THE SILK INDUSTRY IN WESSEX. 91 



Lighting was entirely by candles or rushlights, the latter 

 being used in the night. The candle bill for the winter months 

 averaged about 40, but the greater portion of the supply was 

 consumed, of course, in the silk mill. Coal cost about 2 2s. 

 the load, the weight not being stated. Lamps were not 

 used in the mill until 1800. 



I find purchases of prints from John Boydell, in Cheapside, 

 and of table silver and condiments from ether London shops ; 

 also an Irish lottery ticket dated 1786, and a reference to a 

 similar ticket which was bought for 16 12s., both apparently 

 were unlucky. 



THE POST OFFICE. 



A few notes on postal matters may not be out of place. 

 Envelopes being then unknown, each letter-sheet bears on 

 the back the amount of the postage written in ink, together 

 with the date stamp and the address. The postage between 

 Sher borne and London for a single letter (that is, one eheet 

 not exceeding an ounce in weight) was 4d. in the years 1776 

 to 1784. In the last named year the charge was increased 

 to 5d., and again to 7d. on letters of 1799. The postage 

 was alwaj's based on distance, thus, from Chard to Sherborne 

 was 3d. and from Jersey od. The recipient of a letter almost 

 invariably paid the postage ; in one case an irate silk-weaver 

 debits Willmott with the cost of " three unnecessary letters " 

 as a warning. As a matter of fact, the proportion of prepaid 

 correspondence is less than three per cent, of the whole, the 

 post office allowing either course to be adopted. It would 

 seem, therefore, that the symbols used to indicate prepay- 

 ment are not without interest, since they are " postage 

 stamps " in the literal sense of the phrase which now denotes 

 an adhesive label. Two varieties of such symbols occur on 

 our correspondence The first, which \\as used in 1786, is 

 a triangular stamp in black ink bearing the words " Paid 

 penny post," with sundry letters in the centre ; the latter 



