O Rowland Hill! O Rowland Hill! Thou man of proud imperious will! Forbear to crush, with iron hand, The drudges under thy command; And strive to purify thy fame From stains that now defile thy name. Hast thou all sense of justice lost, Great Monarch of the Penny Post? Thou takest care, O Rowland Hill! Thy own big-bellied purse to fill; But woe betide the hapless wight, If thou canst nibble at his mite. Is not thy service rather dear, At fifteen hundred pounds a year? Thy brother, with a thousand too, Methinks is pretty well to do: And then thy Son, that hopeful sprig, Five hundred hath to laugh and jig. So thou hast feathered well thy nest, And now canst giggle with the best. But sometimes, Rowland! cast a thought, On those by labour overwrought; Nor crimp them of their scanty pay, That thou mayst revel with the gay; Invoke their blessing, not their curse, And thou wouldst never fare the worse. There is reason to believe that the lines were produced by the printers of the _Civil Service Gazette_. The lines gave an immense amount of secret satisfaction among the class of men to whom the poet was supposed to belong. But better was in store. Following almost immediately on the publication of the verse, the _Civil Service Gazette_ announced its early intention to ventilate the grievances of the “Fags” and “White Niggers” of the postal service. Great was the jubilation among the aggrieved men, for each confidently expected to borrow a copy from his neighbour when it came out. The _Civil Service Gazette_ was a luxury few could afford ordinarily in those days, costing as it did fivepence, principally owing to the paper duty not being yet repealed. It was the very first time that any public organ had shown the courage and independence to take up in this manner the little-known case of the sorters and letter-carriers. They were naturally delighted, and devoured the articles with avidity. Now that their grievances had at last found ventilation in all the glory of print, surely the day of their deliverance was close at hand.