NEW POSTAL CONTRACT.

Wellington Independent, Volume XXVI, Issue 3178, 20 April 1871, Page 2

NEW POSTAL CONTRACT.

Memorandum of Agreement made this seventh day of March, one thousand eight hundred and seventy- one, at New York, in the United States of America, between tho honorable Julius Yogel, tho Postmaster-General of Now Zealand, and a member of the Executive Council of the Colony, acting on behalf of the Government of New Zealand, and hereinafter called tho Postmaster-General, for himself as such Postmaster General and for his succes* sors in office, of the one part, and William H. Webb, Ei-quire, of New York, in tho United States of America, shipowner, and Ben Holladay, Esquire, of New York, in tho United States of America, hereinafter called the contractors, for themselves, their heirs, executors, adminiotrators, and assigns, of the other part, witnessetii that each of the parties doth severally contract, promise, and agree with and to the other parties respectively in manner following, that is to say : —

1. The contractors shall and will establish a lino of mail steam vessols to be called " The United States, New Zealand, and Australia Mail Steamship Line," to run between tho port, of San Francisco and New Zealand, to commence at San Franoisco on the eighth day of April, in the year one thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, and to bo continued for the term of ten years : Provided that it shall bo lawful for tho Postmaster-General to determine this contract at tho end of throo years if the General Assembly of New Zealand shall refuse to ratify tho samo for a longer time, and notice of such refusal shall have been given in writing to the contractors, or left with their agent in Wellington, hereby authorized to receive the same, within six calendar months after the first steam vessel under this contract shall arrive at Wellington.

2. The Government of New Zealand shall and will uso their best ondeavora to obtain from tho General Assembly a ratification of the contract for the full poriod of ton years.

3. Tho steam vessols to be employed under this contract shall be tho Nevada, Nebraska, the ftacotah, tlio Mosos Taylor, and each other vossel or vessels, including the Santiago de Cuba,aamay bo'required for the carrying out of this contract, and ad shall bo approved of by the Postmaster- General : Provided that tho Moses Taylor ahull be used only in eases of emergency, no other of the said vessels being available, and that the Santiago de Cuba shall be used only if a vessel in addition to tho Nevada, tho Nebraska, and the Dacotah shall bo required for tho performance of the contract services, i' 1 which case, but not otherwise, the Postmaster- General agrees to accept the said vessel for a period of twenty-four months and no move, on condition that she shall be thoroughly ropairod in every particular to the satisfaction of Mr Robert JMackie, Lloyd's Agent at the port of Now York; and if any of the said vessels shall bo lost or become untjvrvimiblu, another vessel or vt sscls, to be approved of in writing by tho PostmasterUfiHTiil, Bhull be substituted.

4. It frliull ho In wf ul for the contractors to .-nbstitiilo otlior vessels for thoso named, provided that such substitution sliull bo previously us.ientrd to in writing by the PostmasterGeneral. 5. The- steam vessels to be from time to time employed in the performance- of (his contract shall bo always h'tte-J out, furnished and provided with every requisite for rondor in» them constantly clliciont for tho service in every particular, as first-class mail and passenger steam vessels. 6. One of tho vessels to bo employed under this contract shall leavo San Francisco once in every twenty-eight days, and shall proceed thenco to Port Chalmers, by way of and culling Auckland, Wellington, and Ly!i)lton, in New Zealand ; and one of the said vessels sluill leiivo Port Chalmers once in every twenty-eight days, and shall procoed to San Francisco, by way of and calling at Ly ltd ton, Wellington, and Auckland. 7. In passing Hawko'a Bay the vessels shall, weather permitting, call oft' Napier to deliver and recoivo mails to and from that place, the said mails to bo delivered and received by a

steam launch to be provided by the Postmas-ter-General.

8. The eaid steam vessels may cull at two intermediate places, arid no more, between Auckland and San Francisco, and between Snn Francisco and Auckland, and such two places may be at any of the Hawaiian, Society or Navigator Islands, as the contractors may think fit and appoint ; and such ports, after being appointed, may be altered from time to time by the contractors, and other ports in othor islands substituted, with the cjnsent of the Postmaster-General, but not otherwiee.

9. The time (including a period not exceeding forty-eight hours for coaling at the Sandwich Islands, and all other stoppages) allowed for the voyage between San Francisco and Auckland, and Auckland and San Francisco, shall not exceed six hundred hours $ and the contractors shall use all possible diligence and despatch to depart from Auckland, and thereafter to perform the voyage between Auckland and Port Chalmers within one hundred and ten hours, including stoppages, and shall forfeit the sum of two pouuds per hour for every hour's unnecessary delay.

10. The contractors shall once in every twenty-eight days run a steamer in connection with the aforesaid steamers, between Auckland and Sydney, in the colony '.of . New South Wales, and between Sydney and Auckland; and if required so to do by the PostmasterGeneral, the contractors shall, or at their own option they may, run the said steamer from Sydney to Melbourne, in the colony of Victoria, and from Melbourne to Sydney and Auckland ; but the JPostmaster- General shall nob require the said steamer hO be run from Sydney to Melbourne, unless the Victorian Government agree to pay a subsidy of thirty thousand pounds per annum, which sum shall be equally divided between the Government of New Zealand and the contractors.

11. The vessel to bo employed between Auckland and Sydney, or between Auckland, Sydney, and Melbourne, as the case may be, as provided in the preceding clause, shall be in all respects equal in character to the vessels employed between San Francisco and Port Chalmers, and not less than one thousand tons register, British, measurement, and shall be approved of by the Postmaster- General ; and the whole time, including stoppages allowed for the voyage each way betweeu San Francisco and Sydney shall not exceed seven hundred and forty -four hours.

12. For the service hereinbefore described, inclusive of the service between Auckland and Sydney, or between Auckland, Sydney, and Mcl bourne, as the case may be, the contractors shall be paid by the Government of New Zealand at the rate of fifty thousand pounds for thirteen complete services to and from Port Chalmers and San Francisco, and to ami from Auckland and Sydney, or Auckland, Sydney, and Melbourno, as the case may be ; and all mails which the PostmasterGeneral shall require to be carriod by the contractors during the continuance of the contract ahull be carried free of cost.

13. If during the first six months after the date fixed for the commencement of the contract service, the contractors are unable to run the vessel from Auckland to Sydney, or from Auckland to Sydney and Melbourne, as hereinbeforo provided in clauses 10 and 11, the payment to be made to the contractors bj the Government of New Zealand during that period shall bo at the rate of forty thousand pounds for thirteen complete services, and not at the rate of fifty thousand pounds as hereinbefore provided ; and the contractors agree to start the said steamer not later than six months after the commencement of the contract service.

14. During the first thirteen complete services between San Francisco and New Zealand, each "way, the contractors may cause the vessel arriving at Auckland from San Francisco to bo run from Aucklund to Sydney, or from Auckland to Sydney and Melbourne : provided that they have at Auckland one of the contract vessels mentioned in clause 3 to proceed to Wellington, Lyttelton, and Port Chalmers ; and provided further, that such vessel Bhall, on the next succeeding voyage, proceed from Port Chalmers to San Francisco by way of and cailing at Lyttelton, Wellington, and Auckland.

15. After the completion of the first thirteen services between San Francisco and New Zealand, each way, the contractors may at their option, twice during each twelve months, run the vessel arriving at Auckland from Sau Francisco to Sydney, or to Sydney and to Melbourne, in the same way as is provided by the preceding clause ; but save and except as is provided by tho preceding clause, and by this clause, the vessel arriving at Auckland from San Francisco shall proceed to Port Chalmers, and from Port Chalmers to San Francisco, as is provided by clause 6.

16. It shall bo lawful for the Postmaster-Q-enerul, but not for the contractors, to make any arrangements he may think fit with any of the Australian Governments, and with the Government of New Caledonia ; and all sums payable under such arrangements shall be equally divided between the Government of New Zealand and the contractors : Provided that no such arrangements shall be held to compel the contractors without their consent to perform any eorvice not providod for by this agreement. 17. The contractors shall not, nor Bhall any person or persons with their consent or concurrence, run any steam vessel to New Caledonia, or the Fiji Islands, or to any of the Australian colonies, except from a port in New Zealand ; and no mails whatever shall bo carried on board any such steam vessel or branch steam vessel running from New Zealand, except with the consent of the PostmasterGeneral in writing first obtained, 18. The days and hours of departure far the vessels employed under this contract shall be those specified in a table to be furnished by the Postmaster-General : Provided that the Postmaster-General ma.y from time to time alter such days and hours on giving reasonable notice to the contractors of tho required alteration, provided that no such alteration shall render necessary the employment of an additional steam vessel, except, bb is herein provided ; and the altered days and hours shall be observod and kept as if the same had been providod for in this contract, and the contractors shall pay tho sum of two pounds per hour for every hour's delay in tho departure of any vessel after tho specified time. 19. The Postmaster-Goneral Bhall pay to tho contractors tho sum of two pounds per hour for every hour that any mail shall be ready for delivery in the port of Auckland or San Francisco less than the contract time ; and tho contractors shall pay to tho Post-master-General tiie sum of two pounds per hour for every hour that shall bo required fur delivery of any mail in Auckland or SanFrancisoo in exeoss of tho contract, time ; but if good cause for any such excess be shown to the Postmaster-General, the payment in respect thereof may be remitted at his discretion.

20. In respect to the steamer to bo run from Auckland to Sydney, it shall bo lawful for the Postmaster-General (o declare that in addition to tho provision made in tho preceding clause for tho ports of Auokland and San Francisco, a similar provision shall apply to the delivery of mails in tho ports of Sydney and San Franeisoo; and in such case, thin contract shall be read as though there had been inserted herein an additional clause, in tho samo words as the preceding clause, substituting throughout tho word " Sydney" for Auckland.

2L. All sums payable to the contractors by way of subsidy shall be paid by monthly instalments, immediately prior to the departure of each steam vessel on her return voyage from Auckland to San Francisco, to an agent lo be appointed by tho contractors to roceive the same ; and if default shall bo made in the payment; of any such instalment at the appointed time, tho contractor shall bo entitled to receive as liquidated damages the sum of one hundred pounds, and an additional sum of one hundred pounds for every month during which such instalment shall remain unpaid.

22. All payments of premiums for the delivery of mails in less than the contract tiaie, and of sums by way of penalty for delay in

the delivery of mails, as for other breaches of this contract, shall be adjusted every twelve months, and the balance paid accordingly : Provided that all sums so payable to the Government of New Zealand may be deducted from any sum due to the contractors by way of subsidy.

23. No mails whatever to or from any of the colonies of Australia, or to or from New Caledonia, except as hereinbefore provided, shall he received on board or carried in any of the steam vessels employed under this contract; without the written consent of the Postmaster* General ; and for evpry breach of this stipulation with the consent or connivance of the contractors, they shall forfeit the sum of five hundred pounds as liquidated damages, to be deducted from any Bums due or to become due by way of subsidy under this contract. 24. In pursuance of the Postal Convention existing between tha United States Government and the Colonial Government of New Zealand, and in order to ensure reasonable contributions from the Australian Colonies and Now Caledonia for mail services to be performed for them, neither the PostmasterGeneral nor the contractors, without the joint consent of both parties, shall or will transmit or permit to be transmitted, and will use their best endeavors to prevent the transmission of all moils to or from any of the Australian Colonies, or to or from New Caledonia, unles* such Colony or New Caledonia respectively shall enter into arrangements with the Post-master-General, as provided by clause fifteen ; and in case of any wilful breach of this stipulation, the party breaking the came shall torfeit and pay to the other the sura of five hundred pounds as liquidated damages. 25. The contractors shall abide by and conform to any regulations that may be made jointly by the United States Post Office authorities und the Postmaster-Genernl for the prevention of colonies not contributing to the subsidies payable from participating indirectly in the advantages of the mail service established under this contract.

26. The term " all mails" throughout this contract., shall be taken to mean all letters, newspapers, books, printed papers, and other things usually transmitted by post, and the boxes, bogs, and packages, in which the same are enclosed, and abo all empty boxes, bags, and packages, and other stores and articles used in carrying on the Post Office service, which shall be sent to or from any Post Office j and no letters, newspapers, or printed papers other than books, shall be knowingly curried in any form or manner other than ns mails, without the consent of the Postmaster-Gen-eral ; but this shall not apply to letters from the contractors to their agents : and for every breach of this stipulation the contractors shall pay the sum of one hundred pounds, which may be deducted from any sura then or thereafter pajiible to them. 27 The contractors shall provide to the satisfaction of the Postmaster- General, on board all steam vessels employed under this contract, propei*. safe, and convenient places of deposit for the mails, with locks, keya, and secure fastenings. 28. The contractors shall also provide, to the satisfaction of the Postmaster- General, all necessary and suitable acommodation, includ» ing light*, for the purpose of sorting and making up the mails on board the several steam vessels employed under this contract, &c j and on being required to do so by the PostmasterGeneral, shall or will, at their own cost erect or set apart on each of the said vessels, a separate and convenient room for such purposes. The master or commander of each of the said vessels shall also, if required, provide assistance for conveying the mail between the mail room and the sorting room. 29. If the Postmaster-General shall think fit to intrust the charge and custody of the mails to the master ov commander of any veasel to be employed under this contract, and in all cases where the officer or other person ap« pointed to have charge of the mails shall be absent to the knowledge of the master or com* mander of such vessel, such master or commander shall, without any charge other than that herein provided to be paid to the con* tractors, take due care of, and the contractors shall be responsible for the receipt, safe custody, and delivery of, the said mails. 30. The contractors shall at their own expense deliver and take all uiailß to and from the Post Office in San Francisco, and the Post-master-General shall cause all mails in New Zealand and Sydney to be delivered at or taken from the ship's side, and such delivery shall be taken within Wo hourß after arrival at the appointed place of delivery. 31. The contractors, and all commanding and other officers in charge of the vessels employed under this contract, shall at all times punctually attend to the orders and directions of the Postmaster- General, his officers, or agents, as to the mode, time, and place of landing, delivering, and receiving mails, subject to the special provisions herein contained, and so far as such orders and directions are reasonable and consistent with the safety of the vessels.

32. The contractors shall have no claim to any postage, nor to any payment on account thereof, for mails carried under this contract, except as herein provided

33. The contractors shall provide suitable first-class accommodation for a muil officer or agent and one assistant on board each of the vessels employed under this contract, wlio shall be at liberty to use such accommodation as may be required for the performance of fcktir dutios ; and such officer or agent and assistant shall bo victualled by the contractors, as chief cabin passengers, without charge either for their passages or victualling 34. Every such, mail officer or agont and assistant shall bo recognised and treated by the eontraoters, their officers and agents, as the agent of the Postmaster-G-eueral in charge of mails, and as having full authority in all casea to require a dne and strict performance of this contract: Provided that no auch. ngent, officer, or asaiatant sball hare power to control ox interfere with any commander or officer in the performance of his duty, and every such agent, officer, and assistant shall bo subject [to all general orders issued by the master or commander for the good order, health and comfort of the passengers and crew, and the safety of the vessel. 35. If the Postmaster-General, or his officers or agents, shall at any time deem it requisite for the public service that any vessel should be detained beyond the appointed time of departure, it shall be lawful for the Post-master-General, his officers, or agents, to order such delay— not excoding forty-eight hours at San Francisco, and not exceeding twentyfour hours at one port in New Zealand, and not exceeding twenty-four hours in Australia — by letter addressed to and delivered to the commander of the vessel, or the person acting as such, or left for him on board the vessel, four hours at least before the hour appointed for depart are ; and in order to ensuro the due carrying of the mail from San Francisco, the contractors without any such notice shall delay any vessel (if necessary) forty-eight hours, to await tho arrival of the mail there from New York, and in every auch case tho number of hours during which such vessel shall be 60 detained shall bo added to the contract time.

36. The contractors shall have power to assign this contract to a company intended to be established by them, for the purpose of taking over and carrying out the same; but this contract, or any part thereof, shall not be otherwise assigned, underlet, or disposed of by the contractors, or by tho company to whom tho same may be assigned, without the consent in writing of the Postmaster-General first obtained for such purpose.

37. In case this contract is assigned, underlet, or disposed of, otherwise than in accordance with the provision hereinbefore contained, or in case of any wilfully gross or habitual breach of the same or any part thereof or of any covenant, matter, or thing herein contained, committed by or on behalf of the contractors, their agents or servants, and whether there be or be not any penalty or sura of money payable by the contractors for any such breach, it shall be lawful for the Post-master-General if he shall think fit, and notwithstanding there may or laay not have bee

any former breach of this contract, by writing under his hand, or under (ho lmnd of the Secretary of the Post Office in New Zealand, to determine this contract oi^ giving three months' previous notice ot his intention to do so Jo the contractor*, or 'heir agents, and the contractors ehnil not be entitled to any compensation in respect of such determination : Provided that on the Postmaster- Gen oral giving notice that he proposes to determine tho contract, he ehall offer to thejeontractors the alternative of an arbitration upon tho whole ground of complaint, one arbitrator to be chosen by each party, the arbitrators to choose an umpire, if necessary, and their award to be binding upon both parties.

38. During the continuance of this contract, and so long as the same shall be lawfully car feed out by the contractors, no charge for ( otage, lighthouse dues, harbor dues, or other dues, taxes, or imposts, shnll be tnndo nt any port in New Zealand for any of the etcum yesBel 6 employed in carrying out this contract ; and the Government of x^ew Zealand will use their best endeavors to obtain for tho contractors similar exemptions at tho port of Sydney, and, if necessary, nt the port of Melbourne and nt New Caledonia.

39. If the contractors shall refuse or wilfully neglect to commence the mail service provided by this contract, or, having commenced the eair.e, shall refuse or wilfully neglect to carry on the same, they shall be liable to pay to the Postmaster-General, on behalf of the Government of New Zealand, the sum of tweniy-fivo thousand pounds as liquidated damages. 40. The contractors shall use their best endeavors to procure the mails carried under this contract to be taken to and from San Francisco and New York free from charge, under the postal convention between Great Britain and the United States ; and so long as the freedom of charge shall not exist, the Postmaster-General shall deduct from the payments to be made to the contractors a sum at the rate of one thousand pounds per annum. 41. Ik order to encourage trade between the United States and the Australasian colonies, the contractors will use their beet endeavors to obtain from the United States Government a conceoeion that Phormium ienax fibre, the produce of New Zealand, and wool, the produce of New Zealand, and of any other of the colonies that may make arrangements with the Postmaster- General for the carringc of mails under this contract between San Francisco and Australia, shall be admitted duty free into the United States. 42. It shall be lawful for the PostmasterGeneral, by writing under his hand, at any time and from timo to time to delegate any of the powers vested in him by virtue of this contract to such person or persons as he may think fit. 43. The contractors may carry mails and moil matter between the United States and the Hawaiian Islands, or between those islands and New Zealand, on such terms as they may see fit, and may receive such payment by way of postage or subsidy as may be agreed to be paid therefor, and for this special service the contractors alone shall receive pay. But no mails shall be carried under this contract between the said islands and New Zealand which do not originate in, or whoso final destination ehall not be, ip said islands. 42. The contractors shall enter into a bond to the Postmaster- General, with two sufficient sureties to be approved of by him, in the penal sum of twenty- five thousand pounds, conditioned for the faithful performance of this contract. 45. It is hereby understood and agreed that wherever the word " pounds" is used in this agreement, pounds sterling, lawful money of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, are meant. 46. This agreement is entered into by and is to bind the said William H. Webb and Ben Holiday, jointly and severally, 'both as co contractors and as individuals. In witness whereof the said parties have hereunto set their hands and seals the day und year first above written. JVLItB VOGEI/, (L.S.) W. H. Webb, (1.5.) Ben Hoiladay, (l.s) (by W. H. Web 3, Attorney.) Sealed and delivered in the presence of — [The words "United States" on the 23rd line of the Ist page, " inny" on the 30th line of the 3rd page, being written on erusure, and the words " shall be" on the 19th line, and "knowingly" on the 21st line of the 10th page, and the words " upon the whole ground of complaint" on the 26th line of the 14th page, being interlined before execution.] F. F. Mahbury, Junr. W. Gbay. J. B. M. Seewaet.