Hereditary Post Office Duties.

Charles II. vested the Postal Revenue in perpetuity upon his brother James, Duke of York, and his heirs male, but when this brother became James II. Parliament fortunately altered the terms of the grant, vesting it in the King and his heirs male.

William of Orange gave Schomberg (his Dutch favourite) a perpetual pension of £4,000 a year on postal revenue for his heirs male, and in 1702 it was discovered on the death of this corrupt monarch that similar concessions to the tune of £54,400 yearly had been charged upon the Post Office.

In 1710, a sum of £36,400 per annum, together with a third of all overplus postal revenue beyond £111,462, was reserved by Act for the public disposal.

In 1784 and 1787, farther reservations were made by Parliament, bringing up the total to £154,508 per annum, which sum was ordered to be carried yearly to the Consolidated Fund.