I regret however, to say that, notwithstanding the assistance that he has afforded, I receive daily and well-founded complaints of excessive charges imposed by the Post Master, and of general incivility and inattention in the discharge of his duties. Copies of these complaints, together with the explanations given by M. Scales in the consequent correspondence with this Office, which I shall trust to Your Lordship to communicate, with this Despatch, to the Post Master General.
On the complaints of delay in delivering letters, I have only to remark that, previous to Mr. Scales' arrival, I made inquiries, and I am not aware of anything in his instructions that leads to greater difficulty in delivering letters than existed formerly. At all events, supposing that in certain cases, such as Nos. 6 to 10, he might be ignorant of the persons employed by parties as agents for the receipt of letters; the delay that took place in the delivery of Despatches to Sir I. Cochrane is unexplained; and the statement he makes in answer to the charge preferred against him is contradicted in the most important particulars both by these Gentlemen and their Agents, Messrs. Tibb Livingston & Co., persons of character and respectability.
The late Governor, in a Despatch No. 35, dated the 30th of April last, brought under Your Lordship's notice the necessity of an arrangement being entered into between the Post Office in England and those of Madras and Calcutta, to enable persons who have no Agents in those places to transmit their...