THE CALIFORNIAN MAIL SERVICE.

Grey River Argus, Volume XII, Issue 1199, 1 June 1872, Page 2

THE CALIFORNIAN MAIL SERVICE.

M. Herald of the 14th May haY tMf olio wing remarks on "this subject : — " Hitherto, Victoria has never given any adequate patronage to the California line, - l andvhas J demuired,,to,a.--iiuick,Bfflaller™<Bum, "asked for a service from Melbourne via Sydney .l It gets! noi greater advantage by a service via Auckland, and some strong -reason 'Sbould-Jbe^given why4t<-should»be» asked to p^a, very $iuch ; larger sum| It is no great detriment to Victoria that the mail steamer 1 after cleaving Melbouiaie7 should call at one other Colonial portj before proceeding on its voyage to America. But whether thati other- port should be Sydney or Auckland is hardly very material to Victoria, except that the Auckland route involves l a 'longer detour^ and'pro • longs-the-passage:by^two~or~three~days";~ bnt this is not a.n- ad. vantage; of sufficient moment to justify the addition of LI O,OOO or L20,000.t0 the sum previously specified; as superabundant ,f pry ictoria.' Mr Halt never asked the Government at Melbourne' for more than* LlO^OOOayearj for five years, for a line via Sydney and Fiji, to be worked by the,A.S.N. Company's present boats, nor more than L 20,000 a-year for a line by the same route, to be,worked by liew 'first-class sc^ew steamers specially adapted for the service. When we get the full Ministerial statement we. may possib,ly r fincl die reasons why it was thought worth! while to give Mr Webb an additional' : L1 2,000 or L22j,opoior, eigM: years and a : half, to run via' Auckland and Tutuila. ;lf the Victorians approve the arrange-, ■ment, ifis'-not ! fo'c' us ''.'to 1 idissuade tliem.^ JPLiil§Z_§ e J&.-iL-i9™fefi~S^C e -^ia. their interest to pay twice or three | ■limes as much for'a'tfine Organised in New Zealand as they were asked to pay for one organised iii Sydney, they are ; 'the~b|sjJ judges of their own interests, and we have !no quarrel with theni 'oil -'that score. But, considering; the ; ;prop:ortion : ;theyi /have :hitherto paid to, -the- Suez, contract and the amount they will probably have to jcontribute for the Cape service, they will 'certainly exhibit an unexpected liberality if, after disparaging and< discouraging the Californian route as- they have hitherto I consistently' done j' > the^ should now' come forward and offer to pay L 32,500 a year, iotvi eightf years /and <'ia< Half^ >to;'erriplo^ vessels of an old pattern, never con! ; sti?ucted' for 'such -a 'service/ aridbbt ; ttie best suited to JA.^ ;Th,e, time stipulated for the journey between San Francisco and Melbourne is' thirty two days and a half ; but to secure this speed, the vesselst must; -run more ; uniformly, and somewhat faster than they have done hitheJrto;i .There: is, however, ?no irrip,6s| sibility in maintaining,, ;this/ rate : butrfo*r postal purposes, it cannot in Victoria come: up to. the .delivery, of j/lettersj wet Suez. It ; is, however,: well worth . the, while of: Victoria to maintain'the line of communication; with Riverinay as the wool trade already, opened is likely to be permanent, only it is quite .possible to pay an unnecessary price for the advantage. The only "way to determine thFlowesfsuin' at which Australasia arict California can be connected is to invite tenders for the service, and, if necessary, allow time for the building of the most suitable class 0^ steamers."