CALIFORNIAN MAIL SERVICE.

Otago Witness, Issue 1158, 7 February 1874, Page 5

CALIFORNIAN MAIL SERVICE.

(San Francisco Bulletin.)

The London special correspondent of the New York Tribune furnishes some interesting additional particulars upon the negotiations now in progress in England for the resuscitation of the mail service between California, New Zealand, and Australia. As our readers are aware there is considerable disagreement and jealousy among the Australian Colonies on the mail service between themselves and the mother country. But for this the Webb line of steamers would be now running under subventions from all the Australian Governir ente. New Zealand and New South Wales are the ones strongly favouring the Californian route, and correspondence has been going on between these two Colonies on the subject for some time. The Tribune's correspondent thus refers to the views of New Zealand :—: — " Thomas Russell, the Commissioner from New Zealand, very strongly favoured the line being an American one. He had made the trip across the Pacific Kailroad, an advantage not enjoyed by his colleague from New South Wales. "While in America, Mr Hussoll became so convinced that the line should be operated in America, that he entered into a conditional contract with General A. E. Burnside and his associates fer a 12-knot service to be performed by American-built iron propellers, specially ventilated for this fine-weather route. The sole condition tliat remained in doubt was that the con- I tract should be approved in London by the representative of New South Wales. This approval Mr Russell has done his best in good faith to obtain, but without success. If turned out that the Prime Minister of New South Wales (Mr Parkes) was in league with an English steamship company, and would hear of none other. Strangely enough, this company is just now represented in London by an agent who signs himself "H. H. Hall, United States Consul at Sydney." If the gentleman really holds that office, which so strongly entails upon him the duty of extending the influence of the United States flag, ib is, to say the least, extraordinary that hd should be so far away from the scene of his official duties engaged as the principal instrument in subordinating his country's flag to that of the British. It would seem as if Secretary Fish's official eye may well be directed towards this gentleman. It is certain, if an English Consul were to act in a like manner his country would be made too hot to hold him. In reference to Mr Parkes's negotiations with this English Company, a very bitter correspondence arose, and Mr Russell'^ ventured to intimate plainly the existence ofa corrupt bargain on the part of Mr Parkes. It may safely be predicted that, when the conespondence reaches the Colonial Parliament, there will be accusations of corruption not unlike those which have excited so much attention in Canada. At one time it looked very much as if the result of the controversy must be the final abandonment of the project the J paities had met to promote. The Colony of Queensland retired altogether from the business, and New Zealand would bave followed suit, but from her position she is too deeply interested in this particular channel of communication. Mr Russell, however, stuck firmly to his ground, using as a trump card his belief that the mails could not be certainly conveyed without the assistance of the United States, and that this was not likely to be given to an English Company, "seoing that the f ntui c commercial interests of America were concerned." The correspondent then quotes from the London press on the sneering manner in which they referred to the project of making the proposed lino an American one. He extracts from the Pall Mall Gazette as an illustration : "By the proposed line Australia will bo ouly 35 days from New "V ork, while it will be 45 days from London. In view of this advantage it is not the intorest of England to stand quietly by and sco the control of the line, which must largely influence the future of the South Pacific, pass into other hands." Mr Smalley continues : 11 As I have said, the stronß point of New Zealand all along had been the contention that I the mails could not be transmitted with certainty unless American interests were consulted. This difficulty Lord Kimberley undertook to remove by guaranteeing the transit of the mails between San Francisco and London, Tim ho claimed he could do by virtue of the postal agreement which England has with the United States Government, which provides for the exchange of letters betweon the two countries. In terms of that agreement he proposes to call upon Post-mastor-Genoral Cresswell to convey across the Amorican continent the huge monthly Australasian mails. Thus your highly-subsidised Pacific Railroad is to be run in tho interests of British commerce. Tho Washington Government is to minister to the building up of rival interests, and Uncle Sam is to bocome a mere letter-currior to John Bull." The following is stated to be tho final arrangement :—

" A temporary service is to go into operation by means of steamers now in China; telegraphed

I instructions are to be sent there forthwith, and the first steamer is to take up her position at the San Francisco end about the last of December next ; if Congress takes any action next session that leads to the establishment of a line, the English Company is to exercise ita option of withdrawing from the service ; if no such action is taken by Congress, then the Company is to continue to run the line ten years, new-built vessels taking the place of those with -winch it is intended to begin running. Thus it comes that the final settlement of the whole question practically awaits the conclusions that may be arrived at during the next session of Congress. It is somewhat singular that the English Company is to receive 50,000 dols. per annum more subsidy from the Colonies than that which the very substantial American contra ctor& named asked for the service, Sydney agreeing to pay the whole of the difference in consideration of getting her own way.