IO± l Office.] o^ FEES, GRATUITIES, & c. inveftigate the Books and Documents from which it was made up ; but for the feveral payments and allowances, & c. regular vouchers fhould be produced. Some time previous to the commencement of our Enquiries into the ftate of this department, we _ called for a Return of the annual Amount of the Poft- Office Revenue, from its Eftablifhment in the year 1784, but not haying received it, we have from the Poft- Office books, as correfted by Mr. Murphy, made up the' fol- lowing Account of its Grofs and Net Produce for each year fince the above period, and of the payments and deductions thereout, under the refpe& ive heads of Management and Returns, excluding the Items belonging to the Britifh Account, which we already noticed as having been improperly introduced into the Irifh A. ccount. In making up this Account we have neceffarily been obliged, in every year but the laft, to overftate the amount of the Returns, and equally to underftate the expence of Management, owing to the practice that had formerly prevailed of crediting the Deputy Poftmafters for their incidental payments, under the head of Returns, without diftinguifhing the amount of each. The amount of the inci- dental payments however is very confiderable, and will not materially affect the Account. The following are the Rates of Poftage in the order in which they have been impofed during the period of the above Account: d. 2 d, 2 For the conveyance of a fingle letter to any diftance not exceeding 15 miles - - - - - exceeding 15 and not exceeding 30 miles - 3 - - - exceeding 30 miles - 4 . - - exceeding 30 and not exceeding 50 miles . - - exceeding 50 and not exceeding 80 miles - " • - - exceeding 80 miles - But the Poft Office Revenue, independent of any augmentation occasioned by additions made to the rates of Poftage, appears to have been, efpeaally of late years, progreffively increafing, towards which however the reftjifbGn impofed from time to time on the privilege of franking, muft be confidered as having con- tributed. With refped to the net produce in the year ending 5th January 1809, 23d & 24th ! 37 Geo III Geo III. c. 3. c. 11. 5 6 45 Geo. III. c. 21. d, 3 4 6 7