no easy matter); to adopt a new plan of
sorting at the chief office; and lastly, to provide for the sorting
of mails according to the new districts before reaching London.[126]
That everything might be done with the utmost circumspection, I
nominated a committee of officers to consider the details involved in
the necessary changes, which committee made a very elaborate and able
Report.[127] In about three years from the first positive movement the
district system, though still imperfect, was in some sort established
throughout. The beneficial effect had already distinctly appeared in
the augmented rate of increase in the number of district letters;
the annual increment rising from somewhat less than a million and a
half to somewhat more than six millions and a quarter.[128] Early
delivery, meantime, so far advanced as to bring the completion of the
first round of the day nearly to the point aimed at, viz., 9 a.m.[129]
The number of deliveries, too, was raised to ten, and communication
within the whole suburban district rendered much more frequent and
rapid.[130] These improvements had received some aid from the public in
the multiplication of street-door boxes,[131] and yet more in the use
in addresses of initial letters indicating districts,[132] while the
Metropolitan Board of Works also had somewhat amended the nomenclature
of streets and the numbering of houses;[133] but on all three points
very much remained then, and, I must add, remains still, to be done.
Shortly afterwards a similar system was applied to Liverpool, by which
means not only the deliveries were much improved, but the cost of
erecting a new chief office was avoided.[134]
RAILWAY SERVICE.
_Acceleration of Mails._
While these important improvements were going forward within the
London district, measures were also in steady progress for improved
communication with all parts of the United Kingdom, partly by the
extended use of day mails, partly by an acceleration of speed, and
partly by measures for securing greater punctuality. For the further
attainment of the latter object, attempts were again made to induce the
companies to enter into engagements by which they and the Post Office
should be mutually bound to penalties in case of unpunctuality, coupled
with rewards to the companies (though, of course, not to the Post
Office) for punctual performance.[135] In the year 1855 one company,
viz., the North British, accepted this proposal, and the beneficial
effect soon showed itself, the instances of irregularity being brought
down in one half year from a hundred and twelve to nine, while the
company received within the same time £400 in the way of reward.[136]
Notwithstanding this result, however, the Post Office never succeeded
in inducing the railway companies generally to agree to the adoption of
the plan.
After awhile, nevertheless, we prevailed on the companies conveying
the night mail between London and Edinburgh to limit the ordinary
traffic of the mail trains, and at the same time to effect a material
acceleration.[137] Mainly by these means, the interval between London,
on the one hand, and Edinburgh and Glasgow on the other--previously
reduced from time to time--was brought down to less than eleven
hours; and this, with other aids, enabled the department to deliver
the letters at these important cities before business hours in the
morning, and to despatch the return mails after business hours in the
evening. To effect this improvement we had to make an _additional_
payment of about £15,000 a year to the railway companies alone; but the
benefit was so great to Edinburgh and Glasgow--indeed to the whole of
Scotland--that we did not grudge the outlay.
I cannot say so much for another acceleration effected during this
period, viz., that of the mails between London and Dublin; not that
this was less important, but that the annual expense entailed by the
change is every way greatly in excess. The object was that the night
and day mails should reach Dublin, the one in time for the first
delivery of the day and for despatch onwards by the Dublin day mail,
the other in time for delivery the same night and for despatch onwards
by the Dublin night mail; and in order that these operations might be
regular, it was obviously necessary that there should be a margin of
time at Dublin to allow for occasional late arrival there. In 1853 a
committee of the House of Commons had been appointed to report upon
the best means of improving the service in question. The evidence of
Captain Huish and other authorities connected with the existing service
was to the effect that it might be greatly accelerated, and that at
a not very immoderate addition to the actual cost. In consequence,
the committee reported in favour of the measure,[138] and Government
decided to give effect to their recommendation; but, when negotiations
were commenced, the companies concerned, disregarding their own
evidence, demanded at once more time for the trip and a higher rate
of remuneration. I strongly urged resistance to both demands, and as
the Postmaster-General backed my views, I have little doubt that, had
the negotiations been left with the Post Office, the quicker and less
costly service would have been secured. Unfortunately, the Treasury had
taken the matter into its own hands, and we were overruled; so that for
insufficient advantages the country has to pay an annual subsidy of
upwards of £100,000, in addition to the cost--necessary, however, on
either plan--of provision for sorting the letters both on the railway
and on board the mail steamers. Unfortunately, too, unpunctuality is
not so rare as might be desired, the appointed penalties having been
suspended on the ground of insufficient pier accommodation at Holyhead.
Still, with every drawback, the improvement was important, reducing the
ordinary time of the journey to eleven hours and a half, and obtaining,
so far as time was duly kept, all or nearly all the advantages aimed
at--advantages extending even to Irish letters for the continental
mails.[139] The following extract from the Tenth Annual Report,
exemplifies the benefit of the change:--
"Thus the period required for the transmission of a letter from
London to Cork, and for the receipt of a reply, has been shortened
in all cases by half a day, and in the great majority of cases by
more than a day."[140]
_General Contracts._
During this period, also, many additional companies entered into
general contracts, such as have already been spoken of; binding
themselves, for a fixed sum per annum, not only to perform certain
specified services at appointed hours and at a given speed, but to
place all their trains, without exception, at the service of the
department.
_Need of Legislation._
Nevertheless, all that we could effect as respects railway conveyance
of the mails left, and I must add still leaves, much to be desired; the
law being, to this day, in such a state as is exceedingly injurious
not only to public convenience and to economy in the Post Office, but,
as I conscientiously believe, to the true interests of the companies
themselves. The following instances may serve for illustration:--
Application was made to the Post Office for a day mail to Alton; and
the concession was offered on condition that the London and South
Western Company would consent, according to a practice established on
some other lines, to carry the bag at the ordinary parcel rate, the
Post Office undertaking (contrary to the usual practice in respect
of parcels) to convey it to and from the stations. Our offer could
hardly be considered unreasonable, seeing that the Post Office, as
compared with an ordinary customer, would have to pay equally high for
less service and for regular instead of occasional custom. The offer,
however, was refused; the Post Office had no power to enforce the
demand; and, as the correspondence would not justify the expense of a
regular mail train, the desired convenience was delayed for years; the
company thereby losing an increase to its parcel traffic, every penny
paid for which would, in effect, have been clear profit.
In the year 1856, I received an application from Sir George Cornewall
Lewis, then Chancellor of the Exchequer, for such an acceleration
of the mail to Hereford as would enable letters to reach Kington
(Radnorshire), near which he resided, in time for an early morning
delivery. As the readiest means of effecting this was by the use of
the Gloucester and Hereford Railway, I applied to the company to know
on what terms they would perform the duty, the distance upon their
line being twenty-three miles. The answer was a very heavy demand
(according to my recollection, £3,000 per annum); the reason given
for this enormous charge being that the line, which was ordinarily
closed during the night, would have to be kept open for the special
service. Though Sir Cornewall Lewis forbore to urge a demand involving
so large a sacrifice, I could not but desire to attain the end, if
practicable, knowing how inconvenient it must be for important official
correspondence to be delayed. Taking advantage, therefore, of the
clearness of the line by night, I proposed that the Post Office should
itself run a train (as by law any one is entitled to do), paying,
however, the appointed tolls, though legally exempted therefrom. This,
however, was obviously impracticable without supplies of coal and
water, and standing room for the engine and carriage, which the company
alone had the means of furnishing; and for these I offered to pay
according to arbitration. This offer the company absolutely declined,
though, as a further inducement, I had included in it the tender to the
company of a carriage for passengers. Other means being sought for, it
was at length suggested that Kington might be reached in sufficient
time by another route, if the Shrewsbury and Hereford Company would
allow the use of their line on moderate terms; and, this company
agreeing to perform the duty for £1000 a year, the very circuitous
route _viâ_ Shrewsbury was adopted, and is still followed; the longer
route involving, however, no inconvenience, as the conveyance is
effected in the night.
Again, the importance of some definite rule of charge for specific
duty, even as a means of facilitating improvement, is shown by
reference to the multiplicity of contracts sometimes requiring to be
made or modified before a change can be completed. The following is
from the Report of 1859:--
"The great number of arrangements still necessary for the
conveyance of letters to long distances, notwithstanding the length
of many of the railways for which a single contract suffices, is
shown by the fact, that for the transmission of a letter from
Land's End to John O'Groat's--exclusive of engagements with rural
messengers, and of arrangements for the conveyance of mail-bags
between railway stations and post-offices--twenty-one separate
contracts are required."[141]
_Conciliatory Devices--Loans._
In my anxiety to place our relations with the railway companies on a
satisfactory footing, and amidst doubt as to success in any attempt
to procure efficient legislation on the subject, I devised, in the
beginning of 1857, what I hoped might prove a means of winning from the
companies that which, in spite of what I believed and still believe to
be to their true interests, they have almost all refused to concede.
My plan was that Government should, on ample security and to a limited
extent, advance loans, on the terms on which it could itself borrow, to
such companies as were willing to adopt a reasonable tariff of charge
for postal services. This arrangement, while costing in effect nothing
to Government, would enable the companies to borrow at a rate much
lower than ordinary. As I still consider this suggestion important, I
give my memorandum on the subject at length in the Appendix (J). I may
state here that I proposed to make the arrangement terminable at the
end of three years, and that I hoped to reduce our annual payments for
railway service by about £250,000. An inquiry from the Duke of Argyll,
then Postmaster-General, led me to add a representation, setting forth
strong additional reasons for seeking to obtain, of course on equitable
terms, unlimited use of the railways. The following is the most
important passage:--
"I feel assured that if my plan of advances to the railway
companies were adopted, there would be no _financial_ difficulty,
either in using, more or less, every railway now existing, or which
may be hereafter constructed, or in extending the delivery of
letters to every house in the United Kingdom."
My memorandum was sent by the Duke of Argyll to the Treasury, with
a somewhat guarded recommendation that it should be favourably
considered. By his permission, I also laid it before Mr. Hutchinson,
chairman of the Stock Exchange, who, with some valuable recommendations
as to the best mode of giving it effect, expressed his entire
approbation of the plan. This being reported in a second memorandum,
the whole matter was referred by the Treasury to Sir Alexander
Spearman, though with what result I do not know. Meanwhile His Grace
suggested that I should obtain also the opinion of Mr. Gladstone, who,
it must be remembered, was not then in the Government, having seceded
on a question relative to the Russian war; and on this advice, with the
ready permission of Sir G. Cornewall Lewis, Mr. Gladstone's successor
in office, I was only too happy to act. The result--which, however, I
first communicated to the Chancellor of the Exchequer--I subsequently
stated in the following letter to the Postmaster-General. The reader
will here see something of the practical difficulties which even
Government, after giving its approbation to a measure, has to apprehend
in carrying it, however cautiously, through Parliament:--
"February 23rd, 1857.
MY DEAR LORD DUKE,--Mr. Gladstone is of opinion that the Post
Office interests in connection with the railways have been greatly
neglected by the Legislature; that the Government should, if
possible, obtain possession of the railways, when all difficulty
would, of course, cease; that this might have been done seven or
eight years ago, but that now it would be very difficult, and that
some other course must in all probability be resorted to.
"He likes my plan (though inferior, as being less direct than the
other), but considers it too difficult a piece of legislation for
Parliament as matters now stand, and advises that, with the consent
of the Treasury, we should endeavour to make the arrangement with
some one company subject to the confirmation by Parliament, which,
for a single bargain, might, he thinks, be counted upon; and that
having done this we should, if the results prove satisfactory,
apply to Parliament for power to deal with other companies.
"He also thinks well of referring the whole question, including the
Bill, to a committee of the House of Commons, _provided some able
member of the Government can spare time to manage the case_; but
not otherwise.
"Sir George Cornewall Lewis is inclined to the latter alternative;
but the difficulty will be to spare Mr. Wilson or any other able
man to attend the committee. He spoke of Mr. Lowe, and promised to
consider the whole case.
"Faithfully yours,
"ROWLAND HILL.
"His Grace the DUKE OF ARGYLL."
While this matter remained under consideration at the Treasury, or,
in other words, was forgotten amidst the demands of more pressing
business, another attempt was made at general legislation, as will
hereafter appear, but still without success; and in the beginning
of 1858 I again called the Postmaster-General's attention to the
subject. The Chancellor of the Exchequer had suggested, meantime, that
Government, instead of lending money, as I had originally proposed,
or Consols, according to Mr. Hutchinson's judicious modification,
might yield the necessary aid by giving its guarantee for loans to
be raised by the companies themselves; but this suggestion had been
condemned by Mr. Hutchinson, as far less beneficial to the companies,
and as raising what would be felt as an injurious distinction between
loan and loan, _i.e._, guaranteed and unguaranteed. The matter was now
referred by the Treasury to the Board of Trade, then presided over by
Lord Stanley of Alderley, who called for the opinion of the Secretary,
Mr. Booth, which was in effect adverse. I had also, with permission,
consulted Mr. Locke, the eminent engineer, then M.P. for Honiton; who,
however, though approving of the principle, demanded that it should be
carried out to its full extent, so as not merely to cover £30,000,000,
as I had proposed, but to include loans generally. He also required
a further amalgamation of companies, and what it may be remembered I
had previously urged, but in vain, viz., the concession to each great
company of a district or territory, into which other companies should,
except in specified contingencies, be forbidden to intrude. In short,
through excessive caution on the one hand, and excessive demands on the
other, combined with the ordinary difficulties attending innovation,
nothing was done.
Ten years[142] have now elapsed since my attempt was abandoned, but
my estimate of its value remains undiminished; I see no intrinsic
difficulty in the plan, no counterbalancing evil to its benefit, nor
any obstacle to its adoption, but the want of a more general and
accurate knowledge on the subject; for lack of this, supposing my view
to be correct, Government has been and still is constantly expending
a quarter of a million per annum more than necessary, the railway
companies are deprived of a valuable relief, and the postal service is
cramped to a degree seriously affecting the interests of the public at
large.
_Attempts to procure Legislation._
My attempt in the same year (1857) to obtain satisfactory legislation
was not more successful than my previous efforts. The bill was prepared
with every just consideration for railway interests, which, indeed,
I was little likely to neglect, but was introduced too late in the
session to give it any chance of passing against the opposition which,
to my great disappointment, it encountered.[143]
Two years later, thinking I had found a favourable conjuncture, I
proposed a measure on new terms, which I hoped would prove more
acceptable. A bill being drawn accordingly at the Post Office, with the
sanction of the Treasury, I hoped that it would be introduced early in
the session of 1860; but before the time arrived, my increasing illness
took so serious a form that many months elapsed before I was able to do
work of any kind; and, in short, my direct attempts to obtain railway
legislation here came to an end.
To what form the relation between the Post Office and the railways
will eventually be brought, by legislation or otherwise, must for the
present remain matter of conjecture. The purchase of the whole railway
system by the State has of late been much talked of; and, of course, if
this should be effected, all such legislation as I sought to procure
would be superseded; but the difficulties to be surmounted are very
great. Reference has been made to a Royal Commission on Railways, of
which I was a member. This was appointed in 1865, and I joined it at
the earnest request of Mr. Gladstone. Though unable, through the state
of my health, to attend all the meetings, I was careful to examine
the report of all such evidence as I did not hear, and both evidence
and discussion confirmed the opinions I had previously formed on the
subject. These had in the main been put forth some time before by
my brother Frederic, who also frequently discussed them with me in
conversation, and finally gave them concise but distinct expression
in his evidence before the commission. I may add that our joint view
was supported by evidence from Mr. Edward Page, Inspector-General of
Mails, and Mr. Gregory, C.E., the Arbitrator for the Post Office, and
afterwards President of the Society of Civil Engineers.
Adopting the suggestion of Government purchase (originally made, I
believe by Mr. Galt, as early as the year 1844), but differing from
him as to the mode of proceeding, my brother recommended that the
purchase should be made gradually; and this not by compulsion, save
in a few exceptional cases, but by free covenant between the railway
proprietors and the Government; that the purchase should be effected,
not by any increase of the National Debt, but on some such arrangement
as is now generally adopted when one company becomes possessed of the
line of another; lastly, that Government should not attempt to work
the railways itself, but lease them to companies or individuals on
such conditions as would most tend to public benefit. These views will
be found expressed in my separate Report (for I did not succeed in
bringing over my brother Commissioners to my opinion) at pp. cxii. and
cxxvi.[144] Mr. Monsell, M.P. for the county of Limerick also made a
separate report concurring in great measure with my own. It is foreign
to the purpose of this narrative to dwell on the general advantages
that might be expected to follow the great change in question; suffice
it to repeat that, if effected, it would put it in the power of the
Government to secure to the Post Office the prompt and unimpeded
command of all railway facilities, and that on terms at once equitable
in themselves and beneficial to all parties.
_Arbitration with Railway Companies._
In the absence of those fixed rules which legislation alone can
establish, frequent recourse is necessarily had to arbitration; which,
however, is unsatisfactory in its results, owing, no doubt, chiefly to
the difficulty of procuring an umpire at once sufficiently conversant
with the facts and principles that should form the basis of judgment,
sufficiently unbiassed to deal with them dispassionately, and at the
same time acceptable to the railway companies. In cases of difference
between individuals and large companies, the public feeling, as shown
by the decision of juries and otherwise, is for the most part unduly
favourable towards individuals; and, in like manner, in cases between
companies and that largest of corporations the State, the feeling is
unduly favourable to the companies; the more so as the companies can
address _ex parte_ statements to the public, while even the highest
fixed officers in any Government department are bound by official
etiquette to silence.
Further indication as to the true interest of railway companies in
relation to the Post Office will be found in the following passage:--It
may be remembered that I had, when chairman of the Brighton Railway
Company, induced the directors to offer to the Post Office the almost
gratuitous conveyance of an additional mail by every train between
London and Brighton not already retained for postal service, and
that this offer had been in part accepted. In the beginning of 1859,
however, I learnt that the company, then under the chairmanship of
Mr. Schuster, demanded payment for this additional service. Sincerely
believing the demand to be contrary to the company's true interests. I
wrote to the chairman in earnest deprecation. I give the essential part
of my letter:--
"15th February, 1859.
"MY DEAR SIR,
* * * * *
"I trust, however, that you will not lightly disturb the existing
arrangements. You are mistaken as to the motives which induced the
board, at the time I had the honour of being their chairman, to
undertake the conveyance of the mails between London and Brighton
at the present rates of charge. Our motive was not so much the
benefit of the Post Office as that of the railway company; and the
result of fourteen years' experience clearly establishes, I think,
the policy of the measure.
"Beyond the limits of the London District there is no town in
England which has equal postal facilities with Brighton; and the
board will, I think, on reconsideration, agree with me in opinion
that no inconsiderable part of the £20,000 a year obtained from the
sale of season tickets is attributable to this cause.
"Any attempt to raise the charge upon us would necessarily lead to
a diminution of service; and, in this way, the company as well as
the public would suffer.
"As a shareholder, I am anxious on this point...."
The consequence, I am happy to say, was the abandonment of the demand,
and the maintenance of the previous practice; which, I understand,
remains unchanged to the present time (1868).
MONEY ORDERS.
The amount annually transmitted, which before the establishment of
penny postage had been less than one-third of a million, but in the
fourteen following years had risen to nearly ten millions, rose between
1854 and 1859 to more than thirteen millions;[145] and the profit,
which had been gradually substituted for a loss, and had risen by 1854
to somewhat more than £16,000, rose by the end of 1859 to more than
£29,000.[146]
_Obstacles to Economy._
Further economy, to the extent of about £1000 a year, might have
been effected by the adoption of an arrangement prepared by my
brother for farming out what is called "the window duty" (that is,
the direct transaction of ordinary post office business with the
public) at the chief money order office, on a plan already in very
general use elsewhere; but, though this was recommended to three
several Postmasters-General, its adoption was not obtained.[147]
Success would have led to a great extension of the recommendation; our
joint conviction being that all the duties of postmasters and their
subordinates, together with much other business of the department,
might be most economically and effectually performed under a system of
contracts. At the same time the obstacle to the change was then, as
now, far from inconsiderable; the manifest effect being to diminish,
in proportion to its extent, the amount of that patronage on which
every Administration counts as a means of influence. It must not be
forgotten, indeed, that the Liberal Administration under the Earl of
Aberdeen made a very handsome sacrifice of patronage, in relation to
the appointment of provincial postmasters; and there is ground for
believing that this change, instead of being disliked by Members of
Parliament, had from most a hearty approval; relieving them as it
did, so far, from the importunities of place-hunting constituents.
At the same time, it must be admitted that, until there be a more
general enlightenment in the public itself, combined with a more
resolute discontinuance of everything like corrupt practice, it will be
difficult for any administration, however liberal, to take those bold
steps which alone can put the public service on a sound footing.
With regard to the economic tendency of the plan of contracts, I do not
think it would be an over-sanguine estimate to fix the annual saving
of public money to be ultimately derived from its full adoption and
careful administration, in the Post Office alone, at a quarter of a
million sterling.
PACKET SERVICE.
_Post Office_ versus _Admiralty_.
As the packet service remained during the whole of this period in the
hands of the Admiralty, the action of the Post Office upon it was
necessarily indirect and limited; as is strikingly exemplified by the
fact that in the year 1857 the contract with the West Indian Packet
Company was renewed not only without my knowledge, but without that
even of the Postmaster-General. The inconvenience of such a course
appeared distinctly enough two years later when Mr. Anthony Trollope,
being sent out to the West Indies on other business, was able, although
a landsman, to propose a scheme of routes for the mail-packet at once
more convenient and more economical than the existing routes, and, in
the opinion of the hydrographer to the Admiralty, superior to them even
in a nautical point of view. This scheme nevertheless had to wait long
for adoption, because no satisfactory arrangement could be made with
the directors of the company; and their renewed contract had yet four
years to run.[148]
Moreover, the omission to introduce into the renewed contract efficient
stipulations to secure punctuality led to its natural consequence; some
of the packets worked by this company, viz., those between St. Thomas,
Colon, and Greytown, being the least punctual in all the mail-packet
service; while the most punctual were those between Devonport and the
Cape of Good Hope, belonging to the Union Steamship Company, into whose
contract such stipulations had been introduced in their strongest form,
and which in the year 1859 made every one of its voyages within the
appointed time.[149]
The unwise renewal of the West Indian Mail Packet contract naturally
led to demands for similar facilities elsewhere. The fact is,
as already intimated, that the West Indian packet service was
established not for postal, but for political purposes, and the term
Royal mail-packets was a misnomer, which, while it could not blind
our neighbours, tended much, as has already been shown, to mystify
ourselves. The chief effect at this period was that other colonies,
less favoured hitherto, began to put in claims to which, under
the circumstances, it was difficult to reply; those of Australia,
then rapidly rising in importance through the discovery of their
gold-fields, naturally taking the lead. In the consideration of this
matter the Post Office was called on to take a part, and it was at
length decided that a monthly line of steamers in each direction
should be maintained, half the very heavy expense to be defrayed by
the mother country, and the other half by the colonies conjointly; the
several contributions of these latter to be proportionate to their
respective amounts of correspondence and the distance performed in
their respective services. South Australia, indeed, refused at first to
bear any part of this expense, save on conditions which we deemed quite
inadmissible; but, as the Home Government stood firm, resistance was
eventually abandoned.
_Panama route to Australia._
Another controversy relative to the Australian service was as follows:--
About the year 1857 a demand arose in this country for sending the
Australian mails by way of Panama, a line of steamers across the
Pacific having been projected. The projectors hoped to divert a portion
of the mail service to that route, which of course it became their
interest to extol above all others. Their recommendation was based on
two alleged advantages; first, that the new route was the shortest, and
second, that its adoption in addition to the existing communication
would turn the monthly mail into a bi-monthly one. The comparative
shortness of the route seemed to be received by the public as a fact
too obvious to admit of question; and as it was in connection with
this route that the suggestion of an intermediate mail was originally
made, the two projects became so associated in the popular mind, that
the adoption of the one seemed essential to the establishment of the
other. Besides the new company, there were other parties interested
in the plan, viz., the colonies of New Zealand and New South Wales,
which, lying eastward of the other Australian settlements, would,
by the proposed arrangement, receive their mails earlier than their
neighbours; thus obtaining whatever advantage attaches to priority of
information. Whether these colonies urged upon their friends in England
agitation in favour of the new route, I cannot say. At all events, the
demand was strongly backed at home, some of the newspapers becoming
quite clamorous for the change, the Government being strongly pressed
for immediate action, and all hesitation denounced as imbecility or
red-tapism. It really seemed as if globes, maps, and gazetteers were
unknown or inaccessible, and common sense fast asleep. The outcry
increasing in volume and intensity, Government at length expressed its
intention to call for tenders. How wide-spread was the delusion was
curiously exemplified by the following incident. Happening to meet at
the Athenæum a friend, who had long held an important office in the far
East, almost on the shores of the Pacific, a man of great acquirements
and extended information, I was at once challenged with the inquiry of
the day, "Why do you not establish an Australian mail by the Panama
route?" and upon putting the counter-question, "Why should we?" was
promptly answered, "Because it is the shortest." I proposed that we
should forthwith submit this allegation to the test of measurement,
and, obtaining a piece of string, we repaired to the large globe in the
drawing-room, where a few moments settled the question. So far as I was
able to analyze the popular error, it consisted mainly in practical
ignorance of the enormous breadth of the Pacific Ocean.
Of course it was not sufficient to convince private friends; my
business being to act upon Government, which seemed to be upon the
point of incurring a very large and very useless expense. I accordingly
wrote a report on the subject, which, as the project may some day
be revived, I give in the Appendix (K). This, being backed by Lord
Colchester, was sent to the Treasury, and the plan was given up. A line
of steamers across the Pacific was, indeed, afterwards established by
a special company subsidised by the New Zealand Government, and to
this were of course consigned the mails to New Zealand, and such other
letters, &c., as were specifically directed for conveyance by that
route. The enterprise, however, was the reverse of profitable, and has
at length been abandoned.[150]
_Peninsular and Oriental Company._
It must be added that, in the year 1858, the conveyance of the
Australian mails by the usual route was transferred, with no small
public benefit, to the Peninsular and Oriental Company,[151] by which
it has ever since been well performed, the passage to Melbourne _viâ_
Marseilles being brought within fifty days, while a punctuality is
maintained, which, considering the vast distance to be traversed, is
extraordinary. This remarkable regularity, however, while proceeding in
great measure from the excellent management of the company, is, in this
case, as in several others, due in part to the gradual introduction of
that system of fines and rewards[152] to which we so long strove in
vain to induce railway companies to consent.
_Indian Mutiny._
It may well be supposed, however, that during the critical period
of the Indian mutiny, when all thoughts were directed to one great
end, and when the rapid conveyance of intelligence was of the utmost
importance, the Post Office, so far from being left unconsulted,
was called on for every effort that could be made. After careful
examination of the packet service as it stood, we discovered the
means of doubling the number of mails to Calcutta and Madras (then
two per month), with but moderate change of existing arrangements,
and at comparatively small additional expense.[153] I wrote (Sept.
12th, 1857) to the chairman of the Peninsular and Oriental Company,
informing him of our plan, and inviting him to a conference on the
subject. I also wrote (Sept. 16th) to Mr. Wilson, then Secretary to the
Treasury, to mention what we had done, and to advise the postponement
of all other negotiations for the same purpose. Little time was lost
in the matter, the company thankfully adopting our recommendation,
and the new arrangement being at once approved by the Treasury; and
thus was obtained, at the annual cost of £16,000, a duplication of
service, which but for the expedient employed would scarcely have been
procured at the rate of £100,000. Every effort was also made, even
at considerable expense, to shorten the journey between London and
Paris. By the cordial assistance of the French Post Office, and the
zealous co-operation of the directors of the English and French railway
companies, this was frequently brought within nine hours;[154] no easy
matter, perhaps, even now in 1868, but certainly very difficult in 1857.
The general result of our efforts during the Indian troubles was
briefly stated in a letter to Lord Canning, which I give in the
Appendix (L), as it may now perhaps be considered to derive some
historic value from the crisis during which it was written, and the
great statesman to whom it was addressed.
ACCELERATION OF NEWS.
In addition to the measures taken for accelerating the mails, efforts
were made to increase, as much as possible, postal facilities to the
public journals. I had previously made various arrangements for this
general purpose, but the universal demand for early intelligence at the
time of the Indian mutiny led us to seek further improvement.
The mode of proceeding, when application was made to me on the subject,
was, so far as I remember, for the managers of the morning journals to
send a special messenger to Marseilles to receive there such part of
the mail as pertained to them. On arriving at Boulogne the messenger
took this on board a steamer specially hired for the purpose, and
immediately upon reaching Dover handed it over to writers sent down
from London, who returned by a special train, making their abstracts
and extracts by the way. The proceeding on this side Dover may, for
aught I know, remain unaltered to the present time; but, with some
trouble, I devised and established such an arrangement as dispensed
with the special messenger to Marseilles, and that in such a manner
as to avoid the delay which had led to the employment of the special
steamer; so that, thenceforth, without trouble or expense to the
journalists, their despatches were received at Dover at least as early
as before, the saving to each paper being, as I was informed by the
editor of one, no less than about £2,000 per annum.
About the same time also we revived an arrangement, which had fallen
into disuse, whereby other foreign correspondence for the newspapers,
from whatever quarter, might be obtained on application at the office
before any delivery could be made to the general public. The only
condition required was that the envelopes used should be of a peculiar
tint, so that in sorting they might easily be selected.
REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE.
_Revenue._
Following, as heretofore, that mode of accounting which for the purpose
of comparison it was still necessary to retain, viz., the one in use
at the time when penny postage was established, the results, in round
numbers, may be briefly stated thus:--
The gross revenue increased from £2,700,000 in 1854 to £3,300,000 in
1859; but as the cost of management increased in the same period from
£1,500,000 to somewhat more than £1,900,000, the increase in the net
revenue was somewhat less than £200,000.[155]
_Expenditure: Causes of Increase._
As already shown, the chief increase in the cost of management was
referable to the following causes--increase in the staff, consequent
on the great multiplication of correspondence (by that time seven-fold
its original amount); increased salaries and allowances; the extension
and ramification of the postal system (already affording collection and
delivery to almost every village in the United Kingdom); the expense
of increased facilities and conveniences afforded to the public; the
costly acceleration of the more important mails; and, lastly, increase
in the charge for mail conveyance consequent upon its transfer from
mail-coaches to railway trains. It is obvious that several of these
causes of expenditure have no reference whatever to Penny Postage, but
must have arisen had the old rates been maintained.
It must be remarked here that the multiplication of sub-post offices
and receiving-houses, implied in what has just been mentioned, would
have been very much more costly had not the expense been controlled
by established rules based on sound principles. It has already been
shown that the old plan of considering every case "according to its
merits," to use the official expression, that is to say, of fixing
the salary of A without ever inquiring how much was paid to B, C, or
D, for equal service, had been to a considerable extent superseded by
fixed scales. But we now went fully into the matter and brought the
system to completion, thus providing a satisfactory guide available
not only for new offices but also for any increase of duty at those
already established; an arrangement which removed many anomalies
and also saved much valuable time. The care with which the work was
done is attested by the fact that up to the present time the scales,
so far as I am aware, have undergone little or no modification, and
have even been used for higher offices than those for which they were
originally intended. Like benefit was derived from a scale prepared,
about the same time, for regulating the amount of security demanded
from postmasters according to the extent and frequency of their
opportunities for defrauding the revenue; a scale which is, I believe,
still in force.
_Predictions Fulfilled._
It may be remembered that, in my evidence before the Parliamentary
Committee of 1838, I expressed a confident anticipation that, if penny
postage were adopted, the public would, after a while, expend as much
in postage as under the old system, and consequently that the gross
revenue would, in the end, be made good. This anticipation was more
than realized in the year 1851.[156]
As regards net revenue, I expressed an opinion to the effect that
the great increase of letters necessary to make good the gross
revenue would require an additional expenditure of about £300,000 per
annum, and, consequently, that the net revenue would be reduced by
that amount, or to about £1,300,000 a year. The actual increase of
expenditure, however, owing to causes already mentioned, far exceeded
my estimate; consequently the net revenue of the same year (1851) was
only £1,118,000,[157] and it was not till six years later that it rose
to £1,300,000.[158] And though, as must be obvious to the attentive
peruser of the foregoing pages, these results, but for almost endless
obstructions, would have occurred at a much earlier date, it was with
deep satisfaction that I at length saw my predictions fulfilled. I
may add here that in the year 1862, the net revenue so far exceeded
any expectation that I had held out as nearly to equal the largest
amount obtained under the old high rates;[159] and that ever since that
year it has greatly exceeded that amount. Of course these comparative
statements are all based on the mode of calculation which was in use
at the time when penny postage was adopted.
When, however, my predictions with regard to revenue were fulfilled
beyond all question, we thought it would be well, while retaining the
old mode of reckoning for the purpose of showing progress under the
new system as compared with the old, to introduce a more accurate
mode, for the purpose of exhibiting as nearly as possible, the actual
financial results of postal operations; and the results thus arrived
at were given, for the first time, in the Report for 1859. By this
changed mode of reckoning, which is set forth in some detail in its
proper place,[160] it appears that the amount to which the Treasury
was actually benefited by the Post Office, though rather less than
that arrived at by the old mode of reckoning, was still more than
£1,100,000. Of course, when comparison with the past is not in
question, the amount thus ascertained is the one which it is best to
take. It may be added that the substantial part of this revenue, viz.,
about £1,000,000, was derived from inland correspondence; to which, as
the reader may remember, I had always pointed as the main source of
actual income.
STAFF.
_Promotion by Merit._
During this period the system of promotion by merit was brought into
full operation. In the three metropolitan offices, when a vacancy
occurred, application for appointment was open to all; the respective
claims were carefully compared, and without the admission of any
other consideration whatever, the claim which was adjudged to be
best carried the day. How strict our practice was may be shown by the
following incident. To keep our course free from disturbing influence,
it had been laid down that any intercession from without in favour
of individual officers should act, if not injuriously, at least not
beneficially, on the advancement of those concerned; and, as the rule
had been sanctioned by the Treasury, it certainly was not from that
quarter that I should have expected its breach. It is much easier,
however, to authorize the establishment of a rule than to bend old
habits in conformity with its tenour, or even to remember its very
existence; and, not a little to my amusement, I received an interceding
letter from the very Secretary of the Treasury, my friend Mr. (now Sir
William) Hayter. The following was my reply:--
"27th December, 1855.
"MY DEAR HAYTER,--We really do mean to carry out the Treasury
regulations as to promotion honestly and with an utter disregard of
all conflicting interests, however potent.
"With this view the inclosed circular has been issued, and every
violation of the rule laid down, even though it extend no further
than the suggestion of an application such as that which you have
forwarded, is punished by reprimand and probable degradation.
"Fortunately young ----'s conduct is so good, especially as regards
the observance of the rules of the office, that I feel justified
in assuming that he is not to blame in the present instance, but I
cannot communicate the application to the Duke, neither can I allow
it to influence any advice I may have to give him.
"I am sure you will concur in these views.
"I am, &c.,
"ROWLAND HILL.
"The Right Hon. W. G. HAYTER, M.P."
By the transfer to the Post Office of appointment to all the higher
postmasterships, opportunity for promotion was greatly enlarged,
and posts formerly bestowed for political services, now became the
rewards of approved merit. This change obviously involved great
improvement in the quality of the persons thus entrusted with powers
and duties of no small importance to the public. In the provincial
offices a corresponding improvement was, in great measure, secured by
delegating the power of appointing their subordinates, under certain
restrictions, to the respective postmasters; who, being themselves
responsible for the good working of their offices, were naturally led
to such selection as would best conduce to that end. This delegation,
so far as related to clerks, was made, as already mentioned, on the
recommendation of the Civil Service Commissioners; and, the trust being
satisfactorily exercised, was subsequently extended to the appointment
of letter-carriers also.
Of the inconveniences arising from confining admission to the service
to candidates passing the Civil Service examinations, of which I have
already spoken, some evidence is given by the following extract from a
Report of Mr. Abbott, secretary to the Post Office in Scotland:--
"Considering the different duties of the account, the secretary's,
and the sorting branches, I am inclined to believe that the
examination should have more special reference to the vacancy the
candidate is to fill than to his general knowledge on certain
subjects proposed for all in the same class; more especially as
regards persons nominated to the sorting office, where manual
dexterity, quick sight, and physical activity, are more valuable
than mere educational acquirements."[161]
But, whatever might be the amount of inconvenience that in the first
appointment arose from neglect of such criteria, the system of
promotion by merit, being regulated entirely by reference to official
services, was found to work exceedingly well. From the different
departments of the metropolitan offices, and from the provincial
surveyors, the reports of its operation were almost uniformly
satisfactory. Officers were found to take more personal interest in
their duties, to do more work without augmentation of force, to make up
in some degree by additional zeal for the increased yearly holiday that
was granted them, and to discharge their duties with more cheerfulness
and spirit, knowing that good service would bring eventual reward.[162]
In short, almost without exception, good conduct was reported on all
sides.
From Sir Charles Trevelyan, one of the Commissioners whose
recommendation had led the Treasury to adopt this beneficial change of
system, I received the following letter. The italics are the writer's:--
"Treasury, 26th March, 1856.
"MY DEAR MR. HILL,--The good fruits of improvement described in
the Second Annual Report of the Postmaster-General, and especially
in the section headed 'Staff of Officers,' are a rich reward to my
brother Commissioners and myself for any assistance we may have
given in producing them; and it is especially gratifying to know
that the anticipated result of giving to this large body of public
officers a higher interest in their profession, and an increased
self-respect, and of bringing them more fully under the influence
of the wholesome stimulants to human action, has been attained.
We did what we could; but much the largest share belongs to Lord
Canning and yourself, and Mr. Tilley[163] and your brother, and
other distinguished officers of the department, who not only
cordially co-operated with the Commissioners of Inquiry in framing
the plan, but, what is far more difficult and important, _carried
it into actual effect_ with characteristic firmness and prudence.
"Sincerely yours,
"C. E. Trevelyan.
"ROWLAND HILL, Esq.,
"&c., &c., &c."
My own strong feeling of the value of the improvement I find thus
expressed a year and a half later:--
Extract from a letter to the Duke of Argyll, dated October 2nd,
1857:--
"While referring to Treasury authority in justification of the
course adopted, I think it right to add that my own opinion
is entirely in accordance with that authority; nay, that I am
convinced that some of the more difficult improvements recently
effected--that, for instance, which has already had so beneficial
an effect on the London early delivery--could not have been
accomplished under the old system of promotion."
_Health._
In the midst of proceedings thus tending not more to the public
good than to the true interests of the officers of the department,
other measures were taken by which the welfare of the latter was yet
more directly and obviously promoted. One of these was the formal
appointment of a medical gentleman to take, in addition to some
other duties, the regular charge of the health of the large number
of letter-carriers attached to the chief office. The duties of this
officer--of course with proper assistance--were subsequently extended
to the homes of invalids, and also to the staff at each of the new
district offices. Similar appointments were afterwards made at Dublin
and Edinburgh. Means were also taken to supply the men with pure
water. Serious mischief had arisen, especially in times when cholera
or diarrhœa was epidemic, from their resort to a neighbouring
pump attached to Goldsmiths' Hall; the water of which, though most
attractive in appearance and taste, was found by analysis to be very
deleterious in quality. In the erection of the new district offices
much care was taken to avoid those bad internal arrangements--alike
destructive to rapid action and injurious to health--which want of
either attention or experience had introduced at St. Martin's-le-Grand.
The general health of the department was in danger of being lowered
by the new standard of acquirement that had been established for
admission to the service. The persons best fitted for letter-carriers'
duties in a physical point of view are obviously those whose previous
occupation has inured them to labour of body and endurance of weather;
but such persons were, in effect, to a great extent excluded by the
new educational requirements, which, on the other hand, gave, for the
most part, easy admission to shopmen, clerks, domestic servants, and
others, but little accustomed to out-door exercise. To remedy this, the
Postmaster-General (the Duke of Argyll) requested the Civil Service
Commissioners to adopt a somewhat lower standard of acquirement, and
at the same time authorized the chief medical officer to subject all
candidates for the office of letter-carrier to stricter test as regards
bodily strength. The application of this higher physical standard
caused the rejection of at least one candidate out of four.[164]
By all these measures, the health of the department, which, with every
allowance for the favourable age of its officers, stood even at the
beginning of the period in very advantageous comparison with that of
London generally, was gradually raised to a very high standard.
One further improvement, however, seems very desirable, though the
means of effecting it have not yet been found. In the year 1857, Dr.
Lewis, the chief medical officer, having reported on the sanitary
condition of the dwellings of the letter-carriers, sorters, and
messengers attached to the chief office,[165] the Annual Report makes
this comment:--
"It is painful to reflect how much sickness must be caused by the
small, close, and ill-ventilated houses or rooms in which many of
these officers reside; an amount of sickness much beyond anything
that can depend on the regulations of the department itself."[166]
A hope was expressed that, as the department had stated its readiness,
in case of suitable abodes being provided, to give a guarantee against
loss from arrears of rent, provision would be made by commercial
enterprise;[167] but this hope still remains unfulfilled; and it must
be admitted that no small part of the difficulty rests with the men
themselves.
_Insurance._
Another measure for the benefit of the staff, and more especially
its humbler members, that is to say most of its number, consisted
in arrangements for facilitating life insurance, and for placing
the security of such investment beyond all doubt; an improvement of
considerable advantage to the public, as it tends to retain in its
service a number of careful provident men. At an earlier period, a
mutual insurance society had been formed in the London office, but
owing to errors in the scale of premiums and payments, this society had
fallen into difficulties, such as to show that it would, at no distant
period, be unable to meet its liabilities. Attempts had been made from
time to time to obtain assistance from the Treasury; thus, in the year
1849, at Mr. Tilley's request, I spoke urgently on the subject to Mr.
Hayter; a recent application having been refused.
Amidst the labour and anxiety that weighed upon me during the period
of the Sunday Observance agitation, I had no spare attention for the
furtherance of this useful measure, nor was it until the beginning of
the year 1851 that I was able to take the next step. Then, however, I
spoke to Sir George Cornewall Lewis on the subject. I proposed that
Government should give up to the fund the proceeds of the unclaimed
money orders, which I estimated at about, £1,100 a year, and I
explained to him a plan which I had in view for extending the utility
of the association, by including not only life insurance, but also
guarantees for the conduct of the insured. He agreed in the opinion
that the association should be helped in its present difficulties,
but, objecting to anything in the shape of charity, was not inclined
to go further; and in this position matters remained for the time. On
my brother's appointment, however, later in the same year, I directed
his attention to the matter, and, in a short time, he produced a plan
which, satisfying the Treasury, procured for the society its required
assistance.
The first step in accordance with this sanction was to induce an office
of undoubted stability to take upon itself the society's liabilities;
and to this the Atlas Assurance Company assented upon receiving the sum
of £2,000, which was drawn from the void order fund. It was arranged
that thenceforth the whole of this fund, amounting at the time to about
£1,400 a year, together with the interest on its previous accumulation,
which constituted a principal of about £12,000, and lastly, all the
money found in such "dead letters" as could not be returned to the
writers, should be applied towards assisting officers in payment of
insurance fees.[168] In this manner the association in question, "The
Post Office Widows' and Orphans' Fund Society," was placed on a firm
footing.
As, however, the demands thus made on these various funds were not
sufficient, in the scale laid down, to absorb the whole, a portion of
the void order fund was employed in rescuing from difficulties another
society in the London Office, called the "Letter-Carriers' Burial
Fund;" the rights and claims of which became perplexed and uncertain
on the amalgamation of the two sets of letter-carriers; with only one
of which the society had been connected. These measures had the effect
of exchanging past contributions into payments for life insurance;
and thus gave to every contributor the full benefit of his former
sacrifices. The fund still being by no means exhausted, authority was
obtained to apply the remainder towards aiding members of the service
throughout the United Kingdom to insure their lives, by using it in
part payment of the premiums; and, even from the best established
insurance offices, a considerable reduction of fees was obtained, in
consideration of the large amount of business thus thrown into their
hands.
By the end of 1857 the total amount insured for was £280,000.[169] As
might be expected, the greatest amount of providence was shown in
Scotland, England at first lagging much behind, while poor Ireland
was fairly distanced. Subsequently, however, England came up with
Scotland, and even Ireland amended her relative position. Still, the
number of insurers, when compared with that of the whole force, was at
best but small: a defect attributed to the premiums having to be paid
in quarterly amounts; an arrangement unsuited to men in the receipt of
weekly or even monthly wages. It was therefore arranged that insurers
should have the option of making their payments by means of a small
deduction from their salaries. This improvement was found to produce
the desired effect; the number of insurers increasing by about eighty
per cent. within three months after the alteration.[170]
Another beneficial change arose thus. Of course, in these departments
of the service where the officers have to be intrusted with the
public money, guarantees are required of those who are appointed; a
requirement necessarily producing either trouble or expense. Private
guarantees were commonly procured, though some nominees got the
security of the British Guarantee Association, the fees for obtaining
which, however, although moderate, implied a considerable deduction
from the smaller salaries. Mr. Banning, the postmaster of Liverpool,
conceived the plan of a mutual guarantee amongst the officers
themselves. This proving very successful at Liverpool, was subsequently
introduced into the Chief Office, and extended to the offices of some
other of the principal towns.[171]
_Libraries._
The following is an extract from the Postmaster-General's Report for
1858:--
"It is with much pleasure that I have witnessed the establishment,
among the clerks in the Chief Office in London, of an institution
called the Post Office Library and Literary Association. The
large number of clerks who have enrolled their names shows how
general among them are a taste for reading and a desire for mental
cultivation and pleasures of a superior kind. Besides much support
within the department, the institution has received many liberal
donations, both of money and books, from without--among others,
a munificent gift of £50 from His Royal Highness the Prince
Consort."[172]
In the following year similar institutions on a smaller scale were
established at nearly all the London district offices, and also at
Glasgow.[173] In the London office, the institution was aided by the
delivery of lectures, a work in which several of the higher officials
took part. On the occasion of the annular eclipse of 1858 I took my
turn by giving a lecture on the subject of that phenomenon, and had the
pleasure of addressing a very full and very attentive audience.
_Summary._
I cannot better close this account of the Post Office staff, numbering
at that time more than twenty-four thousand persons in all, of which
more than three thousand served in the London district, than by
quoting the following passage from the Sixth Annual Report, that
for 1859, issued as usual in the following year, and signed by the
Postmaster-General of the day, Lord Elgin:--
"It is with much satisfaction that I contemplate the many
improvements made within the last few years in relation to the
staff of officers. The arrangement under which every person
who enters the service is placed on probation before being
fully admitted; the gradual increase of salary within the
respective classes according to each officer's good conduct and
increasing usefulness; the promotion from class to class, and
from appointment to appointment, according to merit and superior
qualification practically demonstrated, and irrespective of all
other consideration; the strengthening of responsibility and of
energetic management by giving to the postmasters the choice of
their own clerks and letter-carriers; the improvement that has been
made, where necessary, in the sanitary state of the post offices
generally, and the appointment at the Metropolitan offices of
medical men to attend gratuitously on all employed there (except
the higher paid officers), and thus to stop disease at an early
stage; the extension to all the servants of the Post Office of a
pension in old age; and the arrangement by which every man can
obtain aid in insuring his life, and thus provide for his family at
his death,--are excellent, and have, I believe, produced the best
effects.
"I have the less hesitation in giving my testimony to these
improvements, because as I have been but a short while in office,
most of them were effected during the time of my predecessors."[174]
APPENDIX TO CHAPTER XXIV.
FIRST ANNUAL REPORT, 1854.
The first of the series of Annual Reports was prefaced with an
historical sketch of the Post Office from its origin, written by my
nephew, Mr. Alfred Hill. To this interesting narrative I beg to refer
such of my readers as may desire to become acquainted with the early
history of the department.[175] Like all similar documents, it will be
found in any collection of Parliamentary papers. Here, however, I shall
only quote one or two statements not previously given, and some few
other passages that may interest or amuse.
_Soldiers' Letters._
It had formerly been maintained, even by so high an authority as the
Duke of Wellington, that British soldiers were but little disposed
to make use of their long-existing privilege of penny postage. That
opinion found little confirmation at this time, since during the first
eight months, after arrangements had been made for postal communication
during the Crimean War, more than three hundred and fifty thousand
letters each way passed between England and the seat of war; neither
did the higher rate attaching to the quicker route through France
prevent its engrossing six-sevenths of the whole correspondence.
_Colonial and Foreign Posts._
Under this head the Report deals with one of a numerous class of
misapprehensions. I think I have already referred[176] to the
well-known propensity of Englishmen to make comparisons unfavourable
to their own country. The simplified and reduced postage on letters
to and from the Colonies, viz., sixpence for the whole distance, had,
as respects the Australian Colonies, been unfavourably contrasted
with the charge of twopence-halfpenny made for conveying a letter to
Australia from the United States, whereas the American charges did not
include the colonial postage, by which, even when lowest, the total was
raised above our rate. Again, the American mails were despatched only
by chance vessels, while the English mails were conveyed by regular
packets, bound under heavy penalties to start at fixed times and to
perform the voyage within a stipulated period, and therefore engaged at
higher rates, the British Post Office paying threepence where the Post
Office of the United States paid but one penny.
It is mentioned that the book-post was now in operation with almost
every important colony, and with most of the minor ones; and that
amongst other changes in foreign postage there was an important
reduction in that to France, which, from a rate varying between
eightpence and tenpence,--itself a very great reduction on earlier
rates,--had been reduced to a uniform one of fourpence. By this
improvement the postage between any place in the United Kingdom and
any place in France, including even Algeria, was made as low as that
charged, twenty years before, between the nearest two towns in England,
and less than the eighth part of the postage charged at that earlier
period on letters between say Manchester and Lyons.
_Street Nomenclature and House Numbering._
In a note to certain recommendations to the general public, remark was
made on the confusion and delay in the delivery of letters arising
from the application of the identical names to different streets, the
extent of this practice being shown by the fact that in London alone
there were found to be fifty King Streets, as many Queen Streets, and
sixty John Streets and William Streets. In the Appendix mention is also
made of perplexities arising from irregularity in numbering, carried in
some instances to such an extent as to have the same number attached to
seven different houses in the same street, and, in particular places,
exhibiting such further anomalies as would seem altogether incredible.
Mr. T. B. Cooke, Inspector of Letter Carriers, who supplied the
information, gives the following ludicrous instance:--
"On arriving at a house in the middle of a street, I observed
a brass number, 95, on the door, the houses on each side being
numbered respectively 14 and 16. A woman came to the door, when I
requested to be informed why 95 should appear between 14 and 16;
she said it was the number of a house she formerly lived at in
another street, and it (meaning the brass plate) being a very good
one, she thought it would do for her present residence as well as
any other."
_Unfounded Complaints._
Reference was made to serious charges brought against the Post Office
without sufficient examination of antecedent facts; thus it was shown
to a newspaper publisher, who complained of repeated losses, that it
was his own clerk who was the thief. In another case, a more general
complaint on the same subject led to the discovery, near the chief
office, of a thriving mart, illicitly supplied by private messengers
employed to convey newspapers to the post.
_Early History of the Post Office._
In an interesting Report from Mr. Scudamore, there is a remarkable
passage which shows that general views in accordance with those on
which my reforms were founded were incidentally expressed, about a
century and a half before, by the Postmasters-General of the day, Sir
R. Cotton and Sir F. Frankland. It is as follows:--
"We have, indeed, found by experience, that where we have made
the correspondence more easie and cheape, the number of letters
has been thereby much increased, and therefore do believe such a
settlement may be attended with a like effect in those parts [viz.,
a particular district]."
I cite also from Mr. Scudamore's Report the following curious passage:--
"The packets in those times, when war raged for so many years,
and when every sea was covered with French privateers, gave our
Postmasters-General very great and constant anxiety. Their orders
to the captains of such vessels are urgent, that they shall run
while they can, fight when they can no longer run, and throw the
mails overboard when fighting will no longer avail.... [There is] a
piteous petition from James Vickers, captain of the Grace Dogger,
who, as he lay in Dublin Bay waiting until the tide would take him
over the bar, was seized by a French privateer, the captain of
which stripped the Grace Dogger of her rigging, sails, spars, and
yards, and of all the furniture 'wherewith she had been provided
for the due accommodation of passengers, leaving not so much as a
spoone or a nail-hooke to hang anything on,' and finally ransomed
her to the aforesaid James Vickers for fifty guineas, which sum,
with the cost of the other losses, our Postmaster-General had to
pay."
_Improvement in Accounts._
A passage from the Report of the Chief Examiner shows the great
improvements which had taken place in the system of accounts, and the
strange laxity which had existed before the late reforms.
By this it appeared that under the old system the accounts of the
provincial postmasters were usually from three to six months in
arrear; that no vouchers were demanded for the proper disbursement
of the money with which the postmasters were credited; that through
this dilatoriness they were themselves frequently ignorant of the real
state of their affairs, and under temptation to use the public money
for their own purposes;[177] while, at the same time, the revenue was
injured by the delay in remitting the balances. This was contrasted
with the new system, under which "each postmaster renders his account
week by week, with all its proper vouchers for every receipt and every
payment, and showing the revenue left in his hands at the close of each
week to be the smallest possible sum."[178]
At the same time, notwithstanding the "many and great struggles made to
bring the accounts of the Post Office into a satisfactory state," the
force in the offices of the Receiver and Accountant-General had been
reduced from ninety-three to fifty-one, and that not only without any
demand for extra time, but with a fair allowance of holiday to those
engaged.
PROGRESS OF IMPROVEMENT FROM 1855 TO 1859.
NUMBER OF POST OFFICES, ETC.
The number of receptacles for letters in the United Kingdom, which
before the establishment of penny postage was about 4,500, and which
had subsequently been raised to about 10,000, was increased during
the period now under consideration to more than 13,000,[179] thus
nearly tripling the original number.[180] Of these about 2,000 were
pillar-boxes. It is to be observed that, while these cannot fulfil all
the purposes of post offices, they have the advantage over them in
one important respect. They can be cleared at all hours of the night,
when receiving-houses and sub-post offices are closed; a convenience
especially valuable in London, in reference to the morning mails. Their
superiority in respect of economy is obvious; and this valuable quality
so facilitates their multiplication that in London, by the close of the
period, there was scarcely a house but had a posting-place within a
furlong.[181]
Some inconvenience arose at first, and probably is still experienced in
a less degree, from the greater opportunity for mischief afforded by
these isolated boxes, though there is some set-off in the circumstance
that the most wanton or malicious act directed against them can extend
no further than to the boxes and their contents. An abominable attempt,
made in the year 1859, to set fire during the night to the contents of
a box at a post office--that of Devonport--besides partially effecting
this detestable purpose, greatly imperilled the whole building, and
even placed in jeopardy the lives of the postmaster and his family.[182]
NUMBER OF LETTERS.
The increase in the number of chargeable letters delivered in the
United Kingdom was from 443 millions in 1854[183] to 545 millions in
1859;[184] _i.e._, from somewhat less than six-fold of the number
previously to the establishment of penny postage to somewhat more
than seven-fold; so that the mere increment during these five years
far exceeds the total amount under the old rates; the one being 102
millions and the other only 76 millions.[185]
RETURNED LETTERS.
In the Report for 1855 there is striking information as to reduction
in the proportion of returned, mis-sent, and redirected letters which
followed the establishment of penny postage. In the year 1838 the
postage so lost amounted to 4-1/4 per cent. on the gross postal revenue
of Great Britain. In three years it had fallen to 2-1/4 per cent., in
eleven years more to 1 per cent., and in three years more to 3/4 per
cent.;[186] and the proportion seems to have fallen afterwards still
lower.[187]
REGISTRATION.
The proportion of registered letters, too, which under the original
high charge had been comparatively small, was now steadily advancing;
the Fourth Annual Report showing that in the year 1857 it was one out
of 400.[188] In the year 1868 it was as high as one out of 333. The
general adoption of registration, however, was, and probably still is,
somewhat retarded by the fear that, as the very fact of registration
indicates value, which might otherwise remain unobserved, its use
tends rather to create danger than to diminish it. This objection is
sufficiently disposed of by a statement in the Sixth Annual Report,
by which it appears that of the 1,400,000 letters registered within
the year, only 785, or one in about 1,750, were reported as not having
reached their destination. Further, that all these except 15 were
afterwards recovered; and that of eight, out of this small exceptional
number, the loss had occurred after they had left the custody of the
British office.[189] In contrast with this it may be mentioned that in
the same year (1859) no less than £260 found in unregistered letters
remained in the hands of the Post Office simply from the want of means
to find out either the addressee or the sender.[190] Such negligence
in remitting money is the more blameable because, as remarked in the
Postmaster-General's Third Report, it offers temptations to theft which
often prove irresistible, "bringing many a man in the service of the
Post Office to disgrace and ruin, who, but for the thoughtlessness[191]
or parsimony of others, might have remained an honest and useful member
of society."[192] As if this were not quite enough, a cry was raised
that the dishonesty really due to this blameable conduct on the part of
individuals was attributable to parsimony in the department. It was
alleged, though without any justification, as will hereafter be shown,
that men were driven to depredation through scantiness of pay.
_Soldiers' Remittances._
During the time of the Russian War the money order system was carried
into active operation amongst our forces serving in the East, who,
in the course of the year 1856, sent home by this means more than
£100,000.[193]
_Increased Facilities of Remittance._
It was in this period that the maximum amount for a single money
order was raised from £5 to £10,[194] an improvement long urged; that
opportunity was given for converting, at an almost nominal charge, a
money order into what was in effect a bill payable ten days after date;
and that, to facilitate small remittances, postage stamps were made
exchangeable for money at a low commission, on application at a post
office.[195]
_Extension of Money Order System to Colonies._
In the year 1857, after overcoming many difficulties, a plan was
devised for establishing a money order system between the mother
country and the colonies. In fear of opposition on the ground of
interference with private enterprise, the plan was arranged with
a view to remove objections previously regarded as insuperable on
the part of bankers, and succeeded in obtaining the acquiescence of
those most likely to be affected by the change. The consent first
of the Postmaster-General (Lord Colchester), and afterwards of the
Treasury, was obtained; but when the arrangement was about to come into
operation the Treasury sanction was suspended, on that very allegation
of interference which it was hoped had been provided against. In
1859, however, taking advantage of an application on the subject from
the Canadian Post Office, these views were again urged. With Lord
Colchester's approval, application was again made to the Treasury,
which, after some hesitation, agreed to try the experiment. It is only
necessary to add that the trial proved so successful that money order
communication was gradually extended to all the other colonies, and to
some foreign countries.
_Intra-colonial Rates of Postage._
By returns obtained from the colonies during the year 1856, it
appeared that reduction of rate was universal, or very nearly so, and
uniformity of charge almost as general. The lowest rate reported was
that in India, where the minimum charge was, and still is, for all
distances, as low as three farthings; and though the weight thereby
covered is certainly very small--being only about one-tenth of an
ounce--yet on the one hand such restriction appears to produce little
or no inconvenience to natives, and on the other hand it is more than
counterbalanced by the vast extent of country over which a letter
may be conveyed. The new postal system, which involved in effect the
complete adoption of my plan, was established on the recommendation
of a Commission of Inquiry. I have lately learnt (1870) with great
satisfaction, that, whereas before the change, the Indian Post Office
was a source of expense, it is now self-supporting.
_Transference of Management of Colonial Post Offices._
As it had been found difficult, or rather impracticable, for the
Postmaster-General effectually to superintend postal affairs in distant
colonies, measures were taken in the year 1859--though they could not
be completed until the next year--for transferring to the different
Colonial Governments in the West Indies (unfortunately, in the case
of Jamaica, at least, much against their will) the management of
their respective offices. Of course such transfer, following as it
did a similar change with regard to all our North American colonies,
materially reduced the amount of our revenue, the counterbalancing
advantage being the benefits usually arising from autonomy.
FOREIGN POSTS.
_France._
The reduction of postage between England and France, already mentioned,
which extended to the transit rates charged in each country on the
letters of the other, having been followed by a large increase of
correspondence, further changes were considered desirable,[196] and in
the year 1856 my brother was sent to Paris to negotiate with the French
Office. The result of the proceedings was the completion of a new
postal convention involving large mutual reduction in transit rates
and sea postage, an important clause being inserted which empowered the
two Offices, by mutual agreement, to make future alterations in most
of the provisions of the convention without the delay and formality
of ordinary diplomatic action. This important provision, being one
on which great stress was justly laid, was carefully included, when
practicable, in subsequent treaties with whatever power.
_Other European Countries._
New postal conventions, having for their object a reduction and
simplification of charges, were in the same year (1856) in progress
with Belgium, the German Postal Union, and Spain. Even with the first
of these powers negotiation advanced but slowly; with the other two
progress was slower still; while all attempts with Portugal, even
to obtain reduction in the excessive rate then charged to Madeira,
viz., one shilling and tenpence the quarter ounce, with an additional
charge on delivery, a matter of no small importance to many English
families, were for the time fruitless.[197] Indeed, so sluggish were
the movements of this power, that no new convention had been effected
with it, and consequently no postal improvement made (save in marine
transit), for fifty years. Two years later, however, through the
efforts of the British ministers at Madrid and Lisbon, aided by Mr.
Edward Rea, who had been despatched by the Postmaster-General for the
express purpose, better postal treaties with Spain and Portugal were at
length concluded.[198]
_United States._
Arrangements were also made for the registration of letters between
this country and the United States;[199] but on other points of far
more importance negotiations with that country made no effective
progress during the period now under review. Our proposals made in
1856, which involved a reduction in the letter postage from a shilling
the half ounce to sixpence, the establishment of a book-post, and
the adoption of low transit rates on terms more favourable to the
United States than were required by simple equity, were met by a
counter-proposal, which, not being regarded as satisfactory, was
replied to with a full statement of objections; an offer being made
at the same time to submit the whole matter, if needful, to the
arbitration of a third party. Instead, however, of making any rejoinder
to this, the American Postmaster-General, in his next Annual Report,
while entirely passing over the offer of arbitration, represented
England as acting so unsatisfactorily, "that for the present no
disposition is felt to pursue the matter further."[200] Any one wishing
to satisfy himself as to the respective merits of the parties in this
proceeding will find the necessary documents in the Appendix to the
Sixth Report of the British Postmaster-General, p. 57.
Before the English rejoinder could be made, however, the
misrepresentations so boldly put forth raised an outcry in America,
which was partly echoed here. Error in this country, so far as it went,
was likely to disappear, or at least to become harmless, as soon as the
next Annual Report came out; but in America, correction, if left to
ordinary means, would doubtless have been found very slow. Fortunately,
as might be expected in so energetic a nation, the need called forth
the man; and so much as one man could do for diffusing sound knowledge
on the whole subject was done by the late Mr. Pliny Miles; who, in his
zeal for postal reform--a zeal, I must remark, rarely leading him into
any inaccuracy--published more on the general subject in America than
ever I did in England, travelled widely also in the Union, to urge his
views by word of mouth, and several times crossed the Atlantic for the
furtherance of his object. I must forestall events so far as to add
that, long as he had to labour, and often as he endured disappointment,
he happily lived to see his efforts rewarded with a large measure of
success.[201] I must also so far anticipate here as to express the
pleasure with which I have heard during late years of a total change
in the spirit of the American Post Office, the new authorities of
which have, I am informed, shown the utmost readiness to concur
frankly in any measure of improvement, and an honourable desire to form
arrangements equitable to both parties.
_Treaties made easily Terminable._
As much inconvenience had arisen from past treaties having been made
generally for long periods, so that, in case of disagreement as to
interpretation on any point, or of serious modification being found
needful, nothing could be done save by the slow and cumbrous process
of diplomacy through the Foreign Office, a clause was inserted in all
these new conventions, in accordance with a general rule previously
laid down, whereby they were made terminable by either party at
moderate notice.