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No. 48. The Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington, to Messrs. Henderson and Macfarlane, Auckland. Gentlemen, — General Post Office, Wellington, 29th September, 1902. I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 20th instant, stating that you were unable to trace the letter from this office on the subject of direct payment from the Australian States for the conveyance of mails from these places by the San Francisco steamers. In reply, I have to inform you that the letter in question was addressed to the J. D. Spreckels and Bros. Company. At the request of that firm a copy was forwarded to Messrs. Burns, Philp, and Co., Sydney, for whose action the matter was supposed to be entirely. I now enclose copy of the letter as desired. I have, &c, Messrs. Henderson and Macfarlane, Auckland. W. Gray, Secretary.

No. 49. The Superintendent, Pacific Cable Station, Fanning Island, to the Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington. Sir, Fanning Island, Ist October, 1902. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter of the 16th September, and to thank you for the information with reference to the mail-steamers and " Colonia," and also for the papers, &c, which you so kindly sent It is very necessary that we should have a post-office here. I am quite willing to act as Postmaster, and have requested Mr. Isbister by letter to arrange with the Mail-agent on the next steamer calling to have ready for me a supply of stamps, post-cards, and any forms necessary. It would be very convenient for the staff here if you could arrange for a parcel-post service to enable us to get parcels from Auckland, and from England, &c, via Auckland. Yours, &c, The Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington. David Cuthbert.

No. 50. The Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington, to Messrs. Henderson and Macfarlane, Auckland. Gentlemen, — General Post Office, Wellington, 9th October, 1902. I have the honour to inform you that, in order to facilitate the receipt of mails at Auckland, the Marine Department, at the suggestion of the Chief Postmaster, has authorised a code of signals for use by the inward San Francisco mail-steamers when passing the Tiritiri Lighthouse at night. On the signals from the mail-steamer —namely, two long and one short blasts of the steamwhistle—being heard by the light-keeper, he will exhibit a flash-light as follows—long, short; long, short; long, short —to indicate that he understands the message. When the vessels of the Oceanic Steamship Company are arriving from Sydney it would be in conformity with an arrangement to be made with the Union Steam Ship Company and the Huddart-Parker Proprietary were the signals under such circumstances to be one long and one short blasts. As this will no doubt prove of equal convenience to your company, perhaps you will be so good as to request the commanders concerned to make use of the code. I have, &c, Messrs. Henderson and Macfarlane, W. Gray, Secretary. Agents, Oceanic Steamship Company, Auckland. [Similar letters addressed to the Managing Director, Union Steam Ship Company of New Zealand (Limited), Dunedin ; the Manager, the Huddart, Parker, and Company Proprietary (Limited), Wellington ; the Agents, Tyser Line (Limited), Wellington ; the General Manager, New Zealand Shipping Company (Limited), Christchurch ; and the Agents, Shaw, Savill, and Albion Company (Limited), Wellington.]

No. 51. Messrs. Henderson and Macfarlane, Auckland, to the Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington. Oceanic Steamship Company (American and Australian Line), Sib,— Auckland, 13th October, 1902. We have the honour to acknowledge receipt of your communication of the 9th instant, dealing with signals which the Chief Postmaster has suggested should be used when the mailsteamers are passing Tiritiri light. We are requesting the commanders of the Oceanic mailsteamers to act in accordance therewith, and would only add that the arrangement should certainly prove convenient to all parties, as the light-keeper will no doubt immediately report the steamers to Auckland after the signals. We have, &c, Henderson and Macfarlane. The Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington.

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