The Sun.
London, England, 1868-06-26 00:00:00

PRIVILEGES OF THE POST-OFFICE.

At Bow-street Police-court, yesterday, Sir
Thomas llenry was occupied during a considerable
portion of the afternoon in investigating a series of
charges against the Circular,. Delivery Company
for infringement of the privilege conferred by statute
upon the Post-office authorities. The specific
charge related to the delivery of four letters or
circulars, and the summonses were eight in number
—Lur against Mr. Manuel Eyre and four against
the company generally.
The prosecution was conducted by Mr. Poland,
instructed by Mr. Peacock, on behalf of the Post-
office authorities ; and the defence by Mr. Merri-
man, of the firm of Merriman and Buckland.
Mr. Poland, in opening the proceedings, ex-
plained that they were instituted under the Ist
Vict., c. 36, s. 2, prohibiting (with certain excep-
tions) the conveyance of letters otherwise than by
post, and imposing penalties of £5 per letter, or
£lOO per week as long as. the infractions were con-
tinued. He observed that the law applied not only
to individuals, but also to bodies corporate, and that
the exceptions applied to letters sent by the hand of
a private friend, and having relation to the private
affairs either of the writer or of the person to whom
such letters were addressed. It would be super-
fluous to enter on this occasion into any discussion
of the question whether this exception applied to
letters such as those which the defendants were
charged with carrying and delivering. That ques-
tion was fully considered in August last, when Mr.
Eyre appeared as defendant in a similar prosecu-
tion, and had the opportunity of hearing the judg-
ment of the learned chief magistrate upon the

point.
Sir Thomas Henry inquired whether Mr. Eyre
was the person who appeared as defendant in the
former case ?
Mr. Poland said he was the same person, and
Mr. Templeman who then appeared for him, argued
the question very fully. Mr. Templeman, he ob-
served, was one of the directors of the present com-
pany.
Mr. Merriman objected to any reference to the
proceedings upon any former occasion. He was
here to defend a common law right, and he was not
bound by anything which Mr. Templeman or any
one else might have said previously.
_ _

Mr. Poland proceeded—The letters were not all
of a private nature. They were of an ordinary
business chlracter. They were circulated far the
pecuniary bane fit of the shareholders forming the
company, at a rate of charges fixed by a tariff, viz.,
one farthing per letter, or one halfpenny per news-
paper, so much per lb. for parcels, &c. The evi-
dence would show that the business of delivering
these letters, &c., was carried on somewhat exten-
sively, for the profit of the shareholders, and in
contravention of the prerogative of the Postmaster-

General.
A copy of the prospectus of the company was
banded in.
Mr. Willis Clare said lie was inspector of letter
carriers. On the Bth May last he was, at Pimlico,
and saw a man named Newnham, at present in
court. He was carrying a bag with him, and was
watched by witness, who saw him enter the house

of Messrs. Nevill and Son, 5, Eeeleston-street,

where a letter gummed and fastened in the ordi-
nary way was delivered. It was directed as it now
is. It was opened in witness's presence, who took
possession of it, and found that it contained a
printed document—a circular. It had a red stamp
on it, with the words " Circular Delivery Company
(Limited), 317, High Holborn." Witness next
saw Newnham deliver three other envelopes, now
produced, addresse I as follows : —lt. Harrill, Esq.,
21, Coleshill-street, Euston-square; also T. Arch-
butt, Esq., 26, Victoria-road, Pimlico ; and Messrs.
Archbutt and Co., Motcomb-street, S.W.—all of
which were fastened in the usual way, and
opened at the addresses at which they were
delivered. All contained similar documents to the
one before alluded to. None of the envelopes had
Post-office stamps upon them. Witness spoke to
Newnham at the time, and ascertained that he did
I not belong to the Post-office.
Charles Edward Newnham, residing at 37, St.
James-street, Lifson-grove, was next sworn, and
stared that he went in May last to the office of the
Circular Delivery Company, 317, High Holborn.
Tho words " Circular Delivery Company" are writ-