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No. 24. The Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington, to the Resident Agent for New Zealand, San Francisco. Sir, — General Post Office, Wellington, 4th February, 1915. I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letters of the 7th and Bth ultimo, regarding the detention of the " Moana " from the 6th to the 9th idem to enable her to bring on the English mail which arrived at New York by the " Arabic." The action you took in the matter is approved. It was fully warranted by the authority of clause 15 of the contract and the letter to you from this office of the 6th November, 1912 [see No. 47, F.—6, 1913]. The San Francisco agents of the Union Steam Ship Company communicated by cable with their head office in this Dominion, which approved of the vessel being detained until the.arrival of the English mail. I should be glad to have a full report from, you as to who was responsible for the diversion of the mails at Chicago to the Vancouver route, and for the further delay to portion of the mails at Seattle. I have. &c, W. R. Morris, Secretary. H. Stephenson Smith, Esq., Resident Agent for New Zealand, 311 California Street, San Francisco, Cal., U.S.A.

No. 25. The Assistant Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington, to the Clerk in Charge, Cook Islands Administration Department, Wellington. (Memorandum.) General Post, Office, Wellington, sth February, 1915. The Comptroller of Customs informed me on the sth November last, [memorandum not printed] that he had referred to you my memorandum of the 4th idem [No. 5] on the subject of the refusal of the Collector of Customs at, Rarotonga to grant a clearance to the San Francisco mail-steamer " Maitai " until thirty hours from the time of her arrival. I shall be glad if you will give the earliest practicable instructions to the Collector that, in terms of the mail contract from which you have the extract, no compulsion is to be put upon the Union Steam Ship Company in regard to the duration of the stay of the San Francisco mailsteamer at Rarotonga. J. C. Williamson For Assistant Secretary, The Clerk in Charge, Cook Islands Administration Department, Wellington.

No. 26. The Clerk in Charge, Cook Islands Administration Department, Wellington, to the Secretary, ,- General Post Office, Wellington. Cook Islands Administration Department, Wellington, (Memorandum.) 9th February, 1915. Referring to your memorandum of the sth instant, instructions have been issued to the Resident Commissioner at Rarotonga asking him to give effect to your request in regard to the delay of mail-steamers at Rarotonga. F. G. Twiss, The Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington. Clerk in Charge.

No. 27. The Resident Agent for New Zealand, San Francisco, to the Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington. Resident, Agency for New Zealand, Sir,— 311 California Street, San Francisco, 10th February. 1915. I have the honour to report, in confirmation of my telegrams [Nos. 15 and 17], that, the R.M.S. " Marama " arrived at this port on the 27th January about 10 a.m., after being stranded early on that morning at Point Montara, some fifteen miles south of this port. The vessel was placed upon the dry dock on Friday, the 29th, when it was discovered that serious damage had been sustained, fracturing several plates as well as some frames, the double bottom alone having saved the vessel from a serious disaster. As the damage was of such a serious nature it was determined to undertake permanent, repairs, delaying the departure from this port, until the 24th February. I therefore, after consulting with the steamship company and the postal authorities, instructed that the entire accumulation of through mails destined to the Dominion should be sent to Vancouver, 8.C., for connection with the R.M.S. "Niagara" from that port, scheduled to sail on the 17th. These mails consisted of 804 sacks. They left this city on the sth and 6th instant, and now are in Vancouver awaiting departure of the " Niagara."

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