The Life of Sir Rowland Hill and the

98 LIFE OF SIR ROWLAND HILL. [1848
London district requiring an increase of force, and
this appearing to contradict the expectations I had
held out, I was sent for to the Treasury, where I
saw Mr. Parker :
"May 12th. I thought it necessary to speak plainly
as to the
causes of their not having been realised, and said that so long as
they continued Colonel Maberly in office they must not expect any
decided retrenchment, and that, had I supposed that he would have
retained his position so long, I never would have undertaken my
present duties. He seemed sorry to have provoked these statements,
and remarked that great savings had been effected in the Money
Order Office ; to which I replied that it was because that department
had been freed from Colonel Maberly's influence."
Some weeks later, I received for my plan the marked
in the Govern-
approbation of the highest authority
ment :
"June 21st. Lord John Russell, last night, in the House of
the measures which had resulted from
Commons, in enumerating
the Reform Bill, spoke as follows of penny postage (the extract is
from the Times of to-day) : . . .
'
Whilst these great changes have
been made, other measures have been adopted, such as the reduction
of the postage of letters to a penny (Hear ! from Colonel Sib-
thorpe, in a tone which provoked considerable laughter). I was
about to allude to the reduction of postage in a parenthesis with
other measures, but I really think that, viewed as a great social
change, nothing more beneficial has taken place in later times
(Hear, hear). When you contemplate the enormous increase which
has taken place in correspondence, you may estimate the number o.f
persons who were deprived of the benefit of communicating with
their friends, and of offering the interchange of domestic affections
(Hear, hear).
I really think that we cannot overestimate all the
advantages which have resulted from that act (Cheers).'"
The more, however, I felt
gratified with this
evidence of increased confidence on the part of the
Government, the more anxious was I made by a
communication received three days afterwards :
"June 24th. The Postmaster-General told me in confidence that