In the case of the sorters’ agitation, an inter-departmental inquiry, known as the “Luminous Committee,” sat to decide on the merits of their claim, and in the case of the telegraphists particularly a committee of officials investigated and reported on their grievances. But it was impossible owing to the eruptive state of the service, and the enormous amount of responsibility and detail work involved, to settle all these conflicting claims spontaneously and immediately. The after effects of the postmen’s strike fully occupied Mr. Raikes for some months. Another man perhaps would have made lighter work of it, and allowed the regrettable incident to drop into oblivion. Not so Mr. Raikes. Physically run down as he was with the strain of his great responsibilities and the stupendous load of work this trying time brought him, even when he should have sought a holiday, he decided to do all that was consistent with his dignity as a minister to repair the losses to the penitent postmen. He early received a deputation of their body, and promised that he would carefully weigh every extenuating circumstance which could be urged on behalf of each individual of the strikers. This same assurance he gave to the House of Commons during the debate on the Post-Office Vote, July 23; and despite the warning of his medical adviser, immediately set to work to redeem a promise which meant so much to so many. He left England for a short holiday at Royat, but it was a holiday full of work for him; for the voluminous papers in connection with the postmen followed him daily. There is no reason to think that his inquiry into each painful case was not as conscientious as he promised it should be, but some doubt seems to have been raised by Mr. Pickersgill, M.P., and some correspondence was published between them. The Postmaster-General mentioned that he had devoted one whole week unceasingly to investigating and comparing all the appeal letters and reports bearing on each particular case, “with the earnest desire of finding grounds which might in any individual instance warrant a mitigation of the punishment which all the men had been warned must follow such an offence.” In the result somewhere about fifty were restored to duty shortly afterwards, and several others, by the further influence of members of Parliament, were one by one reinstated.