THE EXTENSION OF PENNY POSTAGE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 13250, 5 April 1905, Page 4

THE EXTENSION OF PENNY POSTAGE.

The adoption by the British Post Office, from the beginning of this month', of a. penny rate upon letters posted in the United Kingdom for delivery in Australia represents a very distinct step forward. The Times has heralded it as an indication of the enthusiasm of the Imperial Government in behalf of the consolidation of the Empire. 13ut it may be questioned whether this is not really to claim too little for the reform. The notion that a preference should he granted to British products under the Customs tariffs of tiie British dominions has found no counterpart in the proposals of our statesmen in regard to postal charges. New Zealand is probably prepared to reciprocate in respect of penny postage with any country on the face of the globe that will transmit letters to this colony on the basis of a. charge, of one penny per half-ounce, and many foreign countries that have not seen their way to adopt, a reciprocal penny post- readily agreed to accept and deliver without surcharge New Zealand letters forwarded at the penny rate. Nor can it be, supposed that the introduction of a penny rate between Great Britain and. Australia is not likely to be followed in the course of time by important developments in the shape of the extension of the area within which the penny rates shall apply. Consequently, while the adoption by Lord Stanley, the British Postmaster-general, of penny postage to Australia is unquestionably a valuable factor in the promotion of the unification of the Empire, it may also be regarded in a wider sense as a step towards such an advancement of civilisation as shall be attained through the growth of facilities for the exchange of courtesies between the various countries of the world. Viewed strictly in its commercial and utilitarian aspect- tne reduction of the postal rate from the United Kingdom to Australia to the -level which has obtained since If 01 between Great Britain and-New Zealand must- be hailed as n measure that will be 'productive of great and permanent benefit, and the populations of both hemispheres will associate themselves cordially with those whose congratulations have been expressed directly to Mr Henniker Heaton, M.P., upon this partial realisation of a scheme of postal reform which has been untiringly and ably advocated by him for many years. It is unfortunate that the Commonwealth has been unable to see its way to meet the British Government to the full extent of the reduction that is being made on correspondence transmitted from the United Kingdom. The state of the Australian finances has, it has been authoritatively stated, prevented the Federal Ministry from doing more than.comply with the stipulation of the Imperial Government that the rate on Homeward letters shall immediately be reducod from 2Ad to 2d per half-ounce. The reduction of the rates by this halfpenny will, it is estimated by Mr Sydney Smith, the Federal Postmasler-general, involve a loss to the Commonwealth revenue of £7400 per annum. From this it may he presumed that the probable loss if the penny rate were adopted would be slightly over £22,000. But if tlio New Zealand experience may be accepted as a guide of any value, this loss would very speedily vanish under the influence of the increased business that would accrue from the establishment. of the lower rates. It may be remembered that the official estimate of the loss that the revenue of this colony

would* suffer through the introduction of tlio penny postal rato was £80,000 per milium. As n matter of fact, tlio actual loss during the year pf 'tho operation of t lie rato was only about £34,000, itiid in the second year it seenis to have been so trivial that it was not worth mentioning in the annual report of the Postal 'department, while last year the revenue froiri tlio sale of postage stamps was nearly £25,000 more than it was in the .year 'prior to the inauguration of the penny postage scheme. In tlio light of this experience, it is probable that tlio Federal Postmaster-general is unnecessarily apprehensive concerning the financial results of the new departure. We hope that his experience of the reduction of the Homeward rate to twopence will be so encouraging that lie will not have to keep the British Post Offico waiting long for the complete reciprocation of the'sagacious measure it has adopted.