| Letters Carried | Gross Revenue | Net Revenue[A] | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1839 | 76,000,000 | 11,955,000 | 8,170,000 |
| 1840 | 169,000,000 | 6,795,000 | 2,505,000 |
| 1845 | 271,000,000 | 9,440,000 | 3,810,000 |
| 1850 | 347,000,000 | 11,325,000 | 4,020,000 |
| 1859 | 545,000,000 | 16,150,000 | 7,230,000 |
| 1863 | 642,000,000 | 19,350,000 | 8,950,000 |
| [A] The British Post Office does not charge itself with interest upon the capital invested in the postal business; it charges itself only with interest upon the capital borrowed on account of the telegraphic business. | |||
[58] Special Report from the Select Committee on the Electric Telegraphs Bill, 1868; Appendix, pp. 27 and 28; and q. 1,813 and following, and 2,439 and following. Compare: Hansard’s Parliamentary Debates, July 5, 1869, p. 1,219 and following, the Marquis of Hartington, Postmaster General.
| 1869 | 6,500,000 (estimated) |
| 1870-71 | 9,850,000 |
| 1871-72 | 12,474,000 |
| 1874-75 | 19,253,000 |
| 1879-80 | 26,547,000 |
| 1884-85 | 33,278,000 |
| 1889-90 | 62,403,000 |
| 1894-95 | 71,589,000 |
| 1899-1900 | 90,415,000 |
| 1905-1906 | 89,478,000 |
In 1869 Mr. Scudamore revised his estimate of the number of messages in 1870-71, reducing it to 8,815,400. Hansard’s Parliamentary Debates, July 5, 1869, p. 1,219, the Marquis of Hartington, Postmaster General.
[60] Garcke: Manual of Electrical Undertakings. The current issues report the amount of these royalties. The Report of the Postmaster General, 1885, p. 9, and Parliamentary Paper, No. 34, Session of 1901, state that these royalties are included in the gross revenue of the telegraphs.
[61] Report of a Committee appointed by the Treasury to investigate the causes of the increased Cost of the Telegraphic Service since the Acquisition of the Telegraphs by the State, 1875, p. 6.
[62] Parliamentary Paper, No. 295, Session of 1902.
Proportion borne by operating expenses to gross revenue, after excluding from operating expenses all expenses properly chargeable to capital account. The capital account of the telegraphs having been closed in September, 1873, the Post Office, since that date, has charged to operating expenses all expenditures on account of extensions, the purchase of sites, and the erection of buildings.
| Average percentage of operating expenses | Range | |
|---|---|---|
| 1870-71 | 57.24 | |
| 1871-72 | 78.94 | |
| 1872-73 to 1874-75 | 88.77 | 85.13 to 92.40 |
| 1875-76 to 1884-85 | 79.34 | 72.27 to 85.50 |
| 1885-86 to 1891-92 | 91.31 | 87.72 to 95.30 |
| 1892-93 to 1900-01 | 98.30 | 95.43 to 101.07 |
| 1901-02 to 1905-06 | 100.38 | 99.69 to 108.06 |