A history of postal agitation from fifty years ago till the present day

by H. G. Swift

The conference listened attentively and sympathetically, as conferences always do when they are composed of politicians out of office. In the present instance the tea-room conference was composed chiefly of Tories who coveted the seats on the Treasury bench then occupied by the Liberals. There could be little doubt about the honesty of the intentions of Mr. W. H. Smith, of Mr. Mundella, or of Mr. Roger Eykyn; they each proved it in every manner possible. They each by this time were well informed on the postal grievances, having been interviewed privately on previous occasions. But at this stage of the proceedings the agitators were not quite sure how far the good intentions of these gentlemen would be carried into practical effect. For it has ever been a common practice with the party in opposition, Liberals and Tories alike, just before the eve of a General Election to gather up all the elements of discontent throughout the country and promise support to each in turn. But at length the men, having pleaded their various points, came away fully assured that in the Tory party lay their principal hope of salvation, though they were aware that some time must elapse before their petition could come to be considered by Parliament. Their one aim now being a Select Committee of Inquiry, their Parliamentary policy became more active than ever, every by-election being assiduously watched and every candidate approached by personal interview or by letter.

At this time, between 1872 and 1874, agitation was rife among all classes of labour throughout the country, and the feeling of discontent was principally due to the cost of the necessaries of life being out of proportion to wages. This was followed by a general rise in wages to meet the increased cost of living among the working population, many employers, to their credit, voluntarily raising the wages of their employés. This circumstance very materially strengthened the postal claim for an increase on their wretched pay; but the Post-Office as the greatest employer of labour would not concede one farthing until compelled by the public and Parliament. The officials with characteristic obstinacy defended the state of stagnation as to wages and promotion prevailing in the Post-Office. On one occasion, about this period, when the leaders of the agitation had reason to interview the Controller on the matter, that official, who considered his wisdom was none too well paid at £1200 a year, pointed to himself and reminded them even he had to cut down his luxuries. This provoked the retort from one of the poorly-paid men, that in his, the Controller’s, case it simply meant a denial of luxuries, but in their case it meant a denial of the very necessaries of life for themselves and wives and families. This might have been dismissed with an official frown as only a mild impertinence; but the Controller, a thick-set, burly, overfed man, unwittingly growled out the brutal truth in his rejoinder, “We don’t engage your wives and families; WE only want the men!”

But the universal rise in wages everywhere outside the Post-Office could not but provide them with a further justification for continuing the agitation for an inquiry. They obtained further funds to carry on the campaign, and more public friends rallied round them. Daily the postmen were becoming more than ever objects of sympathy. Subscriptions flowed in steadily from postal bodies all over the country, and a list of these subscriptions was published in the Beehive newspaper, which for some time past had opened its columns to the budding literati of the movement. The postal organisation had had for some time now an official organ of its own, the Postman; but as it had not the weight and authority of a public organ, circulating, as it did, among postal servants only, the assistance rendered by the Beehive was not inconsiderable. Edited by George Potter, who of course was in full sympathy with the agitation, its columns placed at the disposal of the postal cause were several times contributed to by Lloyd-Jones.

One postal contributor to the Beehive, who was the literary champion of the movement, was one of Booth’s lieutenants, a postman, who wrote under the nom de plume of “Silverstick.” The contributions of “Silverstick” betrayed no small amount of literary merit, and were eagerly looked for every issue by the men.

The hospitality of the Beehive was fully taken advantage of at this time (the official organ of the movement, the Postman, having now fizzled out), and the agitation received no small support from its powerful advocacy. George Potter, whose name will always be associated with public reform, gave the postal advocates carte-blanche in the use of his organ; and the secretary of the postal movement, Hawkins, who was employed on it, was assisted in every possible manner to bring postal grievances to the front. Besides the Beehive there had been the Postman, which exclusively devoted itself to the advocacy of their claims, and which, to an extent, rendered valuable service by being circulated among their outside public and Parliamentary friends. It may here be mentioned that the Postman had been started some few years before, being originally brought out as a small printer’s venture. It was started at the instigation of a postman named March, who was associated with the small printer’s business in question, situated in Clerkenwell Close, and he was principally instrumental in making the Postman the success it afterwards became. March, the postman agitator, was the same March who, when he left the postal service built up a flourishing business as a ballad printer, supplying hawkers and street singers with topical rhymes, coupled with the publication of more innocent toy-books and fairy stories for juveniles.

The Postman was almost wholly contributed by the leaders of the agitation, assisted by notes and scraps of interest from various correspondents of the different branches of the service. The circulation was kept going at this time principally by Booth and the others. It was never allowed to be openly sold in the Post-Office, though means were found to evade the vexatious prohibition, and the condemned publication was all the more anxiously looked for when the day of issue arrived. Booth generally directed special attention to it among the postmen. He always managed to obtain advance copies, and, knowing the most important item of news, gave the word to be passed round directly he came on duty, “Look on page so-and-so of the Postman.” Before the duty was over it had circulated all over the General Post-Office.

In connection with this organ of the movement it may be of interest to mention that for a time it was machined at the same firm as was the Court Circular or Journal; and there was a story to the effect that these pages of the two very dissimilar publications being of equal size, on one occasion two “formes” of type got mysteriously mixed, and to the amazement of the Postman readers the next issue informed them, after reporting some of the private doings of the Queen and Court, that her Majesty had graciously seen fit to order an inquiry into the postmen’s grievances.

The leaders now decided on a third big public demonstration. The same preparations as before were made, bands engaged and public men written to and interviewed to get their presence on the platform. Exeter Hall was chosen this time as the place of meeting, and when the date, November 18, 1873, arrived the principal anxiety of Booth and his lieutenants was as to where they should find room on the platform for all the brilliant notabilities who had promised to attend. The chair was this time to be taken by Mr. Roger Eykyn, M.P. for Windsor, while their old champion, Sir John Bennett, was once more to appear with his well-known and ever-welcome “So here we are once again, my postman friends!” The district contingents as before met at Finsbury Square, and with brass bands playing and colours flying they marched to St. Martin’s-le-Grand, where at eight o’clock they were promptly joined by the men of the Chief Office. Then defiantly striking up “Rule, Britannia,” they moved on towards Fleet Street, the authorities meanwhile crowding at the windows of the General Post-Office to watch the procession as it swept round into Newgate Street. On reaching Fleet Street the greatest excitement prevailed, the traffic had to be suspended, and crowds from all parts joined in the congestion. The postal procession was this time preceded by two red mail-vans, which, with the postmen in uniform, gave it a tone of local colour. The band, during its slow progress towards the place of meeting, improved the shining hour with “The Postman’s Knock” and “Work, Boys, Work, and be Contented,” a musical sarcasm in the circumstances much appreciated. Exeter Hall was not large enough to hold the immense throng who sought admission, and an overflow meeting had to be held in a side street. Exeter Hall platform presented a distinguished gathering of public men supporting the chair, which was filled by Mr. Roger Eykyn, the member for Windsor. Among those who crowded the platform was the midget-like figure of the redoubtable George Odger, president of the London Trades Council, who had brought with him a deputation of trades unionists. There were a large number of members of Parliament, and the principal labour leaders of the day, notably Mr. George Howell, who had already endeared himself to the postal servants by doing an enormous amount of work for them one way and another. The meeting was addressed by Sir Antonio Brady and several distinguished M.P.’s, among the number being W. Williams, M.P., W. Fowler, M.P., and A. Stavely Hill, M.P.

It was at this meeting that Booth determined to test once and for all the right of postal servants to speak in public. He and one or two others spoke, and Booth took means to get their utterances reported among the speakers.