346

THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE.

6. One of the vessels to be employed under this contract shall leave San Francisco once in every
   twenty-eight days, and shall proceed thence to Port Chalmers, by way of and calling at Auckland,
   Wellington, and Lyttelton, in New Zealand; and one of the said vessels shall leave Port Chalmers once
   in every twenty-eight days, and shall proceed to San Francisco, by way of and calling at Lyttelton,
   Wellington, and Auckland.

7. In passing Hawke's Bay the vessels shall, weather permitting, call off Napier to deliver and
   receive mails to and from that place, the said mails to be delivered and received by a steam launch to
   be provided by the Postmaster-General.

8. The said steam vessels may call at two intermediate places, and no more, between Auckland and
   San Francisco, and between San Francisco and Auckland, and such two places may be at any of the
   Hawaiian, Society or Navigator Islands, as the Contractors may think fit and appoint; and such ports,
   after being appointed, may be altered from time to time by the Contractors, and other ports in other
   Islands substituted, with the consent of the Postmaster-General, but not otherwise.

9. The time (including a period not exceeding forty-eight hours for coaling at the Sandwich Islands,
   and all other stoppages) allowed for the voyage between San Francisco and Auckland, and Auckland
   and San Francisco, shall not exceed six hundred hours; and the Contractors shall use all possible
   diligence and despatch to depart from Auckland, and thereafter to perform the voyage between Auck-
   land and Port Chalmers within one hundred and ten hours, including stoppages, and shall forfeit the
   sum of two pounds per hour for every hour's unnecessary delay.

10. The Contractors shall once in every twenty-eight days run a steamer in connection with the
    aforesaid steamers, between Auckland and Sydney, in the Colony of New South Wales, and between
    Sydney and Auckland; and if required so to do by the Postmaster-General, the Contractors shall, or at
    their own option they may, run the said steamer from Sydney to Melbourne, in the Colony of Victoria,
    and from Melbourne to Sydney and Auckland; but the Postmaster-General shall not require the said
    steamer to be run from Sydney to Melbourne, unless the Victorian Government agree to pay a subsidy
    of thirty thousand pounds per annum, which sum shall be equally divided between the Government
    of New Zealand and the Contractors.

11. The vessel to be employed between Auckland and Sydney, or between Auckland, Sydney, and
    Melbourne, as the case may be, as provided in the preceding clause, shall be in all respects equal in
    character tothe vessels employed between San Francisco and Port Chalmers, and notless than one thousand
    tons register, British measurement, and shall be approved of by the Postmaster-General; and the whole
    time, including stoppages allowed for the voyage each way between San Francisco and Sydney shall
    not exceed seven hundred and forty-four hours.

12. For the service hereinbefore described, inclusive of the scrvice between Auckland and Sydney,
    or between Auckland, Sydney, and Melbourne, as the case may be, the Contractors shall be paid by the
    Government of New Zealand at the rate of fifty thousand pounds for thirteen complete services to and
    from Port Chalmers and San Francisco, and to and from Auckland and Sydney, or Auckland, Sydney,
    and Melbourne, as the case may be; and all mails which the Postmaster-General shall require to be
    carried by the Contractors during the continuance of the contract shall be carried free of cost.

13. If during the first six months after the date fixed for the commencement of the contract
    service, the Contractors are unable to run the vessel from Auckland to Sydney, or from Auckland
    to Sydney and Melbourne, as hereinbefore provided in clauses 10 and 11, the payment to be made to
    the Contractors by the Government of New Zealand during that period shall be at the rate of forty
    thousand pounds for thirteen complete services, and not at the rate of fifty thousand pounds as herein-
    before provided; and the Contractors agree to start the said steamer not later than six months after
    the commencement of the contract service.

14. During the first thirteen complete services between San Francisco and Now Zealand, each
    way, the Contractors may cause the vessel arriving at Auckland from San Francisco to be run from
    Auckland to Sydney, or from Auckland to Sydney and Melbourne: Provided that they have at Auck-
    land one of the contract vessels mentioned in clause 3 to proceed to Wellington, Lyttelton, and Port
    Chalmers; and provided further, that such vessel shall, on the next succeeding voyage, proceed from
    Port Chalmers to San Francisco by way of and calling at Lyttelton, Wellington, and Auckland.

15. After the completion of the first thirteen services between San Francisco and New Zealand,
    each way, the Contractors may at their option, twice during each twelve months, run the vessel arriving
    at Auckland from San Francisco to Sydney, or to Sydney and to Melbourne, in the same way as is pro-
    vided by the preceding clause; but save and except as is provided by the preceding clause, and by this
    clause, the vessel arriving at Auckland from San Francisco shall proceed to Port Chalmers, and from
    Port Chalmers to San Francisco, as is provided by clause 6.

16. It shall be lawful for the Postmaster-General, but not for the Contractors, to make any
    arrangements he may think fit with any of the Australian Governments, and with the Government of
    New Caledonia; and all sums payable under such arrangements shall be equally divided between the
    Government of New Zealand and the Contractors: Provided that no such arrangements shall be held
    to compel the Contractors without their consent to perform any service not provided for by this
    agreement.

17. The Contractors shall not, nor shall any person or persons with their consent or concurrence,
    run any steam vessel to New Caledonia, or the Fiji Islands, or to any of the Australian Colonies,
    except from a port in New Zealand; and no mails whatever shall be carried on board any such steam
    vessel or branch steam vessel running from New Zealand, except with the consent of the Postmaster-
    General in writing first obtained.

18. The days and hours of departure for the vessels employed under this contract shall be those
    specified in a table to be furnished by the Postmaster-General: Provided that the Postmaster-General
    may from time to time alter such days and hours on giving reasonable notice to the Contractors of the
    required alteration, provided that no such alteration shall render necessary the employment of an
    additional steam vessel, except as is herein provided; and the altered days and hours shall be observed
    and kept as if the same had been provided for in this contract, and the contractors shall pay the sum
    of two pounds per hour for every hour's delay in the departure of any vessel after the specified time.