POST, a Word synonymous with COW. vier, which IS supposed to be originally derived from horses for the conveyance of dispatches, being positi, or placed at convenient distances, as relays or changes for those fatigued, and unable to proceed the whole journey with the desired speed. Hence it has become the prac tice to term horses employed for this and similar purposes, post-horses ; their ri ders, post-boys : the houses for the re ception of letters thus conveyed, post offices ; and even the drivers of chaises, postilions ;, and their vehicles, post chaises ; it is natural, besides, to say, he who continues a journey on fresh horses, without stopping for more than neces sary refreshment, rides post. The spaces between certain inns, for the of travellers in England, forming a post, varies from twelve to fifteen miles, beyond, which it is deemed imprudent to urge a, horse, without a long interval of repose ; and the charges per mile for horses fur nished from those inns, have occasioned continual discontent, and frequent general meetings of certain classes of the public.
Before the establishment of a system for the conveyance of important intelli gence, and in the earliest state of society, it may be supposed, horses were seized, or, to use a modern term, put into requi sition, where they were wanted ; though it is still more probable, that men were tutored to run from station to station, as is now the practice in the Eastern na tions, whose couriers fly their prescribed distance with astonishing. velocity, and delivering their dispatches to fresh per sons, they are by this means conveyed almost as rapidly as by horses. The Em peror Trajan appears to have been the first who ordained the keeping of horses for this purpose only, and the example has appeared so rational to succeeding generations, that it is highly probable, posting of every description has now reached its full possible perfection.
It was customary, in ancient times, to convey information by boats, and in cha riots, exclusive of on foot and horseback ; nay, even pigeons have been taught to fly from place to place, with letters at tached to thefn ; in England, men who conveyed letters were called carriers, which was certainly, in the then state of the roads, a much more appropriate term than the present, implying, in one accep tation, exceeding swiftness. Louis XL, King of France, established the first re gular conveyance of this description in the year 1464, for the more speedy and certain information he thought it neces sary to possess, concerning the state of his extensive dominions ; the utility of the invention was too apparent to escape the observation of the surrounding conti nental nations, which adopted the idea, and each suited the regulations to their own peculiar circumstances ; England, alone, seems to have preferred her old and tedious system of carriers, till the twelfth year of the reign of Charles H.,
when Parliament passed an act, which empowered the King to establish a post office, and to appoint a Post-master Ge neral ; from that time to the present, nu merous other acts of the legislature have been made, to improve and amend the system, which, during the time of peace, is carried on by an incredible number of clerks, and officers, and receivers, and letter-carriers, whose regularity and punc tuality are not to be exceeded in any de partment of the government. In the time of Queen Anne, Sir Thomas Frankland, and John Evelyn, Esquire, held the office of Post-master General jointly, and re ceived a salary of 2000/. per annum, about which time the following notice appear ed in the London Gazette. "These are to give notice, that by the act of Parliament for establishing a general post-office, all letters and packets directed to, and sent from places distant ten miles or abov e,fiom the said office in London, which, before the second of this instant, June, were re ceived and delivered by the officers of the penny-post, are now subjected to the same rates of postage as general post let ters ; and that for the accommodation of the inhabitants of such places, their let ters will be conveyed with the same re gularity and dispatch as formerly, being first taxed with the rates, and stamped with the mark of the general post-office ; and that all parcels will likewise be taxed at the rate of two shillings per ounce, Av.,* the said act directs." Although the value of money has infi nitely decreased since the above period, such has been the increase in commerce, and trade, and population, that the char ges for the conveyance of letters is still comparatively moderate, az, a single let ter is sent one hundred and fifty miles for eight-pence. This may be attributed, in a great measure, besides, to the mo dern invention of mail coaches, for which the public are indebted to Mr. Palmer, who has not, however, reaped that ad vantage from it originally intended. Those that have travelled in these vehicles need not be informed of their rapid motions, nor of the constant uninterrupted assi duity of the coachmen, the guards, the officers of the different post-towns, and even of the hostlers, to expedite their progress, and to those who have not, and foreigners, the regulations under which they are placed, must give an ex alted idea of the commercial character of the British nation.