POSTAL SERVICES
39. The traffic in most classes of postal business continued to show a steady increase. The total number of letters and packets posted and delivered, excluding parcels, registered and insured items, amounted to 146,585,392 representing an increase of 3% over the previous year.
40. There was a further increase in the number of undeliverable letters referred to the Dead Letter Office, the total for the year being 624,520 as against 536,068 in 1958/59. A good deal of this was caused by local residents failing to notify their change of address or furnishing inadequate addresses, but much originated from overseas and it can only be assumed that use is being made of old reference books. Postmark slogans and explanatory posters recommending clear and correct addressing of correspondence brought into use in late 1959 received good response from the local public, and fewer locally posted letters were finding their way to the Dead Letter Office by the end of the year.
SURFACE LETTER MAILS
41. Hong Kong continued to be served by excellent shipping services. All ocean-going vessels with suitable mail storage accommoda- tion were used for the conveyance of mails and frequent despatches were made to most parts of the world.
42. As a result of the acquisition of additional accommodation, it was possible to resume the registered letter service to China on 4th January, 1960. The following new direct first and second class surface despatches were also formed during the year:
Country
Netherlands New Guinea
Korea Argentine
+
Office of Exchange
Sorong Pusan
Buenos Aires
43. It was gratifying to note that no pilferage from letter mail shipments was experienced during the year under review. This was in part due to the loading of mails on steamers provided with special mail storage lockers and in part to the close co-operation of the shipping companies concerned.
44. The conveyor bridge over the busy Connaught Road continued to provide an efficient means of loading and unloading mails and lessened traffic hold-ups. Plans to install a mail hoist at the pier adjoining the Kowloon Railway Station for loading mails to and from
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