F.—l

Statement of the International Traffic on the Eastern Extension Company's European Lines in respect of the Cable Guarantee Fund, for the Year ended 30th April, 1896. £ Amount guaranteed for the year ... ... ... ... 227,000 0 0 Actual revenue ... ... ... ... ... 360,970 19 2 Surplus ... ... ... ... ... £133,970 19 2 The revenue derived by the company from the Australasian-international cable-traffic for the year ended April, 1895, was £238,712. The increase of revenue last year was, therefore, 51-22 per cent. The increase of the telegraph cable-traffic resulted in a reduction in the payment by the colony to the Intercolonial Cable Guarantee Fund. The colony's outward international and intercolonial cable business, not including Press, for the years 1894 and 1895 was as follows:— International, — Messages. Value. Number. £ s. d. 1894 ... ... ... 5,963 ... 21,431 6 4 1895 ... ... ... 7,135 ... 27,484 10 3 Increase ... 1,172 Increase ... 6,053 3 11 or 19 - 65 per cent. or 28-24 per cent. Intercolonial, — Messages. Value. Number. £ s. d. 1894 ... ... ... 28,750 . . . 7,534 3 2 1895 31,801 ... 8,200 15 2 Increase ... 3,051 Increase ... 666 12 0 or 10-61 per cent. or 8-84 per cent. A total increase in 1895 of 4,223 messages and £6,719 15s. lid. in value.

The forwarded and received cable Press business for the past five years has been: —

Note. —The intercolonial cable Press rate was reduced from 3d. to Id. per word on the Ist April, 1893. There was a large increase in the number and value of the received messages, but a falling-off in the forwarded, in number of words and value. A comparison of the receipts from Press cable messages under the old tariff and the reduced rates which came into operation in April, 1893, is largely in favour of the former. POST OFFICE. The number of articles posted in the colony, and received from places outside the colony, during the year, as compared with the number in 1894, was as under ; — Letters— 1895. 1894. Increase. Posted in the colony .. .. .. 26,968,955 25,823,967 Received from places outside the colony .. 1,980,981 1,816,044 28,949,936 27,640,011 1,809,925 Letter-cards posted in the colony .. .. 637,013 Nil 637,013 Post-cards— Decrease. Posted in the colony .. .. .. 1,196,156 1,248,819 Received from places outside the colony .. 5,477 5,021 1,201,633 1,253,840 52,207 Books and pattern-packets— Increase. Posted in the colony .. ~ ~ 8,337,680 6,900,049 Received from places outside the colony .. 2,509,444 2,514,002 10,847,124 9,414,051 1,433,073 Newspapers— Posted in the colony .. ~ .. 8,964,111 8,787,935 Received from places outside the colony .. 3,711,862 3,545,773 * 12,675,973 12,333,708 342,263 Parcels— Posted in the colony .. .. .. 156,752 155,697 Received from places outside the colony ~ 19,454 18,567 176,206 174,264 1,942

VII

Forwarded. Received. Year. Number of Number of Value. Value. Messages. Words. Messages. Words. 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 837 791 796 994 1,168 45,285 44,263 57,390 103,366 68,682 £ s. 932 15 898 3 504 9 899 4 433 13 d. 8 9 9 9 0 2,828 2,884 2,883 3,033 3,926 198,935 197,477 202,170 203,326 314,136 £ s. d. 2,739 6 0 2,796 9 4 1,540 17 10 1,179 13 7 1,782 13 5