CONCLUSION
The important points in the history of the British Post Office are
necessarily somewhat obscured by the great mass of less important
characteristics which accompanied its development. Organized at the
beginning of the sixteenth century as a means for the conveyance of
state letters, its messengers, by tacit consent, were allowed to carry
the letters of private individuals. The advantage so afforded for the
control of seditious correspondence led to the monopolistic
proclamations of the closing years of the sixteenth and the opening
years of the seventeenth century. Before 1635 the state obtained no
direct revenue for the conveyance of private letters. The messengers or
postmen who were supposed to be paid by the state, derived the larger
part of their income from the postage on these letters and from letting
horses to travellers.
The object in retaining for the Royal Posts the sole right to carry the
letters of private individuals assumed a new form in the seventeenth
century. Witherings showed that by diverting the postage on private
letters from the postmen to the state the Post Office might be made
self-supporting. Legal rates were imposed, letters were carried at a
much higher speed, and the system of packet posts was extended over the
great roads of England. The supervision of private correspondence became
a matter of only secondary importance. The struggle between the King and
Parliament resulted in securing popular control over the posts of the
kingdom. At the same time, during the political unrest, competing
systems of posts were repressed with difficulty. The inability of
government officials to meet the increasing needs of a growing
metropolis led to the establishment of a Penny Post in London by
Dockwra, a private individual.
The first part of the eighteenth century saw the extension of a postal
system in the colonies and an attempt on the part of the Post Office to
obtain the postage on letters passing over the cross-roads of England.
The increase in England's colonial possessions and her growing trade
with foreign countries produced a corresponding growth in the packet
service. The last part of the century saw the establishment of Palmer's
mail coaches in order to meet competition from the post coaches. The
great increase in revenue which accompanied the industrial revolution
led to corruption among the postal officials, resulting in the reform of
1793. The period of rapid growth had passed, and the close of the
eighteenth century was a period of consolidation for the new offices
which had been created, and better coöperation in the work which they
performed.
The first forty years of the last century saw the Post Office at its
best as an instrument of taxation. But this very fact drew attention to
the lack of other and more important objects. Rates had been forced so
high that people resorted to legal and illegal means to evade paying
them. The feeling was growing that a tax upon correspondence was not
only a poor method of raising money but that its ulterior effect in
restricting letter writing was producing undesirable results upon the
people of England industrially and socially. A great mistake had been
made by the Post Office in acquiring steam packets. They suffered
severely from private competing lines and were always a loss to the
Government. A partial remedy was attained by the transfer of all the
packets to the Admiralty. Eventually the popular cause, championed by
Hill and Wallace, forced itself upon the attention of the Government. A
Parliamentary committee, after listening to the evidence of
representative witnesses, declared itself in favour of low and uniform
rates of postage for the United Kingdom, the result being the adoption
of inland Penny Postage in 1840.
Among the numerous changes which have characterized the development of
the Post Office since 1840 are the successive reductions in rates; the
transfer of the packet boats from the Admiralty, followed by the
resolution of the Government to revert to the old principle of depending
upon private enterprise for the sea carriage of the mails; the extension
in the use of the railways as a medium of conveyance; the establishment
of a parcel post; and the decision of the government to provide banking
and assurance facilities for the thrifty person of small means. But the
greatest departure in the field of the department's activities has been
the acquisition of the telegraphic system of the Kingdom. Misled by
their advisers as to the capital cost and induced by popular pressure to
abandon strictly business methods of administration and extension, the
telegraphic experiments of the department have not been a financial
success. Not only has this been the case, but, in their efforts to
protect the revenue, successive Governments have hindered the
development of telephonic communication. At this late date we can safely
assume that in 1870 the department should either have granted the
telephone companies far greater powers or should themselves have assumed
the burden of providing an adequate system of telephonic communication.
In 1911, the property and franchises of the telephone companies will
pass to the control of the Government, thus vastly increasing the work
of the department if, as seems probable, the Government should assume
direct management, and greatly enlarging the number of dissatisfied
members of that part of the civil service under the control of the Post
Office.
APPENDIX
EXPENDITURE AND REVENUE TABLES
TABLE I
GROSS PRODUCT, EXPENDITURE, AND NET PRODUCT OF THE POST OFFICE OF THE
UNITED KINGDOM FROM MARCH 25, 1723 TO APRIL 5, 1797
_Year ending_ _Gross Product_ _Expenses_ _Net Product_
£ £ £
March 25, 1724 178,071 81,732 96,339
25 175,274 75,407 99,867
26 178,065 83,253 94,812
27 182,184 81,295 100,889
28 183,915 79,250 104,665
29 179,189 86,882 92,307
30 178,817 84,027 94,790
31 171,412 79,243 92,169
32 176,714 84,678 92,036
33 171,283 79,137 92,146
34 176,334 84,633 91,701
35 182,171 83,541 98,630
36 188,210 90,589 97,621
37 182,490 85,402 97,088
38 186,578 93,914 92,664
39 183,747 85,497 97,250
40 194,197 103,532 90,085
42 197,721 110,137 87,584
43 190,626 102,185 88,441
44 194,461 109,347 85,114
45 194,607 108,852 85,755
46 201,460 120,570 80,890
47 209,028 123,086 85,942
48 217,453 138,701 78,752
49 212,801 124,478 88,323
50 207,490 110,093 97,397
51 203,748 104,633 99,115
52 207,092 109,371 97,721
April 5, 53 206,666 108,518 98,148
54 214,300 116,935 97,365
55 210,663 108,648 102,015
56 238,445 144,203 94,242
57 242,478 162,629 79,849
58 222,075 148,346 73,729
59 229,879 143,784 86,095
60 230,146 146,643 83,493
61 240,497 153,808 86,689
62 233,722 155,927 77,795
63 238,999 141,166 97,833
64 225,326 109,134 116,182
65 262,496 104,925 157,571
66 265,427 103,484 161,943
67 275,230 113,286 161,944
68 278,253 112,470 165,783
69 284,914 120,154 164,760
70 285,050 128,988 156,062
71 292,782 137,239 155,543
72 309,997 144,394 165,503
73 310,126 142,940 167,176
74 313,032 148,965 164,077
75 321,943 148,755 173,188
76 318,418 150,936 167,482
77 329,921 171,346 158,575
78 347,128 209,124 137,994
79 372,817 233,569 139,248
80 387,092 250,683 136,409
81 417,634 263,477 154,157
82 393,235 275,910 117,325
83 398,624 238,999 159,625
84 420,101 223,588 196,513
85 463,753 202,344 261,409
86 471,176 185,201 285,975
87 474,347 195,748 278,599
88 509,131 212,151 296,980
89 514,538 195,928 318,610
90 533,198 202,019 331,179
91 575,079 219,080 355,999
92 585,432 218,473 366,959
93 627,592 236,084 391,508
94 691,268 260,606 430,662
95 705,319 295,822 409,497
96 657,541 191,084 466,457
97 691,616 178,266 513,350[842]
[842] _Parl. Papers_, 1812-13, _Reports from Committees_, ii, pp.
60-61.
TABLE II
AVERAGE YEARLY GROSS PRODUCT, EXPENDITURE AND NET PRODUCT OF THE POST
OFFICE OF THE UNITED KINGDOM FROM 1725 TO 1794
_Gross Product_ _Expenses_ _Net Product_
£ £ £
1725-29 179,725 81,217 98,508
1730-34 174,912 82,344 92,568
1735-39 184,639 87,989 96,650
1740-44 193,682 105,304 88,378
1745-49 207,069 123,137 83,932
1750-54 207,859 109,910 97,949
1755-59 228,708 147,522 81,186
1760-64 233,738 141,340 92,398
1765-69 273,264 110,864 162,400
1770-74 302,197 140,525 161,672
1775-79 338,045 182,766 155,279
1780-84 403,337 251,331 152,006
1785-89 486,587 198,273 288,314
1790-94 602,514 227,033 375,481
TABLE III
GROSS PRODUCT, EXPENDITURE, AND NET PRODUCT OF THE POST OFFICE OF THE
UNITED KINGDOM, INCLUDING THE TWOPENNY POST, FROM JANUARY 5, 1804 TO
JANUARY 5, 1838
_Year_ _Gross_ _Net_ _Loss on_
_ending_ _Product_ _Expenses_ _Product_ _Returned_
£ £ £ _Letters_[843]
Jan. 5, 1804 1,429,429 416,767 956,21 56,450
5 1,466,271 420,395 983,363 62,513
6 1,648,523 457,686 1,119,429 71,408
7 1,718,187 456,968 1,185,659 75,560
8 1,711,980 468,531 1,167,425 76,024
9 1,739,855 489,469 1,173,062 77,324
10 1,855,746 519,359 1,260,822 75,565
11 1,987,404 546,460 1,365,251 75,693
12 1,960,510 540,397 1,344,109 76,004
13 2,078,879 576,885 1,422,001 79,993
14 2,209,213 616,564 1,506,064 86,585
15 2,372,429 675,548 1,598,295 98,586
16 2,418,741 704,639 1,619,196 94,906
17 2,280,209 649,129 1,537,505 93,575
18 2,186,621 665,354 1,433,871 87,396
19 2,240,553 683,680 1,467,533 89,340
20 2,191,562 586,193 1,522,640 82,729
21 2,172,875 611,187 1,465,605 96,083
22 2,122,965 645,241 1,393,465 84,259
23 2,128,926 620,977 1,428,352 79,597
24 2,154,294 596,336 1,475,167 82,791
25 2,255,238 628,829 1,540,022 86,387
26 2,367,567 636,353 1,632,267 98,947
27 2,392,271 706,640 1,589,672 95,869
28 2,278,411 706,192 1,484,164 88,095
29 2,287,961 663,775 1,544,224 79,962
30 2,265,481 675,319 1,509,347 80,815
31 2,301,431 694,254 1,517,951 89,226
32 2,321,310 658,325 1,569,038 93,947
33 2,277,274 643,464 1,531,828 101,982
34 2,294,910 636,756 1,553,425 104,729
35 2,319,979 696,387 1,513,052 110,540
36 2,353,340 678,836 1,564,458 110,046
37 2,461,806 704,768 1,645,835 111,203
38 2,462,269 698,632 1,641,106 122,531
[843] _Reports from Com._, 1837-38, xx, pt. r. p. 509. Before 1797, the
loss on returned letters seems to have been included in the Charges of
Management.
TABLE IV
AVERAGE YEARLY GROSS PRODUCT, EXPENDITURE, AND NET PRODUCT, ETC., OF THE
POST OFFICE OF THE UNITED KINGDOM FROM 1805 TO 1838
_Gross Product_ _Expenses_ _Net Product_ _Loss on_ _Actual_
_Returned_ _Gross_
_Letters_ _Product_
£ £ £ £ £
1805-09 1,656,963 458,610 1,125,787 72,566 1,584,397
1810-14 2,018,350 559,933 1,379,649 78,768 1,939,582
1815-19 2,299,710 675,670 1,531,280 92,760 2,206,950
1820-24 2,154,124 611,987 1,457,045 85,092 2,069,032
1825-29 2,316,289 668,358 1,558,079 89,852 2,226,437
1830-34 2,292,081 661,623 1,536,318 94,140 2,197,941
1835-38 2,399,348 694,656 1,591,112 113,580 2,285,768
SCOTLAND
_Gross Product_ _Expenses_ _Net Product_
£ £ £
1800-04 117,108 18,952 98,156
1805-09 148,816 23,981 124,835
1810-14 182,259 29,153 153,106
1815-19 191,812 40,736 151,076
1820-24 185,235 46,351 138,884
1825-29 205,599 49,485 156,114
1830-34 204,481 54,729 149,752
1835-37 216,191 59,553 156,638
IRELAND
£ £ £
1800-04 92,745 64,368 28,377
1805-09 150,845 90,922 59,923
1810-14 192,969 115,019 77,950
1815-19 210,159 124,149 86,010
1820-24 190,431 119,200 71,231
1825-29 214,165 115,875 98,290
1830-34 244,098 108,898 135,200
1835-37 247,068 114,093 132,975
TABLE V
GROSS PRODUCT, EXPENDITURE, AND NET PRODUCT OF THE POST OFFICE FOR
SCOTLAND AND IRELAND FROM 1800 TO 1837
_Scotland_
_Year ending_ _Gross_ _Expenses_ _Net_
_Jan. 5_ _Product_ _Product_
£ £ £
1800 100,651 16,896 83,755
01 113,126 18,020 95,105
02 121,700 18,692 103,007
03 124,809 20,581 104,228
04 125,257 20,562 104,694
05 137,479 21,175 116,303
06 146,148 22,465 123,682
07 151,696 23,358 128,338
08 152,453 27,496 124,956
09 156,305 25,412 130,892
10 168,098 26,543 141,555
11 169,082 24,853 144,229
12 178,896 26,260 152,636
13 191,857 26,248 165,609
14 203,366 [844]41,814 161,551
15 201,992 40,950 161,042
16 193,727 40,570 153,157
17 185,417 41,181 144,236
18 189,690 39,756 149,934
19 188,236 41,225 147,011
20 184,512 43,106 141,405
21 179,403 47,078 132,324
22 184,014 47,302 136,711
23 184,164 47,515 136,649
24 194,085 46,755 147,330
25 205,988 49,066 156,921
26 214,271 50,113 164,158
27 203,137 49,378 153,759
28 203,305 51,393 151,911
29 201,298 47,476 153,822
30 202,754 50,999 151,754
31 204,593 55,434 149,159
32 206,594 54,601 151,992
33 203,324 54,875 148,448
34 205,144 57,738 147,406
35 209,069 59,306 149,762
36 218,748 59,408 159,339
37 220,758 59,945 160,813
_Ireland_
_Year ending_ _Gross_ _Expenses_ _Net_
_Jan. 5_ _Product_ _Product_
£ £ £
1800 84,040 59,216 24,824
01 [845]66,030 48,656 17,376
02 102,293 70,489 31,806
03 102,518 66,008 36,510
04 108,844 77,471 31,373
05 118,429 79,448 38,981
06 146,682 93,651 53,031
07 149,857 90,940 58,917
08 158,749 91,200 67,549
09 180,510 99,371 81,139
10 180,670 110,064 70,606
11 195,531 117,639 77,892
12 189,963 118,344 71,619
13 195,458 112,938 82,520
14 203,226 116,113 87,113
15 212,562 121,371 91,191
16 225,000 132,331 92,669
17 212,269 126,476 85,793
18 203,456 123,186 80,270
19 197,510 117,384 80,126
20 197,677 123,060 74,617
21 192,511 127,494 65,017
22 187,120 118,932 68,188
23 186,024 112,778 73,246
24 188,826 113,739 75,087
25 199,602 118,698 80,904
26 207,177 113,539 93,638
27 207,757 117,564 90,193
28 216,232 116,836 99,396
29 239,559 112,740 126,819
30 241,063 111,955 129,108
31 247,711 117,622 130,089
32 256,976 102,654 154,322
33 242,671 107,127 135,544
34 232,071 105,145 126,926
35 240,471 109,973 130,498
36 245,664 112,045 123,619
37 255,070 120,261 134,809
[844] First payment of tolls amounting from £16,000 to £20,000 a year.
2d _Rep._, app. no. 39, _Rep. Com._, 1837-38, xx.
[845] Three quarters only. 1st _Rep._, app. no. 28.
TABLE VI
GROSS REVENUE, EXPENDITURE, AND NET REVENUE OF THE POST OFFICE OF THE
UNITED KINGDOM, NOT INCLUDING TELEGRAPHS, FROM 1838 TO 1907.
_Year ending_ _Gross Revenue_ _Expenditure_ _Net Revenue_
£ £ £
Jan. 5, 1838 2,339,737 687,313 1,652,424
1839 2,346,278 686,768 1,659,509
1840 2,390,763 756,999 1,633,764
1841 1,359,466 858,677 500,789
1842 1,499,418 938,168 561,249
1843 1,578,145 977,504 600,641
1844 1,620,867 980,650 640,217
1845 1,705,067 985,110 719,957
1846 1,887,576 1,125,594 761,982
1847 1,963,857 1,138,745 825,112
1848 2,181,016 1,196,520 984,496
1849 2,143,679 1,403,250 740,429
1850 2,165,349 1,324,562 840,789
1851 2,264,684 1,460,785 803,898
1852 2,422,168 1,304,163 1,118,004
1853 2,434,326 1,343,907 1,090,419
1854 2,574,407 1,400,679 1,173,727
Dec. 31, 1854 2,701,862 1,506,556 1,195,306
1855 2,716,420 1,651,364 1,065,056
1856 2,867,954 1,660,229 1,207,725
1857[846] 3,035,713 1,720,815 1,314,898
1858[847] 3,241,535 1,953,283 1,288,252
1859 3,461,924 1,952,432 1,509,492
1860 3,531,165 1,953,234 1,577,931
1861 3,665,128 3,154,527 510,601
1862 3,764,004 2,926,551 837,453
1863 3,999,455 2,956,486 1,042,969
1864 4,231,558 3,078,297 1,153,261
1865 4,423,608 2,941,086 1,482,522
1866 4,599,667 3,201,681 1,397,986
1867 4,668,214 3,246,850 1,421,364
1868[848] 4,683,646 3,266,724 1,416,922
1869 4,764,575 3,459,227 1,305,348
1870[849] 4,929,475 3,435,865 1,493,610
1871 4,900,454 3,610,700 1,289,754
1872 5,208,922 3,684,946 1,523,976
1873 5,348,040 3,792,679 1,555,361
1874 5,751,600 3,915,213 1,836,387
Mar. 21, 1875 5,815,032 3,920,891 1,894,141
1876-77[850] 6,017,072 4,070,006 1,947,066
1877-78 6,047,312 3,990,620 2,056,692
1878-79 6,274,450 3,840,076 2,434,374
1879-80 6,558,445 4,060,758 2,497,687
1880-81[851] 6,733,427 4,135,659 2,597,768
1881-82 7,024,600 4,286,596 2,741,004
1882-83 7,300,960 4,545,398 2,755,562
1883-84 7,764,855 5,154,829 2,610,026
1884-85 7,906,406 5,317,213 2,589,193
1885-86 8,170,604 5,486,724 2,683,880
1886-87 8,471,198 5,880,141 2,591,057
1887-88 8,705,337 5,933,820 2,771,517
1888-89 9,102,776 6,062,902 3,039,874
1889-90 9,474,774 6,266,263 3,208,511
1890-91[852] 9,851,078 6,687,089 3,163,989
1891-92 10,451,998[853] 7,192,487 3,259,511
1892-93 10,600,149 7,507,645 3,092,504
1893-94 10,734,885 7,759,712 2,975,173
1894-95 11,025,460 7,955,344 3,070,116
1895-96 11,759,945 8,086,272 3,673,673
1896-87 12,146,935 8,246,356 3,900,579
1897-98 12,420,376 8,683,317 3,737,059
1898-99 13,049,317 9,190,006 3,859,311
1899-1900 13,394,335 9,683,999 3,710,336
1900-01[854] 13,995,470 10,064,903 3,930,567
1901-02 14,465,870 10,465,101 4,000,769
1902-03 15,005,262 10,819,938 4,185,324
1903-04 15,824,394 11,201,122 4,623,272
1904-05 16,274,978 11,446,279 4,828,699
1905-06 17,064,023 11,849,012 5,215,011
Est'm'd 1906-07[855] 17,361,042 12,289,787 5,071,255
[846] 1st _Rep. P. G._, 1855, p. 68. 20th _Rep. P. G._, 1874, app., p.
46.
[847] Expenditure for sailing packets in 1858 was £935,883.
[848] Postage ceased to be charged on government departments early in
1868.
[849] 10th _Rep. P. G._, 1864, pp. 32-38; 18th _Rep. P. G._, 1872, pp.
26-27. Until 1858 revenue does not include revenue from impressed
newspaper stamps nor does expenditure include cost of packet service
until 1861.
[850] In 1876 the beginning of the financial year of the Post Office was
changed from 1st January to 1st April.
[851] 27th _Rep. P. G._, 1881, app., p. 52.
[852] 37th _Rep. P. G._, 1891, app., p. 64.
[853] Including estimated value of services to other departments from
1891-1892 on.
[854] 47th _Rep. P. G._, 1901, app., p. 82.
[855] 53d _Rep. P. G._, 1907, p. 95.
TABLE VII
AVERAGE YEARLY GROSS REVENUE, EXPENDITURE, AND NET REVENUE OF POST
OFFICE FOR THE UNITED KINGDOM NOT INCLUDING TELEGRAPHS FROM 1841 TO
1906.
_Gross Revenue_ _Expenditure_ _Net Revenue_
£ £ £
1841-45 1,658,214 1,001,405 656,809
1846-50 2,143,717 1,304,772 838,944
1851-55 2,569,836 1,441,334 1,128,502
1856-60 3,135,587 1,785,911 1,349,676
1861-65 4,016,750 3,013,389 1,003,341
1866-70 4,729,155 3,322,069 1,407,086
1871-75 5,404,809 3,784,886 1,619,923
1876-81 6,326,141 4,019,423 2,306,718
1881-86 7,634,085 4,958,152 2,675,933
1886-91 9,121,032 6,166,043 2,954,989
1891-96 10,914,487 7,701,292 3,213,195
1896-1901 13,001,286 9,174,516 3,826,770
1901-1906 15,926,905 11,156,292 4,770,613
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Froude, J. A. _A History of England from the Fall of Wolsey to the
Death of Elizabeth._ 12 vols., New York, 1870.
Gairdner, J., _editor_. _The Paston Letters._ 3 vols., 1872-75.
Green, E. _Bibliotheca Somersetensis._ 3 vols., Taunton, 1902.
Joyce, H. _The History of the Post Office from its Establishment down
to 1836._ 1893.
Knight, Charles. _London._. 6 vols., 1841-44.
Latimer, John. _The Annals of Bristol in the XVIIIth Century._
Bristol, 1893.
Lewins, William. _Her Majesty's Mails._ 2d ed., 1865.
_London and its Environs described._ 6 vols., 1761.
Macaulay, T. B. _History of England from the Accession of James II._ 4
vols., 1849-56.
Macpherson, David. _Annals of Commerce, Manufactures, Fisheries, and
Navigation._ 4 vols., London and Edinburgh, 1805.
Maitland, William. _The History and Survey of London._ 2 vols., 1760.
Malden, H. E. _The Cely Papers: Selections from the Correspondence and
Memoranda of the Cely Family, Merchants of the Staple, A. D. 1475-88._
1900.
May, T. E. _Constitutional History of England._ 1882.
Noorthouck, John. _A New History of London._ 1773.
Ogilby, John. _Itinerarium Angliae._ 1675.
Roberts, George. _The Social History of the Southern Counties of
England in Past Centuries._ 1856.
Rothschild, Arthur de. _Histoire de la Poste aux Lettres, depuis ses
Origines les plus Anciennes jusqu'à nos Jours._ 2d ed., Paris, 1873.
Sharpe, R. R. _London and the Kingdom._ 3 vols., 1894-95.
Stow, John (1525-1605). _A Survey of the Cities of London and
Westminster, improved and enlarged by John Strype._ 2 vols., 1720.
Thornbury, W., and Walford, E. _Old and New London._ 6 vols. [1873-78.]
PERIODICALS
_The Economist._
_The London Times._
_Notes and Queries._
With reference to the foregoing bibliography, the "Letters and Papers of
Henry VIII" and the "Calendar of State Papers" have formed the basis of
this sketch of the British Post Office during the sixteenth and
seventeenth centuries, with many references to the papers of private
individuals and institutions collected by the Royal Commission on
Historical Manuscripts. The "Proceedings and Ordinances and the Acts of
the Privy Council" contain important orders issued to the
Postmaster-General or the postmen during the sixteenth century as well
as complaints from the postmen and the public. From the beginning of the
eighteenth century the chief sources of information are the historical
summaries appended to the "Reports of Committees and Commissioners"
compiled during the first half of the nineteenth century. Of these, the
"Report of 1844" is the most important. The "Journals of the Lords and
Commons" throw some light upon the history, purpose, and intent of the
various acts of Parliament dealing with rates and finance. "The
Financial Report of 1797," various returns submitted to the House of
Commons, and the reports contained in the "Accounts and Papers" for the
first part of the nineteenth century are chiefly concerned with the
financial side of the history of the British Post Office. Since 1840 the
most important sources of information are the yearly reports of the
Postmasters-General, dating from 1854, and the voluminous reports of
committees appointed to investigate debated points in the organization
and policy of the Post Office as well as to advise upon matters which
had produced friction between the department and its employees.
Of the secondary works there is little to be said. The only one from
which any important information has been obtained is Joyce's "History of
the British Post Office to 1836." This book contains a great deal of
valuable matter arranged in rather a haphazard fashion and with no
references. Writing as a Post Office official at the end of the
nineteenth century, Joyce hardly appreciated the conditions which his
predecessors had to meet. In Stow's "London" are found some interesting
facts about the London Penny Post, in Blomefield's "Norfolk" early
postal conditions in Norwich are described. The other books of the same
description contain only incidental references to minor points of Post
Office development.
INDEX
Abuses in the Post Office, 42-46, 127, 128.
Allen, Ralph, 36, 37, 37 note.
American colonies, Post Office in, 32, 33, 59.
American Express Company, 70.
Annuities, 74. _See also_ Savings Bank Department.
Arlington, Lord, 27.
Arundel, Earl of, 11.
Assurance facilities, 74. _See also_ Savings Bank Department.
Bennett, Sir John, 27.
Billingsley, 11, 19.
Bishop, Henry, 24, 25.
Book Post, 68, 173. _See also_ Halfpenny Post and Rates, Book Post.
Bower, Sir George, 80.
Bradford Committee, 84, 85.
British and Inland Magnetic Telegraph Company, 202, 206, 208.
Burlamachi, Philip, 17, 18.
Buxton, Sydney, 85, 87, 88.
Bye-letters, 35 note.
Bye-posts, 36, 39, 144;
receipts from, 185, 186.
Canadian Pacific Railway Company, 134.
Carteret, Lord, 42.
Cash on delivery, 70, 71.
Chamberlain, A., 83.
Chesterfield, Countess of, 25.
Clerks of the road, 38, 50.
Coaches. _See_ Mail Coaches and Post Coaches.
Coke, Sir John, 11, 12, 15, 16, 18, 111, 112.
Competition in carrying letters, 191-197.
Competitive examinations, 78.
Compulsory prepayment. _See_ Prepayment of rates.
Cotton and Frankland, 31, 115.
Cromwell, orders to the postmasters, 23.
Cross-posts, 140, 144. _See also_ Bye-posts.
Cross-post letters, 35 note, 36. _See also_ Post-roads, Cross-posts.
Cunard Steamship Company, 132, 133, 134.
Customs duties, 125.
Dead Letter Office, 50.
Delivery of letters, 9, 38, 39;
rural, 65, 66;
express or special, 67, 68.
Departmental committee, 82.
De Nouveau, 114.
De Quester, 10, 12, 135.
De Taxis, 112, 114.
Dockwra, William, 28, 30.
Double letter, 13 note.
Dublin Penny Post, 30 note, 54, 150.
Edinburgh Penny Post, 54.
Edison Telephone Company, 219.
Electric and International Telegraph Company, 202, 205, 206, 208.
Embossed stamps. _See_ Stamps.
Employees, postal, appointment brought under civil service
examination, 78, 79;
report of Bradford committee, 84, 85;
of departmental committee, 82;
of Hobhouse committee, 86-88;
civil rights, 82;
postal unions, 85;
wages, 80, 83;
Tweedmouth settlement, 81, 82;
strike, 81;
grievances, 80, 82, 83;
increase in wages, 81, 82.
Evasion of rates, 197-201. _See also_ Monopoly, attempts to break.
Express delivery. _See_ Delivery of letters.
Farmers of the Post Office, 21, 22, 36, 37.
Fawcett, Henry, 74, 75, 80, 81.
Fees, 9, 15, 45, 49.
Fifth-clause Posts, 65.
Finances of Post Office, 180-188.
Foreign connections: Belgium, 111;
France, 111, 113, 114, 115, 117, 118, 120;
Germany, 111;
Holland, 111, 114;
Italy, 111, 115;
United States and the colonies, 120 note;
stages settled on the continent, 112.
_See also_ Rates and Sailing Packets.
Foreigners' Post, 6, 7.
Franking, 159-172;
by members of Parliament, 25;
of newspapers, 48.
Franking department, 57.
Frankland. _See_ Cotton and Frankland.
Freeling, Sir Francis, 52.
Frizell, 11, 18, 24.
Grimston, 205.
Halfpenny Post, 68, 69, 197.
Hall, John, 11.
Hamilton, Andrew, 33.
Hanbury, 82.
Hicks, James, 19, 20, 24, 26, 27, 112.
Hill, Sir Rowland, 59-61, 187.
Hobhouse committee, 86-88.
Inman Steamship Company, 132, 133.
Insurance facilities, 74. _See also_ Savings Bank Department.
Ireland, Post Office in, 31, 57. _See also_ Post-roads, Rates,
and Sailing Packets, Ireland.
Letters, number of, 63.
London and Globe Telephone Company, 220.
London District Post, 71.
London District Telegraph Company, 202.
London Penny Post, 28-30, 34, 35 note, 51, 52;
receipts from, 185.
_See_ Twopenny post.
Mail coaches, 40, 41, 55, 104, 105.
Manley, John, 22, 23.
Marconi Company, 213, 214.
Mason, Sir John, 7, 8.
Merchant Adventurers' Post, 6, 11.
Messengers, 3, 5, 67.
Money Order Office, 50, 71.
Money orders, 176-180;
number of, 71-73.
_See also_ Rates, money orders.
Monopoly, attempts to break, 191-197;
in carriage of letters and packets, 189-191, 195, 196.
_See also_ Telegraphs, monopoly.
Mowatt, Sir F., 81.
National Telephone Company, 222-224, 229, 231, 233.
Neale, Thomas, 33.
Newspaper Office, 49.
Newspapers, chargeable and free, 68;
franking of, 48;
impressed stamps on, 68;
number of, 68.
_See also_ Rates, newspapers.
New Telephone Company, 223.
Norfolk, Duke of, 82.
O'Neale, Daniel, 25.
Opening and detaining letters, 16, 18, 21, 26, 46-48, 196.
Packet list, 48.
Packets. _See_ Sailing Packets.
Paget, 7.
Palmer, John, 40-42, 44.
Parcel Post, 70, 174. _See also_ Rates, Parcel Post.
Patronage, 78, 79.
Pattern and Sample Post, 69. _See also_ Rates, patterns.
Peninsular and Oriental Steamship Company, 132.
Penny Post. _See_ London Penny Post.
Penny Postage, 59-62, 158-160.
Pensions, sailors', 127.
Pitt, William, 43.
Plague, 26.
Political patronage. _See_ Patronage.
Postal establishment, in seventeenth century, 27;
in eighteenth, 38, 44;
in nineteenth, 57.
Postcards, 174;
number of, 69, 69 note;
use of, 69.
_See also_ Rates, postcards.
Post coaches, 40.
Post horses, 5, 8;
fee for their use, 89, 90, 92;
licences and taxes, 94, 95, 95 note;
monopoly in letting, 92, 94;
number to be kept, 92, 93;
supply of, 89, 90.
Postmarks, 29.
Postmen's Federation, 85 note.
Post offices, number of, 71.
Post-roads, 13;
cross posts, 103;
in sixteenth century, 97, 101;
in seventeenth century, 99;
maps, 101;
re-measured, 103, 104;
in north of England, 102, 104;
in south, 102;
in Ireland, 102, 104;
in Scotland, 103.
Prepayment of rates;
compulsory prepayment inadvisable, 26, 26 note;
unpopularity of, 64.
Prideaux, Edmund, 18-21, 136.
Raikes, 81.
Railways, 107, 108;
amounts paid for conveyance of mails, 56, 78;
authority of Postmaster-General over, 77;
principles involved in estimating tollage for conveyance of mails, 77.
Randolph, Thomas, 7, 8.
Rates, for letters, 13, 23, 62-64;
by weight, 157;
re-directed, 173;
ships' letters, 143, 148, 153.
In England, 136, 137, 141, 142, 145-148, 150, 151, 158;
Ireland, 136, 137, 141, 142, 146, 151, 152, 158;
Scotland, 136-139, 141-143, 145-148, 150, 151, 158;
United Kingdom, 159, 172, 174.
To Austria, 135, 149, 150;
Belgium, 135, 143, 149, 150, 155 note, 157, 176;
Cape of Good Hope, 153, 154;
Channel Isles, 148, 150;
Denmark, 137, 143, 149, 150, 155 note;
East Indies, 153, 154;
Egypt, 155 note, 156;
France, 135, 137, 143, 149, 149 note, 150, 155, 155 note, 176;
Germany, 135, 137, 143, 149, 150, 155 note, 157;
Gibraltar, 155 note;
Greece, 155 note, 156;
Holland, 135, 143, 149, 150, 155 note, 157;
Italy, 115, 135, 137, 143, 149, 150, 155 note, 156, 176;
Malta, 155 note;
Mauritius, 153, 154;
Mexico, 155 note, 157;
Norway, 155 note, 157;
Portugal, 143, 147, 149, 150, 155 note;
Russia, 155 note;
South America, 155 note, 157;
Spain, 137, 143, 149, 150, 155 note, 157, 176;
Sweden, 137, 143, 149, 150, 155 note, 157;
Switzerland, 155 note, 157;
Syria, 156;
Turkey, 137, 149, 150, 155 note, 156;
North American colonies, 143, 146, 147;
United States, 155 note, 175.
In North American colonies, 140, 141, 144, 146;
West Indies, 140, 140 note, 143, 146.
To the colonies, 159, 175;
to foreign countries, 159, 176.
Book Post, 173;
money orders, 71, 72, 176 _et seq._;
newspapers, 153, 154, 173, 175, 176;
Parcel Post, 174;
patterns, samples, and writs, 145, 173;
postcards, 174, 176.
Registered letters, 50, 64, 173, 174.
Returned Letter Office, 57.
Roads. _See_ Post-roads.
Royal Mail Steamship Company, 132.
Royal Post, 3, 6.
Sailing Packets, abuses in connection with, 127 _et seq._;
British and foreign vessels, 123;
cost of, 128, 134;
customs difficulties, 125;
number of, 120, 121;
ownership transferred to Admiralty, 129, 130;
steamships, 121-123, 131;
subsidies for, 130, 131-134;
use of private ships, 120 note, 123, 124.
To Cape of Good Hope, 120;
Deal and the Downs, 110;
East Indies, 120;
France, 111, 115, 116;
Gibraltar, 116;
Holland, 115-117;
Ireland, 109, 110, 121;
Malta, 116;
Isle of Man, 110;
Mauritius, 120;
Mexico, 120;
Portugal, 115;
Scotland, 109-110;
South America, 120;
West Indies, 118 _et seq._
St. Martin's-le-Grand, 57.
Sample Post. _See_ Pattern and Sample Post.
Savings Bank Department, 73, 76;
annuity and assurance facilities, 74-77;
criticism by "Economist," 75 note.
Scotland, Post Office in, 31, 32, 34, 59. _See also_ Post-roads,
Rates, and Sailing Packets, Scotland.
Scudamore, 203-205, 208.
Shipping list, 48, 49.
Single letters, 13 note.
Smith, Llewellyn, 81.
Special delivery. _See_ Delivery.
Speed, 14;
in sixteenth century, 98;
in seventeenth century, 98, 99, 100 note;
in nineteenth century, 104, 105, 105 note, 106;
by use of railways, 107, 108;
delays and attempts to remedy them, 100;
delays between England and Ireland, 107;
means for securing speed, 106.
Stamps, 65, 68.
Stanhope, Charles, 8, 17, 24.
Stanhope, Lord John, 8, 10, 135.
Stanley, Lord, 83-85, 203.
Steamships. _See_ Sailing Packets, Steamships.
Strangers' Post. _See_ Foreigners' Post.
Sunday posts, 55, 79, 80.
Tankerville, Earl of, 42-44.
Telegraphs, cost to Government of, 205, 206, 208, 209;
finances, 216, 218;
government ownership proposed, 203-205;
international agreement, 211-214;
messages sent, 202, 215;
monopoly, 207-208;
press messages, 209, 217;
private companies, 202, 203;
railway interests in, 206, 207, 209;
rates, 202, 203, 209, 210, 213;
relations with Marconi Company, 213, 214;
underground lines, 211.
Telephones, call offices, 224, 227;
exchange areas, 224;
finances, 236;
government, 220, 221, 225, 228;
inter-communication, 224, 229, 232, 234;
licences, 220-222, 224;
municipal, 226, 228-230, 235;
purchase agreement, 232 _et seq._;
rates, 227, 230, 232, 234, 235;
trunk lines, 221, 225;
underground wires, 231, 232, 234;
way-leave powers, 221, 223, 224, 232, 235.
Threepenny Post, 52-54.
Thurloe, 23, 24.
Travellers' Post, 89;
abuses by postmasters, 93;
by travellers, 91, 91 note;
trials of travellers, 91.
Triple letters, 13 note.
Tuke, Sir Brian, 4-7.
Tweedmouth, Lord, 81.
Tweedmouth settlement, 81, 82.
Twopenny Post, 52-54, 149.
Unions. _See_ Employees, Postal Unions.
United Kingdom Telegraph Company, 203, 206, 208.
United Telephone Company, 220, 222.
Universal Private Telegraph Company, 208.
Wages, 4, 6 note;
arrears in, 8, 25, 92, 99.
_See also_ Employees.
Walpole, Spencer, 81.
Ward, 87.
Warwick, Earl of, 18, 19.
White Star Steamship Company, 133.
Windebank, 16, 17.
Witherings, Thomas, 11, 13-19, 24, 111, 112, 135, 137, 138.
York, Duke of, 25, 30.
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