The post office and its story an interesting account of the activities of a great government department

In 1850 a new President was appointed, and he proved to be a different man from his predecessor, and to the astonishment of his subordinates he declined pheasants and refused special leave. The Office had now grown considerably, and there were no less than 160 clerks. In 1854 a Commission, of which the late Sir Stafford Northcote was chairman, made a thorough investigation into the working of the Office, and many of the old abuses were swept away. One of the reforms which affected the public was to allow crossed Orders to be paid through banks without the usual formalities over a post office counter. Almost from the first the Office undertook the free payment of Orders issued by the spending departments at Whitehall, the greater part of which consisted of Orders issued by the Admiralty and War Office in payment of pensions to soldiers and sailors. No payment is made to the Post Office for the work, but the advantages to the pensioner are great and obvious. By means of Money Orders they obtain payment at the nearest offices to their homes instead of having to attend personally at central pay offices and running the risk of being swindled by sharpers. The Foreign Order system came into operation during the Crimean War. The British army in the East, and especially the civilian element of the expedition, who had not, like the soldiers, a regular official means of remitting money home, felt the need of some special arrangements for this purpose. Miss Nightingale remitted for these people no less a sum than £50 a week during 1855, and at the end of the year it was decided that the Army Post Office should issue Money Orders at inland rates at Constantinople, Scutari Headquarters, and Balaclava. The system began in January 1856, and during the first eight weeks more than £13,000 was remitted. The total amount sent home during the war was £106,000.