2704
THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE.
No. 59

posted. The minimum period for which an authority shall be issued shall be six calendar months. The minimum number of newspapers that shall be received at any one posting shall be 100. The wrappers of the papers should be superscribed to show not only the title of the newspaper, but also the words “Postage paid.”

(2.) Newspapers shall be presented at the post-office from which they are to be despatched, accompanied by a certificate in the prescribed form. They shall be tied in bundles or enclosed in a bag or other receptacle, the number of papers contained therein being clearly indicated in each case, so that they may be readily counted before distribution. Any misstatement, whether intentional or otherwise, may lead to withdrawal of the privilege.

(3.) An account shall be rendered after the end of each accounting period—viz., on the 1st, 8th, 16th, and 24th days of each month, covering the postage due on papers posted during the periods ended the 7th, 15th, 23rd, and last days of each month. Settlement thereof shall be effected within forty-eight hours, failing which the concession may be withdrawn. News-vendor’s packets (including packets from newspaper offices), unless they are addressed singly to addressees, shall not be received under the permit system, but shall be prepaid in stamps. Bundles of packets addressed singly come under the permit system, and may be prepaid in cash.

REGISTERED ARTICLES.
Fees in addition to Postage.

2. The sender of a registered article may obtain an acknowledgment of its due receipt by the addressee on payment, at the time of posting of the article, of an “acknowledgment fee” of 2½d., in addition to the postage and registration fee. An inquiry as to the delivery of a registered letter may be made subsequently to the posting of the letter by means of an Acknowledgment of Delivery form, to which must be attached the fee of 2½d. Inquiry for a registered article addressed to a place beyond New Zealand cannot be made if the inquiry is not lodged within one year counting from the day after that of posting.

What may be registered.

3. Any letter, letter-card, post-card, book or other packet, newspaper, or inland parcel will be accepted for registration. Parcels for places beyond New Zealand, except the United States of America, cannot be registered.

4. No article directed to initials, or to a fictitious name, or addressed in pencil (except copying-ink pencil), can be registered. An article addressed in Chinese or other commonly unknown characters cannot be accepted for registration unless the address is written also in English characters. No registered letter addressed to a private box by number only may be delivered except to the holder of the box or on his written order. A letter showing signs of having been opened and refastened shall not be accepted for registration.

5. The Postmaster-General shall not accept liability in the case of registered articles for which the addressees have given a receipt and accepted delivery, nor shall he accept liability for registered articles which cannot be accounted for in consequence of the destruction of official documents through a cause beyond control.

Compulsory Registration.

18. Valuable articles sent in unregistered letters are exposed to risk. All inland and Australian letters or packets, therefore, which are supposed to contain watches, or jewellery, or coin, or bank-notes, even though they are posted without registration, shall be treated as “registered,” and charged double the registration fee; and any such letters, &c., which cannot be registered in time to be forwarded by the mail for which they are posted may be detained for the next despatch. If on being opened in the presence of an officer of the post-office the letters are found not to contain such aforementioned articles or any of them, the registration fee and amount of the surcharge shall be refunded. Coin, bank-notes, gold, cheques, money-orders, and postal notes (except the last three in bankers’ packets) may not be sent to Australia except in letters, and such letters containing coin, bank-notes, or gold shall be registered.

INSURANCE OF LETTERS.

2. Every letter insured may not contain other than bank-notes, bonds, coupons, unobliterated postage-stamps, securities, or other documents of the kind. Unobliterated postage stamps may be insured up to their face value, but obliterated postage stamps cannot be insured. Post-cards, packets of “printed papers” or “commercial papers,” sample packets, or letters which contain articles other than documents as aforesaid will not be insured. Objects of value which cannot be sent in insured letters may generally be sent in insured parcels or insured boxes.

3. Insured letters addressed to Great Britain and Ireland, or to any country via Great Britain, will, while this regulation remains in force, be sent via San Francisco or Vancouver.

4. A letter containing any such documents as aforesaid addressed to any country which has the insurance-of-letters system in force, and bearing on the outside a declaration of the value of the contents must be insured.

5. The amount for which an article is insured shall be written by the sender both in words and in figures at the top of the address side of the cover, thus: “Insured for fifteen pounds (£15).” The amount shall also be shown in gold francs placed at the side or below that representing the insured value in English currency, but this will not apply to inland insured letters or those addressed to Great Britain and Ireland. No alteration or erasure of the inscription is allowed. If a mistake is made, the entry shall be completely obliterated and an entirely new one made by the sender.

6. A letter cannot be insured for more than its actual value. A letter of which the contents have no saleable value may, however, be insured for a nominal sum in order to obtain the safeguards of the insurance system; the fee payable in such a case shall be the minimum one of 4d. for inland letters and 8d. for those addressed to other countries. Insurance in excess of the value of the contents will bar the payment of any compensation in respect of any insured letter.