APRIL 3.] THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE. 1129

441. Mails (letter and parcel) must be safeguarded in the process of transit from hand to hand to see that no damage occurs to their contents. It is specially necessary to oversee transfer to and from mail-coaches and other vehicles, steamers, boats, &c., where careless persons may be tempted to throw bags, hampers, or baskets. Mails must be carried or passed, or, in case of necessity, only thrown when proper landing-nets are prepared to receive them; and luggage must be prevented from being placed on top of mails, and persons from standing or sitting on them.

442. Any letter or packet observed to be open or imperfectly sealed, excepting, of course, any article obviously intended to be sent open, must be carefully fastened or refastened with the authorized gummed label. The words, “Found open,” or “Imperfectly sealed,” with the initials of the officer who deals with it, must be written on the cover.

443. Any money, jewellery, undefaced postage-stamp, or other article of value found loose in a post-office or in a mail-bag must be transmitted in a registered letter to the Chief Postmaster, for forwarding to the Dead Letter Office, with a report stating precisely where and how it was found. (See Rule 176.)

444. If a letter is posted which there is good reason to believe contains anything likely to injure the contents of the mail-bags, or any officer of the Post Office, it must be detained at the office where observed, and a report made to the Chief Postmaster, who will advise the addressee or the sender, and intimate that it will be delivered on application. If not claimed within a month it must be disposed of as may be directed. Anything offensive may be destroyed, but a report must be furnished on the subject.

445. A packet containing clinical or pathological specimens sent by letter-post should not be stopped and destroyed unless it fails to comply with the regulations published in the Guide as to packing, or unless it has been damaged and is considered to be a source of danger to Post Office servants. If the packet is properly packed, but is not marked by the sender as directed in the Guide, it should be forwarded to the office of destination for delivery, with a request that the cover may be obtained and forwarded to the Secretary, with the name and address of the sender, in order that his attention may be called to the omission. When a packet is stopped on the ground of insufficient packing, or because it has been damaged, a report of the stoppage should be sent to the Secretary stating the address of the packet, the place and date of posting, a description of the packing, and the name and address of the sender if known.

446. A Postmaster may detain any letter, packet, or newspaper if there is reasonable cause to suspect that the same has been posted or contains any enclosure in fraud or violation of the Post and Telegraph Act, or of any Act relating to the Customs, or of any regulation or order made under the authority thereof respectively. Any article so detained is to be submitted with a report to the Chief Postmaster, who will give notice to the addressee, on form P.O. 30, that he or his authorized agent must attend at the post-office, at a time to be stated in the notice, to open the article in the presence of a Customs officer, failing which the article will be opened in his absence. Great care is to be exercised by all officers in carrying out this rule. Letters are to be detained only when there is reasonable ground for supposing that they contain articles liable to Customs duty. Letters addressed to country offices should not be detained at Chief Post Offices except under special circumstances. If a letter for a country