“Slaves cannot breathe in England;
They touch our country, and their shackles fall.”
Whether the foregoing remarks had any influence of the action of the postal authorities, there was nothing in the way of acknowledgement to show, but it was not long afterwards that a basket-carriage was employed for at least the morning delivery, to convey the St. Leonards postmen to certain points on the front line, and there set them down to commence their work. In the mean time, the following letter appeared in the Hastings News :-
“Sir, - Will you permit me to say that it seems rather ‘early days’ to write so confidently as you do in your last issue of the recent changes in the postal service of this part of the borough. For myself I can only say that under the former régime I used to get my first delivery of letters about half an hour before eight in the morning, and consequently, before I had to start for London on the days that I go there. Now I get them at times ranging between eight and half past eight; and with respect to the afternoon delivery, which I used to receive at about half-past one or a quarter to two. It now usually reaches me at about three. Possibly at first matters are less settled than they may be after a time; and all I ask is, that while we are suffering from later deliveries, you should not write as if we had experienced no inconvenience from the change, nor conclude that you can gather ‘an illustration’ of the proverbial saying you quote, till you have ascertained more fully the results of the recent alteration by the testimony of your numerous readers in this part of the borough.”
I am, Sir, your obedient servant,
“A Resident at St. Leonards
A New Mail. The removal of the long-established East-Coast Mail-cart justly complained of, was remedied on the 1st of August by the making up a bag at the Hastings post-office for the 7.10 p.m. train to Ashford, which conveyed correspondence to all the principal towns of East Kent, every day except Sunday.
More Deficiencies. Another result of the recent postal changes was the doing away with of the branch-office at White-rock place, whereby much inconvenience was felt by the inhabitants of that locality as well as by those of Claremont, Carlisle parade, Verulam place and Eversfield place. The closing of this branch office resulted in a district of a mile and a half of the most valuable property in the -
