April 3.] THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE. 1145

and a return showing the number of such bags should be sent to the Controller of Stores at the end of each year. Any mail-bags used for the transmission of correspondence between New Zealand and the Transvaal requiring repair should be sent to the Controller of Stores with a special memorandum. Except in the case of the United Kingdom and the Transvaal, any instances of the use of New Zealand mail-bags by foreign administrations for the enclosure of their mails to New Zealand must at once be reported by verification note. All New Zealand offices returning empty foreign-mail bags through Wellington should label the bags, or each bag, with the name of the country of origin when such is not already clearly indicated thereon. The bags should then be tied in bundles and forwarded in the Wellington mail, registered.

542. Correspondence posted on board mail-steamers or placed in the hands of masters of ships may be prepaid by means of postage-stamps, according to the tariff of the country to which such packet or ship belongs, or by which it is maintained. If the posting on board takes place during the stay at one of the two extreme points of the voyage, or at any intermediate port of call, prepayment can only be effected by means of postage-stamps, and according to the tariff of the country in the waters of which the vessel happens to be.

543. All correspondence received loose from the Australian States, Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, and the Cook Islands, must be marked “Loose letter,” and surcharged in accordance with the instructions for late-fee letters in the Guide. Correspondence from all other places must be prominently marked or stamped “Packet-boat” at the office where it is taken delivery of from the vessel, and forwarded to destination without further charge if it bear stamps of and is prepaid according to the tariff of the country of origin.

544. Mails are exchanged between any post-office of the Universal Postal Union and naval divisions or ships of war of the same nationality on the following special conditions:—

(a.) They should, as far as possible, be advised of in advance to the intermediate offices.

(b.) Their address should be in the following form:—

From the Post Office of
For { the [Nationality] naval division of [Name of division] at
the [Nationality] ship [Name of the ship] at .
Or
From the [Nationality] naval division of [Name of division] at
From the [Nationality] ship [Name of the ship] at .
For the Post Office of [Country].

(c.) If ships are not at the place of destination when mails addressed to them arrive there, such mails are kept at the post-office until they are claimed by the addressee, or ordered to be redirected to another place.

(d.) Redirection may be demanded either by the office of origin, by the commanding officer of the naval division or of the ship addressed, or by a Consul of the same nationality.

(e.) Such of the mails as are addressed to the care of a Consul may, at his request, be received back into the post-office and redirected to any other address.

(f.) Mails addressed to a ship of war are regarded as being in transit up to the time of their delivery to the commanding officer, even when originally addressed to the care of a post-office or of a Consul.