GUARDS. 37l 



portunity of exposing imposition, and of standing up for 

 the rights of the public. I was travelling a short time 

 since by a coach, when, at the second change out of 

 London, a guard presented himself to be paid by the 

 passengers. On another occasion a postilion who drove 

 the leaders attempted to kick. My answer to him was 

 this : ' Tell your master he does not want six horses, but 

 he wants a coachman who can drive the other four ! There 

 is another species of imposition, which should be reso- 

 lutely opposed by the public, and this is, the demand of 

 twopence on a parcel before it is delivered from the 

 office, after the carriage is paid. For instance, I book a 

 parcel in London, and pay twopence booking : another 

 twopence is demanded in many offices, besides the 

 amount of the carriage. This is a fraud on the public, 

 for where can the parcel be deposited, but in the office of 

 the town it is directed to be left at ? 



I have another word to say respecting mail guards. 

 It is nothing less than an imposition on the public that 

 these servants ol the Crown should be paid by persons 

 travelling in mail-coaches. Government allows them 

 nothing more than a mere pittance of a few shillings a 

 week, leaving the public to pay them; whereas the public 

 have nothing to do with them. That they carry lire-arms 

 is true, but it is to protect the letter-bags — the property 

 which Government is paid to protect — that they would use 

 these fire-arms, and not on account of the passengers. 

 In short, strictly speaking, they have nothing to do with 

 the passengers nor their luggage, their sole duty being to 

 protect the mail. I therefore contend that, as Govern- 



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