MAIL BY AIR ONLY?

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22304, 19 January 1938, Page 10

MAIL BY AIR ONLY?

——♦ - ENGLAND TO NEW ZEALAND ANXIETY EXPRESSED DISCUSSION BY WELLINGTON CHAMBER OF COMMERCE [THE TRESS Special Service.] WELLINGTON, January 18. The question whether the practice ruling between England and South Africa, whereby all first-class mail is carried by air only, would apply when the service was extended to Australia and New Zealand was raised in a letter which came before the Wellington Chamber of Commerce this evening from its London representative, Mr Sydney Jacobs, who commented on the risk over such a long .route. Subsequent speakers emphasised that the basis of the air mail scheme would be destroyed if the alternative of seaborne carriage were still permitted; that air carriage was the obvious service of the future; and that the risk attached would become less in time. The letter from Mr Jacobs pointed out that all mail between Britain and South Africa was air borne. On such long trips as England to Australia and New Zealand there would bo a danger of loss of mail, and he contended that it would be an extremely questionable practice to extend the conditions applying between England and South Africa to Australia and New Zealand. Thinking Ahead "My real point is that if the South African experiment is the thin edge of the wedge, then those who are handling the question should think as far ahead as I am trying to do in regard to the bearing this will have on Australia and New Zealand," said the letter. "In a private capacity, I should quite hate to think that I should be compelled to send letters by air mail over such a distance, and not have the option of seaborne carriage." The president. Mr A. J. Curtis, said the practice was to send duplicate copies of urgent correspondence for the sake of safety. Business firms would not. he felt, care to be deprived of the opportunity of sending such duplicates by steamer, particularly in view of the danger of loss in air crashes. Mr J. H. Russell said that air mail was only used in a case of emergency. It would be a serious matter if they were compelled to send bulky documents, which were very expensive, by air mail. The secretary, Mr E. M. B-ardsley, said that the objection to sending mail by steamer was that it would destroy the whole basis of the air mail scheme. The present rate was possible only because it included all first-class mail. There was no reason why duplicates could not be sent by following sea mail. Mr M. G. C. McCaul contended that the proper objects would be served if the most practical methods were observed. "We should be allowed to use the steamer service for less urgent matter," he said. The Future Service Captain S. Holm expressed the hope that the chamber would not take any action which would prejudice the service, which obviously would be the thing in the- future. Such a service was a big step forward, enabling them to have mail delivered at ordinary cost. The Post and Telegraph Department, having as it did a monopoly over mail services, had a duty to the public. That duty was to forward mail by the quickest available means, at no extra cost. The British Government was giving a lead to other governments by adopting the air service to achieve this object, and he trusted that the chamber would not take any action to prejudice the obvious service of the future. The postal authorities would not undertake so grave a responsibility of sending all first-class mail by air unless satisfied that the risk of loss was not greater than by steamer. Mr J. T. Martin endorsed Captain Holm's remarks, and suggested that further information be obtained from the Post and Telegraph Department. "This is a purely private letter from Mr Jacobs to our secretary. Would it not be better for us to withhold further discussion until we receive advice from the Government? said Mr R. W. Bothamley. Members agreed that the letter was in order, being from the accredited London representative of the chamber on a topic of particular interest. Mr W. H. Nash said it appeared that the object of the postal authorities was eventually to save the subsidy paid for the carriage of mail by ship. No motion was passed, the secretary being empowered to forward a suitiable reply to Mr Jacobs on the lines of the discussion.

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