Now, upon the proposed plan, the publishers or the news vendors of the metropolis, or other centre, instead of folding, addressing, and posting the journals intended for the rural districts, would, as is now done to a great extent—naturally send them in bulk, in the parcels containing journals for the post towns; an arrangement which would relieve the Post Office, not only of the first assortment, but also of the duty of conveyance; thereby avoiding at once increased difficulty as to exchange of bags, and also interference or quasi interference, with parcel-traffic, unless in the acceptable way of augmentation; and the provincial news vendors, on receiving these parcels, would, while themselves dealing with the journals intended for town-delivery, and for such of the rural districts as they might prefer to serve, convey the remainder, still unfolded and unaddressed, to the local post office (which they would have previously supplied with corresponding lists, variable, say once a month), thus superseding the intermediate assortments; and, lastly, the postmasters would only have to arrange the journals, by number and kind, according to the rounds of the messengers; thus reducing the trouble of even the final assortment to a minimum.
Still further to lessen trouble to the Post Office, as likewise for just security, it would be well to require that payment for the month should be made in advance, viz., on delivery of the lists. It would also be necessary to rule that the sum to be so paid should in no case be below a certain amount.
And thus, by an actual reduction in Post Office labour, unattended with any counterbalancing disadvantage, the desired reduction in postage would be warranted.
It is obvious that papers thus dealt with would present no temptation to fraud, since the absence of particular address would altogether prevent their being used as substitutes for letters.
On the plan set forth above, if taken as a whole, I think it would be safe and justifiable to reduce the charge for what I have called the primary distribution of newspapers, &c., to one halfpenny the four ounces, that is to say to one-half the present rate.
Security against fraud generally, it may be pointed out, would be immeasurably increased if the proposed boon were accompanied with the entire abolition of the impressed stamp, the use of which, besides maintaining a constant temptation to dishonesty, demands, on the part of the Post Office and the public, the observance of a highly complicated set of rules, involving so much trouble that they are constantly violated with impunity.
This change, however, would have to be accompanied with the issue of a three-halfpenny adhesive stamp[275] (a measure actually contemplated some years ago) to supply the place of the impressed stamp of the same value now used by newspapers which, like the Times or Illustrated London News occasionally range in weight between four and six ounces. The use of the new stamp might very properly be extended to all other printed matter of like weight.
Before touching on further possibilities as respects newspapers, I return to the subject of letters, in relation to which much additional improvement is desirable. This might be arranged under the following heads:—
(a) Increase in the number of deliveries; at least in the large towns.