to deal with his letters otherwise than
as directed by law
The only suggestion I have to offer the Notification is that the payment of the Colonial Postage Rate should also be mentioned in it.
The addition suggested necessarily raises the question alluded to by His Excellency the other day, as to the propriety of levying a postage at all upon letters between Hongkong and Macao, Chusan and the five ports. I am at present levying postage duties and the more I become confident in the propriety of continuing it. The Masters of vessels now begin to demand their gratuities. Unless I receive a postage I must refuse to pay.
With exception of a few noisy individuals in the Colony who, I am told, are accustomed to feed upon opposition to every thing that emanates from, or is connected with Government, I do not hear that the public are averse to it. The course I am pursuing is the one which, I doubt not, will be finally adopted, and though the public cannot, perhaps, yet be induced entirely to adopt it, yet they will always evade it at their peril.
As to Macao, I believe the public cannot individually send a single letter at a less rate than $1. Letters are generally sent there by the Chinese fast boat men who, I am told, collect a mace on each letter on delivery. I believe I can effect an arrangement for a regular post twice a week between here and Macao at...