The Newspaper Office which had been illegally established by Palmer was continued after his dismissal. Walsingham had objected to it on the ground that Palmer had no right to appoint any officials without his consent. Previously all newspapers had been forwarded to the postmasters free of postage by the "Clerks of the Roads." Now that they might be sent with the letters, they were brought in at the last moment still wet from the press so that they defaced the writing on the letters sent in the same bag.[197] In 1784 a Dead Letter Office was also established. Previously, dead and missent letters had been handed to a clerk in the General Office. During Allen's farm of the cross and bye post letters, missent letters were no longer forwarded to London, but any postmaster, into whose hands they came, was instructed to place them on the right track.[198] Four years later a third office was instituted, a Money Order Office. No order could be issued for more than five guineas and the fee for that sum was 4_s._ 6_d._ It was started as a private speculation by some of the postal officials and so remained until 1838 when it was taken over by the General Post Office.[199] [197] _Parl. Papers_, 1812-13, _Rep. Com._, ii, p. 87. [198] _Fin. Rep._, 1797, no. 7, pp. 82-83. [199] W. Thornbury, _Old and New London_, ii, p. 212. The policy of the Post Office with reference to the registration of letters containing valuables varied with the nature of the enclosure and the manner in which it was sent. On ships' letters sent from England, the registration fee was one guinea, and a receipt was given to the person sending a registered letter. The fee for a letter coming into the kingdom was only 5_s._[200] If bank notes were enclosed in a letter, it received no special attention from the Post Office. If gold or silver was sent in a letter marked "money letter," the postmaster placed it in a separate envelope and made a special entry on the way bill, which was repeated at every office it passed through. No special fee was charged for the extra attention bestowed upon these letters until 1835 when the Postmaster-General was allowed to charge a fee for their registration in addition to the ordinary postage.[201] The Money Order Department, still a private undertaking, had its fees reduced from 6_d._ to 3_d._ on sums not exceeding £2 and from 18_d._ to 6_d._ on sums exceeding £2 but not more than £5.[202] [200] _Rep. Commrs._, 1837, xxxiv, 8th rep., app., no. 3. [201] _London Times_, 1832, Apr. 27, p. 3; 5 and 6 Wm. IV, c. 25; 3 and 4 Vict., c. 96. [202] London _Times_, 1837, Jan. 26, p. 5; Dec. 13, p. 4; _Acc. & P._, 1841, xxvi, 221, no. 6.