“September 28th.—Sent in my letter to Sir Robert Peel (dated yesterday).[332] Sent also a copy, with a short note dated to-day, to the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
“Received from the Treasury a letter (27th inst.) passing my accounts and containing the following paragraph:—‘I am also commanded by their Lordships to take this opportunity of stating that they consider it due to you, on the termination of your engagement with the Government, to express to you the approbation with which they have regarded your zealous exertions in the execution of the duties which have been entrusted to you, and how materially the efficiency of the Post Office arrangements has been promoted by the care and intelligence evinced by you in the consideration of the various important questions which have been referred to you.’
“October 12th.—Dined with Mr. Moffatt at the Reform Club. Showed him the recent correspondence with Goulburn and Peel, and discussed with him confidentially future proceedings. He is very much in earnest, and desirous of assisting, through the Committee, as much as possible.”
Three days later I received the following letter from Sir Robert Peel:—
“Drayton Manor, October 13th, 1842.
“Sir,—I beg leave to acknowledge the receipt of your letter dated the 27th of September. It reached me the day after I had left London.
“Had I received it previously to my departure, I should have acceded to your request for a personal interview, though I consider the subject of your letter fitter for written than for verbal communication.
“Since I received it I have referred to the letter which you addressed to the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the 29th of July last, and to the Minutes of the Board of Treasury respecting your appointment, and have given to the subject generally the best consideration in my power. It had indeed been brought under my notice by Mr. Goulburn, at the time that his letters of the 11th of July and of the 11th of August were addressed to you.
“I am bound to state to you that I entirely concur in the opinion expressed by Mr. Goulburn in that of the 11th of August, that the continued employment of an independent officer, for the purposes for which it is urged by you, would necessarily lead either to the entire supercession of those who are by their offices responsible for the management of the Post Office department, or to a conflict of authority, highly prejudicial to the public service.
“I entertain a due sense of the motives by which your conduct in respect to Post Office arrangements has been actuated, and of the zeal and fidelity with which you have discharged the duties committed to you; I cannot doubt that there are still important[333] improvements in those arrangements to be effected, but I must presume that they can be effected through the intervention of the regularly-constituted and the responsible authority, namely, the Postmaster-General, acting under the superintendence and control of the Board of Treasury.