arrive here each month by the Steamers of the Peninsular and Oriental Company - i.e., under the terms of the Government Contract, accompanied by an Admiralty agent who does not proceed further than this, but returns in charge of the first outgoing mail for Europe.
The other, not being a Contract mail, is brought here under charge of the Captain of the Company's Peninsular and Oriental Steamer.
I propose that the Services of the Admiralty Agent should be dispensed with on this side of Singapore, and that each mail for Hongkong should be met and taken charge of at Singapore by an officer of the Hongkong Post Office and be taken by him during the passage up the Chinese Sea, which usually occupies from six to eight days.
Two Officers would be sufficient for this Service with regularity; and as they could take charge of each outgoing mail from this on their return, every mail for and from Europe between this place and Singapore would then be under the charge of a Government officer, if only on alternate days.
Under such a plan, the mails for Hongkong might be carefully sorted.