economy in administration, would prevent imprudent extensions of postal accommodation, and would prevent also any feeling of jealousy between the provinces with regard to the application of the funds of the establishment to the extension of services in the respective provinces; (2) they thought the various provinces would be more likely to accept a system under local control, each province defraying the entire cost of its service, and retaining all postage collected within its limits, whether prepaid or post-paid.[123] The Home authorities accepted the recommendations of the conference, subject to a few slight modifications in non-essentials, and an Act, passed in 1849, authorized provincial Legislatures to establish posts within their respective territories, but gave them no authority over the posts between the colonies and places abroad.[124] The transfer of the Post Office systems to the provincial Governments was accomplished in 1851. Delegates from all the colonies met to consider the arrangements to be made for conducting the office under the new conditions. With the example of England before them, as before the world, the delegates were anxious for a uniform rate, and for a low uniform rate. They realized, however, that conditions vastly different from those prevailing in England prevailed in British North America. With their great distances and their thinly settled districts, with the rigours of the American climate and the generally poor state of the roads, it could not be anticipated that rates which had been found successful in England, with its comparatively small area and dense population, with its less difficult climate and its better facilities for intercommunication, would prove equally successful. In the end a compromise was adopted--uniformity of rate, but a rate moderately high, viz. 5 cents.[125] A period of great development ensued, especially in the Maritime Provinces. Under the stimulus of the reduction of the rate to the new uniform charge of 5 cents per 1/2 ounce, in place of a charge graduated by distance which had averaged over 8d. a letter, the number of letters increased so rapidly that in four years the gross revenue had recovered its former level.[126] But in both Nova Scotia and New Brunswick the account regularly showed a heavy deficit, in partial explanation of which there was the fact that both Governments carried newspapers in the mails free of charge. In Canada, with a larger number of commercial communities, the results were somewhat better. But even there the accounts showed a deficit until 1859. From that year there was an annual surplus until 1865, when the heavy charges for conveyance of the mails by railway began to tell.