The Life of Sir Rowland Hill and the

REFORMS OF THE FUTURE. 403
unduly encumbered with fixed arrangements,
it would
be well to limit the duration of all future contracts to
some moderate period, say three years ; but, under
this restriction, it is very
desirable for the sake of
economy, and for other important considerations,
that the contract system should be greatly, though
gradually, extended. Experience may show that it
may safely and advantageously be made to include
the whole postal work at the provincial offices, and
various separate departments in the offices within the
metropolitan districts, not wholly excluding the Chief
Office itself. I may add that the benefit of this
change would be greatly increased if the proposed
contractors, adopting views now gradually gaining
ground, should arrange to give their respective subordinates
a direct interest in the energetic and
economical performance of the service.
Independently of the moral benefits consequent
upon the abolition of private I patronage, believe the
direct financial advantage, which might be expected
from the faithful adoption and rigorous execution
of this principle, would be, as I have already said,
an eventual saving of probably not less than ,250,000
a year.
Judging by
what has been done at the various
telegraphic offices and elsewhere, and bearing in
mind the change now steadily progressing in public
that one beneficial effect of an
opinion, I should hope
extension of the contract system would be that female
labour would be admitted to a much larger share in
postal employment an improvement which my brother
and I always had much at heart.*
Of a Parcels Post I have already spoken ; and I
* I have lately learnt (1870) with much pleasure, that this improvement has
been adopted in the new department of Telegraphy.
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