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435
Her Majesty's Mails
·
William Lewins
209
The
revelations
made
in
the
two
Committees
with
reference
to
foreign
correspondence,
especially
that
of
foreign
Ministers
accredited
at
the
English
Court,
were
very
remarkable,
and
not
likely
to
induce
confidence
in
our
postal
arrangements
on
the
part
of
other
powers.
It
was
shown
that
in
times
of
war
whole
foreign
mails
had
been
known
to
have
been
detained,
and
the
letters
almost
individually
examined.
The
Lords'
Committee
went
so
far
as
to
say
it
was
clear,
"that
it
had
been
for
a
long
period
of
time
and
under
successive
administrations,
up
to
the
present
time,
an
established
practice
that
the
foreign
correspondence
of
foreign
Ministers
passing
through
the
General
Post-Office
should
be
sent
to
a
department
of
the
Foreign
Office,
before
the
forwarding
of
such
correspondence,
according
to
the
address."
What
the
feelings
of
foreign
Governments
were
at
this
revelation
may
well
be
imagined.
They
would
know,
of
course,
that
the
English
Government,
hundreds
of
years
ago,
had
not
scrupled
to
lay
violent
hands
on
the
letters
of
their
representatives,
if
by
any
possibility
they
could
get
hold
of
them.
When
Wolsey,
for
example,
wanted
possession
of
the
letters
of
the
ambassadors
of
Charles
V.
he
went
to
work
very
openly,
having
ordered
"a
watche
should
be
made"
in
and
about
London,
and
all
persons
going
en
route
to
the
Continent
to
be
questioned
and
searched.
"One
riding
towards
Brayneford,"
says
an
early
record,
"when
examyned
by
the
watche,
answered
so
closely,
that
upon
suspicion
thereof,
they
searched
hym,
and
found
secretly
hyd
aboute
hym
a
pacquet
of
letters
in
French."
In
the
reign
of
Queen
Mary,
Gardiner
ordered
that
the
messengers
of
Noailles,
the
French
ambassador,
should
be
taken
and
searched
in
much
the
same
manner.[123]
Notwithstanding
this,
they
would
scarcely
be
prepared
for
the
information
that
later
Governments,
with
less
to
fear,
had
preferred
more
secret
measures,
establishing
a
system
of
espionage
which
was
certainly
not
in
accordance
with
the
English
character,
or
likely
to
subserve
the
interests
of
peace
in
Europe.
That
the
arrangement
with
regard
to
foreign
mails
was
unlawful,
may
be
judged
by
the
prompt
action
which
was
taken
in
the
matter.
"Since
June,
1844,
the
Postmaster-General,"
so
runs
the
Lords'
Report
two
months
later,
"having
had
his
attention
called
to
the
fact,
that
there
was
no
sufficient
authority
for
this
practice,
has
discontinued
it
altogether."
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