F.—6

No. 37

The General Manager, Union Steam Ship Company, Dunedin, to the Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington. (Telegram.) Dunedin, 24th February, 1915. Referring your telegram yesterday afternoon: Have cabled instructions "Marama" call Wellington instead Auckland. Should arrive 16th or 17th, land mails, and proceed at once to reach Sydney 20th or 21st, and return on time-table date. Conclude this suit you. [Replied, same day, arrangements satisfactory.]

No. 38. The Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington, to the General Manager, Union Steam Ship Company, Dunedin. Sir, — General Post Office, Wellington, 16th March, 1915. I have the honour to refer to the alterations in the time-tables .of the San Francisco and Vancouver mail-services made soon after the commencement of the war [see No. I], under which there are alternate periods of nine and nineteen days between successive sailings instead of a regular fortnight; and to inquire what steps your company proposes to take to revert to the former arrangement. I have, &c, W. R. Morris, Secretary. The General Manager, Union Steam Ship Company of New Zealand (Limited), Dunedin. P. <fc T. 36/11.]

No. 39. The Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington, to the Resident Agent for New Zealand, San Francisco. Sir,— General Post Office, Wellington, 24th March, 1915. 1 have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 23rd ultimo in reference to the delay in the transit across the United States of the mails for New Zealand which reached New York early in January last by the s.s. " Arabic." It does not appear that anything further can be done. You have given the Railway Mailservice Division of the Post Office Department the aspect of the matter from the Dominion point of view. This Department does not propose to press the case in view of the last paragraph of Mr. Stephens's letter, where he says, "The Department regrets very much the irregularity, and I am confident the investigation made in the case and the action taken in connection therewith » will avoid the possibility of a recurrence." I have, &c, W. R. Morris, Secretary. H. Stephenson Smith, Esq., Resident Agent for New Zealand, ■'ill California Street, San Francisco, Cal. P. & T. 36/20.]

No. 40. The Assistant Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington, to the General Manager, Union Steam Ship Company, Dunedin. Sir, — General Post Office, Wellington, 26th March, 1915. In reference to the detention of the R.M.S. "Moana" at San Francisco from the 6th to the 9th Januaiy last to enable the English mail to make the connection, I have the honour to inform you that the mail was despatched from New York on the 4th January at 6.46 p.m., and under ordinary conditions it could not have reached San Francisco by the 6th. The mails were forwarded in a car containing mails for Canada and other places, and should have been removed at Chicago, where the car was transferred to the Vancouver line. This was not done, and when the discovery was made the Superintendent of the Railway Mail-service at Chicago took action with a view to the mails being intercepted and forwarded to San Francisco with the least possible delay. But through a failure on the part of the officers of the Railway Mail-service the mails were not forwarded from Seattle by the first available train. The General Superintendent of the Railway Mail-service states that the action taken in connection with the case will, he is confident, avoid the possibility of a recurrence. I have, &c, F..V. Waters, Assistant Secretary. The General Manager, Union Steam Ship Company of New Zealand (Limited), Dunedin.

14