F.—6

20

No. 49. The Acting-Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington, to the Deputy Postmaster-General, Ottawa.' - ■ ' '■' Sir, — . General Post Office, .. Wellington,'29th. July, .1914. I have the honour to enclose for your information copy of my letter of the 24th instant to the Union Steam Ship Company drawing its attention to the irregular arrival of the mailsteamers at Vancouver and the inconvenience caused thereby. If the steamer reaches Vancouver on the due date there is time for .a mail-connection to be made at New York, with the Norddeutscher Lloyd 'steamer leaying for Plymouth on the following Tuesday, or with the Cunard steamer leaving for Liverpool on the Wednesday. Your Department, however, I understand, now forwards the mails on all occasions via Montreal. The mails that arrived at Vancouver on the 3rd February and 28th April last, the due dates, reached London via Montreal on the 21st February and 14th May, five and three days late respectively. Had they been forwarded to New York, the former would have connected with the Norddeutscher Lloyd steamer on the 10th or the Cunard steamer on the 11th February, and reached London on the 16th, the due date; and the latter would have connected with the Norddeutscher Lloyd steamer on the sth May, and reached London on the 11th, the due date. Mails despatched from New Zealand via San Francisco and via Vancouver are due to reach San Francisco and Vancouver on Thursdays and Tuesdays respectively, and London on Mondays. This allows two days for the extra distance from Vancouver. The four last mails despatched via San Francisco have arrived in London on the due dates; while two mails despatched this year via Vancouver reached Vancouver on the due dates, but, owing to being despatched thence via Montreal instead of via New York, reached London five and three days late respectively. As it is clear that the despatch via New York is to be preferred to that via Montreal when the steamer reaches Vancouver in time for a mail-connection to be made with the overland train on Tuesday, this Department would be glad if you would be so good as to arrange if possible that the former route be adopted in such circumstances. If the connection at Vancouver is missed, no doubt the despatch via Montreal is the better. I have, &c, F. V. Waters, Acting-Secretary. The Deputy Postmaster-General, Ottawa,

[liead here No. 1.1

No. 50. The Acting-Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington, to the Managing Director, Union Steam Ship Company, Dunedin. Sir, — General Post Office, Wellington, 24th August, 1914. I have the honour to refer to previous correspondence [see No. 37, F.-6, 1914] on the '"subject of the San Francisco mail-service contract, in which you agreed to apply to the Vancouverservice the reduction of freight on butter by Jd. per pound until the 31st Marcli, 1916, and a further reduction of Jd. per pound from the Ist April, 1916. I enclose for completion by your company a deed of agreement [see No. 60], in duplicate, providing for the reduction. ... I have, &c, J. C. Williamson, For Acting-Secretary. The Managing Director, Union Steam Ship Company of New Zealand (Limited), Dunedin.

No. 51. The Acting-Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington, to the Deputy Postmaster-General, Ottawa. (Telegram.) Wellington, 25th August, 1914. Union Company ask permission perform Vancouver service with "Niagara" and " Makura," maintain four-weekly service, driving 16-knot time-table [see No. I]. Proposed sailing-dates: From Auckland, Bth September; from Vancouver, 13th idem; thereafter four-weekly. Glad early approval. ' [P. & T. 80/16.]

No. 52. The Deputy Postmaster-General, Ottawa, to the Acting-Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington. (Telegram.) Ottawa, 26th August, 1914. Be proposed 16-knot service: how many days does this mean, Auckland to Vancouver?