ystem
might still have been in the background. It is clearly in my
recollection when 1 s. 1-1/2 d. was the charge for a letter from London
to Edinburgh, and that was for what was then called a _single_ letter;
now you may send as much as you like under a certain weight for one
penny.

Travelling is now also a thing within the reach of all, for you can
travel for one penny a mile, and this at a rate of speed that could not
be done a few years ago. So much for railways.

Having begun with matters more especially affecting older people, it
would be hard indeed to leave out the younger branches, and the means
that are now employed not only for their comfort, but their amusement.
Among other requirements for them we may class their toys. They are in a
sense most needful, as well as useful, for our children, and from many
of the ingenious toys now-a-days we can acquire a great deal of
knowledge, useful to ourselves and of advantage to others. The beauty of
their manufacture is a striking instance of the ingenuity of man as
applied to small things, seeing that toys, so to speak, are only made
for a few days' enjoyment, and are then almost certain to be broken. But
for their short and transient existence what an amount of mental energy
has been brought to bear--the fancy of the child has to be studied and
provided for, in a way to please, gratify, and amuse, teaching the young
idea how to shoot: all this for one penny. Look at the carts, horses,
and other articles innumerable that are to be bought at the bazaars in
London for a penny, and do they not bring before us in a striking manner
what has been done for the benefit of the young. These toys, which only
cost a penny, have caused many hard and anxious thoughts, are the means
of giving work to thousands, and enabling these thousands to live an
honest and happy life by furnishing a paying living, while at the same
time they minister to the acquirements of those who when young require
amusement. All this is done for a penny's worth; but how divided is this
before the wonderful toy is produced! We have wood, iron, copper, tin,
lead--I may say, all the metals, even the most precious (for gold is
frequently used in the production of a toy that can be bought for a
penny), are employed. Not only have these to be utilised, but they have
first to be obtained--some by the growth of timber, others by mining,
then by the heat of the furnace, then by hammer and workman, then by the
chem