To return to my narrative; a few days later, Mr. Warburton, having in the House asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether Government intended to proceed with a twopenny or penny rate, Lord John Russell replied that the intention of Government was to propose a resolution in favour of a uniform penny postage,[257] remarking, “the plan will be in conformity with that which has been proposed by the committee as likely to be the most beneficial one,” and adding that, though the scheme would necessarily involve many months of preparation, no time should be lost.[258] Having been apprised of Mr. Warburton’s intention, I was present when the announcement was made; and I leave the reader to imagine the deep gratification I felt.
Grave doubts yet remained as to whether my plan would be adopted in its entirety. My first anxiety was as to the introduction of stamps; their use, as already shown, being indispensable to that rapidity and economy of postal operation, without which the mere adoption of the penny rate would be extremely imperfect as a matter of public convenience, and perhaps seriously detrimental to the direct revenue. I consequently prepared a paper,[259] which was printed and circulated by the Mercantile Committee, “On the Collection of Postage by means of Stamps.” It describes in considerable detail the plan of which the first bare suggestion had been given, as already shown, early in 1837, and, except that there is no mention of the Queen’s Head—which was an after-thought—it describes with considerable accuracy the kinds of stamps now in use, and the modes of distributing them. The envelopes and adhesive stamps now so familiar to all, are described the one as “the little bags called envelopes,” and the other as “small stamped detached labels—say about an inch square—which, if prepared with a glutinous wash on the back, may be attached without a wafer.”[260] I must admit, however, that, as the paper shows, I still looked upon stamped covers or envelopes as the means which the public would most commonly employ; still believing that the adhesive stamp would be reserved for exceptional cases. Unfortunately, the recommendations contained in my paper were not acted upon until the Government had resorted to other supposed expedients, which turned out to be real impediments, and were not got rid of without much trouble.[261]
Meantime, on June 25th, Lord Radnor, in presenting forty petitions in favour of uniform penny postage, repeated Mr. Warburton’s question as to the intentions of Government, and received from Lord Melbourne the assurance that the Chancellor of the Exchequer would shortly bring the matter forward;[262] his words were as follows:—
“Undoubtedly it is the intention of the Government to carry into effect the plan referred to by my noble friend—considering how it has been recommended, the strong interest it has excited, and the benefits and advantages which unquestionably belong to it—with all practicable speed.”[263]
In my anxiety to obtain for the proposed measure a favourable reception in the House of Commons, I drew up with great care a short paper, entitled “Facts and Estimates as to the Increase of Letters,” which was printed by the Mercantile Committee, a copy being sent to every member of Parliament.
A copy of this document is given in the Appendix (G). The prediction therein set forth was much longer in fulfilment than I anticipated—the gross revenue not having been made up till 1851, the twelfth year of penny postage. Probably, like most projectors, I was over-sanguine. Probably also I was unduly influenced by the evidence proceeding from the public in support of my recommendations. But the reader will find from the following narrative that after the adoption of my plan by the Legislature many circumstances occurred, which could not possibly have been foreseen, tending to delay the apparent success of my scheme of Postal Reform. Among these are the following:—
1st. Delay in the adoption of stamps, and the still greater delay in effectually supplying the public therewith.
2nd. While my plan applied to inland postage only, large reductions were also made in foreign and colonial postage, which, however right in themselves, of course had their effect in delaying the time when the amount of the gross revenue should have recovered itself.
3rd. The additional facilities to be afforded the public—more especially by a great extension of rural distribution—though a most important part of my plan, were, to say the least, for a long time delayed. This I conceive to have been a main cause of delay in the recovery of the gross revenue.
4th. Above all, the execution of my plan was, during the early years of penny postage, entrusted almost entirely to men whose official reputation was pledged, not to its success, but to its failure. Even after I entered the Post Office, near the close of the seventh year of penny postage, obstacles were so continually thrown in my way that for many years I could do comparatively little to promote the measure; and it was not till the fifteenth year, namely, when I became Secretary to the Post Office, that I could exercise any direct influence therein.