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The Story of the Envelope.

By "COUVERTURE."

ARD as are the times, and with all due respect to that persistent and incurable croaker, the "Dismal Jimmy," who can find nothing good in our own age, it must yet be admitted that we enjoy many advantages denied to our forefathers. And so accustomed have we become to these many blessings that we accept them as a matter of course, without thinking for a moment what we should do without them. Such a one is the Envelope. How many of us ever pause to think how we should get on without that useful and very necessary article? How many of us ever ask ourselves the question "What did folk do in the matter of their correspondence before the envelope evolved itself?"

But first of all consider for a moment the etymology of the word " envelope." The dictionary definitions are various : 'the cover of a letter; a small sheet of paper folded and gummed to serve as a cover for a letter; a wrapper; an inclosing cover; a prepared wrapper for a letter or other paper, so made that it can be sealed," etc. Some have attributed a French origin to the word, but from the fact that our great English poet Geoffrey Chaucer spelt the word envelope "envolupe," it would seem that our ancestors had it direct from the Italian "inviluppo without the intervention of any French medium. Now, although popularly supposed to be a comparatively modern invention, the envelope is, in reality nothing of the sort-at least in conception. It is of quite a respectable age. The practice of using covers in epistolary correspondence most probably originated with the French. The distinguished French novelist and dramatist Le Sage (1668-1747) in his Gil Blas," mentions that Aurora de Gusman has two billets, "les cacheta tous deux mit une Envelloppe et me donnant le paquet." That envelopes obtained in France so long ago as 1706 is proved by an autograph letter of Louis XIV., dated Versailles, 29th April, 1706, and addressed to his son the Count de Toulouse, Admiral of the Fleet, at the siege of Barcelona. This particular letter, being of a private, as well as political import, the king wrote, sealed, and addressed it with his own hand. Old John Timbs, who spent a lifetime raking in the alleys of the past, has even dived deeper.

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He says in his " Popular Errors Explained": These postage-envelopes are

by no means an invention of our own time, as they are commonly thought to be. M. Piron tells us that the idea of a post-paid envelope originated early in the reign of Louis XIV., with M. de Velayer, who in 1658, established (with royal approbation) a private penny post, placing boxes at the corners of streets for the reception of letters wrapped up in envelopes, which were to be bought at offices established for that purpose. M. de Velayer also caused to be printed certain forms of billets or notes applicable to the ordinary business among the inhabitants of great towns, with blanks, which were to be filled up by the pen with such special matter as might complete the writer's object. One of these little billets has been preserved to our own time. Pelisson, Madame de Sévigne's friend, and the object of the bon-mot that 'he abused the privilege which men have of being ugly' was amused at this kind of skeleton correpondence; and under the affected name of Pisandre, he filled up and addressed one of these forms to the celebrated Mlle. de Scuderi in her pseudonym of Sappho. This strange billet-doux is still extant; one of the oldest, we presume, of penny-post letters, and a curious example of pre-paying envelope." By way of supplement to Timbs' statement it may be said that Velayer's scheme was, in many respects, a strictly aristocratic privilege, but that it soon died out and became forgotten, even in France, only to be later re-discovered in Parisian postal archives by M. Prion, the celebrated French postal reformer, and the counterpart to our own Sir Rowland Hill. It is thus that old inventions get re-invented.

Coming to our own country, it is necessary to point out that the envelope has invariably been associated with the post. In fact, one may say that the two are, and ever have been, indissoluble. And both are much older than at first

sight appears. Sir Rowland Hill's penny postage scheme was not, by a long way, the first. It is known that Edward IV. originated a practical post in 1481. True, it was not identical with the system of to-day, but at least it furnished the germ idea. Edward arranged for riders on post horses to travel stages of the distance of twenty miles from each other, in order that he might be furnished with particulars at the earliest possible moment of how his war with Scotland was faring. The scheme was virtually the initiation of the system of couriers. Sir Thomas Randolph was appointed the first Postmaster of England by Queen Elizabeth in 1581; and before a century had elapsed a quick post between London and Edinburgh was in being. It was mainly for the conveyance of the king's letters of state, or for persons travelling with his commission, or the commission of certain officers of the state. As to when ordinary private letters were first sent by post is a question more easily asked than answered. That apart, about the end of the XVIIth century a regular post was established between London, Chester, Holyhead, Plymouth, Exeter, Bristol, and other places; and the rates were: 80 miles, 2d.; 140 miles, 4d. (in England) and 8d. to Scotland. The year 1681 saw the commencement of a penny post for London and its suburbs; but Dublin had to wait until 1774 for a similar post. The English scheme of 1681 was started by a Mr. Robert Murray, an upholsterer who, two years later, assigned his interest in the undertaking to a Mr. Dockwra, a merchant. The latter was unfortunate, for upon a trial at the King's Bench bar, the post was adjudged to belong to the Duke of York, as a branch of the general post," and it was thereupon annexed to the revenue of the Crown. Now, it may be asked, what has all this to do with the envelope? Simply this envelopes of a kind must obviously have been in use. Of what type were they? It is difficult to say, although most probably they consisted of the cover" type which was used for a period of over a century prior to the postal reform of 1840. Specimens of the primitive envelope have survived to us. In the Birch manuscripts, now in the British Museum, there is a letter from Martin Triewald to Sir Hans Sloane, dated Stockholm, April 24th, 1755. enclosed in an ordinary envelope, which is opened out and mounted at the end of the letter. In yet another collection of manuscripts -the Egerton-there is an envelope made precisely similar to those now in use, but with an ornamental border. It encloses a letter dated 1760 from Madame de Pompadour to the Duchess d'Aiguillon. Then again-in case the reader should still think that envelopes were not used previously to the XIXth centurythe State Paper Office contains an envelope practically identical with the modern one. It is attached to a letter of 1696, addressed by Sir James Ogilvie to the Rt. Hon. Sir William Trumbull, Secretary of State. The size is four and a quarter inches by three inches. Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, evidently used envelopes, for there is in existence a private letter of his addressed to an English General in his service, and dated July 26th, 1766, at Potsdam. The missive is enclosed in an envelope similar in form to those now used, save that it opens at the side instead of at the top, as those for our letters do. It may be added that this specimen is composed of a very coarse German paper. At the beginning of the last century it is on record that envelopes were in use similar to those of to-day, save that they were without adhesive gum. Some were of thickish Chinese silk paper, with neatly painted borders. The Gentleman's Magazine for 1811, refers to the use of a letter envelope: a correspondent contributes the copy of a letter from one Father O'Leary, and adds, The envelope being lost, the exact direction cannot be ascertained, but it is known to be addressed to Mr. Kirwan in Dublin."

From the above facts it may reasonably be assumed that the envelope was, and for long had been, in being. About the 'twenties of the XIXth century there lived at Brigthon-or more correctly Brighthelmstone, as it was then called -a bookseller and stationer named S. K. Brewer. This worthy used to place in his shop window piles of paper, beginning at the largest up to the then smallest size, 16mo.; but to finish off the pile he cut cards so as to bring them to a point. We may read that the ladies used to visit his shop and ask for that "dear little paper," a fact that induced Brewer to cut paper in small sizes. Then came the difficulty of the place for the address, and the result was that he invented (the tory must be crowned with a big ?) the envelope, and had metal plates made

for cutting them to shape and size. The fair sex were delighted, and orders came to Brewer for the little paper and envelopes from all parts of the country. This branch of his business made such demands upon his time that the Brighton stationer eventually had the envelopes specially made for him by a London firm-Dobbs & Co. Although it cannot strictly be said that Brewer invented the envelope, such at least was the beginning of the envelope trade.

But in these early days the use of the envelope for ordinary postal correspondence was severely restricted to the well-to-do, owing to the rules of the postal system prior to 1840. These rules were a great hindrance to the development of the envelope. Prior to envelopes as we now know them it was the practice to fold half sheets of paper and use them as outer covers. They were, of course, open at the sides. Anything beyond a single sheet of letter paper was charged double postage. The placing of a note, however small, into an envelope, however thin, ipso facto converted the missive into a double letter and as such, liable to twice the amount of the ordinary postage. In fact, the enclosure in a letter of the merest scrap of paper-a paragraph from a newspaper, for example-was, if detected, sufficient to render the recipient liable to the extra charge. Is it to be wondered at that the general use of envelopes under the circumstances, was out of the question? Nevertheless, the envelope worked out its infancy in other ways. They were undoubtedly used for the safe filing of documents, etc., and in the form of "franks" they passed through the post without interference. Certain classes, members of Parliament, etc., were originally entitled to "frank" letters. This meant that they could make practically unlimited use of the postal system without contributing a penny to its upkeep. Naturally the system was abominably abused-" franks were sold for various considerations-and this

eventually led to its abolition.

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As already hinted the great reform of Sir Rowland Hill of 1840 ensured the universal success of the envelope, and incidentally the envelope trade. All sorts and conditions of "patent" envelopes began to appear. A new industry was commenced with machine-made ones; stamped and adhesive envelopes were introduced; and in 1844, special machinery for envelope making was patented by George Wilson. In the following year Hill and De la Rue's ingenious machine for folding envelopes was invented. But at first the demand far exceeded the supply; manufacturers were unable to cope with the new commodity, and so, many folk made their own envelopes with the help of cardboard models. In Laman Blanchard's " Life and Literary Remains of L. E. Landon," 1841, there is a letter requesting that slate pencils, a quire or so of small coloured note-paper, and a pasteboard pattern of the letter envelopes," may be sent. In May, 1840, bag-envelopes, i.e., envelopes having the flap at the end instead of at the side, were registered under the act for protecting designs for articles of utility, by Henry Tuck, of 138, Aldersgate Street, London. These envelopes were manufactured by Marc La Reviere, of Hackney (who incidentally also gained fame for his invention of perforating metal machinery), and measured four and seven-eighth inches by three and one-eighth inches. The bag-shaped envelope did not come into general use until some time after its introduction. It is not improbable that Henry Dobb, of 134, Fleet Street, perfected and introduced the gummed envelope. The business-Dobbs, Kidd and Co.-afterwards ceased to exist, and their proprietory articles passed to another house. But another claimant for this invention was J. Smith, of 42, Rathbone Place, who cautioned the public against worthless imitations. His wares were advertised as Smith's Patent Adhesive Envelopes, requiring neither Wax nor Wafer-These Envelopes are made perfectly safe in an instant; the flap of the envelope being prepared with a strong cement renders it more secure than those which are fastened in the usual manner, and cement only requiring to be damped and the flap pressed down, after which it becomes dry and firm in a few seconds." Of course, the adhesive envelope was a great improvement on the old method of sealing wax, and the practice of fixing detached labels across the flaps of envelopes. Tuck's hermetic envelope was another innovation. In this the postage stamp was used for the purpose of securing the flap, and the address was written on the same side as the flap, or what we should now regard as the back of the envelope. This

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particular envelope therefore belongs to the pre-adhesive days, because the first suggestion for an adhesive envelope was made by Capt. Basil Hall in a letter to Sir Rowland Hill, dated December 31st, 1840. In connection with this matter an interesting story may be recalled, showing that the many so-called adhesive envelopes were much to be desired. In 1856, the postmaster of Rugeley, Staffs., was convicted at the assizes of unlawfully opening a letter. The writer of it, Dr. Taylor, Professor of Chemistry at Guy's Hospital, stated that it was a simple matter to open adhesive envelopes, and described in court the method. He stated that wax might be picked from all but the very thinnest paper, and with moderate care the seal could be detached without breaking. The doctor believed that modern wax was less adhesive than the old, and that in its manufacture, tenacity was being sacrificed to colour. Previous to this case a perfectly secure envelope had been sold under the name of "Brown's metallic safety." The security was a metallic capsule which, once closed, could not be opened without tearing the paper. It was sold at a moderate price-4d. per dozen-and was actually lighter than wax. It was claimed for it that where absolute security was required, it was all that was wanted-especially for letters despatched to hot climates. The envelope bearing an embossed stamp did not, as has so often been supposed, originate in this country. The credit for the first issue of this precursor of the adhesive postage stamp belongs to Italy. So long ago as 1818, Victor Emmanuel I., King of Sardinia, granted a patent for an envelope with an embossed stamp for use in the postal service. This envelope was popularly known as the Cavallion" from its design-a man blowing a horn and mounted on a

galloping horse.

Mention must be made of that curious oddity, the Mulready Envelope. This experimental "post-office envelope " was designed for the penny envelopes as part of Sir Rowland's great scheme. It consisted of an allegorical picture of the British Empire, decorated by the artist William Mulready, with emblematical designs. The advertisements which covered the folding margins of the envelope were confidently expected to increase the revenue of the post office, but owing to fiscal changes, its unsuitability in use, and "the dislike of Britons to see the introduction of art of any sort to their business doings, the envelope very soon went out of vogue, chiefly because few would be troubled to use it in preference to a common envelope." There appears to have been an air of unreality about the Mulready Envelope, but it served one useful purpose in providing the subject for one of the earliest satirical caricatures of the inimitable John Leech.

Finally, the story of the envelope, in common with that of many another thing, is reflected to a large extent in our national literature. It is seldom that that literature fails us in this respect; usually it is a sure and infallible guide. One of the earliest references to the envelope is made by Bishop Burnet in his 'History of His Own Times," 1724. A letter from the King of Spain was given to his daughter by the Spanish Ambassador, and she tore the envelope and let it fall." A more famous notice occurs in the 4th stanza of Dean Swift's Advice to the Grub Street Verse writers," 1726:

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Lend these to Paper-sparing Pope,

And when he sits to write,

No letter with an envelope

Could give him more delight.

Paper-sparing Pope," as Swift humorously termed the deformed and acrimonious poet, was in the habit of writing his verses on the backs of letters and other scraps of paper, one side only of which had been written upon. Swift suggested that the literary hacks should "get all "their" verses printed fair" and "leave the margin wide." Afterwards they were counselled to loan their papers to Pope, and after he had "filled the margin round," recall their loans, and sell them to Curll (the famous bookseller) swearing that Pope's verses were their own. A half sheet used as a cover would indeed have been a delight to a poet chary of his paper, whereas a modern envelope would have been of little service to him. The satirical Dean further referred to the envelope in at least two of his letters.