62

On all Letters and Newspapers for the
Continent of Europe, via Trieste, a rate in
addition to any postage payable to the Colonial
Government will be charged, viz.:—

Letters not exceeding an ounce 1 0
exceeding an ounce, 2 0
and not exceeding 1
ounce
exceeding 1 ounce, and 4 0
not exceeding 2 ounces
And an additional rate of 2s. for each ounce
or fraction of an ounce.

Newspapers ..................................... 0 2

Rates of Postage on Letters and News-
papers forwarded via the United Kingdom to
the Colonies and Foreign Countries are stated
in the Tables published in this Gazette. In
addition to those charges the letters are liable,
according to the route by which they are sent,
to the foregoing Rates of Postage on Corres-
pondence for the United Kingdom.

Book Packets will be forwarded between the
United Kingdom and New Zealand at the
following rates of postage:

For a Packet not exceeding 1/2 lb. 0 8
Exceeding 1/2 lb., but not exceed- 1 4
ing 1 lb.
Exceeding 1 lb., but not exceed- 2 8
ing 2 lbs.
Exceeding 2 lbs., but not exceed- 4 0
ing 3 lbs.

NOTE.—On all Letters and Book Packets
forwarded from New Zealand the several Rates
of Postage set forth herein must be prepaid.
Newspapers from New Zealand for the United
Kingdom will be forwarded free.

All Letters, Newspapers, and Book Packets,
received in Mails from the United Kingdom
will be delivered free at all the Post Offices of
the General Government of the Colony.

By his Excellency's command,
E. W. STAFFORD.

Colonial Secretary's Office,
Auckland, March 27th, 1857.

THE attention of the several Postmasters in
the Colony is directed to the following
letters from the General Post Office, London,
having reference to the conveyance of letters
and papers by the European and Australian
Royal Mail Company's steam vessels.

By His Excellency's command,
E. W. STAFFORD.

General Post Office,
October 18th, 1856.

SIR,—By a Treasury minute dated the 27th
November, 1855, on "Postal Communication
with the Australian Colonies," a copy of which
transmitted by Her Majesty's Secretary of State
for the Colonies to the respective Governments
of the Australian Colonies, including the Colo-
nies of Tasmania and New Zealand, in a
Despatch dated the 4th December 1855, it was
proposed that, under the contemplated plan of
sharing the cost of the Australian Packet Ser-
vices between the Mother Country and the
Australian Colonies, the postage upon all
letters sent from one to the other, (letters pass-
ing in transit through the United Kingdom
excepted) should be paid in advance, and re-
tained by the office collecting it, as its own
proper share of the whole.

The time is drawing near for the commence-
ment of the new Mail Service via Suez, for
which Her Majesty's Government have ac-
cepted the Tender of the European and Aus-
tralian Royal Mail Company, and the Lords of
Her Majesty's Treasury have informed the
Postmaster-General, in reply to a communi-
cation made to them by His Grace, that on
every account, as well for the greater practica-
bility of the arrangement with the Australian
Colonies, as for the better despatch of business,
they are of opinion that the plan of compulsory
prepayment must be strictly adhered to, and
they have accordingly requested the Postmaster-
General to take the necessary steps to give
effect to that rule.

I am, therefore, directed to inform you that,
on the commencement of the new Service,
(which is expected to take effect from both
sides in the early part of next year,) the post-
age of all letters posted in the United King-
dom, and addressed to the Australian Colonies,
including the Colonies of Tasmania and New
Zealand, whether conveyed via Southampton
or via Marseilles, will be required to be pre-
paid: and I am to request that the same regu-
lation of compulsory prepayment may be esta-
blished as regards letters posted in New Zea-
land, addressed to the United Kingdom. It
will of course be mutually understood that
letters from the United Kingdom shall be
delivered in any part of New Zealand for the
payment made in this Country, and vice versa,
that letters posted in New Zealand shall be
delivered in any part of the United Kingdom
without any additional charge beyond that
made in the Colony.

By these means no accounts will be neces-
sary between the Post Office of New Zealand
and this Department, as regards the bulk of
the correspondence in question, viz. that trans-
mitted via Southampton.

With respect, however, to letters transmitted
in the Mails via Marseilles, an account will be
necessary, in order to adjust the French transit