18

F.—6.

No. 55. The Acting Depoty Postmaster-General, Ottawa, to the Acting-Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington. SlB, Post Office Department. Ottawa. Canada. ISth March, 1909. I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your communication of the Ith February. on the subject of accounts for conveyance of mails from Tahiti to New Zealand l>v steamers of the Union Steam Ship Company, subsidised by your Administration. In reply, I am to say thai the Department assents to your proposal that accounts lor the above mentioned service shall be rendered on a statistical basis, and has given instructions to the Vancouver office to have the necessary record kept of the weights of all mails despatched by the Tahiti New Zealand route during the month of May next. There is no doubt that the diversion of pall of the mails to the route via Tahiti will affect the transit charges for conveyance of tin' mails by the routes which were In operation when statistics were taken in November. 1907, and I should lie much obliged if you would inform me lo what extent, in you]' opinion, this will be the case. I have, fcc., E, 11. Labchinger, Ait ing I teputy Post master < leneral. The Acting-Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington. [P.O. 00/811(2).]

No. 56. The General Post Office, London, to tin' Hon. the Postmasteb General, Wellington. Sir, General Post Office, London. Ist April. 1909. With reference to your letter of the Ith February last, in which you inquire whether this office is prepared to account to the New Zealand Post Office, on the basis ol statistics, [©t the cone gpondence Erom this country conveyed by the steamers of the Union Steam Ship Company of New Zealand between Tahiti and Wellington. I am directed by the Postmaster-Genera] to inform you that payment in respect of the sea-COnveyance bet ween San Francisco and New Zealand of all British mails lor Mew Zealand sent by way ol San Francisco is made to Ihe United States Post Office on the basis of Postal Union statistics taken in November. 1907. Under the regulations of the Postal Union, the New Zealand Post Office will be entitled to demand a readjust n.(lit of the transit charges on the basis of fresh statistics when the recent modification in the transmission of the correspondence in question has been in force for a period of twelve months. In the meantime any question of a division of the charges payable for the sea-conveyance of the mails between San Francisco and New Zealand is one for settlement between vour Administration and the Post Office of the United States of America. I have. Ac.. The Hon. the Post master (leneral. Wellington. E. W. FaRNALL. [P.O. 0!»/311.|

No. 57. The Acting-Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington, to the Secretary, Postmaster-General's Depart ment, Melbourne. Sin. General Post Office, Wellington, 2nd April, 1909. 1 have the honour to inform you that a contract has been entered into between this Department and the Union Steam Ship Company of New Zealand (Limited) for a mail-service from Wellington to Rarotonga and Papeete (Tahiti), connecting with the United States mail-service between Papeete and San Francisco. The frequency will be ten times a year, and the average time from Wellington to San Francisco twenty-four days, and to London from thirty-four to thirty-five days. The first outward mail left Wellington on the 3rd January last. The mail-steamers will call at Rarotonga on the voyages to and from Papeete. Copies of the time table for the service have already been sent you. This confirms my cable message of the 17th October last | see No. 2(5] informing you of the establishing of the service. I have. &C., W. I'. Morris, Acting-Secretary. The Secretary, Postmaster-General's Department, Melbourne. [P.O. 09/31 1.1

No. 58. The Acting-Secretary, (leneral Post Office, Wellington, to the Deputy Postmaster-General, (Ittawa. Sir,— (leneral Post Office, Wellington. sth May, 11109. 1 have tin' honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 18th March last. in reference to accounts for the conveyance of mails from Tahiti lo New Zealand by Steamers of the Union Steam Ship Company subsidised by this Depart ment,