In the country, the auxiliary postmen received from 8 cents to 10 cents an hour. The Postmaster General continued with the statement that the increases in wages and the concessions granted by Mr. Fawcett and Mr. Raikes had augmented the combined expenditures of the postal branch and telegraph branch by $3,750,000 a year.[166] "In 1881, the wages formed 48.7 per cent. of the gross expenditure, whereas now they formed 59.9 per cent.... He did not think that he need add to those figures, except to say that in addition to salaries there were a large number of allowances for special duties. In the circulation office in London were 4,000 sorters, of whom 250 had each an allowance of $2.50 a week, while a very large number had allowances of $1.25, $0.75 and $0.50, of which never a word was said when complaints were made about salaries." The demands made by the telegraphists would increase the State's expenditures by $3,250,000 a year, "taking into account the consequential advances which other classes in the Public Service, treated on the same footing, would naturally receive." Similarly, the letter sorters made an application involving a direct increase of $635,000, and an indirect increase of another $2,500,000. Mr. Morley next recited some statistics to show, "first of all, the desire among people outside to come into the Post Office Service, and secondly, the disinclination of those inside to go out." The Post Office recently had called for 650 male letter sorters, and had received 1,506 applications. A call for 188 "telegraph learners," had brought out 2,486 candidates. In London, in 1894, there had been no resignations among 1,261 first class sorters, and 23 resignations among 2,958 second class sorters. Out of 5,000 London postmen, 19 had resigned in 1894; and in the 5 years ending with 1894, a total of 5,700 telegraphists had furnished 348 resignations, including the resignations of women who left the service in order to marry.[167] "He could not help thinking that when the working men got to know to the full extent the terms and prospects of Postal Service, the sympathy which they had so freely bestowed on Post Office employees would be largely withdrawn." [Sidenote: _The Government compromises with the Civil Servants_]