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

To the outsider the business of the Department may seem to consist mainly of the simple work of receiving and paying away money, but the correspondence with the public on matters arising out of their accounts is a huge item in the day's work. Correspondence is necessary on such subjects as depositors insane, depositors abroad, depositors married, husbands' claims, depositors deceased, lost deposit-books, fraudulent withdrawals, and “depositors apprehensive.” The difficulties and perplexities of the British public on the subject of money are known to no person more fully than the Controller of the Post Office Savings Bank. He is sometimes tempted to wonder what are the benefits achieved by the Compulsory Education Acts. For instance a depositor writes: “I received from your General Post Office a paper containing all about Stock, and I do not quite understand it, whether it is for land, corn, or silk stuffs. As I am taking up in it will you kindly write and let me know.” Many farmers who are familiar only with one application of the word “Stock” have desired to make purchases of cattle through the medium of the Post Office. And one lady who had exceeded the amount allowed in her deposit account was asked if she would like to invest the excess in Stock, and she replied regretfully that her garden was already full up, and she had no room for more. A depositor who had presumably suffered from recent fluctuations of price in the Stock market wrote a letter to the Controller and addressed the envelope: “The Roleing Stock Department, General Post Office.” It was delivered in the first place, of course, to the Stores Department, General Post Office.