322 HABITS OF LORD GEORGE BENTINCK. 



wax or heat upon the wafer, and that between the 

 two no one would be able to tamper with my 

 letters. He then communicated with the Post 

 Office authorities, who soon discovered that the 

 delinquents were two sorters named Saunders and 

 Tapson, who were dismissed the service. It was 

 the oj)inion of the law officers of the Crown that 

 these men, having ojDened but not having stolen 

 the letters, could not be further punished. If 

 such an outrage were to be perpetrated now, the 

 offenders would probably find themselves much 

 more severely dealt with than their predecessors 

 were in 1844. 



About the same time a well-known pugilist who 

 kept a tavern not far from the Haymarket was 

 found to be implicated in the conspiracy with 

 these rascally Post Office employees. When Red 

 Deer won the Chester Cup the pugilist in question 

 landed a large stake, and gave a sumptuous dinner 

 to his friends, at the close of which he produced 

 some wonderfully fine old port and brandy, which 

 turned out (as he anticipated) to be a capital ad- 

 vertisement, for the same brand of port and of 

 cognac proved to be as inexhaustible as the widow's 

 cruse of oil in Scripture. To prevent treachery 

 among the numerous lads and servants employed 

 in such an immense stable, many of whom were, of 

 course, exposed to all sorts of temptations when 

 attending race meetings, was found to be almost 

 impossible. In one instance I succeeded, however. 



