P.—B

52

No. 156. The Secretary, Postmaster-General's Department, Melbourne, to the Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington. Sir, — Postmaster-General's Department, Melbourne, sth December, 1914. With reference to )'our letter of the 23rd December last [not printed, but see No. 147] relative to the transmission of special-rate Christmas and New Year greeting messages, I have the honour to inform you that in view of the present international crisis it has been decided to make no arrangements for that class of traffic this year. I have, &c, The Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington. Justinian Oxenham, Secretary. [Acknowledged, 19th December, 1914.] [P. & T. 71/103.] '

No. 157. The Consul for France, Auckland, to the Secretary, General Post Office, Wellington. Sir, — Consulat de France en Nouvelle-Zelande, Auckland, 17th December, 1914. I am advised by the Governor of New Caledonia that the French Resident of Port Vila, New Hebrides, has a receiving plant for wireless telegraphy, but that it is not sufficiently strong to record in daytime the Press messages coming from Auckland. The New Hebrides having no other means to be posted with war news,- the Governor has requested me to apply to you and ask if it would not be possible to arrange that the messages be forwarded in the evening between 8 and 9 o'clock, in order that they can be received without difficulty. He would consider it a favour which would be of valuable service to the English residents as well as to the French colonists of New Hebrides. The attempts made thus far in order to communicate by radiograms between New Caledonia and Port Vila are constantly disturbed by telluric influences, and have given only poor results. I should be obliged to you to consider the above-mentioned question, and to let me know what answer can be made to the Governor's request. With anticipated thanks, I have, &c, For the French Consul, The Secretary, General Post Office. Wellington. E. Halk, Secretary. [P. &. T. 71/143(1).]

No. 158. The Consul for France, Auckland, to the Hon. the Postmaster-General, Wellington. Sir, — Consulat de France en Nouvelle-Zelande, Auckland, sth January, 191.5. On the 17th of last December I had the honour to apply to your Department, on behalf of the Governor of New Caledonia, in order to ascertain whether radiograms from Awanui to Port Vila (New Hebrides) could be sent in the evening instead of during the daytime —that is to say, between 8 and 9 o'clock—so that they could be received without difficulty. The Governor's request in this case being rather urgent, I should feel much indebted to you to send me your reply at your earliest convenience. With anticipated thanks, I have, &c, •.* J. Rigoreau, Consul for France. The Hon. R. Heaton Rhodes, Minister of Posts and Telegraphs, Wellington.

No. 159. The Hon. the Postmaster-General, Wellington, to the Consul for France, Auckland. Sir, — Postmaster-General's Office, Wellington, 16th January, 1915. I have the honour to refer to your letters of the 17th ultimo and the sth instant on the subject of the request of the Governor of New Caledonia for the despatch of Press news from the Awanui Radiostation to Port Vila, New Hebrides, between 8 and 9 p.m. My Department's experience in sending wireless messages to Samoa shows that the work is more satisfactorily disposed of by being despatched as soon after 6.30 p.m. as possible, it being found that atmospheric conditions are less troublesome at about that time than later in the night. It is not unusual for much difficulty to be experienced about 8.30 p.m. and later. There are, of course, occasions when the atmospherics do not seriously hamper working during the night hours. In view of the difficulties experienced, the Department does not propose to despatch the news to Samoa later than at present. It is suggested that Port Vila might be able to receive satisfactorily tho messages despatched from Awanui to Samoa at about 6.30 p.m. if an increased spread of " aerial " were erected and tho height of the " aerial " increased. But if it is found that the difficulty does not then disappear this Department is agreeable to despatch Press news especially to Port Vila between 8 and 9 p.m. conditionally on its being paid for the service at the rate of 10s. for one hundred words or fraction thereof in a single message, and 2s. 6d. for each additional twenty-five words or fraction thereof in a message exceeding one hundred words. I have, &c, ft. Heaton Rhodes, The Consul for France, Auckland. Postmaster-General. [Acknowledged, 18th January, 1915.]

■ Approximate Cost of Paper.—Preparation, not given ; printing (850 copies), £30.

Authority : John Mackay, Government Printer, Wellington.—l9ls.

Price Is. Sd."\