JOHN PALMER AND THE MAIL COACH SYSTEM. 25 



CHAPTER VI. 



JOHN PALMER AND THE MAIL COACH SYSTEM. 



One of the most memorable events to be recorded in 

 the Annals of the Road is the introduction of the mail 

 coach system, for which the country was indebted to the 

 late John Palmer, M.P. for Bath. It superseded Mr. 

 Allen's system of post-boys, whose travelling rate was 

 by contract five miles an hour. The mails used to be 

 generally entrusted, says Mr. Palmer, to some idle boy 

 without character, who was mounted on a worn-out 

 hack, and who so far from being able to defend himself 

 or to escape from a robber, was more likely to be in 

 leaeue with him. 



Mr. Palmer was aware that sometimes tradesmen 

 sent letters by the stage coach on account of the frequent 

 robberies of the letters sent by the post-boys. ' Why, 

 therefore,' said he, ' should not the stage coach, well 

 protected by armed guards, under certain conditions to 

 be specified, carry the mail bags ? ' This substitution of 

 a stringf of mail coaches for the ' worn-out hacks ' was 

 the leading feature of his plan. His proposals also in- 

 cluded the timing of the mails at each successive stage, 

 so that they might all as far as possible be delivered 



