[211] Clerks in the Solicitor's Office are examined also in conveyancing, and in the general principles of equity and common law. [212] A Post-Office Mutual Guarantee Fund, suggested by Mr. Banning, the postmaster of Liverpool, is in active operation in London, and deserves mention. By means of this fund many officers of the Post-Office have been relieved from the necessity of providing personal securities, or of paying yearly sums to some guarantee office. Any clerk in London who may wish to join _deposits_ the sum of 10_s._, and letter-carriers 5_s._ These deposits are invested in the name of trustees in Government securities. There are at present nearly 3,000 subscribers, with an invested capital of 900_l._ Last year there were no demands at all on the fund except payments to members leaving the service, who not only draw out their original deposits, but are entitled to receive back a proportionate amount of interest after defaults have been paid. APPENDIX (D). APPOINTMENTS IN THE CHIEF OFFICE IN LONDON. (_Extracted from the Estimates of 1864-5._) In all cases marked thus * the present holders of office, or some of them, receive additional allowances, either on account of length of service, compensation, as paid on some previous _scale_ of salary, or for extra work. ----------+----------------------+------------------------------------- _Number_ | | _Salary of Office._ _of_ | _Designation._ +-----------+------------+------------ _Persons._| | _Minimum | _Annual | _Maximum | |per Annum._|Increment._ |per Annum._ ----------+----------------------+-----------+------------+------------ | | £ | £ _s._ | £ 1 | Postmaster-General | -- | -- | 2,500 1 | Secretary | 1,500 |after 5 yrs | 2,000 2 | Assistant | 700 | 50 0 | 1,000 | Secretaries* | | | | | | | |_Secretary's Office._ | | | | | | | 1 | Chief Clerk | 600 | 25 0 | 800 |{Principal Clerk } | | | 1 |{for Foreign and } | 600 | 25 0 | 800 |{Colonial Business*} | | | 11 | First-class Clerks:--| | | | 4 First Section | 500 | 25 0 | 600 | 7 Second Section* | 400 | 20 0 | 500 4 | Senior Clerks | -- | -- | 440 19 | Second-class Clerks* | 260 | 15 0 | 380 16 | Third-class Clerks | 120 | 10 0 | 240 11 | Supplementary Clerks | 80 | 5 0 | 150