Unfortunately, however, it must be said, though there is excuse in abundance, that his good intention was hardly balanced by a due sense of proportion. That was the principal internal fault of the scheme. While it naturally satisfied the sorters for the time, it brought little more than disappointment to the telegraphists, who expected so much more than was apportioned them. It left the postmen and the auxiliary postmen just where they were before in point of pay, their only share being a prospect of partaking of the minor advantages, such as payment for overtime and sacred days, which presumably were now to be enjoyed in common by all classes. A measure which, by its fault of disproportion, must inevitably engender the jealousy of the less favoured against their comrades in the service, could not be regarded as a final settlement. It was successful only to an extent as a temporary solution of an existing difficulty, but not as the ultimate settlement for all time of a troublesome problem. Probably its author would have claimed no more for it than this; but even on these grounds it might have gone further. That this scheme, costing the country as it did £152,000 per annum, and affecting ten thousand servants, was not made to go further, so as to bring some measure of material benefit to the postmen and auxiliaries and others, was to be regretted. Doubtless Mr. Fawcett felt that he had gone far enough in recommending benefits involving such a reduction on the yearly profits of the Post-Office; but a little closer consideration of the conditions of the letter-carrier class at that time might have averted the trouble among them which arose later on. There is this, however, to be said in extenuation of its shortcomings in respect to the letter-carriers. They either did not take Mr. Fawcett’s invitation to state their grievances as seriously addressed to themselves, or, from some misunderstanding, their case was not put as fully and as convincingly as it might. The Postmaster-General therefore possibly felt justified in thinking that the letter-carriers were more or less satisfied with their position and prospects, and he was not induced to go out of his way on their behalf. With the letter-sorters the matter was rather different; they had responded, even if none too vigorously, with the result, as has been shown, that the five shillings taken off their weekly wage some years before by Lord John Manners was now restored to them. That was the single advantage by which they scored over the letter-carriers. The strength and the justice of the Fawcett scheme lay principally in the fact that new privileges were to be enjoyed in common; that at least every man in the Post-Office could claim payment for Christmas Day and Good Friday; and that payment for extra duty was adjusted in fair proportion to his salary. These were in themselves no inconsiderable advantages, which were worth being thankful for.