The Life of Sir Rowland Hill and the

1850] COMMISSION OF INQUIRY. 159
continued, the announcement produced no revival of
the outcry, and the innovation gradually came to be
regarded as part of the natural course of proceeding.
It did not fare so well with the innovation adopted
at the request of the House of Commons :
"June 2ist. Last night there was a further discussion in the
House of Commons as to the Sunday duties, on an attempt by Mr.
Locke to get a window delivery.
commenced."
It is evident that the reaction has
"June 22nd. Last night Lord Brougham raised the question as
to the legality of stopping the Post Office business on the Sunday ;
and many of the daily and weekly papers of this in their condemnation of the measure."
morning are loud
Public inconvenience was, of course, to be estimated
in some degree by the effect of the change
on the amount of correspondence ; the change, it
should be observed, first took effect on Sunday,
June 23rd :
"June 23th. [Tuesday.] The Sunday
stoppage of business on the
reduced yesterday morning's arrival in London by about
80,000 letters, increasing the mid-day arrival by about 18,000, and
this morning's by about 16,000 causing, therefore, a diminution of
about 47,000 letters in London alone."
Mr. Locke's motion, which came on on July 9th,*
was set aside in favour of an amendment moved by
Lord John Russell, and carried by a large majority,
praying Her Majesty to cause an inquiry
to be made
* "July gth. At the House of Commons. . . . In the course of the evening
, M.P. for , evinced a desire to renew acquaintance with me. For a
time I avoided him, but when this was no longer possible, I told him very plainly
my opinion as to the 'Lord's Day Society.' (He was one of the deputation which
came to me last year.) He replied that he had always done me justice, and
referred to what Lord Ashley had said in the House of Commons. On which I
rejoined that neither Lord Ashley nor any one else had spoken out in a straightforward,
manly way. He left me, apparently much nettled." Sir R. Hill's
Journal. ED.