། ། ། ། ། ། mmimmimic.O. 885
| PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE Reference :--
24 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGR** NOT TO
Desire by Spain to use
Offee.
156
GIBRALTAR.
August. They must have formed the last mails despatched from that capital before the entry of the Germans on the 20th August. Their contents were very possibly of considerable value. It was considered a privilege for Gibraltar to have had this opportunity of procuring a speedy and safe conduct for these mails.
There was a desire at one time by the Spanish postal authorities for this Post Gibraltar Post Office to act as its intermediary for the onward transmission of Spanish mails to Egypt and the Far East and even to some places in the Mediterranean. Its services were freely placed at their disposal. In normal times the above mails are conveyed by the Trasatlantica Steamship Company of Barcelona, but as the medium of this Post Office has not as yet been availed of the above company must still be plying.
Effect of con- ditions on the general
service and postal
On the outbreak of war postal communications with Gibraltar by the overland route via Madrid and Paris became very irregular, and the British mails arrived at Overland mail uncertain intervals up to the end of August, sometimes by land and sometimes by sea. Early in September the train service between Dieppe and Paris and several communion- places beyond, when the French Government had temporarily withdrawn to Bordeaux, were taken advantage of, and frequent communications were likewise maintained by sea.
tions.
Postal com.
About the middle of September the service was less irregular, the train con- nexions between Paris and Havre having improved; the transit of the mails took five days.
The service was further and better regulated in October by the introduction of a tri-weekly service in both directions between Bilbao and Falmouth via Madrid. The train connexions at Bilbao were faulty, resulting in a loss of some twelve hours and a transit, still, of five days. This connexion and the direct sea route, averaging about twice a week, continued till the return of the French Government to Paris on the 22nd December, when the regular route overland was again availed of, the time in transit taking some twenty-four hours or forty-eight hours longer than in normal
times.
Our mails have only suffered one mishap, those for France of the 23rd October having been accidentally burnt in transit by the mail van having caught fire between Bordeaux and Paris.
Direct mail communications with the United States of America were cut off munications till the 27th of September, when the Atlantic route reopened, the 8.8.
"Cretic " having made the passage here from New York in ten days.
with Amaries,
With
Morocco,
Mails convey- ed by German vesela curtailed.
The service by the Royal Mail steamers with Morocco and the Canaries was resumed on the 3rd October, after two months' abstention. The local mail service between this and the Morocco ports continued unmolested.
"
The mails ordinarily conveyed here by German vessels during July were not by any means augmented by the fact of the reduction in the number of German vessels plying between Great Britain and Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay, and which harmonized with the period of the agitation in Servia. On the contrary, the North German Lloyd Mediterranean service ceased with the call here of the " Konig Albert on the 18th July, outward bound. In the China service of the same com- pany the "Lutzow" was the last to call, outward bound, on the 22nd July, and the "Goeben," homeward bound, for Southampton and Bremen, on the 29th July. In the Hamburg-American Mediterranean service the "Moltke" was the last to call, on 24th July, outward bound to Algiers, Naples, and Genoa. Vessels of this company do not call here homeward bound to New York. After the actual declara- Directions tion of war a number of important services in various directions became dis- miscellaneous organized, if not entirely suspended. Mails to the enemy countries ceased, and those hitherto despatched by way of France to countries in Northern Europe were diverted by a longer route with the United Kingdom; those for Southern Europe to such routes as became open from time to time. A special service to Russia was taken by way of Malta twice weekly, thence to Odessa. With the outbreak of war with Turkey it became diverted to the United Kingdom and Finland. The altera- tions made by belligerents and some other countries of the Union directly or in- directly affected the services; for instance, Egypt (proclaimed a British Protectorate on 17th December) on the 23rd October suspended all postal relations with Turkey, Syria, and Turkish offices in the Red Sea. War was not formally declared with Turkey until 8th November; in the meantime correspondence for Turkey was sent via Salonica.
taken of
malla.
157
GIBRALTAR
Through lack of support Germany temporarily stispended its insured service to her own possessions and other countries, including the United Kingdom and her Colonies, on the 8th August. After her armies had retreated in disorder on 12th September, she, on the 14th September, notified that she was open to admit all mails from and for those countries with which she was not at war. Correspondence was then sent by way of Amsterdam and by way of Italy, thence direct by sea or by way of Barcelona. It may be of interest to note that, as Germany was the last country to close her postal agencies in Turkey, on the 25th November, Austria was the first to do so, on the 30th September, some time before the abolition of the capitulations.
Another feature of the present situation has been the large number of letters Postal and parcels sent to German prisoners of war interned here. The duties of postal censorship. censorship over these and other correspondence has been entrusted to the Post Office.
Hampered though they were by the war, it will be seen that the postal services of postal generally have maintained their organization as near as possible corresponding to communica that in times of peace, and that the postal communications with the Mother Country vice as in have never been actually suspended.
MaintenanOS
tions and
peace time.
General
There has been an undoubted set-back to the steady progress noticeable in the conclusion. past; so far as can be foreseen, a return to such an entirely prosperous state cannot be anticipated during 1915.
Gibraltar, 24th March, 1915.
GOLD COAST.
Correspondence relating to military operations in Togoland was published as [Cd. 7872], April, 1915,
37796/S
SIB,
(Secret.)
HONG KONG.
No. 58.
THE GOVERNOR to THE SECRETARY OF STATE. (Received 2nd October, 1914.)
Government House, Hong Kong, 12th August, 1914.
I HAVE the honour to transmit the enclosed paraphrases and translations* of cipher and code telegrams received from you in connexion with the outbreak of war with Germany, and paraphrases of telegrams addressed by me to you on the same subject. I much regret that in some of my messages the subject and dates of the telegrams received were not clearly indicated.
2. Immediately on receipt of your telegram of the 29th July, the steps laid down for the precautionary stage in the Defence Scheme revised to December, 1911, were taken.
In addition, editors of newspapers were warned that the publication
of proscribed information would render them liable to the penalties mentioned in the Official Secrets Act, 1911.
3. The Agents for Lloyds and for Reuter's Telegrams Company, Limited, were also requested to refrain from issuing information concerning the movements of His Majesty's ships and troops, or as to the dispositions for defence.
The Press and these Agencies have observed the most correct attitude.
4. Arrangements were at the same time made in conference with the General Officer Commanding the Troops and the Commodore for protecting the Naval coal stores and establishments, and for instituting the Examination Service as soon as instructions should be received for bringing it into operation.
* Not printed.