The Life of Sir Rowland Hill and the

92 LIFE OF SIR ROWLAND HILL. [1848
FOREIGN EXTENSION.
I must now speak of the progress made during the year in the ex-
tension of postal reform to foreign countries, as also changes in our
relations therewith.
United States.
"
February loth, 1848. The Postmaster-General explained to me
the position of the postal treaty with the United States. Whatever
may have been our conduct at first, I think we are right now, and the
United States Government wrong. Bancroft, the United States
minister, had consented to an arrangement of perfect reciprocity, viz.,
on each letter either way twopence to each government for inland
rate, and tenpence to the Government owning the packet, when the
United States Government refused its ratification and ; yet, owing to
the absurd secrecy observed on such occasions [by our official rule],
the English, as well as the American papers, throw all the blame on
our Government. Proposed to the Postmaster-General that I should
see Thornely, Brown, and some other M.P.'s interested in the matter,
who had applied to me on the subject, and let them know how matters
stand to which he assented, and I arranged to meet them to-morrow
morning."
I must observe that such hasty conclusions in the press, and con-
sequently in the public, are not so infrequent as could be wished ; the
Post Office, and perhaps other departments of Government, being
frequently blamed for defects and anomalies which they have no
power to supply or remove. I must confess it has appeared to me
that we Englishmen have a singular disposition, where the question
lies between our neighbours and ourselves, to lay the blame, if possible,
on ourselves.
"April i$th. Mr. James Lee of New York came with an introduction
from Mr. Rathbone of Liverpool. Mr. Lee is intimate with
the President, and is anxious to assist in effecting amicable arrangements
as to the postal communication between this country and the
United States. He admits the abstract fairness of our proposals, but
contends that we ought to modify them because, owing to the angry
feeling on the part of the people in the United States, the Government
there cannot concur therein. This struck me as a strange
admission of weakness. I suggested an arrangement which, though
equally favourable to us, would not encounter the prejudices of the
American people ;
at the same time carefully guarding myself against
its being supposed that I was empowered to negotiate. He caught