Belgium, too, was in movement; and in a minute prepared in reply to an application from the Government of that country, I was able to show how accurately the results of penny postage had agreed with my anticipations. Six months later, viz., in December, 1848, I received a copy of the Government Bill, which proposed to reduce the various postage rates to a uniform charge of twopence; retaining, however, the lower rate of one penny for local letters. It appeared that the whole number of letters was but nine millions, or about one-ninth part of that delivered in the London district, the population of which is about half of that of Belgium. The people of Brussels were pressing for a penny rate. When the question came before the Belgian Parliament, the Lower House, rejecting the rate proposed by Government, adopted our own rates; these, however, being rejected by the Upper House in favour of a twopenny rate, the king, upon learning that this modification was producing great and general dissatisfaction, proposed a compromise, which was accepted. By his a penny was fixed as the rate for moderate distances, the rate beyond being twopence. Stamps were to be used, and a penny to be added in all cases where the letter was not prepaid. CHAPTER XVII. EFFORTS FOR IMPROVEMENT IN POSITION. (1848-9.) In the narrative of the proceedings of the year 1848 I have reserved to the last some that were of great importance to myself, and I venture to think, through me, to the public service. The discordant action in the secretarial department, so often referred to in these pages, so difficult to prevent where there were two co-ordinate authorities dealing apart with the very same affairs, and unfortunately so needlessly aggravated in a variety of ways, continued throughout the year with but little abatement, and with no prospect of cure. Not only, as already shown, did it seriously impede, and in some important cases even stop, the progress of improvement, but it acted also so injuriously on my own health as at times to make me even doubt the possibility of my remaining at my post.