significance of the fact," nor ever
rested till he had devised and effected his scheme of Post-office Reform;
though all the while an uncomfortable feeling might be lurking behind as to
the perfect credibility of so interesting a mode of accounting for the
initiation of this great social benefit.

I confess to having had some suspicions myself as to the trustworthiness of
this story; and a few days since my suspicions were fully confirmed by
discovering that the real hero of the tale was not the Post-office
Reformer, but the poet Coleridge; unless, indeed, which is surely out of
the range of ordinary probabilities, the same event, _corresponding exactly
as to place and amount of postage_, happened to two persons at separate
times.

Coleridge relates the story himself, in one of his "conversations," of
which memoranda are preserved in the interesting volumes published by Moxon
in 1836 (ii. 114.). "One day,"

"when I had not a shilling to spare, I was passing by a cottage at
_Keswick_ where a carter was demanding _a shilling_ for a letter, which
the woman of the house appeared unwilling to give, and at last declined
to take. I paid the postage, and when the man was out of sight, she
told me that the letter was from her son, who took that means of
letting her know that he was well. The letter was not to be paid for.
It was then opened and _found to be blank_."

Now, while so many copies of "NOTES AND QUERIES" pass through the
Post-office, it is to be hoped one at least may remain there, and be the
means of inducing Mr. Hill to inform us whether Miss Martineau had any
authority for fathering this story upon him; and whether the Post-office
Reform is really indebted to any such trivial incident for its original
idea.

E. VENABLES.

* * * * *

RED BOOK OF THE IRISH EXCHEQUER.

On one of the vellum leaves of which the Red Book of the Irish Exchequer is
composed, there is depicted a pen and ink sketch of that court. In the
centre of the picture is the table, which is covered (as it is at this day)
with a chequered cloth, whereon are placed a bag upon which are the words
"Baga cum rotulis," a book with a clasp, five large pieces of money, and a
strip of parchment, upon which is written, "Ceo vous, &c." The table is
surrounded on its four equal sides by thirteen human figures, namely, six
at the top of the picture, three on the left hand, three on the right, and