RESULT OF CONFERENCE RESPECTING POSTAL AND TELEGRAPH MATTERS.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5401, 19 July 1878, Page 3

RESULT OF CONFERENCE RESPECTING POSTAL AND TELEGRAPH MATTERS.

The Hon. Mr. Burns and the Hon. Mr. Fisher on July 11th agreed to and signed a minute respecting postal and telegraph matters. The New Zealand Government will join Victoria, New South Wales, and South Australia in the duplication of the cable to’ Singapore. „ There is an arrangement for the reduction of the charges of the Eastern Extension Company for the transmission of messages between Port Darwin and London, by seventy-five per cent, on press messages, and fifty per cent, oh Governmental. Such arrangement is held by the Governments to be liberal, and the above reduction may, in the discretion of Messrs.’Berry (Victoria) and Burns (New South Wales); be modified to the extent proposed by the company, if it cannot obtain a similar reduction for its use of the Dutch and Indian lines. The keeping of a steamer constantly in a port of Australia or New Zealand for the New Zealand cable is held to be an* unnecessary. expense, from which the company should be relieved,, while at the same time it is to be held liable for keeping up cable communication between the two colonies. The company has agreed to reduce its charges for the transmission of all messages by New Zealand cable.; but what the reduction is has not been made public, and is embodied in a separate agreement between Mr. Burns, Mr. Fisher, and Colonel Glover. The repairing ship of the company is to be at all times available for the repair of the Cook Strait cables. The New Zealand Government is to defray the expense thereof, indemnifying the company for any damage to tho steamer or machinery. Respecting postal matters, the- AgentsGeneral of New South Wales and New Zealand are to move the Secretary of State for the Colonies to cause aid to be given by the Imperial Government, under the present treaty, towards the Pacific, Suez, and Torres Strait mail services, which are to be continued for a further period. [The present treaty between England and the colonies respecting mail services expires this year]. The Agenbs-General are also to request contractors per Pacific mail service’ to propose another surety in the room of Mr. McGregor. New South Wales and New Zealand are to join the “ Berne Postal Union, 1 " with the object of establishing uniform postal regulations of universal application, provided that uo reduction is made in the rate of postage for ocean services, and that- the cost of transit of mails between San Francisco and New York or Bouton is not charged to the colonies, and that the laws of the colonies respecting wholly unpaid correspondence are not interfered with.