The Life of Sir Rowland Hill and the

404
LIFE OF SIR ROWLAND HILL.
am confident that, whenever established, provided of
course that it be on good arrangements, its benefit
will be great.
I have already indicated the desirableness of lower-
ing the rate of inland letter postage from a penny
per half-ounce to a penny per ounce a change which
would obviously give much relief as regards heavy
letters.
My brother Frederic twice formally proposed, once
under Lord Stanley of Alderley, and once under the
Duke of Montrose, that negotiations should be entered
into with a view to establishing throughout Europe
an international postage on a low uniform rate, sub-
mitting, to that end, a complete plan ; I need not
enlarge upon the political, moral, and commercial
advantages of so comprehensive an improvement.*
Concurrent negotiations should be entered into for
extending our outer money order system to many
foreign countries not yet brought within its range.
It has been repeatedly urged in Parliament and in
the public press that the office of Postmaster-General
should cease to be political and become permanent;
and, as already intimated,
I cannot but consider such
change highly desirable ; seeing that a permanent
head of the Department would have ample time and
motive to make himself thoroughly acquainted with
the business of the office, and would naturally be led
to select his subordinates with more direct reference
to their probable efficiency ; his duration in office
making it probable that the fruits of his own selection,
whether good or bad, would be reaped by himself.
Supposing this change to be made,
come even more desirable than it is at present that
it would be-
* In the Postal Union Mr. Frederic Hill's plan was at length brought to
effect. ED.