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falaries and debentures, in and belonging to this office. He has a falary of 500l. per annum. In his office are feveral clerks, ordinary and extraordinary.

12. SECRETARY AT WAR. This officer may not improperly be ftyled the minister of the war department. He is, in fact, military fecretary to the king, and conveys all his Majesty's orders, to all the generals, and military governors, at home and abroad, relative to the troops and garrifons, under their refpective commands; and with him they correfpond, and to him they make their returns and reports, (as well as to the commander in chief), and he lays the bufinefs before his Majefty, for his infpection, and directions. All orders for marching, quartering, encamping, and recruiting the army, are figned by him, by his Majesty's command; and all military commiffions are made out at the war office, situtate at the Horfe Guards, Whitehall, and by him, or the commander in chief, carried to his Majefty to be figned. The truft repofed in this officer is very great, and the profits of his office are confiderable; he is always a member of the privy

council.

In the war office, are a deputy fecretary and first clerk, four principal, and many fubordinate clerks, a paymaster of widows! penfions, who has 1067/. per annum, and a deputy; an examiner of army accounts, with affiftants, meffengers, and other officers.

13. THE PAY MASTER GENERAL OF THE FORCES. This of fice was one of the most lucrative in his Majefty's gift, not fo much from his falary, (which was only 3000l. a year), and the perquifites of office, as from the immenfe fums of public money which neceffarily remained in his poffeffion, for a long space of time; as all the money voted by parliament for the land forces paffed through his hands, and the balance was not paid into the treafury until his accounts were fettled. In the year 1782, this office underwent a reform, and the pay master general, deprived of this and all other extraneous fources of emolument, was allowed a fixed falary of 4000/. and his deputy of 1500% per

annum.

The pay mafter general, is conftituted by letters patent, under the great feal, and is always of the privy council. It has not been unusual, of late years, to appoint two perfons to this office, as joint paymasters, in which cafe the falary is not augmented but divided.

The principal perfons in the pay office, befides the deputy or deputies, for this office too is divided, are the accountant general, who has 1200/. per annum, and an affiftant; the cashier 1000l. an affistant ledger keeper 800l. an affiftant cashier of half pay 700l. and computer of off-reckonings 6ool. There are befides many clerks and other perfons in fubordinate employments.

14. POSTMASTER

14. POSTMASTER GENERAL. Before any account is given of the particular duties of this officer, it will be proper to notice the origin, and other circumftances attending the establishment, over which he prefides.

The neceflity and advantage of a speedy and fecure conveyance of letters to all parts of a itate, and to foreign countries, muft at all times have been fenfibly felt by every government, and when once the ruling power had contrived an establishment, calculated to produce thofe effects, it would inevitably follow, that, if the country were free and profperous, the nobility, the men of property, and above all, the commercial part of the community, would obtain the fame benefits, either by participation, or by rivalihip. The conveyance of letters, either of business er kindnefs, by the tardy, infecure, and uncertain mode of ordinary or accidental travellers, or even of perfons employed on purpose, unless adequate provifion were made for their speed and protection, muft from the early periods of civilization, have been felt as a ferious inconvenience. In England it was remedied, at first by provifions expenfive to government; fubfequent improvements removed the defects of the first contrivance; a judicious eftablishment obviated uncertainty in the effect, and the danger arifing from injudicious rivalfhip; experienced utility, procuring general favour, thewed a dawn of profit to the state, and finally, the vigilance of the financier, aided by the ingenuity of fagacious projectors, converted that which had been originally a burden, jato a most fruitful, fecure, and popular fource of revenue.

To travel poft (currere equis pofitis) must have been usual in England, from the time when the effect of her admirable laws began to render the roads fecure, and to afford at once protection and encouragement to thofe, whom bufinefs or pleasure led to vifit places diftant from their own abodes; but the firft recorded inftance of an attempt to apply the benefits of fuch a mode of journeying to the conveyance of letters occurs in 1479, when Edward IV. introduced an eftablishment of riders, with poft horfes, to be changed every twenty miles; who by handing letters from one to another, in two days forwarded them two hundred miles, apparently the furtheft extent of the plan; but this improved mode of conveyance, like that in France, from which it was copied, had no connexion with commerce or public accommodation, unlefs it may be confidered as the first rudiment of the prefent eftablishment. In the reign of Henry VIII. anno 1543, it is recorded, that letters difpatched from London reached Edinburgh on the fourth day; a degree of speed nearly equal to that of modern times, but this was only effected by means of a temporary arrangenient, made for the ufe of go

vernment.

A foreign

A foreign poft was originally established by the alien merchants, refiding in London, who claimed the right of electing a perfon, in whom they could confide, to direct the undertaking. As the bufinefs grew extenfive, the election became a fource of difcord, which occafioning many feuds, the citizens of London, in 1568, requested queen Elizabeth to confign that duty to oneof her English fubjects. This petition does not seem to have been attended with immediate effect, for the first regular nomination of a post-mafter, on record, was made by Jimes I. who conferred that title on Matthew de Quefter, or de l'Equefter; but this was only for foreign letters; and after that period, as before, the bufinefs occafionally fell into the hands of private undertakers. In 1631, Charles I. granted by patent the reverfion of the foreign poft office to William Frizell and Thomas Witherings, and ftrictly enjoined, that none but his foreign poft masters should prefume to exercife any part of that office. In 1635, the fame monarch, obferving that there had been no certain intercourfe between the kingdoms of England and Scotland, iffued a proclamation, commanding his postmafter of England for foreign parts to fettle a running poft, or two, to run night and day between Edinburgh and London; to go and return in fix days, and to take with them all fuch letters as should be directed to any poft town in or near that road; and that bye-pofts fhould be placed at feveral places out of the road, to bring in and carry out the letters from and to Lincoln, Hull, and other places. The like rule was alfo to be observed to Weft Chester, Holyhead, and thence to Ireland; also to Plymouth, Exeter, and other places on the weft road and as foon as poffible the like conveyance to be fettled for Oxford, Bristol, and other towns in that direction; alfo to Colchester, Norwich, and divers other places on that road. The fame proclamation fettled the price for conveyance of letters, and for the hire of horfes for that purpofe, and ordained that no other meffengers, nor any foot pofts fhould carry letters, except to places where the king's poft did not go. This part of the edict being frequently evaded, new proclamations were iffued to enforce it, and the undertaking was in a state of fome profperity before the com mencement of the civil war, which terminated in the murder of Charles I The well conducting of this poft had already engaged the vigilance of government; Witherings was fuperfected for abufes in the execution of his office, which was confided to Peter Burlamachy; to be exercised under the controul of the fecretary of State. The civil war, in courfe, impeded the operations of the poft, but when that was terminated, the protector and parliament, in 1656, erected a new general poft office, which was formed by the fame perfon who held the contract

:

during the life of the king. The profperity of the plan probably incited the merchants of London to attempt one in oppofition, but they were restrained by a vote of the house of com mons; and the ordinance made during the republican government, itates, that the cftablishing one general poft office, befides the benefit to commerce, and the convenience of conveying public difpatches, "will be the beft means to difcover and prevent "many dangerous and wicked defigns against the common"wealth."

Such was the origin of this most important and beneficial eftablishment, the fucceeding efforts of legiflation being confined to the regulation of its operations, the extenfion of its utility, and the augmentation of its profits. Omitting the tedious and uninterefting details of intermediate attempts, it is highly neceffary to notice the great amendment introduced in 1783, by adopting the plan of reform and improvement, invented by John Palmer Efq. and carried into effect by his great ability and perfevering industry, fo neceffary in all reforms, which oppofe the prejudices of long habit. From an undeviating adherence to an established fyftem, and the accumulation of indulgences and abuses, the poft office had fallen into a ftate of general mifmanagement in itfelf, and the revenue was injured, while the public fuffered many inconveniences from thofe caufes, as well as from the incorrect and injudicious system practised in the inland department of the office. The plan of conveying and diftributing letters, having been unvaried for upwards of a century, the poft, instead of being the moft fafe and expeditious, was become the most infecure and tardy conveyance in the kingdom; the mails being intrufted to boys, who were mounted on bad horfes, incapable of defending themfelves, were often plundered. Hence it happened, that, in defiance of every law that could be devifed for preventing it, many perfons preferred fending, at a very advanced price, their letters by any of the numerous vehicles, which the improved ftate of the turnpike roads enabled to travel with expedition, and which were defended by guards conftantly attending and well armed. Comparing the difpatch ufed by the yehicles called diligences, with that which could be effected by the mail, and which confiderably exceeded the proportion of two to one, Mr. Palmer rationally difmiffed every thought of cramping private enterprize by prohibitions, against which the neceffities of every clafs in the community muft have been perpetually ftruggling, and recommended, that government fhould take advantage of the facilities which the advanced fate of the country prefented, and make contracts with the proprietors of the dili gences for conveying the government mails. The train of reafoning which he pursued on the whole of this fubject was

plain, rational, and convincing; he fhewed the best mode of infuring the punctual performance of the contracts, the precife obfervance of fixed times for arrivals, and the faithful escort of guards. His project embraced also the means of increafing the revenue, and diminishing the expence of the new project, by exempting the mail carriages from payment of turnpikes; a heavy tax perhaps on the proprietors of the roads, but an extraordinary faving to the nation at large.

Befides a propofition for regulating the privilege of franking, which was adopted and extended, Mr. Palmer's plan embraced and accomplished a falutary reform throughout the interior of the office; a reform beneficial to the clerks and perfons employed, who previously fuffered in their health from the nature of their duties, and highly advantageous to the public. Since the establishment of Mr. Palmer's fyftem, expedition, fecurity, punctuality, and facility in tranfacting bufinefs, have been the characteristics of the post-office of this kingdom. The time of making up the bags, feven in the evening, inftead of midnight as it was before, has produced, perhaps, more than could be expected, a radical change in the arrangements of life; a long bufy morning, being now fucceeded by a late dinner, and a convivial evening, inftead of the fyftem which formerly prevailed, particularly on poft nights, of making the moft preffing exertions at a late hour, to forward thofe letters, which would elfe perhaps be delayed for feveral days.

The revenue of the poft-office is at this time very confiderable, and perhaps none is paid with greater pleasure, or collected with lefs difficulty. In fact, the payment of postage is not a tax, but a moderate compenfation for an effential fervice; it is the only one which remains of the numerous monopolies, formerly in the power of the crown. The amount of this revenue, always progreffive, has been in the last few years exceedingly extended by judicious management, and by occafional additions to the charge of poftage. The progrefs of improvement fince the first establishment of the poft-office cannot be clearly afcertained, becaufe the records of the early expenditure are not preferved, fo as to afford means of calculating the net produce; and of late years, the increafed commerce of the country has caufed a prodigious augmentation in the expence of packets, which is charged on the grofs receipt of the post-office. Yet fome estimate of its progrefs may be formed from the following statement of the fums rendered, either nett or groís at different periods.

In 1652, the revenue was farmed at 10,000l. before which government paid to the post-mafter for a weekly conveyance of letters, 7000/ per annum.

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