SEPT. 10.] THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE. 3501

13. Letters and other postal packets returned to the sender through the Dead Letter Office and again returned to the Dead Letter Office as “Unclaimed” are to be destroyed by an officer specially appointed for the purpose, if after examination they are found to contain nothing of value. Under no circumstances must any other officer destroy any dead or unreturnable letter or other postal packet.

14. When the contents of a letter or other postal packet, posted without address, show for whom it is intended the letter or other postal packet is to be addressed to the intended addressee and charged double deficient postage.

PROPERTY LETTERS.

15. When a letter or other postal packet is found to contain money or any other enclosure of value, such as coin, bank-notes, cheques, drafts, stamps, jewellery, &c., of the value of 1s. or more particulars thereof must be entered in a rough property-book by the officer by whom found, and the letter or other postal packet containing the enclosures handed over to the Property Clerk at the end of the day.

16. Any value, however trifling, must be entered on the back of the cover of the letter or other postal packet with a brief description of the contents. For example: “Contents—Account and 6d. stamps”; or “Contents—Letter and handkerchief”; or “Contents—Letter and M.O. 10s.” Officers opening letters or other postal packets for return to senders must make these endorsements on the backs of the covers which contain value up to and including 10s.; above that amount the endorsements are to be made by the Property Clerk.

17. Letters or other postal packets containing value of less than 1s. are to be endorsed on the backs of the covers and returned direct to the senders without any entry in the rough property-book.

18. The Property Clerk shall return, in registered letters, all unregistered letters or other postal packets containing cheques, money-orders, dividend warrants (crossed), promissory notes, and postal notes made payable to a person or crossed, but without recording particulars in the Property Record. The contents must in each case be endorsed on the back of the original cover. The number of the registered label must be placed opposite the entry in the rough property-book, and a second officer must initial the entry, and witness the enclosing of the letter and other enclosures in the returned letter envelope addressed to the sender.

19. Letters or other postal packets containing negotiable property, such as bank-notes, postal notes not made payable to any person or crossed, stamps, jewellery, &c., must be dealt with by the Property Clerk in the following manner:—

If of the value of 5s. or more it is to be entered in the Property Record, and if the property is clearly described, and the name and address of the sender shown in the letter or other postal packet without a doubt, it must be returned direct to the sender after the entry has been initialled by a second officer, who must also witness the enclosing of the letter and other enclosures in the returned letter envelope.

If the name or address of the sender is doubtful, or the property not described, the contents of the letter or other postal packet are to be withdrawn from the cover, enclosed in an envelope which is to be endorsed with the record number, and placed in the safe. The original envelope is to be forwarded to the sender in a dead-letter cover, with a notice requiring a description of the property to be furnished. The date on which the notice is sent out is to be noted in the Property Record. On receipt of a reply the property is to be produced from the safe and a covering letter prepared, which is to be submitted to the Chief Inspector, or an officer deputed for the purpose, for examination and signature.

All such property is to be returned in registered letters, and the actual enclosure of the articles in the envelope is to be witnessed by a second officer, who shall place his initials on the description form as an indication that the property mentioned thereon was duly enclosed. The date of the actual return of the property is to be noted in the Property Record.

In cases of doubt as to the ownership of the property it should be submitted to the Chief Postmaster of the district for special inquiry and delivery if found correct. If no reply to a property notice is received within three months a second notice is to be sent, and if no reply is received within a further period of three months the property may be submitted to the Chief Postmaster of the district for further action if thought desirable.

When it is definitely ascertained that a letter or other postal packet containing property cannot be delivered or returned, it is to be submitted to the Senior Clerk for his instructions to file until application is made for it. In the case of postal remittances, money-orders, postal notes, and British postal orders, the Controller of Money-orders and Savings-banks must be advised that the amount is in the Dead Letter Office. This advice should be furnished monthly. Property under 5s. in value must not be entered in the Property Record, but is to be returned to the sender in the ordinary way, unregistered, after examination by the Property Clerk, who shall initial the entry.

20. Ordinary letters or other postal packets found to contain coin, bank-notes, or valuable jewellery are to be compulsorily registered, and charged the compulsory registration fee of 4d. Where a notice asking for a description of contents is necessary, the registration fee must be charged on the envelope containing the notice.

21. When for any reason property or papers relating to property have to be referred out to a Chief Postmaster or other departmental officer, the reason for the reference and the date must be noted, so that the article may be traced.

22. Papers relating to Property Records, when complete, are to be carefully sorted up, alphabetically and numerically, and filed.

23. In recording bank-notes, postal notes, money-orders, and British postal orders in the Property Record, the numbers and ciphers and issuing offices are to be recorded.

24. The Property Clerk must exercise his judgment in returning letters or other postal packets without recording in the Property Record, and any letter or other postal packet in which the sender’s address is vague or in any way doubtful must be recorded and a description of contents obtained. When the other contents of a letter or other postal packet containing property are obviously of a compromising nature, it is better to record and obtain a description of contents. In any doubtful cases reference to the Senior Clerk is to be made.

25. Property Records are to be kept twenty-five years before being destroyed.

26. Property found loose in the office or elsewhere is to be submitted to the Chief Inspector for decision as to disposal. As a rule, cash or other negotiable property found in the public portion of an office, or in the street, is to be handed to the finder (after being advertised for one month) on an undertaking being given that a refund will be