AUSTRALIAN TELEGRAMS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume I, Issue 177, 7 June 1864, Page 4

AUSTRALIAN TELEGRAMS.

(From the " Sydney Herald.") TAMBAROOKA. May 20. Vi'stf.kdaV was observed here as ;i general holiday. Huge bonfires were in this evening, and displays of firework* in a'l directions. "Weather delightful. MELBOURNE. May 2j. The Queen's birthday was a general holiday. Fifteen hundred volunteers assembled at tlio review. The Governor's Levee was attended by eight hundred gentlemen. Husines.s very fjuiet. The demand for all descriptions of iinpoitcd goods is unusually lipjlit. Flour and wheat are held, lint prices are quite nominal in Ilie alienee of transactions. Nothing done worth notice in Parliament up to this hour. Arrived :—' Australia,' from I'ost mi ; 1 Snap Draifon,' from Hongkong; ' Aldinga,' steamer, from Otatfo. Cleared: 'Knsign' and ' Torquil,' for Newcastle; ' AVellcsley," for London, witli 70l bales wool, 2ij,7yi oz. gold. An American barque arrived at the heads and anchored, but declined giving her port of departure. Weather lowering, and intimating an unfavourable change. UUEEXSCLIFF. May 2-3. The 'Snapdragon, from 1 is now in qujuantino; sin* has on bounl 271 Cl'uieso gors. The cajiiain repcrts line eases ol' small-pox, and one death during the voyage. ADELATDK. May 24. From privato infonnntion receivc-d from Portland, Melbourne, and Sydney, the priccs of flour and wheat hero are expected to fcei'p up. His Kxeellon cy the Governor lu-ld a Levee to-day which whs most numerously attended, The Volunteer review was very successful. About, eight hundred men were under arms, and theie were upwards six thousand spectators. The evolutions of the Volunteers evinced a marked improvement. There is nothing fresh from the Jloonta Mines. The decision of tin; miners is generally regretful. The 'Alexandra' (s.), ariivcd from Sydney via Melbourne at noon. May 20. No transactions reported to-day in wheat and Hour, lint the market is firm. Holders of wheat are asking higher rates in consequence of the statistics published by the Victorian Government. U.V.T'.C. bran fly, in ease? and bulk-, (-earee: bottled ale, first brands wanted ; suiiar mark( t quiet, lower prices would be taken; tobacco, tens, in fair demand. Miss Gougeuhcim is drawing crowded houses <»t the Victoria Theatre. A convict who arrived per ' Rangatira,* from Iving George's Sound, has been an-osted. 'The evidence proves that the lore-cabin steward received JEIU for conceal'ng him. The miners are still on strike, but a satisfactory arrangemont is shortly expected. Ai-rived —' Soiata,' from Sydney. Sa ; 'ed —' Coorang' and ' I'enola,' for Melbourne. Piu Rowland Hill and his Reuvicks.—At the time when public attention is bfiiiK directed to tlie sei vices of Sir Kowland Hill, and their acknowledgment is about to (he .shape of public recognition, it will be well to present a short summary of the enormous benefits which have accrued to the country from his long and arduous labours in the service of the pubic. Thorugli. the ellbrts of £*ir Rowland Hill a large reduction in the rates of poMugc has taken phiee» whether Inland, Foreign, or Colonial. To show t lie extent to which tHis reduction has taken place, letters may now be sent from any part ol the I'nited Kingdom to any other prr), from the Channel Islands to the Shetland Isles, at one-fourth of the charge formerly made for letters passing to tovns only a few miles apart. Great reductions have also taken place in foreign postage, and we can now send letters In any pari of .France, including Algeria, at the rate which we used to have to pay for letters sent for a short distance only. To this important reform of cheapness we must add the great utility of adopting a eharire bv weight regardless of nn-losures; the system of universal prepayment by stamps, the simplification of accounts, the establishment of the book post for all printed MS. matter, and recently the pattern post, at low rates ; the increased security by cheap registration of letters containing, artielesofvalue, and ihelesseiiingof temptations to the letter-carrier, ky enforcing theregist ration of all let ters containing coin ; a reduction of one third in the cost of money orders j more frequent and rapid i ommi'uicat ion ; a vast extension of the rural distribution, many thousands of fresh places having been Included in the postal system ; a gi\at extension of free deliveries; greatly increased facilities a Abided for the transmission of foreign and colonial letters, improved treaties with foreign countries, and a better arrangement of the packet service ; a more prompt dispatch of letters when posted, and a more prompt dciiwrv on arrival ; the division of Loudon and its suburbs into ten postal districts, by which means the most important delivery of the day has been accelerated by two hours; and concurrently with all those improvements the condition of the employes has been improved ; their labours, especially on Sunday, have been reduced, their salaries increased, t heir ehancesof promotion augmented,and olheriinportant advantages afi'ordedlhem. The results of these improvemrnts exceedall that could possibly have been anticipated. In INIiOSir Howland J J ill wrote a pamphlet on Tost Oliiee Helorrn, and during the procedin*; twenty years —viz., from LSIS to IS:JS inclusive—there was tlo increase whatever in the I'ost OJfiee rerenue, trhether t/t'oss or nit. It is fair ! o suppose that I here was also no increase in the number of Utters, and although from some slight reforms having been introduced, there was a small increase been ltS35 and the establishment of the peony postage in ISIO, yet during I lie twenty-four tears immediately preceding, the revenue and the number of letters were in ell'cvt stationary. IS'O sooner, however, was the new system adopted than the most decided advance was made. In the lirst year the letters more than doubled ; and notwithstanding all the vicissitudes ill trade and other inlluencing causes, every year has shown a large increase over its predecessor, and the first year's number is now nearly quadrupled. In the revenue at tirst there was, as was foretold there would be a largj falling oil'at lirst ; about a million in the gross, and still more in the net revenue. tlie lirst. year the revenue ha* rapidly advanced, and it now exceeds its former amount ; the rate of increase, both of letters and revenue, still remaining undiminished. To give the result ill figures, we find that in (lie year I.S3S, the last complete year under the old system, the number of chargeable letters was 70 millions, while in ING 3 it had risen to (J 12 millions; the revenue, which at lirst was so much impaired, has not only recovered its original amount, but. risen—the gross from .£2,S-1-G,OOO, to about X"3,570,0U0., and the net from 1,0(50,000, to about £1,790,000. The expectations of the good which would result from the new system have been more than realised ; the expectations of its originator even did not reach the immense increase and benefit which have followed the adoption of his plan. His opinion was that the number of letters would increase live-fold —they have increased nearly eight nnd a half fold ; the gross revenue, which he thought would remain the same, has increased about £1,500,000.; while the net revenue which he anticipated would show a decrease of £300.000, has risen more than tloo,ooo. The immense utility of the Money Order Ollice is proved by the fact (hat since 1839 the annual amount transmitted has risen from £313,000, to £1G,'104:,000. ; that, is, has increased lit'ty-two fold. Surely this plain statement of facts, of results obtained, show thoroughly Sir Kowland Hill merits the gratitude of his countrymen —a gratitude which may not only wisely manifest itself by erecting permanent memorials, but. by carrying out the resolution of the "Birmingham meeting, and obtaining from Parliament u national recognition of services which have produced such ever increasing benefits, and wrought such great and permanent ameliorations in the social condition of the civilised world. Tub First Law ok Natdik—and more especially Jat a Theatre. On the tirst nijj;ht—is < lrd< r. A (JeMMKitctAL Tui tm.—Jloncy, I ilce a boot, when | it's tight; is extremely trying.