E.—No. 4.

No. 17. The Hon. J. Togel to the Hon. the Postmaster-General, Sydney. Sir,— General Post Office. Wellington, 2nd August, 1870. Being in expectation of a further communication. I have delayed acknowledging the letter from the Hon. Mr. Cowper, addressed to the Hon. the Colonial Secretary, Wellington, of sth May last, on the subject of the mail service via California. In reply to that letter, I have the honor again to point out that it was understood that the provisional agreement applicable to the supposition that the three Colonies would establish the two services, should not stand in the way of assistance being rendered to the service via California already established. The provisional agreement has, it appears, quite fallen through, but the Californian Service has continued, and New South Wales has taken advantage of it, Sydney being the terminus. I regret to learn that your Government hesitates to make so small a contribution to so important a.n undertaking, and am of opinion that until they sufficiently appreciate the value of the service to be willing to make that contribution, your Department should abstain from using it. I hope, on consideration, your Government will recognize that it is in no unfriendly spirit that this Government is constrained to come to the conclusion that it cannot agree to convey mails or correspondence by this route to or from non-contributing Colonies on such arrangement as is proposed in the enclosure to your letter of the 26th April last. I have, Ac, The Hon. the Postmaster-General, Sydney. Julius Vogel.

No. 18. Mr. H. L. Hurst to Mr. G. Eliott Eliott. (No. 476-70.) Sir,— General Post Office, Adelaide, 17th May, 1870. I am directed by the Postmaster-General to request that you would kindly furnish him with a copy of the time-table for the Pacific Mail Steamers, and also of the conditions under which correspondence from this Colony can be forwarded by them. I have, &c, The Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington, N.Z. H. L. Huest.

No. 19. The Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington, to the Secretary, General Post Office, South Australia. Sir, — General Post Office, Wellington, 3rd June, 1870. I am directed to acknowledge receipt of your letter of the 17th ultimo (No. 467-70), requesting that you be furnished with a copy of the time-table for the Pacific Mail Steamers, and also of the conditions under which correspondence from South Australia can be forwarded by these steamers. In reply, I beg to refer you to a letter from the Hon. Mr. Gisborne to the Hon. the Colonial Secretary, South Australia, of date 28th February last (No. 52), as to the terms on which South Australian correspondence can be forwarded by the San Francisco route. As regards the time-table of the steamers referred to, they leave Sydney on the last day of each month, and Auckland on the 7th of the following month ; and, in return, they leave San Francisco on the 10th of each month, as stated in the copy of the contract which accompanied the letter from the Hon. Mr. Gisborne above alluded to. I have, &c, G. Eliott Eliott, The Secretary, General Post Office, Adelaide, S.A. Secretary.

No. 20. Mr. J. Tilley to the Hon. J. Vogel. (No. 38,434) General Post Office, Sir,— London, 19th May, 1870. The Postmaster-General has received, through. Her Majesty's Secretary of State for the Colonies, your letter of the Bth of February last, and also your further letter of the 19th of the same month addressed to this office direct, on the subject of the contract which has been entered into by the New Zealand Government for a monthly mail service between Sydney, Auckland, and San Francisco. In reply, I am directed by His Lordship to acquaint you, that arrangements have been made, in compliance with your request, for the transmission by the new route of all correspondence for New Zealand not addressed to be sent by any other route, as well aft of correspondence for the Australian Colonies generally, if specially addressed to be so sent. The rates of postage to be charged will, for the present, be the same as on correspondence sent via Southampton and Suez. With reference to the hop© which you express that, considering the importance of this mail service, the Imperial Government will grant to it the same allowance and privileges in postage which they granted to the former service between Panama and New Zealand, the Marquis of Hartington desires me to state that, when the mail service via Panama was established, Her Majesty's Government consented to forego all claim to a share of the sea postage, although the conveyance of the New Zealand mails between Southampton and Colon was effected by means of steam vessels subsidized by

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SAN FRANCISCO MAIL SERVICE.