market-people, tradesmen, and others, for the transmission of all sorts of correspondence and communications. The greatest part of the correspondence from Southwold is carried by those market-people, and carriers, and coaches. We are charged 8d. for a letter to Yarmouth, and we can send it by a carrier for 2d. As little as possible goes through the postoffice; letters and communications for places on the coast in the immediate neighbourhood of Southwold are transmitted by means of the coast-guard, by fishermen, boatmen, pilots, and others; there is a constant communication along the shore by means of those boats and the sailors; they carry any thing that people choose to send. He would say that one penny would draw all that correspondence into the postoffice by its cheapness; two-pence would not have that effect, because they can get them carried by the carrier and in other ways now for two-pence. He never heard of any means taken by the post-office to discover the illegal transmission of letters; he never heard of any prosecutions; they must prosecute everybody in the place if they do, so extensive is the practice.

Mr. Alfred Austin is the last witness whose evidence we propose to adduce.

Ev. 8177, &c.—He practised as an attorney in London from 1821 to 1835. His business was almost entirely agency business. He has read Mr. Hill's pamphlet twice with care, and has considered what may be its effect upon the administration of the law. As nearly as he can possibly ascertain it, there are 7300 attorneys practising beyond the limits of the twopenny post, in England and Wales. In equity and common law the proceedings originate in London for the whole kingdom, and attorneys in the country employ agents to conduct the proceedings that take place in London. Business is carried on by means of a constant correspondence between the country attorney and the London agent. He estimates from his experience in his own practice that this correspondence gives about 36,500l. per annum, or 57. for each of the 7300 attorneys. Besides this there is, for instance, the correspondence between country attorney and country attorney; that between the London attorney and the country attorney, not upon agency business; and also that between attorneys ge

nerally all over the country, and between them and their clients who live at a distance; it is impossible to assign the amount of it; but he would say it cannot be less than the amount of the postage already mentioned. He has not the least doubt that a reduction of the rate of postage would produce very great benefit to the community, as regards this particular description of correspondence. The postage that is now paid, whatever the amount of it may be, is in fact a direct tax upon the administration of the law, and, in a great many cases, a direct tax upon the administration of justice itself. The attorney pays it in the first instance, but charges it to the client; it of course must come out of the pocket of the latter in the end. It is a tax, too, of no very inconsiderable importance with regard to its amount; it amounts to half as much as the stamps amounted to before the repeal of the duties upon common law and equity proceedings in 1824, which for several years before the repeal amounted to about 150,000l. annually. A very large portion of the professional correspondence is carried on not through the post. In the first place, as between agent and country attorney. In agency business the communications are not merely what may be contained in a letter, but they constantly consist of one, two, or more sheets of paper; these communications are all made by parcel, and in the parcel by which they are sent, a letter explaining them, or giving directions regarding them, is sent. It is the uniform practice, with this exception, if a parcel is sent, in which matters of importance, for instance, of evidence, like bills of exchange, &c. are enclosed, a letter concerning the contents of the parcel at the same time is despatched by the post; but in almost every other case the plan mentioned is pursued. They are sent by coach; not of course with a fraudulent view, but it is and has been the common practice ever since he has been acquainted with the profession. The different documents relating to the different suits carried on, writs, and so on, subpoenas, &c., are all sent by parcel. The charge for a writ is double postage, both as a letter and by weight. Nearly all of them are sent by parcel, though some may go by post. The average difference of expense of sending them by coach parcel and by post is something between a single postage and a double postage. Innumerable other

documents besides writs are sent by parcel. Deeds are always sent by parcel; but if they could be sent at any moderate rate of postage, from the greater certainty of the post-delivery that way would be preferred. He has endeavoured to ascertain the number of writs sent by parcel from London to the country. Upon the assumption that there are 60,000 actions begun in the country annually, there would be about 100,000 of those writs every year; writs of different kinds; in each of one-half of the actions begun, it may be assumed there are two writs issued. He cannot speak to the number of letters sent by him by post and by coach parcel, but he can speak to the number received by him from the country. He has looked into the correspondence for four years, from one client who has a very fair average agency business, a very careful, clever man of business, and understands the mode of carrying it on economically, and he has drawn up this statement :—

[The Witness read, and delivered in the following Document:]

This he considers a very fair average case, as far as his experience goes. By far the greater majority of these would go by post if Mr. Hill's plan be adopted. There are huge parcels of briefs and so on that could not pass through the post-office, but nearly in every other case these parcels would go by the post. It is fair to presume, if they were carried by the post, that the number of letters sent through the post-office would be about doubled. Assuming there was no increase of correspondence, every parcel must bear a double postage at the least; it would bear a double now, being above weight, and the revenue to be received, assuming the rate for a moment not to vary, would increase in a far greater ratio than a double postage; many of them would be double or treble letters. They would be in a fourfold rate nearly; assuming that they

were double letters, and that the numbers were also double, it would be increasing in a fourfold ratio. From the present high rate of postage he thinks that professional correspondence is often considerably delayed, the parties waiting till they can communicate in the same letter matters relating to a variety of business. He gives instances of this. In the first letter he looks at, there are five different suits mentioned. He attributes the including a number of subjects in the same letter to the wish of the writer to save himself the trouble of folding up and writing many letters, and in a considerable measure to the heavy charge which postage occasions; but it is mainly owing to the expense of the postage. In fact, the rate of postage occasions professional men rather to allow professional business to run into arrear. He would not say accumulation of business arises, but postponement; the country client postpones writing from this day to that day in hopes of having something else to write upon; and the same thing happens with the London agent, he does not write unless the matter is pressing. Now the consequence would be this, if postage was an immaterial object, letters would be written from day to day as matters arose in the office. It is very inconvenient now to attorneys to put off things from day to day; if you look at an attorney's common-place book you will see matters to be written about postponed from day to day. Looking at the number of letters now transmitted otherwise than by post, which would be transmitted by post, and also looking at the increase of correspondence which would take place, he would say, from his own feelings and experience, that he should have written twice as many letters at least. He should say a fair estimate of the increase, taking the two classes together, was between five and six fold. The saving to the profession and to the client would be very considerable from this reduction of postage; and even supposing that postage under the reduced system should amount to as much as it does now, there would be all the carriage of parcels saved, which he is inclined to think is half as much again as the present amount of postage; the carriage of a parcel is always more than single postage.

Mr. Parker asks.]. In professional correspondence would not great advantage be derived to the profession from a reduc

tion to 2d. or 4d. ?-No doubt, the benefit that would arise to the profession would be this, that they would not be so much money out of pocket for a certain time; the money is always charged again.

As to this class of correspondence, the profession would be satisfied with a much smaller reduction than a penny?—I cannot speak to the feeling of the profession.

What is your feeling?—They would like a reduction, however small.

Would not you have the same increase of correspondence if the reduction was to 3d. or 4d. ?—No.

He has read Mr. Hill's book, and he agrees with him in the advantage of an uniform rate for all distances, as far as he is capable of judging of the matter. He knows the plan, and as far as his opinion is worth any thing, it is quite in favour of it. He does not know whether a loss might or might not follow the actual introduction of it; but, supposing it to be introduced, his opinion is, that the revenue would suffer very little, owing to the great increase of letters. To make the revenue the primary object of the post-office is quite out of the question; it is the same objection as making law a matter of revenue, or any thing else affecting the moral condition of the people. He looks at the postage independent of the question of revenue, but as regards the happiness and improvement of the people.

We shall conclude with a brief account of what Mr. Hill's plan consists.

He proposes that there shall be an uniform rate of postage for all letters of a certain weight, without reference to the distance they may be carried. That the postage shall be paid by the sender and not by the receiver of the letter, through the medium of stamped papers of various sorts, which will be furnished by all post-offices and stationers, and any who may choose to sell them; and that the rate of postage shall be one penny for every half ounce weight. Those of our

readers who are anxious about the public revenue, should this penny rate be adopted, we must refer to the evidence and the conclusive arguments of the Report, where it is demonstrated beyond a doubt, that a penny a letter will fully pay all ex