5

E.—B

No. 11. Messrs. John Mackrell and Co. to the Agent- Genebal. Cook Strait Cable. Sir,— 21, Cannon Street, London, E.C., 31st May, 1876. "We beg to report, for the information of your Government, that, after the execution of this contract, questions arose with reference to the demurrage payable upon ships, the Company alleging that they had assented to the amount inserted in clause 9 under a misapprehension of the amount they would have to pay. The difficulty has been got over by a substituted arrangement that the Company should undertake to land the cable under the superintendence of their engineer and boiler-maker, who will go out with the cable, the Government repaying the actual cost incurred for wages, &c.; not including, however, the wages of the engineer and boiler-maker, nor such assistance from the crew as may be included in the freight. To carry out this substituted arrangement, a memorandum has been put upon the contract, of which we subjoin a copy, and the contract must be read as thus varied. We have, &c, To the Agent-General for New Zealand. John Mackeell and Co.

Enclosure in No. 11. These Articles of Agreement, entered into this 28th day of April, 1876, between His Excellency the Most Honorable George Augustus Constantine, Marquis of Norrnanby, Earl of Mulgrave, Viscount Normanby, and Baron Mulgrave of Mulgrave, in the County of York, and in the Peerage of the United Kingdom ; and Baron Mulgrave of New Eoss, in the County of Wexford, in the Peerage of Ireland ; a Member, of Her Majesty's Most Honorable Privy Council; and Knight Commander of the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George ; the Governor and Coinmander-in-Chief in and over Her Majesty's Colony of New Zealand and its Dependencies, and Vice-Admiral of the same (hereinafter called " the Governor "), of the one part, and the Telegraph Construction and Maintenance Company Limited (hereinafter called "the Company"), of the other part, witness, that for the consideration hereinafter appearing, the Governor for himself, separately, and his successors in office, Governors and Commanders-in-Chief for the time being in and over the said colony (each such successor for the time being, and also the Government for the time being of the said colony, being hereby declared to be included in the word " Governor " wherever it hereafter occurs, unless such meaning shall be inconsistent with the context), doth hereby for and on behalf of the said colony, so far as the matters hereinafter contained are to be observed and performed on the part of the Governor of New Zealand, agree with the said Company, their successors and assigns. And the said Company, for themselves, their successors and assigns, do hereby, so far as the matters hereinafter contained are to be observed and performed on their part, agree with the Governor and his successors, for and on behalf of the said colony, in manner following, that is to say, — 1. The Company will manufacture for the Governor a telegraphic cable of the total length of forty-five knots, of the types and kind, and in the manner following, that is to say, — (A.) The copper conductor to be a strand of seven wires, weighing 107 pounds per nautical mile. The specific conductivity of the copper to be not less than 90 per cent, of that of pure copper. (B.) The conductor to be insulated with three coatings of gutta percha of the finest quality, alternating with three coatings of Chatterton's compound, and to weigh 140 pounds per nautical mile, or within 5 per cent, thereof. The resistance of the completed core to be not less than 150 megohms per nautical mile, when tested at a temperature of 75° Fahrenheit after one minute's electrification. (C.) The core to be kept continually under water until the commencement of the serving process. (D.) The core to be served in the usual manner, with a good and sufficient serving of jute yarn, steeped in a solution of cutch or other preservative mixture, and to be applied wet. The hemp to be laid on in two servings, in opposite directions. Great precaution to be observed to prevent the possibility of injury to the core in the serving machines. Outer Coverings. (E.) The length of cable to be as follows, videlicit: — Type A (shore end) ... ... ... ... ... 5 knots. Type B (main cable) ... ... ... ... ... 40 „ Total ... ... ... ... ... 45 „ (F.) Type A.—The served core to be closed with ten 8.8. galvanized iron wires, the diameter of each wire to be No. 0, 8.W.G., equal to 340" of an inch, when galvanized, or within 2-g---per cent, thereof. (G.) Type B. —The served core to be closed with ten 8.8. galvanized iron wires, the diameter of each wire to be No. 4, 8.W.G., equal to 238" of an inch, when galvanized, or within 2J per cent, thereof. (H.) Each type of cable, when completed, to be served with two coatings of jute yarn, laid on in opposite directions in the usual manner, and three coatings of Clark's compound. 2. The Company will manufacture the cable in a proper manner, and to the entire satisfaction of an engineer (hereinafter called <:the Engineer"), appointed by the Agent-General for the New