Chapter VIII: Rates and Finance (2)

The rates for letters to and from foreign countries were much the same as they had been before the passage of this act, except that instead of the initial charge being made for a single letter, it was now reckoned for a letter not exceeding half an ounce in weight. The rates for letters to and from France were graded according to the distance they were carried in England, the lowest rate for a letter not more than half an ounce in weight being 3_d._ to Dover or the port of arrival, the highest rate being 10_d._ to any place distant more than fifty miles from Dover.[626]

[626] 3 and 4 Vict., c. 96.

The franking privilege may reasonably be considered in connection with the history of postal rates, nor should its effect in reducing the revenue of the Post Office be neglected. The Council of State gave orders in 1652 that all public packets, letters of members of Parliament, of the Council, of officers in the public service, and of any persons acting in a public capacity should be carried free. This is the first record that we have concerning the free carriage of members' letters, a privilege which later gave so much trouble and was so much abused.[627] The next year the Post Office farmers agreed to carry free all letters to and from members of Parliament provided that letters written by such members as were not known by their seals should be endorsed, "These are for the service of the Commonwealth," and signed by the members themselves or their clerks.[628] Nothing was said in the act of 1660 about the conveyance of the letters of members of Parliament and they were carried free only by act of grace. The House of Commons had passed a clause of the bill providing for the free conveyance of the letters of members of their own House. This had exasperated the Lords, who, since they could not amend the clause so as to extend the privilege to themselves, had dropped it.[629] In 1693, the attention of Cotton and Frankland was called to the manner in which franking was being abused. Men claimed the right to frank letters to whom the Postmasters-General denied it, and members of Parliament were accused of bad faith in the exercise of their privilege. The custom had arisen of enclosing private letters in the packet of official letters. A warrant was issued in 1693 to the effect that in future no letters were to go free except those on the King's affairs, and the only persons to send or receive them free were the two principal Secretaries of State, the Secretary for Scotland, the Secretary in Holland, the Earl of Portland, and members of Parliament, the latter only during the session, and for forty days before and after, and for inland letters alone. Each member was to write his name in a book with his seal so that no one might be able to counterfeit his signature.[630]

[627] _Cal. S. P. D._, 1651-52, p. 507.

[628] _Cal. S. P. D._, 1652-53, p. 449.

[629] _Parliamentary History of England_, iv (1660-88), col. 163.

[630] _Cal. T. P._, 1557-1696, p. 281.

We learn from Hicks' letters that it was customary for clerks in the Post Office at London to send gazettes to their correspondents in the country free of charge. These gazettes or news letters were supplied by the Treasury and, as 2_d._ or 3_d._ apiece was paid for them by the recipients, the privilege was greatly esteemed.[631] The Deputy Postmaster-General wished to abolish the privilege, but Hicks himself, who was one of the favoured officials, was quite indignant at the suggestion.[632] The principle was bad, but as the receipts for gazettes formed a necessary part of the clerks' salaries, Hicks cannot be blamed for protesting against abolition without compensation. James II expressed a desire that the practice should be discontinued, but when it was shown to him that the salaries of the clerks must be raised if his wishes were obeyed, his proposition was promptly withdrawn.[633]

[631] _Cal. T. B. & P._, 1731-34, pp. 208, 210, 218, 268.

[632] _Cal. S. P. D._, 1667, p. 248.

[633] _Cal. S. P. D._, 1666-67, p.386.

The abuses of the privilege of franking were very pronounced during the eighteenth century. The system of patronage which the members of Parliament then exercised made them reluctant to offend any of their constituents, who might entrench upon their peculiar privileges. Members' names were forged to letters and they made no complaint. Letters from the country were sent to them to be re-addressed under their own signatures. The Postmasters-General admonished them more than once, but, as a rule, the members disclaimed all knowledge of abuses. Men were so bold as to order letters to be sent under a member's name to coffee-houses, where they presented themselves and demanded the letters so addressed. In 1715, on receiving renewed complaints from the Postmasters-General, it was ordered by the House that henceforth no member should frank a letter unless the address were written entirely in his own hand. This was expected to prevent members from franking letters sent to them by friends. It was also ordered that no letter addressed to a member should pass free unless such member was actually residing at the place to which the letter was addressed. In the third place, no member was to frank a newspaper unless it was entirely in print. This was to prevent the franking of long written communications passing as newspapers, for the members of Parliament in sending and receiving letters free were restricted to such as did not exceed two ounces in weight, but they were not so restricted in the case of newspapers.[634] According to the Surveyor's report, the loss from the ministers' franks in 1717 was £8270 and from the members' franks £17,470.[635] The loss from franking was proportionately much greater in Ireland than in England. In 1718 the Irish Parliament sat only three months, in 1719 nine months, and in Ireland as in England, members of Parliament received and sent their letters free only during the session and forty days before and after it. The following is part of the report submitted by the Postmasters-General to the Lords of the Treasury for these two years:--

1718 1719
Gross Produce from Letters £14,592 £19,522
Charge of Management and Members' Letters 11,526 18,768
Net Produce from Letters[636] 3,066 754

Under the charges of management is included the charge for carrying members' letters as reckoned proportionately to the charge for the letters which paid, together with the actual charge for the pay letters. The net produce during the three months' session was £3006, during the nine months' session only £753. In 1734 the old orders about the maximum weight of two ounces and the requirement for the whole superscription to be in the member's own writing were repeated in a royal proclamation. In addition it was ordered that any letters sent under cover to any member of Parliament or high official of state, to be forwarded by him, should be sent to the General Post Office to be taxed.[637] It could hardly be expected that this order would be obeyed, for there was no method of enforcing it.

[634] _Jo. H. C._, 1714-18, p. 303.

[635] _Cal. T. P._, 1714-19, p. 287.

[636] _Cal. T. P._, 1720-28, p. 77.

[637] _Jo. H. C._, 1732-37, p. 393.

In 1735, the House of Commons instituted an enquiry into the whole question of franking and summoned various Post Office officials before them to give evidence. An estimate was laid before them of the amount lost each year by carrying franked letters. This estimate was obtained by weighing the franked letters at intervals during the session of Parliament, and comparing their weight with the weight of the letters which paid postage. As the total revenue from the latter was known, the amount which was lost on the former was guessed. The House expressed very little confidence in the estimated amounts, and certainly it was a rough way of attaining the object aimed at, but perhaps they were prejudiced from the strength of the case against them.[638] Expressed in yearly averages, the amounts by which the revenue was reduced by franking were:--

1716-19 £17,460
1720-24 23,726
1725-29 32,364
1730-33 36,864

[638] _Ibid._, 1732-37.

The system of ascertaining forged franks and of discovering enclosures was as follows: a Supervisor of the Franks charged all letters, franked by a member's name, coming from any place, when he knew that the member was not there. Very often by holding them in front of a candle, he could see enclosures inside directed to other people. If he was in doubt he generally charged the letter, for if it should pay, all well and good, and if he had made a mistake, the amount was refunded to the member. The Supervisor had noticed that the number of franked letters had increased with every session of Parliament, and some of the ex-members also attempted to frank letters. The evidence of the Supervisor, especially his description of the manner in which he attempted to discover enclosures, was exceedingly distasteful to the House. The members themselves were to blame for many of the abuses attendant upon the system, and yet they contended that they were the unwilling victims of others. A resolution was adopted that it was an infringement upon the privileges of the knights, citizens, and burgesses chosen to represent the people of Great Britain in Parliament, for any postmaster, his deputies or agents to open or look into any letter addressed to or signed by a member of Parliament, unless empowered so to do by a warrant issued by one of the Secretaries of State. In addition no postmaster or his deputies should delay or detain any letter directed to or by any member unless there should be good reason to suppose that the frank was a counterfeit.[639]

[639] _Jo. H. C._, 1732-37, p. 476.

The restrictions adopted to curtail the abuse of the franking privilege had but little effect. A regular business sprang up for selling counterfeit franks. The House of Lords ordered one person accused of selling them to come before the bar of the House for examination, but he failed to present himself.[640] Another confessed before the Upper House that he had counterfeited one of the Lords' names on certain covers of letters showed to him and had then sold them. He expressed sorrow for the offence, which necessity had driven him to commit. He was sent to Newgate.[641] The abuses of the franking system were so patent[642] that Allen was told that he might withdraw from his contract to farm the bye and cross post letters on three months' notice being given.[643]

[640] _Jo. H. L._, 1736-41, p. 259.

[641] _Ibid._, p. 529.

[642] One man in five months counterfeited 14,400 franks of members of Parliament. Counterfeits of names of 27 members were shown. A regular trade in buying and selling them had sprung up (_Jo. H. C._, 1761-64, p. 998). Several Lords certified that their names had been counterfeited. Lord Dacre's name had been counterfeited 504 times (_Jo. H. L._, 1760-64, p. 534).

[643] _Cal. T. B. & P._, 1739-41, p. 450.

The revenue from the Post Office was surrendered by the Crown at the beginning of George the Third's reign in exchange for a Civil List from the Aggregate Fund as it was then called.[644] While the Post Office remained in the hands of the King, it was only by special grant on his part that the members of Parliament had been allowed to send and receive letters free. Accordingly in 1763, an act was passed for the purpose of giving parliamentary sanction to the privilege. This act repeated the principal points in the King's proclamation and in the Parliament's previous resolutions on the subject. All letters or packets sent to or by the King, the ministers and the higher Post Office officials were to go free. The ministers might appoint others to frank their letters, whose names must be forwarded to the Postmaster-General. Those sending letters free must sign their names on the outside and themselves write the address. No letters to or from any member of Parliament should go free unless they were sent during the session or within forty days before or after, and the whole superscription must be in the member's own hand or directed to him at his usual place of residence or at the House. All letters in excess of two ounces in weight must pay postage. Printed votes, proceedings in Parliament, and newspapers should go free when sent to a member or signed on the outside by him, provided they were sent without covers or with covers open at the ends. The privileges of franking votes, proceedings in Parliament, and newspapers, were continued to the clerks in the Post Office and in the Secretaries of State's offices. The Postmasters-General and their deputies were given authority to search newspapers which had no covers or covers open at the ends and to charge them if there were writing or enclosures in them. Finally, any person who counterfeited a member's name on any letter or package for the purpose of avoiding the payment of postage, was guilty of felony and liable to transportation for seven years.[645]

[644] Joyce, p. 189.

[645] 4 Geo. III, c. 24.

The year following the passing of this act, the House of Commons called for returns relating to the franking system. Besides the members of Parliament, the ministers, and the Post Office officials, to whom the franking privilege had been granted by the King's warrant and by the late act, almost all who were in any way connected with the Government claimed the right to send or receive letters free, even to the Deputy Serjeant-at-Arms. The amount which newspapers would have paid if there had been no franking privilege was first given for the week ending March 13, 1764.

_Members'_ _States'_ _Post Office Clerks'_
£465 £310 £1055

These amounts were obtained by weighing the newspapers and, as this was the manner in which they would have been rated, the results may be considered as fairly correct. The idea being to estimate the loss from members' and states' franks only, the franking by Post Office clerks does not enter into the following calculation. It was judged from the figures given above that the Post Office carried free every year enough newspapers franked by members and state officials to produce £40,000 if they had been taxed at the ordinary rates.[646] An attempt to arrive at the same result in another way was also made. The sum total which would have been paid on all members' and ministers' letters, newspapers, and parcels arriving at or departing from London in 1763 was £140,000. Of this amount £85,000 would have been paid on all mail leaving London, and £55,000 on all mail arriving in London. The difference in favour of the outgoing mail was judged to be due to the newspapers, all of which were printed in London and sent to the country. This would give a loss of £30,000 on newspapers, and £110,000 on letters.[647]

[646] _Jo. H. C._, 1761-64, pp. 1000-1001.

[647] _Ibid._, p. 999.

Returns were also submitted, showing the gross amount of the inland postage for Great Britain and Ireland, including the amount which the franked letters and papers would have paid if they had all been charged, the actual gross product and the difference between the two. This difference would, of course, be the estimated charge on all the free matter. These figures are given from 1715 to 1763. Roughly speaking, in fifty years franked letters and papers increased 700 per cent while pay letters increased only 50 per cent. In 1715 one fifth as many free letters and newspapers as those which paid went through the mail. In 1763 there were eleven twelfths as many free letters and papers.[648] It will be seen that the assumption is that the postage which this free matter might have paid represented the loss suffered by the Post Office. Now this is not so, because it did not cost the Post Office so much to convey letters and papers as the ordinary rates would have paid them. In the second place the Postal authorities considered the £140,000 as so much actually lost, whereas if charges had been enforced on the free matter, a much smaller amount would have been sent. This is entirely apart from the rough and ready manner in which the figures were obtained. Enough was shown, however, to prove that the franking system was a burden to the country and an imposition upon the Post Office.

[648] _Jo. H. C._, p. 999.

In Ireland, Parliament met as a rule only during the even years or if it met every year, the sessions in the odd years were very short. For the five even years from 1753 to 1762, the expenses averaged for each year £3306 over the receipts, while during the five odd years, the receipts were greater than the expenditures by a yearly average of £2249. These general results held good for every individual odd or even year for the period for which returns were given.[649]

[649] _Ibid._, 1761-64, p. 1001.

Attempts continued to be made by members of the House of Commons to diminish the abuses arising from franking. There had been some misunderstanding as to whether they were entitled to have ship's letters delivered free to them. Of course they were exempt from the inland postage on such letters, but for every letter brought into the country by vessels other than packets, the master was paid one penny and this penny was collected from the person to whom the letter was delivered. The members finally agreed to pay the extra penny.[650]

[650] _Ibid._, 1780-82, p. 537.

Acts were now introduced to enable the Commander-in-Chief, the Adjutant-General, and the Controller of Accounts of the Royal forces to receive and send letters free. Both bills passed.[651] It is some consolation that the Lord Chancellor and Judges failed to obtain the franking privilege although a bill was introduced in the Commons in their behalf.[652]

[651] 22 Geo. III, c. 70; 23 Geo. III, c. 69.

[652] _Jo. H. C._, 1790-91, p. 468.

It was enacted in 1784 that a member must write on his free letters not only his name and address but also the name of the post town from which they were to be sent and the day of the month and the year when they were posted.[653] The object of this restriction could be easily evaded by enclosing postdated letters to their constituents but, after the passage of this resolution, a considerable decrease resulted in the number of free letters to and from members.[654] When the Irish was separated from the English Post Office, the privilege of franking newspapers to Ireland was taken away and a rate of one penny a newspaper was imposed, payable in advance. This meant a loss to the clerks in the Secretaries' offices but this was made good to them by an addition of £1000 a year to their salaries.[655]

[653] _Ibid._, 1784-85, p. 383. The Lords also agreed to this resolution (ibid., p.411; 24 Geo. III, sess. 2, c. 37).

[654] For the years 1783 and 1784, the number of free letters arriving in London, exclusive of the state's letters, averaged over 800,000 a year and those sent from London averaged over 1,000,000. In 1785, they had fallen to 514,000 and 713,000 respectively (_Parl. Papers_, 1812-13, _Rep. Com._, ii, 222, p. 95).

[655] 24 Geo. III, c. 6; _Jo. H. C._, 1795-96, p. 588.

In 1795, the members of Parliament made another attempt to limit their own as well as the free writing proclivities of others. The maximum weight of a free letter to or from a member was lowered from two ounces to one. No letter directed by a member should go free unless the member so directing it should be within twenty miles of the place where it was posted either on the day on which it was posted or the day before. No member should send more than ten or receive more than fifteen free letters a day. Votes and proceedings in Parliament when addressed to or by members of Parliament were exempted from the provisions of this Act.[656]

[656] 35 Geo. III, c. 53. After 1786 the number of franked letters had gradually increased until checked by this act. In 1795 the number of franked letters delivered in London was 1,045,000, the number sent from London 1,195,000. In 1796, the inward and outward free letters amounted to 737,000 and 787,000 respectively. In 1797 the numbers were 696,000 and 721,000. These restricting acts of 1784 and 1795 had a more important effect than Joyce leads us to suppose (_Parl. Papers_, 1812-13, _Rep. Com._, ii, 222, p. 95).

The restrictions upon the franking privilege enjoyed by members of Parliament were re-enacted in 1802 with some additions. The number of free letters which a member might receive and send in one day having been limited to twenty-five, it was decided that these twenty-five so excepted from the payment of postage should be those on which the charges were the highest, provided that none of them exceeded an ounce in weight. The high officials of state, the clerks of Parliament, certain clerks of the Commons and Lords, the Treasurer and Paymaster of the Navy, the Lord Chancellor, certain officials in Ireland, and two persons appointed by the Postmaster-General of Ireland were allowed to send letters free.[657] The members and clerks of both Houses were allowed to send newspapers free provided that they were enclosed in covers open at both ends. The same rule held for votes and proceedings in Parliament.[658] The same franking privileges were extended to Irish officials.[659]

[657] Those officials in the General Post Office who had no franking privilege were reimbursed the amount of postage paid by them on inland single letters (_Rep. Commrs._, 1837, xxxiv, 8th rep., app., no. 2).

[658] 42 Geo. III, c. 63.

[659] 43 Geo. III, c. 28.

From 1806 to 1819 there was a large extension of the franking privilege to various officials. During that time sixteen statutes and parts of statutes were enacted in behalf of various persons from the Lord High Chancellor to the Controller of the Barrack's Department and the Commissioners of the parliamentary grant for building churches. Sir Robert Buxton, a member of Parliament, thought that it would be well for his fellow members to give up their privilege in order to help the finances of the country. Windham disagreed on the ground that it kept up communications between a member and his constituents and encouraged literary correspondence which would otherwise decline. Pitt justified it, in that it enabled members to carry on the important business of their constituents and did not result in much loss to the state.[660]

[660] _Parl. Deb._, 1st ser., iii, col. 570. The following are a few of the statutes enacted which extended franking: 46 Geo. III, c. 61; 50 Geo. III, c. 65, sec. 19; c. 66; 51 Geo. III, c. 16, sec. 17; 52 Geo. III, c. 132, sec. 16; c. 146, sec. 11; 53 Geo. III, c. 13; 54 Geo. III, c. 169; 55 Geo. III, c. 1, sec. 10; c. 60, secs. 41-42; 56 Geo. III, c. 98, sec. 24.

It had always been customary to charge letter rates for the conveyance of newspapers to foreign countries and to the colonies. Members of Parliament, however, had the privilege of franking newspapers within the United Kingdom, the clerks of the Foreign Office franked them to foreign countries, and the Secretary of the Post Office franked them to the colonies. In 1825 it was enacted that members need no longer sign their names to newspapers franked by them, or give notice of the names of the places to which they intended to send them.[661] This virtually provided for the free transmission of newspapers within the United Kingdom. At the same time it was provided that the rate for newspapers, votes and parliamentary proceedings should be 1-1/2_d._ each to the colonies, payable in advance. Newspapers from the colonies were charged 3_d._ each, payable on delivery. Such newspapers must be posted on the day of publication, must contain no writing, and must be enclosed in covers open at both ends.[662] Two years later the charge for votes and parliamentary proceedings to and from the colonies was fixed at 1-1/2_d._ an ounce. Newspapers brought from the colonies by private vessels were to be charged 3_d._ each, the same as the packet rate,[663] but in 1835 colonial newspapers by private vessels were allowed to come in for a penny each, and the same rate was charged for English newspapers sent to the colonies by private vessels. By the same act the postage on newspapers passing between the United Kingdom and any foreign country which charged no inland rate for their conveyance was fixed at a penny each. If an inland rate was charged, the postage was to be 2_d._ for each newspaper plus the foreign rate.[664]

[661] 6 Geo. IV, c. 68, sec. 10.

[662] 6 Geo. IV, c. 68; London _Times_, 1825, June 11, p. 3; July 29, p. 2.

[663] 7 and 8 Geo. IV, c. 21.

[664] 5 and 6 Wm. IV, c. 25. Before the passage of this act newspapers passed free by the packets and posts to and from Hamburg, Bremen, and Cuxhaven (London _Times_, 1834, Oct. 30, p. 2).

During the following year, all the regulations concerning the conveyance of newspapers, votes, and proceedings in Parliament etc. were embodied in one act. Within the United Kingdom all newspapers which had paid the stamp duty were to go free except those which were sent through the Twopenny Post and delivered by it, not having passed by the General Post, and except those posted and delivered within the same town. In both of these cases one penny was charged. To and from the colonies no rate was demanded when newspapers were sent by the regular packets. If sent by private vessels one penny was payable, which went to the master. The rate to and from foreign countries was fixed at 2_d._ for each paper, but if a foreign state agreed to charge no postage on English newspapers, no postage should be charged on the newspapers of such foreign state, when brought to England by the packet boats. If brought by private vessels, a penny was payable for each paper, to go to the master. All newspapers, in order to receive the advantage of these low rates or to go free, had to be posted within seven days after publication and to contain no writing except the name and address of the person to whom they were to be sent. In addition the newspaper must have no cover or one open at both ends.[665]

[665] 6 and 7 Wm. IV, c. 25.

The following additions and changes in the regulations for the carriage of newspapers were made in 1837. One penny was to be paid for their conveyance by private vessels between different parts of the United Kingdom. Between the colonies and foreign countries through the United Kingdom, newspapers should go free if conveyed by the packets and should pay a penny each if conveyed by private vessels. Parliamentary proceedings conveyed between the colonies and the United Kingdom, if sent by packet boats and not exceeding one ounce in weight, were charged 1-1/2_d._ each. When in excess of one ounce they paid 1-1/2_d._ for each additional ounce. Pamphlets, magazines and other periodical publications for the colonies, if not exceeding six ounces in weight, paid 12_d._ when carried by the packets. For every additional ounce, 3_d._ was charged. Bankers' re-issuable notes were carried at one quarter the regular postage.[666] Patterns, with no writing enclosed and not exceeding one ounce in weight, paid a single letter rate.[667] Any newspaper which had been posted in violation of any regulation for the conveyance of newspapers was charged three times the regular letter postage.[668]

[666] In Great Britain re-issuable notes of country banks paid in London were conveyed by the post to the issuing bank at one quarter the regular rates for letters, but parcels of notes had to exceed six ounces in weight and contain no other matter (5 Geo. IV, c. 20).

[667] 7 Wm. IV and 1 Vict., c. 34.

[668] 7 Wm. IV. and 1 Vict., c. 36.

Franking and the privilege of sending and receiving letters free from postage did not at any time extend to letters liable to foreign postage except in the case of public despatches to and from the Secretaries of State and British Ambassadors.[669] The owners, charterers and consignees of vessels inward bound were allowed to receive letters free from sea postage to the maximum of six ounces for each man, but in the case of ships coming from the East Indies, Ceylon, Mauritius, and the Cape, the maximum was twenty ounces.[670] Within the kingdom, writs for the election of members of the House of Commons and for those Scotch and Irish peers who were elected, were allowed to go free.[671] All persons who were allowed to frank letters within the Kingdom were grouped in ten classes. Members of Parliament were placed in the first class and their letters were subject to the old restrictions as to number,[672] superscription, name of post town, date, and place of residence. They might also receive petitions free, provided that each did not exceed six ounces in weight. They might send free printed votes and proceedings in Parliament.

[669] 5 and 6 Wm. IV, c. 25.

[670] 7 Wm. IV and 1 Vict., c. 34. Maximum increased to thirty ounces by 7 Wm. IV and 1 Vict., c. 25.

[671] 53 Geo. III, c. 89; 7 Wm. IV and 1 Vict., c. 32.

[672] Wallace, the postal reformer, declared that other members had been in the habit of receiving more than fifteen free letters in a day and that, too, with Freeling's consent (_Parl. Deb._, 3d series, xxiv, col. 1001).

Officials of both Houses of Parliament were in the second class. They were subject to the same restrictions as the first class, except that the number of their letters was not limited and each letter might weigh two ounces.

The third class was composed of members of the Treasury Department and the Postmaster-General and his secretaries. Their franking privilege was unlimited as to the weight and number of letters nor were they required to insert the name of the post town or the date.

The fourth class, composed of heads of departments, might send and receive letters with no limit as to number or weight.

The fifth class, the Lord Chancellor of Ireland and the Irish Surveyors, had unlimited franking rights within Ireland. All the letters of these five classes were subject to the following restrictions with the exception of the third class. The whole superscription of the letters sent must be in the hand of the privileged person, with his name and the name of the post town from which the letters were sent together with the date, and on that date or the day before, the writer must be within twenty miles of the place where the letters were posted.

The other five classes were made up of subordinate members of departments, clerks, secretaries etc. when writing or receiving letters on official business. Every such letter had to be superscribed with the name of the office and the seal and name of the writer.[673]

[673] 7 Wm. IV. and 1 Vict., c. 35.

It appeared from a report of a committee appointed to investigate postal affairs that the total number of franks had increased from 3,039,000 in 1810 to 4,142,000 in 1820; 4,792,000 in 1830 and 5,270,000 in 1837. Of these, members of the two Houses were responsible for 2,028,000; 2,726,000; 2,814,000 and 3,084,000 at the above dates respectively.[674] In concluding their report the Committee recommended the abolition of Parliamentary franking.[675] This advice was followed and improved upon two years later when franking and the privilege of sending or receiving letters free were abolished, except in the case of petitions to the Queen or Parliament not exceeding 32 ounces in weight.[676]

[674] _Rep. Com._, 1837-38, xx, 2d rep., app., p. 109.

[675] _Ibid._, xx, 3d rep., p. 62.

[676] 3 and 4 Vict., c. 96. Recent attempts by certain members of Parliament to revive the franking privilege have fortunately been unsuccessful (_Parl. Deb._, 4th ser., lxxxi, col. 1407; civ, col. 360).

No further reduction in inland postage rates was adopted until the net revenue of the Post Office had pretty well recovered from the blow received by the adoption of penny postage.[677] Such reduction was finally granted in 1865, applying only to letters weighing more than one ounce each, the increases in weight being graduated by half ounces with a penny for each additional half ounce instead of 2_d._ for each additional ounce as before. Corresponding reductions were made at the same time in the book post and the pattern and sample post, and were made applicable to correspondence with British North America and the British possessions in Europe.[678] In 1870, when the impressed newspaper stamp was finally abolished, the rate on prepaid newspapers was reduced to a halfpenny each whether sent singly or in packages, but no package was to be charged higher than the book post rate. Unpaid newspapers were charged a penny for each two ounces or fraction thereof. The book post rate was reduced at the same time to a halfpenny for each two ounces or fraction thereof. The rate for patterns and samples, which had formerly been 2_d._ for the initial four ounces, was altered to the existing book post rate with a maximum of twelve ounces only. In 1871 the inland letter rate was fixed at a penny for the initial ounce, a halfpenny for the next ounce and for each additional two ounces, and the sample and pattern post was incorporated with the inland letter post. A separate sample and pattern post was reëstablished in 1887, only to be incorporated for a second time with the letter post ten years later.[679] An additional charge for re-directed letters was made when the re-direction necessitated a change from the original delivery, but the charge was such only as they would be liable to if prepaid. An exception was made in the case of letters re-directed to sailors or soldiers, no additional charge being then made, provided that the rate was not a foreign one. This privilege was later extended to commissioned officers and the exemption extended to foreign rates as well.[680] In 1891 all charges for the re-direction of letters were abolished, followed three years later by a like abolition in the case of all other postal matter, and in 1900 the charge for notice of removal and re-direction after the first year was reduced from £1 1_s._ to 1_s._ for the second and third and 5_s._ for subsequent years.[681]

[677] But in 1861 the registration fee was reduced from 6_d._ to 4_d._ and a double fee charged for compulsory registration (_Rep. P. G._, 1862, pp. 9-10).

[678] _Rep. P. G._, 1866, p. 12.

[679] _Ibid._, 1870, pp. 3-5; 1897, p. 5; 1896, p. 2; 1898, pp. 1-2.

[680] 3 and 4 Vict., c. 96; 10 and 11 Vict., c. 85; 23 and 24 Vict., c. 65.

[681] _Rep. P. G._, 1892, p. 8; 1894, p.2; 1895, p. 4; 1901, p. 4.

With an increase in the number of valuable articles carried by post and better arrangements for their safe keeping, it was found possible to reduce the registration fee from 11_d._ to 6_d._, then to 4_d._ and eventually to 2_d._ At the time of the first reduction, a rule was issued for the compulsory registration by the Post Office of all letters unquestionably containing coin, for the sake of letter carriers and others rather than the protection of the public. The Post Office did not at the time of the first reduction hold itself responsible for the full value of the contents of a lost registered letter but was accustomed to remunerate the sender where the contents were proved, were of moderate amount, and the fault clearly lay with the Post Office. In 1878 it agreed to make good up to £2 the value of the contents of any registered letter which it lost, stipulating in the case of money that it had been sent securely and in one of its own envelopes. Compulsory registration by the Post Office was also extended to include uncrossed cheques and postal orders to which the name of the payee had not been appended.[682]

[682] _Rep._ P. G., 1862, pp. 9-10; 1879, p. 13; 1897, p. 5.

An inland parcel post was not established in England until 1883. An initial rate of 3_d._ was imposed for the first pound, increasing by increments of 3_d._ to 1_s._ for the seventh pound. Later the maximum weight was increased to 11 pounds, the maximum charge to 1_s._ 6_d._ In 1905 a further reduction followed on parcels weighing more than four pounds.[683]

[683] _Ibid._, 1896, p. 3; 1882, p. 3; 1906, p. 1.

The use of postcards was first permitted in England in 1870, a charge of a halfpenny a dozen being made in addition to the stamp. In 1875 this additional charge was increased to a penny a dozen for thin cards, 2_d._ for stout cards. In 1899 these prices were reduced to a penny for ten stout cards, a halfpenny for ten thin ones, and the latter began rapidly to displace the former. Private post cards were first allowed to pass through the post in 1894 for a halfpenny each, and two years later the charge on unpaid inland post cards was reduced from 2_d._ to a penny.[684] At the same time that the use of post cards was allowed, a half penny post was introduced for certain classes of formal printed documents.[685]

[684] _Ibid._, 1896, p. 2; 1889, p. 2; 1897, p. 5; 1895, p. 18.

[685] _Ibid._, 1903, p. 5.

In 1884 the scale of postage applicable to inland letters between two and twelve ounces in weight was continued without limit. The resulting rates were as follows: for the first ounce, one penny; for two ounces, 1-1/2_d._; for all greater weights, a halfpenny for every two ounces plus an initial penny. On the occasion of the sixtieth anniversary of the late Queen's accession to the throne, further decreases were announced in the postage on inland letters. The weight carried by the initial penny was extended from one to four ounces, the postage for heavier letters increasing as before at the rate of a halfpenny for each additional two ounces.[686]

[686] _Rep. P. G._, 1885, p. 14; 1898, pp. 1-2.

The decrease in postage for inland matter was accompanied by lower rates for colonial and foreign letters. Although the proposal of the Marquis of Clanricarde to establish a definite shilling[687] rate for all colonial letters was not immediately adopted, it was not long before even lower rates were accepted. The Marquis' plan was communicated to the Treasury Lords in 1850 purely on Imperial grounds, "to strengthen the ties between the colonies and the mother country." Rates other than those on letters were even then far from excessive. Newspapers, for instance, often passed free or they were charged a penny each either in England or the colony, but not in both. Parliamentary proceedings paid but one penny, sometimes 2_d._ per quarter-pound, books 6_d._ per half-pound. A few years later a 6_d._ letter rate was adopted for all parts of the Empire except India, the Cape, Mauritius, and Van Diemen's Land. In 1857 the 6_d._ rate per half-ounce was extended to all the colonies and in 1868 to the United States. In the following year this rate was lowered to 3_d._ for letters to the United States, Canada and Prince Edward Island.[688] In 1890 this rate in the case of most of the colonies, and some foreign countries, was still further reduced to 2-1/2_d._, partly no doubt on account of the crusade which Mr. Heaton had undertaken for penny postage within the Empire.[689] In 1898 his penny aspirations were realized for all the important colonies with the exception of the Australasian and South African, and in 1905 these too fell into line and were joined by Egypt and the Soudan.[690] In 1907, the experiment was tried of charging the comparatively nominal sum of one penny a pound on British newspapers, magazines, and trade journals for Canada, duly registered for the purpose, when sent by direct Canadian packet. This rate is less than the cost but the loss is diminished by the fact that the Dominion Government relieves the British Post Office of the whole cost of ocean transit by the Canadian subsidized lines.[691]

[687] Even at this time (1850) the shilling rate was the rule.

[688] _Acc. & P._, 1852-53, xcv., 204, pp. 2-3; _Rep. P. G._, 1855, pp. 36-37; 1858, p. 20; _Rep. Com._, 1868-69, vi, p. iv; _Rep. P. G._, 1871, app., p. 29; 1870, pp. 6-7.

[689] _Ibid._, 1891, p. 6; app., p. 39.

[690] _Ibid._, 1899, p. 7; 1906, p. 1.

[691] _Rep. P. G._, 1907, pp. 4-5.

In 1863 arrangements were made with the principal European countries for a marked reduction in letter postage rates. With France a rate of 8_d._ or 10_d._ for a quarter of an ounce, according to the country in which the postage was paid, had existed. This was reduced to 4_d._ payable in either country. With Italy and Spain the existing rates of 1_s._ 1_d._ and 10_d._ respectively for a quarter of an ounce were reduced to 6_d._ The Belgian sixpenny half-ounce rate was made 4_d._, and with the German Postal Union the rate was reduced from 8_d._ to 6_d._ for a half-ounce letter. In general these were prepaid rates.[692] The first Postal Union meeting at Berne in 1874 reduced still further the old rates and simplified the rules for the settlement of postal payments between the subscribing nations. A uniform rate for prepaid letters of 2-1/2_d._ the half ounce was agreed to, 5_d._ for an unpaid letter. Post cards were charged at half the rate of a prepaid letter, newspapers a penny for four ounces, printed papers (other than newspapers), books, legal and commercial documents, and samples of merchandise a penny for two ounces.[693] In 1891 the uniform letter rate existing among those countries in Europe which were members of the Postal Union was extended, so far as the United Kingdom was concerned, to all parts of the globe. On the first of October, 1907, a further reduction was made when the unit of weight for outward foreign and colonial letters was raised from half an ounce to an ounce, and the charge on foreign letters for each unit after the first was reduced from 2-1/2_d._ to 1-1/2_d._[694]

[692] _Ibid._, 1864, p. 21; 1859, pp. 19-20.

[693] _Ibid._, 1875, p. 13.

[694] _Ibid._, 1892, p. 8; 1906, pp. 1-2.

Shortly after acquiring the money order business from the managing proprietors, the Post Office reduced the rates of commission to 3_d._ for orders not exceeding £2 in value, and 6_d._ for orders above £2 but not over £5, the latter sum being at that time the maximum. In 1862 the issue of orders for larger sums was allowed at the following rates: 9_d._ when not in excess of £7, and 12_d._ between £7 and £10. On the first day of May, 1871, a further reduction was made and the following scale of charges announced: for sums under 10_s._, a penny; between 10_s._ and £1, 2_d._; between £1 and £2, 3_d._, and an additional penny for each additional pound to the £10 limit. It was found, however, that the low rate of a penny for small orders did not pay, and a decision was reached to raise the rate for these small orders and provide a cheaper means for their remittance by post. In pursuance of this policy the rate for orders under 10_s._ was increased to 2_d._, for orders between 10_s._ and £1 to 3_d._, and in 1881 the following rates were announced for postal notes: a halfpenny for notes of the value of 1_s._ and 1_s._ 6_d._; a penny for notes of the value of 2_s._ 6_d._, 5_s._ and 7_s._, 6_d._ and 2_d._ for notes costing 10_s._, 12_s._ 6_d._, 15_s._, 17_s._ 6_d._, and 20_s._ In 1884 a new series of postal orders was issued, the 12_s._ 6_d._ and 17_s._ 6_d._ notes being dropped and new notes issued of the value of 2_s._, 3_s._, 3_s._ 6_d._, 4_s._, 4_s._ 6_d._, 10_s._ 6_d._ for a penny each and the rate on the 15_s._ and 20_s._ notes was reduced to 1-1/2_d._ In 1903 still others were introduced with the result that a postal order may now be obtained for every complete 6_d._ from 6_d._ to 20_s._ and for 21_s._ and broken sums to the value of 5_d._ may be made up by affixing postage stamps. Finally, in 1905, the poundage on postal notes for 2_s._ and 2_s._ 6_d._ was reduced from 1_d._ to a halfpenny, and on postal orders for 11_s._ to 15_s._ inclusive from 1-1/2_d._ to 1_d._ In 1886 the money order rates were reduced as follows:-- _d._ On sums not exceeding £1 2 £2 3 £4 4 £7 5 £10 6

These rates were in their turn altered as follows on February 1, 1897:--
_d._
For an order not exceeding £3 3
Over £3 but not exceeding £10 4

Upon the representation of the Friendly Societies, which send a good many small orders, these rates were changed in May of the same year to the following:-- _d._

For an order not exceeding £1 2
exceeding £1 but not over £3 3
exceeding £3 but not over £10 4

And finally in 1903 the maximum amount of a money order was raised from
£10 to £40 and the following rates established:[695]--
_d._
For sums not exceeding £1 2
For sums above £1 but not exceeding £3 3
£3 £10 4
£10 £20 6
£20 £30 8
£30 £40 10

In addition to the reductions in rates which have been outlined above, other changes have been made which have resulted in certain cases in a saving to the transmitter of a money order. The charge for correcting or altering the name of the remitter or payee of an inland order has been reduced to the fixed sum of a penny. The fee payable for stopping payment of an inland order was fixed at 4_d._, and this was made to cover the issue of a new order if the request was made at the time of stopping payment. A penny stamp need no longer be affixed to a money order when payment is deferred and payment may be deferred for any period not exceeding ten days.[696]

[695] _Rep. P. G._, 1896, pp. 26-32; 1897, pp. 10-11; 1904, pp. 11-12; 1906, p. 1.

[696] _Ibid._, 1897, pp. 10-11.

The issue of telegraph money orders, commenced in 1889 as an experiment,
was in 1892 extended to all money order offices which were also
telegraph offices. The limit imposed was £10, the rates being
_d._
On orders not exceeding £1 4
£2 6
£4 8
£7 10
£10 12

There was an additional charge of at least 9_d._ for the official telegram, authorizing payment, which was sent in duplicate. When several orders were sent at the same time and the total amount did not exceed £50, only one official telegram was sent and paid for. The above rates were lowered in 1897 to 4_d._ for sums not in excess of £3, and 6_d._ for sums from £3 to £10 with a minimum charge of 6_d._ for the official telegram of advice.[697] At the present time inland telegraph money orders may be issued for the same amounts as ordinary inland money orders and at the same rates, plus a fee of 2_d._ and the cost of the official telegram.

[697] _Rep. P. G._, 1896, pp. 30-32.

During the Crimean War, the Army Post Office was authorized to issue money orders at inland rates and the system was extended to Gibraltar and Malta. In 1858 a proposition advanced by Canada for the interchange of money orders was favourably received by the Home Government, and in the following year provision was made for their issue between the United Kingdom and Canada at four times the inland rates, to a limit of £5. In 1862 the system was extended to all the colonies, the rates being the same as those already agreed upon with Canada except in the case of Gibraltar and Malta where they were three times the inland rates, and the maximum was increased to £10. In 1868 a money order convention was concluded with Switzerland, the rates being the same as those for inland orders, and in 1869 a similar agreement was made with Belgium, but in 1871 the rates for both countries were increased to three times the inland rates upon the same terms as those prevailing with other parts of Europe. In 1880 colonial rates were reduced to the same level, and in 1883 the following changes were adopted: _d._ On orders not exceeding £2 6 £5 12 £7 18 £10 24

These were superseded in 1896 by the following rates:--
_d._
On orders not exceeding £2 6
£6 12
£10 18

By 1903 most foreign countries and some of the colonies had agreed to a further reduction of rates and to a £40 limit. In 1905 the poundage on foreign money orders not exceeding £1 in value was diminished from 4_d._ to 3_d._[698]

[698] _Rep. P. G._, 1896, pp. 28-30; 1897, pp. 10-11; 1904, p. 11; 1906, p. 1.

There is no record of the yearly expenses of the Government for the maintenance of the posts until the accession of James I.[699] There are many instances of the issue of warrants for the payment of the posts but it is not known how long a period they were intended to cover.[700] There was no systematic financial method in dealing with this phase of the postal question. The postmen remained unpaid for years at a time. After sufficient clamour, part of the arrears would be met, but it is impossible to say how much of the sum paid was for current expenses and how much for old debts.[701] It might be supposed from the fact that they received fixed daily wages that some idea might be obtained of the cost of management. But their wages often remained unpaid and the number of postmen varied, as new routes were manned or old routes discontinued, so that any figures for the period before the seventeenth century would be mere guesses.

[699] _Rep. Com._, 1844, xiv, app., p. 48 (25).

[700] _L. & P. Hen. VIII_, ii, pp. 1444-51-53-57-58-60-62-63-66-72; _A. P. C._, 1547-50, pp. 111, 278, 307, 319, 413; 1552-54, pp. 74, 137, 402.

[701] _Cal. S. P. D._, 1623-25, pp. 55, 285; 1628-29, p. 184; 1629-31, pp. 379, 440.

Until 1626[702] our knowledge of the finances of the Post Office is concerned with expenses only, for there was no product, gross or net, for the state. In 1603, the cost of the posts was £4150 a year.[703] This was the year of James the First's accession, and to this is probably due the fact that payment was made for an entire year. Then there comes a break of several years' duration. In 1621, arrears for the half year ending March 31, 1619, were paid. They amounted to £917. For the next two years the yearly expenses averaged £2984. The total expenses for the financial year ending in March, 1621, were £3404. All the posts to Berwick received 92_s._ a day, to Dover 17_s._ 6_d._, to Holyhead 36_s._ 8_d._ and £130 a year for a sailing packet, to Plymouth 25_s._ a day. The wages for each postmaster varied from 1_s._ 8_d._ to 4_s._ 4_d._ a day. In addition there was an expenditure of £50 for extraordinary posts and 5_s._ a day to the paymaster.[704] In 1625, the ordinary expenses were about £4300 a year.[705] It is disappointing not to be able to make any more definite statements concerning the financial operations of the Post Office before 1635, but the unbusinesslike system under which it was conducted must take the blame.

[702] The proceeds from de Quester's rates, which went into effect from this year, may possibly have gone to the Post Office. After Witherings' rates were announced in 1635, they certainly did.

[703] _Cal. S. P. D._, 1603-10, p. 9.

[704] _Rep. Com._, 1844, xiv, app., p. 43 (21).

[705] Hist. MSS. Com., _Rep._, 12, app., pt. 4, p. 472.