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New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 4928, 8 January 1877, Page 2

The Sydney Morning Herald of December 29th has as article on the San_ Francisco Mail Service, and the negotiations in regard to proposed alterations of route now going on between the Governments of New South Wales and this colony. Our contemporary argues altogether in favor of the Bay of Islands, and not Auckland, being made the port of call, should a modification of the present route be agreed upon, and points out in a very calm manner that New Zealand is really no judge in the matter. Unfortunately [there will be some difficulty in persuading !New Zealand of this. It has been very rightly decided by Parliament that AuckI land is far preferable to the Bay of Islands as a port of call for the mail steamers, 'and the Union Company distinctly declined to carry out the coastal service from the latter place unless they were paid double what they would require for carrying it out from Auckland. The Sydney Morning Herald cannot understand this, and naively insists that the coastal service should be done as cheaply from one place as from another. But surely the Herald will allow the directors of the Union Steamship Company and the people of the colony to know a little about their own affairs. On the authority of Mr. i Robertson, Premier of New South Wales, the Herald says the difficulty in connection with the mail service is this: "That while the Pacific Mail Company offers to do the line by way of Auckland or Bay of Islands for £BO,OOO, New Zealand only consents that the united colonies should pay £65,000 for the service via the Bay of Islands, or £70,000 by way of Auckland—neither of which proposals comes up to the final offer of the company for £BO,OOO. This Government have written to the Government of New Zealand recommending them to come up to £75,000 for the united colonies, but have been unable to get a decisive answer from them." This is scarcely stating the case fairly. In an article some time ago we pointed out how the facts really lay, which was in a direction quite different to that stated in our Sydney contemporary.