mentioned Act is repealed; and, in order to prevent packets of an unwieldy bulk, or an inconvenient size, being transmitted by the post, power is given to the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury, at any time or times thereafter, by warrant under their hands, to fix a maximum weight of letters to be sent by the post, and from time to time to repeal or revoke such maximum weight wholly or in part, and declare any other maximum of weight in lieu thereof, and all letters are to be forwarded, conveyed, and delivered by the post in conformity with any such warrant, and also in conformity with, and under, and subject to, all such orders, conditions, limitations, regulations, and restrictions, as to the form, size, or dimensions thereof, whether in proportion to the weight or otherwise, as the Postmaster-General, with the consent of the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury, shall from time to time direct, and by the said Act power is also given to the Postmaster-General to collect and receive the foreign and colonial postage charged or chargeable on any letters sent by the post, and also with the consent of the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury to require the postage, British, colonial, or foreign, of any letters sent by the post to be prepaid either in money or in stamps as he may think fit on the same being put into the Postoffice, and also with such consent to abolish or restrict the prepayment in money of postage on letters sent by the post, either altogether or on certain letters, and to require the prepayment thereof to be in stamps, and to refuse to receive or send by the post any letters tendered contrary to any regulations thereby made, and it is also declared and enacted that it shall be lawful for the Postmaster-General and any officer of the Post-office to detain any letters which shall be

posted or sent by the post contrary to the regulations of that Act or the first-mentioned Act, or contrary to the regulations of any Treasury Warrant to be issued under or by virtue of that Act, or which had been or should be issued under or by virtue of the said first-mentioned Act, and to open such letters, and either to return them to the senders thereof, or to forward them to the places of their destination, charged in either case with such rates of postage as the PostmasterGeneral, with the consent of the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury, shall from time to time direct:

Now, we, the undersigned, being two of the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury, do, in exercise of the powers reserved to us, in and by the said before-mentioned Acts, or either of them, and of all other powers enabling us, in this behalf, by this warrant under our hands, order and direct that printed books, printed magazines, printed reviews, printed pamphlets, (whether British, colonial, or foreign) may, from henceforth, be transmitted by the post, between any part of the United Kingdom and Canada, or the Ionian Islands, subject to the several regulations and rates hereinafter contained (that is to say):

On every packet consisting of a single printed book, or printed magazine, or printed review, or printed pamphlet, the several sheets or parts of which, when more than one, shall be sewed or bound together, if not exceeding half a pound in weight, there shall be charged and taken one uniform rate of postage of sixpence.

And on every such packet, if exceeding half a pound, and not exceeding one pound in weight, there shall be charged and taken one uniform rate of postage of one shilling.

And on every such packet, if exceeding one pound and not exceeding two pounds in weight,

there shall be charged and taken one uniform rate of postage of two shillings.

And on every such packet, if exceeding two pounds and not exceeding three pounds in weight, there shall be charged and taken one uniform rate of postage of three shillings.

And for every additional one pound in weight of any such packet, above the weight of three pounds, there shall be charged and taken an additional rate of postage of one shilling, and every fraction of such additional pound shall be charged as an additional pound.

And we further order and direct that no such packet, if containing more than one printed book, or printed magazine, or printed review, or printed pamphlet, or containing any paper or thing besides a printed book, printed magazine, printed review, or printed pamphlet, or containing any printed book, printed magazine, printed review, or printed pamphlet, the several sheets or parts of which, when more than one, shall not be sewed or bound together, or which packet, in length or breadth, or width or depth, shall exceed the dimensions of two feet or twenty-four inches, shall be forwarded by the post under the provisions aforesaid.

And we further order and direct, that as to any packet herein before authorized to be sent by the post under the provisions aforesaid, which shall be posted in the United Kingdom, the postage thereof shall in every case be prepaid at the time of the same being posted, not in money, but by being duly stamped with the proper postage stamp or stamps affixed thereto, which stamp or stamps shall in every case be affixed or appear on the outside of every such packet, near the address, and

shall be of the value or amount of the postage duty payable thereon, under or by virtue of this warrant; and as to any such packet posted in Canada or the Ionian Islands, the postage thereof shall in every case be prepaid, either in money or by the proper postage stamp or stamps being affixed thereto at the time of the same being posted.

And we further order and direct, that every such packet shall be sent without a cover, or in a cover or envelope open at the ends or sides, and shall contain printed matter only with the binding thereof, and there shall be no writing or marks upon the cover or envelope thereof, or upon or within any part of the contents thereof other than the name and address of the person to whom the packet shall be sent.

And in order to prevent any obstacles to the due and regular transmission of letters by the post, we further direct that it shall be lawful for any officer of the Post-office in the United Kingdom to delay the transmission of any packet posted or forwarded by the post under the provisions of this warrant, either for the space of twenty-four hours from the time at which (or at his option until the dispatch of the mail next after that by which) the same ought otherwise to have been forwarded by him.

And we further direct that nothing hereinbefore contained shall be construed to interfere with or affect the transmission by the post of printed votes and proceedings of the Imperial Parliament, or of printed votes and proceedings of the Colonial Legislatures, nor of printed papers, or other printed publications which are allowed to pass by the post under the newspaper privilege.

And we further order and direct, that if any packet sent, or tendered, or delivered, in order to

be sent by the post under the provisions of this present warrant, shall contain any paper or thing besides a printed book, printed magazine, printed review, or printed pamphlet, and the binding thereof, or shall have any writing or marks upon the same, or upon the cover or envelope thereof, except the name and address of the person to whom it is forwarded, or shall not be open at the ends or sides, or shall in length or breadth, or width or depth, exceed the dimensions of two feet, or twenty-four inches, or shall contain more than one printed book, or printed magazine, or printed review, or printed pamphlet, or shall contain any printed book, printed magazine, printed review, or printed pamphlet, the several sheets or parts of which, when more than one, shall not be sewed or bound together, or if the postage of any such packet posted in the United Kingdom shall not be duly and properly prepaid by stamps when posted, or if the postage of any such packet posted in Canada or the Ionian Islands, shall not be duly and properly prepaid in money or by stamps, when posted, the same shall and may be detained and opened at any place in the United Kingdom, and at the option of the Postmaster-General shall be either returned or given up to the sender thereof, or be given up to the person to whom it shall be addressed, or be forwarded to the place of its destination; and any such packet on being so returned, given up, or forwarded, shall be chargeable with the like amount of postage to which it would have been liable as a letter.

And we further direct that nothing herein contained shall be construed to extend to any packets sent through France, or any other foreign country, to which a transit rate of postage would be payable thereon, nor to any packets sent by private ships.