POST OFFICE "SHOUTS"

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 1, Issue 3, 26 April 1939, Page 4

POST OFFICE "SHOUTS"

o — A FREE CABLE ABROAD INSTITUTING NEW GREETINGS SCHEME History is made by an announce, ment that the Post Office, to mark the inauguration of a new cable greetings service between Empire countries, will oa May 1 allow any person to send one free greeting to a friend or relation overseas. The normal charge for the service will be 3d a word with a minimum of 12 words, but as statc.l above on the opening day a VI word message may be sent free of cost, though words in excess of 12 will lit' charged for at 5d a word. Any message may be sent, and there is no set form as in greetings bj' telegram. The only Empire countries to which the.offer will not apply will be India, Burmah and Canada, and where the charge is at present less than 5d a word, this including countries such as Australia, Fiji and Nor. folk Island. It is rather a noteworthy event, and it is easy to believe that many will take advantage of the offer. Postal officials are reticent, but rumour has it that the traffic between Dunedin and Aberdeen is expected to reach an all.time peak. Of course the drawback is that when Aunt Lizzie is the vicarage at Woggles-under.WoUl Hants., re reives a loving greeting from Nep hew Ebenezer at Te Kaha she muv start to read unmeant meanings into the message, and may despatch a worried cable out here which le<i«is to cynical suspicion that the Post Office instituted the scheme to boost cable traffic!