Page 145 - British Post Office Notices 1666 to 1799

1770-1779

All persons are requested to be exact as possible in the Direction of Penny Post Letters, particularly those addressed
to Lodgers, and to specify the names of the landlord, which will greatly tend to facilitate their delivery. As a further means,
to answer this end, and as a check upon the Letter Carriers, every letter that after a weeks enquiry, shall be returned by
them, will be opened, and sent back to the writer, Gratis, if his or her place of residence can be discovered; to the end that
if the reason assigned by the Letter Carrier, on the cover, for the non-delivery of such letter, does not prove satisfactory, the
writer may have an opportunity of discovering where the fault lay, by a complaint to the Comptroller of the Penny Post
Office.
JOHN W ALCOT, Secretary.

-- 7 3 0 2 NEWS (General Post Office, December 27, 1773)

By an Examination, which has been taken before the Mayor of Stamford, of the Post-Boy who carried the North Mail
of Tuesday Night the 21st Instant, from this Office, and was robbed the Night following between Stamford and Casterton
on the Road to Colsterworth, it appears, That the Footpad who took him out of the Road near to a Stone Pit, cut open the
Mail with a large white hafted Knife, and took away three Bags only, after opening a Number of others, and then helped the
Post-Boy into the Cart with all the rest; but the Names of those three Bags cannot as yet be ascertained.
The Post-Boy describes the Robber to be middle-aged, rather more than five Feet high, of a pale Complexion, weak
or faint Voice, dark brown Hair, very thin; was dressed in a blue Coat and white Buttons, had on a round Hat, and dirty
Leather Breeches, without any Fire-Arms, seemed in great Terror and Confusion, and at first demanded Money instead of
the Mail.
Whoever shall apprehend and convict, or cause to be apprehended and convicted, the Person who committed this
Robbery, will be intitled to a Reward of Two HUNDRED POUNDS, over and above the Reward given by Act of Parliament
for apprehending Highwaymen; or if any Person, whether an Accomplice in the Robbery or knowing thereof, shall make
Discovery whereby the Person who committed the same may be apprehended and brought to Justice, such Discoverer will,
upon Conviction of the Party, be intitled to the same Reward of Two Hundred Pounds, and will also receive His Majesty's
most gracious Pardon.
ANTH. TODD, Secretary.

-- 7 4 0 1 NEWS (General Post Office, January 3, 1774)

THE Post-Boy who was robbed of the Mail from London, of the 21st of December, was again robbed at Eleven
o'Clock on Friday Night last, near Casterton, two Miles North of Stamford, of the Mail of Thursday Night, from this Office,
by the same Person, as he verily believes, who robbed him before, and who opened the following Bags, viz. Lincoln, Hull,
Grantham, Newcastle, Belford, Morpeth, Alnwick, Berwick, and the Bye Bag, with the Letters from Caxton, for the North,
and took something out of one of them, but he does not know which, and then put the Mail upon the Cart, not suffering the
Boy to alight.
The Person is now described to be middle-aged, rather more than Five Feet high, of a pale Complexion, weak Voice,
dark short brown or black Hair, rather bulky, was dressed in a blue Great Coat, with two Rows of white Buttons, had on a
round bound Hat, with a black Crape round it, and dirty Leather Breeches.
Whoever shall apprehend and convict, or cause to be apprehended and convicted, the Person who committed this
Robbery, will be intitled to a Reward of Two HUNDRED POUNDS, over and above the Reward given by Act of Parliament
for apprehending Highwaymen; or if any Person, whether an Accomplice in the Robbery or knowing thereof, shall make
Discovery whereby the Person who committed the same may be apprehended and brought to Justice, such Discoverer will,
upon Conviction of the Party, be intitled to the same Reward of Two Hundred Pounds, and will also receive His Majesty's
most gracious Pardon.
ANTH. TODD, Secretary.

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