SAN FRANCISCO MAIL SERVICE.

Gisborne Times, Volume VI, Issue 235, 12 October 1901, Page 3

SAN FRANCISCO MAIL SERVICE.

j PROPOSED RENEWAL FOR THREE YEARS. A memo, received from the Post and Telei graph Department last evening states 1 that the Postmaster ''-eneral lias given 1 notice to move the 1 raving resolutions on the next sitting da; f Parliament in regard to the San V: me > mail service : —l. That in vic-w of the , oorary agreement with the -J. D. Spre. .Ns end Bros.’ Company itlie Oceanic Steu. iship Com-

I pany of San Francisco) for i-e perform- | ance of a three-weekly service between | San Francisco and Auckland-for one year j expiring next month, (a) this House J authorises the Government to enter into a j contract with the said Company for a rej newal of the present San Francisco mail j service for a term of three years, subject 1 to the following conditions : (b) That the i payment for the conveyance of mails from I New Zealand to San Francisco shall be at j the rate of 7s Gd per lb for letters, Is per j lb for books, packets, etc., and 6d per lb j for newspapers, or (c) that in lieu of the \ foregoing payments a fixed annual subsidy of X’20,000 he paid, provided that one British-owner steamer registered in New Zealand bo employed in the service ; Id) that the time between San Francisco and Auckland

shall not exceed seventeen days; (e) that no bonus shall be paid for early arrival, and a penalty at the rate of £4 an hour shall be enforced only when late delivery exceeds forty-eight hours; if) that all mails tendered to the contractors at Auck- | land and San Francisco, or on behalf of ! the I’ostinaster-General of New Zealand, j shall be conveyed by the contract vessels j and sufficient and secure accommodation j provided for the same ; (g) that suitable . accommodation and lighting shall be pro- ! vided for the purpose of sorting the mails ! on board tlie contract vessels, and firstj class accommodation provided without j charge for a mail agent and an assistant, or if required two assistants; (h) during | the continuance of the contract, and so long as the same shall be faithfully carried out by tho contractors, no charge for harbor dues, dock dues, or other rates shall be made or levied under the Harbor Act, 1878, or any amendment thereof, or under any spocial Act in that behalf at the port of Auckland for any of tho steam vessels employed in carrying out tho contract ; (i) that any agreement entered into between the Post-master-General of New Zealand and the J. P>. Sprecklesand Brothers Company shall, where applicable, follow the provisions of the agreement entered into between the Union Steamship Company of New Zealand, Ltd., on the 14th of August, 1895, and the renewal agreement made on the lltji day of April, 1899- 1. And that the terms and conditions of Clause 7 of the agreement- of the 14th day of August, ] 1895, providing for the detention of the ■,

vessels at San Francisco for the mails from Great Britain shall be given effect to as far as may be consistent with the contract subsisting between tho J. I!. Spreckles and Brothers Company and the United States Government. 2. That in the event of it being found impracticable to arrange a contract for the three-weekly San Francisco service on the foregoing terms this House authorises the Government to enter into negotiations for establishing a fourweekly Vancouver mail service, subject to the following conditions : (a) That the contract shall be for a term of not less than three or more than five years; (b) that the

payment shall not exceed X 20,000 a year ; (c) that the service shall be performed by vessels of not less than 6000 tons, having first-class passenger accommodation, and fitted with all modern improvements, and : also l'efrigerating chambers nnd chilled produce ; (d) that the time shall not exceed 18 days between Vancouver and a New Zealand port, the selection of which to be at the contractors’ option ; (e) that tho terms and conditions of the contract, proposed in respect of the San Francisco service, shall be applied to the Vancouver service, so far as they can be adopted. Federal mail service.—3. That the Government shall also negotiate for a fortnightly intercolonial service to provide prompt connection with the Federal mail service at Melbourne and Sydney :—(a) Between Wellington and Sydney, or (b) between Melbourne, and the Bluff, and in addition in the event of the San Francisco service not being arranged ; (c) between Sydney and Auckland.