In the division of duties between the assistant-secretaries, I was guided by my knowledge of their respective powers, as well as by a reference to the speciality of my brother's appointment. Whatever departments required to be efficiently conducted with but moderate change in their arrangements were committed to the charge of Mr. Tilley, while those which seemed most susceptible of great improvement, with the exception of such as I retained in my own hands, were given in charge to my brother. The principal of these were the Money Order Department, already mentioned, the mail conveyance by land and by sea, and the Foreign and Colonial Department generally, including, of course, conventions with foreign countries. I need scarcely add, however, that I exercised a general control over the whole; and as the reader will be but little interested in knowing whether particular reforms owe their origin or execution to my brother or myself, I shall, save in a few more marked cases, sink individuality and speak only of joint action. I wish, however to state here my conviction that without my brother's able and zealous assistance, the full reform of the Post Office would not and could not have been successfully accomplished. The heads of departments--the immediate subordinates of the secretaries--were, for the most part, men whose selection did credit to my predecessor, Colonel Maberly, on whose recommendation they had been appointed. They were, in short, an able staff of officers. I took advantage of their ability to make what proved a valuable change in their mode of proceeding; for whereas the practice had been for these officers simply to select the cases requiring the judgment of the secretary, and to await his instructions before writing their minutes thereon, I gradually induced them to come prepared with an opinion of their own, which might serve in a measure for my guidance. This soon led to a further improvement; for, as the most convenient way of giving such opinion clearly was to throw it into the form of a minute, it became not uncommon, at least in ordinary cases, to draw the minutes, even before any reference to me. This arrangement not only saved me much valuable time, but also procured for the matters in question a much closer investigation, and more careful consideration from those whose position was most advantageous for the task, than could be without the responsibility pertaining to men called on to advise. The Annual Reports already mentioned were intended to supply such information to the public as might tend to prevent misapprehension and avert complaint, and at the same time to describe the course of improvement. _Construction of Reports._