POSTAL COMMUNICATION WITH THE AUSTRALIAN COLONIES.

West Coast Times, Issue 654, 29 October 1867, Page 3

POSTAL COMMUNICATION WITH THE AUSTRALIAN COLONIES.

In the House of Lords on the 13th August, the Earl of Carnarvon said that before their lordships separated he wished to put a question on the subject to the noble duke the Colonial Secretary, of which he had given h>m private notice. The Earl of Derby (interrupting) said he believed the noble earl was a member of the committee who reported against the practice of putting questions and making speeches by private and not by public notice. The Earl of Carnarvon said that, of course, if ho were debarred from proceeding now he would not go on. Tiie Karl of Derby — Pray go on. The Enrl of Carnarvon said that as his noble friend withdrew, as he understood, the opposition he had made — The Earl of Derby — I made no opposition. The Earl of Carnarvon said that his noble friend had at least interrupted him at the outset ; but he would very shortly state the point to which he wi-hed to direct attention. At present there were two lines of postal communication, between this country and Autralia — the one by Panama and the other by Suez. Towards the line by Panama the couutry, he believed, made no contribution ; but to the postal communication between Suez and the southern coast of Australia he thought tho Treasury paid a subsidy of L 70.000. An intercolonial conference had lately taken place on that subject, and it had been there proposed, that three lines of postal communication should henceforth be established between this country and Australia — viz., the two at present existing, the one by Panama and the other by Suez, and the third forming a branch of the Great Peninsular and Oriental line, and going from Ceylon to the northern, coast of Australia. It had been proposed that the Imperial Government, on the one hand, and tho colonial governments, on the other, should bear a moiety of the expense, which was

calculated at L 140,000 each, and the sum was not to exceed L 200,000. He did not wish to recommend the increased expense which such a subsidy would entail; on the contrary, he saw many strong and reasonable objections to it. He should be perfectly satisfied if the noble duke would assure him that tho subject would receive the consideration which was due to its own importance, and also to the feelings generally of the Australian colonies. It should be borne in mind that a. vast increase had taken place in the exports and imports of those colonies, and, in fact, during the last few years there had been an enormous development of their material resources. Corresponding with that there had been, so to speak, a raising of tho standard of intelligence, education, and, in fact, everything which mad 6 frequent and rapid communication between this country and those colonies a matter of very great importance. The single monthly postal communication which had hitherto satisfied the wants of the Australian colonies was clearly inadequate to the requirements of their present condition. He, therefore, before the close of the session, recommended that great question very earnestly to the consideration of the noble duke, tho Colonial Secretary. He did not wish to exact any answer on the subject at that moment from the Government, who had perhaps, not yet had sufficient time for forming an opinion upon it. All he desired was that it might receive at their hands that a' tentiqn which its great importance demanded. The Duke of Buckingham said the question which the noble earl put to him was one which opened up a matter of very great importance both to this empire and to the colonies ; and he certainly thought he might refer to it as illustrating the expediency of the rule laid down very recently by a committee of their lordships' House that questions of magnitude and not of extreme urgency should be preceded by some public and general notice. The noble lord had been kind enough to give him notice that day of his question ; but had he given a more general notice he should have been able to obtain by a conference with the noble (Continued in page &.J <

English News — Continued from Page 3. Duke at the head of the Post Office much moreinformation to place before the House, showing more fully than he now could do the position of the matter to which the noble lord alluded. It was true, as the noble earl had stated, that these Australian colonies, not deeming their present postal accommodation sufficient, had invited the home Government to consider what arrangements were expedient for improving that communication, and these colonies had proposed a very large and comprehensive plan, involving a very great extent of ocean voyage and a very large expenditure, of which they were in a position to bear a great proportion. The questions they had raised "were certainly such, as deserved rcry serious consideration before the proposals were rejected or materially modified; but they could hardly be considered with regard to those colonies alone. Those colonies had now attained a magnitude when postal communication with them became of great importance, not merely as connected with England, but in relation to almost every other part of the globe, and particularly to China, India, and America. AH that had to be taken into view by the Government before arriving at a definite conclusion as to the proposal made by those colonies. There was another point which was likely to be of as "great importance to the colonies as any particular route or any particular number of mails, and that •was the cost of transmission and the rate to be charged for tho conveyance of letters. All these were matters of great interest in connection with the question of over-sea postal communication to the colonies and to India, and they deserved very careful consideration, because while to many of the colonies the advantages hitherto afforded by the Post-office arrangements as to letters and papers had been very great, yet the colonies ought now to consider whether, in some cases, the reduction of the rates of postage might not be of more advantage than the multiplication of the number of routes. The question would have to be considered very shortly, and he had to point out to the noble earl that there were other considerations mixed up with it besides the expense of communication with Australia alone, and which would require some little time from various departments of the Government before any decision could be arrived at. He could assure the noble earl that the subject was one the magnitude of which was not likely to be underrated by the Government, and that the Government were quite aware of the importance w hichwas attached, and rightly attached, to the proper adjustment and extension of the present system.