3

E.—l

The actual cash revenue collected daring the financial year ended the 30th June last amounted to £72,037, inclusive of a sum of £1,345, contributions recovered from non-contracting colonies on account of the San Francisco Service. These collections do not include £2,422 11s. 2d. duo by Provincial Governments for postage, or the amount of the probable recoveries from the Imperial Post Office on account of postages, estimated at £12,000. Had circumstances permitted these amounts being included in the year's accounts, the sum to be treated as Postal Revenue would have exceeded £50,459. The assumed gross revenue for the year 1874, as given in the Summary Table of this Report, reached the large sum of £104,361 2s. lid., as against £94,706 10s. for the previous year. Of the former amount, no less than £42,223 6s. is represented by " official postage." The following table will show to what extent the Post Office is used for the transmission of franked correspondence:—

The Postal Revenue collected during the last four years is shown in the following statement:— Financial Year. Revenue Collected. Increase. Financial Tear. Revenue Collected. Increase. 1871-72 . ... 47,054 18 '3 3,908 3 3 1873-74 60,535 18 2 9,949 11 10 1872-73 50,586 6 4 3,531 8 1 1874-75 * 72,037 0 0 11,501 1 10 * Of this sum £482 10s. was collected on account of the Telegraph Department. Owing to circumstances it was impossible to have foreseen, the cost for the conveyance of mails by sea, as applied to the financial year, has been greater than the sums set down for those services. The expenditure, on account of salaries, &c, however, has not been greater than anticipated. Registered Letters. The number of letters registered during 1874, as shown by Table No. 18, was 43,7G6, as against 38,474 during the previous year —a very large increase in favour of the past year. Dead Letters. The number of unclaimed or dead letters dealt with in the Dead Letter Office during 1874 ia given in the following table, which also shows the number disposed of, year by year, since 1870 :—

Buildings. The rebuilding of the Auckland Post Office was completed in December last, and the department took possession before the end of the year. This office is now one of the most complete and convenient in the colony, special attention having been paid to the interior arrangements and fittings, while the public convenience was not lost sight of. The system (partially introduced some two years since) of providing for the more important business of the department with the public being transacted over an open counter, has been carried out to the fullest extent in the Auckland, office ; and the result has shown that the plan has much to commend itself, both to the public and the officers of the department. While the officers are enabled by this arrangement to perform their duties with greater freedom and precision, the public gain the advantage of being better and more satisfactorily served. The counter system will no doubt be appreciated from the fact that, by bringing the public face to face with the officers of the department, the too-often-repeated complaints of incivility and want of attention will, to a large extent it is believed, be removed. The Christchurch Post Office, or, more correctly speaking, the building in which the business of the Post Office is carried on, has been altered and re-arranged so as to afford as far as possible better accommodation for the transaction of Money Order and Savings Bank business. The want of a new office is much felt, and until such has been provided the public convenience will necessarily suffer. The requirements of the Oamaru Post Office having outgrown the accommodation, the building had to be entirely re-arranged. This office may now be regarded as one of the most convenient in the colony. The Postmaster has been relieved of the charge of the Telegraph Station. New offices at Napier and Hokitika are in course of erection. The building known as the Hospital, Greymouth, is now being adapted as a Post Office and Telegraph Station. New Post Offices and Telegraph Stations have been erected and occupied at Palmerston North (as Post Office only), Carterton, Upper Hutt, Wairoa (Wellington), Wairoa (Hawke's Bay), Onehunga, Opotiki, Warkworth, Waipu, Whangarei, Kawakawa, Hokianga, Russell, Southbridge, Geraldine, Tapanui, Teviot, Waikaia, Herbert, Tokatea, Newcastle. The new offices erected at Lyttelton and Masterton will in a few weeks be occupied. The following Post Offices and Telegraph Stations are being erected or proposed to be erected:— Port Chalmers, Pukorokoro, Riverhead, Helensville, Ohaewae, Turakina, St. Bathan's, Ohinemutu, Porangahau, Drury, Nelson, Christchurch, Havelock.

[OONT OP PO! STAGE FOB [E Year 18t4. On the Sebvice op Totals. Province of Pr° o T"ce Auckland. Taranakl £ s. d. £ s. 6*. 615 17 5 41 17 10 1,553 15 0 142 15 6 Prov. of Hawke's .. Bay. £ s. d. Province of Wellington. £ s. d. Province of Kelson. £ s. d. Prov. of Marlborough. I £ 6. d. Province of Canterbury. Province of Otago. Province of Westland. £ s. d. £ s. d. 1,268 3 4 £ s. a. £ 8. d. 2,422 11 2 'rovinciul Government 47 13 9 134 2 4 46 2 10 28 0 4 83 4 4 254 9 0 teneral Government... 142 7 10 31,984 5 2 374 14 0 316 15 4 1,674 18 4 2,816 2 0 495 1 8 39,800 14, 30 Totals ... 749 10 8 2,009 12 5 434 13 4 190 1 7 12,118 7 6 .420 16 10 344 15 8 1,763 2 8 4,082 5 4 42,223 6 0

Manner of Disposal. 1870. 1871. 1872. 1873. 1874. ipened and returned to the writers unopened to other countries ie-issued •estroj'cil 17,516 6,688 63 2,960 17,106 6,192 97 2,173 17,707 5,512 85 2,884 20,602 5,393 75 3,801 26,153 6,828 105 4,227 Totals 27,227 25,568 26,188 29,871 37,313