Y.
Hon. Colonial Secretary,
279
On the 6th of March a telegram was received from the Postmaster-General, London, stating that the Siberian line was reopened for mails and that the London Office would begin despatching them from that date. The Shanghai Postmaster was informed of this and instructed to receive the mails on arrival.
2.
On March 9th, the despatch of mails from this office via the Siberian commenced. Only fully prepaid letters are sent. All letters from this Office are sent to Shanghai and made up in closed mails there. There is a regular line of steamers belonging to the Russian East Asiatic Company which leave Shanghai each Saturday and arrive at Vladivostock at noon on the Thursday following.
3.
The despatch from this office is quite small, about 100 letters and Post Cards a mail. As far as Hong-kong and the Southern Agencies are concerned — Canton, Swatow, Amoy, and Hoihow — little is gained. I received a letter on March 30th, which was posted in Bremen on the 1st March and sent via Siberia. I see from the Shanghai papers which arrived yesterday that the English Mail of March 9th via Siberia was received at the British Post Office, Shanghai, on April 3rd.
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