New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1897-07-14
OLD POST u ~ SA GES.
CURIOUS PHASES or Ft,E MAIL sERv-
ICE SIXTY YEARS AGO.


weretAlmost Prohibitipe Adoption Of
the Penny Post and the Queer Arsu-.
1nents Against It.
When Queen Victoria assembled the
throne, there were no telegraphs in this
country and few railways. The mails
were forwarded by coach, and the post
age rates were to all but the we'll to do
prohihitive. It cost from 4d. to Is. Sd.
to send a '"single" letter under an
ounce in weight from one part Of the
kingdomtto another. There were some
40 charges, varying according ito dis
lance, the average rate beings9d., or
half the days wage Of a laborer. A
''single" letter meant single piece Of
paper (adhesiye envelopes had not been
invented@, and the addition Of a second
scrap Of paper made the letter ''dou-
ble'' one. The postage was paid on de-
livery by the, recipient, and as no cred
it was given the incursion Of q postman
into poor neighhorhood was watched
on all sides with fear rather than hope.
Coleridge, the poet, saw a poor wora
an declining to accept a letter on the
score Of inability to pay. The good
natured bard (doubtless with some diff
oulty) found the required ninepence,
despite the woman's remonstranoes.
When the postman had gone away, she
showed Coleridge that the letter was
hut blank sheet of paper. Her brother
had arranged to send her at intervals
such a sheet, addressed in a certain
fashion, as evidence that all was we'll
with him, and she as regularly, after
Inspecting the address. refused to accept
it. Some humorist on one occasion sent
out large numbers of letters, each on a
sheet as large as a tablecloth. all Of
which had to be delivered as "single"
missives. s-.*:~-s: .5.Sz r.
This system practically stifled written
intercourse among the working class and
pressed with severity upon the middle
class, but the rich and highly placed
entirely escaped postal taxation. The
privilege Of frsnking covered the CORE
spondence not only Of ministers, peers
and members Of parliament, but Of
their relatives, friends and acqnaint-
anoes. While in one year early in the
queens reign no less than Z 400, 900
letters were franked, single London
firm paid annually eli, 900 for postage
and writer ID The Quarterly referred
dippantly to $50. slight and rare an in
cident III a laborer's life as the receipt
Of a letter. - Among the packets
franked was grand piano. An army
Of clerks was employed to Ak the charges
to be collected, and the postal revenue
remained stationary between 1915 and
! 1886, although in the same period the
population increased from 10, 500, 900 to
IS, 600, 900. - 80 &c 80. e..
Moved BY this state of things, parlia-
ment in 1889 adopted Rowland Hills
proposal Of uniform inland penny post
age, which came into operation on Jan.
10, 1910. The writer possesses copy OF
The Quarterly Review of 1889, in which
contributor believed to be Croker
fiercely denounces the scheme. "Wil]
clerks" he says, write only to thei,
fathers and girls to their mothers? Will
not letters Of romance or love, intrigue
or mischief, increase in at least equal
proportions? We doubt whether socia'
and domestic correspondence will be
more than doubled. A gigantic exem
plitioation Of the old proverb- Penny
wise and pound foolish" etc.
Macaulay says that the penny post
when first established, was the objec
of violent invective, as manifest con
trivance Of the pope to enslave the soul
of Englishmen. It was described Al
"sedition made easy" The postal au
thorities, who is 1884 had opposed th
institution Of mail coaches, were i'm
plaoable enemies Of penny postage. Th
postmaster general of 1889, Lord Lich
field, based his objections on the curl
GUS ground that the building at st. Mar
tin's-le-Grand would not be larg
enough. The secretary, Colonel Maber
", constantly repeated, "This plan W
know will fail.'' ..5s
AS we know, it succeeded, and tn
penny rate has been generally adopte
in Europe as we'll as in the Unite
States. The number of letters rose fror
80, 900, 900 in 1887 to 299, 900, 900 il
l847, and for the year ending on Marc
81, 1897, about 1900, 900, 000 Tn
postal surplus was in 1889 81, 1853, 81
and in 1867 81, $50, 1873. The numbe
; Of letters, which was in 1887 about
per head and in 1854 Is per head,
now u per head.-Fortnightly Review
.s High Titles without Cost,
I English folk are copying the Amer
, can custom Of comforting titles upo
, their children in baptism by using sue