§ * MR. COHEN (Islington, E.)I beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury, as representing the Postmaster General, if he will state how many pillar letter boxes there are in the metropolitan area; how many of these are divided into two compartments; how many of these latter are within the E.C. district; and, what is the reason persons posting in one part of London are obliged to sort their letters, under pain of having the delivery delayed, while no such obligation is imposed on persons posting in other parts of London.
§ MR. HANBURYThe number of wall and pillar letter boxes (other than those in use at post offices) in the metropolitan area is 2,988. In the Eastern Central district there are 156 boxes, ninety-nine being pillar and fifty-seven wall boxes. Of the ninety-nine twenty-six have two compartments, and of the fifty-seven twenty-three are double boxes, i.e., two placed side by side and counting as one box. The duplicating arrangement will be extended as rapidly as possible in the Eastern Central district. The reason why it is desired that letters for (1) London and abroad, (2) provinces, should, so far as the Eastern Central District is concerned, be posted separately, is that 76 the two classes of letters are now dealt with in different buildings a mile apart, and that at the busiest parts of the day each class is taken direct to the office appropriated to that class. When they are not posted separately a certain portion of them must necessarily be taken in the first instance to the wrong office, and then it is sometimes impossible to avoid a delay.
§ * MR. COHENasked whether it was intended to extend the system of duplicate boxes to the whole of London.
§ MR. HANBURYreplied that the Eastern Central District must first be dealt with on account, of the enormous number of letters posted in that district, and owing to the fact that room could not be found to deal with them at St. Martin's-le-Grand.