SHIPPING TELEGRAMS.

Evening Star, Issue 3540, 27 June 1874, Page 2

SHIPPING TELEGRAMS.

To the Editor. Sir, —The English mail arrived at A ticklaud at ten o clock last night, and now at the time L am addressing this to you, forty-five minutes after one in the afterno n, it is not even notified on the so-called “ shipping report" which is stuck up in the Post Office hall. It has hitherto always been the practice on the part of the Government to notify from first to last the movements of steamers bearing the English mails, and I shall feel obliged by your calling attention to the present neglect. In this particular instance the negligence becomes a matter of importance to me, for had I known at an early hour this morning that the steamer had arrived, I should have telegraphed to a passenger who is on board of her and intimated to him that which would have obviated the necessity of his making a fruitless journey to Wellington.—l am, &c., Wellington. Dunedin, June 27. INTERCOLONIAL RECIPROCITY. To the Editor. Sib, —I have read with interest your remarks on intercolonial reciprocity in last night’s Permit me to remark that the Australian Colonies do not possess “the power of entering into reciprocal arrangements with other countries,” but merely with themselves, and this was only granted la«t year by the Imperial Government on the earnest and unanimous demands of the various Australasian Colonies.

Reciprocity is no new thing : it has for years past worked well between Canada and the United States ; it existed in the Germanic ■ onfederation (Zollverein) ; and the commercial treaty with France was nothing but an act of reciprocity. For these Colonies, situated as they are, to tax each other’s products is about as absurd as it would be for each Province of New Zealand to maintain hostile tariffs towards each other. In about half-a-dozen years the Colonies will be as closely united by the aid of steam and telegraphy as the various Provinces of New Zealand were about a dozen years ago. .There is no doubt that Free trade, in its widest sense, is moat desirable, but I see no way of accomplishing this except by conserving the public estate, and waiting on for some years; meanwhile, on the principle that “ half a loaf is better than none,” we should be satisfied with free trade with the Australian Colonies. ‘1 here is no douh there are difficulties in arranging the matter, but should the Premier succeed in over coming th<-m all, he will hare carved for himseli a niche in the temple of fame far beyond the most sanguine results of his immigration and public works schemes. With extensive and profitable markets opened up to our productions, public works and immigration may be left to take eare of themselves.—l am, &c., _ Colonist. Dunedin, June 26.