Page:The life and letters of Sir John Henniker Heaton bt. (IA lifelettersofsi00port).pdf/245

 agitation 1½d. carriage for every letter was charged by the Governments of France and Italy. The charge was reduced to less than 1d. per letter.

5. The introduction of post cards to and from Australia.

6. The reduction of ocean postage to Australia from 6d. to 4d. per letter, and the reduction of postage to the Cape of Good Hope from 6d. to 4d. per letter.

7. Extension of the Parcel Post to France.

8. Introduction of the Telegraph Money Order into England.

9. Further reduction of postage to Australia from 6d. and 4d. to 24d. per letter from January 1st, 1891.

In the years that followed H. H. added continually to the list of concessions wrung from the G.P.O. Perhaps one that gave him most personal satisfaction was the abolition of charges on lost or delayed postal orders.

,—It was with supreme satisfaction I received from my bankers this morning a note informing me that they had placed to my credit the sum of 7s., being the amount of two postal orders for 3s. 6d. each collected from His Majesty's Government on Thursday—fourteen years after issue.

These two postal orders are familiar to the House of Commons, for I have exhibited them frequently during debates as examples of Post Office stupidity. The law was that any postal order not presented for payment within a period of three months of issue was subjected to a fine equal to the original amount paid for poundage, and so on for each additional three months. To the Postmaster-General I pointed