THE MAIL SUBSIDY.

Auckland Star, Volume XXI, Issue 172, 23 July 1890, Page 5

THE MAIL SUBSIDY.

THE AUSTRALIANS WILL NOT -; CONTINUE IT.

THEY WANT UNCLE SAM TO DO

HIS SHARE.

(San Francisco "Chronicle.")

In an interview with Robert J. Creighton, j agenb of the New Zealand Governmenb, regarding the despatch in yesterday's paper 1 to the effect that bhe Sydney Governmenb .J had decided to withdraw from bhe Sa» J Francisco service unless the United Stated 1 Governmenb contributed toward it, he said . '* "The despatch gives the exact faoi. I '\ have had an official intimation by cable , 1 to the same effect. When I was in ' Australia last year the leading commerci-V bodies were strongly in favour of close j and direct commercial intercourse withi' « the United States, and the Chamber- ,! ot Commerce of Sydney and .Melbourne adopted resolutions to that effecb, recommending a continuance of the mail service ~ via San Francisco. It was made a condition of such continuance, however, thab bha United States should contribute on equitable terms to the cost of the service, and ib was felt as a grievance that this rich and opulent country should have depended for twenty years upon the public bounty of a handful of people fa New Soubh Wales and New Zealand bo furnish ib wibh mail and passenger accommodation and build up its commerce in Australasia.

" The contract was continued for one year by the Governments ot Sydney and Wellington on the expressed understanding bhab bhe United States would at the very least, one-half the cosb of maintaining a fortnightly mail and passenger service by firsb-class steamers between Sau Francisco and Sydney by way of Honolulu, Samoa and Auckland. As Congress met early last December and as nothing has been done looking to a recognition of the Australian mail service, no doubt thi Sydney Government concluded that country was indifferent to Australian trade, and resolved to pay out no more money for the exclusive benefit of the United States." " Why exclusive benefit _" _ " Because New South Wales and Australia generally are not dependent upon the Californian mail route, and because also the mail matter originating in the United States for Australia is largely in excess of the Australian mail for the United States.

" Why exclusive benefit _"

The last annual reporb of bhe Postmaster- • General ab Washington shows the difference conclusively. Thus:

" San Francisco to Australia, letters, 4,107,183gram5; prints, 105,230,926 grams.. " Australian colonies to San Francisco, letters, 276,270 grams. "Ib will be seen from this exhibit thab' bhe Ausbralian mail service is maintained

for the almost exclusive benefit of. tne. United Stabes, because Greab Britain and - her colonies pay the Washingbon Post Office Deparbmenb bebween §80,000 and' $100,000 a year for railroad transportation of their closed mail, plus the cost of Atlari- . » bic bransporbabion. Ib resolves .itself into this, therefore, that the colonies pay $185,000 a year for a postal service which, - they do not need, while the United States paid last year $35,955 32 toward the cosb of

the Australian mail service, which they do need. And ibis further to be noted that the direct steamers generally sail full of American freight and return almosb empby so far as colonial products are concerned.

" If Congress passes the Tonnage Bill" an American steamship line can be maintained, bub while ib is haggling over $80,000,000 of South, and Central American trade, ib is deliberately throwing away its chance of the best paying trade in the world, the Australian trade, which lasfcyear was in excess of $648,000,000 for a total of 4,000,000 people. I hope the Tonnage Bill will pass or the Postal Subsidy ' Bill, anything that will maintain the Aus, tralian service. The colonies, howeverare tired of paying all the cost, and naturally think that if their trade is worth having ib is worth making some effort to. retain. England, Germany and Francs* % would be delighted should the American flag disappear from Ausbralian waters. i

These powers maintain subsidised lines of steamships in the Australian trade."