POSTAL AND TELEGRAPHIC.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXIII, Issue 7693, 19 July 1886, Page 14

POSTAL AND TELEGRAPHIC.

The post office returns show the following results under the general headings The receipts of the department for the year amounted to £297,375, an increase of £13, or 4J per cent. Tho revenue exceeded expenditure by £7603, and it is stated that postal and telegraphic expenditure has been less than the receipts for five years past. The expenditure was largo owing to tho establishment of direct steam service and the South Sea Island service. 35.829.555 letters passed through New Zealand post offices during thti year, and 1,774,273 telegrams were transmitted, The San Francisco service keeps on the right side of the ledger. It show® a credit balance on the year's operations, after setting receipts against expenditure, of £422 12s 4d, compared with a debit of £7736 10a 7d the previous year. The result is due to the fact that the colony retained the whole of the contributions from non-contributing colonies, in place of sharing them with Sydney as in former years, and in addition received a direct payment for carriage of New South Wales mails. Perhaps toe most curious feature in the Post Office report is the information it gives respecting unclaimed or " dead " letters, and their contents. It appears that during the year 96,951 un claimed letters were dealt with, of which ISS were re-issued, 2572 destroyed, and the balance returned to the writers. In unclaimed letters were found gold, notes, cheques, etc., to the amount of £5253; in addition 5 gold rings, 9 gold rings set with precious stones, 2 nets of gold shirt studs and sleeve links, 1 sleeve link, I gold scarf pin set with amethyst, 1 gold locket, 1 gilt watchguard, 1 packet of gold dust, 4 silver hunting watches, 1 silver Geneva watch, 1 silver watch, with silver chain and locket attached, 1 silver watsh and chain, 2 silver brooches, 1 silver bracelet, 1 silver ring, and 1 New Zealand war medal were found in unclaimed letters. 4204 unclaimed registered letters were dealt with. Thirty letters detained for postage were received, 20 of which were subsequently forwarded, 558 newspapers and 293 books and other articles without addresses were also received; of these 50 were delivered, and 83 book packets forwarded to London and elsewhere, for return to the senders. Ninety-eight letters were posted without addresses. 11 letters with libellous addresses were intercepted ; 164 letters were imperfectly and wrongly addressed : 2490 letters were refused by addresses ; 4 letters were posted with previously used stamps.