383
United Kingdom by English mail.
United Kingdom by French mail.
Other countries by English and French mails.
REPORT BY THE ACTING ASSISTANT POSTMASTER GENERAL.
The annual counting of the number of letters conveyed from Hongkong to the United Kingdom and other countries by the English and French mails was last held in October, 1889.
2. The actual number conveyed to the United Kingdom by the two English mails despatched during that month was 9,646, but there were many of this number which paid more than 10 cents, and if this is taken into account, it will raise the number of 10 cent stamps issued for letters to (9,646 +4,823)=14,469.
3. In the same way it was found that the number of letters for the United Kingdom bearing 10 cent stamps and carried by the French mail amounted in the same month to 9,375.
4. Letters conveyed in same month by English and French mail steamers to other countries than the United Kingdom at a 10 cent rate were found to number 17,089.
5. With the rate of exchange at 3/-, it is computed that the Hongkong Post Office gains 51d on all letters conveyed from Hongkong at a 10 cent rate by the English mail. Reckoning 26 English mails a year, the annual profit to the Colony is arrived at by the following sum, (14,469 × 13 × 51) pence = £400 circa. But with the rate of exchange at 3/7 as at present, the gain on every 10 cent letter is 1.21d.: hence the total annual gain would be
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(14,469 × 13 × 1·21) pence = £950 circa.
6. If however the rate per oz. for letters were reduced from 10 cents to 5 cents, the Hongkong Post Office would lose 1.29d. on every such letter when ex- change was at 3/- and 94d when the exchange was at 3/7. In these cases the total annual loss to the Colony would be respectively represented as follows
at 3/- (14,469 x 13 x 1.29) pence = £1,010 circa. and at 3/7 (14,469 × 13 × 94) pence = £ 736 circa.
7. With exchange at 3/- it is computed that the Hongkong Post Office gains. 1.71d. on all letters conveyed from Hongkong to United Kingdom at a 10 cent rate by the French mail. With the exchange at 3/7 the profit per letter will be 2.41d. The annual profit will be respectively as follows
at 3/- (9,375 x 13 x 171) pence = £ 870 circa. and at 3/7 (9,375 x 13 x 2-41) pence = £1,225 circa.
8. A reduction from 10 cents to 5 cents per French mail with exchange at 3/- would involve a dead loss of '09d. per letter, but with exchange at 3/7, no actual loss would be incurred, but the gain on each letter would be reduced from 2-41d. to 26d. thus :-
at 3/- loss = (9,375 × 13 × 09) pence = £ 45 circa. at 3/7 gain (9,375 × 13 × +26) pence £132 circa.
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9. The letters forwarded by the two English and two French mails to other places than the United Kingdom during the month of October, 1889, were found to number 17,089, on each of which, with exchange at 3/- and 3/7, the profit per letter at a 10 cent rate would be 1·93d., and 2-63d. respectively, whilst the total annual profit is shown as follows
at 3/- (17,089 x 13 x 1.93) pence at 3/7 (17,089 x 13 x 2.63) pence
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£1,785 circa. £2,435 circa.
10. At a reduced rate of 5 cent per oz., no actual loss would be incurred, but only a diminution of gain: with exchange at 3/- the gain per letter would fall from 1.93d. to '13d., and with exchange at 3/7 the fall would be from 2·63d. to ·48d. The total annual reduced profit to the Colony would be as follows:-
at 3/- (17,089 x 13 x13) pence = £120 circa.
at 3/7 (17,089 x 13 x 48) pence - £445 circa.