"That your Petitioner desires to submit the truth of the foregoing allegations to the severest scrutiny, and therefore humbly prays your honourable House will be pleased to institute an inquiry into the state of the Post-Office, with the view of adopting such measures as may seem best for fully carrying into effect your Petitioner's plans of Post-Office improvement, and thus realizing the undoubted intentions of the Legislature." The prayer of the petition was granted, and its proceedings are duly chronicled.[113] The object of this committee was "to inquire into the measures which have been adopted for the general introduction of a penny rate of postage, and for facilitating the conveyance of letters; the results of such measures, as far as relates to the revenue and expenditure of the Post-Office and the general convenience of the country; and to report their observations thereon to the House." Before proceeding to give any account of the further measures brought under discussion in connexion with this committee, we must give, in a few sentences, a _résumé_ of the principal improvements which had actually been carried out during the interval of the sittings of the two committees. 1. The uniform rate of one penny for a letter not above half an ounce, with weight adopted as the standard for increase of charge. 2. The value of a system of prepayment was established,[114] the necessary facility being afforded by the introduction of postage-stamps. Double postage was levied on letters not prepaid _in London only_. 3. Day-mails were established on the principal railway-lines running out of London, thus giving some of the principal towns in the provinces one additional delivery, with two mails from the metropolis in one day. 4. An additional delivery was established in London, and two were given to some of the suburbs. 5. Colonial and foreign rates for letters were greatly lowered, the inland rates--viz. the rates paid for those letters passing through this country--being abandoned altogether in some cases, as Mr. Hill had recommended. 6. The privilege of franking, private and official, was abolished, and low charges made for the transmission of parliamentary papers. 7. Arrangements were made for the registration of letters. 8. The Money-order Office was rendered available to a fourfold extent. And-- 9. The number of letters increased from 75 millions in 1838-9, to 219 millions in 1842-3.[115]