EASTERN MAILS

Evening Post, Volume CXXIII, Issue 85, 12 April 1937, Page 3

EASTERN MAILS

NEW DIRECT SERVICE

The, establishment of a direct monthly steamer service between. New Zealand and the Dutch East Indies by the South Pacific Line of the Dutch Royal Packet Navigation Company will enable an improvement to be made in the inward mail services to. New Zealand on that route. Hitherto, mails have generally been brought to Sydney to await the most suitable steamer connections to New Zealand. Under the new arrangement, commencing with the sailing of the Maetsuycker from Saigon on April 10 and from Singapore on April 13, correspondence for New Zealand will be taken direct to Auckland (arriving May 11), without the necessity for transhipment in Australia.

Ships on the run to New Zealand will pick up mails at Saigon, French Indo , China, Singapore, Straits Settlements; Batavia, Samarang. and Sourabaya, in the Dutch East Indies; - Port Moresby and Samarai, Papua; Rabaul, New Guinea; Port Vila, New Hebrides; and Noumea, New Caledonia. Judging by the postings made, - there is quite extensive correspondence between most of the countries mentioned and New Zealand. As an example, the outward dispatches to Singapore in 1936 totalled 70191b, comprising 6681b of letters, 11061b of parcels, 52451b of other matter, exclusive of air. mail dispatched to Singapore via Sydney. On the return journey from New Zealand to Dutch East Indies-and other points on the route of the new direct service, the steamers will call at Sydney. The first dispatch will be' from Wellington on. May 15, Singapore being reached on June 9 and Saigon two days later.