After de Quester had been appointed Foreign Postmaster-General, he published, in 1626, an incomplete set of rates from and to various places on the continent. His charges for "packets," and by packets he meant letters or parcels carried by a special messenger, were as follows:-- To the Hague £7. To Brussels or Paris £10. To Vienna £60. The ordinary rates were:-- To or from any of the above places 30_s._ To or from any part of Germany 6_s._ From Venice for a single letter 9_d._[562] From Venice for any letter over a single letter 2_s._ 8_d._ From Leghorn and Florence for a single letter 1_s._ From Leghorn and Florence over a single letter 3_s._an ounce.[563] This system of rates, although crude, marks a distinct era in postal progress. It forms the foundation of the plan which was perfected a few years later by Witherings. De Quester also published a statement of the days of departure of the regular posts with foreign letters.[564] In the trial between Stanhope and de Quester over the question of who should be Foreign Postmaster-General, it came out in the evidence that Stanhope had been accustomed to receive 8_d._ for every letter to Hamburg, Amsterdam, and Antwerp.[565] This charge was rather in the nature of a perquisite than a legal rate and serves partly to explain why Stanhope was so anxious to retain the monopoly of the foreign post. [562] The rate from Venice had been _16d._ By a single letter is meant one piece of paper. [563] _Cal. S. P. D._, 1625-26, p. 523. [564] _Ibid._, 1628-29, p. 538. [565] _Rep. Com._, 1844, xiv, app., p. 48 (25). Witherings' rates for domestic postage, as fixed by Royal Proclamation in 1635, were as follows for a single letter:-- _d._ Under 80 miles 2 Between 80 and 140 miles 4 Over 140 miles 6 On the Borders and in Scotland 8 In Ireland 9 If there were more than one sheet of paper, postage must be paid according to the above rate for every separate sheet or enclosure. For instance, a letter or packet composed of two sheets was called a double letter and paid 4_d._ for any distance under 80 miles. A letter of three sheets was called a triple letter and paid 6_d._ if conveyed under 80 miles, and so in proportion.[566] In 1638, the rules concerning the imposition of rates were changed slightly. The rates themselves remained the same for single and double letters. Letters above double letters were to be charged according to weight as follows:-- Under 80 miles 6_d._ an ounce. From 80 to 140 miles 9_d._ Above 140 miles 12_d._ For Ireland 6_d._ if over two ounces.[567]