[91] “Aug. 7th, 1849.—Summoned to the Treasury. . . . Explained to Mr. Hayter the abuses as to promotion, viz., that there is no correspondence between the rank of a clerk and his duties—that two clerks may be engaged in the same duties, the one a secretary at £300 a year, the other a junior at £70 a year. Of these facts Hayter was not aware, and thinks the practice is familiar to the Post Office.”—Sir R. Hill’s Journal.—Ed.
[92] See Vol. I., pp. 461, 475, and 485; and Vol. II., [p. 4].
[93] In effect California was the only State not reached at the lower rate.
[94] “April 27th, 1842.—The proceedings in an election committee to try the validity of the last return for Lichfield have brought to light a gross abuse of Post Office patronage in that city. One of the many clerks who have been appointed to secure votes is now in Newgate on a charge of Post Office robbery. These, and similar proceedings, account for the eagerness of the late Postmaster-General to create places, and for much of the inefficiency and dishonesty among the clerks.”—Sir R. Hill’s Journal.—Ed.
[95] “January 8th, 1852.—I told him plainly that the Government has not kept faith with me—that if they meant, as now stated, that I should succeed Maberly merely in the event of a vacancy arising in the ordinary manner, they ought clearly to have stated as much, and not held out expectations of a different kind.”—Sir R. Hill’s Journal.—Ed.
[96] “April 3rd, 1852.—In a minute of Maberly’s on the custody of the Post Office the following sentence occurs:—‘That every officer (including the house-keeper, &c.) within the building, except the Postmaster-General, the Secretary, Assistant-Secretary, and Chief Clerk, shall be considered as under the directions of the clerk-in-waiting for the time being, whilst the Chief Clerk is not on duty in the Office, and they shall take their instructions from that officer alone, in case of any emergency or accident.’
“The effect of this would, of course, be to place myself and Frederic under the direction of the ‘clerk-in-waiting;’ and the Postmaster-General having passed it unnoticed, I have for some time been uneasy on the subject; but on my pointing out the actual position of things to the Postmaster-General, he at once altered Maberly’s minute, by adding an s in each case to the word ’secretary’ (in accordance with his peculiar orthography).”—Sir R. Hill’s Journal.—Ed.
[97] “‘Full dress’ means, I find, that I am to play the fool in a Court dress with a cocked hat and sword.”—Sir R. Hill’s Journal.—Ed.
[98] “I am to prepare a minute on the subject; but as no change can be made without the consent of the Queen, there is no chance of setting the matter right before the dinner. It is altogether a foolish business, but it would be unwise to let matters continue as they are.”—Sir R. Hill’s Journal.—Ed.
[99] More than two years later I find the following entry in Sir R. Hill’s Journal:—