The Akaroa Mail. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 23.

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume V, Issue 453, 23 November 1880, Page 2

The Akaroa Mail. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 23.

Foon Akaroa! —It has received another slap in the face from the Hull-cum-Rollcs-ton faction, which at present sways the destinies of the countr . One of the mail services which has been running without interruption for more than twenty years, has been quietly " suspended " without so much as a day's notice—without reason assigned, and the only intimation of tho fact to a long-suffering public consists of a few lines of manuscript ailixed on the outside of the Post Office. New tenders have been invited for mail services (that by Pigeon Bay included) for a period commencing on the first of January neit. The presumption is that the present contract is in full force till that date. True the master of the " Akaroa " has notified that she would cease running for a time, in order that she might be scraped. But the growth of barnacles on a ship's bottom ia'hardly sufficient ground for interrupting an important mail service '• Tuere are hills beyond Pentland, and seas beyond Forth," and surely there are vessels to be found to replaco even the smart little Akaroa for a few trips.

We can form no hypothesis to account for this extraordinary and unwarrantable suspension of a.v important service, unh-s----it has been allowed simply to suit the convenience and tho interest of the owners of tho Akaroa, those of tho public at large being utterly ignored. If this be the explanation, it is only another instance added to many others in which the present Government have shown the same disposition to sacrifice the rights of the many to tho convenience of the few. If there be any other reason, then the sooner it is made public the better for the Postal Department.

True, we all know that this Pigeon Bay steamer has been kept running by her owners out of motives of pure philantrophy. Captain McLean lias never been tired of assuring all .and sundry that he has constantly and steadily been losing money besides giving his services to an I ~('., 1 n „l,l; n Hi, +I.A <il M nr»tli r>F

these continual losses one boat has been leplaced by another, the last always being a great improvement on its predecessor.

But as these benefactors of their kind have apparently thriven so well on their losses, it is possible that other philanthropists might be found to continue the same self denying conduct. Inany case a barp-ain is a bargain, and we cannot concede to a ..-Government department, they being merely trustees for the public, the right to abandon the interests of their clients in order to suit the private convenience of any one. We think that this is a matter of such urgency that steps should lie taken without a day's delay to have an explanation. If we sit down tamely under this slight, we shall thoroughly deserve any further injury that may bo decreed for us. We would strongly urge the M-iyor, as the official mouth-piece of the burgesses, to telegraph at once to the PostmasterGeneral for an explanation. The Council meets to-morrow evening, and by this means there would be time for a reply to be received before their meeting, when any further action could be taken which might be deemed necessary. Here is a chance for His Worship to signalise the latter days of his term of office by an action which ran hardly fail to serve a good purpose, and to show that he is ready to use his official position for the public welfare. Time presses, otherwise a public meeting would be advisable, and may even now be necessary. If the Chairman of the County Council is in Akaroa. we think he should join the Mayor in demanding an explanation. We have a shrewd suspicion thai it is only necessary for the facts to be represented at head-quarters in order to have this little mistake rectified nt once.

Since writing the above we have re ceived a letter from a correspondent healing on the same subject, which we pnblisl in another column. Our -corresponden agrees with tho recommendations whic-1 we have already made.