CO129-294 - Governor Sir Blake - 1899 [10-12] — Page 137

No. 360.

Sir,

COPY

134

General Post Office,

HongKong, 19th.. May, 1899..

I have the honour to acknowledge receipt

of your letter dated the 23rd. January last in which

you state that the paragraph in your Directors letter

to which reference was made was written on the assump-

tion that the Indian Mails were shipped from Hong-

Kong for conveyance to India and that you now under-

stand that with the exception of a few instances the

HongKong Mails for conveyance to India have been

shipped to Colombo out state that you are still of

opinion that the Company are entitled to payment for

the carriage of the Indian Malls in the terms of an

agreement entered into between the Postmaster General

and the Superintendent of your Company in June 1888.

I should be obliged if you would kindly

inform me whether you are now prepared to admit the

claim for refund for the years 1895 and 1896 which

18 put forward by the HongKong Government, provided

that your Company is paid by this Government for the

actual mails carried by non-contract Steamers from

HongKong

H.A.Ritchie, Esq.'

Superintendent of the F and 0 Company,

B Ô N G K Ở NG